# I rode the hardest trail...KING KONG



## SHIVER ME TIMBERS (Jan 12, 2004)

I rode the hardest trail I have ever seen...King Kong line in Virgin Utah..*.NOT*

way hard.....just pure insane.....I was scared....yeah really SCARED walking down the trail....I thought I would ride a few sections, but I pretty much walked the whole thing with my tail between my legs.

Hands off to Bender building it and these guys riding "Dirt Spinology"....just unbelievable...

these guys make it look easy, but believe me just to hike it down is very very scary.....off one part of the mountain I was scared for 15 minutes after....shaking scared...I admit it and bow to the others who have cleaned it

dirt spineology - YouTube

oh Chris ...you were right MR. CANFIELD.....I am glad i checked it out but will never be there again


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## Tim F. (May 22, 2006)

Was going to post a picture of a chicken, till I watched the video. Did Greg ride it?


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## 317000 (Mar 2, 2007)

Talk about consequences...


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## bullcrew (Jan 2, 2005)

Yeah theres some scary stuff there for sure...... Not going to knock you B....
I spent alot of time there, moab etc... On MX and Jeeps never mtn bikes and theres some HUGE stuff...

Kind of cool you went and atleast tried, :thumbsup:


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## b-kul (Sep 20, 2009)

holy crap. just watching that video made me nervous!


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## m3t4w0rm (Aug 1, 2010)

Without the cliff's on either side it'd be fine


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## jcook1989 (Mar 16, 2008)

m3t4w0rm said:


> Without the cliff's on either side it'd be fine


I'm sure thats just the icing on the gnar cake.

I hate cliffs. They definitely just add another level of sketchiness to any trail. I know when I rode tunnel I felt nervous on the top section that has huge cliffs off the one side, especially after seeing a friend almost loose it off the side of one. Trail wasn't necessarily that bad but the fact that you could fall to your death added a level of danger to it.


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## Rb (Feb 28, 2007)

That looks insanely fun...!!

Those last 3 hits are HUGE.


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## davec113 (May 31, 2006)

I don't know how you'd even walk parts of that. Just watching the vid is enough for me, even if I did have the skills to ride it... but I hate cliff edge riding and don't like heights. Riding right next to a cliff edge seems like a big risk, with big consequences... I don't get it.


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## 62kona (Mar 25, 2008)

I love that video. I get excited and scared everytime I watch it. Its been on my youtube favorites list for a while. Good job making it down alive bob.


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## insanitylevel9 (Sep 23, 2009)

that is awesome!!!!!!!!!!!


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## erosive (May 15, 2009)

that vid tops my list, love the whole thing.

this is my next favorite...


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## gticlay (Dec 13, 2007)

No thanks. We have a trail over on the peninsula that has a drop down it so far you can't even see the bottom (haven't ridden it since maybe 1997 or something) and that was a little sketchy, but there isn't freeride stuff on it. Wow.


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## SHIVER ME TIMBERS (Jan 12, 2004)

jcook1989 said:


> I'm sure thats just the icing on the gnar cake.
> 
> I hate cliffs. They definitely just add another level of sketchiness to any trail. I know when I rode tunnel I felt nervous on the top section that has huge cliffs off the one side, especially after seeing a friend almost loose it off the side of one. Trail wasn't necessarily that bad but the fact that you could fall to your death added a level of danger to it.


I have rode tunnel....and the exposure is nothing compared to Flying monkey and yjen, you have King Kong, which is off the hook insane.....the exposure on Tunnell would be a .08 compared to a 13 for king Kong


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## roguebuilder (Jun 6, 2008)

SHIVER ME TIMBERS said:


> ...these guys riding "Dirt Spinology"....just unbelievable...
> 
> these guys make it look easy, but believe me just to hike it down is very very scary.....off one part of the mountain I was scared for 15 minutes after....shaking scared...I admit it and bow to the others who have cleaned it


These guys... Sage Cattabriga Alosa (One of the best big mountain skiers in the world), Tyler Knoles and Matt Collins are shredders on all fronts. This how you rip when all you do for a living is ski and bike.

If you are not a skier, look up some winter vids of Sage. He's just as impressinve on two sticks in the snow. It would be great to be this good at a sport you do in the off season when not filming for TGR ski flicks etc.


