The Red Bulletin US 09/21 by Red Bull Media House

T H E

M O T O R S P O R T S

I S S U E

BEYOND THE ORDINARY

U.S. EDITION SEPT. 2021, $5.99

BEYOND THE ORDINARY

E R U T U F THE THE RED BULLETIN 09/2021

NOW D E TA I L S

INSIDE

1 A L U M R O F OF

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EDITOR’S NOTE

Motorsports are technically defined by equipment, but true fans understand the driving force is thoroughly human. This special issue highlights a few of the characters who make this world so fascinating. Consider “Racing for Redemption,” our cover profile of Formula 1 driver Sergio “Checo” Pérez (page 22). The story charts the Mexican driver’s improbable rise and fall and rise, a Hollywood-quality testament to perseverance.

Mia Chapman, shown here at work in her family’s garage in Florence, Arizona. With a ton of family support, she’s been racing—and winning—since she was 6.

Desert racer Mia Chapman competes on a more intimate stage, but her story, “Daughter of the Desert” (page 40), also has a filmic quality. Only 18, Chapman is a revelation in her rugged sport, thanks to her own grit and unwavering family support. These two features capture how fans first come to motorsports for the speed and adrenaline but ultimately fall in love with the character-driven drama.

CONTRIBUTORS THIS ISSUE

YVE ASSAD

The Nashville-based photographer has shot for many automotive, motorcycle and editorial brands, including HarleyDavidson, Acura, Road & Track and The Wall Street Journal. “Mia and her family are another example of why I love shooting motorsports,” says Assad. “It’s all about community. Seeing her whole family come together to support Mia and her passion for racing was the coolest.” Page 40

JUSTIN HYNES

“The history of Formula 1 is full of tales of grit, heroism and triumph over adversity,” says the U.K.based writer, who wrote our cover story on Sergio “Checo” Pérez. “However, the modern sport is so specialized and exacting that those are now a rarity—until you meet Checo. His story reads like an outlandish movie script.” Hynes has covered the sport for more than two decades and contributed to the Bulletin for years. Page 22

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THE RED BULLETIN

MARKUS BERGER(COVER), YVE ASSAD

HUMAN RACE

CONTENTS September

FEATURES

2 2 Racing for Redemption

Sergio Pérez’s turbulent journey through F1 reads like a melodramatic blockbuster, but now, with another chance at greatness, the Mexican racer is primed for a heroic third act.

3 2 Ready to Rumble

An inside look at the world’s most prestigious off-road moto series, the FIM Hard Enduro—and all its gritty glory.

4 0 Daughter of the Desert

Off-road desert racer Mia Chapman is a true revelation in her sport. But her secret weapon is something more familial.

5 2 Classic Rock Legend

Adventure photographer Keith Ladzinski describes seven of his most spectacular climbing images from around the world.

6 2 Soccer United

Scottish photographer Jane Stockdale shares her best images from soccer matches that capture joy, defeat and fandom.

22 BEST REVIVAL

Sergio Pérez opened the 2021 Formula 1 campaign with several strong performances, burnishing a stellar comeback story.

32 MUDDY UP

In the FIM Hard Enduro series, things can get a bit messy. Alfredo Gómez is in the thick of it at XL Lagares in Portugal.

THE RED BULLETIN

THE

DEPARTURE

Taking You to New Heights

9 Awet Gebremedhin’s tale from refugee to pro cyclist 12 Slim Pickins: The first Black owned gear shop in the U.S. 14 Riding with rhinos in Africa 16 Paragliding in Dubai 18 Liz Phair revisits her past— and rediscovers her present 20 Avant-pop star St. Vincent

shares her top Bowie tunes

GUIDE

Get it. Do it. See it. 79 Travel: Four island escapes from across the States 84 Training tips from canoe racer Evy Leibfarth 86 Dates for your calendar

88 The best motosports gear 92 Anatomy of gear 94 Top trucks for wild rides 96 The Red Bulletin worldwide

GETTY IMAGES/RED BULL CONTENT POOL, ANDREA BELLUSCHI, YVE ASSAD

98 Ball juggling in Tokyo

SAND GODDESS “I would much rather stay in dirt,” says Mia Chapman, who was shot in the Sonoran Desert in Arizona in June.

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LIFE

STYLE

BEYOND

THE

ORDINARY

THE

THE HARDEST TRIAL Being a pro cyclist is never easy, but Awet Gebremedhin has done it despite being a refugee twice.

GETTY IMAGES

Gebremedhin rode as a pro for Israel Cycling Academy from 2018 to 2020. THE RED BULLETIN

wet Gebremedhin Andemeskel has come a long way since his first ride in 2003. That’s when his father got him a bike so he could be home faster from school—an 18mile round trip—and work on the family farm. After that first ride, the Eritrean-born cyclist, now 29 and a Swedish resident, was off to the races—literally. He won every local mountain bike race he entered in 2007 and many national-level races the following year. Gebremedhin’s progression continued, and he was invited to join the Eritrean national team in 2011. Still, his ascent was tough. As he improved, he found that elite racing in Eritrea was full of politics and corruption. The national team favored riders from certain villages or regions and payments were demanded. But he fought and earned selection for the 2013 World Championships in Italy. Afterward, he decided he couldn’t go home safely. “I said thank you guys for the last two years,” he recalls in a phone interview from

Stockholm. “I learned from my mistake—I decided to go to Sweden.” There, Gebremedhin applied for refugee status. Processing the paperwork took 18 months, and while he waited for documents he didn’t dare go outside. He hid at a friend’s apartment, unable to train, and ate very little to keep himself lean. In bike racing, especially for climbers, power-to-weight is everything and with no chance to train his power, he had to keep his weight down. It was yet another obstacle. Eventually, Gebremedhin’s asylum paperwork was processed and he felt safe to leave the apartment and restart his pro cycling career. But even living the bike racer life in Europe was hard. He couldn’t go back to his homeland. Nor could he see his girlfriend or family in Eritrea. While teammates complained about missing their families during threeweek grand tours, Awet barely saw his girlfriend for years. Their prospects brightened in 2018, when Eritrea forged

Gebremedhin raced and finished the prestigious, 2,204-mile-long Giro d’Italia in 2019.

a peace agreement with neighboring Ethiopia. Gebremedhin still couldn’t safely go to Eritrea, but now his girlfriend could travel south, to the Tigray region of northern Ethiopia. Sadly, peace was fleeting. “It’s like Wi-Fi,” he says. “They can turn it on and turn it off.” But in the three months that it was possible, the two set up a home in Ethiopia, married and got pregnant. He invested in dairy cattle—at 2,000 euros each—and set up a farm with his brothers. That year, Gebremedhin achieved what every young bike racer dreams of: a contract with a World Tour team. He was so excited when he got the contract offer from Israel Cycling Academy that he couldn’t sleep until he could call his father and tell him how far that first bike had taken him. “You can’t believe how I felt. It was the dream,” he says. In 2019, he finished the 2,200-mile Giro d’Italia, one of the most prestigious pro races on the planet. But just when his troubles seemed over, ethnic and political violence erupted in Tigray. Just after he returned home last October after the end of the abbreviated 2020 racing season, war broke out between the Ethiopian government and the Tigray People’s Liberation Front. Soon, Eritrean troops had crossed the border and begun fighting, looting and committing atrocities in the area where Gebremedhin and his family had built a home. Since then, the conflict has killed tens of thousands of people and displaced 2 million. Once again, he pondered leaving behind everything he had worked for to save the things that were most important. “I have to be honest, I wasn’t thinking about cycling,” he recalls. “I was thinking about how my family THE RED BULLETIN

GETTY IMAGES, NOA TOLEDO ARNON

T H E D E PA RT U R E

HE’S STILL LOOKING FOR A JOB AS A CLIMBER. “ALL MY LIFE IS SUFFERING,” HE LAUGHS.

After filing for asylum as a refugee, Gebremedhin became a Swedish resident.

and I would survive.” His family didn’t want to abandon their cattle, in which they had invested so much, but they couldn’t sell them in a war zone. “One day a rocket came and killed one guy 50 meters in front of me,” he recalls. “I prayed to God and said ‘I am coming, just accept me.’ I thought my life was done.” After that brush with death, Gebremedhin loaded his family, some animals and other belongings into a truck and set off for Ethiopia’s capital, Addis Ababa. A few days (and a thousand euros in bribes) later, they made it. Then they flew to Sweden, THE RED BULLETIN

where his wife and son were able to get asylum papers. The hardest thing, he says, has been seeing the impact on his young son. “When he hears even a small sound, like a knock on the door, he starts to run,” Gebremedhin says. “He saw us running when the rockets came, and he learned from that, and he started to run with any sounds.” And so Gebremedhin must start again. His battle is far from over: He’s still looking for a job as a climber, the most punishing job in pro cycling. “All my life is suffering,” he laughs. “I suffer on climbs [in a way] you can’t believe.”

But after 15 years of struggle, Gebremedhin has climbed so far and says he’s happy. “We have a different mentality; we need to joke about that,” he says. “You need to keep something beautiful, and every day now I am happy when I see my son.” Without a team for 2021, Gebremedhin is out training and enjoying family time. He’s hopeful that a contract offer will come—and says he doesn’t care if it’s at the highest level or on a secondtier team. “Any contract is a good opportunity for me,” he says. “You never know what can happen.” —James Stout 11

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Slim Pickins Outfitters

SURVIVAL STORY

One year after COVID-19 nearly destroyed the nation’s first Black-owned outdoor gear shop, Jahmicah Dawes is on a mission to change the outdoor industry.

n March 2017, Jahmicah Dawes opened the doors of Slim Pickins Outfitters in the “Cowboy Capital of the World,” Stephenville, Texas. Located smack in the rural heart of the Lone Star State, Stephenville isn’t an obvious choice for an outdoor gear shop, especially when the locals lean more toward barbecue and rodeos than hiking and camping. But with eight state parks within an 80-mile radius, Dawes knew his home was for more than just cowboys. “When people think of Texas, they don’t think of public lands,” Dawes says. “But there’s a wealth of outdoor opportunity here that isn’t widely known.” So he persevered. Alongside his wife, Heather, Dawes opened Slim Pickins in an effort to create a community

presented the 15-minute video across social media in February as part of its Everybody Outside film series, in collaboration with Seattle-based production company Wondercamp. At the same time, Outbound and its partners launched a crowdfunding campaign. By March, the effort had raised just over $172,000—more than enough to create an e-commerce platform and save Slim Pickins. The influx of cash breathed new life into the outfitter, and the country’s first Black-owned gear shop could once again see a future. Dawes feels enormously grateful for the efforts of Outbound and everyone else who helped, but the experience also left him somewhat perplexed. The national limelight brought dozens of outdoor brands eager to work with Slim Pickins, both in their brick-and-mortar store and online. But many of these enthusiastic new partners were the same brands who turned down a partnership before Slim Pickins gained prominence.

in Stephenville that saw the same natural beauty that they did. And for a while it worked. Each year of business was better than the last. By 2020, the shop was set to turn a profit—but then the pandemic hit. Without an online presence, Slim Pickins endured two months of zero sales as the country shut down in a national quarantine from COVID-19. Without any income, the future of Slim Pickins looked grim. “We had just discovered that we were the first Blackowned gear shop and we were about to become extinct,” Dawes remembers. Fortunately, a few creative souls jumped in to lend a hand, in the form of a short film telling the Dawes’ story. The Outbound Collective, a company dedicated to Jahmicah Dawes (above) opened Slim Pickins Outfitters with diversity in the outdoors, his wife, Heather, in an old drugstore in Stephenville, Texas. THE RED BULLETIN

WONDERCAMP

“A BIG PART OF MOVING FORWARD IS INCLUDING BIPOC PEOPLE IN THE OUTDOOR INDUSTRY.”

“We’re still the same shop,” Dawes says. “We’re in the same space and we haven’t physically grown, but it’s been a complete 180 with some brands. I know why, and it’s hurtful. But my wife has to remind me that this is a start. It [the Black Lives Matter movement] is still trending right now, so the verdict is still out on whether these brands will support other BIPOCowned [Black, Indigenous and People of Color] businesses in the future. Time will tell.” In the meantime, Slim Pickins is happy to be the guinea pig that paves the way for others. With their online store up and running and their B!ll Mvrray line (inspired by their beloved basset hound) THE RED BULLETIN

flying off the shelves, Dawes is now dedicated to morphing Slim Pickins into something more than just a shop. He still works tirelessly to build local community but also acknowledges that the store’s support isn’t coming from within Stephenville. Instead, it’s coming from the rest of Texas and other states around the country. As a result, Slim Pickins has changed its definition of “local native” for shop collaborations. Now it refers to any business that’s local in proximity or mindset. The overarching goal is the same: community. Dawes also hopes to use his newfound celebrity status to help elevate other likeminded businesses while

simultaneously diversifying the outdoors—going beyond skin color. “A big part of moving forward is including BIPOC people in the outdoor industry but also people of size and families, and not just those scaling a mountain face with a kid strapped to their back,” laughs Heather Dawes. Ultimately, that’s the new goal for Slim Pickins: to use the platform they’ve been given to change the narrative of what outdoorsy actually means. “There’s a sense of pride [in our position] but also a sense of loneliness and longing for others who look like us in the industry,” Dawes says. “But we’ll endure this so it’s better for those who come later.” —Heather Balogh Rochfort

“There’s a wealth of outdoor opportunity here that isn’t widely known,” says Dawes. Slim Pickins allows him to introduce locals to fly fishing, among other things.

