Red Bull Rampage: Catch-22
Cast against big wave surfing and skateboarding, moto freestyle or big mountain skiing, it's arguable that Rampage takes the cake as one of, if not the, gnarliest sporting events in the action sports world. Alongside backflips over deep desert canyons, and drops into nothingness, viewers watch as mountain bikers either shred or rag doll their way down a cliff riddled, booter laden, singletrack scratched mountain face. You can not watch a lot of sports. But once exposed to its unadulterated extremity, it’s near impossible to not watch the Red Bull Rampage.
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And while the tightly controlled GoPro and Red Bull edits of action highlights, crash compilations and behind the scenes continue to be released on the interweb, it’s quite obvious that the corresponding exposure for our sport is massive. Unprecedented actually. This and the network NBC show hasn’t even aired. Nothing in mountain biking comes close. So then, enough said? A job well done. All is perfect in the Utah desert?
Well, maybe not.
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I had the unique experience of working as the Kona Team manager during this last Rampage, the second I’ve attended (the first I was a journalist for Bike Magazine). Working with Aggy, Antoine Bizet, Paul Bas and our team of builders and mechanics was a lifetime experience. One I’ll not soon forget. As someone who’s written about mountain biking since the late 90s, it afforded me an up close and personal glimpse into what is actually going on during the event. And as the days wore on and the stress mounted to near unbearable proportions, one phrase kept popping into my head: Catch-22.
Now a colloquial term that comes from the famous book by Joseph Heller of the same name, a Catch-22 is a paradoxical situation from which an individual cannot escape. Basically, you’re damned if you do, damned if you don’t. Having seen the event as close as you can get to the eyes of the athletes, I can confidently say that Rampage is riddled with parody.
That is not to say that the people organizing and funding Rampage are out for blood, but as the old adage goes, if it bleeds, it leads—if you watched the intro to the live webcast you saw 80% eating shit, 20% sticking it. It’s also not to say that riders are forced to participate in the event. Quite obviously, they’re not. But let it be known, that if you want to make a name for yourself as a big mountain freerider, if you want the sponsorship dollars that go along with that moniker, then you have to ride at Red Bull Rampage. You have no choice.
It’s also not to say that a lot of the riders participating in the event don't absolutely love it and wouldn’t want to be anywhere else. But spend time with them in the days leading up to qualifications and finals and you’ll see just how mentally and physically challenging the Rampage is on athletes, who, save for a couple of slopestyle riders, rarely compete.
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It should be noted that every possible effort has been made to respond to injury at the Red Bull Rampage. There’s a life flight helicopter on site. There’s a small army of paramedics scattered throughout the course armed with spine boards and defibrillators. On the flip side, every effort has been made to ensure this event is super dangerous. There are no guidelines to building, you can make anything you want. Anything you think you can ride, you can create. This on a mountain face riddled with cliffs and loose dirt, sharp rock and massive kickers into space. Sure, the dirt is soft, but the rock isn’t—and there’s a boatload of it. There is huge exposure everywhere. The first day I was shitting my pants just walking around. But it’s beautiful and photogenic and unique unto mountain biking. And without the propensity for great failure, there cannot be great reward.
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After Aggy’s second run, where he came within one stepdown of the run of his life, the Kamloops, BC rider, who’s never experienced huge Rampage success in his career, was obviously upset. He took solace with Brandon Semenuk, who barely stayed on trail after not being able to handle a deep compression after landing a sniper 360 on the upper part of his line. I asked Aggy what they were talking about and all he had to say was, “Basically how scared we were.” And they should be. As talented and brave as these riders are, the line is super thin. Take the technical preciseness of slopestyle riding then slap it on the side of a near vertical mountain face. That’s what these guys are doing. And guess what, even the best crash riding slopestyle.
And crashing here is as real as it gets. And if you can’t quite get that from TV, walk around the venue a bit and you’ll see that death and destruction lurks in every corner. If Brandon’s over the bars fumble after his 360 had happened 10 feet farther down his line, to the lip of his giant canyon gap and a 100 foot cliff, we’d be having a much different conversation right now. Just imagine the rift that would have in the sport. It’s that real.
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The Oakley Sender was a point of great debate during the event. It was massive this year, with the landing super narrow and steep as shit. In the building and practice days leading up to qualies, it was the elephant in the room. And right from the beginning, we all knew that Zink was going to flip it.
