Red Bull Joyride is in the books and it was Brett Rheeder, who was able to send the best run in front of a home crowd at Crankworx Whistler in Canada! The 23-year-old was out for redemption after an unlucky contest there last year and was able to seal his first ever victory at Red Bull Joyride.

Brett Rheeder

The demanding and dusty course pushed every single contestant to the limit on Sunday. Many athletes had difficulties to finish their run. It was Anthony Messere (CAN), who was able to send the first solid run scoring 81.60 putting him into first place. He stayed there until the youngest rider in the field Emil Johansson (SWE) showed a stellar run with tons of variety, which put him ahead of Messere after scoring 85.20. But then it was Brett Rheeder’s show! The Canadian became the first rider to breach the 90’s. His sensational and flawless run with an enormous trick-level included an opposite fastplant 360 of a step down, a backflip to tuck-no-hander of the whale tail and a backflip tailwhip of the canon. He knew he had sent a huge run, celebrating with his home crowd in the finish area. A score of 93.00 catapulted him into the first spot and sent a message to all the other riders hoping for the win. The only athlete to come close was Thomas Genon (BEL). The Belgian and defending FMB Diamond Series Champ sent one of his well-known clean runs to score 86.80 and rode into second place.

Thomas Genon

Szymon Godziek

In the second run it seemed as though the riders had found more of their groove, resulting in the fact that all top 8 riders scored at least 80.00. After blowing his first run the pressure was on Max Fredriksson, who not only wanted to land on the podium at this historic event, but also preserve his outside chance at the FMB Diamond Series Title. The Swede withstood this pressure and sent a great run putting him on the verge of the 90s and scoring 89.80. This pushed him past Genon in second place and thus he still maintained his chance of the title, if Rogatkin fell to twelfth and if Genon would not be able to bite back. However Genon was able to do just that. The “Birthday Boy” showed his skills and calm yet again and took back his second spot thanks to scoring 91.20, but falling just short of Brett Rheeder. Rheeder thoroughly enjoyed his victory lap through the Whistler Mountain Bike Park, while displaying his great style and grace for one last time and giving the crowd something to cheer about, before basking in the glory of his first win at Red Bull Joyride.

Brett Rheeder:

I am lost for words. This has been tough in the last few years. It’s not like the other contests. It’s steep, there are lots of features, a huge crowd and lots of pressure. I feel amazing! I just dropped in and did my thing and it ended up working out.

Red Bull Joyride Podium:

1. Brett Rheeder – 93.00 points
2. Thomas Genon – 91.20 points
3. Max Fredirksson – 89.80 points

Brett Rheeder

Top 3 runs:

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Official website: crankworx.com
Photos: Clint Trahan