Photo Story: 1.2 Million Feet of Vert in the Whistler Bike Park
Words: RideWrap
Dean Olynyk, aka Zeus Lightning, might not be a name that comes to mind when you think of people you wished you could be, but probably will be when you finish reading this! With 131 days in the Whistler Bike Park last year and 1,281,083 feet of vert recorded on the WB+ app, Dean is Whistler Bike Park's biggest Vert Bag.
To put this achievement into perspective, most Whistler locals are feeling pretty high about anything over 50 days in the park. To hold the number 1 position on the WB+ Leaderboard, the motivation to go during the rainy and cold days needs to be there, and your equipment needs to hold up to match the demand that you put it through.
Dean breaks more than just records, he has broken plenty of equipment including himself.
 | Last season I broke a crank arm, cracked a pedal, cracked rims, many spokes (later in the season I'll typically be in front of a truing stand every other day), stress fractured a few derailleurs near the hanger bolt and somehow folded over a chainring after the Shark Fin on Lower A-line. |
After hearing about his crashes, broken crank arm and cracked pedal, we weren’t sure how his Carbon YT Tues held up under all of that abuse so we asked him to come by the shop to check out how it fared. We removed the RideWrap Tailored Protection™ from his frame and were enthused to see only nominal damage after what his frame has been through. There was only one minor chip in the paint from a hectic crash, but other than that, visible 'damage' was to the protection film only and never wandered to the frame! (Don't worry, we put a new kit on to keep it fresh for another season of park bashing)
Before
After
The stats are there, and we are happy to hear that Dean reports we “performed amazingly well” in this challenge!
Before
After
Fresh protection incoming!
The Whistler Bike Park isn’t really a data and equipment proving ground for Dean as much as it’s a place to let go of stresses built up from his intense job as a software developer. He’ll take a much-needed break to punch a few laps and finds it completely changes his mood and capacity for the rest of the day.
Crabapple Hits... Numero uno for senor Dean.
| Even after one lap I find it clears out all the negative crap that built up throughout the day. Once I get to the bottom and see the smiles and the positivity from everyone in line it just gets that much better. |
A typical warmup lap for Dean goes something like: A-Line top to bottom, on over to Dirt Merchant for the next lap, and then onto repeat laps on Crabapple Hits! While logging air-time is his favourite, he smashes plenty of tech on some of his favourite trails like Indeep/Fatcrobat and Original Sin.
| The tech/flow section of Lower No Joke above the Creekside gondy is an absolute blast when you bomb down the road into it. Shady Acres --> Del Boca Vista in between an A-Line lap is on the menu a lot as well.” |
It’s a shorter season than usual, so maybe Dean won’t break his previous records, but we are interested to see if anyone can come close! Either way, we will be happy to see the Fits Chair turning next week and seeing everyone and their big bikes rolling again. When we asked Dean whether the shorter season is affecting him, well...
| At the start of biking season, I'm wondering if I still remember how to ride. After the first few days though, it all comes back and I never want to leave. |
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Must Read This Week
-Every pinkbike seller
^* ... YT Tues, MINT condition, RideWrapped from day one...*
That being said, the premium you pay Ride wrap, is for an accurate scan, and cut material specifically for the bike you ride, in the size you ride. Adding in the ease of installation with the way their kits fit, and they supply everything you need to fit it. Reality is you can buy and create your own, but again, how well does it protect the bike, and how accurate can you make it?
Jomacba hit the head on the nail quite a bit here. But we are happy to engage in the discussion and if you have any further question feel free to reach out directly!
- We use technology developed in-house to measure and design our kits and absolutely nobody else has access to it. This provides us the ability to give the best coverage available with ease of install to match across our range.
- On protective films... Our materials are sourced and tested specifically for use on bikes where they garner much more abuse than on a car. We consider all sorts of properties from install 'tack', long term adhesion and peel (big consideration for removal), durability, stain resistance, etc. We work with a few different suppliers, brands as well as factories, to ensure that the products that we create offer peak performance for both the installation and protection of bikes. We do work with 3M for our 'Xtra Thick' products that are available exclusively in-store, but that particular film is an OEM grade and is not available on shelves as are others that come out of our facilities. Rest assured that we are continuously refining the products and while we are not chemists ourselves, 3M also bought the film technology, haha.
- As Jomacba mentioned, one of the things that often gets missed in a packaged product is that you need a few tools to properly protect a bike, these include install solution, squeegee, isopropyl alcohol, a clean cloth. While these are not high-value items in their own rights, it is time-consuming and costly to acquire them. We are the only company to provide these products in the box, along with the detailed instructions and know-how of how to get a top-notch install.
Jomacba - you a pr guy in need of a job>? hahah
1,281,083 feet = 390,474 meters
2981 meters per day
8.6 laps of Fitz or 4.5 laps of Garbo or 2.6 laps from Village gondola per day
Holy shit.
Software engineering is the place to be.
On that note, I ride wrapped my V10 the day I bought it. Best idea ever!! My bike has seen a seriously full season, and the ride wrap has saved it many times.
Biggest example: I had a rim start to separate at the seam after 50+ days of shuttles/bike park over 18 months - and they sent me a new one.
I can confirm, I will never not be using these rims ever. After going from four to five FR 570's a year to maybe one of these a year is a no brainer. Not to mention truing carbon rims feels like cheating compared to the alloy days.
See you monday!
www.pinkbike.com/news/Action-Cam-by-Sony-presents-One-Million-Down-video-2013.html
-- AB
1281083/131 = 9779 feet per day on average
1281083/69 = 18566 feet per tyre
So tire just for 2 days of riding?
I run pretty soft tires, and the fronts last about the length of three to four rear ones.
No Comprende
Did dude gloss himself, or some other meaning?