He’s ridden a motorbike on water around the world and now local daredevil Robbie Maddison has done it in his home town.
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On Tuesday night a select group witnessed the freestyle motocross superstar take to the Shoalhaven River.
Taking off from the Shoalhaven Caravan Village on the southern bank of the Shoalhaven River Maddison made a number of journeys out onto the waterway.
He will make his first public appearance on the “waterbike” at Cockle Bay on Darling Harbour as part of the Sydney Motorcycle Show this weekend, putting on shows at midday both Saturday and Sunday.
“It’s exciting,” he said.
“I just had to do a bit of fine tuning ahead of this weekend so took the bike, which is a fully registered watercraft, out onto the river and did a few loops.
“It was great to be able to do it in my local area in front of family and friends.
“The looks on the kids’ faces. The excitement and fist pumping when I took the bike onto the water was incredible.
“For many of them it was the first time they have actually seen me do it live. That was pretty cool.”
Maddison is back in Nowra until at least Christams.
He will again go under the knife with surgery on his knee and shoulder on Monday, before against starting the arduous recovery process.
The looks on the kids’ faces, the excitement and fist pumping when I took the bike onto the water was incredible.
- Robbie Maddison
“Hopefully after this I will be all good again and will be able to resume my deadly Shane Warne-like leg spinning career,” he joked.
Brett Austin from the Shoalhaven Caravan Village said it was “one of the best things” he’s ever seen.
“Just amazing,” Mr Austin said.
“It was unreal to see it - I’ve watched Robbie riding around the world, especially his adventures riding on water, which has been a long process for him. To actually see him do it live was incredible.”
Maddison mastered riding on water, taking on the waves at Teahupoo in Tahiti.
After setting world records for distance jumps, performing a backflip over London Tower Bridge, conquering a replica of the Arc de Triomphe in Las Vegas, leaping across the Corinth Canal in Greece and off an Olympic ski jump in Salt Lake City, Maddison also had a dream of being able to ride on water.
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In 2015 after years of blood sweat and tears and lots of development he managed to complete his dream, taking on the waves at Teahupoo in Tahiti.
It was great to be able to do it in my local area in front of family and friends.
- Robbie Maddison
Earlier this year the Shoalhaven-based daredevil took it to another level again.
Following on from his Pipe Dream adventure in Teahupoo, he tackled the legendary Killers break off the Isla Todo Santos.
Footage of him attempting to catch 30 plus foot waves appears in Pipe Dream 2.
Along the way he also set a world record for the longest distance ridden on water, travelled 19.8 miles in 31 minutes 29 seconds, averaging 36m/h, with a top speed of 45m/h along Mission Bay, San Diego, California.
He dedicated the effort to Blake Becker (19) who in 2016, inspired by Maddison’s own efforts, built his own bike to go on the water and set the world distance record of 17 miles.
Tragically he drowned just days after setting that record.
Mastering his dream of riding his dirt bike on the ocean also led to Maddison doubling for Vin Diesel in the xXx movie, The Return of Xander Cage, in which Diesel rides (or appears to ride) his bike across water. He has previous done the stunts for Daniel Craig as James Bond in Skyfall.
He also rode his KTM 450, 1.7 kilometres up the Yarra River in Melbourne last year to promote the Big Bash, where he performed stunts at Melbourne Renegades’ home games.
He has even taken his love of motorbikes to the snow, riding snow bikes, a cross between a dirt bike and snowmobile and there is talk this he may even stretch the boundaries even further.