T H E D E PA RT U R E

Windhoek, Namibia

MASSIVE FAN BASE

SHAWN VAN EEDEN/RED BULL ILLUME

Although this image captures a single moment between Namibian BMX rider Eric Garbers and a rhino named Mattanu, it took Garbers and local photographer Shawn van Eeden months to get the animals acquainted with the ramp. “Rhinos have quite poor eyesight but very good hearing, so Eric had to continuously talk to the rhinos, while I had to remain completely silent and still,” Van Eeden explains. Here he captures Mattanu as he looks into Garbers’ eyes. Ultimately, the duo hope to raise awareness for the endangered species through the Rhino Momma Project. rhinomomma.com

T H E D E PA RT U R E

Dubai, UAE

DRY RUN

NAIM CHIDIAC/RED BULL CONTENT POOL

For Spaniard Horacio Llorens (top) and Brazilian Rafael Goberna, their specialty is kind of like a ballet with motorized paragliders. Here the duo are practicing their choreography in the (relatively) safe environment of the desert. The next night they’d head over to Dubai’s Palm Fountain— the largest fountain in the world, spanning more than 14,000 square feet of seawater— to put their rehearsal to the test. Thankfully, they wouldn’t miss a step and go for a swim. redbull.com/adventure

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Liz Phair

ince the release of her 1993 debut album, Exile in Guyville, singer-songwriter Liz Phair has set herself apart from the status quo of the music scene as a disruptor and someone who confounds expectations. It makes sense, then, that 11 years on from the Chicagoan’s last release, the album Funstyle— and at the most unexpected of moments—she’s back. Soberish sees Phair reunite with Brad Wood, the producer with whom she made her defiant, groundbreaking debut and its two follow-ups. Cited as an inspiration to more recent indie artists such as Phoebe Bridgers and Mitski, Phair— with Wood’s help—showed that female songwriters could be both feminine and frank, making art that feels vulnerable but also holds its own in the maledominated indie music scene. Here the 54-year-old discusses changes in the musical landscape over the last decade and how she has created a record that honors her past while also navigating an industry transformed by the internet. the red bulletin: What made you return to the scene? liz phair: It was good timing. When my son was in school, I switched to scoring TV [shows] so I wouldn’t be out of town as much. Then he went off to college. In the interim, I was

inspired that so many young female artists had sprung up. If you think about my first album, Exile in Guyville, it feels like “Girlville” has happened now. It was like moving back into a better and inspiring environment. How has the industry changed while you’ve been away? All the things that are required of an artist today, like the social media presence, the selfmanagement, entrepreneurship —it just seems so daunting. There are more things than ever to compete against, more people than ever out there making music because of home technology, and the algorithms are ever more unforgiving. And you chose Brad Wood as your producer again . . . Listening back to my early recordings and talking to everyone, I felt an emotional connection. I almost remembered who I was and how we made that record. Brad really takes all my crazy ideas and tries to realize them. He’s very much responsible for the sound, but he let me produce as well. It’s collaborative. It seems you came up with something similar to Guyville, yet somehow different. It was a lot of fun to say, “How can we evoke the past, not just showing where we are right

now, but looking to the future the way Guyville did back then?” My first record occupied an unusual space in culture; it felt new, different. And so how can we evoke the past and yet have our present-day product evoke the future? Do you ever feel like some fans just want Guyville, while others prefer pop tunes? I’d like people to understand that art is not a fixed thing. Creativity is a fluid, everchanging medium. It’s like mercury—if you try to box it, it’s going to slip out. And I wish the world in general would understand the great gift of the transmutability of our creative lives. I think people would be happier if they could experience more creativity and take it less as my identity and my ego. What’s behind the title, Soberish? I felt very “soberish.” [Laughs.] Living in America under Trump, for a while I couldn’t take reality head-on. [The title] could be interpreted to mean all the different things we do to avoid direct reality; not just substance use, but all the ways in which we can exist, both in the real world and in denial. So what we’ve got on Soberish is the essence of Liz Phair. Do we have our old Liz back? I think so. I feel like myself again. That sense of myself as a boundary pusher—too much imagination, dramatic emotional cartographer. That person is back. Liz Phair’s new album, Soberish, is out now; lizphairofficial.com THE RED BULLETIN

MARCEL ANDERS

How revisiting her rebellious musical past helped the Chicago-born singer-songwriter rediscover herself in the present.

RENE & RADKA/CPI SYNDICATION

RETURNING FROM EXILE

“I FIT NEITHER THE MOLD OF THE BOHEMIAN ARTIST NOR THE GOODLYWIFE TYPE.”

THE RED BULLETIN

T H E D E PA RT U R E

Playlist

SIFTING STARDUST

St. Vincent: From one innovator to another, the avant-pop star picks her four Bowie favorites.

“ALWAYS CRASHING IN THE SAME CAR” LOW (1977) “This song is about him [ramming his car into] the car of a drug dealer who had ripped him off. I have yet to do that, and I have yet to write a song like this. I love music that takes me someplace else, like the second half of Low; stuff that reminds me of things that matter, instead of pure escapism. It just floors me. This song in particular.”

“IT’S NO GAME (PART 1)” SCARY MONSTERS (AND SUPER CREEPS) (1980) “I love that aggressive Japanese voice in this one, and the menacing guitar part. I mean, every single element in this song is perfect. It makes the back of your brain tickle in a strange subterranean way that nobody else ever really speaks to. The song unites beauty and paranoia, and it reminds me what a funny writer and a consummate performer [Bowie] was.”

“GIRL LOVES ME” BLACKSTAR (2016) “This is my favorite song off his final album, which I received as a gift [from then-partner Cara Delevingne] alongside a guitar Bowie had signed for me. I actually met him a few years prior, with my friends from The Polyphonic Spree. I went to see their show in New York and ended up in the same room with him. I said hello, but I hadn’t made anything yet, so it wasn’t that kind of a meeting.” THE RED BULLETIN

ZACKERY MICHAEL

“SONS OF THE SILENT AGE” HEROES (1977) “Around 2015, I was listening to Bowie every day. During that time, I was morbidly depressed. I remember flying back [to the U.S.] from a press tour in Germany on a nowdefunct airline called Air Berlin. It was so bad I quietly cried as the plane took off. But then I put on Bowie’s Heroes album, which made me feel better. I really love the music he made in Berlin [between 1977 and 1979].”

MARCEL ANDERS

hen Annie Clark, aka St. Vincent, released her sixth album, Daddy’s Home, this May, the work received near-universal acclaim. But then, the 38-year-old art rocker is used to being the critics’ darling, her songs and albums frequently appearing on “all-time greatest” lists. And there’s arguably no contemporary musician with a higher-profile fan club. Artists from Taylor Swift to David Byrne and Paul McCartney have queued up to collaborate with the Texas-born innovator whose experiments with sound create songs that are equal parts catchy and avant-garde. Among her many inspirations is another true innovator, the late David Bowie. Here the two-time Grammy winner chooses her four favorite tunes by the Thin White Duke. ilovestvincent.com

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RACING FOR REDEMPTION

Failed young hotshot, midfield maestro, unlikely team savior, spurned hero—Sergio Pérez’s turbulent journey through Formula 1 reads like the script of a melodramatic summer blockbuster. But now, with a second chance at greatness, the Mexican racer is primed for a heroic third act. Words JUSTIN HYNES

GETTY IMAGES/RED BULL CONTENT POOL

Piloting the #11 car, Sergio “Checo” Pérez opened the 2021 Formula 1 campaign with several strong performances, burnishing a stellar comeback story.

t’s heading for late afternoon in Baku, and as the sun dips toward the Caspian Sea, Sergio Pérez is threading his Red Bull Racing RB16B through the narrow streets of the city’s old town, slowly making his way back to the pit straight to restart this year’s Formula 1 Azerbaijan Grand Prix from the front of the grid. Roughly 45 minutes ago the Mexican driver’s teammate, Max Verstappen, crashed out of the lead. Pérez swept past to take the lead, just as the race was halted. Now Pérez hears the voice of his race engineer over the radio, warning him not to weave to get heat into his tires, as it could hasten a potentially race-ending hydraulic pressure problem. In his rear-view mirrors, Pérez can see the dark shape of Lewis Hamilton’s Mercedes. The seven-time champion,

the sport’s most formidable force, will soon line up alongside him on the front row. No pressure then. From his grid slot, Pérez stares down the empty track toward the 90-degree, left-hand first corner. Above him the start lights begin to illuminate. This is the moment, the culmination of a decade of struggle that reads like the script of a high-gloss Hollywood action movie. The one where the lightning-fast kid gets a shot at the big time and blows it. Or maybe the one where the hero rescues the struggling team only to be axed despite giving them a first victory. Or even the one where the washed-up racer gets a second chance with one of the sport’s biggest teams just as he’s headed for the exit. In the cinematic saga of Sergio Pérez, it’s all three. And now it’s time to see what’s in the final reel: redemption or ruin, another ending or a new beginning.

Pérez makes a pit stop during the F1 Grand Prix of France at Circuit Paul Ricard on June 20. The Mexican racer finished third on the day behind his Red Bull teammate, Max Verstappen, and Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton.

GETTY IMAGES, MARKUS BERGER

“I’ve been lucky and unlucky,” says Pérez, who was photographed in London on February 25. “It’s been a roller coaster.”

en years ago, his future looked quite different. In 2011, “Checo” Pérez was a rising star. As a member of Ferrari’s junior academy and backed by the motorsport-mad son of Mexican billionaire Carlos Slim, the young man from Guadalajara was being tipped as a future race winner, and potentially even greater things. Placed at Ferrari satellite team Sauber, the Mexican driver delivered on the promise. In 2012 he finished on the podium three times, including a secondplace finish in Malaysia, where he went wheel-to-wheel with two-time champion

Sparks fly as Pérez drills a practice lap on June 19 ahead of the F1 Grand Prix of France. He wound up posting the fourthfastest qualification time.

Ferrari driver Fernando Alonso. It was only a matter of time before frontrunning teams would come calling— and when they did, Pérez picked up the phone. For 2013 he severed ties with Ferrari and signed with McLaren, the team that five years earlier had taken Lewis Hamilton to his first title. Pérez was the British superstar’s direct replacement. What could go wrong? “It was a year when McLaren was at its worst,” Pérez tells The Red Bulletin now, eight years on from the season that almost sank his career. “It made sense

at the time, but unfortunately it didn’t pay off. The car was really bad.” Paired with 2009 champion Jenson Button—settled and in his fourth year with McLaren—Pérez crumbled. His relationship with the team soured and before the season was over McLaren announced that his shot at the big time was over. For Pérez the only way forward was to go back. Back to the anonymity of the midfield. “You’re in a spot, but you are looking forward to being able to grow and to have a team behind you that you can do great things with,” he says. “So I went

“I WANT TO GO ALL THE WAY AND WIN THE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP.”

GETTY IMAGES

back to a small team.” Force India, the plaything of Indian brewing magnate Vijay Mallya, offered Pérez a safe haven, and over the next five seasons he would become one of the sport’s most dependable scorers. In 2018, though, the refuge was breached. Mallya, the self-proclaimed “King of Good Times,” whose vast Indian Empress superyacht throbbed to the beat of extravagant Monaco Grand Prix parties, was accused of financial irregularities in his homeland. Court cases mounted, assets were frozen. By midseason, Pérez’s team was careering toward collapse. A major creditor himself, Pérez was petitioned by senior personnel within the team to stave off collapse by taking legal action to force the team into administration. He pulled the trigger. “It was a tough time for me,” Pérez admits. “I ended up in a position in the team where I could basically save the jobs of 400 people, people who had shared their lives with me. I got involved with lawyers, things I hardly knew anything about. I remember that before going into qualifying, I was meeting lawyers to see what we were going to do. It was crazy.” The Mexican driver’s actions allowed administrators to seek new ownership,

and in the fall of 2018 the team, soon to be renamed Racing Point, was rescued by a consortium led by another billionaire businessman, this time fashion mogul Lawrence Stroll, the force behind the Tommy Hilfiger and Michael Kors brands. And after limping back from the brink in 2019, the sense that a new chapter was beginning for Pérez and the team was confirmed in January of last year, when Stroll took a controlling interest in ailing British sports car company Aston Martin. He injected approximately $240 million into the manufacturer and immediately announced that his F1 team would carry the iconic marque back to Formula 1 in 2021 for the first time in 50 years. “I felt very secure because it was like my team, my family,” says Pérez, describing the winter of 2019-20. “We were strong together, all of us, from mechanics to engineers. We’d been through such a tough time that with the new owners in place it was looking great.” But as so often during Pérez’s turbulent journey through Formula 1, just when stability, potential and possibility were within reach, events conspired to once again turn his career on its head. In the end, his second act would end much like his first.

Pérez celebrates his podium appearance at the 2021 F1 Grand Prix of France.

