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Red Bull Joyride: Athletes revealed.
Fusing elements of slopestyle, dirt jump and North Shore mountain biking, Red Bull Joyride will once again culminate into one gravity-fed, season-defining freeride mountain bike competition on Saturday, August 17 in Whistler, BC. Eighteen of the world's best riders have been officially invited to battle it out for a chunk of the $50,000 in prize money and historical bragging rights.
"Joyride is the biggest slope-style contest of the year, which means it needs the best preparation. Any good course has rider input and Red Bull Joyride is honestly a rider-inspired course," said Brandon Semenuk, professional freeride mountain biker.
The Course
All of the course features have been re-imagined for 2013 with a design that is less about speed and more about flow. The overall line of the course has been changed to move riders across the hill more, rather than straight down. It has been a work in progress over the past two months as Red Bull athletes Darren Berrecloth and Brandon Semenuk test ride and fine-tune the course to perfection. After some minor tweaks to the track, both feel that the course is now ready to shred.
"Designed by the leading masterminds in the sport, this will be the course to watch," said Darren Berrecloth, professional freeride mountain bike athlete.
The athlete input has been nothing but positive. Riders agree the new design is safer, allowing them to check their speed in a number of sections, which means more runs completed and less crashing. The radius of all the ramps will be longer, and the course will have more sections where the riders can regroup and focus on laying down big, clean tricks. And tricks are exactly what the judges are looking for. With 12 different point-scoring features in total, the 2013 Red Bull Joyride course will be the longest slopestyle course in the history of Crankworx Whistler.
"Ten years ago, the slope at Whistler Mountain Bike Park known as "The Boneyard" hosted the world's first ever mountain bike slopestyle contest. Over the past decade, the dirt on that hill has stood in many different formations and challenged the best riders in the world. At this momentous 10 year point in our sport, its only fitting the riders have joined forces with the dirt to create a course showcasing the ever-evolving nature of slopestyle; staying true to the roots while cutting a path for the mayhem that lies ahead," said Cam McCaul, professional freeride mountain bike athlete.
Making the Grade: Athlete Selection Process
Crankworx Whistler and Red Bull Joyride feature the crème de la crème of professional slopestyle mountain bike athletes, and making the final cut to compete is no walk in the park. With the official announcement of the 2013 competitors, here is a quick look at the various criteria required to make the final cut.
- Win one of the following 2013 Gold/Diamond FMBA Events: Red Bull Bergline, X-Games Munich, Crankworx Les 2 Alpes
- Be in the top 12, current season FMBA 52 week rankings by July 7, 2013
- Past winners of Crankworx Les 2 Alpes receive a 3 year automatic invite to Crankworx Whistler
- The top 3 finishers of the past 3 years at Crankworx Whistler's slopestyle event receive 3 year automatic invite
- Fourth place through 8th place from the year's previous Red Bull Joyride event receive automatic invite
- Wildcard selections, if necessary, are announced by August 3, 2013
The Chosen Few - 2013 Official Athlete Roster
1. Thomas Genon - Winner Red Bull Joyride 2012
2. Martin Soderstrom - 2nd Place Red Bull Joyride 2012
3. Cam McCaul - 3rd Place Red Bull Joyride 2012
4. Kurt Sorge - Top 12 FMBA 52 week seeding list
5. Sam Pilgrim - Top 12 FMBA 52 week seeding list
6. Anthony Messere - Top 12 FMBA 52 week seeding list
7. Tyler McCaul - Top 12 FMBA 52 week seeding list
8. Darren Berrecloth - Top 12 FMBA 52 week seeding list
9. Antoine Bizet - Top 12 FMBA 52 week seeding list
10. Cam Zink - Top 12 FMBA 52 week seeding list
11. Yannick Granieri - Top 12 FMBA 52 week seeding list
12. Brandon Semenuk - Winner Crankworx Les 2 Alpes 2013
13. Mike Montgomery - Top 3 Finalist Crankworx Whistler 2010
14. Kelly McGarry - Top 8 Finalist Crankworx Whistler 2012
15. Andreu Lacondeguy - Highest placed finalist at X-Games Munich 2013
16. Anton Thelander - Highest placed finalist at Crankworx Les 2 Alpes 2013
17. Szymon Godziek - Alternate top 12 FMBA 52 week seeding list
18. Greg Watts - Wildcard Selection - Crankworx Whistler Champion 2009
Watch it Live
Red Bull Joyride is part of the "Red Bull Signature Series" on NBC, which features the most progressive and innovative snowboarding, mountain biking, freestyle motocross, ice-cross downhill, skiing and BMX events. The Red Bull Joyride event at Crankworx Whistler will air on NBC on September 7, 2013 at 2:00 p.m. EDT. For more information, visit www.redbullsignatureseries.com.