Video: Steve Vanderhoek Hits Utah for the First Time in 'Slightly Above Below Average'
SLIGHTLY ABOVE BELOW AVERAGE - A story away from home
Steve Vanderhoek was raised surrounded by beautiful Vancouver’s North Shore mountains. An area often referred to as the birthplace of freeride. He has spent his lifetime honing his skills to be able to build and ride some of the Shore’s scariest features. But growing up one location always stood out as another pinnacle of freeride mountain biking to him: Virgin, Utah. From the Red Bull Rampage to famous mind-blowing video parts, he has always dreamt of putting tires to dirt like the legends that came before him.
Despite years of riding and training you must enter a new location humble, full of respect for the locals, and the builders that paved the way for you. With hopes of learning from their experience, Steve attempts to at least ride "Slightly Above Below Average" and come out the other end unscathed.
Watch Vanderhoek, accompanied by his wife Kelsey behind the lens, as he experiences his first taste of Utah’s famous red dirt, unlike anything he has ridden before. From loose terrain to wind and heat this is a story of stepping out of your comfort zone, pushing any ego aside and chasing after those experiences that make you feel alive.
 | Since watching the first Rampage as a kid, I have always wanted to get down to Utah. This trip was my bucket list destination! I have always favoured the steep, raw big mountain lines and was fired up to see how my skills would translate. I went down humble expecting to be humbled and the amount of humbling I received was next level. You come down here thinking you want to knock off all these lines you see in movies and instead you put the training wheels on and just try to survive. The exposure and consequences of missing your line just can’t be conveyed until you put tires in dirt here. Fortunately, the locals took me in like family and delivered to me the greatest 10 days of biking I have ever had. From sharing lines, helping dig and giving pointers on how not to die, the community down here is absolutely unreal! I want to thank everyone who helped in any part give this Shore kid the time of his life. I can’t wait to go back. |
Videography: Kelsey Toevs
Action Photography: Eric Hartley
Special thanks to our partners: SDG Components, Maxxis and Northshore Racks
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Stoked it see that song used in a bike edit, sick riding...
This deserves a Must Watch!
Also, first time I've ever heard Amadou & Mariam in a bike video – great choice!