Imagine launching a car off a ramp completely sideways, hoping it spins like a top before landing back on Earth. Action sports icon Travis Pastrana recently attempted just that – a daring, world-first 360-degree flat spin jump using his wild “Family Huckster” Subaru GL wagon. This marked his third try at conquering this physics-defying stunt.

Pastrana and his team chose a frozen lake in Minnesota during a period of intense cold for the attempt. The plan involved sliding the all-wheel-drive Huckster into a high-speed spin on a specially prepared ice surface, hitting a large snow ramp mid-rotation, and completing at least one full 360-degree turn in the air.

“The goal is a 720,” Pastrana mentioned optimistically before the attempt, while also acknowledging the immense difficulty: “A lot’s going to need to go right for this to be successful.”

Setting up presented huge hurdles due to the negative temperatures, which froze equipment and complicated building the ice ramp and approach area on the lakeshore.

Extensive practice runs focused on finding the perfect balance between initiating a fast enough spin (at least one rotation per second) and maintaining enough forward speed (ideally over 60 mph) to actually clear the jump.

However, during the filmed jump attempt, things didn’t go as planned. Pastrana initiated the spin but approached the ramp visibly slower than ideal. “Your spin was not it. It was probably the slowest spin I’ve seen yet,” a crew member noted from the footage analysis.

The car launched awkwardly off the ramp while only partially rotated. It flew sideways through the air before landing heavily on its driver-side, immediately breaking suspension parts and briefly catching fire.

Pastrana emerged from the wrecked Huckster unharmed but clearly disappointed. “That was not at all what I had expected on the takeoff, I just didn’t have any speed,” he analyzed moments after climbing out.

He later speculated that perhaps trying too hard not to damage the car by being slightly conservative on the entry speed ironically led to the crash.

He reflected on advice from fellow stunt driver Jim to “‘Send it absolute max chat the first time…'” While the team showed the Huckster repaired at the video’s end, the ambitious 360 jumps remained uncompleted.

Attempting stunts like this requires world-class driving skill, careful planning, highly modified vehicles, and extensive safety measures. This is absolutely the domain of trained professionals in controlled environments.

Always remember, maneuvers seen in videos like this are extremely dangerous and should never be attempted by anyone without professional training, supervision, and safety crews present.