VIRGIN – Canadian Brett Rheeder won the 13th edition of Red Bull Rampage Friday, needing only one run down the steep mountainside to claim his first-ever Rampage title.
“This is my sixth time competing at Red Bull Rampage, and my first three years at Red Bull Rampage were tough,” Rheeder said during an interview afterward. “I was way out of my element and it took a long time to finally be a contender for the title and it feels unreal.”
The invitation-only event featured 21 of the world’s top freeride mountain bikers, 19 of whom competed Friday. The athletes practiced Wednesday and Thursday, building ramps and trails and strategically planning their descent routes at the new venue, a short distance north of where the event was held last year.
By the time Rheeder made his way down the hill Friday in front of a crowd of more than 3,000 people, six riders had already crashed during their initial runs. But Rheeder’s run, which included a pair of 360s and a couple of nice backflips, one of which was on a long flat drop, was successful, earning him a score of 89.66 and putting him atop the leaderboard.
Andreu Lacondeguy of Spain, who’d nailed his first run earlier with a score of 87.33, tried to top that during his second run. His valiant attempt fell short near the end when he landed wrong atop a small berm and crashed. He stayed in second place overall, as Rheeder skipped his unneeded second run to claim the championship.
Hometown favorite Ethan Nell, 21, of St. George, finished in third place for the second year in a row (he has only competed in two Red Bull Rampage events to date). His first run included a couple of impressive backflips and a few other solid tricks, earning him a score of 86,.33 from the judges. Nell decided to play it safe during his second ride and settle for third place overall.
The only other Utah rider at the event was another hometown hero, 21-year-old Reed Boggs of Hurricane. Boggs had a solid first run, scoring 59.66, but crashed hard at the bottom of a flip jump during his second run. He finished 13th overall.
Defending champion Kurt Sorge of Canada had a solid first run, scoring 74.00. He finished ninth after opting to skip his second run.
Winning a special award for best trick of the day was Canadian Tom Van Steenbergen for an enormous flat drop backflip that drew gasps and cheers from the crowd.
Another crowd-pleasing performer was 21-year-old rookie Adolf Silva of Spain, who took home the People’s Choice Award, presented by the Utah Sports Commission.
The Kelly McGarry Spirit Award, as voted on by the athletes themselves, went to Brendan Fairclough of Great Britain.
The event was streamed live on Red Bull TV for the first time, and fans also had the opportunity to explore the venue via augmented reality technology using a 3D topographic model of the mountain.
Red Bull Rampage 2018 final official results:
Brett Rheeder (CAN) – 89.66
Andreu Lacondeguy (ESP) – 87.33
Ethan Nell (USA) – 86.33
Tom van Steenbergen (CAN) – 84.66
Thomas Genon (BEL) – 83.33
Tyler McCaul (USA) – 82.00
Kyle Strait (USA) – 80.33
Szymon Godziek (POL) – 75.00
Kurt Sorge (CAN) – 74.00
Brendan Fairclough (GBR) – 67.66
Adolf Silva (ESP) – 64.33
Vincent Tupin (FRA) – 63.00
Reed Boggs (USA) – 59.66
Rémy Métailler (FRA) – 55.66
Graham Agassiz (CAN) – 50.00
Brandon Semenuk (CAN) – 36.00
DJ Brandt (USA) – 33.33
Carson Storch (USA) – 0.00
Jordie Lunn (CAN) – 0.00
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L-R: Andreu Lacondeguy, Breet Rheeder and Ethan Nell celebrate on the podium after their top-3 finishes at Red Bull Rampage event in Virgin, Utah, Oct. 26, 2018 | Photo courtesy of Red Bull Content Pool, St. George News
Spectators walk to the venue of the Red Bull Rampage event in Virgin, Utah, Oct. 26, 2018 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News
Spectators walk and ride their bikes to the venue of the Red Bull Rampage event in Virgin, Utah, Oct. 26, 2018 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News
Spectators line the sidehills at the venue of the Red Bull Rampage event in Virgin, Utah, Oct. 26, 2018 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News
Spectators line the sidehills at the venue of the Red Bull Rampage event in Virgin, Utah, Oct. 26, 2018 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News
