34
JAN/FEB 2019
35
UTAH|
A MOUNTAIN BIKE TRIP OF A LIFETIME BY CALEB ELY
It all began with four boys (Caleb Ely, Ryan McNulty, Yewan Fitz-Earle, Holden Fitz-Earle)
five days before Red Bull Rampage. We packed up our bikes and everything needed to
last us a week in the desert and headed out towards Utah for one of the most fun trips
we had ever been on. We drove all day eventually having to pull off around midnight on
the side of the road somewhere in Nevada. The next day, we drove until mid day and
stopped for a quick freeride spot that we had heard about right outside Eli, Nevada. We
started hiking, filming, and riding some super fun lines for a couple of hours before we hit
the road for our final stretch of traveling. When we arrived in Utah we found a free camp-
ing site that involved an interesting river crossing to get to our tents, set up camps and
stretched our legs by building a jump at our campsite.
The next day, we woke up surrounded by some of the prettiest mountains I had ever seen,
littered with freeride trails, jumps, and cliffs from the first Rampage event that took place
there. We rode the whole day, testing out the new style of riding that was so unreal and
humbling compared to anything we had ever ridden in Bend. Day two in Utah started with
a little coffee shop visit that turned into a morning ritual to work on school, look at footage
and eat some of the best homemade cinnamon rolls any of us had ever had! For the next
three days we visited the coffee shop in the morning and rode in the afternoons, getting
more and more comfortable with the unique terrain leading to some fun sunrise shoots
and probably the scariest lines we had ever ridden in our lives. The exposure on the Utah
trails was insane which really opened our eyes to what the professional riders were go-
ing to experience during Red Bull Rampage that coming Friday. On the fourth day, we
changed campsites to the official Rampage Campsite which involved a couple hours of
packing up and loading everything back up into the trusty Sprinter van.
Once we had set up at the new site we were loaded up and taken on an off road Jeep
tour in the surrounding hills right by the old rampage site. We rode the whole rest of the
day and then enjoyed a fun night talking around a fire, watching North Of Nightfall, and
downing way too many Red Bulls for the average teenager. That next day was the big
day and we loaded up for Red Bull Rampage 2018 with plenty of water, food, and stoke
for the unreal day to come. We finally arrived at the event site and were shocked at the
size of the insane features that rose up from the dry Utah desert. The five of us found our
spots and waited for the best show the mountain bike community had to offer. The first
riders started dropping down the steep, technical, and flowy big mountain terrain, compet-
ing for the best score throughout two runs.
One of the coolest parts about this event was that each rider had two diggers and a week
to build and carve out their own line, collaborating with other riders for the bigger features.
A lot of people crashed on their first laps but were able to recover on their second one to
throw down some of the biggest tricks and lines in the history of mountain biking. One of
those big tricks was from Bend local Carson Storch who threw a massive 360 off of a 65
foot drop, sticking the landing but sadly losing control and taking a tumble towards the
bottom. The competition was eventually won by Brett Rheeder who put down his winning
run the first time down with Andreu Lacondeguy not far behind. After the event we had to
go riding so we stayed one last night in Utah and bid our final goodbye to the venue we
had learned to love throughout that week, the friends we met along the way, and many
other places and moments that made this trip so incredible.
The final two days of our trip were spent traveling home to Bend finally arriving there eight
days after our departure. This trip was definitely my favorite trip I had ever been on and
was truly inspiring for every single aspect of our riding. It really opened our eyes to the
incredible feats that someday we could achieve in the sport and helped us see how we
could improve throughout the coming years in Bend. Thanks Rampage for such a great
trip and I truly hope I can come back and visit next year!
P: Andrew Fitz Earle
Holden Fitz Earle
P: Caleb Ely
Ryan McNulty
P: Caleb Ely