Long Way Home: World’s longest bicycle stretches nearly half a football field in length

What has as many as 40 legs, two wheels and is over 130 feet long? It may sound like a riddle with which a third grader would vex his parents, but the answer isn’t some fantastical creature — it’s a Guinness World Record bicycle…

Nine months in the making, the world’s longest bicycle was the brain child of second-year mechanical engineering students from the University of South Australia in Adelaide. To qualify for an official Guinness World Record, the bike had to be able travel a minimum of 100 meters, without riders touching the ground.

Mastering balance and control on 135-foot 10.7-inch (41.42 m) long two-wheeler was like learning to ride a bike all over again. Riders toppled their unwieldy, three-ton behemoth on the first attempt, but managed to avoid serious injury.

In the end, the team successfully broke the record for Longest Bicycle, by reducing the number of riders from 20 to seven. The pedal pushers were all positioned toward the back which sported a wide roller for a wheel.

The previous record was held briefly by members of the Mijl Van Mares Werkploeg (Netherlands). The video showcasing their 117-foot 5-inch (35.79 m) long bicycle has been viewed nearly 25 million times on YouTube.