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## robbied (Apr 1, 2010)

I think I'd be comfortable with the first line.
King Kong had some pretty nast exposure though...


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## SteveUK (Apr 16, 2006)

Hats off to you, SMT, especially since you're not too long back from a big spill. Kudos, indeed.


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## 006_007 (Jan 12, 2004)

Screw that. Crazy stuff. Any vids of people failing on any of that (or just a helicopter pulling their bodies out?)


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## bitewerks (May 14, 2009)

Some sections look REALLY eroded plus all that exposure. I guess the key is to ignore what's not on either side of the trail. Impressive as hell riding & sick trail!

How do you get to the tops of those ridge trails? Do other trails lead to them or do you have to hike to the top?

I hope a nice HD vid gets made of KingKong. Would love to see more!


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## Mojo Maestro (Nov 3, 2005)

Yo.....SMT, how did you like the "Monkey"?


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## G-Ryder (Jan 29, 2007)

Sick!  
Right on SMT. :thumbsup:


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## macrider (Jan 30, 2004)

"rode" it ;-)

I dropped down KK years ago after Bender told us about it - sick sick sick. I rode as much of it as I was capable of - which meant none of the drops (huge with landings on a knife ridge) - it is one of the harder trails out there for sure (although I'd say Face is harder riding - just without the drops). Flying Monkey actually seemed partially dumbed-down when I rode it this year - other than the bouldery "stream crossing" section - which used to be a bit better maintained and easier to keep your momentum through.


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## KAHAIKAPU (Sep 28, 2008)

you guys are INSANE :eekster: Great Skills Thx for the ride :thumbsup:


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## whoda*huck (Feb 12, 2005)

KAHAIKAPU said:


> you guys are INSANE :eekster: Great Skills Thx for the ride :thumbsup:


Uh, did you actually read the thread? Nobody who has posted actually rode the whole thing. The video is oooold.

Props for giving it a looksee though SMT.


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## noparking (Apr 28, 2009)

wow there are some real consequences for a **** up


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## 4JawChuck (Dec 1, 2008)

Well I think that is outside the realm of a "black diamond" trail marker, I think a new marker is required...perhaps "Black Testical"?


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## DHidiot (Aug 5, 2004)

I think I counted all of two corners. Doesn't look all that hard except for the exposure.


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## KAHAIKAPU (Sep 28, 2008)

my BAD for pointing out the bros have skills that was in the vid ..ok?


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## whoda*huck (Feb 12, 2005)

KAHAIKAPU said:


> my BAD for pointing out the bros have skills that was in the vid ..ok?


My bad I guess. Thought "you guys" meant the actual people posting not the guys in the video.


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## SHIVER ME TIMBERS (Jan 12, 2004)

bitewerks said:


> How do you get to the tops of those ridge trails? Do other trails lead to them or do you have to hike to the top?
> 
> I hope a nice HD vid gets made of KingKong. Would love to see more!


shuttle rode....and then you start riding Flying Monkey...half way down you will see it...can't miss it


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## SHIVER ME TIMBERS (Jan 12, 2004)

macrider said:


> "
> Flying Monkey actually seemed partially dumbed-down when I rode it this year - other than the bouldery "stream crossing" section - which used to be a bit better maintained and easier to keep your momentum through.


there is that one roll in on Flying Monkey at the top that I won't ride because of the exposure....if exposure wasn't there then I would ride it...not sure about bouldery stream crossing....is that like 2/3rds down...because that section is tough....


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## SHIVER ME TIMBERS (Jan 12, 2004)

DHidiot said:


> I think I counted all of two corners. Doesn't look all that hard except for the exposure.


you should have seen Kristian....He rode everything except one drop because his BB was was low and pedals scraped on each side.

exposure is tough but the drops are all in the 15 to 20 foot range....completely insane for the area you have to land...Kristen said harder then Face and way more scarier


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## DHidiot (Aug 5, 2004)

Yeah I believe it would be scarier. On Face you have bushes to catch you when you go off to the side. I wouldn't even want to risk riding a line like that. Put that same trail between some trees or at least on a wider ridgeline with some vegetation and it would probably be a different story.

BTW, I believe it's Kristian, not Kristen. That's a womans name.