As the event played out, there were a few things to consider. It’s windy out there, and that skull faced drop of doom stood out like a sail. Many of the competitors, like McGarry, Cam McCaul and Norbs chose lines in the adjacent canyon where their jumps were less affected by wind. And while Kyle Strait and Cam Zink’s moves during the finals were nothing short of miraculous, their results proved that if you didn’t hit that sucker from the top, you were hard-pressed to make the top three. Fortunate for those two Oakley riders that one of their sponsors had the rare ability to brand and build a stunt in a Red Bull event. Unprecedented.
The Catch-22 for the other riders? Run the risk of spending tons of hours building your own super complicated, difficult, exposed line from top to bottom (i.e. Aggy, Semenuk, Tyler McCaul), or forgo burl and huge effort in exchange for go for-the-ages big. In fact, if we were to look at the top three finishers, all of them did something spectacular off of a built-up feature. Which is all cool, and huge props to those riders. Zink’s backflip was insane, and if he had a chance to do a second run, you would have seen him incorporate tricks into the top and bottom of his run, then attempting the biggest back flip in the history of the sport…again. But for those not willing to take such a massive risk (the top drop was only attempted a grand total of five times during the whole week), not hitting the big one ended up being to their detriment. On the flip side, if Zink or Strait made even the smallest mistake, it could have been the end of their career.
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It would be interesting to know the total price tag for this event. From the construction of the Oakley Sender to the camera coverage (there were nearly 60 staff on the film and TV production crew alone) to the safety, promotions and organization, it’s got to be well into the millions. Yet one of the big beefs of the athletes was prize money. Sure, if you do well at Rampage you’re guaranteed massive exposure, a real career boost to be sure, and there’s monetary gain associated with that. But for the most part, people don’t remember who came 5th or 6th or 2nd for that matter, and the prize money reflects it. Tyler McCaul will get $1,200 for his absolutely insane 5th place line. Cam Zink $4,500 for his 3rd place finish (he would also win $5,000 for best trick). The total prize money comes in at $55,000. For an event where athletes are risking their lives, with two serious injuries in the finals requiring medi-vac and a rash of broken bones throughout the comp, it doesn’t seem like the risk to reward equation is all there. Especially when Cineflex helicopters are flying dawn till dusk and Red cameras seem a dime a dozen. Catch-22? If you want to play in the big leagues, you have to play by the coach's rules.
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In the end, no one died. That’s the big sigh of relief I felt. And I know I wasn’t alone. It was a huge bummer that half of the field didn’t get to ride their second run due to a wind closure. For those who did, and risked it all in the name of Rampage fame, including Logan Binggeli, who broke his femur after missing the narrow Sender landing after a massive back flip on his second run, it’s even more sketchy. I heard Andreu Lacondeguy say, after blazing his second run and moving up to 3rd place (momentarily), then hearing word that only first run scores would count, “Holy shit, did I really just risk my life for nothing?”
At the same time, I felt a great weight off of my shoulders. Even though we spent hours upon hours shoveling and chipping in Antoine Bizet’s line off the top and constructing his own backflip kicker after the Sender, and would have to watch it go unridden, at least I knew that none of our guys would be seriously injured. The night before the event I couldn’t sleep. Thinking about his all-or-nothing-crazy-Frenchman attitude sitting out a wind/injury delay had me in a near panic state.
And sure, maybe this is something we need to get over. Motorsports, surfing, skiing and the like have all endured death in competition. Mountain biking never has. One team manager who works for another energy drink company said to me, “That’s when you’ll see the prize money go up, when somebody dies.” Harsh, but perhaps very true. At the Rampage, it was the word no one wanted to say, but everyone couldn’t help thinking. After watching a dude ragdoll off a 50-foot cliff during qualifying, miraculously escaping with just a blown ankle, you viscerally saw how close the “d” word was.
That all being said, the drama is palpable, and it transcends onto the computer screen. It makes for incredible entertainment that extends far beyond the cycling community. The Catch-22? How far can riders keep pushing in the name of the almighty view?
