When Thomas Oehler rides in to town, no curb, statue or student is safe.

The world champion trial bicyclist surprised university students Wednesday afternoon in front of McKeldin Library and at Hornbake Plaza to showcase his skills. The 30-year-old jumped over student volunteers on his bike, among other feats; with each new trick he performed and each volunteer he added to the demo, Oehler attracted more and more onlookers.

As the last stop for his 10-day “Back to School” tour through Mid-Atlantic college towns, Oehler’s visit to the campus came as a surprising, albeit not unprecedented, event — he’s been touring schools for half a decade, and the university has been a stop for three years in a row.

“Colleges are usually a really good place to ride with a lot of ledges,” he said. “And then you have all the young college kids, and they get super excited. It’s always a lot of fun to travel around to different campuses and meet people.

“Oh, and rub the turtle. I’ve done that every year.”

Oehler didn’t stop at rubbing Testudo’s nose; he jumped onto the iconic Terrapin statue and rested his two wheels on the shell before hopping off.

The biker, who calls Innsbruck, Austria, home, has been riding trial bikes since he was 12. He took an interest in the bikes while playing in his neighborhood growing up. He wanted to start competing but wasn’t sure if the obstacle-filled BMX-like activity, which Oehler described as similar to parkour, was even a sport.

Once Oehler and his family discovered he had a talent for jumping around obstacles on his bike, he excelled: In 2001, when he was 18, Oehler won second place at the world championships, which landed him a full sponsorship with Red Bull. In 2008, he was crowned world champion, having never received any technical training.

“I had a coach for physical training, but not for trials, not for technique. When I started, I just learned everything by myself,” he said. “Just by trial and error, that’s what it is.”

During yesterday’s three demonstrations — two in front of McKeldin and one on Hornbake Plaza — students volunteered to lie side by side, up to seven at a time, as Oehler zoomed over them and landed inches from their heads.

Senior studio art major Marianne Walker was one of the students who decided to put her trust in Oehler.

“I like being a risk-taker, and he seemed like a risk-taker, so it seemed like a good idea,” she said. “When he came over, it was really exciting; like, ‘Wow, someone’s bike just went over my body.’”

Captivated students pulled out their smartphones to document Oehler’s moves. Maryland English Institute freshman Abdulelah Alsalem recorded a video and immediately uploaded it to Instagram.

“I saw him with his bicycle and some people laying down on the floor; I thought some accident happened,” he said. “It surprised me when he jumped three people, but then he had more volunteers, up to seven. It was very strange and dangerous, but I liked it.”

Oehler has had time to make his college rounds because he hasn’t competed for the last five years. He’s even been a student himself, spending time earning a degree in sports science and now working toward his master’s in international business. Although he hasn’t been competing, Oehler hasn’t lost his competitive streak: He holds a world record for the highest wall climb on a bike and is now waiting for confirmation on a second world record for a race he recently completed.

“I challenged the current Olympic champion in 400 meter hurdles, and I won,” he said. “There was no record before that because nobody did it yet on a bicycle, but I made it in 44.6 seconds, and the current world record for the runners is 46.67 seconds.”

Although he’s been spending time in school, Oehler said he considers it more of a hobby. The sport he discovered when he was 12 continues to be his passion and driving force.

“If you love what you do, you’re going to do it right,” he said.

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