After finishing third in the F1 Grand Prix of France, Pérez celebrates with Red Bull Racing team principal Christian Horner. This marked the first time in Pérez’s career he finished on the podium in consecutive weeks.

earlier in the year, but his concerns were well founded. Two months earlier, contract negotiations between Ferrari and its star driver, Sebastian Vettel, had irrevocably broken down. And in May, the team and driver announced that at the end of the year they would go their separate ways. The next destination of a driver with 53 wins and four titles to his name became the subject of feverish speculation, and as spring turned to summer, Vettel was increasingly being linked with a 2021 seat at newly christened Aston Martin. And with Stroll’s son Lance in the sister car to Pérez, it was the Mexican who faced the firing squad. Pérez spent 10 days in his hotel room in England while gossip linking Vettel to his seat raged in media coverage. The German driver was photographed leaving Silverstone in Racing Point’s team principal Otmar Szafnauer’s Ferrari. He appeared on TV elbow-bumping Stroll in the pit lane. And through it all Pérez was isolated—adrift and powerless. A month later at the Tuscan Grand Prix, his fate was at last revealed, in the most incongruous manner possible. “I overheard a conversation in the team’s hospitality unit. It’s got very thin walls,” he says with a wry smile. “To be honest I was only upset for about 20 minutes, less than that. I thought: ‘OK, it’s out of the way. I know where I stand and let’s look forward to what’s next.’ “It’s easy to feel betrayed but I understood the business point of view,” Pérez adds. “I definitely felt like, wow, I’ve done so much for this team, but at the end of the day I also knew Vettel was a better opportunity because Lawrence wants to build Aston Martin as a brand. You can’t get too emotional and you just have to look forward.” That became easier said than done as September gave way to October and the final months of the season, as the next step failed to materialize. With just 20 seats available across Formula 1’s 10 teams—and with the majority of drivers settled into long-term contracts— Pérez’s options narrowed to the point that as the campaign funneled toward its final rounds, the very real possibility of an exit loomed. But Pérez insists that as options evaporated, he was reconciled with that possibility. “I was at peace because I felt that I’ve had a great career—10 years in Formula 1, some podiums, great races,” he says. “I was OK with the fact that if

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lash forward to July 30, 2020. It was four months after organizers had been forced to cancel the season-opening Australian Grand Prix only hours before the start of practice sessions. A single team member had tested positive for the still largely unknown coronavirus. Formula 1 set up camp at Silverstone circuit in the U.K. for round four of its rearranged championship; everyone involved was in a bubble. In the wake of round three in Hungary, Pérez received news that his mother, Marilú, had been involved in an accident. He jumped on a private jet and flew to Guadalajara to be at her side before returning for the race in England. Adhering to the sport’s rules, he took a pre-event PCR test. It came back positive. “It couldn’t have happened at a worse time,” Pérez says. “I needed to be on the track. Driving the car, driving for my team and proving to people that I was the right driver for the team, but I was in a hotel for two weekends. It was a nightmare.” Pérez’s desire to prove his worth to his team at the end of July was in stark contrast to the buoyant optimism he’d felt

Pérez has his game face on as he prepares to leave the team garage for some final practice laps at the F1 Grand Prix of France.

“NOW I WANT TO BE THE BEST VERSION OF MYSELF. I WANT TO GIVE EVERYTHING TO MAKE THIS WORK.”

the worst happened, I could go home. I have a beautiful family. I have a lot of opportunities. I always said that when Formula 1 finishes, there’s another great life waiting. I could go to work, learn, become a businessman. My worst scenario began to look very attractive.” One light at the end of the tunnel remained, however. Red Bull Racing’s young talent, Thai driver Alex Albon, was struggling to find the form that had led to him being drafted into the fourtime champion outfit in the final stages of the 2019 season. Pressure from all sides was mounting. But the team was determined to give the 23-year-old enough time to turn things around. This meant that Pérez went into the season’s 30

penultimate race, the Sakhir Grand Prix in Bahrain, knowing that time was running out for both of them. And there, for the first time in more than two years, fortune smiled on him. Despite being dumped to the rear of the field in a first-lap collision, the Mexican muscled his way through the field, and when front-running Mercedes imploded in the final stages of the race, Pérez surged through to take the first win of his career. It was the first victory for the team that was about to dispense with his services. “It was incredible but again there was also peace, because even though I didn’t know what was going to happen in my career, I’d done it,” Pérez says. “I’d

worked all my life for that moment and I had done it. I could leave the sport even more comfortable.” The last two weeks of the season were valedictory. The final round in Abu Dhabi, ostensibly his last in Formula 1, was a blur of team photographs and media farewells—and in the end, a cruel damp squib of a race ended by an engine failure after just eight laps. With his wife, Carola, by his side, he left the Gulf state to go home and begin a new life. A week later he got that new life— but not the one he’d expected. After failing to recapture form, Albon was moved to a reserve-driver role at Red Bull Racing. If he wanted it, the seat belonged to Pérez. Almost eight years THE RED BULLETIN

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With a win and other podium positions under his belt, Pérez is savoring his 2021 season: “Those moments are the ones you live your whole life for.”

after blowing his first chance at a titlecontending team, and with one foot out the door of the sport, he was being given another chance. “I was with my wife when we found out and we were like, wow, we finally got what we deserved,” he says. “I’d spent so many years having this difficult career and all of sudden, right at the end, the opportunity I had worked toward for so long finally arrived. I was ready to grab it with both hands. “We just had a drink, the two of us, because we couldn’t tell anyone,” he recalls. “My family thought I was going to retire. No one knew apart from my wife. But yeah, it felt great, like being reborn.” THE RED BULLETIN

ack in Baku, it is June 6, 2021. The lights go out. Pérez releases the clutch, and with no heat in his tires, his wheels spin. To his left Hamilton explodes off the line, and though he tries to cover the line as they rocket toward the first corner, he’s outdragged by the Mercedes. This is a harsh reality of racing. Hollywood endings or mythological heroics are rare. Usually precision and mechanical perfection drive the plot. But then, as they enter the corner, Hamilton’s finger slips. At the back of his steering wheel is a button his team calls “brake magic,” a switch designed to heat tires by throwing the brake balance of the car all the way to the front of the car. His front wheels lock and he careers through

the braking zone, inches from tearing off the front end of the Red Bull car. Pérez powers through to victory, to redemption and ultimately to vindication. Roll credits. The unthinkable has happened. “In all regards my career hasn’t been straightforward,” Pérez concludes. “I’ve been lucky and unlucky. It’s been a roller coaster. But those moments are the ones you live your whole life for. They are moments that will stay with me forever. “Now I just want to be the best version of myself. I want to give everything to make this work. My kids are growing up and I want them to see me do it. I want to go all the way and win the world championship, and I want to win it with them. Yeah, this is only the beginning.” 31

Even the best riders, like Wade Young of South Africa, had to fight their bikes and gravity to grind up a wet, steep slope at Red Bull Romaniacs in Sibiu, Romania, in October 2020.

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Ready to Rumble

It’s dirty. It’s exciting. It’s very hard. These images, all taken at recent FIM Hard Enduro events, capture the gritty drama of the world’s most prestigious off-road moto series. Words PETER FLAX Photography MIHAI STETCU, SAM CARBINE and ANDREA BELLUSCHI

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On the final day of competition on May 9 at Extreme XL Lagares in Porto, Portugal, racers contested three motos in a legitimate quagmire.

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XL Lagares was held in May on a military base near the usual sprawling venue.

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Alfredo Gómez of Spain, who finished fifth overall at XL Lagares, was clearly in the thick of things in muddy conditions.

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Both shots above of Cody Webb, who finished second overall at the Tennessee Knockout in Sequatchie, Tennessee, last August, highlight the technical nature of the course.

Heavy rain in Portugal turned the improvised course at XL Lagares into a legit mudbath. THE RED BULLETIN

In soupy mud, Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Manuel Lettenbichler (right) won the final moto at XL Lagares en route to second overall.

A drone shot captures Lettenbichler navigating a meter-wide ridgeline with serious exposure at Red Bull Romaniacs last October.

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Many racers consider Red Bull Romaniacs to be the world’s toughest hard enduro rally.

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Mia Chapman, 18, was shot in Florence, Arizona, for The Red Bulletin on June 15 and 16.

Daughter of the Desert With sand in her veins and years of training under her belt, off-road desert racer Mia Chapman is a true revelation in her sport. But her real secret weapon is something more familial. Words NORA O’DONNELL Photography YVE ASSAD

After winning seven short-course championships as a junior racer, Chapman has transitioned to desert racing.

t’s an hour before sunset here in the Sonoran Desert, but the June heat refuses to relent. The temperature on the weather app registers 113 degrees, and unacclimated outsiders begin to cook like a slow roast in the Arizona sun. This reporter’s Fitbit charts a heart rate leaping into the cardio zone without any heavy activity. The symptoms for oncoming heat exhaustion are textbook—after just 15 minutes outside. In the near distance, a shriveled cluster of shrubs lie dormant to conserve their energy in the baked earth, while the baritone bwap-bwap-bwaps of a UTV motor crescendo on the horizon. Whipping through an unmarked trail, here comes 18-year-old desert racer Mia Chapman, provoking plumes of powdery silt in her wake. After ripping through the terrain again and again, she removes her helmet, picks at her dusty

eyelash extensions and calmly blinks as the invasive grit forces her dark brown eyes to water. Sweat, however, is not detected on her brow. This is her natural habitat. “I would much rather stay in dirt,” Mia says matter-of-factly of her decadelong racing career. Asphalt isn’t what she craves. She is a daughter of the desert. Chapman drives her Polaris UTV in Best in the Desert, the largest off-road series of its kind in North America. The organization’s flagship event is Vegas to Reno, a grueling, single-day race across Nevada, and Chapman will attempt to conquer the 550-mile beast for the first time in August. As a newcomer to the series, she’s already showing promise, picking up a top-10 finish in her class at the 300-mile Silver State race in April. Winning Rookie of the Year honors is a genuine possibility. But Chapman is hardly new to offroad racing. On short courses, where events never last more than 30 minutes,

she’s racked up more than 120 podiums and seven championships. Transitioning into the world of endurance desert racing is a monumental effort, but the Florence, Arizona, native radiates the cool, calm and collected demeanor of a sage competitor twice her age. How does someone so relatively young exude such maturity? The answer starts to percolate after meeting her family, especially her father, Joe. This is a father-daughter relationship straight out of a Disney movie, where the supportive dad gently nurtures the curiosity of his progeny and bestows character-shaping wisdom during a defining moment. “Since the day I started racing, my dad has said, ‘It’s supposed to be a fun thing. If you don’t want to do it anymore, we don’t have to,’ ” she says, displaying perpetual chill during a record-breaking hot spell. But the truth is, Mia Chapman is having too much fun to even consider slowing down. 43

After a top-10 finish in her class at the 300-mile Silver State race in April, Chapman has her eye on Rookie of the Year.

or anyone not immersed in the world of trophy karts, the following fact might bulldoze your brain: Mia Chapman has been racing motor vehicles since she was 6. While most kindergartners might yearn for a battery-powered set of Power Wheels (max speed: 5 mph), Chapman got an engine-powered kart for Christmas at the tender age of 5. “I was so young, but I remember little pieces,” Mia says of the memory from her family home in Florence. Her father, Joe, took her to a car show, where he had Mia sit in a trophy kart. “I thought it was pretty cool,” she says. “And then it ended up showing up for Christmas, and I just remember being happy. Now I had my own thing to drive.” As Chapman talks about growing up, she’s seated at the kitchen table in her childhood home, and though the overhead fixture is shining on her like a spotlight, she’s poised and relaxed. In the beginning, she explains, the kart was a little intimidating for a 5-year-old. She started testing it out in the desert near her house and getting used to the sand and the speed—about 40 mph, which is significantly faster than anything manufactured by Fisher-Price. Before her first race, Joe took her into their backyard, buckled her into her kart and gave her another lesson. “I’m going to tip it on its side, and we’re going to do a complete roll, one by one,” he told her. 44

Even at the junior level, where vehicle speed is restricted, barrel rolls happen, and Joe wanted Mia to know what to expect. “It made me a little more comfortable, but at the same time, you’re rolling a car,” she says. “It’s kind of scary.” Sure enough, her first wreck happened a few months later. There wasn’t enough speed to roll, but the car tipped on its side. Despite the lesson, Chapman was terrified. But she didn’t quit. She now had a genuine feel for the sensation of a wreck, and she followed her dad’s advice

by grabbing hold of her seatbelt. The fear started to wane a bit. The first barrel roll came a few years later, during a six-car pileup while racing in the Junior 2 division. “The only thing I could see around me was my car rolling and other cars rolling in front of me,” she says. There have been battle wounds over the years: concussions, broken ribs and a broken collar bone, the prevalent but painful collateral damage of a childhood in motorsports. Again, she didn’t quit. She was having too much fun.

