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Red bull Rampage - From a Rookie Riders Perspective

September 5th, 2013 1:46pm

Red bull Rampage - From a Rookie Riders Perspective

 

Rider Tyler McCaul recently completed his first Red bull Rampage event and had this event recap to share with us. McCaul's story gives great insight into what goes through the mind of a professional rider at these big events. While they make it look easy, it isn't. The new breed of  riders are smart in their preparation and mental approach each weighing the risk vs. reward factor thoroughly before committing to a trick. Tyler is a great all around rider and one of Bicycle World's personal favorites. Here is Tyler's story.

 

 

 

Well I'm back home after a long week in the desert for Red Bull Rampage.  After Interbike I drove straight to Virgin, UT to see what all the hype was about.  I got to the course Monday morning to check it out and was mind boggled.  I didn't understand how any of this stuff was rideable and I felt like a lost child on another planet.  Other riders were showing me lines that they had hit at the contest in '08 and I couldn't believe it.  I was a little intimidated and must've walked around for at least 8 hours before making a final decision on where I wanted to build my line for qualifying.  I started digging on Tuesday and only stopped for minimal riding sessions until Thursday.  I was there at sunrise til sunset almost every day putting in the needed work to get myself ready.  I finished my line on Thursday and decided to start practicing some of the things that I had to hit in my run.  I was scared sh*tless.  I made a checklist of things to hit and one after the other I was cleaning a lot of lines.  My confidence grew fast and I was ready for qualifying the next day.

 

 

I got to the site at 7:30 on Monday morning and had a few things to practice.  One of them was a jump over the top of a massive rock that was meant to be landed on, and then dropped off of. I decided I wanted to jump the whole thing though.  The sketchiest part was the runout, it contained a landing that was only about 20 feet long, onto a skinny goat trail, and then off of another cliff.  I tested it out right before I headed up and ate sh*t!  The landing of the last drop was super soft and I was worried that I would do the same thing in my run.  I was nervous to start but cleaned my whole line.  I tried my best to ride fast and go big and it paid off.  After the first runs were over I was sitting in 4th and I was super stoked cause I knew that the line I was going to hit for my 2nd run would score higher if I pulled it off.  The wind picked up a bit before we got started and I was scared cause I had to hit a pretty big double drop on the ridge that was pretty vulnerable to wind.  As I came into it and off the first drop the wind grabbed me and turned me to the left.  There was no room to stop and I rode right off the wrong cliff.  I fell down pretty far and tumbled a few times.  I was surprised to be completely unhurt and felt lucky.  I'd have to take my first run score which ended up getting me into 5th place!  I was pumped and felt good for Sunday, especially after having two bad crashes and being completely okay.

 



Saturday was an off day and I was stoked to catch up on some much needed sleep.  I got to the course site at about 11 that day and my plan was to buff out the top part of my line and patch it up for finals.  I was the only one hitting that line and that helped with the repair duties.  After I finished that I had to figure out how to spice up my line.  I saw Steve Romaniuk try this massive hipped step down into a quarter pipe in qualifying.  He unfortunately crashed and ended up hurting his knee super bad.  This left a lot of buzz about the gap itself and everyone was talking about it.  I hadn't looked at it yet but I decided that I wanted to lead my run into it as I knew it would get me a podium if I stuck it.  I walked over to the takeoff and looked down at the landing which was probably about 40 feet out and 20 feet down.  I helped Gee Atherton rebuild the run in and lip for a better lineup and we both decided that we'd hit it the next day.  

 



I woke up early on Sunday to get out there and was feeling good once again.  We pulled number plates out of a hat for start order and I had to drop in first.  I was pretty bummed about it.  The nerves of being the first rider were enough alone but I also knew from experience that whoever goes first in a contest usually gets a pretty low score cause the judges don't have anything to base it off of.  I dropped in and did the same run as my qualifying but added a suicide no hander on the big step down before my jump over the rock.  I stuck my run perfect and was stoked to have one in the bag.  I then watched James Doerfling try the gap that I was planning on hitting at the end and broke his fork clean in two and ate it pretty hard.  Seeing two people crash on it made me feel a little worried and start to think that it might be un-landable.  Then it was Gee Atherton's turn and he came into the gap and pulled it perfect.  His wheel exploded just from the impact but I at least knew that it was landable.  His score was massive and put him into the hot seat.  As I dropped in for my second run I was scared but motivated and haven't ever felt so confident in my life.  There was a double drop line that I decided to hit before heading into the gap that I hadn't had a chance to practice yet but I hit it perfectly.  Coming into the bottom I threw a no hander off of one of the step downs and then got ready for the last gap.  I landed the step up before it and just started sprinting as hard as I possibly could.  I came off and everything looked right.  I landed it perfect but at the bottom was a bunch of soft dirt that roosted me out and cause me to turn right.  I tried my hardest to ride it out but was aimed straight for a rise that shot me over the bars.  I held on til the last second before I put my hands out in front of me.  When the dust cleared I stood up and felt fine everywhere except for my wrist which I think I may have broken.  Needless to say I was extremely bummed, but not about my wrist.  More so about the fact that I knew that if I stuck my run it would've put me in the lead.



I was so close to such a good result that most people were saying would've left me in 2nd place behind the winner, Cam Zink.  I had to take my 1st run score which left me in 12th place.  It was my first ever Rampage and I am happy with a top 20.  I had no idea how I would do in a contest like this and I'm proud of the fact that I was considered a contender.  It's the biggest and most recognizable mtb contest in the world and it was being filmed by NBC and was being broadcast live in Austria the whole time.  It was one of the coolest events I've ever been a part of and it was also the most fun I've ever had riding my bike.  I hope that they'll hold it again in the near future and I know that if they do I'll be going into it looking for a win...

Thanks to EVERYONE that helped me prepare for this contest. GT for sending my mechanic John Canepa out to lend a hand by pushing my bike up for me every run and making sure that it was in check to make it down to the bottom safely every run.  Also to Gabe Schroder from Smith who busted his ass to help me finish my line in time.  Everyone else that helped me out including all my sponsors are greatly appreciated.  My bike and kit felt awesome and I couldn't have done it without all of the support!

Thanks again

-Tyler

 

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