Althouse: "Crashing on skinnies."

June 26, 2018

"Crashing on skinnies."

Mute the sound if you don't want to hear the dialogue (which consists solely of the word "fuck," not continually, but repeatedly):

Via Meade, via Reddit, where the top-rated comment is "You crash better than i ride."

IN THE COMMENTS: gspencer writes: "For real insanity on a bike, going down city streets, steps, and back alleys, take a look at this Valparaiso, Chile Race Run":

ADDED: The guy in the first video was trying to compete in a Go-Pro contest that you see (and vote on) here. Currently leading in the votes is this guy, who never falls, and who descends through some lovely, mossy woodland:

29 comments:

Humperdink said...: Interesting way to destroy an expensive piece of equipment.; 6/26/18, 6:10 AM
Michael said...: That is good work, Meade!!; 6/26/18, 6:25 AM
traditionalguy said...: I bet Meade could do it. How many bicycles does this poor guy go through a year?; 6/26/18, 6:27 AM
Saint Croix said...: Fuck is a wonderful word. So many meanings from that word!

Contemplate the difference between…

Fuck.

Fuck off.

Fuck!; 6/26/18, 6:29 AM
gspencer said...: For real insanity on a bike, going down city streets, steps, and back alleys, take a look at this Valparaiso, Chile Race Run,

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HC5u9EWLiB4; 6/26/18, 6:39 AM
Danno said...: The timber track of taco-ed wheels?; 6/26/18, 6:42 AM
Ann Althouse said...: I don't think the guy ever really does crash. He has the skill to jump off when he needs to and he lands upright. I assume that in order to ride these things, you build up that skill of jumping down first. You couldn't ride those things if you were risking severe consequences if you ever fell. You will fall. I'd compare it to something I have done: ice skating. You can't do it if your idea is: never fall.; 6/26/18, 6:54 AM
Ann Althouse said...: "For real insanity on a bike, going down city streets, steps, and back alleys..."

I assume bikers of "the skinnies" originally learned skills of jumping off skinny things by riding on curbs and walls in cities/suburbs.

As one of the Reddit commenters says, "Skinnies are everywhere. Like literally every parking lot has skinnies. Curbs are also great for balance."; 6/26/18, 6:56 AM
rehajm said...: Fuck is a wonderful word.

Governing philosophy: Less give a fuck. More fuck it. ©; 6/26/18, 7:22 AM
Heartless Aztec said...: Radical; 6/26/18, 7:35 AM
mockturtle said...: This guy can ride: Danny MacAskill; 6/26/18, 7:36 AM
Virgil Hilts said...: Did I see this first on Althouse? One of the best MTB videos. http://www.twowheelsbetter.cc/video/possibly-the-best-mtb-drone-video-ever/; 6/26/18, 7:37 AM
Larry J said...: gspencer said...

For real insanity on a bike, going down city streets, steps, and back alleys, take a look at this Valparaiso, Chile Race Run,

That's an impressive display of skill with so many chances to come to a very bad ending.; 6/26/18, 7:46 AM
Derek Kite said...: I walk these trails and these riders are truly insane.; 6/26/18, 8:17 AM
TrespassersW said...: Watched the video from Valparaiso.

Cool. Now do it going the other direction.; 6/26/18, 8:20 AM
L Day said...: I'm an old mountain biker that would never even think of that type of riding, but it's much more common than most people would realize. The equipment is fully up to the task, I assure you. A modern high end mountain bike can cost $8,000 to $10,000. Just as much as a high end "dirt bike", that is, a motorcycle, like a Honda or a KTM. These things don't break easily. Almost any kind of failure would put the rider at high risk of serious injury or death. There's a lot of maintenance, for sure, but the bikes aren't breaking in half. This stuff kind of reminds me of unroped soloing. Not as dangerous as soloing, but close. I was riding my dirt bike, not my mountain bike, in the mountains outside Bozeman the day a young rider died on a nearby trail. I knew something was up when an ambulance came tearing up Bridger Canyon to the scene of the crash. Tragic, as the young man, who'd moved hear only recently, was on top of the world, riding, skiing, climbing, living the dream.; 6/26/18, 8:23 AM
L Day said...: Here, not hear. :); 6/26/18, 8:25 AM
gspencer said...: Wow, I got my own tag.

That crazy Valparaiso biking contest has been run for several years now. Meaning there are other videos out there. It's drawn major sponsors whose signs are posted along the route and at the finish line. To me, just finishing this course in one piece means you're a winner! While not IMAX quality putting the videos on full screen can give a sense of the insanity as the rider launches off one of those make-shift plywood ramps where the blood-lusting crowd gathers hoping for the "agony of defeat."; 6/26/18, 8:43 AM
Darkisland said...: "what the fuck was that?

Mayor of Hiroshima, 1945

John Henry; 6/26/18, 8:44 AM
Fernandinande said...: Kids on bicycles.

Here's big kids on motorcycles GUY MARTIN vs MICHAEL DUNLOP @ 200mph! PURE ADRENALINE! On Bike POV Lap! Isle of Man TT RACES; 6/26/18, 9:05 AM
Portlandmermaid said...: I'm glad the city stairways in the Chili run had railings, otherwise it could have been dangerous.; 6/26/18, 9:15 AM
Ralph L said...: I hope they all made deposits at the sperm bank before starting this career.

We've been watching FailArmy on PlutoTV. My dad can't grasp why they're doing such stupid things.; 6/26/18, 9:18 AM
Ralph L said...: The really tough run is doing the Chile course uphill.; 6/26/18, 9:23 AM
Ingachuck'stoothlessARM said...: my glasses fell off!; 6/26/18, 10:19 AM
Rick.T. said...: One of those videos is not like the others.; 6/26/18, 10:45 AM
Floris said...: I cannot help but notice all the serious environmental scarring that was wrought by the people who created that track in the first video. Given my encounters with mountain biking enthusiasts in the past (they all seem to be tree-hugging progressives of the first order) I find the hypocrisy remarkable.; 6/26/18, 10:50 AM
mockturtle said...: I cannot help but notice all the serious environmental scarring that was wrought by the people who created that track in the first video. Given my encounters with mountain biking enthusiasts in the past (they all seem to be tree-hugging progressives of the first order) I find the hypocrisy remarkable.

Not to mention offending any number of wildlife creatures by using the word 'fuck' with reckless abandon.; 6/26/18, 11:18 AM
Yancey Ward said...: He should have cursed the cotton-pickin failures. So uncouth!; 6/26/18, 2:40 PM
Yancey Ward said...: All of these riders in downhill biking suffer serious injuries on a constant basis. I doubt any of them really make it to old age without life-changing consequences. Fun and pain now, just pain later.; 6/26/18, 2:45 PM