Red Bull Road Rage
Encyclopedia
The Red Bull Road Rage is an extreme downhill on-road bike competition. The competition was first held in 2005 as a pro-invite only event, but since 2008 Red Bull
Red Bull
Red Bull is an energy drink sold by the Austrian Red Bull GmbH, created in 1987 by the Austrian entrepreneur Dietrich Mateschitz. In terms of market share, Red Bull is the most popular energy drink in the world, with 3 billion cans sold each year. Dietrich Mateschitz was inspired by an already...

 has opened it up to amateur and professional racers alike. Red Bull Road Rage has seen editions held once in each the USA, Italy, France, Germany, Belgium, Latvia, Israel and Poland and twice in Switzerland.

The event is similar to Four-cross
Four-cross
Four-cross , also called Mountain-cross, not to be confused with Fourcross, is a relatively new style of mountain bike racing where four bikers race downhill on a prepared, BMX like, track, simply trying to get down first. These bikes are generally either full suspension with 3 to 4 inches of...

 mountain biking. An initial individual time trial ITT qualifying and seeding runQualifying runs were held in a Four-cross
Four-cross
Four-cross , also called Mountain-cross, not to be confused with Fourcross, is a relatively new style of mountain bike racing where four bikers race downhill on a prepared, BMX like, track, simply trying to get down first. These bikes are generally either full suspension with 3 to 4 inches of...

 format at the Red Bull Road Rage events in Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy (2009) and at La Redoute, Aywaille, Belgium (2010)
is held, followed by the top 32Only the top 16 riders rode the knock-out stages in Tuna Canyon, Malibu, California, USA (2005), whereas all 62 competitors raced the knock-out heats in Saint-Lary-Soulan, France (2009) and the top 64 riders contested the elimination rounds in Sigulda, Latvia (2010) competitors racing four at a time in knock-out heats, with the two fastest progressing to the next round.

History

The roots of Red Bull Road Rage can be traced back to Jon Mesko of Giant Bicycles, who came up with the idea in 2001. He eventually contacted the then Red Bull (North America) Communications Manager, Paul Melina, in 2004 to pitch the idea and in January 2005, Red Bull gave the green light to commence organising the event.

Tuna Canyon, Malibu, California, USA

The original Red Bull Road Rage was held down Tuna Canyon, Malibu
Malibu
Malibu may refer to:Places:* Malibu, Baja California, a beach in Rosarito Beach Municipality, Baja California* Malibu, British Columbia, a camp near the entrance of Princess Louisa Inlet...

 in California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...

, USA on 5 and 6 November 2005. The event was held on a 4km course and included 49 bends with 390m elevation drop, giving an average gradient of 9.75% with a maximum of 18%.

Qualifying results

Place Rider Country Time Average speed (km/h)
1. Miles Rockwell USA 4:24.7 54.707
2. David McCook USA 4:25.9 54.460
3. Brian Lopes
Brian Lopes
Brian Thomas Lopes is a professional mountain bike racer who specializes in four-cross. Lopes started riding BMX in his childhood and turned professional at seventeen years old....

USA 4:28.6 53.913
4. John Wike USA 4:33.1 53.025

Final results

Place Rider Country Time Average speed (km/h)
1. Miles Rockwell USA 4:24.68 54.711
2. Eric Carter USA * **
3. John Wike USA * **
4. Todd Tanner USA * **

*Run only timed for first rider across the line. **No average speed can be calculated for these riders due to run only being timed for first placed rider.

Tuna Canyon, Malibu, California, USA

In 2006 the event was set to return to Tuna Canyon, Malibu
Malibu
Malibu may refer to:Places:* Malibu, Baja California, a beach in Rosarito Beach Municipality, Baja California* Malibu, British Columbia, a camp near the entrance of Princess Louisa Inlet...

, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...

, scheduled for 11 November. 25 of the world’s top professional racers from road and mountain biking were on the official start list. On 31 October following evaluation of the then fire danger conditions, the decision was made to cancel the event due to fire safety concerns from the Malibu City fire chief.

