Mad Media headed out to Desert Center, California during the most intense heat wave in history. In 120 degree heat at an abandoned iron mine called Eagle Mountain, Mad took 4 RED cameras (3 RED EPICs and a SCARLET) to shoot a grueling video showcasing the Polaris RZR XP1K -- a heavily modified version of the production model Polaris XP1000 UTV. The result is a 10 and a half minute thrill ride featuring a souped up dune buggy and one insane driver.

Josh Martelli of Mad Media described the tough conditions this way:

"In short - it was hell. The gnarliest conditions we've ever worked in. Hands down. The dirt ranged from a fine soot - to thick gravel. We dealt with bees, flies, and the fear of rattlesnakes, tarantulas, and mountain lions! A few of us ended up getting IV fluids because of the heat, but no serious injuries."

Unimpeded by a loud soundtrack, the audio of the engine sounds true to life and that's because it is. They did a sync of all the cameras involved with on-board and remote audio.

"We ended up with TC accurate audio for every take, for every camera that was rolling. This made editing a LOT easier as we wanted to be sure the raw car sounds were authentic."

Despite the conditions, MadMedia never lost a shot. They used an RC helicopter and a full-size helicopter to capture some of the action. Martelli summed up the shoot:

"To us - the video feels like what any of us would want to do if we came across an open playground like this. It's designed to tap into that raw childlike urge to go fast and break stuff!"

Mad Media was kind enough to pass along some behind the scenes photos of their shoot. Check them out below. Watch the full video above and find more featurettes and media at madmedia.com.