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Which brings us to the next point of contention. Is this part of the story we want tell in mountain biking? When does the pricetag of progression get too high? And is massive risk a central part of that? Thankfully, no one did die, or suffer a life altering injury. And yes, progression in our sport happened in a serious way. But know this, there will be another Rampage somewhere, someday, and it will have to be gnarlier than this one. That’s crazy. The world is watching and obviously, it wants more: bigger flips, crazier air, wilder crashes. This is the legacy that the Red Bull Rampage has created: amongst great risk comes huge reward. And as athletes and their bikes get better and bolder, they need an outlet that moves that into the mainstream. And finally, through the work of Freeride, Red Bull and H5 Events, the three parties who conceived the event 10 years ago, there are now legions of cinematographers and photographers on the ground and in the sky, armed to tell the story—good and bad—at every angle. Rest assured, the stuff that survives the cutting room floor is the craziest.
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Because Red Bull likes to mix things up, and with rumors swirling that this might be the last Rampage at this venue, it’s hard to know what’s next. Fact of the matter is, after Logan Bingelli’s horrific crash, which closed the course for nearly an hour, the winds picked up and a big black cloud encircled the venue. As a spectator, it was an eerie feeling, like Ma Nature herself had had enough. Up next? Zink and Strait, and with the Oakley flags snapping in the wind, organizers decided to call it, negating all of the athletes' second runs. For an event built around climaxes, it was about as anticlimactic as it gets.
It will be most interesting to see what happens next. Even with the injuries and the trepidation of a level of riding and risk unsurpassed in our sport, it’s arguable that this past Rampage might be the most visually impactful event in the history of mountain biking. Kelly McGarry’s GoPro silver winning run hit five million views in the first week it was launched. The world is eating it up.
Damned if you do and damned if you don't. “Defying the odds of getting hurt so bad,” in the words of Cam Zink shortly after landing one of the most impressive moves in all of action sports. But no matter what, even amongst all the parody, all the contradictory elements that make this event so unique, you can not watch Red Bull Rampage. You can’t turn away from athletes who are willing to risk it all in the name of doing what no one has done before them.
Photos: Sterling Lorence, Paris Gore, Nathan Hughes, and Colin Meager
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-Mark Frost
Industry and sponsors push for progression, push for marketing. It's riders choice, but it the brands publicity who push them to do it.
What happened to Sarah Burke, and most dead skiers is the same. Industry pushes them to do this events and competitions.
Until someone dies, the points of view of people will be more straight to rider skills and less kissing Red Bull ass.
Peace and Safe rides.
As we say in snow... "Better to give up one day, to live for ride more days".
And i dont agree about the riders safety b.s. They all want to be there. Theyre doing the same thing as most mtb's do. We all realise its a risk to go faster and bigger, they just do it at a completly different level.
They're promoting the sport to guys who already ride?It needs to be televised to grab the attention of a younger generation. Riders like Kyle, Aggy, Cam ( both) Semenuk should have posters, shows ect but its kinda like redbull is holding it back for themselves. Ask 100 kids 13-18 who Kyle Strait is and maybe 5 of them know who he is (by absolutely no means any disrespect Mr. Strait) but ask 100 kids who Rob Dyrdek is and almost all of them will know aswell as mom and dad. He's got loads of money selling DC shoes alone! If shows like life behind bars were on tv kids in Indiana suburbs would be riding Kyle Strait GT furys and Semenuk Treks without a single hill in site! sponsors are no good without buyers and these people doing the marketing are wearing blindfolds!
And to those saying that the athletes know the risks and choose to compete, you're absolutely right. But when you throw in sponsors' wants/demands, career pressures, and kodak courage the issue of choice becomes a little less simple. Yes, these athletes know when they start to make a career out of this sport that they may have to risk their lives like they do at Rampage. My point is that at some point enough is enough, and I don't want to see anyone die doing this. I love this sport and I respect the people who make a living in it, but morally I would seriously prefer a sport where you could make it without having to do suicidal shit. BTW, I highly recommend HBO's The Crash Reel, it sheds a little light on the darker side of these kinds of sports.
Take the example of F1; there is a huge industry within F1 that is purely there to improve safety for drivers, teams, spectators, race marshalls; the whole group. The drivers themselves are not scared of turning their back on the sport if they think it is too dangerous, as we have seen this year when they suggested they may not even race given the problems with tyres. It is time maybe for the FMB tour riders to have a union; to get themselves represented and protected against the ever increasing risks they seem to have to be facing as organisers keep upping the stakes.
