If you were paying attention to bicycle-related media outlets in the 90s, you’ll probably have a hazy recollection of the antics of Eric Baronè and Christian Taillefer. They spent a substantial part of the decade attempting to go faster than one another with the aid of Alpine speed-skiing slopes, aerodynamic helmets, rubber suits and “bicycles” that in some cases actually were the “engineless motorbikes” of cliché.

The record topped out at 222km/h (138mph) in Les Arcs in 1999, from Eric Baronè. That ride got all the attention, but at the same time an Austrian rider, Markus Stoeckl, topped 187km/h (116mph) on a standard DH bike. Both those records – the “prototype” and “series” records – have stood ever since, largely because French interest dropped off.

But now Stoeckl has returned, demolishing his own “series” record and coming within a whisker of Baronè’s record on a stock Intense M6 kitted out with Shimano components (including, most pertinently, new XT Servo-Wave brakes with 203mm rotors). The venue was the recently-renovated speed track at La Parva in Chile, a 2,000 metre long, 45° slope. Spring weather had reduced the width of the piste, and thanks to visor fogging Stoeckl had to do each 40-second run holding his breath.

All went according to plan, though, with Stoeckl recording a best speed of 210km/h (130mph). And he reckons that, given better conditions, he can crack Baronè’s overall record on another occasion.

You can see footage of the record-breaking speed run (complete with German commentary) from Der Spiegel.