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Stuntman's 'Near-Death' Motorbike Wave Ride

An Australian stuntman has spoken of the moment he thought he might die while riding a huge wave on a motorbike at one of the world's most powerful surfing breaks.

Robbie Maddison rode the giant wave in April at a legendary surf break known as Teahupo'o off the island of Tahiti on a motocross bike adapted with skis.

The 34-year-old stunt rider spent months planning the feat and told Surfer magazine that the years he spent surfing as a child helped him understand the dynamics of wave riding on a bike.

"You can't see that when the wave broke right behind me, I honestly thought that might be the end of my life," he said.

"I've never felt like I was in the wrong place at the wrong time more than I did right there. It was a near-death experience.

"At the end of the day, the images and footage say something pretty awesome, but the ferocity and how gnarly that thing was can’t really be put into words."

Video of the stunt uploaded to YouTube has already received more than two million hits.

Teahupo'o (pronounced CHO-PO) is recognised by big-wave surfers as one of the most dangerous and challenging locations to surf due to the huge volume of water sucked up and razor sharp coral reef that lies just feet below the surface.

Often referred to as "the heaviest wave in the world," it was included in Transworld Surf's list of Top 10 Deadliest Waves and it has claimed the lives of five surfers since 2000.

Maddison said the idea to ride Teahupo'o on a bike came to him while he was watching his wife wakeboarding at home in Australia.

He told Surfer magazine: "We were cruising along the river and I’m looking at the wake coming up the back, watching her wakeboard, and something clicked in my head.

"I fantasised putting skis on a bike and riding on water. It was a stupid vision at the time, but I kept toying with it, playing with designs and concepts, and eventually it became a reality."

The motocross world champion, whose motto is "face your fears, live your dreams," was towed into the break by a colleague on a jet ski to enable him to catch the wave.

"I was up on the jet ski right in front of where the lip was hitting the water, parallel to the reef - it was just so epic," he said.

"That scene will live with me forever."