#fckRampage?

[Capricorn]

There's a very interesting discussion raging on PB at the moment, with one sentiment being that the following photo is a tribute to the whole of rampage (other than the obvious occassion of it being the 10th Rampage celebration), as its about to change.

 

http://ep1.pinkbike.org/p5pb12797341/p5pb12797341.jpg

 

Why change?

Because of situations like this:

 

http://i.imgur.com/UxLwKmo.png

 

that and the long standing debate on risk vs reward. These guys are literally laying down their lives, every single one of them, and for what really? The comments on PB are riders with their brains actually engaged, and its compelling stuff.

 

Even Deity seems to have thrown their hat into the debate with this post:

 

Has Rampage become only a glorified bit of marketeering for Redbull at the expense of the riders? Did you feel a macabre sense of voyeurism watching the 2015 edition of the event, that is, were you just waiting for the stacks and smashes?

 

Lets hear The Bikehub's thoughts on this..

 

 

[Iwan Kemp]

Where are you in this?

 

I'm thinking that it was great, but will be good to it go. The environment this takes place in + the expectation for the insane has pushed this event beyond the riding. Would be great too see RB get behind an event through the trails if the North Shore. Get back to the roots of freeriding and the characters it gave us.

 

The quest for bigger and bigger has taken the "riding for the love of" out of the sport.

[Wayne Potgieter]

I hear you. Its intense no doubt.

 

But at the end of the day, it is considered an EXTREME sport. And for good reason.

 

I take my hat off to each and every one of those athletes.

[Devon Mans]

I would love to hear about how the actual riders who compete in rampage feel about the progression of the event. I personally feel it's up to the riders. None of us mere mortals could come close to understanding the rush these guys get out of pushing the limits and how addictive it must be.

I do find it quite funny that surfers(more specifically big wave surfers)have been pushing the limits of their sport and putting there lives in just as much if not more danger than the rampage guys for many years already and as far as I know there has not been this kind of outcry in that sport.

[Mada3400]

I see where they are coming from, maybe giving rampage a transformation instead of completely abolishing it could do the trick?

 

I would suggest thinking about what makes rampage, rampage first; the riders, the incredible scenery, the fact that its on a sheer mountain, not just a hill and most obviously its ridiculous scale in terms of airtime...

 

so how can they make rampage safer while still keeping it what it is?

 

I'd suggest moving it from Utah to another steep hill/mountain, First thing to come to my mind is Corcovado mountain (the one with the statue, although im not pretending to know the topography of the area) in Rio smack bang in the middle of the Olympics, you'd get the scenery and the spectators right there, and emergency facilities are much closer.

 

pushing limits is what rampage is all about, hell, for some people its what life is about, if no one did anything cool ever then whats the point?

 

 

... then again, pushing limits are great and all, but maybe rampage pushes them at an unnatural rate, you cant run before you can walk. We, as the human race, will get 'there' eventually, and dangling massive amounts of money and glory infront of these althetes will get us 'there' faster, but is it worth the increased risks?

[intern]

Don't like? Don't participate, don't watch.

[Capricorn]

history of spills at rampage

 

 

Makes you wonder if the call to 'concern' has its roots in the desire for more profit sharing as opposed to rider concern, albeit the two topics are intertwined.

 

I see Vital has weighed in with an op-ed

[deanbean]

history of spills at rampage

 

 

Makes you wonder if the call to 'concern' has its roots in the desire for more profit sharing as opposed to rider concern, albeit the two topics are intertwined.

 

I see Vital has weighed in with an op-ed

I've felt the same as the op-ed writer. I didn't watch this year. It's just a matter of time before one of the riders suffers a fatal crash.

I didn't realise that Red Bull didn't cover them wrt insurance. Come on, for a company that's making so much from the athletes, thats just ripping the ring out.

