After attempting everything feasible on Earth, freestyle motocross legend, Tom Pagès, is pushing the limits of what’s possible in the air by combining freestyle motocross (FMX) and parachuting. His latest feat is a world first: launching a double front flip off a cliff in Avoriaz (FRA), landing with a parachute, and riding away on 2 wheels. Pagès accelerated up a 7-meter high ramp at 80km/h. He shot out over 55m from the cliff, doing a double front flip in the air then free falling on his motorcycle at 150km/h before deploying his parachutes for landing, 30 seconds later and 170m below.
Here is all you need to know:
– The 36-year-old – who also has five X Games gold medals, two silvers and a bronze – wanted to combine freestyle motocross (FMX) and parachuting in a thrilling world-first project that would see him launch a double front flip off an Avoriaz cliff, land with a parachute and ride away.- He explained: “I enjoy parachuting in my spare time, when I’m not riding. I took it step by step. I started training in a wind tunnel, then skydiving in 2015 with the Soul Flyers
– Vince Reffet and Fred Fugen. Next came my initiation to BASE jumping from a helicopter, then from a bridge on Reunion Island with Loïc Jean Albert (air sports pioneer). Afterwards I learned to jump from a cliff with Aurélien Chatard aka Bras Noir (Black Arm). I was petrified by the idea, but I couldn’t help imagining what it would be like jumping on a motorcycle. Finally I’ve had the opportunity to realise my dream.”
– After a three-trick freestyle run on the pedestrian streets of the famous Alpine resort, Pagès shifted into fourth gear and accelerated up a seven-metre high ramp (standard ramp averages 2m70) at 80km/h.- He shot out over 55m from the cliff, doing a double front flip in the air then free falling on his motorcycle at 150km/h before deploying his parachutes for the landing 30 seconds later and 170m below.
– He revealed: “There was no better place for this than Avoriaz! It’s a magical spot: surrounded by nature, with wooden architecture and great infrastructure. The resort really lends itself to freeriding, and it’s the only place I found a vertical cliff face over 130m high. All the conditions had to be met, because we couldn’t leave anything to chance. The hardest element to manage was the one you can’t see in the video: the wind.“- BASE jumping with heavy motorcycle equipment (helmet, boots, and protective gear) reduces the field of vision and blurs ground markers, so his team specifically developed the parachute for the motorcycle with a manual release integrated into the seat – a technological feat.- Pagès added: “It’s a career-defining project: combining the two universes that I adore, FMX and parachuting in the same performance. It’s also a life-defining one, mixing influences in order to surprise people and showing up where they least expect it. For a freestyler like me, creating isn’t just inventing a new trick, it’s following through on an idea, whether a physical or technical challenge.“
Watch Flight Mode by Tom Pagès HERE.
Images free of charge for editorial use.
Credit: Antoine Truchet and Oliver Godbold for Red Bull Content Pool
Contact: fabian.ress@3mpg.ch / +49 173 2488404