Video: Cam Zink & Friends Attempt a First Descent on 'Slide Mountain'

68 Comments

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Bomadics (Jan 16, 2019 at 12:22)

Aww man, you know that feeling when you are leaning back in your chair trying to bring the view up?

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EeehhZink (Jan 16, 2019 at 18:30)

Thanks for posting it! Youtube is hard to get going, but I have a lot of edits I want to get up on it, so hopefully this will help get some subscribers.

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eswebster (Jan 16, 2019 at 12:49)

Must be nice to never have to worry about your bike because you know you have 10 new ones waiting whenever you want them.... oh bush... lets just huck this thing onto the rocks, oh more bushes...repeat... A first, and must have been cool in person... watching not that great.

scott-townes (Jan 16, 2019 at 12:54)

wahhh That was awesome! The top part looked so sketch but the lower section seemed like paradise.

iiman FL (Jan 16, 2019 at 17:21)

wen't freeriding once in a terrain I know, just to certain unfamiliar area, having checked only satelite images (smart, I know). I had to do the throw-a-bike thing in a 40° uphill, the bush was ulex. It was a long f*cking hour to clear about 200m. No rocks tho, XD

Grunk (Jan 16, 2019 at 17:23)

If you're using the "Nah dude...my bike.." excuse you're either not comfortable admitting when you're uncomfortable and/or you're too obsessed with your bike...

joedave (Jan 16, 2019 at 18:12)

Glad I’m not the only one who cringed.

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EeehhZink (Jan 16, 2019 at 18:21)

That bike has been through a lot more than that... And it still runs amazing. One per year. It will be replaced with the new Jeffsy when my shoulder is better, though!

Arzeripper (Jan 16, 2019 at 19:38)

@EeehhZink: Much respect Cam! Ignore the guys that never have anything good to say, just want to pick apart everything they see. It was filmed very well, super crisp, and the editing was pretty baller. Scenes chosen gave a good setup for what/where you guys were going to go and ride, me personally though, unless a girl as hot as your wife was waiting for me at the bottom it would be no 'effin way Im riding my bike down a slope like that. Ski... maybe... bike... oh hell naw'!

eswebster (Jan 17, 2019 at 7:24)

@EeehhZink: Heal up man! I bet the thing gets abused the way you ride. Wasn't trying to hate at all, so hopefully not received that way.... just some stuff doesnt translate great on gopros... the from the road shots made the slope look almost vertical.

kabanosipyvo (Jan 17, 2019 at 18:15)

Those bushes are Manzanita. They smell like cinnamon and scratch you up, but are plenty sturdy enough to cushion a bike thrown on them.

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jeremiahwas (Jan 16, 2019 at 21:35)

Whether you were ‘entertained’ by the video or not, misses the point. This is what MTB is about for me - adventure. The unknown. Some risk. And if possible, experienced with like-minded friends. It doesn’t come to you, you have to seek it out.

NVJAY775 (Jan 17, 2019 at 10:49)

This is a local spot for me too, and I'm seriously interested. For the exact reasons you mentioned.

kabanosipyvo (Jan 17, 2019 at 18:13)

@NVJAY775: Having worked on that mountain, including rescuing people that went too far down that side in winter, be aware that what Zink and crew did is VERY committing. Once you drop into the steeper part, it is impossible to climb back out unless you already placed ropes. The only way out is down (or maybe sideways if you are lucky). I'm not saying don't do it, just that there are consequences, and if anything goes wrong it will be a long time before help arrives.

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suspended-flesh FL (Jan 16, 2019 at 12:22)

Drifting corners in the trees at the bottom looked way more fun than the face but I came to offer friendly help with the spelling of Tahoe. Sorry - couldn't resist.

EeehhZink (Jan 16, 2019 at 18:20)

You had me sweating! It's spelled right, though: youtu.be/4nqAf6a2bRg?t=49

suspended-flesh FL (Jan 17, 2019 at 9:09)

@EeehhZink: She had originally spelled it Taho

suspended-flesh FL (Jan 17, 2019 at 9:13)

@EeehhZink: Not your spelling - the PB story blurb below - it got fixed pretty quick.

Cam Zink and his friends Ray Syron, and Trevor Boldi head out on a self-filmed adventure over 4,400 feet to bag the first descent on Slide Mountain, named for its past recurring landslides. The steep slope is visible from the highway as you drive between Reno and Lake Tahoe, and Cam Zink says the idea of descending it came to him after filming Where the Trail Ends, but he wasn't keen on the idea of lugging a downhill bike up to the top. It wasn't until trail bike technology got good enough that he realized it could actually be possible to bag the descent in a day.

