The Boot Key drawbridge was removed in 2010, leaving a 65-foot gap in the decommissioned Marathon bridge that connected mainland Marathon to the mangrove island of Boot Key. For world-renowned stuntman Travis Pastrana, gaps that size aren’t an issue.
In a jaw-dropping jump that is projected as the opening shot for the next “Gymkhana” installment – a series that is widely regarded as one of the most popular motorsports films, with its last episode racking up more than 51 million views on YouTube – Pastrana partnered with Hoonigan Industries to send a car over the open span twice on July 11, clearing a helicopter hovering in the gap.
“In Marathon, we had the perfect location to do something really insane,” said Vin Anatra, Hoonigan vice president of business development. “We think that this is going to be one of the best films that we’ve made.”
The stunt marked the film crew’s second trip to the Keys in 2022, with previous shoots occurring throughout the islands in January. The Boot Key jump was always Hoonigan’s main target, but initial plans to jump the bridge were nixed by Marathon’s city staff, citing liability concerns and a lack of planning and coordination with appropriate emergency services. Shooting was further delayed when Pastrana suffered a broken pelvis in a base jumping accident in Miami just days after the first Keys shoot.
But at its June 2022 meeting, the Marathon City Council voted 3-2 to approve the stunt with a list of contingencies, including a load test to ensure the structural integrity of the bridge and a comprehensive operations plan. Negotiations between the parties were spearheaded by Fort Lauderdale-based producer David Wells, who encouraged Hoonigan executives to revisit the idea of the shoot and eventually secured a pledge of $30,000 from the company to be used by the city of Marathon for youth recreation programs.
“We’ll put some light on Marathon and how beautiful this place is, but we also know it’s a bit of an inconvenience for everyone involved,” said Anatra. “So we want to make sure that we could at least give back to the community and make sure that they really see that support and appreciation from the inside.”
Pastrana’s ride for the flight was a “car (he’s) dreamed of his whole life”: a heavily modified 1983 Subaru GL wagon. Dubbed the “Family Huckster” by Hoonigan in a nod to National Lampoon’s “Family Vacation,” the car features carbon fiber body panels as well as “active aero” elements – flaps that can be manually controlled to adjust the car’s flight in midair. The screaming four-cylinder engine punches out an astounding 862 horsepower, enabling Pastrana’s approach to the bridge at speeds approaching 130 mph.
“When we came here, we wanted to do a throwback,” said Subaru motorsports manager Bill Stokes. “It’s historic, classic.
“This car is more of a brick, but it’s designed to be adjustable. We tested it quite a bit at Opa Locka Airport and made sure that with the takeoff angle that we have the speed to get the distance that we need. … This is up there with the craziest (things we’ve done).”
The jump may have been among Hoonigan’s craziest, but Pastrana made it look easy, clearing the gap with plenty of room to spare and covering the south side of the bridge with celebratory burnouts. And just because one time wasn’t crazy enough, the crew used a crane and barge from Marathon Seawalls & Docks to re-load the wagon onto the north side of the bridge for a second jump as the Black Rifle Coffee Company helicopter made a high-speed pass through the gap.
The next “Gymkhana” film does not have a set release date yet, but most production executives said it should be available within the next few months.
