To overcome adversity and challenge himself to the limit, Ivanov traveled to Baikal to race his bike on the surface of the ancient lake.
"I always wanted to visit Lake Baikal," Ivanov said. "I was lucky not only to see the incredible lake, but to come here with my racing bike. I've always wanted to get out of the race track and try the big ice with no fences and protective bags."
Together with a Red Bull Media House crew, the moto racer arrived at the lake at the most dangerous time when the ice begins to melt and big cracks appear on the surface of the ice making racing on it extremely dangerous.
Locals believe that prior to undertaking risky adventures, one should always ask for a shaman's blessing. Ivanov ended up doing exactly that with a local shaman circling around the moto racer in an ancient ritual, asking benevolent spirits to help the man.
During the blessing ritual the shaman circled in the direction of the sun, while Ivanov matched his beat by riding his bike in the opposite direction. The pair created a perfect harmony, as the dynamics of their rotation merged into a single mechanism.
Racing on Lake Baikal was a surreal adventure even for an experienced moto racer like Ivanov. It was the first endeavor of such kind in the history of Russian flat track moto racing.
