A Canadian from Whitehorse, Yukon has launched himself into the world record books with the longest snowmobile jump ever.
In case you don't understand:
Ross Mercer drove his snowmobile at 126 km/h off a five-metre high ramp, parachuted 80 metres across a flat terrain and then landed -- without injury -- on a downward hill.
His exact Guinness World Record, 80.3 metres, is measured by the distance travelled in the air horizontally from the end of the up ramp to the point of landing.
The previous record was 74.6 metres.
"I wouldn't say I shattered it (the record) but we definitely raised the bar quite a bit... it's a significant gain," Mercer, whose original goal was 77.5 metres, told CTV.ca
It took Mercer two days and 67 attempts before he broke the record in Steamboat Springs, Colorado.
It was the first time Canada's best freestyle sled-X rider tried for the ramp-to-ramp distance record.
With multiple sponsorships, including one by Red Bull, Mercer has travelled around the globe showcasing his talents.
He said there are only about 20 to 30 people in the world who take part in freestyle snowmobiling.
But the sport, which includes ramp and back-country freestyle, is rapidly becoming more popular -- with droves of fans showing up for events and even hounding Mercer for autographs.
"It's really pushing towards the mainstream and that's where it needs to go because it was such a small audience before... now it's being presented to people that didn't even know it existed."
