Kyle Strait was crowned the first-ever two-time winner of Red Bull Rampage on Sunday, Oct. 13 as the American rider took top spot in the freeride mountain bike contest, which was shortened due to weather concerns.
Strait was the first-run leader after earning a score of 87.50 from judges, and was still atop the standings when organizers called off the competition midway through the second run.
Windy conditions around the venue near Virgin, Utah, led to a course delay that lasted nearly two hours before the event was stopped. About half of the riders in the field for Sunday’s finals had made their way through a second run when the competition ended, but only first-run scores were used in the results.
Strait put together a fast and flowing run on the steep and challenging course, and included a suicide no-hander down a 15.5-metre drop known as the Oakley Icon Sender to set the winning score.
New Zealand’s Kelly McGarry wasn’t far behind, scoring 86.75 with his run that utilized a trio of back flips, one that spanned a 22-metre gap.
Cam Zink, a Rampage winner in 2010, landed a huge back flip down the 15.5-metre sender that powered him to a score of 84.75 and a podium finish.
Spain’s Andreu Lacondeguy (84.25) finished fourth for the third consecutive year and U.S. rider Tyler McCaul (80.50) rounded out the top five.
Canadian riders were held out of the top positions this year, with none finishing among the top eight. Whistler’s Brandon Semenuk had a particularly frustrating day, as he got his front wheel caught while riding a technical section early in his run and registered no score.
See Pique on Thursday for a complete wrap of Red Bull Rampage.