The problem however, may run too deep. For every rider who says "That is suicidal, I reserve the right to not take part" there may well be (is highly likely to be) and young teenager with neither fear nor the sense to judge if the risks are worth the chance to "hit a big line with the pros". I hope that the day never comes when one of those bright young flames burns too bright for too short a time..... Great article and great comment.
And to Orientdave's point, I think in some cases we project a sense of fun and naivete ("we're all just in it for the love!") onto these guys when really they're freaked out like Semenuk and Aggy. And these aren't amateurs, these are guys who progressed the sport into what it is today. We know they're not afraid to go big, so when they're scared that should tell us something.
Sorry @YoungPedalwon, Your comment got in before mine did.
It's hard to believe how much doofuses like Rooney earn in relation!
And whilst I somewhat agree with the 'they do it because they love it' argument it would be naive to think there isn't pressure on them to compete when they may be unhappy to do so, and if it was you who had worked damn hard to get to a point where you were making a living out of riding, would you be so quick as to potentially end your career for a few thousand dollars? What about those who rely on you to bring in money, etc. I can say I would be thinking long and hard about it.
It is clear he'd rather jump off a cliff.
@Hslingsby I think you make a great point about moving the event somewhere other than Virgin. If all the lines had to be built from scratch again I don't think we'd see as many insane man-made features, and quite honestly that's the type of comp I would personally rather be watching. The more Rampage becomes a daredevil/slopestyle competition, the less interested I am (I'm not saying that it is, but I greatly prefer the natural freeride aspect of it).
Seeing someone go down with a serious injury is terrible and no one wants to see that but these type of things are consequences associated with calculated risk and if an individual wishes to consent to that risk then who are we to tell them no, your being too dangerous?
is even more dangerous. 204 race car drivers in the US have died since 1990, and over 80 spectators died in one crash alone in 1955 at Lemans:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=RMoh5hZAaZk&feature=youtube_gdata_player
Granted that comparatively not alot of people have competed at Rampage, but the riders are all very experienced and have the skills and experience that match the terrain. They could put up some safety nets in some crucial areas maybe, but beyond that nothing needs to change at Rampage. It is the most spectacular sporting event in the world and should stay that way.
Loved the line about shitting his pants the first day looking at the lines. Also there have been deaths at DH races, which the article implies hasn't happened. Blacomb had one in 93 when they had a DH race there, and Dave Watson died during practice.
www.jakewatson.com
And that's the real point here that I think some people are missing. That's the real question being addressed in this article. How far to we push the limit? How big can we make the venues we provide for these guys to ride? And what will it take to enact any change? As much as it sucks to say, the author of this article was probably right, in that it would take someone dying for anyone to seriously consider a change. And its not just mountain bikes. There's the same debates about halfpipe and jump size in skiing and snowboarding, mega ramps in BMX and skateboarding etc.
It is a fact that nobody has died at Rampage so I can make the accurate claim that it is safer than alot of other activities, including DH racing, though I'm pretty sure golf is only dangerous because of mother nature and old guys with hardened arteries overdoing it. Hell, nobody has ever even been paralyzed at Rampage or put into serious critical condition like we see on a somewhat regular basis from nearly ever form of bicycle competition. The reason is because the riders at Rampage for the most part are very experienced, study their lines carefully, and respect the terrain. That is why so few even went for the high line on the sender.
Besides, this is a once a year special event, not a series where they are doing it every couple weeks. Many of the stunts we see regularly in freeride videos have drops and jumps comparable to Rampage, and people have been seriously injured in them, so people will push the limits of risk regardless of Rampage. I don't hear anyone suggesting they tone down the risks in freeride videos, so why single out Rampage? The fact that they canceled the second runs due to wind shows the riders safety is a high priority, and they have repeatedly taken precautions at Rampage to make it safer, such as limiting spectator access and giving the canyon gap a safer trajectory.
All of this fear-mongering is purely subjective and when put in the context of the many risky activities humans engage in the risk is worth the reward. Think of all the soldiers who have died and are still dying in completely useless wars in the middle east. But because we are being entertained by guys going huge on bicycles we should feel guilty and want to restrict it? Crazy world with odd priorities.
