Don’t dare Jason Erickson to do something crazy he just might do it. Why else would he have built a 14-foot bike? Erickson’s housemate, Jonathan Banks, had stumbled upon the Guinness Book of World Records entry for the world’s tallest bike, which then was 14.2 feet tall, and said, “Hey, we could beat this.”

“I was like, ‘Sure, I’ll build it if you ride it,’ “Erickson says. It may have started as a joke, but within days, Erickson had built this 14-foot monster out of several thrift-store bikes. It was meant to be a prototype, until the pair could build a bigger one to squash the record.

“After riding this, we decided not to go any taller. This was enough!” he says. The current record is 17 feet; Erickson’s is in about fifth place.

So how do you ride it? First, find a building or telephone pole, and set the bike against it. Climb up the tubing like a ladder, have a seat, and push off.

“Once you push off, there’s no room for mistakes. You’re riding,” he says. “It’s probably more like flying than riding a bike.”

He and Banks are the only ones who’ve ridden it, and they spot each other. The bike has no brakes, which would be pointless anyway. They only ride in abandoned parking lots and always together. He says stopping is the scariest part, but they’ve never fallen.

“One guy in a second-story office was looking out his window,” Erickson says, “and was quite surprised to see somebody ride by on a bike!”

BIKE BUILDER

A mechanical engineer, Erickson got into bike building at the University of Nevada, Reno. For four years he helped build bikes for the annual American Society of Mechanical Engineers Human-Powered Vehicle Challenge (asme.org). He got hooked on the hobby, which is why his back yard looks like a bicycle graveyard.

One of his many projects was inspired by last year’s snow storms: a bike with three fat wheels, which gets around nicely in snow. He also rides another bike around town, which is as tall as a bike stacked on top of another. And he’s currently building a recumbent for the World Human Powered Speed Championships in Battle Mountain this October. The current world record is 81.05 miles per hour, and Erickson hopes to beat it. Perhaps he’ll break a record yet.

If you’re interested in Erickson’s progress or his bikes, visit ericksonracing.com.

Jessica Groach-Santina is a Sparks-based freelance writer and writing instructor at the University of Nevada, Reno.