Chapman consults with her father and crew chief, Joe, who grew up racing dirt bikes. THE RED BULLETIN

While most kindergartners yearn for a set of Power Wheels, Chapman was driving an enginepowered kart at the tender age of 5.

arlier in the day, the blistering heat forces everyone to take refuge in the Chapmans’ garage, which is blissfully air conditioned. Indeed, Joe—who dons a long, chinstrap beard and a shirt proudly emblazoned with his daughter’s name—knows a thing or two about keeping things chill. When he’s not serving as Mia’s crew chief and mechanic, Joe works as an air-conditioning repairman for the local school district. (Her mom, Roberta, a registered nurse, helps manage a nearby doctor’s office.) Joe does a ton of side work to help fund his daughter’s passion, for although Mia has the support of sponsors, racing remains an extremely expensive endeavor. The disparity between drivers with deep pockets and the Chapmans is obvious. But as a tight family operation, the Chapmans exhibit a kind of teamwork that’s priceless. As Mia and her 12-year-old brother, Ryder, tinker with the wheels of her Polaris, Joe talks about his own childhood. Boredom is a creeping normality in Florence, a sleepy but historically significant pioneer town (pop. 28,000) about halfway between Phoenix and Tucson. It’s also home to about half a dozen correctional institutions, the biggest employers in town. To stave off that boredom, Joe took up racing dirt bikes, which a family member agreed to help fund if he stayed out of trouble. And he did. But with family finances so tight, it was a necessity to learn how to fix something yourself if it broke. Eventually, Joe was able to leverage his mechanical skills to support himself. Years later, Joe struck a similar bargain with Mia: Stay out of trouble, get good grades and dad will pay for the trophy kart racing. But then with Mia, being a good kid was never really a problem. As Joe reclines in his mesh folding chair, he offers up a quintessential anecdote that says a lot about the dynamics of their father-daughter relationship. The second year Mia raced in a JR 2 (i.e., a customized mini truck), she was in a tight points race for the championship with another girl in her class. After day one, her opponent’s engine broke, and despite the backing of a wealthy grandfather, that family didn’t have a backup part. Without knowing the family, Joe loaded up his spare motor 46

There have been battle wounds over the years—broken ribs, concussions. But Mia didn’t quit. She was having too much fun.

At just 5 feet tall, Chapman has a custom-made seat insert that gives her a snug fit during brutal and bouncy desert races.

and rode to the pit. “Hey, I hear you guys need a motor?” he told them. “You’re welcome to use this one.” The family was incredulous. “Why would you do that?” the girl’s father asked. “You could not do this and win the championship tomorrow.” “I want to win on the track,” Joe responded. The next day, Mia lost. Joe, the antithesis of a stage parent, was fine with how it all shook out. The winner’s wealthy grandfather offered a blank check for the engine. Knowing full well it was a good motor, Joe politely declined, but agreed to offer his mechanical skills if the grandfather would fund Mia’s

racing—a deal that would last several years under the name Pink Motorsports. For 8-year-old Mia, her father’s actions didn’t immediately register. “I remember being frustrated and a little mad,” she admits. And so Joe sat Mia down and offered another lesson. “Do you want to win because they couldn’t race and they just gave it to you?” he asked. “Or do you want to win because you fought for that?” The wheels turned, and the lesson imprinted in young Mia’s head. “His outlook on racing—and everything—has always made an impact on me,” she says. “That always stuck with me.”

he lives of young trophy kart racers attract a certain level of media curiosity. By the time Mia graduated to the modified-kart class, reality TV came knocking. Along with a handful of other drivers, Mia and her family agreed to be featured in a series called Mod Kids USA. Eventually repackaged as a documentary with sequels on the way, the film follows the drivers and their families over the course of a racing season. At one point during a sit-down interview, Mia, age 13 at the time, is asked if she has a boyfriend. In response, she laughs, rolls her hands and says, “Next question.”

Inside the family garage, Chapman often works on her UTV with her father, Joe, and her 12-yearold brother, Ryder.

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“My dad’s outlook on racing—and everything—has always made an impact on me.”

“In every interview, a girl was asked if she had a boyfriend or something like that,” Mia says. “Really? Being a girl in racing, you’re going to have a lot of friends you grow up with, and more than likely, they’re going to be guys. At one point, they tried to portray me as boyhungry, or going after boys instead of racing. And that’s where I drew the line and said, ‘That’s not OK.’ ” Even her father hammers home that gender is not on the table for discussion. “Mia is a driver, not a female driver,” Joe says to the camera. (He also has a sign in the garage that states: NO ONE TOUCHES MY TOOLS OR MY DAUGHTER.) The film also offers a glimpse into one of Mia’s other talents—cheerleading. For years, Chapman balanced racing with competitive cheerleading, where she practiced routines for up to four hours a day when she was in middle school. Homework was done in class or late at night. By the time she was a freshman, Chapman switched to a private online school to dedicate more time to her racing, and cheerleading eventually fell to the wayside. But as a longtime tumbler she developed a physical THE RED BULLETIN

attribute that has served her well in racing: upper-body strength. Few racers make the jump from short course to desert racing, which can be brutal on the body. Spending hundreds of miles bouncing over rough terrain in extreme heat can take a toll. Chapman has increased her time in the gym to help build endurance, and Joe custombuilt a seat insert that gives her petite, 5-foot frame a snug fit and provides some stability. But the heat is uncontrollable. Some drivers hydrate with an IV the day before a race, but Chapman doesn’t like needles. (“I pass out,” she says.) To quench her thirst, she sips from a CamelBak. There’s no time for snacks or bathroom breaks during races that can easily stretch into six, seven or even eight hours. Men can wear catheters. But since wearing a female catheter can be prone to infection, women must pee in their suits. And yes, Mia did the deed at Silver State in April. “It sucked,” she says. As if wanting to protect her from the indignity of describing the details, Kicker, one of the family’s French bulldogs, interrupts the interview and

demands a scratch behind the ears. But the moral of the story is that Chapman got her top-10 finish at Silver State. She pushed through the discomfort, claimed her precious points—and threw her fire-retardant suit in the wash when she got home. Chapman is very conscious of what she puts out there to prying reporters and on social media, fully knowing that young girls are looking to her as a role model to follow into trophy kart racing and, ultimately, go beyond that. “When I started, there were barely any girls,” she observes. “Now it’s split in half. It’s awesome to see these little girls out there at the racetrack.” As Chapman guns for Rookie of the Year in the Best in the Desert series, she’s already looking further into the future. Would she consider the Baja 1000, the toughest off-roading race in North America? Yes, that’s a goal as she gets more comfortable with endurance racing. What about Dakar, the most brutal off-roading race of all? “If I was going with a team, absolutely,” she says. But there’s one person who already has a spot on her theoretical dream team: “My dad would still be my crew chief.” 49

he next morning, the Chapman crew rises at 4:15 a.m. to take another practice run through the desert near their home. The temperature is already hovering around 85 degrees, so they load up the Polaris RZR to beat the extreme heat. As the sun peeks above the horizon and kisses the clouds, a perfect sunburst forms in the fiery pink sky. Mia takes cues from Joe over the radio, who directs her as she bounces her UTV across her native soil. Things can get tense on race day, and Joe is a constant presence to help bring Mia down a level. He jokes with her to take her mind off the pressure, never letting her forget that this is about having fun. And when Mia smiles, her eyes light up like that little girl on Christmas morning. Mia takes another pass through the desert and then suddenly stops. Joe checks in over the radio. Mia can’t fully see where she needs to go, so Joe calmly dispenses directions and then adds one more brief lesson: “You got this.”

“I would much rather stay in dirt,” Chapman says of her career. Asphalt isn’t what she craves. She is a daughter of the desert. 50

Classic Rock Legend Over the course of his highly decorated career, photographer Keith Ladzinski has shot more than 100 magazine covers. Here, in his own words, he describes seven of his most spectacular climbing images from around the world.

Free(fall) Solo

Alex Honnold, Kalymnos, Greece “Here Alex is getting some air time high above the Aegean Sea. Kalymnos is a climber’s paradise. The food is great, the people are rad, the views are insane, you access the climbing on rented scooters—and the rock is amazing.”

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THE SHOOTER “For a great photo, you have to capture two things at the same time: a key moment and the right light.” So says photographer Keith Ladzinski, 45, explaining his craft. His credentials to opine on the topic are rock solid, having spent decades shooting covers for National Geographic, images for the front page of the New York Times and visuals for commercial clients like Apple, Nike and The North Face. He’s also an Emmy-nominated director. Through all his success, he has remained true to two of his passions right from the start: skateboarding and climbing. “When it comes to climbing photography, getting on location is without a doubt 85 percent of the shot,” he says. “I’ve been on a handful of 30-day expeditions where I didn’t shoot any climbing until the last few days—it can be insane.” But in the end, he says, all that hard work is about making people feel something. “My overall goal is that my photos will evoke an emotion,” Ladzinski says. “If I can make someone feel something—be it awe, euphoria, nostalgia, even anger—I consider that a successful photo.” Follow Keith on Instagram: @Ladzinski

Orange Crush Mike Brumbaugh, Great Basin Desert, Nevada

“The Great Basin Desert is home to a treasure trove of sandstone trad climbing. There are lifetimes of unclimbed lines here. Here Mike is grabbing a first ascent on steep, impeccable Navajo sandstone deep in the red desert.”

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Twist of Fate

Dave Graham, Grampians National Park, Victoria, Australia “When it comes to quality rock, Australia’s Grampian range is about as good as it gets. Here Dave is making short work of a legendary and highly coveted boulder problem known as the Wheel of Life.”

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Hole Shot

Erik Leidecker, unnamed ice cave, Iceland “Iceland is every bit as legendary and vibrant as you could imagine. Here Erik is rapping into an ice cave for a fun day of climbing in southern Iceland.”

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Otherworldly

Emily Harrington, Yangshuo, China “The karst formations in Yangshuo are legendary; They dominate the landscape in a scene straight out of Super Mario World. Here Emily is taking a quick rest at Moon Hill before heading toward the anchors of this stunning route.”

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Hangover

Joe Kinder, Mojave Desert, Utah “Climbing photography is about capturing key moments. Here Joe is mastering a particularly tricky and crucial section of the steep Visitor Q route high above the Mojave Desert in southwest Utah. He is climbing it for the very first time and seems to be stuck to the rock.”

Light Work

Jonathan Siegrist, Estes Park, Colorado “Sometimes a beam of light is enough to give a climbing route a new shine. On this day in Estes Park, the sun happened to hit Grand Ol’ Opry, a crimpy line up leaning granite, just as Jonathan was climbing. The route leads over uneven, slightly overhanging rock—a real show of strength.”

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WORLD CUP 2014: ARGENTINA VS NETHERLANDS COPACABANA BEACH, BRAZIL “This is the moment Argentina made it through to the World Cup final on penalties. The beach erupted. Everywhere, people exploded with happiness.”

SOCCER UNITED

As ardent supporters finally return to stadiums, Scottish photographer Jane Stockdale shares moments she’s captured from matches around the world, showing celebration, defeat and the spirit that unites all fans: their love of the game.

WORLD CUP 2014: ECUADOR VS FRANCE COPACABANA BEACH, BRAZIL “In my hometown in Scotland, there’s a sign above a pub that reads: ‘There are no strangers here, only friends who’ve never met.’ That’s my philosophy in life. I’ve documented people who might not know each other—on band tours, behind the scenes at Wimbledon and at multiple FIFA World Cups—capturing extreme moments of shared emotion. In 2014, I wanted to shoot a crowd project at the Commonwealth Games. I made three applications, but my idea was turned down every time, so I thought, ‘Where is the best place to document crowds?’ The result became my project Watching the World Cup, in which I saw the tournament in Brazil through the eyes of the fans [in different settings]— from a farm to the favelas, from the beach to an emergency room. My Brazilian flatmates Cass and Gabriel, together with loads of other Brazilian pals, helped make this happen.”

WORLD CUP 2014: BRAZIL VS GERMANY RIO DE JANEIRO “I’ll never forget this semifinal. We were at a friend’s house in favela Complexo do Alemão, along with four generations of their family. Sound systems had been set up around the favela for a massive baile funk [Rio hip-hop] party, with fireworks ready for when Brazil won. Then they lost. It was humiliating, devastating. At halftime, we moved to a bar filled with only Brazilians. There had been a shoot-out the week before and two people had died, so things felt on edge. At 5-0 in the match, everyone was in disbelief. At 6-0, I felt so bad I bought a round of drinks for everyone. By 7-0, everyone was cheering Germany on. This local, Dona Zefa, sat outside her house watching on a tiny TV. She’d seen Brazil win the World Cup five times. Now, on home turf, they lost 7-1. The party that night was unforgettable. It rained for three days afterward and felt like Brazil was crying.” THE RED BULLETIN

WORLD CUP 2014: GERMANY VS ARGENTINA COPACABANA BEACH, BRAZIL “I’ve never hugged so many crying Argentinians as I did the night when Argentina lost the final to Germany. It felt like the world had ended again. In one moment, so many hopes and dreams were crushed. I tried to console them by saying I was from Scotland and we haven’t made it to a World Cup for 20 years.”

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REIGER BOYS SOCCER CLUB, NETHERLANDS, 2018 “In 2018, the Netherlands didn’t qualify for the World Cup. The Dutch fans bring such good vibes to the tournament, so I was asked by their sponsor ING to shoot a very humble and honest reportage that went ‘back to basics’ and captured genuine football moments across the Netherlands from north to south, big cities to small towns, back gardens to stadiums—all the people who make soccer what it is, from the players to the coaches to the volunteers handing out lemonade. The photos were shot for a TV ad, a kind of pep talk to the nation with the theme of ‘Come on, out you go. Never give up. Just play football.’ More than a million people watched it.”

