What the devil.....

German artist Didi Senft, known in the bike racing world as 'the devil' for his unusual habit of dressing up in a red costume with tail and pitchfork and, ahem, encouraging riders in races such as the Tour de France is claiming a new world record: the world's largest tandem.

At 81.5 kilograms the giant two-seater is in no danger of upsetting the UCI's weight limit commissaires, though its 6.38 meter length and 3.13m height almost certainly contravene a whole raft of technical rules.

Senft says he hopes the enormous bike will make it into the next edition of 'The Book of Alternative Records', alongside the backwards cycling hour record (29.1 kilometres) and the record for running 100 meters in Wellington boots filled with custard.