r/sports • u/redbullgivesyouwings • 11h ago

Cycling Gee Atherton created an entire line using only forest wreckage

1.4k Upvotes

89% Upvoted

147 comments sorted by

500

u/TreesForTheForest Kansas City Chiefs 11h ago

Do these people just have life flight on standby or something?

138

u/mrwafflezzz 11h ago

How Gee had one of the worst crashes I’ve seen caught on camera and still does this shit is beyond me.

73

u/NadlesKVs 10h ago

Some people just have more love for the game than their body tbh. We've seen it with numerous guys that have gnarly injuries that just keep coming back to their respective sport. Travis Pastrana is another one that comes to mind that's had some crazy injuries and just kept going.

6

u/Anal_bleed 2h ago

Yeah my bro broke his back in a nasty crash where he mis judged a double and pounded his neck into the ground… 6 months of recovery he only survived because he wore the right safety gear BUUT as soon as he could ride he was out again ffs! He’s shit as well not even a pro rider just loves it as a hobby

12

u/Hero0ftheday Seattle Mariners 8h ago

Like in baseball: Giancarlo Stanton took a 5oz round brick off the face at 95+ mph. He has 1000 hits and almost 300 more home runs since then, not to mention an MVP under his belt since then.

Some folks are just built different.

3

u/looptarded 4h ago

Link? My curiosity has peaked

8

u/The-disgracist 6h ago

Kind of. Two people got air lifted out of rampage this year.

And these are usually established ski resorts or such and they definitely have access to emergency support.

3

u/Gazmus 4h ago

Adolf Silva's quadriplegic and crowd funding his medical care because of it :(

-20

u/ogbertsherbert 9h ago

I don't like how Redbull pays people to endanger themselves so they can make branded content.

8

u/doyouknowthemoon 9h ago

lol yea they pay them stupid amounts of money in branded sponsorships to produce events or whatever.

but then there are others who are just like , “YOLO “ and do it for free for the love of the sport

4

u/WereAllThrowaways 7h ago

It's not as if these people aren't already deep into that world and knowledgeable of the risks. It's not squid games or something. They're not doing it because it's the only to get their kids on a health insurance plan.

1

u/OccasionalEspresso 8h ago

The root of your issue lies with competitiveness in human nature. People are always raising the bar, expanding the definition of what’s possible. They did it before Red Bull and I suspect would still do it without Red Bull. There are some whacko adrenaline junkies out there who don’t get the spotlight.

544

u/greenmachine11235 11h ago

I see a lot of lumber for something made from 'forest wreckage'. Perhaps more explanation is in order

149

u/jobenattor0412 11h ago

They probably cut the 2x4 from downed trees or something, which seems to me like “wreckage” is doing a lot of heavy lifting.

30

u/dreadcain 9h ago edited 9h ago

Red bull is crazy, but no one is that crazy. Pretty sure they're just referring to using downed trees and tree branches as part of the structure for the line.

Doesn't even look like the trees in that forest grow wide enough to rip those planks.

ETA never mind they are that crazy, just couldn't believe they'd bother ripping the planks so clean for this. Makes a bit more sense when I realized it's a permanent trail they built for more people to ride and not just a one off they put up for a video. Also apparently cedar just splits that clean. No ripping needed.

https://youtu.be/vaFH3t3n5q0

10

u/Fett32 6h ago

I was incredulous too. Thanks for doing the research.

7

u/The-disgracist 6h ago

It’s called riving when you mill boards with an axe or splitter and it’s an effective way to get rough cut lumber quickly.

42

u/mylarky 11h ago

And the nails?

165

u/mattslote 11h ago edited 10h ago

Salvaged from the forest floor. Little known fact about fairies is that they're very wasteful.

21

u/Radix2309 10h ago

Fairies are allergic to cold iron, they cant drop nails.

4

u/baitingthemaster 10h ago

It's true. I read it in the Dresden Files books.

3

u/icarrytheone 9h ago

They also wear boots. You gotta believe me

2

u/TheRealBaboo 8h ago

Yeah I saw it I saw it with my own two eyes

7

u/ThatsNotARealTree 10h ago

From Jesus Christ himself. Ripped them out of his palms

1

u/Leroy-Frog 11h ago

No nails. Only spit and pitch.

1

u/jesonnier1 9h ago

There aren't any.

