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Everyone was waiting for the Sun to arrive.
What started as a chilly Friday morning slowly began to heat up as athletes and media arrived. Riders made their way up before the sun passed the higher ridgeline to session their nervewrecking lines as the masses poured in. Brandon Semenuk, Jaxson Riddle, and Szymon Godziek were among the first to get warmed up. These superhumans didn’t wait long before throwing flips and getting comfortable with their afternoon plans. The pulsing exhaust notes of helicopters and shuttles started flooding the canyon as the PA speakers blasted music and previous years’ Rampage highlights. It was going to be an action-packed event as usual.
Rampage kicked off with some incredible runs but not without any drama, crashes, and mechanicals. Cam Zink had a little bobble toward the bottom, Riddle and Reed Boggs suffered rear tire blowouts, Vincent Tupin had a heavy slam, and Godziek unfortunately couldn’t piece together a clean run, but thankfully came out reasonably unscathed. Tom van Steenbergen nailed his front flip, but unfortunately took the hit of a lifetime on the following backflip sending him to the hospital with severe hip injuries. Semenuk disposed of his first run near the top only to make his second run count before the others. He earned his fourth Rampage win and his second consecutive since 2019.
Godzeik hiked and rode countless times before the show started.Brandon Semenuk.All eyes on T-Mac.Tom van Steenbergen watching other riders pass by. Lurking in the shadows.Kurt Sorge flipping into his hip during Friday morning practice.T-Mac hiking up for another scout.Jaxson soaring into his hip jump.Semenuk launching into the lower jumps with his 7-speed AXS equipped Trek Session.Thankfully the stiff, chilly breeze died down to allow for a pleasant day.Brandon Semenuk taking the time for a casual chat before his first run shortly after.Almost showtime!Without rappelling down the side, it’ll always be a challenge to visualize the magnitude of Kyle’s chute.Szymon flipping higher up the mountain…… only to over-rotate and wash out upon landing.Ethan Nell with some style.Kyle Strait returning his hands to the bars before completing his run.The top part of the mountain is the most nerve-racking section to watch in person. Thomas Genon making his way down in style.It was great to see T-Mac have a safe return to Rampage after a series of recent injuries.Wind was a concern, but thankfully didn’t impact the event too much.Thomas Genon has 3’s locked down.Kyle throwing suicides like nobody’s business.It was great to see Rampage hit the ground running with a massive turnout.At the end of the day, this is what’s important. Great to see the families involved with Rampage at a more intimate level.Kurt Sorge was all smiles.After a heavy slam in Thursday practice, Carson was still walking around the venue with a smile on Friday.Rampage is such an accessible event. If you love watching it on TV you’ll love it even more in person.The friendship and camaraderie between the athletes is pretty tight.Mountain biking celebrities were not lacking as seen here with Danny MacAskill hugging Brett Tippie post-event.Reed Boggs taking a lift from the podium after an incredible 3rd place finish.Nothing like a good ol’ shoey to celebrate your 4th Rampage victory!Brandon Semenuk showing off his winning helmet. So many custom bikes and kits; it’s truly the Olympics of freeride mountain biking.
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Oct 18, 2021