Raising the Bar

Ronnie Renner just made history on the TV show Stunt Junkies, laying claim to the new Moto Step-up record at 35 feet, 6 inches. Renner’s crowd-pleasing antics always make him a favorite at events like Red Bull’s X Fighters and ESPN’s X Games, but in this case, he was focused on getting the right pump to blast over the height pole at his new training grounds in Fallbrook, California. Despite some problems with the take-off of the jump, Renner was able to step it up himself and emerged unscathed, logging his name in the record books. We checked in with him after the show for the inside scoop.

What was the filming experience like?
We filmed for three days. First they do all the set-up and logistics, then a testing day to make sure it’s all looking good, and the final day is when the stunt actually goes down. I’ve done a few movies so I’m kind of used to it—it’s a lot of hurry up and wait. It was a pretty mellow crew, though; a couple of people I’ve already worked with before. The hosts of the show are really cool and in synch with what we’re doing, so it was a pleasant experience.

How were you feeling on the day of the stunt?
I felt good. I was just really stoked to be out there, and there was a really good vibe in the air. I knew how badly I wanted it to work out; it was cool being so focused on something. Lately, freestyle’s been so gnarly with the tricks that I’m always thinking, “Man, I’m going to get hurt if something goes wrong.” This was more my element and I knew that if I put my head down and did it right, it was all going to work out.

What height did you start at?
We started at 25 feet. We wanted to make sure the pole was centered, and I didn’t want to get too far ahead of myself. I ended up having to put the bar up a lot faster than I had planned, because the lip was blowing out pretty bad. It was raining on and off all day.

Did you run into any problems?
At 34 feet, the lip blew out a little bit and I hit the bar. When I want for the record, the whole lip completely blew out; I didn’t knock the bar off, but my footpeg cleared it and my wheel went beside it because I had shot off the side of the lip. That didn’t count, so I had to do the record jump from a different line, which is really sketchy, because you don’t know what that line is going to do. The line I’d been using just deteriorated too badly; there was no choice. There was no rut broken, and there was some wood sticking out; I had to thread the needle on some rocks and sticks, but it worked out perfect.

Describe your final run.
I was kind of thinking I was doomed, actually. I have a lot of confidence [in Step-up], but when that lip blew out it was hard to get any more confident. I was thinking that I might not pull it off.

What about when you cleared it?
I could feel it as soon as I took off; I knew I had it. It was really close according to the pictures, but it was a great feeling of relief. It sunk in as soon as I landed and looked back. I had to dance a little bit and get a laugh out of the people; there were only like 20 people there, but they’re still fans, right?

Who was there for support?
My two little boys and my girlfriend; my buddy Dane Herron—he’s my main guy at Red Bull. He actually helped me build the lip. All the records were [made] on jumps built by him, so I wanted to make sure I had the right guy on the job. He’s also a good friend, so it was good to have his support. My buddy Carl helped me build the whole deal… Just a lot of good people around.

How did it differ from a contest situation?
There wasn’t as much downtime, and I had more freedom to move around and stay relaxed. In a contest, you always have another guy that you’re battling it out with; who knows, maybe we could have even taken it higher.

Do you think you can repeat it in a contest situation?
That’s the weird thing about Step-up; it’s all about how that lip is built and where they set the poles. I think this is actually going to help people re-think the pre-staging of the event at the X Games; maybe they’ll put a little more time into setting the pole right and making sure the transition on the lip is good. When the lip is right, I’ve got a lot of confidence to go as high as my bike will get me, and if you get a live audience in the mix, I’m going to take some risks that I otherwise wouldn’t take.

Do you have any other stunts in mind?
Since my whips are pretty much my trademark trick, everybody’s been saying I should turn them into a barrel roll. I’d like to do that, but there’s a lot of risk behind that one. The show’s all about the trial and error and building it right so you can be safe, so maybe down the road we’ll make that happen. I’m getting a little too old for that crap, though (laughs). I never like being a claimer, and once you make the agreement to do that show, you have to step up. At least with this record attempt, if you give it 110%, at the end of the day you’re not mad at yourself because you gave it your all and you stayed healthy. If you try a barrel roll and don’t get it done, most likely there’s going to be a bad crash attached to it.

What’s your schedule like this year?
My top priority is the Red Bull X Fighters. It’s a series now with four events in Mexico City, Dublin, Moscow, and Madrid. Hopefully X Games Step-up, maybe a little bit of the ASPT Tour, but mostly I’m trying to transition into being more like snowboard-style with more video and photo shoots. I think the sport really needs it and I think it fits my riding personality well. I’m definitely a live-event kind of guy, but these new tricks are getting out of hand. I’m watching these guys get busted up all the time, and that does not fall into my strategy.

What are your goals for the year?
Just keep the same goals as always: be grateful that I have a job doing something I love, and make sure I earn it. If I feel like I’m doing that, then at the end of the year I’ll be stoked.