After setting the bar as the world’s toughest freeride mountain bike test since 2001, Red Bull Rampage has gone one better by including the first women’s event on Thursday ahead of Saturday’s epic men’s event down the ochre-colored cliffs of Virgin, Utah, USA. Here is all you need to know:
The 18th edition of Red Bull Rampage returns this week with the historic, inaugural women’s event on Thursday, 10 October after the talented roster competed at Red Bull Formation previously – a freeride progression session that launched in 2019 and helped foster their journey to Rampage.
Through exposure to the dirt and steep lines, the entire women’s field advanced their skill set on the Utah terrain at Formation then linked together top-to-bottom runs on previous Rampage venues.
Fearless riders like Casey Brown and Camila Nogueira are known for their hard-charging style and ability to tackle big drops while riders known for flips, whips and superwomans such as Robin Goomes, Vaea Verbeeck, Vero Sandler and Vinny Armstrong will also star.
“Watching Rampage (on site previously as a fan) felt like I was witnessing the pinnacle of the sport and you knew you were part of something special. Whether or not they have Rampage as their goal, I think the trickle-down effect of having women at the event will be massive for mountain biking.”
Canadian Brown revealed:
Meanwhile, the stacked men’s field of 18 that lines up again on Saturday, October 12 features familiar faces such as 2023 champion Cam Zink, four-time champion Brandon Semenuk, decorated World Cup racer Brendan Fairclough and top podium finisher Tom Van Steenbergen.
Amongst the 10 men’s wildcards are fresh faces Luke Whitlock and Tom Isted with American Whitlock passionate about the old-school raw and steep terrain iconic to the original events and Briton Isted known for throwing big tricks on the slopestyle scene including holding the record for the world’s biggest backflip of 120 feet – which he earned in 2023.
Unlike the traditional mountain bike slopestyle course of wooden ramps and smooth terrain, Red Bull Rampage is more of a freeride event that takes place on loose ground that offers hardly any grip with riders using robust downhill bikes boasting a lot of suspension and large tires.
Riders and their small dig team craft the natural terrain for their lines for four days within the marked area using shovels, picks and 75 sandbags before a rest day and then four days to practice.
The riders have two runs of three minutes each to impress the judges with riders scored throughout on difficulty level of the line, tricks and style, fluid and control and finally altitude over the breathtaking cliffs, dizzying exposure and almost vertical gullies that connect the lines.
The men will compete at the 2018/2019 site – the biggest and steepest of all the past venues with 150ft (46m) of vertical added to the start – while the women will be adjacent on a new course.
On this site, Fairclough famously hit a massive rock drop he nicknamed ‘Dwayne Johnson‘ with a scary landing, while his line also featured an iconic 50ft (15m) canyon gap and chute he nicknamed ‘The Crack’.
“Red Bull Rampage is the ultimate test of your skill on a mountain bike.”
2022 runner-up Szymon Godziek of Poland, who returns for his eighth attempt at the intimidating course, declared:
2024 Red Bull Rampage Invited Women Riders
Camila Nogueira (ARG)
Casey Brown (CAN)
Robin Goomes (NZL)
Vaea Verbeeck (CAN)
Vero Sandler (UK)
Vinny Armstrong (NZL)
Georgia Astle (CAN)
Chelsea Kimball (USA)
2024 Red Bull Rampage Women Alternates
Micayla Gatto (CAN)
2024 Red Bull Rampage Pre-Qualified Riders From 2023
Carson Storch (USA)
Cam Zink (USA)
Tom Van Steenbergen (CAN)
Ethan Nell (USA)
Brendan Fairclough (UK)
Talus Turk (USA)
Kyle Strait (USA)
Bienvenido Aguado Alba (SPN)
2024 Red Bull Rampage Men’s Wildcards
Brandon Semenuk (CAN)
Szymon Godziek (POL)
Thomas Genon (BEL)
Adolf Silva (SPA)
Clemens Kaudela (AUT)
Kurt Sorge (CAN)
Luke Whitlock (USA)
Reed Boggs (USA)
Tom Isted (UK)
Tyler McCaul (USA)
2024 Red Bull Rampage Men’s Alternates
DJ Brandt (USA)
Jaxson Riddle (USA)
Hayden Zablotny (USA)
Dylan Stark (USA)
Watch Red Bull Rampage live on Red Bull TV HERE.
Don’t miss “ANYTIME”, an immersive film featuring the world’s best female and male freeride mountain bikers, available HERE.
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