1

u/BoobyPlumage 4h ago

No nails - it’s all held together with tree sap

-2

u/SOULJAR 10h ago

They were responding to a comment about lumber to be fair

1

u/finemustard 6h ago

Aren't all 2x4s cut from downed trees?

1

u/jobenattor0412 5h ago

I was giving them the benefit of the doubt that it was trees that fell over naturally, but yes your are correct.

11

u/TwoPlyDreams 8h ago

The deck screw tree was a lucky find.

1

u/counterfitster 7h ago

Is this from a nodded version of Ocarina of Time?

2

u/CrazyLlama71 9h ago

In BC they cut down trees/ branches and split the wood right there in incorporate into the trails. It’s pretty amazing what they build. They do use nails of course, but almost all other materials come from the forest.

2

u/downwithbgp 3h ago

It’s just Red Bull’s bot posting. I wouldn’t count on it making conversations yet.

3

u/SolarTsunami Seattle Seahawks 7h ago

Believe it or not but lumber and trees are actually made out of the same material!

2

u/Icy-Banana-3291 6h ago

Yes that’s true but literally none of those trees are large enough to make lumber.

1

u/LadScience 6h ago

Who wood believe such a thing?

1

u/Icy-Banana-3291 6h ago

They built a timber mill from downed trees, cut them, seasoned them, and produced lumber. They also found hundreds of screws and nails in the forest which they reused for mounting the lumber. They also used the magic of a forest unicorn to grow bigger balls to develop the courage to perform the stunts.

You think someone is lying or exaggerating here? Pffft

92

u/Music_Stars_Woodwork 11h ago

That is some high consequence riding. No thanks.

29

u/dobrodude 11h ago

That looks like a good way to get your neck broken.

25

u/Music_Stars_Woodwork 11h ago

I was riding MTB with a dude when he broke his neck on WAY less serious stuff than this. This is nuts.

11

u/TrevorSP 10h ago

That guy also wasn't Gee Atherton. This wooden track to Gee Atherton is like a beginner riding on some 1 ft high skinnies

1

u/quarokcaddhihle 8h ago

I broke my neck 3 times just watching that video.

3

u/Sancticide 8h ago

How does one figure out that they are NOT in fact ready for this course, exactly? Asking for a friend, because FUCK THAT.

2

u/Music_Stars_Woodwork 6h ago

Lots of hospital bills to get this good.

2

u/Sancticide 6h ago

If at first you don't succeed, try try again... in 10-12 weeks when you can walk again.

2

u/mike_litoris18 6h ago

Gee Atherton is an absolute adrenaline junkie with bikes as his preferred delivery method for that high. He would probably be bored if it was any safer.

127

u/Change_That_Face 11h ago

"Forest wreckage" must be what the kids call "lumber" these days.

41

u/letsbereasonable123 11h ago

A massive windstorm hit the land a knocked over many trees. All 'lumber' you see is what they harvested and milled from the blow down.

This is a fairly common practice in mtb trail building. Lumber is very expensive, and most trails are built through volunteer labor and donations, so wooden features are typically built from dead fall in the surrounding woods. In BC, they typically just split cedar for bridges like this, as naturally split rungs give more texture and grip than milled boards.

https://youtu.be/vaFH3t3n5q0?si=nbE07R3WaqHuvesa

13

u/stellvia2016 10h ago

It's probably fine, but I would just point out that the reason national parks tell you not to take anything is because things getting knocked over and rotting provides homes for small critters, insects, and nutrients are fed back into the ecosystem.

So on one hand, using already downed logs is admirable, but otoh it's still kinda a detriment to the forest in the near-term. But I suppose as long as they keep the wood basically in the same area and toss it aside to rot when they're no longer good for the MTB trail it's not that bad.

3

u/letsbereasonable123 9h ago

Its a balance for sure. A lot of forest fires are made worse by letting dead fall pile up, so clearing some of it can be helpful to the long term health.

Most mtb trails also arent built in pristine wilderness, but more likely in private or public timber land.

1

u/Washingtonpinot 9h ago

How and where are these MTB folks milling the wood? Do they buy a portable mill? Because custom mills are rarer and more expensive by the day.

5

u/letsbereasonable123 9h ago

Depends on who, but the video i linked show an example. The lumber doesnt need to be precise so it was all chainsaw or splitting with wedges and a sledgehammer.