Gurnigelpass, Switzerland

In 2008 Red Bull Road Rage was held again, this time for the first time in Europe. It was also the first time the event was opened up to amateur and professional riders alike. The event was held on a 3.8km course with 340m elevation drop, descending the Gurnigelpass in Switzerland. Average gradient was 8.95% with a maximum of 18%.

Qualifying results

Place Rider Country Time Average speed (km/h)
1. Johannes Fischbach Germany
2. Guillaume Gualandi France
3. Stefan Hofmeier Switzerland
4. Fabian Christen Switzerland

Final results

Place Rider Country Time Average speed (km/h)
1. Guillaume Gualandi France * **
2. Johannes Fischbach Germany * **
3. Stefan Hofmeier Switzerland * **
4. Fabian Christen Switzerland * **

*Run not timed. **No average speed can be calculated due to run not being timed.

2009

For the first time, 2009 saw multiple events held across Europe, with a total of four races. Three new venues were added including Italy, France and Germany and the season finale saw a return to racing in Switzerland.

Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy

The 2009 Red Bull Road Rage season opener was held for the first time in Italy, on 21 and 22 June 2009. The event was held on a 5km course with 360m elevation drop, descending into Cortina d’Ampezzo in the Dolomites
Dolomites
The Dolomites are a mountain range located in north-eastern Italy. It is a part of Southern Limestone Alps and extends from the River Adige in the west to the Piave Valley in the east. The northern and southern borders are defined by the Puster Valley and the Sugana Valley...

. Average gradient was 7.4% with a maximum of 12%.

Qualifying results

Place Rider Country Time Average speed (km/h)
1. Guillaume Gualandi France 4:51.02 61.851
2. Fred Mazières France 4:51.08 61.839
3. Mauro Bettin Italy 4:51.09 61.837
4. Nitai Da Sacco Italy 4:56.20 60.770

Final results

Place Rider Country Time Average speed (km/h)
1. Mauro Bettin Italy * **
2. Fred Mazières France * **
3. Luca Pais Marden Italy * **
4. Guillaume Gualandi France * **

*Run not timed. **No average speed can be calculated due to run not being timed.

Saint-Lary-Soulan, France

The second Red Bull Road Rage of the season was held for the first time in France, on 13 September 2009. The event was held on a 4.6km course with 350m elevation drop, descending from Saint-Lary-Soulan
Saint-Lary-Soulan
Saint-Lary-Soulan is a commune in the Hautes-Pyrénées department in south-western France.-Geography:Saint-Lary is located in Hautes-Pyrénées 80 km south of the départements capital Tarbes, next to the Le Néouvielle Nature Reserve and the Pyrenees National Park and is a 20 minute drive to...

 in the Pyrenees
Pyrenees
The Pyrenees is a range of mountains in southwest Europe that forms a natural border between France and Spain...

. Average gradient was 7.6% with a maximum of 12%.

Qualifying results

Place Rider Country Time Average speed (km/h)
1. Frédéric Moncassin
Frédéric Moncassin
- Major achievements :1990- Major achievements :1990- Major achievements :1990:1st, Stage 2 and 4, Dauphiné Liberé:1st, GP d'Isbergues:1st, GP de Denain1991:1st, GP de Denain:1st, Stage 3, Tour d'Armorique1992:1st, Grand Prix du Nord-Pas-de-Calais...

France 4:13.271 65.385
2. Guillaume Gualandi France 4:16.717 64.507
3. Fred Mazières France 4:18.035 64.177
4. Janos Köhler Ireland 4:19.171 63.896

Final results

Place Rider Country Time Average speed (km/h)
1. Frédéric Moncassin
Frédéric Moncassin
- Major achievements :1990- Major achievements :1990- Major achievements :1990:1st, Stage 2 and 4, Dauphiné Liberé:1st, GP d'Isbergues:1st, GP de Denain1991:1st, GP de Denain:1st, Stage 3, Tour d'Armorique1992:1st, Grand Prix du Nord-Pas-de-Calais...

