Kymco UXV gets airborne

Most Kymco UXV500 ATVs are being employed on large properties and farms -- or getting bogged as the Editor discovered -- but one particular UXV500 has been sailing through the air with surprising regularity.

The crew at Nitro Circus has been filling up the Kymco UXV500 with driver and three plucky passengers before hitting a huge ramp and getting airborne, then slamming back down to terra firma with disturbing consistency.

Putting the UXV500's suspension to the test, the Nitro Circus team has been "jumping the UXV 500 over 10m in the air" says Kymco, which is clearly chuffed that the thing hasn't fallen to pieces mid-show.

The Nitro Circus live show kicked off in Australia in early 2010, making us the first country to witness the live show, which is set to make its way around the world in due course.

"While this breath taking stunt is something that both Kymco and Nitro Circus insist should not be tried at home, it did prove Kymco's superior engineering, reliability and stability," says the Taiwanese motorcycle company.

The 36hp UXV500 has an electronically activated diff lock that would be useful out on a property, but is unlikely to be used during death-defying stunts.

As well as Nitro Circus, Hey Hey It's Saturday also used the UXV for 'stunt practice' with Plucka Duck at the wheel, in which the gigantic duck also performed a number of tricks.

Now if only Robbie Knievel jumps through a pane of glass surrounded by a ring of fire on a Kymco UXV500, the stunt jump celebrity trifecta will be complete!