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What Happened with Benderoni at Rampage?
Who the hell is Kirill "Benderoni" Churbanov? Scrolling through the comments on Pinkbike, when the athletes list for Red Bull Rampage 2013 was released, his name littered the conversation.
"I kind of hope he brings his hard tail," one read.
Hard tail? Hard tail? People post some of the stupidest shit you've ever read on Internet forums, but this had to be more than that. Wondering what all the fuss was about, it didn't take much searching to find out why this dude was the instant crowd favorite.
Watching his eccentric and rough 2010/11 production, the hard tail comment quickly made sense. It seemed that's all he had. And he was hitting Rampage-sized features on it. His was the story of a hard-charging Russian's American dream. Or he's just mentally unstable. But I'll give him the benefit of the doubt. Benderoni showed the world that you don't need rich parents or generous sponsors to crush it. Quickly gaining internet stardom, and sponsors, he went full suspension.
The mountain bike business community, in its infinite desire to always give customers exactly what they want, acknowledged the widespread desire for more Benderoni and began filling the void. Leading up to Rampage, Bergamont gave Benderoni a big bike.
https://www.pinkbike.com/video/331852/
Why is that video password protected? That question will soon be answered. In the meantime, just know that it pumped shredders up around the globe for the possibility of an underdog victory at Rampage 2013. Or, at the very least, a great show. Rampage is always a horrifyingly entertaining spectacle. But as coverage began, the Benderoni-factor seemed sure to make this one an entirely new animal.
Then nothing. Not a word or clip of Benderoni in qualifiers coverage. What happened? Did the open loop fail? Did he waste too much time building it and, neglecting to practice the rest of his line, blow his run before he even got down to it? There was only one place to answer all these begging questions. The place where the real news coverage happens. The comments sections.
A few minutes sifting through the haters, shit-talkers and those completely unaware that Rampage 2013 is now already over, much less that Benderoni didn't make finals, and the real dirt surfaced. A link to an unknown, transatlantic social network revealed some international gibberish that Google Translate made quick, unreliable work of. He bowed out and will never ride his bike again? WTF?
Knowing that social media posts are not always the work of the alleged authors--I never did receive that free iPad--I'm left wanting more. I think we all are. As of now, it seems any video Benderoni himself posted on Pinkbike is now set to private.
Scott Johns is a freelance action sports writer and cinematographer. Find more of his work on his blog at ShredBums.com.
"I kind of hope he brings his hard tail," one read.
Hard tail? Hard tail? People post some of the stupidest shit you've ever read on Internet forums, but this had to be more than that. Wondering what all the fuss was about, it didn't take much searching to find out why this dude was the instant crowd favorite.
Watching his eccentric and rough 2010/11 production, the hard tail comment quickly made sense. It seemed that's all he had. And he was hitting Rampage-sized features on it. His was the story of a hard-charging Russian's American dream. Or he's just mentally unstable. But I'll give him the benefit of the doubt. Benderoni showed the world that you don't need rich parents or generous sponsors to crush it. Quickly gaining internet stardom, and sponsors, he went full suspension.
The mountain bike business community, in its infinite desire to always give customers exactly what they want, acknowledged the widespread desire for more Benderoni and began filling the void. Leading up to Rampage, Bergamont gave Benderoni a big bike.
https://www.pinkbike.com/video/331852/
Why is that video password protected? That question will soon be answered. In the meantime, just know that it pumped shredders up around the globe for the possibility of an underdog victory at Rampage 2013. Or, at the very least, a great show. Rampage is always a horrifyingly entertaining spectacle. But as coverage began, the Benderoni-factor seemed sure to make this one an entirely new animal.
Then nothing. Not a word or clip of Benderoni in qualifiers coverage. What happened? Did the open loop fail? Did he waste too much time building it and, neglecting to practice the rest of his line, blow his run before he even got down to it? There was only one place to answer all these begging questions. The place where the real news coverage happens. The comments sections.
A few minutes sifting through the haters, shit-talkers and those completely unaware that Rampage 2013 is now already over, much less that Benderoni didn't make finals, and the real dirt surfaced. A link to an unknown, transatlantic social network revealed some international gibberish that Google Translate made quick, unreliable work of. He bowed out and will never ride his bike again? WTF?
Knowing that social media posts are not always the work of the alleged authors--I never did receive that free iPad--I'm left wanting more. I think we all are. As of now, it seems any video Benderoni himself posted on Pinkbike is now set to private.
Scott Johns is a freelance action sports writer and cinematographer. Find more of his work on his blog at ShredBums.com.
Author Info:
Member since May 17, 2010
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1 Comment
- 1 0
Poret
(Jul 2, 2017 at 18:33)
here is the answer www.youtube.com/watch?v=mWExJh9e7l8 and clip of his open loop landings
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