Competitor DJ Brandt of Grand Junction, Colo. crashes during the Red Bull Rampage event in Virgin, Utah, Oct. 26, 2018 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News
Competitor DJ Brandt of Grand Junction, Colo. crashes during the Red Bull Rampage event in Virgin, Utah, Oct. 26, 2018 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News
Szymon Godziek of Poland performs during the Red Bull Rampage event in Virgin, Utah, Oct. 26, 2018 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News
Competitor DJ Brandt of Grand Junction, Colo. performs a flip at the end of his run during the Red Bull Rampage event in Virgin, Utah, Oct. 26, 2018 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News
Adolf Silva rides during Red Bull Rampage in Virgin, Utah, Oct. 26, 2018 | Photo courtesy of Red Bull Content Pool, St. George News
Andreu Lacondeguy rides during Red Bull Rampage in Virgin, Utah, Oct. 26, 2018 | Photo courtesy of Red Bull Content Pool, St. George News
Tom Van Steenbergen competes at Red Bull Rampage in Virgin, Utah, Oct. 26, 2018 | Photo courtesy of Red Bull Content Pool, St. George News
Ethan Nell competes at Red Bull Rampage in Virgin, Utah, Oct. 26, 2018 | Photo courtesy of Red Bull Content Pool, St. George News
Brendan Fairclough competes at Red Bull Rampage in Virgin, Utah, Oct. 26, 2018 | Photo courtesy of Red Bull Content Pool, St. George News
Brett Rheeder competes during Red Bull Rampage in Virgin, Utah, Oct. 26, 2018 | Photo courtesy of Red Bull Content Pool, St. George News
A competitor practices for Red Bull Rampage event in Virgin, Utah, Oct. 25, 2018 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News
Tyler McCaul of California practices for Red Bull Rampage event in Virgin, Utah, Oct. 25, 2018 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News
A competitor practices for Red Bull Rampage event in Virgin, Utah, Oct. 25, 2018 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News
A competitor practices for Red Bull Rampage event in Virgin, Utah, Oct. 25, 2018 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News
Ethan Nell of St. George practices for Red Bull Rampage event in Virgin, Utah, Oct. 25, 2018 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News
Ethan Nell of St. George practices a jump for Red Bull Rampage event in Virgin, Utah, Oct. 25, 2018 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News
Ethan Nell of St. George practices a jump for Red Bull Rampage event in Virgin, Utah, Oct. 25, 2018 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News
Ethan Nell of St. George practices a jump for Red Bull Rampage event in Virgin, Utah, Oct. 25, 2018 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News
Tyler McCaul of California practices for Red Bull Rampage event in Virgin, Utah, Oct. 25, 2018 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News
Graham Agassiz of Canada is interviewed by a television crew during practice for Red Bull Rampage event in Virgin, Utah, Oct. 25, 2018 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News
Graham Agassiz of Canada practices for Red Bull Rampage event in Virgin, Utah, Oct. 25, 2018 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News
Bas van Steenbergen of Canada crashes during practice for Red Bull Rampage event in Virgin, Utah, Oct. 25, 2018 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News
Kurt Sorge of Canada practices for Red Bull Rampage event in Virgin, Utah, Oct. 25, 2018 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News
Kurt Sorge of Canada practices for Red Bull Rampage event in Virgin, Utah, Oct. 25, 2018 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News
Kurt Sorge of Canada practices for Red Bull Rampage event in Virgin, Utah, Oct. 25, 2018 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Jeff Richards, a native of Salt Lake City with family roots in Panguitch, lived in Moab for 20 years before joining St. George News in 2017. Jeff is a longtime journalist and secondary school teacher. He and his wife Penny are the parents of five daughters. They also have two young grandsons. Jeff and his family enjoy swimming, camping, sightseeing, reading, and taking pictures.