BACKSTAGE AT RAMPAGE
Over the 20 years of Red Bull Rampage, many have come to the American desert to find fame and fortune, only to return home injured or plagued by ‘what ifs’. Others have gone down in MTB history for their audacious lines, huge tricks or nail-biting crashes. It’s an event that can make and break careers – and bones.
Rampage has transformed hugely over those two decades. At first, it was just a ragtag group of early freeriders testing their boundaries on the soft, unpacked dirt of Virgin, Utah. Some had the biggest bucks of their short careers, while others held on to make the podium. Wooden features were introduced, creating some memorable moments, from enormous canyon-gap backflips to huge moves off the Oakley Sender. Then the emphasis shifted towards sculpting more natural lines and pushing the limits of big-mountain riding.
The event continues to evolve, but one thing remains the same – Rampage is still the biggest, baddest and most mind-boggling event on the MTB calendar. Here’s what goes into putting on the most bonkers freeride fest of them all...
THE DIGGER
has dug dirt for Brandon Semenuk at six Rampage events now, along with Evan Young. This year’s victory was Semenuk’s third with this dig team, and his fourth in total, two of them back-to-back. The crew all have ideas about how things should proceed, but, says Justin, “Brandon is definitely the brains behind the line”. After a scout day, there’s a lot of back and forth about how and where the line will head. Then its shovels into dirt, with Brandon –