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RONALDO, GORKY PARK, MOSCOW, 2018 “With the World Cup in Moscow looming, Nike commissioned me to document the launch of Nike Box MSK [a sports center in Gorky Park]. Also there was Brazilian legend Ronaldo, who was in town to open the World Cup by walking the ball onto the pitch. I got to tell him just how much I love Brazil. He’s a super lovely guy and it was a dream to be in Moscow for the World Cup.”

WORLD CUP 2018: ENGLAND VS CROATIA LUZHNIKI STADIUM, MOSCOW “It was near impossible to get a ticket for this semifinal, but you only live once, so I spent an eye-watering amount buying one from a 60-year-old Chilean dentist. My bank wouldn’t let me take out such a huge sum of money at once, so he had to trust that I would meet him at the stadium with the cash. The seat was right at the back, with a rubbish view. After the first half, I knew I had to be with the England fans. The security was super strict, so I bought two pints of beer and walked up, saying in Russian, ‘I’m from Scotland,’ and they let me through. I ended up documenting the second half in front of the England band, next to [England goalkeeper] Jordan Pickford’s mates from his time playing with Sunderland FC as a teenager. He’d flown them all to Moscow for support.” THE RED BULLETIN

WORLD CUP 2018 FINAL: FRANCE VS CROATIA EIFFEL TOWER, PARIS Right: “When I arrived for the final, the area was already packed and the police had shut it off, but after I explained to them that I’d just landed from Moscow, they made an exception and let me in. I’d always wanted to be in a city when they won the World Cup, so it felt like a dream to be there.” Below: “After France made it to the final, it was impossible to get a ticket in Moscow. The next best thing was to document the vibes either on the streets of Zagreb or Paris, and I really wanted to capture the feeling of a team who’d won. I flipped a coin and Paris came up. I landed on the morning of the match. The energy was intense. More than a million people partied on the Champs-Élysées. On the way back to my hotel, I had to walk through a wall of tear gas and riot police. But it was worth it.”

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CELTIC PARK, GLASGOW “On my return to Scotland from the 2014 World Cup, I decided to make a website so people could relive the experience through the eyes of the fans. I edited it on the plane, my friends helped (thank you to Damo for writing the text, and Sofia and Matteo for designing and coding it at lightning speed) and we launched it the moment we landed. More than 200,000 people saw it and sent positive vibes from across the world, so we turned it into a book. I ended my project by saying, ‘Fingers crossed, Scotland will qualify again one day.’ That day is here: Scotland are in the Euros.” watchingtheworldcup.com THE RED BULLETIN

UNPAVED AND UNPARALLELED BFGoodrich’s new OnTrail app makes finding and completing epic backcountry adventures more accessible and fun than ever. Words KELLY BASTONE

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SPONSORED

MATT HARDY

The Rubicon Trail near Lake Tahoe is a beautiful and challenging playground for offroad enthusiasts.

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aper maps still have their place. In fact, poring over map archives is precisely how motorsports journalist Del Albright discovers little-known trails. “Those out-of-date maps show old mining roads and railroad lines that don’t always appear on the newest Trails Illustrated publications,” he says. Albright always cross-references those archival documents with current Motor Vehicle Use Maps that indicate where vehicular travel is allowed—and where it’s prohibited. But the maps that now intrigue him the most are the ones currently being generated by real-time adventurers. “Gaia, Garmin, I’ve used them all,” Albright says of the growing pack of mapping applications that let adventurers research potential routes, record their trips and share data with friends. He’s most excited about the newest entrant, OnTrail from BFGoodrich. OnTrail lets travelers post updates on trail conditions—and that’s the kind of intel that no paper map can provide. “To me, that’s huge. The power of the community to build it is really something special,” says Albright. Other users like how mapping apps like OnTrail accept photos and videos as waypoints. That makes trail descriptions far less subjective, says JT Holmes, an extreme skier, multisport standout and now off-road driving enthusiast—he won the 2017 Baja 500 in the Pro UTV category. “One person’s difficult trail is another person’s moderate,” Holmes explains. “But a picture is worth a thousand words. When you can round out a GPS route with photos of surface conditions and hill steepness, that adds a lot of value.” Such details in the app help adventurers choose the itineraries that fit their skill, experience level and equipment. Some routes, such as California’s famous Rubicon Trail (described on the next page) are bettersuited to Jeeps than trucks. Others, such as northwest Utah’s portion of the Pony Express National Historic Trail, are easily handled by any 4x4 or AWD vehicle. Ready to get away? Check out these five blockbuster itineraries—all of them inspired by content on the OnTrail app. Pull one up on your smartphone, gas up your tank and get rolling.

The Rubicon Trail dishes out primo access to the granite glory of the High Sierra.

The Rubicon Trail, CA DIFFICULTY: HARD MILES: 22 DAYS: 2+

Each adventure in this feature can be pulled off using the OnTrail app. To learn more, check out ontrail.com.

Winding through Sierra Nevada granite west of Lake Tahoe, the Rubicon is the benchmark for 4x4 driving. Car manufacturers use this route as a proving ground for vehicle development, because claiming capability on the Rubicon wins any model a gold star among off-road enthusiasts the world over. “I’ve met people as far away as Botswana and Russia who told me their life dream is to come to the U.S. and drive the Rubicon,” says Chris Collard, an off-road/automotive journalist who lives roughly 90 minutes from this trail and has completed it countless times. He asserts that its reputation as a bucket-list destination is well deserved, but mostly because the trail cuts through one of the most beautiful

pockets of the California Sierra. “For a lot of people, the focus is on the challenge,” Collard says. “What inspires me is not driving over the boulders, but enjoying the clean mountain air, the beautiful rivers and lakes. It is truly a spectacular place.” Gorgeous campsites abound. Most people log one night on the trail, but “you could easily spend a week up there,” says Collard, because the surrounding mountainside offers ample opportunity for day hikes and lakeside idylls—and you’re likely to enjoy them in solitude, since most Rubicon visitors key in on the driving. The technical features certainly do demand attention. The Rubicon’s first crux weeds out inexperienced wheelers: Aptly called “Gatekeeper,” this boulder-strewn hill demonstrates the potential for side-body or drivetrain damage when drivers (or vehicles) are unprepared for the rocks’ rigors. Front and rear lockers, front and rear recovery points, larger (33- to 35-inch) tires, skidplates and underbody armor

Every OnTrail user can create a personalized profile page.

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SPONSORED

CHRIS COLLARD, GETTY IMAGES

are all modifications that help prevent smash-ups and keep you rolling. Just don’t forget to stop and savor, recommends Collard. On one trip, he hauled in a canoe and paddled around Buck Island Lake, fishing for trout. From Buck Island, he likes to hike southeast across rolling alpine meadows for 1.5 miles to Rockbound Lake, within the Desolation Wilderness. For camping, Collard favors Mechanic’s Camp (tucked into the pines beside Buck Island’s shining water), Rubicon Springs (where the Rubicon River flows slow and deep, forming great swimming holes) and Dirty Dozen (at a sandy lakeside beach where Collard tosses horseshoes). OnTrail includes even more points of interest. Previous drivers have flagged the location of Cadillac Hill, where you can spy the remains of the discarded car that serves as a reminder of how much easier the Rubicon Road used to be, before Mother Nature’s erosive work roughened the route and made it offlimits to all but rock crawlers. Nearby, another OnTrail waypoint highlights a don’t-miss view. Use the trail’s outhouses or pack a WAG bag when occupying dispersed sites, because the Rubicon Trail sees too much traffic to sustainably dig catholes in the few pockets of soil between the granite. “The Rubicon Trail has been the model for how to maintain OHV [offhighway vehicle] access,” says Collard.

“A lot of people contribute their passion and time to being good stewards, and our success has inspired a lot of other ‘friends of’ organizations supporting other trails,” says Collard. In that sense, the Rubicon is also a benchmark for trail service and responsibility. “The entire world knows about this trail,” says Collard, “so we’ve got to be good caretakers and good hosts.”

Pony Express National Historic Trail, UT DIFFICULTY: EASY MILES: 220 DAYS: 3 The entire Pony Express National Historic Trail spans some 1,800 miles from St. Joseph, Missouri, to Sacramento, California—but only in northwest Utah does the route still look as raw and undeveloped as it was when mail-carrying horsemen galloped across the desert. The 133-mile, mostly dirt segment from Fairfield to Ibapah rolls across grassy hills where wild horses and antelope graze beneath mountains that glow a gorgeous pink in evening light (dispersed campsites are abundant on the Bureau of Land Management areas

PRO TIP: AIR DOWN Running a lower tire pressure when driving off-pavement radically improves not just your traction (because the rubber conforms to features for better grip) but also your riding comfort: Washboard roads, for example, feel a lot more buttery when you’re floating on squishy, bump-softening tires. To enjoy the benefits, deflate tires to 25 to 35 percent of their recommended pressure. After your trip, use a portable air compressor to re-inflate them to standard pressure before returning to pavement. Aireddown tires only handle short stretches of slower (sub-45 mph) speeds without overheating, so it’s essential to re-inflate tires before you zoom back to civilization.

you’ll cross). You’ll pass stone monoliths that mark the ponies’ former path, and a short detour to the Dugway Geode Beds lets rockhounds unearth stones filled with glittering crystals— be the first to waypoint this location within OnTrail. On day 2, you’ll pass 12,087-foot Ibapah Peak and its granite neighbors before detouring to Gold Hill ghost town. Snap a few selfies in front of Gold Hill’s decaying mercantile building, then extend your trip north, off the Pony Express Trail, for 87 miles to reach the stark, 30,000-acre expanses of Bonneville Salt Flats. Here, rain forms ephemeral pools on the glittering white crust, making it hard to discern the difference between water and mirage.

Use the OnTrail app to plan and then share your Pony Express adventure.

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TIRE FINDER Stock tires are typically designed for pavement—not for dirt, rock or even gravel. So if you’re logging more than an occasional foray off asphalt, consider upgrading to an all-terrain tire. Dirt-ready models offer superior traction and durability for rougher roads (even non-gnarly gravel causes chip-and-tear damage to road tires’ tread). Here’s how to shop BFG’s off-road offerings.

WHAT KIND OF ROADS DO YOU DRIVE? Pavement plus gravel country roads and graded forest roads

Pavement plus dirt or rock on ungraded mountain or desert roads

The uglier the better—rocks, mud, whatever!

Do you air down your tires for a trip?

What type of trip do you prefer?

What type of vehicle?

YES

Multi-night overland campouts YES

KO2 TRAIL TERRAIN T/A

Jeep, light duty

Rock crawling at low speeds

YES

Do you care about noise?

Do you want to lift or modify?

Heavy duty Which is important, traction or road wear? Traction Road wear

YES

NO KO2

KO2

Do you need winter weather performance?

TRAIL TERRAIN T/A New for Fall 2021, this tire is built for daily driving on pavement and weekends on dirt. It’s quiet on roads, rugged in gravel and sticky on snow.

ALL-TERRAIN T/A K02 The Swiss Army knife of off-road tires, the KO2 blends traction on rock and snow with a reasonably comfy highway ride.

MUD-TERRAIN T/A KM3 When it comes to traction, the KM3 slays in mud, rock and sand. Its durable sidewall protects against punctures from trail features.

YES

KM3

KO2

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SPONSORED

Use the app to visit Barker Ranch and some weird Charles Manson history.

Titus Canyon is an outstanding place to get some perspective.

Barker Ranch, Death Valley National Park, CA

DEL ALBRIGHT

DIFFICULTY: MODERATE MILES: 31 DAYS: 1 “Death Valley is the most magical place you can ever imagine,” claims Del Albright, an off-road enthusiast and motorsports journalist who has made annual pilgrimages here for the past 37 years. He goes in February or March, when Death Valley’s wildflower display creates vast swaths of solid purple or yellow. “When it takes off, it’s breathtaking,” he attests. Even without THE RED BULLETIN

the petals’ colors, the dusky landscape becomes a canvas for subtle changes in atmospheric light. And once you leave the open valleys for the canyons that tunnel into the park’s limestone mountains, you see marvelous compositions of polished gray rock. “Some of those walls are 300 feet tall, and they’re smooth as a baby’s butt,” says Albright. His never-miss trail is Titus Canyon, a technically easy 17-mile route that’s typically graded (check OnTrail for surface conditions that might influence vehicle choice). “The rock walls are so close that passengers can stick their hands out and touch the limestone. It’s like a Disneyland ride,” he explains. Albright also likes to pioneer new multiday overlanding routes—because

despite all of his visits, he has yet to exhaust Death Valley’s 3 million acres of largely undeveloped wilds. “There are countless ways to spend five days driving and camping off-pavement,” he says. Another one of Albright’s favorites is Barker Ranch, the now-abandoned property where Charles Manson and his entourage were apprehended in 1969. “I’ve been to the vanity cabinet where he was hiding when they found him,” Albright recalls. “You can see why he chose that remote, hard-to-get-to place to hide.” Beyond the Manson history, the route up Goler Wash is classic Death Valley awesomeness, says Albright. The first several miles approach the canyon via ho-hum washboard road across Panamint Valley, but once the track enters the limestone narrows, there’s no shortage of excitement. Several abandoned mines line the route, and wild burros and horses roam the creosote flats found at higher elevations. Use the OnTrail app to confirm you’re on the right route, since washouts and user detours occasionally challenge routefinding. Drivers in stock vehicles will want an expert spotter to avoid damage to the side panels; better to have rock sliders and all-terrain (not street) tires. To refuel within the park, hit Panamint Springs—but gas typically costs $1.50 more per gallon than in surrounding communities, such as Lone Pine (to the west) and Beatty (on the east). Besides, Albright likes the breakfasts at Lone Pine’s Alabama Hills Café. Shoshone, on the park’s southeast edge, serves the region’s wettest drinks at the Crowbar Café & Saloon. Says Albright, “It’s just what you need after a long day of heat and dirt.” 75

Loup Loup Canyon and Ruby Grade, WA You can picture your Loup Loup adventure before you begin.