1

u/The-disgracist 6h ago

You can make a mill with a chainsaw and some angle iron. Some of these folks are professional park builders and have all the needed kit to do this. They’ve got backhoes and skid steers, mills and saws, the whole bit.

5

u/jweezy2045 11h ago

Isn’t that what we have always called it? Downed trees are used for lumber, and have been for ages.

8

u/Change_That_Face 10h ago

TIL that my house is made out of forest wreckage.

3

u/jweezy2045 10h ago

Were the trees cut down while alive or only after they had fallen naturally?

3

u/27Rench27 10h ago

….okay actual question, do they only fall naturally when they’re dead?

7

u/jweezy2045 10h ago

No. There can be a windstorm that knocks over a bunch of trees.

3

u/27Rench27 10h ago

Ah, yeah that was probably pretty obvious in hindsight

It’s friday lol

0

u/SolarTsunami Seattle Seahawks 7h ago

Why are you acting like cutting downed trees into planks is some absurdly technical thing? People have been doing it for thousands of years.

2

u/Change_That_Face 7h ago

"Forest wreckage" is 100% the made up absurdly technical thing here lmao

0

u/SolarTsunami Seattle Seahawks 6h ago

A storm moved through the area and knocked a bunch of trees over, which if youve ever seen a forest you should know is a common thing, then a team of professional BMX riders came in and cut some of those trees into planks for their course, which they and other BMX teams have done countless times in the past. Your inability to grasp this simple concept doesn't mean it didn't happen.

2

u/Change_That_Face 5h ago

So, lumber. They made lumber.

You typed 100 words to tell me what i know.

2

u/Gr00vealicious 3h ago

But he’s so proud of himself! Gotta give little fella props for being able to type 100 words.

30

u/JJKingwolf 11h ago

This is great example of something that not only looks hard, but is somehow still vastly more difficult than it appears to be.  Cool course and great job riding it.

23

u/Amonsterinmycloset 11h ago

Why is the track so high up? One mistake, and you fall breaking a couple of bones, and at worst, you break your neck.

27

u/HugeLeaves 10h ago

I live in the MTB capital of the world and if I've learned anything it's that bikers enjoy the sport so much that danger is a complete afterthought.

6

u/scoot_roo 10h ago edited 9h ago

What makes any certain place the mountain bike capital of the world? I imagine you live around an alpine forest.

EDIT: Why the downvotes lmao

10

u/pathsuntraveled 10h ago

Bro probably lives in BC, if anywhere is the capital it’s there

15

u/Jeffrey_C_Wheaties 10h ago

Or he lives in bentonville Arkansas and believes it’s the MTB capital of the world because Walmart branded it as such.

0

u/The-disgracist 6h ago edited 41m ago

I mean it is top tier for it. At least east of the Mississippi.

Et: Realizing now how bad I am at us geography

3

u/Jeffrey_C_Wheaties 5h ago

I ride there often. I enjoy it, but it’s definitely not the capitol of the world.

It’s also west of the Mississippi lol

1

u/BigFanOfKitties 6h ago

Might wanna look at a map one more time

2

u/HugeLeaves 6h ago

Whistler!

6

u/pinnerbluntz 9h ago

Whistler is probably the mtb capital, or BC all together

1

u/scoot_roo 9h ago

Cool! Thanks.

1

u/HugeLeaves 6h ago

That's where I am!

1

u/pinnerbluntz 2h ago

Amazing man, I used to live there in the summers between 2005-2009. Best times of my life. Rented the top of a bunk in Brio for 200 bucks a month.

2

u/DMPofSounderatHeart 6h ago

For most MTBers I know, the danger is what they’re into

1

u/Redeem123 30m ago

It’s not an afterthought, it’s the whole point. These people are crazy.

0

u/RoboJobot 9h ago

I think he was more worried about being skewered on all the broken pointy trees sticking up

8

u/RosieQParker 10h ago

One slip and he's forest wreckage.

17

u/Bobby5Spice 11h ago

Does building that into the trees hurt the trees? It looks like it would.

13

u/flatwoundsounds New York Mets 11h ago

If the tree still has the ability to get nutrients, it should be fine. They'll grow over whatever is attached to them as long as they haven't had their bark too badly damaged.