That doesn't strike you as apples and oranges at all? Obviously some people do care about the environment, but it doesn't get fixed because it's a much more pervasive and complicated problem. Rampage is a small event with an easy fix: don't make stuff MORE dangerous. Saying that Rampage is a "suicidal rat race" just like the rest of the world is one thing. Saying we're okay with it is another thing entirely.
All I'm saying is that everyone on here complaining about the safety has completely whacked out priorities when you consider the big picture.
When somebody dies or is even paralyzed at Rampage then you might have a leg to stand on...until then it is speculation and fear-mongering.
I suggested safety nets in crucial areas, so I do have concerns about the safety. Another thing that would help immensely is giving the riders more than a few days to scout the course and prepare lines, it all seems a bit rushed and I wonder if all that hiking wears them out, maybe they could have a rest day.
You're constructing a false dichotomy. Your statements presuppose that you can EITHER be concerned about athlete safety OR the planet, when in reality there's no "hypocrisy" in caring about both, one, or neither; they're completely unrelated. You aren't overly concerned about the safety of Rampage, which is a legitimate position to hold, but trying to tie that to global warming is complete horseshit. They have nothing at all to do with one another. From your last post I'd assume you were against Rampage altogether, considering it probably takes thousands of gallons of gas to bring all the equipment, choppers, athletes, and spectators out there to watch this meaningless activity.... by your standards, in the "big picture" you must have "whacked out priorities" to care about riding bikes at all. Either that or you're simply making the case that the injury/death of an individual simply doesn't matter, which is a position that I (and pretty much everyone on earth) fundamentally disagree with.
most of the comments don't offer solutions like I did, just complaining that there is too much pressure on the athletes to assuage their own fears they experienced from psychological projection while watching it for free on the internet. "Someones gonna die!!!" And if you did make the jumps smaller twice
as many people would complain the next year about it not being big enough.
I guess I just find the concerns to be ironic. Sort of like how today the American FDA is banning trans-fats because too many inactive Americans who drive huge SUV's are dying of obesity. Meanwhile possibly the biggest
storm ever, super-charged by global warming, is getting ready to annihilate the Philippines where people have nowhere to go for safety. 300 miles wide and 200mph winds... Lets focus on the doughnuts instead? To top it off we have the not surprising announcement that greenhouse gasses are at an all time high at the same time global warming denialism is still quite prevalent. Oh the irony,.someone should wear a speedo swimsuit at Rampage next year..
And even if you did have a point, wringing your hands about global warming does nothing to help the people in the Philippines. It's just useless worrying that doesn't help anyone solve anything.
We constantly see road riding commercials but I have never once seen a downhill race advertised, even when we held the worlds here and the wc races, they don't bother to advertise it at all. I might be bias but road riding takes far less skill than rampage or downhill. Its mostly fitness and tactics. Don't get me wrong they still put in just as much effort and time training, but the range of skills it takes is much more narrow and less interesting. I think most people would rather watch downhill or rampage than a road race.....maybe its just me. :p
finish 70th in the golf masters, earn 17grand.....get first in a dh race lucky to earn 5k.....
Unfortunately skill has nothing to do with money these days, its the fat cats who sit in chairs with there million who sponsor events. Unless we sell out and go corporate we wont ever get the big bucks as riders.
There is a strong connection between spectator and athlete that goes both ways. They’re in cahoots whether they know it or not. Understanding the effects of this is important, and that’s hard to do because it requires some serious introspection, something many spectators and athletes don’t have the tools for. I didn't until well in to my pro career.
A big factor that contributes to how a spectator behaves and how an athlete performs is projection. Two of many examples of what I mean by this are:
If you don’t own your attraction to risk, you’ll project it out for all the pros to ‘real’ize. (Shadow)
Similarly if you don’t own your potential for awesomeness, you’ll project it on the pros to ‘real’ize it. (Golden Shadow)
When audience numbers rise, this has a powerful affect on the direction of our sport. There are now millions of non-athlete spectators who never take any physical risks projecting it out, and who aren’t nearly as awesome as us mountain bikers (wink ;-) projecting their awesomeness out, and this has huge control over the choices everyone involved in events like this make, including, and perhaps most potently the athletes; and until athletes become aware of this dynamic they are largely at the mercy of the masses, indeed a catch 22. As a Integral Master Coach™ (conscious plug), I work with athletes on issues like this, and I warn them that choosing to work with me to better understand these forces in a healthy way may either help them to optimize their performance or inspire them to quit-another catch 22!