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## SHIVER ME TIMBERS (Jan 12, 2004)

DHidiot said:


> Yeah I believe it would be scarier. On Face you have bushes to catch you when you go off to the side. I wouldn't even want to risk riding a line like that. Put that same trail between some trees or at least on a wider ridgeline with some vegetation and it would probably be a different story.
> 
> BTW, I believe it's Kristian, not Kristen. That's a womans name.


even the drops are riduculus

you are right it is Kristian


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## S_Trek (May 3, 2010)

I wouldn't wear a helmet on that trail. It'll be less pain full that way!


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## ruppguts (Sep 7, 2007)

heard a lot about King Kong from some friends but haven't ever seen it. Crazy. If you want something on similar terrain but without such big hits, there's a shuttle in the virgin area called Nephi's Twist. It's on a super steep ridgeline too, so the consequences are there, but the tech level is down a few notches (which for me meant I could actually ride most of it!).


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## ianjenn (Aug 1, 2004)

SHIVER ME TIMBERS said:


> you should have seen Kristian....He rode everything except one drop because his BB was was low and pedals scraped on each side.
> 
> exposure is tough but the drops are all in the 15 to 20 foot range....completely insane for the area you have to land...Kristen said harder then WTF and way more scarier


Tell him to come up here and well bust out the stop watch when he breaks a 1:42 down it then I'll be impressed.


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## nightnerd (Mar 5, 2007)

: scary


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## FlyingIrish (Jul 25, 2009)

I dont know that looks hard and all but this one might still be more technical! King Kong is pretty smooth looking with some steep sections than you can just roll when you're on the brakes.

This looks gnarlier.


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## SHIVER ME TIMBERS (Jan 12, 2004)

technical...is face with very steep section....King Kong is ridiculus big hits landing on a knife's edge with 500 feet drops on each side....both crazy...more penalty for error on King Kong


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## rkj__ (Feb 29, 2004)

insane


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## bitewerks (May 14, 2009)

Theres a youtube vid of Flying Monkey that is pretty good. At times, it looks like they are not riding a trail, just making their own way through. I wish camera technology would develop something that shows how STEEP these trails really are!


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## redmr2_man (Jun 10, 2008)

that is crazy. I actually got a little nervous watching that video. I don't even see how you could hike/walk around those lines with a bike!


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## FlyingIrish (Jul 25, 2009)

Yeah when you look off the side of king kong that is flat out dangerous!! One of the guys almost crashed and went down the edge too in one section!


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## Internal14 (Jan 21, 2004)

FlyingIrish said:


> Yeah when you look off the side of king kong that is flat out dangerous!! One of the guys almost crashed and went down the edge too in one section!


ChrisVanDine. Contour (helmet cameras) had his video up. Not sure if it's still there, but it was sketchy as fvck. Luckily Gee was there to drag him back up!


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## chugachjed (May 20, 2010)

Sage is soo sick. I found myself leaning away from one edge and back away from the other watching that vid. Insane that looks terrifying.


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## SHIVER ME TIMBERS (Jan 12, 2004)

redmr2_man said:


> that is crazy. I actually got a little nervous watching that video. I don't even see how you could hike/walk around those lines with a bike!


walk around.....I would bring a rope next time...it is that tough


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## Mr.P (Feb 8, 2005)

That trail would break my Marzocchi fork.

P


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## madridg (Apr 17, 2006)

sick skills


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## Quarashi (Aug 23, 2006)

Mr.P said:


> That trail would break my Marzocchi fork.
> 
> P


Mine cracked at the stanchion while I was watching the video, it's that gnar!


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## 274898 (Nov 29, 2005)

king kong is gnarly because of cliffs. high risk for errors.


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## SHIVER ME TIMBERS (Jan 12, 2004)

some pics and Kristian (fearno) hitting the stuff


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## SHIVER ME TIMBERS (Jan 12, 2004)

Fearno.....right here


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## simcik (Dec 2, 2005)

Kong is one of those trails that even when you clean the whole thing, you are more so just happy to have made it cleanly down. Its such a hard trail to ride complete that its almost not even fun to ride. The video doesnt even do the trail justice


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## liqwid (Jan 2, 2007)

Internal14 said:


> ChrisVanDine. Contour (helmet cameras) had his video up. Not sure if it's still there, but it was sketchy as fvck. Luckily Gee was there to drag him back up!