The app displays obstacles and points of interest with cool icons.

DIFFICULTY: EASY MILES: 16 DAYS: 1 It’s a good thing this route is easy, because you’ll have a hard time keeping your eyes on the road—that’s how mesmerizing are these burn-scarred mountainsides along the eastern edge of the Cascade Range. Starting 7 miles west of Okanogan on State Route 20, Loup Loup Canyon Road curves north through verdant hillsides covered by the charred black spines of burned trunks. Several small streams cross the road and add interest to the otherwise smooth, graded road. Some stretches pierce waterlogged green meadows; others skirt boulder-strewn hills. Finally, the road contours across open, treeless mountainsides affording wide-open views of verdant valleys and rocky summits. Want a preview? Drivers have uploaded stacks of photo waypoints to the OnTrail route. Switchbacks descend to the ghost town of Ruby, a silver-mining boom town that existed for just seven short years before being abandoned for wealth elsewhere. Continue north on Salmon Creek Road through gradually smoothing terrain until Conconully Road.

With your careful planning out of the way, you can just focus on having fun.

Kane Creek Canyon Trail, Moab, UT DIFFICULTY: HARD MILES: 13 DAYS: 1 Moab looks like no place else on the planet, with canyon cliffs and windsculpted rock towers that have a way of wowing even the most jaded globetrotters. Combine that scenery with some of the world’s most interesting 4x4 routes and Moab becomes a musthit destination for anyone who loves to drive—regardless of experience. “Some of the best viewpoints can be reached by easy trails,” says Moab habitué and off-road instructor Charlene Bower, who founded the Ladies Offroad Network. She recommends the 42-mile Chicken Corners route for less-experienced wheelers, because it serves up

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SPONSORED

There’s nothing ordinary about hitting the wilderness routes around Moab.

App users can access BFG’s authoritative Ultimate 4x4 Driving Guide.

JEFF ENGERBRETSON, DAN KRAUSS

The desktop view on the app offers a sense of how many routes near Moab have already been mapped.

some of the area’s best panoramas but presents few technical challenges. Bower, however, calls out the demanding Kane Creek Trail as her personal favorite. “It’s got the difficulty that I expect as a driver, with the beauty that I expect from Moab,” she explains. THE RED BULLETIN

The route begins off Kane Creek Road, 11 miles southwest of Moab, where sheer cliffs frame a broad, open valley. You’ll soon start snaking beneath those red sandstone walls and zigzagging across Kane Creek, “so that you’re down in a valley of red rocks,” Bower explains. The scenic value comes

from looking up: In every direction, sandstone ledges and bulbous buttes form imagination-stoking shapes beneath a blazing blue sky. “You’ll want to check the weather forecast before you go,” cautions Bower, because rainstorms can create flash-flooding in Kane Creek. (OnTrail makes this step easy: Clicking on the weather icon from the home screen calls up current and hourly forecasts for the coming week’s wind, temperature and precipitation potential.) Even without storm surges, the water crossings and mud pockets make for challenging driving, especially when flood activity has rearranged the canyon’s boulders. The water also nurtures a proliferation of streamside shrubbery that often crowds the trail. “It’s so pretty and green,” says Bower. Those branches are also liable to scratch your vehicle’s paint as you thread the thickets. Consider them honor badges, won by negotiating a trail that saves its toughest challenge for last. Climbing out of Kane Creek Canyon, drivers encounter Hamburger Hill, a steep and boulder-studded feature where the cost of a misstep could include rolling down a cliff. “There’s some exposure,” chuckles Bower. Some drivers prefer to hook up a winch line as a safety precaution on this final passage, though Bower typically negotiates it “without a net.” Then, at the end, she blows off steam by romping among the sand dunes on the top of the bluff before beelining it back to Moab (for chips and salsa at Fiesta Mexicana) via US Route 191. 77

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guide Get it. Do it. See it.

DANA HALFERTY

TREASURE ISLANDS

Anyone who has tried to book a campsite lately knows that “getting away from it all” is not easy when everyone is trying to do the same thing. Here are four ways to get creative—and cut yourself off from the crowds. Words EVELYN SPENCE

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In the Pacific Northwest, the 128 San Juan Islands are teeming with recreational fun.

G U I D E

Do it SAN JUAN ISLANDS, WASHINGTON

“I’m a bit biased, but no place on earth is as stunning,” says Cole Sisson, who was born and raised on Orcas Island— the largest of 128 named islands in this Pac NW jewel box—and now runs a bottle shop and tasting room in charming Eastsound. The San Juans take the fjords and thick forests of Norway and add lavender farms, pottery studios, distilleries and roadside produce stands (that run on the honor system, of course). If you want to see an orca whale in the flesh, you’ve come to the right place: Whether by kayak, cruiser or from the bluffs of Lime Kiln Point State Park, this is the best place on earth to spot them. Quiet, relatively flat Lopez Island (nicknamed “Slow-pez” for its mellow ’tude) is perfect for long, flat road rides. Orcas Island is home to the San Juans’ high point, 2,398-foot Mount Constitution, which is criss-

crossed with hiking trails (and has screaming, shuttleable downhill mountain biking). San Juan Island, with bustling Friday Harbor, is the launching pad for Discovery Sea Kayaks; they run multiday trips to nearby uninhabited islands and pioneered SJI’s after-dark bioluminescence tours— picture sparkling bursts of bright green light with each stroke. “The paddling always blows me away,” says Jason Gunter, who started guiding with Discovery in 2004 and is now an owner. “I’ve been on international trips, and I always find myself comparing other places to my home waters. And I always love the San Juans more.” Stay Sleek and modern, with great views of the Friday Harbor ferry landing and the San Juan channel, Friday Harbor House is one of the islands’ splurges—but it does come with lavender pillow spray and Chemex carafes. The Outlook Inn, in Eastsound, has

On Orcas Island, you can hike up Mount Constitution in Moran State Park.

both swanky water’s-edge suites and easy-on-the-wallet rooms with shared bathrooms. In Lopez Island Village, the Victorian-style Edenwild delivers breakfast to your room every morning. Eat Sisson’s just-opened Roots Orcas Island has a little bit of everything: espresso and toasts in the morning, paninis in the afternoon and wine with charcuterie and cheese at night. Ursa Minor, on Lopez, Go on a short paddle or a fiveday camping tour with Discovery Sea Kayaks.

turns the historic bounty of the island—wild berries, oysters, orchard fruits and even moss—into a constantly changing Northwest menu. At Hogstone, a five-time James Beard nominee slings unusual pies (think crispy pork fat, chickweed, cultured cream and new potatoes, for one). Drink Gunter’s mornings often start with coffee from Crows Nest in Friday Harbor—with “a fun collection of island characters, myself included”— and end at Cease and Desist, a beer bar where the blackboard showcases a rotating list of brews from up and down the West Coast. Island Hoppin’ is the only microbrewery on Orcas (and it’s a great one). Guide Gunter’s Discovery Sea Kayaks runs everything from sunset paddles to five-day camping tours fueled by local produce. There are a lot of whale-watching outfits around here, but All Aboard is the only one that will take you out in a classic 1956 sloop.

If you want to see an orca whale—by kayak, cruiser or from the bluffs— this is the best spot on earth. 80

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Island Escapes Jumping off the Jaws bridge in Martha’s Vineyard.

The streets of Edgartown are packed with galleries and shops.

DANA HALFERTY(2), NICOLE FRIEDLER(2), LOUISA GOULD

MARTHA’S VINEYARD, MASSACHUSETTS

Dave Rolanti may be what native islanders call a washashore, but as the bar manager of Offshore Ale Company, a peanut-shells-onthe-floor place that brings in tourists and locals alike, he knows the Vineyard as well as anyone. “MV is a place where everyone can cast off their pretenses and become the people they truly are,” he says. “If you’re feeling the hippie vibe and walk down the street in bare feet, no one will look twice.” Yes, everyone from the Obamas to Bill Murray have houses here, but no one cares. And yes, you can jump off the Jaws bridge— everyone does it. But you should also linger at some of the 20-plus beaches: State Beach for miles of sand, Moshup for big waves, Lambert’s Cove for Hawaii feels (minus palm trees). To reach Lobsterville Beach, a pontoon-boat bike ferry takes you across Menemsha Bight— and you should have a bike,

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because MV has 44 miles of trail and miles more of country roads. If you’d rather swim in fresh water, there are 60-some ponds, including Ice House, a freshwater kettle pond in West Tisbury. Fishing is huge, obv, from charters and from the shore; surfing can be good and kitesurfing even better. The hiking isn’t hardcore—Peak Hill, at 311 feet, is the biggest climb—but the open fields and seaside cliffs are breathtaking anyway. “The combination of idyllic geography, quaint New England living and a hardy year-round population make MV a unique place,” says Rolanti. “Some say that it’s just a charming island off the coast of reality.” Stay In Oak Bluffs, the nautical-meets-hip Dockside Inn—right on the harbor—is within walking distance of pretty much everything. The Nobnocket Inn, a seven-room clapboard mansion, sits on 1.5 acres near the Vineyard Haven ferry dock. If you don’t mind being far from the action, the

Outermost Inn, near the Aquinnah Cliffs, is wrapped in windows and only a 10minute walk from the beach. Eat Funky, sea-to-table Red Cat Kitchen, in Oak Bluffs, is chef-owned and “has the world’s best brussels sprouts,” says Chick Stapleton, the owner of Island Spirit Kayak. Orange Peel Bakery—owned by a Wampanoag native—has weekly pizza nights that always turn into a party. The ultimate classic? Grabbing lobster rolls from Larsen’s or

a clambake takeout from Menemsha Fish Market and watching the sunset in Menemsha. And for a midnight snack, stand in line for maple-bacon and honey-glazed donuts at Back Door Donuts. Drink You can’t leave MV without trying a dirty banana—a rum, chocolate and banana potion—from Donovan’s Reef, a drink hut next to Nancy’s in Oak Bluffs. Offshore Ale is the island’s original brewpub, with rotating taps of almost a dozen. “The Ritz Café is a wellheeled, well-run dive bar with some of the best live music you’ll ever see,” says Rolanti. Guide Island Spirit has lightup, glass-bottomed kayaks and paddleboards, making for weirdly cool nighttime tours. And if you want to clam, snorkel or fish by SUP, sign up with 6K6 Surf School. Oak Bluffs Harbor

G U I D E

Do it MACKINAC ISLAND, MICHIGAN

When you ask Keirah Stack, a server at Mary’s Bistro Draught House, about her favorite activity here, hammocking is one of first words she says. That’s the kind of place 3.8-square-mile Mackinac is: relaxed, nostalgic and refreshingly simple. And since cars have been banned since 1898— only bikes and horse-drawn carriages are allowed—it feels like a time warp of the most close-knit kind, where everyone knows everyone else. Need an example? The Grand Hotel has the longest front porch in the world. A century ago, Mackinac was the country’s second national park after Yellowstone, and 80 percent of it is still state park, so it doesn’t lack natural beauty. (Exhibits A and B: the rugged keyhole of Arch Rock and the giant limestone tower of Sugar Loaf.) For views of tropical-blue Lake Huron, hike up to Fort Holmes or along Tranquil Bluff. There are 70 miles of paved and natural bike trails here, including some technical singletrack that gets up close A postcard perfect view of Mackinac.

and personal with 500-foot cliff drops, but most people cruise the 8-mile M-185 around the island so they can get back for a rum runner at the Pink Pony. Because even though the night skies here make it a mind-blowing place to watch a meteor shower, Mackinac also knows how to party—when the day-trippers catch the last ferry home, the locals come out to play. Says Bart Berkshire, who’s worked at the Pony and the Chippewa Hotel for close to a dozen years, “I love Mackinac with every fiber of my body.” Stay The Tudor-style Inn at Stonecliffe—stained glass windows, library-turned-bar, clawfoot tubs—is tucked away from downtown and surrounded by scenic woods. If resorts are your jam, Mission Point has a pool, arcade room, movie theater and the biggest lawn on the island. Just two blocks from the ferry docks, the bright, flowery Cottage Inn might just win for friendliest owners. Eat Stack loves Kingston Kitchen—run by Jamaica native Shawn Fearon—for its ackee, curry goat and jerk. Chuckwagon, which slings

Bike up to Tranquil Bluff on Mackinac for an overlook of Lake Huron.

eggs and hash browns and burritos served on a narrow wooden counter, is officially the teeniest eatery on the island. To stock up for a picnic, hit Doud’s, rumored to be the country’s oldest family-operated grocery store. Love it or hate it, there’s so much fudge here that tourists are called “fudgies”—so do your part and try one of the 24 kinds at 130-year-old Murdick’s.