Many folks who enjoy the cultural purity of our sport of mountain biking may have an allergic reaction to the way events like the Rampage have evolved. They don’t need to see such death defying stunts because they own their fair share of risk taking tendencies and awesomeness.
psyickphuk: 'shadow' is created when someone consistently denies their anger (or any other emotion) to a point where it becomes disowned; they are then unknowingly projecting their anger. I am not angry, you're angry. A 'golden shadow' is created when someone consistently denies their potential, for instance, when they say I am not talented, I am not talented, they end up disowning their talent and projecting it outward: 'I am not talented, but you're talented'. Of course the other person may be angry, but to the person with a shadow of anger the anger another person is expressing is basically twice as bad, it's their anger plus your disowned anger. There are various practices one can engage in to discover and re-own these shadow aspects of their being. So yes, spectators often have huge golden shadows: yes the pros are talented, but because the spectators have consistently denied and not acted on their own potential, they project it out on the athlete.
Example of who's doing it right: Cedric, TheClaw, EC..
Example of who's doing it crazy: Guys who break their femur in a major comp...
Just my thought against yours, thanks!
I see what you're saying and you are right about these guys all having their own sponsors etc and thus maybe prize money is not at the top of their priority list, however as I said I think the level of risk at Rampage should be reflected in the reward and although it is part of the FMB tour, personally I think Rampage functions as a standalone event in that it is totally different to anything else in the calendar. I think we're both right though and I don't disagree with you, I guess like most guys on here I just get a bit pissed off that riders with such skill and bravery are awarded comparatively little compared to athletes in more mainstream sports like Football who do little for what they get. I'm not saying that riders should earn the same as these guys as the level of exposure and money made from merchandising etc isnt comparable but I would just like to see them get a bit more. On the other hand, I could be wishing for the wrong thing as if there's more money involved then the money men will want more control of what happens and we may see some dumbing down of the sport to cater for the everyman (for example less tech tracks in WC's).
Who knows? I guess its just a Catch-22 situation
Lets not forget how popular Rampage is nowadays, with the winning runs getting millions of views on Youtube within a day. With an audience that is constantly growing and is so big already, surely there should be some provision of funding for adequate prize money?
I do agree with you that the Prize money certainly does not reflect the risks exhibited by the riders. And I hear ya on your statement on the frustrations of our idol athletes making significantly less than other big sport athletes (Football, basketball, baseball), especially when they are risking so much more. Of course you are right on their marketing incomes being much greater in other disciplines, but certainly there must be more money to offer. I suppose I am more the less worried about the negative connotations that can get mixed up with the rewards of money. It certainly is an interesting topic to debate, I'd love to see what the riders input on the subject.
@benplatt, The US's healthcare is more confusing then a 10000 block rubics cube! But I'd imagine that all healthcare expenses are being covered by the riders sponsors (Pending they aren't riding as a privateer). You're right though on the publicity that rampage is receiving. I've got a lot of friends who don't know what DH racing is, yet they are now sending me videos of rampage asking "Is this what you do?". There must be a fair amount of money floating around the event now a days!
www.youtube.com/watch?v=6iwiVwA221Q
Although I agree Maddison is amazingly brave and skilled, I defy anyone to tell me the risk here is greater than say Zink backflipping the sender and getting just $5000 in return.
Great article with some provocative questions. No easy answers.
Does the article carry the same weight? I don't think so. Rampage was originally a big mountain event. That is no longer the case, it's a media circus for promoting "mountain biking", which is funny, because about .0001 percent of mountain bikers ride terrain similar to Rampage.
And don't get me wrong, I'm a rabid fan, love to watch everything to do about it. However, I am one of the few who (beforehand) questioned the idea the sender to begin with, and was pretty much chastised for even suggesting it was "too much".
Many of the riders would be doing this with or without the contest. Zink did a "backcountry" backflip off like what, a 40 or 50ft cliff last year? Progression is a natural element of action sports, it was drives it.
