When photos first emerged of the canyon gap at Red Bull Hardline over the weekend we all gulped. Since then, quite a lot has happened. Here’s a round up of what’s what so far:
What Is That Canyon Gap?
For those who have been under a rock this weekend, here’s what the fuss is about.
Who Is Riding At Hardline Wales 2024?
Who is lined up to tackle the course, and that gap? Here’s the men’s start list for Red Bull Hardline, Wales 2024:
Adam Brayton
UK
Alex Storr
UK
Bernard Kerr
UK
Brendan Fairclough
UK
Brook MacDonald
NZL
Charlie Hatton
UK
Craig Evans
UK
Dennis Luffman
UK
Edgar Briole
FRA
Gaetan Vige
FRA
George Brannigan
NZ
Harry Molloy
UK
Jim Monro
UK
Jono Jones
UK
Josh Bryceland
UK
Josh Lowe
UK
Juanfer Velez
COL
Matt Jones
UK
Matteo Iniguez
FRA
Matteo Iniguez
FRA
Ronan Dunne
IRL
Sam Blenkinsop
NZ
Sam Gale
NZ
Sam Hockenhull
UK
Sebastian Holguin
COL
Szymon Godziek
POL
Taylor Vernon
UK
Theo Erlangsen
SA
Thibault Laly
FRA
Thomas Genon
BEL
Vincent Tupin
FRA
Tahnée Seagrave, Cami Nogueira, Hannah Bergmann, Louise-Anna Ferguson and Vaea Verbeeck began training on Monday.
Sam Reynolds didn’t like how it looked, and he wasn’t wrong:
Sam does the ‘OK’ in inverted commas, and indeed, is a concussion OK? Yes, it’s better than falling into the actual canyon, but a brain injury is still an injury.
Got spat out of this one pretty hard but somehow came away with just a concussion, thanks everyone for the help off the hill
Jim Monro – Instagram
Brendan Fairclough is apparently less worried:
Dean Lucas thinks it’s all gone too far:
There’s a bit of debate over on the Forum about what’s driving this. Is it progression or attention seeking? Will people do this stuff anyway, or is it pressure for attention and sponsors? What’s the difference between this and Red Bull Rampage?
2p From Me
For me, the key difference between Red Bull Hardline and Red Bull Rampage is twofold. One: Nothing at Rampage is mandatory – even the built features that are provided don’t have to be ridden. You dig and build your own thing, to your own tune, to your own strengths. There’s no ‘here’s a thing if you think you’re hard enough’ pressure to add into the mix. Two: Hardline is a race. Riders aren’t just aiming to clear the features, they’re aiming to do it at speed. I’m unconvinced that switching between red-mist race brain and Nitro-Circus level feature clearing is a great combination.
I’ve have many debates with people before about the ways in which I think Red Bull Rampage manages to tread just the right side of controlled risk taking vs glorifying self destruction. I don’t think I can step to the defence of this feature in the context of Hardline.
2p From Mark
He’s lucky to be alive and the problem I have is that the cost of entry to trying something like this is a bike, some wood and a massively dangerous drop. The first death from this is probably likely to be someone copying it in their local quarry.
Caveat: I’m 53 years old.
Back in the ‘olden’ days impressive stunts like this were common on the tellybox. Saturday night TV was full of it. But there was always a big fat notice or a presenter who said, ‘Don’t try this at home…. professional this and that blah’. Not that this made any difference to whether kids went into the park and spannered themselves but it at least showed that the producers were aware of the risks and the danger that showing it could cause. Red Bull don’t seem to care at all as long as it gets the clicks and engagement. I have a moral issue with this stuff and the fact the driving force is weighted too much towards commercial interests with questionable care given to the consequences. The policy seems to be, go bigger than we did last time, which is kind of how it’s always been in all endeavors but at some point there’s going to be a limiting line and the price of crossing that line was almost paid in full by Jim here. If they really cared there would have been a net up right from the start, although it would not have helped Jim. They got really lucky. The Risk Asessement doc must be interesting read, if there is one.
I know, I know. I sound just like my dad.
2p From Benji
Maybe the riders like doing things like this? I imagine they’ve been doing stupid shit since young, which is how they got where they are. That’s my Devil’s Advocate mode. Not sure if I’m fussed either way tbh!
Add your 2p… head to the comments and/or vote in this poll:
How To Watch Hardline
If you’ve still got the stomach to watch it, Hardline will be broadcastlive globally on Red Bull TV on Sunday 2nd June at 2.30pm GMT. Ahead of the event, the week’s best action from course walk and practice will be on the Red Bull Bike YouTube.
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I’m not sure it would have been possible for him to get down without the berms being as big as they were. Some of those turns just didn’t look possible. Incredible run.
Part of the enjoyment for me has been watching the build up and the practice runs. At normal human speed you get a much better idea of how big these features are, and I don’t mean just the jumps. Seeing it being smoked in a couple of minutes doesn’t do justice to what they had to ride down really
Watching the top runs is incredible, not just for the sheer ridiculous skill of it but the variation in approaches. I can take or leave the big jumps but those janky-as-**** technical sections are just amazing.
but those janky-as-**** technical sections are just amazing.