Found it from rampage

http://contour.production.s3.amazonaws.com/flash/player/ContourMapVideoPlayer.swf?customPlaylistURL=http://contour.com/stories/113786.xml&autostart=false


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## FROGMAN524 (Sep 23, 2008)




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## Cable0guy (Jun 19, 2007)

Feanaro cleaning the King Kong trail. He hit every drop for one, which had a damaged lip. The rest of us crawled down, literally throwing our bikes down the drops. The spine/ridge doesn't have any place to walk around the crazy drops.


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## bear (Feb 3, 2004)

i swear that trail looks like something a video-game designer would put together for a ride on Mars.


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## SHIVER ME TIMBERS (Jan 12, 2004)

Cable0guy said:


> Feanaro cleaning the King Kong trail. He hit every drop for one, which had a damaged lip. The rest of us crawled down, literally throwing our bikes down the drops. The spine/ridge doesn't have any place to walk around the crazy drops.


thast effer makes it look too easy:yesnod: ut: :yesnod: :smilewinkgrin:


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## feanaro (Aug 8, 2006)

hahaha, good fun that King Kong trail! Bob and Mike, thanks for the cool pics and video!!!


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## bitewerks (May 14, 2009)

http://www.vitalmtb.com/videos/member/Zink-Strait-and-Bourdon-on-Flying-Monkey,4077/bturman,109


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## SHIVER ME TIMBERS (Jan 12, 2004)

bitewerks said:


> http://www.vitalmtb.com/videos/member/Zink-Strait-and-Bourdon-on-Flying-Monkey,4077/bturman,109


Flying monkey is a cakewalk compared to KING KONG


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## simcik (Dec 2, 2005)

SHIVER ME TIMBERS said:


> Flying monkey is a cakewalk compared to KING KONG


That is a fairly fair statement. I would agree heavily with it. Kong is for the day where you feel like proving yourself as a rider and a man. Flying Monkey is a fairly tech trail, mainly because of all the erosion on it, but it doesnt even hold a candle to KONG


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## vapezilla (Jan 27, 2012)

Lacondeguy's full run of King Kong. I cant wait to get to virgin and ride this. It looks awesome. Lacondeguy full run KING KONG on Vimeo


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## snowpunk (Apr 17, 2007)

vapezilla said:


> Lacondeguy's full run of King Kong. I cant wait to get to virgin and ride this. It looks awesome. Lacondeguy full run KING KONG on Vimeo


Damn! What a great video. Quality was great and you can really see the drop on either side of the ridge. Insane!


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## 6thElement (Jul 17, 2006)

Be interesting to watch the BB cam he had recording it.


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## MTBAlex (Mar 29, 2006)

Wow. My angus puckered up just watching the vid.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

vapezilla said:


> Lacondeguy's full run of King Kong. I cant wait to get to virgin and ride this. It looks awesome. Lacondeguy full run KING KONG on Vimeo


That's alot of hucks! Awesome riding skills!

Excellent video!


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## Cary (Dec 29, 2003)

That goes on my list of must rides, right between when hell freezes over and when pigs fly. 


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD so please forgive the typos that occur when typing with two fingers.


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## SHIVER ME TIMBERS (Jan 12, 2004)

vapezilla said:


> Lacondeguy's full run of King Kong. I cant wait to get to virgin and ride this. It looks awesome. Lacondeguy full run KING KONG on Vimeo


hats off if you can ride it...they are 10 foot to flat drops....video is awesome riding...but is treacherous when being there


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## adjunkie (Feb 20, 2007)

ya, i hiked that trail, and was afraid for my life


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## rep_1969 (Mar 25, 2004)

Wow, NUTS!!


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## .WestCoastHucker. (Jan 14, 2004)

that vid does NO JUSTICE to the true level of insanity that trail holds...


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## Gman086 (Jul 4, 2004)

I got suckered into riding one of those razorback ridges once on my sled when I was riding with Dan Bush and his crew of Team Thunderstruck fame on Mt. Adams. Scared the bejeezus outta me - once you commit there is no turning back. At the bottom, heavily treed, I nervously ask where the outlet is. They all laugh and say "back up the canyon!" They were all on turbos so no problem for them but I had to ride the ridge BACK UP which was twice as hairy because you had to be on the throttle big time (getting stuck was not an option)! Never again!!!

Have FUN!

G MAN


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