"Mountain Biking" would do itself a favor, and look back at the heydays of the 90's, and be careful not repeat the same mistakes. It looks like it's approaching that same level again.
Money - not risk, is the factor here.
it all depends how/when/who raised you and what you value.
the pursuit of passions is one of em.
i'd say the peeps that shred rampage are passionate about their pursuit.
In my opinion Red bull isn't allowed to use those kind of things to make money. All the people watching MacGarrys run on youtube don't give a shit about him or his skills, they just want action and will forget about what they saw just after clicking on another video.
Red bull is turning passionated and talented guys into flesh. Shame on them
(sorry for my bad english)
As for your last ridiculous assertion, the reason these guys are doing these stunts is because it is their passion.
(Hint: Rampage doesn't involve being trapped by paradox within a bureaucracy. Catch-22 doesn't refer to merely not liking a causal relationship.)
Oh screw it, I'm gonna start calling everything an everything bagel.
And don't even get me started on how people use the word "ignorant". The author's use of catch-22 is ignorant, the real definition of ignorant, not the ignorant one.
2. For some definitions that don't. I'd have to go out on a limb & make a opinionated case to say you might not understand the passion involved with this sport. Rampage has to happen for the love and progression. If it doesn't the whole world might as well be over. It is a unavoidable circumstance if you ask me. (die hard comment, I know). So the "powers that are" have to plan the event & the riders have to ride. Everybody's stuck.
3. I think a major reason why so many definitions are being updated is because English is now a global language. It has to be dumbed down so the world can communicate more effectively. The downside of all this is that lots of intrinsic English knowledge & literature is not being used/modified/lost. So I understand your peeve.
I wonder if mountain biking has taken so long to move forward because there's too many pussy c*nts like the author of this article always questioning shit like this rather than just f*ckin' sending it. You can fall 5 feet & die if you land the wrong way. You've got 360 flips, 400' jumps & 100' vertical drops on 250 lb. MXs & 30' airs out of quarters on BMX & you're panties are all bent & bunched over some 30-50 footers in the sand on 8-10" travel bouncy bikes @ Rampage? Go home.
Yeah it's gnarly, but by comparison to the MX world, sorry bud, the truth is that still, no one does it bigger or better than they do & considering the tools that BMXers are using, they stomp the shit out of us too & I'm sad to say it. Rampage is not that gnarly. It's an evolutionary process like any other. We're getting there.
The only valuable thing I read here was that Zink & Strait are sponsored by Oakley. Something to think about. Thanks for that.
A link to a death during a DH practice back in 2003.... Just to say that it is a very dangerous sport and that deaths have occurred. It's not something to be taken lightly whatsoever. Shit happens, especially around crazy cliffs like the Rampage has. People should feel like its worth it.
A great doc on the NFL
www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/league-of-denial
I respect companies like Red Bull who help to bring sports like ours to the eyes of everyone and without them mountain biking would be much duller. They help push the limits of whats possible and give the riders the events they want.
It's all gibberish and "RedBull Shit". But hey that is capitalism, they do anything to get more money. People die in mines or unfair working places for a peny not even for 1500$ dollars and don't get as famous.
Anyways Thanks to all the riders who do it for its love, progress, the money and the fun of it. It's Gladiatorism wether you like it or not hence the name :"Rampage".
Having been the person who discovered the original Rampage site in 1998, while doing location scouting for Thor Wixom's extreme mountain bike video, "Down", and having been intimately involved with the set-up, planning, permitting and rider selection of the first year's Rampage in 2001, having attended every Rampage, and having known many of the riders, even prior to their involvement in the Rampage; I feel uniquely qualified to comment on this thread.
First off, a HUGE "THANK YOU!!!" to Redbull USA, Todd Barber (Formerly of Global Event Management, and currently the Grand Poobah of H5 Productions), the staff at the Bureau of Land Management's Dixie Resource Management Area, the land managers from the State of Utah, all of the staff and volunteers who have helped to make this event a huge success, and most of all, to ALL OF THE RIDERS, who are the main reason to even have the event, and who risk it all, in the name of "progression" "evolution" "entertainment" and "glory"!!!
Did you mean to write parody twice instead of paradox?
I'm content with what the riders are doing now... No need to die for it otherwise might as well call it Gladiator....