As spring approaches, preparations for the Red Bull Wide Open are heating up. This summer, the search for the ultimate mountain bike athlete will take place at Bike Park Mottolino in Livigno (ITA). On July 13th downhill, 4X and freeride icons will go head-to-head down a huge supercross inspired track packed with technical features and high-speed obstacles. The rider line-up is one of a kind – for the first time ever so many heavy hitters will be united side-by-side in a single 6-man format race.
Since the announcement of Red Bull Wide Open, athletes have been flooding in to reserve a spot on the starting list. “Red Bull Wide Open is a mix of my 2 favorite sports, mountain biking and supercross, so deciding to attend the event was very easy,” said Martin Soderstrom. “The chance to race against some of my heroes from other disciplines is a once in a life time opportunity that I do not want to miss! It will be a challenge to ride such a unique course but I guess everyone will let loose and just send it!”
While Martin Soderstrom is one of the biggest names on the freeride scene, other competitors like Brian Lopes, Greg Minnaar and Andreu Lacondeguy will be attending to defend their corner of the gravity world. Which discipline will prove to have the necessary skills to conquer the Red Bull Wide Open track? Come to Livigno on July 13th and find out!
Athletes currently confirmed for Red Bull Wide Open:
Aaron Chase
Andreu Lacondeguy
Andrew Neethling
Antoine Bizet
Brian Lopes
Bernard Kerr
Bernardo Neves Cruz
Bryn Atkinson
Cameron Zink
Danny Hart
Darren Berrecloth
Eliot Jackson
Emanuel Pombo
Felix Beckeman
Filip Polc
Geoff Gulevich
Graham Agassiz
Greg Minnaar
Guido Tschugg
Joe Smith
Johannes Fischbach
Joost Wichman
Kevin Aiello
Kyle Strait
Kurt Sorge
Logan Binggeli
Martin Soderstrom
Marcelo Gutierrez
Michal Prokop
Mike Day
Mike Jones
Mick Hannah
Michal Marosi
Nick Beer
Nico Vink
Pierre Eduard Ferry
Tomas Slavik
Tomas Zejda
Yannick Granieri
For former 4X Champion Brian Lopes, the Red Bull Wide Open course will be his biggest challenge yet. “I'm looking forward to July 13th, I'm waiting for the challenge in Livigno since the moment I was asked to participate,” said Brian Lopes.“ His elbow-to-elbow racing skills will prove useful in the 6-man format race. But will downhill racers like Greg Minnaar have the technical advantage over the rough terrain at such high speeds? At this point it is anyone’s guess who will take the title. With such a talented and insane rider line up, awesome action is guaranteed!
So, save the date, July13th 2014 and bring your bike because Bike Park Mottolino has some of the most flowy and exciting trails in the Alps. There is no doubt that after watching Red Bull Wide Open, you will feel the urge to rip up some dirt as well! Alongside the race action several side events including a bike expo will provide even more eye candy for the onsite guests.
Official schedule:
July 12th: training and Red Bull Wide Open qualifications
July 13th: Red Bull Wide Open competition
About Red Bull Wide OpenSnaking 500 meters down the Bike Park Mottolino in Livigno, Italy, Red Bull Wide Open will feature a custom, one of a kind supercross size downhill track. Especially designed to challenge the competitors on a variety of levels, the athletes will have to tackle terrain with unheard of levels of speed and air time. Side-by-side they will race down a course riddled with jaw dropping 60’ gaps, massive 20’ berms, wallrides, and technical rock waterfalls. The broad elite of competitors will attack this new course concept in a non-stop, six man head-to-head competition.
Info available on
www.redbull.it/wideopen General Information about the bike destination LivignoLivigno is famous for a great range of winter sport activities and its breathtaking nature, earning it the nickname “Little Tibet”. Its unique mountain scenery is also perfect for a variety of biking sports in the summer. The spectrum of trails around Livigno features something for everyone: cross-country, all mountain and downhill riders can choose the perfect biking challenges. Road cycling athletes also choose Livigno for altitude training (1816m a.s.l.) and a total of 3,200 km of mapped trails and GPS-tracks can be discovered in the surrounding area. The bike park is not only well-known among the gravity sport fans because of the UCI Mountain Bike World Championships in 2005, but also for a large range of different freeride tracks. Down in the valley, the town centre of Livigno offers 250 tax-free shops. Located right in the heart of Europe. Livigno can be easily reached by car or train and bike hotels provide individual services for all bike fans and vacationers.