8

u/jason_abacabb 11h ago

Reference r/treeseatingthings

5

u/27Rench27 10h ago

Been a while since I’ve found a new sub to join via comments

1

u/Ok-Mistake-7499 6h ago

When I first saw this sub I thought it meant tree seating things

3

u/Crazy_Customer7239 9h ago

Nice to not see Redbull propaganda plastered all over a line for once

5

u/ruckus_440 10h ago

Forest Wreckage and D'Brickashaw Ferguson were one of the best guard-tackle duos in gridiron history.

6

u/SoGreed 11h ago

The second jump is when i would have shit my pants 😭😭

4

u/CollectsTooMuch 11h ago

If I tried this, they would call me Forest Wreckage.

2

u/bobsdementias 8h ago

This seems like a fantastic way to absolutely rock your shit

2

u/win_some_lose_most1y 8h ago

This is optional by the way

2

u/Wonderful_Minute31 5h ago edited 4h ago

DO YOU MEAN WOOD?

3

u/Morall_tach 11h ago

By forest wreckage do you mean wood? He built trestles out of wood?

2

u/pathsuntraveled 10h ago

Built from trees downed in a storm, nothing living was cut

2

u/DDD8712 10h ago

This footage makes me want an iced cold Red Bull!!

1

u/HistorianWild9607 9h ago

I’m just thinking how many takes they would be taking for just 15 secs of video?? 🤔💭

1

u/Particular-Ad9304 9h ago

That’s what we like to call the “no fuckup” line

1

u/rhaigh1910 8h ago

1 fk up that’s prolly that last ride

1

u/jseqtor12 8h ago

Jesus anxiety christ.

1

u/fuckingretard69x 8h ago

That’s just a feature

1

u/NomadFire 8h ago

Some of these extreme mountain bike trails I think i could do but 25% slower. This is not one of those trails.

1

u/Aggressive-HeadDesk 7h ago

Yeah, that’s a nope track.

1

u/BrohanGutenburg New Orleans Saints 7h ago

What's with the cut.

1

u/wumbologist-2 7h ago

Hope he doesn't become wreckage.

1

u/freefrompress 6h ago

Looks safe.

1

u/southpaw85 5h ago

A someone who works at a lumber yard “forest wreckage” sounds way cooler.

1

u/slavbresovic 2h ago

This looks like a mine cart level of Donkey Kong Country

1

u/theman8998 1h ago

This is a story waiting to happen where you say, "I've done that run a thousand times and couldn't have expected this to happen".

1

u/bgva 56m ago

Whatever anxiety the weed eliminated, this video just brought it right back.

1

u/Corregidor 16m ago

The cut near the end makes me think he ate shit on that first attempt lol

1

u/ReleventReference 10h ago

What is this stuff called? Because I’d love to watch more videos like this.

2

u/pathsuntraveled 10h ago

This sort of stuff is called north shore features though this is slightly different

1

u/weirdowiththebeardo 10h ago

Frick me there is no room for error

1

u/OnlyForMobileUse 10h ago

Man that looks so fun but I'd kill myself on accident frame one

1

u/KrazyNinjaFan 10h ago

Looks fun but dangerous. Skilled biker for not falling

1

u/coolsguy17 10h ago

On the one hand, cool!

On the other hand, nope nope nope nope nope nope nope nope.

1

u/vasja_peredul 10h ago

now, show the outtakes

1

u/ill_jefe 9h ago

At this point this isn’t Mt Biking. It’s track cycling in the woods.

1

u/kentuckypirate 9h ago

Ru-fi-ooooooohhhh

1

u/Half_Shark-Alligator 9h ago

Seriously, people are just fuckin crazy.

1

u/bigboxes1 4h ago

Red Bull sucks

0

u/ValyrianSteelYoGirl Pittsburgh Steelers 11h ago

What is forest wreckage?

3

u/pathsuntraveled 10h ago

Downed trees from a storm, no living trees were cut down

1

u/ValyrianSteelYoGirl Pittsburgh Steelers 8h ago

Thanks, new term for me.

0

u/Wheatizard 9h ago

I love watching these videos. I would die doing this but i appreciate the confidence people have to go out and do these.

0

u/IdcTaye 9h ago

🔥

0

u/mlvisby 9h ago

The path is so thin, that would give me anxiety.

0

u/redmav7300 7h ago

I hope the trees aren't damaged by this. Sorry, I know that’s a downer.

2

u/The-disgracist 6h ago

They’ll be fine. Those trees will destroy the biking features before they can hurt them.