This is far and away one of the craziest videos we’ve seen in a while, but it leaves us feeling a little uneasy. Just because something can be done, should it?
The video by DC shoes shows Robbie “Maddo” Maddison riding a motorcycle on waves. And not just any waves, but world famous breaks at Teahupo’o and Papara.
We will concede that the video is remarkable. No doubt, the technology to make a motorcycle plane like a snowmobile over a lake is amazing. But raging through the lineup on a tricked out motorbike?
Coral reefs are incredibly fragile environments already under pressure from a host of factors. Recent studies state that as many as 27 percent of monitored reef formations have been lost and as many as 32 percent are at risk of being lost within the next 32 years.
And while this video doesn’t show anything specifically damaging, we can only imagine what would happen in event of a mishap — oil and gasoline in the water. Or maybe a sunken motorcycle thrashing across the bottom dragged by ocean currents.
The ocean faces immense pressures from human activities. Adding a noisy, motor-powered machine to the list when there are already incredible ways to ride waves under human power seems pointlessly risky.
Sure, this is cool as heck for a one-time video. We just hope this contraption doesn’t catch on. We’re guessing the locals won’t be too stoked.