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atfarley (Jan 16, 2019 at 15:35)

Really cool video but it always strikes me: there are more and more videos for people to point to if they don't wan't bikes in wilderness. This is a prime example.

esstinkay (Jan 16, 2019 at 20:43)

I grew up in Gardnerville in the 80s and remember when that landslide happened. It was a big event and my classmate lost her father to it.

oneheckler (Jan 16, 2019 at 14:13)

I sometimes do that but in a different scale ,but the feeling in the end is the same so ride on

EeehhZink (Jan 16, 2019 at 18:28)

Since Where the Trail Ends didn't get people everywhere to just hike up a hill and ride it that this will. Cheers!

mensch-mueller (Jan 16, 2019 at 15:04)

It seems that camera technology has not evolved after Super-8...

EeehhZink (Jan 16, 2019 at 18:24)

The Rylo... Sorry they kinda suck at compression, and not really worth the whole artificial gimbal.

Hardtailhooligan (Jan 16, 2019 at 21:36)

@EeehhZink I hope the shoulder is doing good. I hate to go total fan boy but when I shattered my ankle a little over a year back I looked to you for inspiration. As a dad of 2 myself and seeing how you never let an injury hold you back from sending it and doing what you love helped me out a lot. I was pretty bummed out initially but after watching Reach for the Sky like a week after my surgery it had me up and on a stationary and motivated to get back on the aluminum steed. I can’t wait to see you send that cash roll this year! You’re the man

NVJAY775 (Jan 17, 2019 at 10:58)

Thanks for posting this up @EeehhZink! I'm down in Gardnerville and am hitting up a buddy of mine to check this out next season. Stoked you guys are getting in rides like this around here. Enjoy man and thanks again! Subscribing to your station too.

Singletrack-minded (Jan 19, 2019 at 18:47)

No that looks fun! My kinda trail ride! Makes me anxious for the snow to melt out here and get back to riding... only if I had the funds to just head south right now to go ride...

ov3r1d3 (Jan 16, 2019 at 13:19)

....relate more, critique less....not like you’re at a theater for a premiere...

timrippeth FL (Jan 16, 2019 at 14:11)

Nice one Cam. Norvada!

SintraFreeride (Jan 16, 2019 at 22:54)

I case anyone was wondering that is the derinitiion of Freeide!

keyul (Jan 17, 2019 at 6:11)

I look at that and think of descending slide every morning when I drive by on the way to work

kgbdhbiker (Jan 16, 2019 at 12:38)

Lower trail/corners through the trees!!!

spaceofades FL (Jan 16, 2019 at 18:08)

This is why I don't like 360 cams. Terrible quality, and not very engaging

EeehhZink (Jan 16, 2019 at 18:29)

Furr sure. Sticking with the 7 from now on.

Studer (Jan 16, 2019 at 12:18)

On a... Jeffsy?

Dnik (Jan 16, 2019 at 12:31)

Who would’ve thought it would be possible to descend something like that with such a steep HT angle? Can xink, defying Pinkbike opinion.

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number44 (Jan 16, 2019 at 12:53)

'Trail bike'; or what - back in my day - we called a 'mountain bike'.

EeehhZink (Jan 16, 2019 at 18:29)

@number44: That's what's up!

anomandaris (Jan 16, 2019 at 18:39)

Rad vid Cam! That's a fun line in winter but never would've considered a bike descent. Sick!

mtbakerpow (Jan 16, 2019 at 12:51)

nice ,good to see a little sluff from time to time. Turns earned!

devanish (Jan 16, 2019 at 16:43)

Great mix, who's the Artist, and what's the name of the song? Shazam failed to recognize.

EeehhZink (Jan 16, 2019 at 18:28)

My good buddy, Libs on Soundcloud soundcloud.com/libsworth

cky78 FL (Jan 17, 2019 at 5:01)

@EeehhZink: "Won't be the first, won't be the last" artist is your buddy? Uncanny resemblance to a Canadian artist Classified. You guys should check him out. You'd like his stuff!

GDPipsqueak (Jan 17, 2019 at 3:45)

Sneaky little Pyga cameo there.

mhgg1981 (Jan 18, 2019 at 17:33)

Forget Enduro , this is called Landslide. The Tip man was doing this in the late 90's...it is called freeride!

PaulFrance (Jan 16, 2019 at 18:32)

Good to see Trevor and cam doing well after past injury's

TahoeSue (Feb 26, 2019 at 10:43)

Trashing our trails is not cool!

powthief19 (Jan 16, 2019 at 12:32)

strange...i didn't see any crying meth heads in the video... i heard Reno/Tahoe is overrun by them!

