Here's what's new on the Red Bull Hardline Wales 2024 course (2024)

Red Bull Hardline has now evolved to two editions, the original in Wales and the Australian event in Tasmania. Seeing how much the riders enjoyed a completely fresh build in Tasmania with its huge features and reflecting on the monumental ten-year milestone of the Welsh event has forced Hardline's founder and course builder, Dan Atherton, to evaluate just how big things have become.

There had never really been any competition in the past. Sure, there was Fest Series and various other Freeride events, but nothing was comparable to Hardline… it's just so unique. Since there was nothing to compare it to, there was nothing against which to compete.

That was until February of this year when RedBull Hardline Australia in Tasmania was brought to fruition. Ever since, things have been different. Atherton felt more pressure than ever to deliver something that could match those expectations or, better yet, exceed them.

"Tassie was so fun and gnarly, and the riders loved it, and striking that balance is hard. People will always compare the two events, and I'm conscious of that," Atherton remarks.

"Tassie like… I don't know why it made me sit up so much. Probably because Hardline Wales is in a place where we've always ridden, we know it like the back of our hand, so it's never been as hard-hitting to us. Whereas when it came to Tassie, I'd never been there before, and there was a whole new crowd of people we didn't know… and to see 6,000 spectators, so stoked on an event you'd created on the other side of the world was pretty eye-opening."

Atherton has always been blown away by the reception Hardline has received from both the public and riders alike, but having the event right on the doorstep had always made him somewhat numb to just how wild of a concept it is.

"Hardline was a track we had ridden since around 2003. It didn't have jumps and was nowhere near what it is today, but it followed roughly the same footprint. After it became an event in 2014, it went from somewhere we dug and rode with mates to an annual gathering of some of the best riders in the world, but it's still been quite a gradual progression, so there was never really a point where we looked back and reflected on how much had changed until now."

Hardline has always shone through as a spectacle to admire while technically serving as one of the most challenging feats a rider will ever tackle. Still, with the progression of trail building over the years and the likes of X-Games Real edits showing how well-crafted trails and features can indeed be, as well as how far riding can be pushed, in Dan's head, that's set a new level to strive for.

"You can't be sloppy with your building anymore. Everything is so perfect, and trail building as a whole has really stepped up. If you're looking at it from a trail builder perspective, that's a lot to live up to, especially at Hardline, where there's no dirt. It's inhospitable, which makes it sick, but so hard to work with."

Looking at this year's build, there's no doubt these thoughts have weighed heavy on his mind. The course now begins further up the mountain than previously. Some new features have been added in that top section and then the course weaves down the mountain to join the old track where the On-Off jump section is.

How the RedBull Hardline course has evolved over the years

The original course began further up the mountain, nearly a whole minute further up, in fact… as if the Hardline we know today wasn't demanding enough. In 2014, things began with a sprint out of the start gate, a lengthy pedal section which weaved through clear fell, all the way down to the start gate we know today. You'd be forgiven for assuming that this section was "mellower" than the rest of the course, but with sharp, recently cut tree stumps lining the sides of the track, this isn't a section you'd want to go down in.

The following year, the section was built up further, with two sizeable doubles added to the mix. Eventually, it led into a long, off-camber rocky straight that could prove lethal in the wet before reaching what we now know to be the start gate. A couple of years later, this top section was cut out while the course continued to weave its way down the mountainside in much the same way as it does today.

In the woods further down, the rock drop, which has become synonymous with RedBull Hardline over the years, would deal riders a nasty compression on landing, requiring a quick reset before the tight right-hand catch berm below. In 2019, a wooden North Shore landing was added to smooth things out for the riders, while the following features have only gotten harder.

In Hardline's first year, a relatively mellow step down transitioned riders out of the woods and into the first open section of the course. Aligning with Dan's vision to challenge riders to the max, the following year, that step down evolved into the 57ft (17m) monster gap, which we know today as 'The Cannon.'

"The Cannon has a very precise landing for how fast you're going, and it's so easy to go too deep or come up too short and case. The whole thing feels so narrow, the wind is unpredictable, there's a cliff on your left and a drop on your right, so you can't go wrong," said Atherton.

In its debut year, a floaty hip gap met riders out of the woods, but boy, did Dan have plans to step things up... literally. In 2016, the 'Step Up' was introduced, one of Hardline's most prominent features. A steel motocross-style ramp was built to serve as the take-off, and unsurprisingly, the mammoth feature has claimed several victims over the years.

"We used a motocross ramp so we could move it as we needed to - smaller if the weather is bad and bigger if it's still. It's pretty predictable, but the wind makes it really scary."

Right after the step-up, the course used to weave around a vertical cliff edge until 2021, when Dan added that exact cliff to the mix with the 'Step Down.' Just a few seconds after landing the step-up, riders would have to compose themselves for a 40ft (12m) vertical drop, resulting in one of the biggest landing compressions on the track.

Following on, a step down through a dry-stone wall gave riders the speed for a series of enormous gap jumps that traversed the cliff edge alongside the giant waterfall, forming one of the most spectacular sections of the course. In 2016, the iconic 'Dirty Ferns' hip jump was added to the mix to "ease the riders in" before 'Waterfall's Edge.'

Appropriately named, Waterfalls Edge was one of the gnarliest features on the course for many reasons. Difficult to judge and entirely blind, the hip sent riders right over another dry-stone wall alongside a huge steep cliff face, which dropped down to the river, fed by the humongous waterfall roaring above.

The entire Dirty Ferns and Waterfalls section was ripped out to make room for something that would trump anything seen on a race track before. A 40ft (12m) on-gap, landing on a short 30ft (9m) lilypad into a 40ft (12m) off-gap, formed the 'On-Off,' which is not just sizeable but entirely technical with zero margin for error.

"The new jump section has been one of the most significant shifts in terms of style of the course... this jump line has become its own beast."

After the On-Off, a massive 86ft (26m) double is quickly met by another, marginally shorter at 85ft (25m). From there, the course winds down the mountainside, while one of the most daunting and iconic features awaits just below the treeline. The 'Road Gap' is easily Hardline's most well-known feature and is a firm crowd favorite for good reason. Over the years, the Road Gap has remained relatively unchanged, except in 2021, when Dan decided to make it even bigger.

The bottom of the track also remains mostly unchanged, with its rough tech, roots, and boulders to catch riders out. Riders have to brace for the G-Out rock drop, one of the most hideous parts by far, especially considering riders are exhausted by this point, then it's flat out towards the finish field. Just before the finishing arch, riders launch off a boner log over a 45ft (13m) gap before the final gap, which measures in at 65ft (19m)... just what you need after three minutes of hell.