Video: Brandon Semenuk Wins 5th Redbull Joyride

Yesterday, Whistler local Brandon Semenuk spectacularly took the top podium position at the Redbull Joyride, after sitting out most of the season (that’s not been due to injury, but due to doing a lot of filming on projects such as Signal, and this spectacular Raw 100 instalment). Nervewrackingly for him, he was the first rider on the first run of Joyride this year, and last to ride for the second run. See it here:

(No video embed above? Here’s a link instead).

You can watch the whole event, archived over on Red Bull TV (if slopestyle tricks come much faster or more elaborate, the commentators for this will end up sounding like cattle auctioneers and have their own competitions).

For many of us, this would be a Facebook profile pic forever. For most of the competitors at Joyride, it’s “a Sunday morning”

Either perspective and lens optics are doing something odd to those wheels, or it’s a new and challenging “eggwheels” round.

The cameras don’t often get turned out beyond the Joyride course, but as it happens, Whistler is beautiful. Just don’t get distracted by the view before you land.

You can find out more and view full results over on the Crankworx website:

“Red Bull Joyride, as the event is called, is the season-defining conclusion of the Crankworx Slopestyle World Tour and the Triple Crown of Slopestyle. Steeped in 14 years of tradition, this is the most challenging event on the FMB circuit. Red Bull Joyride owns the Boneyard at the base of the Whistler Mountain Bike Park, offering up a centerpiece and climax for the 10-day bout of mountain biking mania Crankworx has become. The best riders in the world bring their A-game to this invitational showcase, interpreting a custom-built course known as the pinnacle of courses for its creative features and smooth ride.”

David Hayward

David started mountain biking in the 90’s, by which he means “Ineptly jumping a Saracen Kili Racer off anything available in a nearby industrial estate”. After growing up and living in some extremely flat places, David moved to Yorkshire specifically for the mountain biking. This felt like a horrible mistake at first, because the hills are so steep, but you get used to them pretty quickly. Previously, David trifled with road and BMX, but mountain bikes always won. He’s most at peace battering down a rough trail, quietly fixing everything that does to a bike, or trying to figure out if that one click of compression damping has made things marginally better or worse. The inept jumping continues to this day.