Sick video...cool to see some hometown representation!

timrippeth FL (Jan 16, 2019 at 14:06)

Meth heads don't climb mountains. I'm from Reno too. I get stoked when I see the hometown trails. Looking forward riding the local stuff when we are home for the summer.

rebel12 (Jan 21, 2019 at 19:52)

Beautiful pine forest. So different than where I call home.

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VTwintips (Jan 16, 2019 at 16:55)

I don't see how you can call it a first descent when there are already mountain bike trails that go down the mountain in other spots. Anyways, going down there is a good idea. Was planning on doing it this summer. Thanks for the scouting report!!

EeehhZink (Jan 16, 2019 at 18:24)

The main face was a first descent. The fire roads up and the trail we connected with at the bottom are well traveled. The main face was about 2500 feet, but the whole ride was over 4k. Hopefully more people like you send it!

VTwintips (Jan 26, 2019 at 11:00)

@EeehhZink: Cool to hear from you! I will! Probably going to avoid a couple sections you took though, if possible.

joedave (Jan 16, 2019 at 18:10)

I hope I’m not the only one cringing at 2:30 ish when Cam tosses his Jeffsy through the brush... I like Cam but I’d have left that out of the edit personally. No go IMO.
Must be nice to be sponsored and get free frames etc.

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EeehhZink (Jan 16, 2019 at 18:22)

Just taking you guys along for the ride. Those manzanitas are gnarly... Had to crawl below them and send the bikes over top.

Icehawk (Jan 16, 2019 at 21:05)

you really think tossing it through some thick bushes a few times is worse than the crashes most of us have from time to time?

joedave (Jan 16, 2019 at 21:09)

@Icehawk:
No, I do not; however I don’t voluntarily crash and I prefer to protect my investment as best I can. Nice bikes are expensive and seeing one tossed into the, potentially, unknown makes me cringe a little... that’s all.

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Bryanan (Jan 16, 2019 at 22:19)

@trjoedave: By definition, bikes are not an investment. Riding is much more fun once you accept that!

Loki87 (Jan 17, 2019 at 4:28)

I'm pretty sure you can't do the things Cam does without total disregard for your bike.
I always hear this thing about protecting the bike from people who don't shred too hard (no insult,just an observation). Past a certain point of speed and elevation, any rider has to accept that the bike will always have to be the first thing that gets sacrificed in order to protect yourself if things go wrong. Once you've tossed your bike into the landing of a fest size jump or thrown it down a couple rampage drops multiple times, a bit of brush doesn't seem bad at all i guess.

teagues (Jan 17, 2019 at 8:20)

@trjoedave: Wait, a bike is a toy/tool, but certainly not an "investment."

joedave (Jan 17, 2019 at 9:21) (Below Threshold)

@teagues:
100% agree that a bike is a toy and a tool, however you’re wrong regarding ‘investment’... when I paid $4k for my bike I consider that an investment.
By definition, and Google, an investment is (not in the Wall Street sense);
2. a thing that is worth buying because it may be profitable or useful in the future.
3. an act of devoting time, effort, or energy to a particular undertaking with the expectation of a worthwhile result.

I think that would classify my bike as an investment.

Why is this being taken out of proportion?
I applaud Cam and the video, the ride looks sick as!!!
However I also believe in taking care of my equipment that I paid a lot of hard earned money for... which discludes voluntarily throwing my bike over/through brush into the unknown.
This is just my opinion, everyone has their own gig. You do you.

mkotowski1 (Jan 17, 2019 at 17:51)

You must have never ridden somewhere that requires you to hike off trail. Sometimes you gotta does the damn thing. It’s not a piece of glass

DH-Angel (Jan 16, 2019 at 15:57)

let's keep it real. that was the worst trail on the planet with a foot deep powder downhill and moving 5 miles per hour at best. No one will ever ride that trail again.

Trudeez (Jan 16, 2019 at 18:33)

It's not a trail. It's a freeride line and a first descent at that.

Tearsforgears (Jan 16, 2019 at 17:39)

Meh. Guess you had to be there.

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savage47 (Jan 16, 2019 at 12:28)

Hate when they ruin good video with SHIT music. I watching everything on mute from now on.

ceecee (Jan 16, 2019 at 14:22)

Lyriks are obsolete

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IsaacO (Jan 16, 2019 at 16:35)

"i hate when the rest of the world doesn't create their free content to cater to my own personal tastes"