France 4:25.210 62.441
2. Guillaume Gualandi France 4:25.441 62.387
3. David Lacoste France 4:25.551 62.361
4. Fred Mazières France 4:28.055 61.778
5. Cédric Gracia
Cedric Gracia
Cédric Gracia is a French mountain biker.Cédric Gracia is a French mountain biker who now lives in Andorra. He started his career as an athlete at 6 years old as a BMX rider and then a freestyle ski pro. Cedric Gracia, years later, became a mountain bike rider...

France 4:40.683 58.999

Moritzberg, Germany

The third Red Bull Road Rage of the season was held for the first time in Germany, on 10 October 2009. The event was held on a 2.1km course with 188m elevation drop, descending the Moritzberg, near Nuremburg. Average gradient was 8.95% with a maximum of 18%.

Qualifying results – Women

Place Rider Country Time Average speed (km/h)
1. Birgit Braumann Austria 2:26.138 49.761
2. Sonja Granzow Germany 2:27.555 49.283
3. Leoni Dickerhoff Germany 2:31.908 47.871
4. Anja Jerenko Germany 2:34.661 47.018

Final results – Women

Place Rider Country Time Average speed (km/h)
1. Birgit Braumann Austria * **
2. Sonja Granzow Germany * **
3. Christina Mimler Germany * **
4. Leoni Dickerhoff Germany * **

*Run not timed. **No average speed can be calculated due to run not being timed.

Qualifying results – Men

Place Rider Country Time Average speed (km/h)
1. Thomas Schäfer Germany 2:04.230 58.536
2. Ivan Saladin Switzerland 2:06.827 57.317
3. Olaf Pollack Germany 2:08.314 56.673
4. Daniel Auerswald Germany 2:08.922 56.406

Final results – Men

Place Rider Country Time Average speed (km/h)
1. Thomas Schäfer Germany * **
2. Sebastian Körber Germany * **
3. Thomas Lerzer Germany * **
4. Stefan Hofmeier Switzerland * **

*Run not timed. **No average speed can be calculated due to run not being timed.

Full table of results

Rengg, Switzerland

The 2009 Red Bull Road Rage season finale saw a return to racing in Switzerland, this time in Rengg, on 28 October 2009. The event was held on a 2.1km course with 210m elevation drop, descending from Rengg into Entlebuch, Switzerland. Average gradient was 10% with a maximum of 16%.

Qualifying results

Place Rider Country Time Average speed (km/h)
1. Janos Köhler Ireland 1:39.31 76.125
2. Michael Schärer Switzerland 1:39.91 75.668
3. David Lacoste France 1:40.82 74.985
4. Sebastian Körber Germany 1:41.10 74.777

Final results

Place Rider Country Time Average speed (km/h)
1. Sebastian Körber Germany * **
2. Janos Köhler Ireland * **
3. Michael Schärer Switzerland * **
4. David Lacoste France * **

*Run not timed. **No average speed can be calculated due to run not being timed.

La Redoute, Aywaille, Belgium

The 2010 Red Bull Road Rage season opener was held for the first time in Belgium, 22 May 2010. The event was held on a 950m course with 95m elevation drop, descending La Redoute
La Redoute
La Redoute is the largest mail order company in France.The company is based in Roubaix. It was founded in 1875. It is owned by the PPR holding company. PPR was named "Pinault-Printemps-Redoute" until 2005. Thus the "R" in the acronym refers to La Redoute....

 into Aywaille. Average gradient was 10% with a maximum of 22%.

Qualifying results

Place Rider Country Time Average speed (km/h)
1. Janos Köhler Ireland 0:50.26 72.117
2. David Lacoste France 0:50.53 71.744
3. Guillaume Gaulandi France 0:52.41 69.170
4. François-Xavier Plaçais France 0:52.63 68.874

Final results

Place Rider Country Time Average speed (km/h)
1. Janos Köhler Ireland 0:50.52 71.745
2. Christian Lademann
Christian Lademann
Christian Lademann is a former German professional racing cyclist.Christian Lademann became world champion at the UCI Track Cycling World Championships in 1999 in the team pursuit with the German team, a year after they had become Military World Champions and Vice World Champions...

