Freeride Competitors are Unstoppable in Canadian Contests

As the return of Red Bull Joyride nears, freeride competitors have been bringing out all the stops to make their mark on the Slopestyle scene. With Mike Ross landing the world’s first cashroll off a flat drop, David Lieb and Max Langille earning themselves wildcard spots at Red Bull Joyride, and David Godziek taking his fourth straight gold medal win, freeride mountain biking may be entering a new era.

Title Slopestyle at SilverStar Bike Park was the beginning of a month-and-a-half long Slopestyle trek through British Columbia, Canada and it saw some familiar names drop into the course expertly designed by Brett Rheeder and Matt MacDuff. But while a podium featuring (1) David Godziek, (2) Lucas Huppert, and (3) Nicholi Rogatkin is exciting in itself, it was what happened off the podium that took the mountain biking community by storm.

Scoring only 2.67 points shy of podium position was David Lieb, and although he walked away with no medal, he did earn himself a golden ticket – wildcard entry to the 10th anniversary of Red Bull Joyride. On his goals for riding at the legendary event?



The Freeride Mountain Bike (FMB) Gold level event also saw Australian Mike Ross make quite the name for himself as he not only made his Gold level event debut, but simultaneously landed the world’s first cashroll off a flat drop. Making quite the splash across the mountain biking community, the trick also got some of the top Slopestyle riders hyped for what’s to come. Third place finisher, Nicholi Rogatkin, commented on how the course is built to support riders in their push for progression.


Full results from Title Slopestyle at SilverStar Bike Park.

Another course where riders were able to give it their all and really step up their riding was at Big White Invitational hosted by Tom van Steenbergen. After putting down a run that earned him a gold medal at Title Slopestyle at SilverStar Bike Park (and Eurobike Skyline Ride before that and Birell BikeFest before that...), David Godziek continued his winning streak and secured his fourth FMB gold medal in a row. With Red Bull Joyride right around the corner, Godziek isn’t succumbing to the pressure though, he’s just taking in this wave of highs and feeling “super excited for riding the course in Whistler.”

The podium at Big White Invitational was rounded out by two Canadians, Max Langille and Ben Thompson, who were equally stoked for one another being good friends on and off the course. Representing on home turf in a big way, Langille not only walked away with a silver medal, but a wildcard to Red Bull Joyride.


Full results from Big White Invitational Hosted by Tom van Steenbergen.


As the world’s top Slopestyle athletes switch their focus to the return of Red Bull Joyride this weekend after its two-year hiatus, Lieb and Langille are already thinking about their time on the legendary course. Having competed at Diamond level before during Crankworx Innsbruck 2021, Lieb is no stranger to the amount of work that goes into reaching this height of freeride mountain biking.


Having already tricked some of the features during the first few days of training on the Red Bull Joyride course, Langille is taking it all as it comes and really enjoying the moment for what it is.


Other top riders making their way to the home of Slopestyle include Emil Johansson, Nicholi Rogatkin, Erik Fedko, and Tim Bringer. The full start list will be updated here.

The 10th anniversary of Red Bull Joyride will be taking place Saturday, August 13 at 4:30pm PDT. The event will be live streamed on Red Bull TV.