Gee Atherton’s Latest Video Is A Stomach Lurcher

by 33

Just a day after it was announced he’d be riding Red Bull Rampage this year, Gee Atherton has released a video which perhaps shows why. Apparently vertigo doesn’t bother him, and exposure barely makes him bat an eyelid. Whereas our stomachs lurched as we watched this. What tyres for clinging to the edge of stuff? What pants for pooping in? Eep.

Here’s the official press release, with pictures by Moonhead Media:

Gee Atherton releases the latest spectacular edit in the Ridgeline Series

“Since the first hour of the first build for the original Ridgeline film it’s been the dream to take this concept to the most amazing places around the world. The potential to find awesome, remote mountain ranges where we can test ourselves to the limit…to really explore what’s possible on a bike and how to film the most stunning footage … it’s been like a running commentary throughout the entire project” Gee Atherton 

Ridgeline IV: The Dolomites

This film differs from its predecessors in that the team “didn’t move a rock”. It was about exploring with friends, an adventure into the mountains, where Gee would ride whatever they found, including some of the most unforgiving terrain of the series so far. And there’s pedalling, even if it’s at racing speed and inches from a ravine … 

Spot Gee…

Work started back in June with a site recce where it quickly became apparent to the team that they were “out mountained”. There was no way to shortcut long hikes up the mountain that may or may not lead to discovering a cool little section of singletrack with the kind of surrounding aspect that would make for a great shot. Long days in knee-deep snow were followed by nights poring over IGM maps and trying to fit in as much sleep and fuel as possible before another dawn rendez-vous…

You’d be really upset if you’d left your front axle in the car park.

Filming took place this August in noticeably less hostile weather conditions, but access to riding spots involved four-hour hikes, roped climbs, ladders and abseils. The team were burdened with camera equipment, drones, food supplies and Gee’s bike, broken down to frame, bars and wheels in order to share the load. It was physically and mentally the most demanding week of the series so far, where a sense of adventure and genuine concern for their own survival drove the team onwards in search of some of the most incredible scenes they have ever filmed.

The sun shines on the righteous, and the crazy?

Gee said that from the start he knew that he’d film this edit on board the Atherton AM.170, “It’s tough enough to withstand being bounced off cliff walls as it is hauled up a cliff on a rope, lighter to hike up the mountain than my DH bike, it pedals super-well and is “enough bike” to tackle every inch of the steep and rocky terrain.”

Spot Gee…

He was accompanied by “right hand man” Jamie Robertson and photographer Dan Griffiths ( Moonhead Media) who have both been with the project from the beginning but in such perilous terrain they also involved  Brodie Hood a high altitude and adventure specialist. Brodie is one of the few filmers to fly drones to the top of Everest, an experienced climber and member of the Lochaber Mountain rescue team. 

Oh, he’s there.

Weirdly one of the most difficult aspects for the team to manage was that throughout the long days on the mountain they started to become numb to the exposure and to lose that “life-preserving fear” On day one of filming Gee would inch his way along an super-exposed track but by day three he was sprinting as if there wasn’t an 800 foot drop just inches to his left. Brodie and his fellow camera man Matt McCormick from Paddy Graham’s “Legs of Steel” Production crew brought a deep knowledge of the mountains that kept the team on the straight and narrow. 

Just as well he’s sponsored by Endura. What pants for pooping them?

 As Gee put it “Having Brodie with us kept us alive! But it also meant that we could say yes to things that we wouldn’t have tackled alone… There’s a sequence at the end of the film where I ride down a ridge at sunset – it’s absolutely stunning, but it was so steep and exposed and the potential consequences were huge. Dan and Jamie had both been with me for the “Knife Edge” filming and its aftermath so I could see that they were really torn about encouraging me to work near the edge of the cliff; but Brodie devised a harness system that meant that I could practise controlling my speed while he let out the tension until I got comfortable. The section of the film where I’m riding the slowest, picking my way down the ridge was actually the most demanding of all. 

Yes…wardrobe? Send more pants please.

Gee summed up the trip by saying “Going to places that are bigger than us, where we have to perform at our absolute best is always cool – I think we’ve shown the potential to take this project global and I already can’t wait for what’s next.”

While you’re here…

https://singletrackworld.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/red-bull-rampage-semenuk-out-atherton-in/
https://singletrackworld.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/making-up-the-numbers-podcast-gee-atherton/
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Hannah Dobson

Managing Editor

I came to Singletrack having decided there must be more to life than meetings. I like all bikes, but especially unusual ones. More than bikes, I like what bikes do. I think that they link people and places; that cycling creates a connection between us and our environment; bikes create communities; deliver freedom; bring joy; and improve fitness. They're environmentally friendly and create friendly environments. I try to write about all these things in the hope that others might discover the joy of bikes too.

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Home Community Gee Atherton’s Latest Video Is A Stomach Lurcher

Viewing 33 posts - 1 through 33 (of 33 total)
  • Gee Atherton’s Latest Video Is A Stomach Lurcher
  • matt_outandabout
    Full Member

    Amazing. 👍

    1
    blokeuptheroad
    Full Member

    That made me feel a bit queasy. BALLS. OF. STEEL!

    hightensionline
    Full Member

    …and breathe again. 🤯

    twistedpencil
    Full Member

    Those photos have made me think I need this on a big screen, not the office monitor, will enjoy this this evening I reckon.

    I was hoping after his crashes this was going to be Gee on a cycling proficiency course and pootling along canal tow paths….

    1
    HoratioHufnagel
    Free Member

    Yikes.

    Is the trail cut in the cliff face man made??

    letmetalktomark
    Full Member

    Ridonculous.