Drink Mary’s Bistro Draught House has 40-plus Michigan beers on tap (plus pub food of the poutine-and-cheese-curds variety). Post-yacht, post-ride, post-shift: Everyone does time on the waterfront patio of the Pink Pony, then hits the IGready, Carleton Varneydesigned Cupola Bar at the top of the Grand Hotel. For live music and saloon-like vibes, Horn’s Gaslight goes off almost every night. Guide Book the Wild Honey, a six-passenger Cal 39 sloop, to see Mackinac’s shoreline by sailboat. Great Turtle Kayak Tours runs sunset paddles, circumnavigations and even overnights to nearby Bois Blanc Island.

Do your part and eat some fudge.

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Island Escapes Gould’s Inlet on St. Simons Island in Georgia.

MACKINAC ISLAND TOURISM BUREAU(3), GOLDENISLES.COM(2)

GOLDEN ISLES, GEORGIA

A collection of four islands just—and we mean just—off the southeast coast of Georgia, the Golden Isles are mossdraped, marshy and mellow, with spectacular sunsets and pristine sands. “The combination of laid-back beach vibes and true Southern culture makes them so unique,” says Jason Latham, who grew up in nearby Brunswick—and happens to be Georgia’s only pro surfer and paddleboarder. “And Georgia is actually the perfect place to learn how to surf, which not many people know.” For bigger waves, head out when the tide is coming in—or, as some do, stick around for hurricane season when the swell is real big. Otherwise, the chop can be sweet for kitesurfing and windsurfing. On a SUP, you can explore miles of inlets that wind through old-growth maritime forests, where hundreds of bird species stop to rest throughout the year. St. Simons Island is the biggest and buzziest: think pub crawls, restaurant rows, brodowns and girls’ nights out. Driftwood

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Beach, on chill Jekyll Island, is a postcard-perfect landscape of white sand and twisted trees. “Biking on Jekyll is killer,” says Latham. “Excellent nature trails, gorgeous landscapes and heaps of ocean views.” Come fall, when the tropics send up storms, it’s less busy, less hot and the tropics start sending up good surf and great fish— and it’s Latham’s favorite time of year. “I like people but not too many people. I love how the Golden Isles can be touristy and super quiet at the same time,” he says. “It suits my personality to a T.” Stay Ocean Lodge, a SpanishMediterranean beachside spot with just 15 rooms, has a sweet rooftop restaurant (yes, the Rooftop) with Atlantic Ocean views. For true seclusion (and exclusion), the Lodge, an 11,000-acre eco-resort, allows just 32 overnight guests—and it’s the only hotel on Little St. Simons Island. On Jekyll, relax in comfy loungers beneath centuries-old live oaks at the Beachview Club Hotel. Eat Opened just last year, Fiddlers sits on a marsh and

Enjoy miles of Georgia’s inlets and wetlands by kayak or SUP.

nails local flavors and seafood, says Latham. (“You can’t go wrong with Southern soul barbecue for lunch and surf & turf for dinner.”) Porch can tweak the spice of their Nashville-style hot chicken from novice to napalm, and there are fried catfish and shrimp plates too. Want oysters? The Half Shell, near the pier, serves them six ways. Latham’s morning go-to: Palm Coast Coffee for colossal breakfast burritos and egg sandwiches. Drink St. Simons is handsdown the best for nightlife— just head down to the pier and

follow your cravings. For game nights with friends, Brogen’s South is a rite of passage (and, says Latham, has great bar food). With a killer oceanfront patio, breezy Echo is the best place to watch the sunset with a High Tide in hand. Rafters and Murphy’s are both divey—and book decent bands a couple nights a week. Guide Latham offers surfing lessons and runs SUP tours along beaches, through marshes and up rivers—with a good chance of seeing a manatee, dolphin or alligator. Find him at J.LAY SUP.

G U I D E

Do it TRAIN LIKE A PRO

“I LOVE THE ADRENALINE”

Evy Leibfarth reveals how she trains for the unpredictable challenges of whitewater slalom canoe racing.

t takes 90 seconds for Evy Leibfarth, 17, to paddle a slalom course. During that time, she’ll thread her way through slalom gates, drawing on her skills and fitness to navigate whatever the whitewater sends her way. “I love the adrenaline I get from racing,” she says. As a young girl, Leibfarth sat on her parents’ laps while they paddled easy waters. Soon she had her own boat. “I love the feeling on the water, using the water to carry you places, and surfing across the waves,” she says. “While we do paddle difficult whitewater sections, so much of it is technique.” Her approach has paid off. In 2019 Leibfarth began competing on the canoe World Cup circuit. When she won bronze in the women’s canoe category in Ljubljana, Slovenia, at age 15, she became the youngest woman to medal at a World Cup event. Later that year at the ICF Canoe Slalom World Championships in Spain, Leibfarth finished fourth in the single-canoe event. “That’s when I realized my Olympic dream could be a reality,” she says. And this past April, she swept the slalom kayak and canoe classes at the U.S. Olympic Trials to qualify for Tokyo.

“On the water, you need to use many skills at once,” Leibfarth says. “It’s not a sport where you just have to be fast or be strong— it’s a mix of core strength, flexibility and technique.”

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Fitness

TEC H N I Q U E

“I paddle on whitewater six days a week” “I often do two sessions on the water each day. I normally get one-hour time slots on the water and get in the water about 30 minutes before a session. To warm up, I usually do four 10-second sprints and a lot of turns—just circling around and pivots. On days I’m doing a lactic workout, I’ll do 60-second sprints, which gets lactic acid flowing before my actual interval workout. The most fun workouts I do are technique and gate workouts on the river. We split the course into sections with five or six gates and work on specific techniques.”

D RY L AN D

ABHI THAKER/RED BULL CONTENT POOL, BRIAN HALL/RED BULL CONTENT POOL

“I do a lot of upper-body and core exercises” “I usually do three weight workouts each week. I do a lot of weighted pull-ups, leg lifts, that kind of thing. I have two TRX suspension straps and take those with me everywhere I go. The most common exercise that I do is “T’s Y’s and I’s,” where I lean back into them and create those letters with my hands. When I’m at home, I do shoulder exercises with bands, too. I also do two weekly aerobic workouts. I ride for 45 minutes or run for 20 to 50 minutes, depending on whether I’m working on aerobic training or recovery.”

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CAR D I O

“I simulate being really tired at the bottom of the course” “A lot of times in competitions, there will be difficult moves at the bottom of the course that I have to paddle when I’m already really tired. I do half-length and fulllength efforts on the practice course for race simulation. I also do loops, just paddling down and around the course for about an hour at an aerobic heart rate, which for me is 155 to 165 beats per minute. In addition to my whitewater workouts, I also do lots of intervals on flat water, for instance sets of short, 10-to-20second sprints. And then I do aerobic paddling on flat water.”

“I TRAVEL WITH A BLENDER” “I make smoothies wherever I am. My go-to combo is frozen strawberries, bananas, a bit of almond butter with Greek yogurt or oat milk. If I have spirulina powder, I’ll put that in to make it green. I top it off with fresh fruit or nuts and seeds. I always bring boxes of mac and cheese with me, just in case, as well as almond-butter packets. I really love bananas with almond butter on them.”

R EC OV E RY

“I use a foam roller whenever I can” “I foam roll my back and my IT [iliotibial] band, which gets really tight from canoeing. I also do yoga a lot for mobility. I’m not super great at it, but I’ll pull up and try to follow a class on YouTube. I stretch every day. I love the seal stretch, where you just arch your back to stretch it out. My favorite stretch is laying on my back and bringing my knees over my head to stretch my back. I do a lot of low-intensity running for recovery. Usually, I’ll do an easy run after a racesimulation workout.”

G U I D E

See it

27 August

BAY PADDLE

What would you be willing to risk everything for? For most of us it’s thankfully little more than a hypothetical question. But for the surfers in this series it’s very real. Nazaré in Portugal hosts the biggest surfable waves on the planet, where records and bodies can be—and have been—broken. It’s a legend that has been told before, but what’s rarely covered are the human stakes: the families, the partners and the pets left behind in pursuit of this prize. The first two episodes of this series focus on the lives and loves of France’s Justine Dupont and Brazilian Pedro “Scooby” Vianna as they put it all on the line. redbull.com

September TELLURIDE FILM FESTIVAL Hidden away in a former mining town in the Colorado Rockies, this internationally renowned film festival is a cinephile’s paradise (for those who can afford it). The lineup isn’t announced until right before the start date, but it’s always top-notch. After going virtual in 2020, this IRL event will feature Oscar-winning director Barry Jenkins as this year’s guest director. telluridefilmfestival.org

21 August

RED BULL 400 A race that’s only 400 meters, the same as one lap around a track? Sounds easy, right? Not so much if it’s a sprint up a 37-degree slope. Even elite athletes competing suffer intense muscle pain and fatigue, but don’t sell yourself short: You, too, can have your Rocky Balboa moment if you can suffer through the 10 minutes or so it takes to get to the top, then snap a selfie for posterity and bragging rights. This month’s location is in Park City, Utah, but there are races all over the world. redbull.com/events

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KONSTANTIN REYER/RED BULL CONTENT POOL, CHRIS HOPKINSON/RED BULL CONTENT POOL, VIVIEN KILLILEA/RED BULL CONTENT POOL

Available now RISK VS REWARD: A NAZARÉ ANTHOLOGY SERIES

Last September, Chris Hopkinson became the first person to cross the Chesapeake Bay on a stand-up paddleboard— all to raise money and build awareness for the Oyster Recovery Partnership’s efforts to plant more oysters in the bay. This year, he's making the crossing a 215-mile paddle race that will take place over eight days. Register as an individual or a team. baypaddle.org

Calendar

Available now ACCOMPLICE

KATIE LOZANCICH/RED BULL CONTENT POOL, BARTOSZ WOLINSKI/RED BULL CONTENT POOL, STEVE VEDDERS/RED BULL CONTENT POOL

Getting your first bike is a coming-ofage moment in anyone’s life. This film is a homage to that ticket to freedom; the bond forged between human and two-wheeled sidekick. But the people recalling their stories here aren’t just anyone—they’re biking legends, set on a path from the moment they first discovered what two wheels can do. For Brandon Semenuk, that journey led to the Canadian winning Red Bull Joyride for the first of five times in 2011. For American Paul Basagoitia, it brought a fall at Red Bull Rampage in 2015 that left him paralyzed and having to relearn how to ride. Far more than just another bike film. redbull.com

28 August

RED BULL URBAN PORTAGE This marathondistance race combines paddling, running and navigation—all the ingredients for an ultimate adventure. The location? A northern stretch of the Mississippi River in Minneapolis where competitors must paddle downstream and upstream for a 19-mile upper-body workout. For the other 7 miles, racers get to carry their mode of transportation for more arm-pumping awesomeness. redbull.com/events

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15 September UCI MOUNTAIN BIKE WORLD CUP FINALS The eyes of the mountain biking world will once again turn to West Virginia’s Pocahontas County in September, as Snowshoe Mountain plays host to a rare “downhill double-header” culminating with the World Cup Finals and the crowning of UCI’s overall winners for the 2021 season. The first downhill race will take place on Snowshoe’s Western Territory on September 15, just days before the World Cup Finals are held at the same location, September 17-19. The finals event will feature both downhill and cross-country racing action, with UCI’s season-long titles up for grabs. Snowshoe will serve as the lone North American venue on the circuit for the season. snowshoemtn.com.

DOUBLE YOUR PLEASURE Riding on winding roads or backwoods trails clears the mind and frees the soul. But what if you want to share a journey with a partner on a motorcycle or ATV? Here are the vehicles and gear to optimize two-up or side-by-side adventures. Words JASON FOGELSON

POLARIS RZR XP TURBO

Nothing succeeds like excess. This beast uses its 168 hp turbocharged engine, 20 inches of usable suspension travel and 29-inch tires to thrill you and a partner. You can zoom across a desert landscape, crawl along rock-strewn riverbeds or explore the wilds side by side. The XP Turbo can be personalized to your heart’s desire, including comfort and safety options to ease the mind of your partner. From $20,999; ranger.polaris.com

Enjoy a guiltfree power trip with the Polaris RZR XP Turbo.

