Robbie Maddison back flips over 100-foot gap on London's Tower Bridge

Robbie Maddison is one of the craziest freestyle motocross riders on the planet, and in the wee morning hours in London he touched down safely after jumping the raised Tower Bridge's gap over the Thames River in London.

The Australian became the first in history to accomplish the feat, but what does that say? It's not as though people are waking up figuring how to jump the 100-foot gap of an iconic bridge.

Then again, maybe they do. After all, Maddison had already negotiated the world's longest motorcycle jump (350 feet), and the highest vertical "step-up" at the Las Vegas replica of Arc de Triomphe, which was followed by a drop of more than 85 feet to a landing ramp below.

"People say I'm crazy, but I just want to push the boundaries of my sport and my body to the limit and I love taking on these huge challenges," said Maddison, who is sponsored by Red Bull. "It was an incredible feeling to fly between the two towers and over the Thames."

Maddison will return to London on Aug. 22 to participate in the final stop of the Red Bull X-Fighters World Tour 2009 at Battersea Power Station. He won the Calgary stop of the series in May. The 2009 Red Bull X-Fighters Texas event will air Sunday (July 19) at 10::30 a.m. on ABC.

Hope you enjoy the video.

-- Pete Thomas

Video courtesy of Red Bull USA