First Time Photographer at the Claymore Challenge Finals

My Experience

I recently started getting into photography, and with a cracked frame I found that the Claymore Challenge was my opportune chance to truly test my skills. Being a fairly young, inexperienced photographer I felt the pressures of being around such professional, talented, experienced photographers. The whole event I found that everybody was really nice and talkative about the sport. When your younger your parents tell you "not to talk to strangers," yet I found myself in conversations with people I didn't even know. That is one of the things that is so great about mountain biking, you'll be talking to complete strangers yet you feel like you've known them their whole life (well at least their whole riding life). The mountain bike community is one of the best communities in the world, and this event made me realize this even more than ever.

The Event

Every single person threw down. However only three people can make it on the podium. In third place was Martin Soderstrom with multiple bangers, with a 3 double whip not to be forgotten. Brett Rheeder came in second place throwing a front flip off the drop. And the legend himself, Brandon Semenuk, won the whole event for the fourth time in a row, landing an opposite downside whip oppo 3, and a corked out 7, Another thing not to be forgotten is the first ever flat drop backflip thrown in competition by Sam pilgrim.

Reece Wallace with a nice 270 out of the satellite dish.


For some reason everyone loved flipping the first step down on the course.

Tyler McCaul tail-whipping the first satellite dish.

Fashion statements were at an all time high at the Claymore Challenge. Sam Pilgrim rocks the sweater-vest-bow-tie-t-shirt, telling everyone that he's sexy and he knows it.





Sam pilgrim going huge over the channel gap.

Reece Wallace back flipping the geax step up.

Martin Soderstrom had a sick day landing himself in 3rd place.





A dusty crash after an attempted front flip on the red bull free bird.


Semenuk taking the win with a massive whip in his victory lap.