Bike
MTB
Red Bull Rampage bike check: Meet the ultimate freeride machines
The riders aren’t the only stars at Red Bull Rampage 2024 – custom freeride bikes built for power, precision, and performance steal the spotlight.
The bikes of Red Bull Rampage are no ordinary bicycles – they’re the F1 race cars of mountain biking. Built for precision and power, these machines are designed to soar 20-27 metres in the air, stop within inches of exposure and perform highly technical tricks.
Every detail matters with these bikes. The suspension, the psi, the brakes and more are finely tuned to handle the highly consequential terrain of Virgin, Utah. Discover what goes into a Red Bull Rampage bike and how they empower the top male and female freeriders to push the boundaries of the sport.
Red Bull Rampage 2024 women's bikes
Casey Brown
© Robin O'Neil
Georgia Astle
© Robin O'Neil
Vero Sandler
© Robin O'Neil
Vinny Armstrong
© Robin O'Neil
01
Type of bike
The prevalent type of mountain bike utilized at Red Bull Rampage is a downhill mountain bike (DH bike). DH bikes have one intention: descending. They’re adept at ploughing through steep, chunky terrain at high speeds. Unsurprisingly, World Cup Downhill racers and lift-accessed bike park riders also prefer DH bikes for their ability to handle consequential terrain.
Brandon Semenuk practices at Red Bull Rampage 2024
© Paris Gore/Red Bull Content Pool
Most notable is the suspension on these machines. Compared to a cross-country bike with about 100 to 120mm of travel, downhill bikes have a whopping 200mm of travel – and the Red Bull Rampage riders need every bit of it. Since pedalling uphill is unnecessary, engineers can tailor the frame to focus on the descent. The head tube angle is slacker, placing the rider farther back and creating a greater sense of stability. You also won’t find the extra bells and whistles often stocked on other kinds of mountain bikes. For example, dropper posts and bottle cages are absent. Instead, bike engineers use that extra real estate in the frame to get creative with shock placement, giving DH bikes their unique character and flair.
02
Suspension
Chelsea Kimball at practice day 1 before Red Bull Rampage 2024
© Robin O'Neill/Red Bull Content Pool
A downhill bike is just the starting point, and grabbing a demo DH bike from your local bike park isn’t enough to set foot on the Red Bull Rampage venue. The riders make critical adjustments to all aspects of their rig to ensure success. One fundamental ingredient is suspension; getting it right for the terrain can feel like a science.
The general rule of thumb is that supple suspension creates more traction in steep, loose terrain. Inversely, having a stiffer suspension helps with hitting jumps and having consistency when going off a lip of a feature. The quandary with Red Bull Rampage is that the athletes ride both precipitous terrain and hit massive jumps and features. In a perfect world, they’d have both. However, most Rampage riders lean towards the stiffer approach to their suspension, factoring that a rigid bike is more manageable on gnarly terrain than a soft bike on huge jumps.
Cami Nogueria drops into her line at practice before Red Bull Rampage 2024
© Emily Tidwell/Red Bull Content Pool
Ultimately, it’s unique for each competitor, and riders hone in on what works best through trial and error. There isn’t one tried and true setup for riding at Red Bull Rampage, which ultimately comes down to rider preference. Suspension setup can be intimidating for a new Red Bull Rampage rider, and there’s no way of getting it right without experience on the course.
Up until two years ago, using anything but a dual-crown suspension fork was unimaginable. Dual crowns are stiffer and have longer travel, whereas single-crown forks can flex and offer less travel. But single crowns are more manoeuvrable, allowing for tricks like bar spins, tail whips and other interesting combinations. Significant advancements in suspension technology are changing the game for riders, as single-crown forks can now hold their own on the Red Bull Rampage venue. As mountain bikes evolve, these advancements quickly trickle into Red Bull Rampage, progressing the sport further – as seen with Brandon Semenuk’s tail whip that broke the internet in 2021.
03
Brakes
Thomas Genon rides his bike at Red Bull Rampage 2022
© Paris Gore/Red Bull Content Pool
Speed control is critical when dropping into a 65-degree scree chute or 12-18-metre feature, and brakes play a prominent and vital role in achieving success. Much like a well-maintained race car, Red Bull Rampage riders want their brakes to be as precise and consistent as possible, requiring constant fresh brake bleeds and pads to eliminate unpredictability. Hydraulic disc brakes are the go-to choice for the riders, and massive 200mm rotors are typical to provide as much braking power as possible.
04
Wheels and tires
Kyle Strait & Szymon Godziek during day 1 practice at Red Bull Rampage 2024
© Christian Pondella/Red Bull Content Pool
Wheel size is one consistent characteristic among all the riders. You likely won’t find a 29-inch wheelset anywhere at Red Bull Rampage, although it’s a popular size for trail riding among recreational cyclists. Instead, Red Bull Rampage riders prefer smaller wheels for hitting tricks and maintaining control.
Rotating or flipping a bike is significantly easier with a smaller wheelset. To put it into perspective, the energy it takes to flip a dirt jumper versus a beefy DH bike is dramatically less. Why? It comes down to size; a dirt jumper is much easier to move around in the air. With that in mind, the riders opt for a smaller wheelset to make their hefty DH bike more nimble. Plus, smaller wheels roll slower, another advantage for controlling speed on a knife-edge ridgeline.
As a result, most bikes have full 27.5-inch wheels, 26-inch wheels, or even a combination of both: 27.5 in the front and 26 in the back. Similar to suspension, the stiffer the tyres, the better. While most recreational cyclists keep their tyres at 18 to 28 PSI for tubeless tyres, Red Bull Rampage riders tend to run tyres around 35 PSI – or higher. The high pressure helps keep a tyre from blowing off a rim when hitting a landing, though it’s not always infallible.
05
Personal style
Carson Storch preparing to drop in
© Bartek Wolinski/Red Bull Content Pool
I found the paint job of a 67 Corvette and sent it to my sponsor to do a corvette inspired paint job
The mountain bike community regards Red Bull Rampage as the Super Bowl of mountain biking, and the bikes themselves feel painted and stylized for the half-time show. Every year, the event draws out custom frames worthy of a gallery. Past competitions have seen bike frames donned in zebra stripes, ocean sunsets, and retro aeroplane decals. Sprinkled on these frames are details unique to the riders. On closer inspection, it’s possible to find tally marks for total Red Bull Rampage competitions, song lyrics, and other easter eggs that would otherwise go undetected. Just like the riding that’s displayed every year, the bikes are a reflection of each athlete’s creativity and style. “The custom paint job fits with the colour of the dirt here and is copper, gold, and red. I wanted a stylish paint job with all black components,” said Szymon Godziek.
Szymon Godziek on the edge
© Bartek Wolinski/Red Bull Content Pool
The countdown is on for the 2024 Red Bull Rampage, which is set for Thursday, October 10 for the women, and Saturday, October 12 for the men.
How to watch Red Bull Rampage
- Women’s Broadcast: Thursday, October 10 at 6:00pm PT/3:00am CEST simulcast on ESPN+, Red Bull TV, and Red Bull Bike’s YouTube channel.
- Men’s Broadcast: Saturday, October 12 at 9:00am PT/7:00pm CEST on ESPN+ in the U.S. and on Red Bull TV in all other countries.
- Highlight Shows: Two one-hour highlight shows will also air back-to-back Sunday, October 27 on ESPN2, with the women’s competition taking place at 2:00pm PT/11:00pm and the men’s competition taking place at 3:00pm PT/12:00am CEST.
