Click photo to enlarge
Ian Soanes, who will attempt to wheelie down Dunedin's
Baldwin St today, practises for what is believed to be a
world-first stunt. Photo by Matthew Haggart.
Cardrona stuntman Ian Soanes has a New Year resolution
which befits a man they call the "Wheelie King".
Today, Mr Soanes will line up at the top of Baldwin St, in
Dunedin, to wheelie his way down the world's steepest street
on his motorcycle.
Soanes is hoping to add Baldwin St to his impressive resume
of world-first stunts.
"It hasn't been done before. It's a challenge and I thought
`I should do that,"' he said of his bid.
The key to pulling off the trick is maintaining a precarious
tipping point down the 19deg street - that, and not cooking
the bike's rear brake, Mr Soanes said.
"It's not death-defying or anything, but it is very
difficult.
"Anyone can wheel-stand up a hill, but when you go downhill
you have to be behind balance point or the motorbike keeps
speeding up.
"You're on the point of falling the whole way down."
The 55-year-old said his main concerns were a "bit of road
rash" and a possible back injury if his bike falls on him.
"Things can go wrong with any stunt, but if you remove all of
the danger then I feel like it's cheating.
"It's about taking a calculated risk. You think through any
stunt really carefully," Mr Soanes said.
He will ride a two-stroke 250cc Suzuki Enduro, which, unlike
a four-stroke bike, will not allow him to engine brake.
"Having the brakes fail from overheating coming downhill on
such a steep slope is a real possibility," he said.
Mr Soanes, who owns and operates the Cardrona Adventure Park
in the Cardrona Valley, has fashioned a 30-year stunt career
during which he has jumped monster trucks over aeroplanes and
through burning double-decker buses, been the first person to
wheel-stand a tractor and performed leaps on motorcycles.
His stunt career has resulted in numerous injuries sustained
in crashes or when stunts have gone wrong, such as the time
he was crushed by a tractor when it tipped on him while he
was driving it on two wheels.
Mr Soanes will attempt his Baldwin St stunt at 5pm today.
Baldwin St
- World's steepest street
- Length: About 350m
- Maximum angle of about 19deg, or a gradient of
1:2.86.
- Motor stuntman Ian Soanes plans to wheelie his 250cc Suzuki
Enduro two-stroke motocross bike down Baldwin St at 5pm
today.
