FMX Champ Luc Ackermann Performs Mother-Son Backflip Jump

German-born Luc Ackermann is a rising star of freelance motocross. And while the 25-year-old daredevil was already known for being the youngest athlete ever to perform a double backflip on a motorcycle, his latest stunt also makes him an all-star son.

For Mother’s Day this year, Ackermann skipped out on the flowers—since his mother Melitta, 55, runs a Mühlhausen nursery with his father Dirk, after all. Instead, the X Games world champion made history with the woman who gave him life by becoming the first mother-son duo to perform a tandem backflip on a freestyle motocross bike.

But much to the Red Bull-sponsored athlete’s surprise, it was actually Melitta who wanted to perform the high-flying stunt.

“The idea came from my mother herself, who has always wanted to do a backflip with me onto a real landing since her 50th birthday,” he explained. 

It was a jump Ackermann had done thousands of times and had mastered to the point that he could land it in his sleep. Still, in the interest of safety, he had specially made footrests attached to his bike to give his very special passenger additional support and stability.

And with those precautions in mind, the jump went off without a hitch. Together, the pair succeeded in performing an dramatic backflip about eight meters high and 13 meters above the ground, landing safely on an airbag. 

“Before the first jump… I noticed that my mom was extremely nervous. But she trusted me,” Ackermann said. “That was the most exciting jump of my life. I’m super proud of my mom for doing it.”

The jump was even more impressive considering that before this, Melitta couldn’t even bear to watch her son perform live stunts. “I don’t like watching,” she admitted. “I can only look when the event is over and I know nothing has happened!”

“It was an incredible experience—I wouldn’t do it again, though,” she added. “But I realized that Luc had everything under control at all times.