It was late evening a few weekends ago. Some of the wildest and bravest riders in the world were parading themselves down a canyon in Utah, with Adolf Silva among them. His finals run began innocuously enough. Well, as innocuous as it can be, throwing oneself down 100-foot drops and cliff edges.
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Down the steep inclines, he hopped over a gap where he performed a superman trick. He reached the canyon gap, again, jumped to perfection. A step up, and then the commentator said, “This is where things might get really crazy.”
Silva went to perform a double backflip, but under-rotated, landing on his head, limply coming to a rest further down the landing. It was one of the worst crashes I’ve seen live, and I’m sure many of us thought we’d just seen a man die on live stream.
It’s been a few weeks since the crash, and Silva is posting YouTube videos as part of a ‘Road to Recovery’ series to update fans and keep people in the know about his injuries.
But as it stands, he has no feeling from the chest down and is confined to a wheelchair. And for what? Our entertainment? Pushing boundaries? I’m not in any sense trying to belittle what he did. Quite the opposite – he, and the other riders that have graced the Rampage stage, have all astounded me and other fans year after year with their skill and dedication.
But there was something about Silva’s crash that felt different to me. It forced the question of ‘why?’ into my mind. Why are we letting riders get to the point where they feel like they need to perform life-endangering stunts for our entertainment? More to the point, why is Red Bull, the headline sponsor of this event, allowing this to happen?
It feels almost contradictory a year after denying the Athertons the chance to include the infamous canyon gap at Red Bull Hardline Wales because of safety concerns. When in the States, where medical bills are famously not covered by a national health service, riders are expected to perform to a higher standard each year, in a tight time frame. In my opinion, this only increases the already dangerous levels of pressure the riders and dig teams face.
Red Bull Rampage has been a trailblazing event, bringing riders from freeride, slopestyle, downhill, and other realms of mountain biking into one arena. Last year, it offered a separate platform for women for the first time – something that was much needed and equally impressive.
But I can’t help but wonder if the energy drink brand could take a bit more responsibility for rider safety. Yes, mountain biking can be an adrenaline-fuelled sport, and Red Bull Rampage is by definition meant to be a risky, exciting watch. But I can’t help but feel like a look at the bigger picture is necessary for the event to stay relevant and keep riders safe.
I know that statistically, you’re more likely to die on the drive to the hills in Utah than taking part in Rampage. You could die tomorrow, taken out by an aneurysm, being hit by a bus driver, all the usual ideas. But that doesn’t mean that by taking part in an event like this you should have to endanger your life just for a plaque, or to impress a very subjective judging panel (need I mention the Brendon Fairclough uproar?)
Looking at the Rampage runs from 10 years ago compared to now, it’s true that technology on the bikes and safety equipment has come on – but so has the expectation on riders to perform increasingly dangerous and wild tricks, on tracks they build themselves, on a tight deadline.
It’s absolutely anyone’s choice to take part in these events, I get that. Riders know that to score highly and to impress judges, it’s not just about getting down the track. You have to do it with flair, in a novel way, by completing tricks that are hard enough to do on a purpose-built course, let alone on cliffs with no catch nets and difficult places to get helicopter access to.
When Emil Johanssen crashed on the same day, he almost fell off the edge of the cliff right near the top after misjudging his 360 off the start ramp. Thankfully, someone happened to be nearby and was able to reach him, keeping him stable while the helicopter arrived. It was not a quick and easy extraction, either.
Pushing the limits is what entices people to mountain biking. It’s human nature, and these athletes are exactly those types of people. But I do think that Red Bull Rampage puts unnecessary pressure on riders to perform beyond what they might really want to do.
You could say, “nobody is forcing them to do a 360 off the start ramp,” and no, not overtly. But aren’t we all influencing the riders a little? Think about what sells, what racks up the views, and what gets the sponsor deals. It’s not some bloke riding a blue flow trail, it’s the jumping from a five-storey roof into a pool, that makes you gasp and wonder if they’re actually going to be able to do it.
So while nobody might literally be in the riders’ ears at the start ramp telling them to do something risky, I reckon all of this outside influence might just impact them enough to make them think it’s what’s needed – to do something way outside of their comfort zone, all for glory.
And the thing is, people will still do this stuff even without the Red Bull Rampage platform. But as an organised event, could it be time to either call time on it or consider implementing some safety features?
When you’re faced with potentially life-changing injuries or even death just by making a small mistake, surely it’s gone too far. After all, this is entertainment. That’s what televised sport is at the end of the day. But the difference between riders and, say, Premier League footballers, is that the latter are getting paid £100k a week to compete in a relatively safe sport. They kick a ball around and earn huge amounts of cash, whereas riders like Silva earn much less, and literally put their lives on the line.
Why doesn’t Red Bull extend the period of time riders and their dig teams have to build and practice their lines? I’m not saying give them a month, but maybe more than a week would benefit. Or even get rid of the livestream and just record it for a Red Bull TV show, to take some of the pressure off.
Additionally, don’t you think it’s a bit odd that Rampage has the pedigree of being one of the biggest events in action sports, and yet, an injured rider is forced to Crowdfund for his medical fees? Imagine Declan Rice getting battered by Dan Ballard in a two-footed tackle and then having to ask Arsenal fans to put towards his rehab.
Adolf Silva doesn’t have the backing of Red Bull to foot his medical bills or lengthy recovery process. Instead, he has to self-fund and rely on the generosity of others. It’s a twisted reality, where the entertainer, the rider, has given the event so much publicity, even before his crash. Yet, when he needs assistance, he is left high and dry.
It doesn’t sit right with me. So is Red Bull Rampage still relevant, or even needed in a world of GoPro footage and insane backyard builds from across the globe? I think, if it’s going to continue being showcased on a global scale, it’s time the organisers took a look at rider safety and the pressure they may be under.
Bring back what Rampage was about – inspiring people to redefine what was possible on a mountain bike. To showcase freeriding and give it a competition platform. But without the feeling of unease that’s begun to creep in more and more each year as I wait for the next crash, the next injury, or a serious casualty.
