U N D E F 3 A T E D
Robin Goomes | Red Bull Rampage 2026
Still in its infancy, women's Red Bull Rampage is just three years old, but Robin Goomes has been pushing the progression of women's freeride long before women were called up. In 2019, she became the first woman to land a backflip in competition. When women were first invited to compete in slopestyle at Crankworx, Robin took the win. When women finally got their shot at Rampage in 2024, she was the first to drop in and, ultimately, the first to stand on top of the box. In 2025, she returned and did it again. Now, in 2026, she's accomplished something no other Rampage athlete, male or female, has done: three consecutive victories. Three years of women's Rampage, and only one name that has ever occupied the top step. Robin Goomes.
This year, Robin arrived in the Utah desert following the passing of her mother, Naomi Goomes. Robin stitched the memory of her mum through nearly every detail of her setup. Naomi's name was printed across her jersey, while her custom helmet featured the Sun tarot card, a nod to her mother's love of tarot and the card's association with positivity and good fortune. Her custom SB165 donned illustrations of mushrooms the two had foraged together, complete with a key identifying each species in Māori and English. Small but meaningful touches to keep her mum close throughout two of the biggest weeks of her year.
The work starts long before the first rider drops. Two weeks to scout, build, test, and refine a line down a steep, unforgiving mountainside, with every competitor looking for features that will set their run apart. Between scope day and finals, Rampage is a constant negotiation between neighboring crews, available terrain, and desired tricks. Robin shared the upper section of her line with fellow Yeti rider Reed Boggs, giving the two an opportunity to test some of the bigger hits together. From there, Robin and her diggers, Emmerson Wilken and Ronnie Burke, had their work cut out for them. Dig days stretched well past nightfall as the crew made the most of their limited time, reshaping takeoffs, adjusting landings, and fine-tuning features until Robin was confident in every hit.
Robin's line demanded commitment and left no room for hesitation. She opened with a step-down into her first drop, throwing a no-footer before making her way through the Maxi Pad lily pad feature. A chute and sidehill traverse brought her to a jump high on the mountain, where she landed the first flat spin 360 in women's Rampage competition. While many of the biggest tricks are reserved for the purpose-built jumps near the bottom, Robin threw hers early in the run, where the exposure is greater and the consequences are considerably higher. It's the kind of risk the judges reward.
She followed it with a massive step-down backflip, a major progression from the feature she flipped at last year's event. From there, a suicide no-hander on her big drop led into a backflip on the final trick jump. A strong first run, but Hannah Bergemann was making a serious bid for the top spot, and Robin would need to find more if she wanted to keep her undefeated record intact.
Conditions had been favorable throughout the event, but the wind picked up as riders prepared for their second runs. The increasing gusts were enough for Kirsten Van Horne to forgo her second attempt. With Hannah pushing the pace and a third consecutive title on the line, Robin had to weigh her options. She decided to drop in.
One more chance.
She'd already made history with the flat spin on her first run, but this time she landed it cleaner. The massive step-down backflip followed, then the suicide no-hander on her big drop. Coming into the final jump, Robin had one more trick up her sleeve. Rather than repeating the backflip from her first run, she threw a backflip one-foot can, upping the difficulty when she needed it most. She'd found the improvements she was looking for.
Celebrating in the finish corral and riding the high of lacing her run, Robin waited for the score to come through. First. Robin did it. Again.
Three consecutive Rampage victories, Best Trick for her flat spin 360, and the People's Choice Award. Three of the event's biggest honors, earned against a field that continues to push the level of women's freeride year after year.
Behind the run were two weeks of work from Emmerson and Ronnie, with Kieran Watkins and Martha Gill supporting Robin throughout the event. From the long nights digging to the final moments before dropping in, it's the kind of effort that rarely gets seen once the cameras turn toward the rider.
Robin's career is full of firsts, but her commitment to progression is what makes her remarkable. It's why she's become the defining talent in women's freeride. Seven years after her first competition backflip, she's still adding new tricks, building bigger features, and taking risks in places few would consider. And with each Rampage, the competition gets closer.
Naomi's memory was present throughout Robin's time in the Utah desert. Every day of digging, every practice run, and another trip to the top of the podium.
Three years. Three Rampages. Three wins. And this one was for Naomi.