Germany 0:51.07 70.984
3. David Lacoste France 0:51.09 70.947
4. François-Xavier Plaçais France 0:51.75 70.044

Sigulda, Latvia

The second 2010 Red Bull Road Rage event was held for the first time in Latvia, on 30 May 2010. The event was held on a 700m course with 80m elevation drop, descending along the National Bobsleigh Track access road in Sigulda, Latvia. Average gradient was 11.4% with a maximum of 15%.

Qualifying results – Women

Place Rider Country Time Average speed (km/h)
1. Ivita Krūmiņa Latvia 0:56.70 44.444
2. Marta Garā Latvia 0:59.50 42.353
3. Aija Petrovska Latvia 1:03.10 39.937
4. Dace Gala Latvia 1:06.20 38.066

Final results – Women

Place Rider Country Time Average speed (km/h)
1. Ivita Krūmiņa Latvia 0:52.85 47.682
2. Marta Garā Latvia 0:56.85 44.327
3. Aija Petrovska Latvia 0:58.35 43.188
4. Dace Gala Latvia 1:00.15 41.895

Qualifying results – Men

Place Rider Country Time Average speed (km/h)
1. Juris Luščenoks Latvia 0.46.85 53.789
2. Gundars Osis Latvia 0.47.05 53.560
3. Mārtiņš Sproģis Latvia 0.47.10 53.503
=4. Reinis Avens Latvia 0.47.35 53.221
=4. Arnis Zdanovskis Latvia 0.47.35 53.221

Final results – Men

Place Rider Country Time Average speed (km/h)
1. Jānis Bulēvičs Latvia 0:45.05 55.938
2. Kristaps Osis Latvia 0:45.25 55.691
3. Reinis Avens Latvia 0:45.35 55.568
4. Mārtiņš Sproģis Latvia 0:46.25 54.486

Hamat Gader, Israel

The 2010 Red Bull Road Rage season finale took place in yet another new venue, this time in Israel. The event was held on 3.3km course with 295m elevation drop, descending from Mevo Hama to Hamat Gader, Israel. Average gradient was 8.94% with a maximum of 18%.

Qualifying results

Place Rider Country Time Average speed (km/h)
1. Ben Kedmi Israel 3:41.04 53.75
2. Janos Köhler Ireland 3:44.03 53.03
3. Eli Vexler Israel 3:45.16 52.76
4. Chanoch Redlich Israel 3:48.34 52.03

Final results

Place Rider Country Time Average speed (km/h)
1. Ohad Ben Hamo Israel * **
2. Daniel Eliad Israel * **
3. Eli Wexler Israel * **
4. Janos Köhler Ireland * **

*Run not timed. **No average speed can be calculated due to run not being timed.

Międzybrodzie Żywiecki, Poland

The only 2011 Red Bull Road Rage event was held for the first time in Poland, 1 October 2011. The event was held on a 4km course with 260m elevation drop, descending Góra Żar to Międzybrodzie Żywiecki. Average gradient was 6.5% with a maximum of 14%.

Qualifying results

Place Rider Country Time Average speed (km/h)
1. Arkadiusz Ustroń Poland 3:52.43 61.954
2. Christian Lademann
Christian Lademann
Christian Lademann is a former German professional racing cyclist.Christian Lademann became world champion at the UCI Track Cycling World Championships in 1999 in the team pursuit with the German team, a year after they had become Military World Champions and Vice World Champions...

 
Germany 3:52.60 61.909
3. Marcin Motyka Poland 3.53.20 61.749
4. Piotr Szafraniec Poland 3.55.30 61.198

Final results

Place Rider Country Time Average speed (km/h)
1. Piotr Szafraniec Poland * **
2. Christian Lademann
Christian Lademann
Christian Lademann is a former German professional racing cyclist.Christian Lademann became world champion at the UCI Track Cycling World Championships in 1999 in the team pursuit with the German team, a year after they had become Military World Champions and Vice World Champions...

Germany * **
3. Marcin Motyka Poland * **
4. Przemek Hrabia Poland * **

*Run not timed. **No average speed can be calculated due to run not being timed.

