He might have missed much of the AMA Supercross season through injury, but James ‘Bubba’ Stewart has recovered just in time for another crucial contest – Red Bull Flugtag Miami
The number seven double Supercross champion has enlisted the help of his mechanics to adapt the trusty Yamaha YZ450F bike he uses for races into a world-beating Flugtag craft.
"I'm excited to compete at Red Bull Flugtag because my 'craft' is awesome and the guys building it are super-smart and have really gotten into it," Bubba comments. "But I'm a bit nervous about pushing it off a 30ft drop!"
For the uninitiated, Flugtag sees plucky teams do battle in a bizarre collection of ‘flying machines’ (‘Flugtag’ in the original event’s native German language simply translates as ‘Flight Day’), which are launched off a 30ft (10m) ramp. Points are awarded not just for the flight itself but also the effort that goes into the craft’s humorous or clever design, and the matching attire of the accompanying ‘pilots’. (See here for a selection of wacky competitiors from the recent event in Sweden.) This is just as well, as most craft drop like a stone straight into the water below.
The actual flight record, however, is 155ft (50m), and this is something Bubba hopes engineer Randy Yoho, and friends Anthony Paggio and Eric Sorby on the day, can help him overhaul.
Straight after this flight, Stewart will be on another – to a slightly more serious testing session with Yamaha ahead of his planned comeback to AMA Supercross action.
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Bubba to take flight