    Proper breathtaking stuff.

    That Atherton bike looked to be making incredibly light work of all that – Not taking anything in the slightest away from Gee and his mahoosive cahoonies – but as an advert for a bike I don’t think I have seen better.

    I’m a wheels on the ground XC (old XC not new enduro XC) rider at best but I would love a go on a well set up bike like that – maybe with a few crashpads and a parachute at hand though!

    1
    a11y
    Full Member

    **** that.

    But also, seriously impressive!

    17
    tinytim
    Full Member

    IMG_7465IMG_7451IMG_7435I met Gee & his team up there after we had just climbed up a nearby mountain and can confirm that the exposure is even more dramatic in real life!!

    they seemed to be having a great time & couldn’t have been more friendly to my star-struck kids!

    Awesome effort

    bigdaddy
    Full Member

    Fair play, wow! That is impressive! Great film too…

    masterdabber
    Free Member

    That’s a very special video at all levels…. the scenery, the filming and, of course, the skill and daring of Gee. Makes you realise how the ability of riders like Gee is so far removed from most of us.

    radbikebro
    Full Member

    That was absolute madness! My palms are actually sweating from watching that

    donald
    Free Member

    Is the trail cut in the cliff face man made

    Usually WWI fortifications

    kayak23
    Full Member

    Do be careful George. 😳

    arrpee
    Free Member

    no

    1
    Northwind
    Full Member

    The cut over to the onboard camera is pretty spectacular, suddenly everything goes from looking insane but sort of serene, to looking insane and also sort of insane. The amount of loose crap he’s kicking up, aaaargh.

    I guess after the mistakes of that earlier one where they didn’t have good accident responses in place, he’s decided to make sure any accidents aren’t survivable :)

    FunkyDunc
    Free Member

    Danny still has it for me on size of balls and skill

    https://youtu.be/xQ_IQS3VKjA?si=kG8G4h-6P6bRBD2P

    My advice for Gee would be to slow down and enjoy the view a bit more, going at that speed your missing the point of being there :-)

    I hope he is doing all this just to try and say their bikes are not just DH bikes. If he falls again his body will be screwed

    1
    vlad_the_invader
    Full Member

    Didn’t someone else (Killian Bron or Fabio Wilmer?) do something almost identical to this?

    richardkennerley
    Full Member

    Yep, but the more the merrier!

    Bullet
    Full Member

    I’m just a big old scaredy cat but… while is great to see someone so good demonstrating their skills it’s for our entertainment. A mistake goes beyond a thumbs up from a hospital bed the next day and do we want to hear of a rider plunging to their death?
    I know there’s the IoM TT and many other super dangerous sports and no one is forced to do it but surely there’s a line that shouldn’t be crossed?

    LAT
    Full Member

    it’s a great video with a lot of energy put into it and some amazing shots.

    is anyone familiar with that area? did he ride/hike an actual route or did they select particular sections to film some crazy riding?

    welshfarmer
    Full Member

    Also done here, though a little less frantic..

    crab
    Free Member

    Utterly speechless watching this. But it’s his choice, as with a lot of other riders, to push boundaries, same as many other sports.

    ampthill
    Full Member

    Ok that’s huge

    But it’s a weird thing. Sort of tech downhill. Danny on the ridge and the slab are slower but way more technical

    fourtopsallnight
    Free Member

    Rob Warner’s quote concerning a yawning hippo applied to me just watching that.

    multi21
    Free Member

    Great vid, really captures the sensation of speed.

    FunkyDunc
    Free Member
    Danny still has it for me on size of balls and skill

    Not convinced, it looks pretty ballsy to me

    tripping major nutsack

    Drac
    Full Member

    Fantastic video.

    I thought yeah that’s a bit nerving. Then when it went POV I thought **** me!

    To paraphrase.

    “Dude! Look at the penalty for failure.”

    Sandwich
    Full Member

    Having ridden in the Dolomites it can make a man feel small and insignificant but also very alive (even at my plodding speeds).

    jimmy
    Full Member

    met Gee & his team up there after we had just climbed up a nearby mountain

    Whereabouts were you/they?

    I used to guide ViaFerrata in the Dollies, its so dramatic but also accessible if you have a head for heights. Must go back soon…

    crab
    Free Member

    Someone on the PB comments for this video has listed the places this was shot, it’s apparently not just one mountain but several different areas. Doubt I’d even have the balls to walk it myself.

    CalamityJames
    Free Member

    Amazing, even more so in light of his major accident a couple of years back.
    Big shout also to Brodie and the film crew, they’ve contributed towards something special here.

    tinytim
    Full Member

    “Whereabouts were you/they?

    I used to guide ViaFerrata in the Dollies, it’s so dramatic but also accessible if you have a head for heights. Must go back soon…”

    We were at Tofana di mezzo close to the cable car station: we’d just climbed up from Tofana di dentro. They were heading towards VF Punta Anna…

    FWIW I think that the film is from a number of different sites: the window in the rock can be seen from the summit of Tofana di mezzo and forms part of an epic ski tour.

    The exposure on the ridges is pretty spectacular!

    neilpaterson1969
    Free Member

    It was like watching Free Solo for the first time. Had to keep reminding myself that Alex Honal was still alive after they finished filming

    susepic
    Full Member

    I thought ridgeline2 was the one showcasing Gee’s skillset. Properly impressive bike handling, and new territory.

    This feels too derivative, Oehler did some of the same bits previously, and others have done other scary dolomite descents.

    The camera work was good, but I kinda felt having watched the earlier dolomite route finding vids he posted that they weren’t really on it, felt a bit amateur hour, and a bit scary, sh1t about to happen

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