[gummibear]

http://www.redbull.com/uk/en/bike/stories/1331754023802/red-bull-rampage-2015-nicholi-rogatkin-crash

[gummibear]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-o7RsOmacPM

[Capricorn]

I've felt the same as the op-ed writer. I didn't watch this year. It's just a matter of time before one of the riders suffers a fatal crash.

I didn't realise that Red Bull didn't cover them wrt insurance. Come on, for a company that's making so much from the athletes, thats just ripping the ring out.

 

i think this is hitting at the heart of the matter: rider compensation/insurance.

 

On the other hand, i would like to know what RB gets out of this: money and/or PR from a loss-making/breaking even halo product. The numbers will be very interesting to see.

[Stretch]

I really didnt enjoy it this year...i think there is far too much focus on the "Big" trick the massive dropoff or the massive jump.....every year it is getting more and more intense. Backflipping the canyon gap was unheard of 3 years ago...now its done in qualies....But...its an extreme sport and as long as the guys keep coming to compete ..its gonna be there

 

to put it in perspective...hundreds of people die on everest every year...but still people keep plouging up there with no real intervention

[(Deon)]

Surely the concern, at this level, should have made headlines before the event, not after?

[Tumbleweed]

"If you want to ride the ultimate wave, you have to be willing to pay the ultimate price." - Mark Foo.

 

He paid.

[Capricorn]

I see where they are coming from, maybe giving rampage a transformation instead of completely abolishing it could do the trick?

 

I would suggest thinking about what makes rampage, rampage first; the riders, the incredible scenery, the fact that its on a sheer mountain, not just a hill and most obviously its ridiculous scale in terms of airtime...

 

so how can they make rampage safer while still keeping it what it is?

 

I'd suggest moving it from Utah to another steep hill/mountain, First thing to come to my mind is Corcovado mountain (the one with the statue, although im not pretending to know the topography of the area) in Rio smack bang in the middle of the Olympics, you'd get the scenery and the spectators right there, and emergency facilities are much closer.

 

pushing limits is what rampage is all about, hell, for some people its what life is about, if no one did anything cool ever then whats the point?

 

 

... then again, pushing limits are great and all, but maybe rampage pushes them at an unnatural rate, you cant run before you can walk. We, as the human race, will get 'there' eventually, and dangling massive amounts of money and glory infront of these althetes will get us 'there' faster, but is it worth the increased risks?

 

There is a massive financial impact with taking something like this elsewhere, and it could impact upon the business decision around being the headline sponsor for the event. Frankly, rampage is essentially hors categorie: calling it extreme is something of a farcical understatement.

From a cynical perspective, this might not be a product that exports well. If existing, long term attendees of the event are moaning about lack of financial reward for their insane efforts, then imagine the financial precipice RB would be facing if it takes this international. The risk reward situation could snowball to all other extreme sports: the riders/surfers/snowboarders all suddenly become highly self-aware, and Redbull's balance sheet hits the financial quicksand as the public starts voting with their wallets.

 

Again, it would be very interesting to see how much money redbull actually rakes in from extreme sports. I vaguely recall reading somewhere it was pulling out of surfing as it was a major loss leader?

[Tumbleweed]

There is a massive financial impact with taking something like this elsewhere, and it could impact upon the business decision around being the headline sponsor for the event. Frankly, rampage is essentially hors categorie: calling it extreme is something of a farcical understatement.

From a cynical perspective, this might not be a product that exports well. If existing, long term attendees of the event are moaning about lack of financial reward for their insane efforts, then imagine the financial precipice RB would be facing if it takes this international. The risk reward situation could snowball to all other extreme sports: the riders/surfers/snowboarders all suddenly become highly self-aware, and Redbull's balance sheet hits the financial quicksand as the public starts voting with their wallets.

 

Again, it would be very interesting to see how much money redbull actually rakes in from extreme sports. I vaguely recall reading somewhere it was pulling out of surfing as it was a major loss leader?

 

I guess some would argue that if it's the long-term attendees, it's about them getting left behind, about no longer being competitive?