Being honest: How far down the HardLine course do you think you’d get from the start gate? Without being too silly, at 24 seconds (on Ronan’s run) there’s a jump that I’d need a good time eyeing up, and given the run in would probably refuse anyway, so there for sure. But in all honestly the wee little ridge drop before it would need most of my ability so perhaps even earlier up the course? even if I managed those two (teeny things in the grand scheme), there’s no way I’d be able to get much further.
They are doing an entirely different thing to the most of us.
I’m just jealous that they all got to fly the Mach Loop in that beautiful old plane! What an unforgettable experience that would be (even for the few that were yacking in the bags)
but those janky-as-**** technical sections are just amazing.
That’s by far the best aspect for me. The rest is a bit too jump orientated for my own liking, but I fully get why that’s an integral part of it.
I’d have thought France might be next on the list. They are famously relaxed about health and safety
Perhaps for personal responsibility, but they must definitely are not when it comes down to event organisation. And I don’t need to go into the bureaucracy gymnastics required, they’re better known for that in my experience.
Josh Bryceland did in a vid I watched the other day. He was talking about the possibilty of a series or adding one each year and he said he’d heard that Norway was a possibilty for next year. Vid below should start at the time he starts talking about it.
Will turn the subtitles on for the Bryceland video.
Sierra Nevada in southern Spain would make a good choice of venue too. Pretty much scorchio all the time, and the riding and landscape already looks amazing.
I think this years races have shown that, although obviously difficult, World Cup riders can make it down these tracks (faster and more effectively than most) so I hope we see more of the top riders in the future hardline races.
” there’s a jump that I’d need a good time eyeing up, and given the run in would probably refuse anyway, so there for sure. But in all honestly the wee little ridge drop before it would need most of my ability so”
The gap you’re talking about is 20 ft with a sloping rock slab transition, so hats off if you’d even consider that. And the “wee little ridge drop” is around 8-10 ft but with the ugliest non descript take off and and a tiny landing, it’s shown up close on Bk’s track walk.
I’d personally be a quivering mess about 10 seconds in.
The point of the event is the ‘big feature thing’, it’s literally in the name. Hence the Cannon, the Road Gap, the Canyon Gap, the 90 footers…
This was one of my criticisms going to watch it live at the weekend. You could spectate at the features, but absolutely no where else. Kinda took the fun out of DH spectating – spotting different lines etc.
As for the canyon, they apparently have planning for five years so it’ll stay for a while, if it becomes part of the course it remains to be seen.
None of the women rode in the final broadcast, unlike Taz. Anybody know whether this was due to none of them putting a full run together (like Tahnee, who I believe had ticked off all the features but not gone top to botttom) or a seeding/qualifying thing?
I don’t that any did a Top-Bottom, two women did the road gap I think, but every year theres more likely hood of women competing as they get used to the course etc.
Anybody know whether this was due to none of them putting a full run together (like Tahnee, who I believe had ticked off all the features but not gone top to botttom) or a seeding/qualifying thing?
Qualifying seems to be just to prove you can put it all together and do it on your own without a tow-in – I guess this lessens the chance of someone spannering themselves on live TV.
There’s no cut off time or limited number of entrants.
Brayton didn’t actually qualify but they let him in anyway – I guess because he’s done it before?
It’s quite cool how they approach it with the same rule for anyone* and just filter the women in if they do manage a complete run, rather than putting a load of hype and pressure on them by having a “Women’s Hardline”.
Listened to the Just Ride podcast with Gee this morning, he didn’t talk about riding hardline, but some quite gruesome stuff on his ridge line and rampage injuries (“I popped off the lip and thought oh I’m dead”) It’s amazing that he can get back on the bike, let alone doing Hardline laps just for fun
Just watched Adam Brayton’s YT vid – just before his run Matt Jones says “You’re gonna need a bottle of water for the hot seat, you’ll be on it a long time”! Good call 🙂
Also Bernard’s bike didn’t snap – watching his practice and race runs, we can be sure that the one that did was an anomaly (thankfully).
I thought it was a bit of a shame seeing Matt Jones not complete his run, but just watched this and felt absolutely gutted for him hearing the frustration.
I think part of what makes Hardline good is exactly that not all the riders are there to race for the win. It’s such a tricky track that it’s a huge achievement just getting all the way down on race day. Feel for those that had it ruined by punctures.
One thing that’s maybe slightly lacking in recent years is some of the fun, more people in race mode where it used to be that some of the freeride types would throw tricks here and there or style it up a bit. Who am I to complain though 😂
On that note, kudos to whoever it was (can’t remember, one of the early riders) who did that long stoppie at the end. Nicely done.
I thought the pair of them were great, over excited Rob with someone to bring him down slightly works well. No idea how much commentary Tahnee has done before but think she did a great job.
+1 to this. And some of Rob’s more outrageous comments are made even more funny by hearing Tahnee chuckling away in the background.
Rob Warner’s mangling of foreign names and places still hasn’t improved.
Part of what makes Rob Rob!
Whenever I see there’s an unusual name coming up I always think “ooh, what’s Rob going to do to this one?” 😂
He makes my French accent sound good, and that’s saying something.
I came to Singletrack having decided there must be more to life than meetings. I like all bikes, but especially unusual ones.
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