Bradzilla was on fire

Red Bull Rampage Qualifying 2004 Game On Cam McRae

It looks like a chapter in the history of freeride is closing. Josh Bender, the originator of the massive drop, some would say the carcass huck, has failed to make the Rampage finals yet again.  In fact if Rampage resumes we may never again see the likes of Josh Bender in the field. 

As usual he didn't disappoint.  Bender scoped and built a line that was a step above.  As usual his vision was bolder and more daring than most of the other competitors - but it was also unattainable for the visionary himself.  Josh had a rough go of Super T's drop from 2002, falling hard and messing up his drivetrain, but true to form he continued toward his ridiculous step-down.  Bender went in with ample speed but early on in flight his bike was aligned vertically and midway through his voyage Bender decided to press eject, flinging the bike forward and continuing like a poorly dressed spaceman looking for a place to land. The Bendable one came in feet first, well down the tranny and about 70 feet from where he took flight. It's no accident Bender is able to try things others walk away from and once again he emerged unhurt and ready for round two.

Bender landed, feet first, in the bottom right of the frame. Photo Cam McRae

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Bender is a unique and wondrous creation - the sort of rugged individual only the Americans could create.  Alas his era is coming to an end and bravado is making way for skill, flair and precision.  In fact bravado and skill are being packaged together by the next generation and by those of the previous generation who are still in the game.

In practice it looked like the event would be dominated by the young, and riders like Kyle Strait and Cameron Zink indeed upped the ante as did Thomas Vanderham.  Wade Simmons and Lance Canfield know this competition and they hung on and qualified strongly in spite of the rubber-boned upstarts. Wade had the misfortune of being the first man out of the gate and, despite laying down a clean, fast, stylish run with ample difficulty he was awarded only 65 for his efforts.  This was the most glaring judging travesty of the day and after the first round, for the most part early in the first round, I think the arbiters chose well. The good news is that this injustice fired Wade up and he absolutely charged his second line waking the clipboard carriers out of their slumber who seeded him in sixth place. Canfield attempted the Super T drop but came up a little short and blew his shock.  He nailed it second run, the only rider to do so on the day and earned his qualifying spot.

Classic Simmons style. Photo David Ferguson

Cedric on the other hand rode a characteristically fast and flamboyant run, with the exception of an uncharacteristic fall off a hip to step down line that many competitors chose.  It wasn't a simple sketch out as some of the judges contended, but a genuine separation from the bike but his score was almost seven points ahead of Wade's spotless first effort.

A chink in Cedric's armour appeared in qualifying. Photo David Ferguson.

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Gee Atherton made his mark in impressive fashion.  Like Cedric and Wade, Gee hit Lance Canfields drop higher up on the course and then hipped into a drop on the edge of the ridge on rider's right.  After that he launched a gap that stepped down and hipped toward the bottom of the canyon.  The trick was that after this substantial, exposed hip you needed to quickly get your act together and once again launch to a side slope to avoid getting pummelled into the hole.  Gee managed this entire line like he was riding a water slide.  It was a thing of beauty and his second effort was equally impressive and scored even higher by the judges. He had the highest score of each round.

Mike Kinrade stomped T's drop in practice but only Lance Canfield (above) nailed it in the big show. Photo David Ferguson.

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Another huge story of the day was Ben Reid, a young Irishman appearing at his first Rampage. He sailed into the same line as Gee but cased the initial hip and then found himself being flung, upside down, into the hole at the bottom of the gap.  It looked as evil as any crash I have seen at Rampage but after the EMTs checked him out he gave the crowd a wave to indicate he was okay.

Ben took a more conservative line second round.  Are you kidding me?  I was flabbergasted to see him on a bike without a six week hiatus just to heal the emotional wounds.  He nailed his second line fast and aggressively and ended up qualifying eleventh.

Ben Reid emerged from the hole unhurt. Photo David Ferguson.

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Matt Hunter had the jitters in the first round and he failed to smooth out the line that had been carving out since his arrival at the course long before sunrise.  It was unique, exposed and technical but lacked any large air.  On his second time out the demons were conquered allowing Matty to qualify in the final position.

Vanderham blazed his second run. Below the hip that tossed Cedric in the first round there are 2 doubles.  Before The Kid's second time down none of the riders managed to put both of them together and most riders, like Kyle Strait, ended up riding through the scrub around both of them.  Vanderham stomped both of them and then moto-whipped the final step down that most of the top riders were attacking. Unfortunately the line doesn't look very impressive from the judges' side of the course and Strait who laid the last step-down into a nice table was scored higher than Thomas by four tenths.

Riders Out On top of Marosi and Bourdon who put themselves out in practice Shaums March may have broken his wrist in his first run and Gareth Dyer definitely broke his scaphoid. Carlin Dunne was waiting on a new frame from Kona that didn't arrive in time for him to compete.  Andrew Shandro fell right at the bottom of his second-place line from last year injuring his hip.  Tough Guy made a valiant effort to take advantage of his second chance to qualify but another crash higher up on the course was too much for him. Glyn O'Brien is a question mark.  He actually hurt his knee going to the aid fo Ben Reid and was unable to take his second run but his score the first time out was enough to give him a seat.  If he feels better today he'll saddle up.  If not, Mike Kinrade who deserves a spot for a unique and well executed line, will move into the twelfth and final qualifying spot.  Cameron Zink tumbled before Lance Canfield's drop at the top off the course and feel bikeless off the cliff.  His back is a little sore but the rumour is he'll be good to go leaving Jordie Lunn in 13th. Super T broke his foot attempting to land the drop that he made famous.

Super T is out. Photo Cam McRae

The finals are being run on the same course as qualifying this year because the newly chosen area is too wet.  Fortunately the weather is cooperating and today looks perfect like yesterday.

There is of course a lot more to say about qualifying but it's time to pack up and see what the riders are preparing for the finals.  I'll be back with final results asap.

Happy Hallowe'en.

Red Bull Rampage Qualifying Results 2004

Cam McRae