G U I D E

S I D E - BY- S I D E

A DV E N T U R E

CAN-AM MAVERICK TRAIL

SHOEI VFX-EVO

SENA 50R DUAL PACK

100% ACCURI2 GOGGLE

NELSON-RIGG HURRICANE WATERPROOF UTV CARGO BAG

SPOT X

Only 50 inches wide, this sporty, capable vehicle can take you places you never thought you could go in a side-by-side. The Ergo Lock seating makes clever use of the interior, with the flexibility to slightly stagger positions for both driver and passenger comfort. Suspension travel of up to 10.5 inches allows the 26-inch tires to soak up the dips and bumps. A 51 hp/800 cc engine (75 hp/1000 cc available) will power nearly any adventure. From $11,399; can-am.brp.com

Pairing your helmet with a good pair of goggles adds eye protection, comfort and style to your side-by-side adventure. These newly improved goggles have a great field of view. A triple-thick layer of face foam provides excellent fit and soaks up sweat, while an anti-fog-coated polycarbonate lens keeps your peepers safe from dust and debris. They’re also compatible with triple-post tear-offs if you’re ripping through the muck. $45-$60; 100percent.com

Even though side-by-sides come with seat harnesses and integrated roll cages, all manufacturers recommend using a DOT-rated full-face helmet. This lightweight motocross helmet is well suited to side-by-side use. It uses Shoei’s Motion Energy Distribution System, engineered to reduce your head’s rotational energy in an accident, comes in various colors and designs and features a removable visor and mudguard. $540; shoei-helmets.com

Adventuring with a partner means bringing more stuff along. Rather than letting your belongings bounce around in the foot box, get a cargo bag. At 25 x 8.7 x 18 inches, the Hurricane will fit in most side-by-side cargo holds and can hold up to 64 liters in two compartments—one for you, one for your passenger. It also has integrated tiedown rings and is 100 percent waterproof with heat-welded seams. $170; nelsonrigg.com

Running full tilt in a side-by-side with helmets on can complicate communication with passengers. A helmet-to-helmet comms system solves this issue and adds more fun to the experience. Sena’s Mesh 2.0 intercom technology connects headsets with one click, and HD speakers install easily in your helmet for great sound. Plus you can add a soundtrack to your side-byside adventure with Bluetooth 5 connectivity. $599; sena.com

A side-by-side adventure can take you beyond the reach of cell service. This 2-way satellite communicator lets you connect to your smartphone via Bluetooth to send and receive text messages with family, friends and even search-and-rescue services. The Spot X also works as a stand-alone device. Off-the-grid is great—but having a reliable emergency connection is even better. $250 plus service plan from $12 per month; findmespot.com

The stylish Accuri2 goggles offer outstanding eye protection and a comfortable fit. THE RED BULLETIN

G U I D E

M O T O R CYC L E

HONDA GOLD WING TOUR

If it’s been a while since you’ve looked at a Gold Wing Tour, it’s time to take another look. There may be no better way to transport a passenger in comfort—and anyone who has taken a two-up motorcycle tour knows passenger comfort is the number one concern for an enjoyable journey. Luckily, comfort doesn’t negate fun, and Gold Wing’s 1.8 liter inline six-cylinder engine delivers that and more. From $28,300; powersports. honda.com

SA1NT LEATHER GLOVES

A good pair of leather gloves can be your best friend. Not only will they protect your hands from wind, weather and debris while you ride, but they can also help you use your hand controls more smoothly, leading to better riding. Leather gloves like these from Sa1nt will break in over time, molding to your hands. The Spectra lining is a bonus, wicking away moisture and improving comfort even more. $70; us.saint.cc

T O U R I N G

YAMAHA FJR1300ES

AEROSTICH HI-VIZ TRANSIT 3 RIDING SUIT

A sportbike for two, the FJR delivers a mix of agility, comfort and capability. It uses a 1.3 liter inline four-cylinder engine and six-speed automatic transmission with an innovative assist-and-slipper wet clutch. Adjustable ergonomics for rider and passenger mean you can eat up the miles without soreness or complaint. High-tech features like throttle-bywire and riding modes put the FJR on the cutting edge. From $17,999; yamahamotorsports.com

Aerostich has long been the uniform of the long-distance rider. The Leather Transit 3 Riding Suit is the company’s sleekest two-piece outfit, available in both men’s and women’s sizes. Stylish without race-replica flourishes, the Transit is the thinking rider’s leather suit. Now available with a hi-viz jacket finish for the safetyconscious couple. From $1,037 (jacket)/$927 (pants); aerostich.com

DAINESE FREELAND GORE-TEX BOOTS

GARMIN ZUMO XT 5.5” MOTORCYCLE NAVIGATOR

Wet feet can ruin a motorcycle tour. Get yourself and your partner these boots and extend your riding, even on the rainiest days. A layer of Gore-Tex, a proven waterproofing material, is sandwiched in between the exterior to keep the interior of the boots dry. The tall boot also gets a rubber sole and soft joint pads for exceptional comfort both on and off the bike. $300; dainese.com

Wandering is fine when you’re solo, but many passengers prefer a plan. This rugged GPS unit, designed for motorcycle use, is weatherproof, vibration resistant and configured with Garmin Adventurous Routing—a GPS setting designed to find great motorcycle roads along your route. Use the recorder function to remember where you went so that you can return to perfect roads again and again. $500; buy.garmin.com

Sa1nt is known for sleek, bombproof gear, and their leather gloves are beautifully functional. 90

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ARAI REGENT-X

When it comes to picking a new helmet, get the best and best-fitting one you can afford and be sure it’s DOT-certified. One of Arai’s latest designs, this helmet checks those boxes and fits intermediate oval-shaped heads in sizes from XS to XXXL. Interior fit packages can be customized from 5 to 12 mm thick, and multiple cheek-pad thicknesses further refine comfort. It comes in a range of colors and graphic designs to match your bike, your gear and your mood. From $560; araiamericas.com

Available in seven sizes and with multiple interior fit packages, everyone can get a perfect fit in the Regent-X.

A N ATO M Y O F G E A R Two innovative motorsports products, deconstructed. Words PETER FLAX

SEAMLESS CONNECTION

The bike is continuously connected to Zero’s app and a fully customizable dash, giving riders real-time access to charging status, maintenance alerts and other critical information.

ZERO SR/F

A D A P TA B L E HANDLING

With an arsenal of 10 ride modes—including street, sport, eco and rain—riders can fine-tune torque, regenerative braking and traction control to tackle different roads and conditions.

From $19,495; zeromotorcycles.com

LEGIT POWER

The compact ZF75-10 motor can generate peak power of 110 horsepower and go 0-60 mph in less than 4 seconds. The claimed maximum speed is 124 mph.

D I S TA N C E RUNNER

Equipped with a 14.4 kWh lithium-ion battery, the bike can cover 161 city miles on one charge. Charging typically takes about an hour and a half with a level 2 charger that can conduct 6 kW per hour.

AHEAD OF THE CURVE

For a relatively heavy bike (a bit over 500 pounds), the SR/F is a nimble performer, thanks in large part to the Pirelli Diablo Rosso III tires and the fork and other suspension components from Showa.

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G U I D E

BFG ONTRAIL One-year subscription $35; ontrail.com

FIND TRAILS

The app catalogs the best trails, easily filtered by skill level, length, weather and reviews from other drivers. Users can download trails of interest that can be referenced without cell coverage.

LIVE TRACKING

Off-road enthusiasts can monitor real-time data on useful metrics like pitch, roll and altitude as well as essential basics like speed and distance. You can even spot nearby hazards.

MISSION CONTROL

The app presents missions—to map new routes or help maintain a trail—and rewards badges, rankings and points (that add up to real rewards) for those who participate.

SHARE MORE

Everyone using the platform can add photos, video, points of interest and notes on any route— and then access other drivers’ content for fun or trip planning.

LEARN MORE

The OnTrail app hosts a warehouse of in-depth instructional videos to help enthusiasts hone overlanding skills and manage certain technical challenges.

BFGOODRICH’S ONTRAIL APP HELPS OFF-ROADERS FIND COOL TRAILS, COMMUNITY AND NEW ADVENTURES. THE RED BULLETIN

G U I D E

ROAD WARRIORS Pavement only goes so far. These six trucks (plus one off-road-ready SUV) cover the spectrum of specialties, from heavy-duty hauling to occasional gravel jaunts. Words KELLY BASTONE 1

The Gladiator Rubicon is ready to rock.

1. BEST FOR ROCK CRAWLING

Outrageously capable in rugged, technical terrain, the Jeep Gladiator Rubicon is geared for maximum traction at slow speeds (new for 2021, the Rock-Trac full-time, two-speed transfer case provides a powerful 4:1 low-range gear ratio). Big, 33-inch tires improve grip and clearance; a disconnecting front sway bar allows for optimal suspension articulation on uneven ground; electric front- and rear-locking differentials make getting unstuck a cinch; and off-road bumpers feature removable end caps for better clearance. From $44,320; jeep.com

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2. BEST FOR OVERLANDING

5. BEST FOR SUSTAINABILITY

3. BEST FOR HAULING

6. BEST FOR GOING GLOBAL

4. BEST FOR SPEED

7. BEST FOR DIRT ROAD FORAYS

No need to futz with aftermarket upgrades on the Chevrolet Colorado ZR2 Bison Edition, because Chevy partnered with off-road upfitter American Expedition Vehicles to equip this midsized V6 truck with fog lamps, boronsteel skidplates and burly, stamped-steel bumpers. Also, the front and rear locking differentials and Multimatic DSSV spool-valve shocks let it rage across rocks and ruts. And it’s a better everyday highway driver than many off-road specialists. From $51,145; chevrolet.com Gaining off-road capability often costs you in payload, but not with the Ford F-250 Super Duty Tremor. The V8 turbodiesel pulls 1,050 lb.-ft. of torque and makes 475 hp, so it can haul a trailer or a weighty in-bed camper into the hinterlands. It rides high on 35-inch tires and maintains traction with locking rear and limited-slip front differentials. Factory-installed skidplates and rock sliders armor the undersides. From $54,015; ford.com A challenger to Ford’s Raptor, the Ram 1500 TRX hits 60 mph in 4.5 seconds, and its Bilstein Black Hawk e2 suspension maintains traction and dissipates heat while zooming on desert tracks. A Baja drive mode optimizes four-wheel-drive, steering and stability settings on loose surfaces. And if the TRX goes airborne, Jump Detection software adjusts engine, gearing and suspension to ensure optimal landings. From $70,425; ramtrucks.com

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Chevrolet Colorado ZR2 Bison Edition

Ford F-250 Super Duty Tremor

Dodge Ram 1500 TRX

The PowerBoost hybrid engine gives the Ford F-150 Hybrid a 20 percent improvement in fuel economy (to 24 mpg). Yet the V6 still blasts 400 horsepower, and towing capacity is a functional 12,700 pounds. Also cool: The onboard generator delivers 7.2 kilowatts to outlets in the bed, so you can plug in an air compressor, power tools or an entire camper. There’s a gear storage drawer under the rear bench, and with an optional 30-gallon fuel tank, this truck enjoys a huge 700-mile range. From $43,190; ford.com The 2022 updates on the Toyota Tacoma TRD Pro include more lift and Fox shocks fitted with tough aluminum control arms to improve the suspension on rough terrain. The V6 engine already enjoys a reputation for reliability: Repairs are rare and easily done around the world. A factory-installed skidplate guards the jewels, and an electronically locking rear differential and crawl control system keep you unstuck. From $44,325; toyota.com Using a unibody construction, the Subaru Outback Wilderness isn’t a rockcrawler. But it does deliver better fuel economy (26 mpg highway) and a comfier on-pavement ride, so it’s ideal for around-town use with occasional trips onto forest roads. A front skidplate and 9.5-inch clearance make 2022 models especially rock-ready, and the ladder-style roof rack supports 700 lbs.—enough for a rooftop tent and occupants. From $36,995; subaru.com

Ford F-150 Hybrid

Toyota Tacoma TRD Pro

Subaru Outback Wilderness

GLOBAL TEAM

THE RED BULLETIN WORLDWIDE

The Red Bulletin is published in six countries. The cover of this month’s Swiss edition features slackline pro and allaround daredevil Caio Afeto as he walks among the clouds of his native Brazil. For more stories beyond the ordinary, go to redbulletin.com.

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THE RED BULLETIN Germany, ISSN 2079-4258 Editor David Mayer Proofreaders Hans Fleißner (manager), Petra Hannert, Monika Hasleder, Billy Kirnbauer-Walek Country Project Management Nina Hahn Media Sales & Partnerships Thomas Hutterer (manager), Alfred Vrej Minassian, Franz Fellner, Ines Gruber, Thomas Gubier, Daniela Güpner, Wolfgang Kröll, Gabriele Matijevic-Beisteiner, Nicole Okasek-Lang, Britta Pucher, Jennifer Sabejew, Johannes Wahrmann-Schär, Ellen WittmannSochor, Ute Wolker, Christian Wörndle, Sabine Zölß

THE RED BULLETIN Switzerland, ISSN 2308-5886 Editor Stefania Telesca Country Project Management Meike Koch Media Sales & Brand Partnerships Stefan Brütsch (Team Lead), stefan.bruetsch@redbull.com Marcel Bannwart, marcel.bannwart@redbull.com Christian Bürgi, christian.buergi@redbull.com Jessica Pünchera, jessica.puenchera@redbull.com Goldbach Publishing Marco Nicoli, marco.nicoli@goldbach.com

THE RED BULLETIN United Kingdom, ISSN 2308-5894 Editor Tom Guise Associate Editor Lou Boyd Chief Sub-Editor Davydd Chong Publishing Management Ollie Stretton Advertising Sales Mark Bishop, mark.bishop@redbull.com Fabienne Peters, fabienne.peters@redbull.com

THE RED BULLETIN

Action highlight

Yes, your all-time record of 10 keepy-uppies is very impressive, but you’re a ball-juggling novice compared with Japan’s Kotaro “Tokura” Tokuda. Tokura, 29, switched to the acrobatic sport of freestyle soccer after an injury in his teens thwarted his ambitions in the conventional game. But now he can play his sport anywhere—while waiting for a train in Tokyo (as seen here), while dressed as a Samurai (in a Japanese noodles commercial in 2014), even in the shower (possibly). For more on the former Red Bull Street Style World Final champion, go to redbull.com.

The next issue of THE RED BULLETIN is out on September 21.

THE RED BULLETIN

JASON HALAYKO/RED BULL CONTENT POOL

DAVYDD CHONG

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