On the motorbike seat, she started the engine, sped up and began a death-defying performance inside the track known as Satan’s Barrel.

Sri Wahyuni was the star of the most-awaited performance at the night fair in the outskirts of Medan city in Indonesia’s North Sumatra province.

She began riding Satan’s Barrel at 17, drawn to it by curiosity while searching for work. Now 25, she’s a key performer in this iconic Indonesian night fair act.

Riding in Satan’s Barrel requires courage. The riders don’t wear helmets on the velodrome track, also known as the Wall of Death.

Wahyuni always rides with one other biker, and sometimes as many as five ride on the circular track, its painted wooden walls 6 to 10 metres (19 to 33 feet) in diameter.

That, of course, makes the audience nervous.

Wahyuni works at least four hours a night. One recent evening, the single mother took her 5-year-old daughter to the fair, fed her, then let her wait at the ticket box during the show.

At the end of the performance, the women spread their arms and even held hands on their motorbikes, signalling the finale.

Advertisement

The audience stuck out their hands to give money from the top of the barrel, and Wahyuni and her partner welcomed the bills one by one, a tip for the excitement they presented that night.

Afterwards, they tidied up the bikes and counted their tips.

Wahyuni earns a weekly salary, but the tips help with rent and daily needs for her small family. She admits it is difficult for her to find a new job or start a business by herself.

“I am hoping for the best. I think there is no way I can keep working like this,” Wahyuni said.