The 12th annual Wam Bam Dirt Jump Jam brought the best biking talent together for a night of exciting entertainment on June 29.
Bikers flew off jumps and executed their most daring tricks at the Fernie dirt jump park, to wild applause from the crowd. The evening started out with the beginner and intermediate youth, and progressed to advanced youth and later professionals. The final act of the night brought all participants together to show off their most impressive tricks.
Professional bikers travelled from Calgary, Lethbridge, Vancouver Island, Salmon Arm, Nelson, and the U.S., to take part in the event.
As the skill level increased, so did the difficulty of the jumps. Bikers moved from gentle rolling hills to steep closely-spaced slopes with ramps for added speed. Professionals showed off tricks like back flips, tucks, t-bones and no-handers.
Liam Baylis raced his way around the course to claim first place in the mens pro division. Close behind him, was Jack Feick in second place and Jaden Chipman in third.
Aidan Siebenaler landed just shy of a prize finish in fourth place in mens pro, but he won best trick later in the evening for executing a 360 triple down whip.
Siebenaler, 19, from Maple Ridge, said this was his third event of the year and his first time biking in Fernie, and he noted the energy at the event was unparalleled.
"The Fernie crowd is crazy compared to other events I've been to. They were going wild. Especially that best trick. It was just good to see," he said.
"When you're in the zone and you've got other people watching you, it kind of pushes you. You crash on your trick. You feel a little hurt, but then you just want to push through for the crowd and for yourself," he added.
Zoe Witwicki and Mia Moore were the only two women in the pro division, and they placed first and second respectively.
Witwicki,15, from Calgary, has been touring around B.C and Alberta for mountain biking events. She recently competed at Bee Line in Calgary and will be going to Big White Resort to bike this summer.
As one of few women competing in a male-dominated sport, she said she's really had to push herself to achieve success, and the friends she's made along the way keep her motivated.
Jake Hawkins won the Thomas Dunn Spirit Award — given to a team player with a determined attitude.
The award is named for Wam Bam founder Thomas Dunn whose vision for the event was an inclusive all-ages and abilities gathering, where youth could find inspiration and motivation. Dunn was inspired by a similar event in Creston called Goat Style, which ended the year that Wam Bam started.
"He was always a huge advocate for building jumps and 'letting the kids send it,' and Wam Bam was one of the ways he manifested that," read a post on the event's Instagram page. "He loved watching a good bike event, from world cups, to every Crankworx, so he wanted to make sure his event was engaging for the spectators and community of Fernie."
Today, Wam Bam remains one of the only community dirt jump events in Canada.
Funding from this year's event will go towards relocating the dirt jumps just south of its current location, towards the outdoor rink.
Fernie Trails Alliance executive director Melanie Wrigglesworth said some of the jumps are being moved to accommodate a 27-unit apartment building and a 100-space daycare that the City is building, with groundbreaking tentatively set for August.
Rider registration fees will go towards supporting this project, with a goal of raising $5,000. Wrigglesworth said there are plans to upgrade the new bike jumps with the installation of a paved pump track as well.