Watch a rocket-powered bicyclist hit 207 mph in 4.8 seconds

Francois Gissy likes bicycles. He finds going fast on motorbikes or in cars too secure, but short of flying down Ventoux at 60 mph, pedal bikes aren't particularly fast. Which is why Gissy decided to throw some rockets onto his bicycle. Now it hits 207 mph in 4.8 seconds.

That speed delivered Gissy a new world record last week at the Circuit Paul Ricard in the south of France. Unsurprisingly, Gissy broke his own record of 177 mph – because who else would ride a rocket-powered bicycle that looks unsafe at even 10 mph?

When not in pedal mode, propulsion derives from three small thrusters, powered by fuel with a high concentration of hydrogen peroxide. Total output is the equivalent of around 566 hp, and the weight of the bike is presumably akin to a garden snail.

This equates to the most insane, unsafe speed attempt ever witnessed. And as shown in the video below, Gissy makes the driver of a 650-hp Ferrari 430 Scuderia look like a total idiot. Although on further inspection, the man clinging to the 200-mph pedal bike is arguably far crazier.