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Two new world records have been set by Japanese biker, Tomomi Nishikubo, for the world's Steepest Fakie Nose Manual. Nishikubo is known for his trials skills (think almost like parkour, but on wheels) and the insane amounts of control he's able to exercise on mind-boggling features. However, for his latest feat, Nishikubo has brought his skills to a ski slope.
Two years ago, Nishikubo came up with the idea to do a fakie nose manual down a Nordic ski jump hill. In other words, ride his bike backward, balanced on only his front wheel, down one of the massive, steep jumps used by Nordic jumpers for training.
Nishikubo set his sights on a jump at the Hakuba Ski Jump Stadium in Nagano, which is located at the bottom of Happo-One Ski Resort. The stadium was built in 1992 and used for ski jump events at the 1998 Winter Olympic Games.
The slope on the 120m jump has a maximum angle of 37.5 degrees, which, for reference, is roughly as steep as a black diamond ski run. After many, many attempts, Nishikubo successfully rode 136.6m backward down the slope, setting the Guinness World Record for both the Steepest Bicycle Fakie Nose Manual and Longest Distance Traveled by Bicycle Fakie Nose Manual on a Ski Jumping Hill.
Tap or click below to watch. Jump ahead to 5-minute mark of the video to see Nishikubo's successful attempt.
Nishikubo initially attempted the record in 2024, but was unsuccessful after more than 35 attempts. He went back to the drawing board and tried new tire combinations to get more grip on the slope.
Nishikubo's second round of attempts saw him run through 10 brake rotors as they kept overheating, causing his wheels to keep spinning even as he grabbed the brakes.
Additionally, a net laid over the turf on the slope was snagging his tire and causing him to crash in the same spot repeatedly. Eventually, he switched from resin to metal brake pads, which kept the rotors from overheating and allowed him to complete the feat.
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