Red Bull Rampage is back this Friday, October 21 and is without doubt the best mountain bike freeride event, that showcases the world’s top riders.
Rampage goes beyond sporting borders, the ultimate action-sports event, high adrenaline stuff with the best bike riders in the world riding down gnarly and often risky terrain, while they throw some of the biggest and best freeride tricks ever seen.
Every year the mountain biking community descends on Virgin, Utah. The organizers always try to keep Red Bull Rampage fresh, which means there have been different mountainsides used over the 20 years of the event. With breath-taking cliffs, huge exposure and near-vertical chute lines, it's an extreme place for an extreme event, the perfect location for all of the two-wheeled lunacy.
The inaugural Red Bull Rampage was held in 2001 and was won by Canadian freeride pioneer Wade Simmons. It has since evolved from a ragtag group of riders gathering in the desert to a world-class event. Rampage has always been about pushing the boundaries of what is possible on the best mountain bikes. Over two decades on in 2022, that premise has not changed.
This year's event wants to spotlight the future of freeriding - from the new crop of athletes grabbing the baton and continuing to innovate the sport, to the changemakers that drive the scene, to the mind-blowing action itself.
Open to just 18 riders from all around the world, all of whom have to be invited to qualify or take part in the competition. Each rider gets two runs using whatever tricks they see fit and they are judged by a panel of their peers with the highest score winning.
The course is effectively made by the riders. A designated start and finish line are marked out by organizers, and the competitors have four days and the use of two shovel-wielding dig team helpers each, to create a stunning and challenging course in between the two points. On some features, riders and their dig teams collaborate to save time and create even bigger jumps.
Last year saw Canadian Brandon Semenuk carve out a piece of Rampage history when he became the first four-time champion and he returns for a tilt at title number five up against three-time winner Kurt Sorge, double American champion Kyle Strait and big slopestyle rival Brett Rheeder.
Kyle Strait still holds the record as the youngest-ever winner, all the way back in 2004 as a 17-year-old. He even competed in the inaugural event in 2001 and became Rampage's first multiple winner in 2013 with 2022 riders Spaniard Andreu Lacondeguy and American Cam Zink also previous winners.
Athletes who finished in the top ten of the previous year's event are pre-qualified and get automatic invites while the rest of the roster are wildcards, who are chosen by a committee of former Rampage competitors, pro athletes, judges, and industry experts.
The full 2022 line-up is Brett Rheeder (CAN), Ethan Nell (USA), Cam Zink (USA), Tom van Steenburgen (CAN), Szymon Godziek (POL), Dylan Stark (USA), William Robert (FRA), Reed Boggs (USA), Jaxson Riddle (USA), Thomas Genon (BEL), DJ Brandt (USA), Kurt Sorge (CAN), Kyle Strait (USA), Alex Volokhov (CAN), Brandon Semenuk (CAN), Andreu Lacondeguy (SPA, Carson Storch (USA) and Tyler McCaul (USA).
Rampage is an event that defines what mountain biking is and the one place riders can truly express who they are. So which rider will carve out their Rampage iconic moment and go down in the history of this incredible event? Watch live at Red Bull Rampage
