French cyclist François Gissy just strapped a hydrogen peroxide rocket to the frame of his bike and hit a record-breaking top speed of 163 mph! The epic thrill ride took place at abandoned runway in the northeast of France. Pushing a simple mountain bike to speeds it has never seen before, the Frenchman broke the rocket-powered bike record of 150.74 miles per hour set in 2002.

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The rocket was manufactured by Swiss company Exotic Thermo Engineering according to Gissy’s specifications. Concentrated liquid hydrogen peroxide is mixed with a catalyst, typically silver, which causes it to decompose into heat, water (steam) and oxygen. The steam provides thrust as it is forced through a rocket nozzle.

Although Gissy beat the record of 2002 he missed the overall cycling speed record set by 50-year-old Dutch cyclist Fred Rompelberg in 1995. He pedaled in the slipstream of a dragster in Utah, USA, and reached a speed of 268.8 kilometers per hour. He was provided with considerable help by the slipstreaming effect of the lead vehicle.

Via Gizmodo and CNET