Web www.livignobike.it -
www.livigno.euAbout Mottolino BikeparkMottolino is well known for its dedication to FUN and its willingness to offer top quality service. The Bike Park has been among the first ones opening in Italy and it’s very well known for the large variety of different freeride tracks. At the Mottolino bikepark riders can find anything they’d like: 11 trails for all abilities, a jump area with structures for any level and a north shore area with wooden platforms. With two incredible events such as the Nine Knights MTB and the Red Bull Wide Open, Mottolino is confirmed among the top bikeparks in Europe.
For any other information check the website
Mottolino.com The Red Bull Wide Open will be executed by
H5 Events, the producers of Red Bull Rampage and many other mountain bike events worldwide. Their knowledge and expertise will ensure a progressive course design backed by 17 years of expertise.
Tinker Juarez on the full suspension. 1978
www.pinkbike.com/photo/10839279
Don't take my word for it, ask Mick Hannah, Fabien Cousine, Mark Weir, Joe Lawwill, or Miles Rockwell. They have all ridden my trail, and will agree with me.
www.pinkbike.com/photo/10839280
ps. don't hate on everyones stoke for a redbull sized version of the original. They supersize every good idea and give it a flashy logo, dubstep and helicopters.. Doesn't mean the original thing wasn't as rad as the new one. It's just cool as f*ck to see the who's who of freeride, 4x and DH all on one course. Just gotta throw a few 16 or 20" wheels in the mix! doesn't BMX stand for bicycle motocross?
My point in bringing up the history is that we should all ride more dirt and not let categories divide us. When I put a suspension fork on a 26" cruiser in 1998 and started building downhill trails with steep doubles, nobody where I lived understood what I was doing. Then I saw the MTB movie Chainsmoke, and I knew that BMX style mountain biking was going to start happening in a big way. Now we have MTB parks, slopestyle, 4x, and jump trails popping up everywhere, and It's awesome! Just remember it's because of bmxers getting on mountain bikes that this progression began. It started on the mountains, and now with Wide Open it has come full circle. If you race DH, 4x, or slalom, try BMX. It will make you a better mountain biker. And you don't need a BMX bike to do it.
Oh, I got most of those photos from here www.bmxsociety.com/topic/24729-mel-stoutsenberger-history-of-bmx-photos
www.youtube.com/watch?v=7t38xyUqotc
-Claudio?, come on, you have to enter this!
-Are we sure there will be a webcast on Red Bull TV?
-If yes, will the comments be by Rob Warner
wow this is gonna be awesome.
But... "the ultimate mountain bike athlete"? That's an exaggeration. The best combination of DH/4X/man-made jumps skills maybe. To find the actual ultimate MOUNTAIN biker you'd need a course consisting of some really tough, technical climbs (no fireroads) followed by World Cup DH-worthy descents all done in one shot (no untimed "transfers" and stuff). Although that might turn out a bit predictable, it would probably get won by Nino Schurter on an all mountain bike
Still going to have fun watching the Wide Open of course.
Surely "Ultimate mtb Athlete" would be more like:
Round 1: A weekend of Enduro style racing.
Round 2: A DJ/Slopestyle event
Round 3: A two day DH event held on two 4-5 minute tracks. One high speed and flowy/jumpy, one tight/techy and rough. Both steep/not much pedaling.
Round 4: A 5 day XC marathon.
Round 5: 4X
Round 6: Trials (anyone remember trials :p)
Round 7: Technical Climbing
Round 8: Longest skid
Probably forgotten a whole load of things...
Round 9: A Big Mountain/Rampage/Freeride kinda thing Not just huge jumps and drops but more general "off piste" messing about
And @bakenbikin I agree Akrigg would be tough to beat for all-round versatility.
Didn't see anything regarding this in article..
(des this mean something?!)