Courses

Race course distances and total elevation drop have varied from event to event. The original Red Bull Road Rage descending Tuna Canyon, Malibu, California, USA, was held on a 4km course, with 390m elevation drop. The shortest course was in Sigulda, Latvia, measuring just 700m and including only 80m elevation drop. The longest course was in Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy, with a total distance of 5km and 360m elevation drop.
  • Longest course: 5km (Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy)
  • Shortest course: 700m (Sigulda, Latvia)
  • Most elevation drop: 390m (Tuna Canyon, Malibu, California, USA)
  • Least elevation drop: 80m (Sigulda, Latvia)
  • Steepest maximum gradient: 22% (La Redoute, Aywaille, Belgium)
  • Steepest average gradient: 11.4% (Sigulda, Latvia)
  • Flattest average gradient: 6.5% (Międzybrodzie Żywiecki, Poland)

Fastest speeds

The fastest officially recorded top speed was by Mauro Bettin in 2009 during the Italian Road Rage in Cortina d’Ampezzo, at 98 km/h.

The fastest average speed during a timed run is Janos Köhler's ITT qualifying run in 2009 during the Swiss Road Rage in Rengg, at 76.125 km/h. David Lacoste holds the record for the highest recorded average speed during normal racing, when in 2010 during the Belgian Road Rage he achieved an average speed of 72.271 km/h during his semi final run.

Riders

The most participations have been by Janos Köhler with 6, who has contested 3 finals and achieved 2 podium finishes. Janos Köhler is also the only rider to qualify in 1st place 2 times and in 2 consecutive races. Guillaume Gualandi holds the record for the most consecutive appearances in a final with 3. Janos Köhler and Sebastian Körber hold the record for the most consecutive podium finishes with 2 each. 6 riders have successfully won both the qualifying run and the final at the same event: Miles Rockwell – Tuna Canyon, Malibu, California (2005); Frédéric Moncassin
Frédéric Moncassin
- Major achievements :1990- Major achievements :1990- Major achievements :1990:1st, Stage 2 and 4, Dauphiné Liberé:1st, GP d'Isbergues:1st, GP de Denain1991:1st, GP de Denain:1st, Stage 3, Tour d'Armorique1992:1st, Grand Prix du Nord-Pas-de-Calais...

 – Saint-Lary-Soulan, France (2009); Birgit Braumann and Thomas Schäfer – Moritzberg, Germany (2009); Janos Köhler – La Redoute, Aywaille, Belgium (2010); and Ivita Krūmiņa – Sigulda, Latvia (2010). The most successful riders are Guillaume Gualandi and Janos Köhler with 1 win, a 2nd and a 4th place each. No rider has yet managed to win the competition more than once. The oldest rider to win is Frédéric Moncassin
Frédéric Moncassin
- Major achievements :1990- Major achievements :1990- Major achievements :1990:1st, Stage 2 and 4, Dauphiné Liberé:1st, GP d'Isbergues:1st, GP de Denain1991:1st, GP de Denain:1st, Stage 3, Tour d'Armorique1992:1st, Grand Prix du Nord-Pas-de-Calais...

, who was 39 years and 350 days old when he won in Saint-Lary-Soulan, France. The youngest winner was Thomas Schäfer who was 25 years and 132 days old when he won on the Moritzberg, Germany.

Finals appearances

Three riders have contested 3 finals each: (Gurnigelpass, Switzerland 2008: 1st; Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy 2009: 4th; Saint-Lary-Soulan, France 2009: 2nd) (Rengg, Switzerland 2009: 2nd; La Redoute, Aywaille, Belgium 2010: 1st; Hamat Gader, Israel 2010: 4th) (Saint-Lary-Soulan, France 2009: 3rd; Rengg, Switzerland 2009: 4th; La Redoute, Aywaille, Belgium 2010: 3rd)

Event wins by nationality – Men

Event victories Country
2
1

Event wins by nationality – Women

Event victories Country
1

World Rankings

Although there is no officially recognised points system in place as each race has been run as a stand alone event, based on full season combined qualifying and race results the following riders finished as the #1 World Ranked Red Bull Road Rage athletes.
  • 2005 -
  • 2008 -
  • 2009 -
  • 2010 -
  • 2011 -

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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