Imagine hurtling down a narrow, twisting, hilly ice track on skates at speeds up to 50 miles per hour, then trying to go even faster so you can outpace the competitors at your elbow. This is downhill ice cross. Beginning back in 2001, Red Bull has been sponsoring races and a world tour under the name “Red Bull Crashed Ice,” building enormous ice tracks in historic city centers to challenge the racers who train for the sport. The tracks are made of steel scaffolding, topped by wood shaped to the desired curves, covered with flexible mats and a network of tubes filled with cooled fluid like glycol—then water is sprayed onto the whole track, slowly building up a four-inch layer of slick ice. Gathered here are ice cross images from recent years in cities in Europe and North America.
The Insanity of Downhill Ice Cross Racing
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Maxwell Dunne and Cameron Naazs of the United States and Scott Croxall and Kyle Croxall of Canada perform during a training session at the first stage of the ATSX Ice Cross Downhill World Championship at the Red Bull Crashed Ice course in Saint Paul, Minnesota, on January 18, 2018. #
Joerg Mitter / Red Bull via Getty -
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Myriam Trepainer and Jacqueline Legere of Canada race in the women's finals of the second stage of the Ice Cross Downhill World Championship on January 9, 2016, in Munich, Germany. #
Joerg Mitter / Red Bull via Getty -
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Dean Moriarity of Canada, Dan Witty of the United States, Janne-Petteri Mynttinen of Finland, and Sever Lundquist of the United States race in the final stage of the ATSX Ice Cross Downhill World Championship in Saint Paul, Minnesota, on February 27, 2016. #
Red Bull via Getty -
Cameron Naasz of the United States, Scott Croxall of Canada, Tristan Dugerdil of France, and Tommy Mertz of the United States, during the finals at the eighth stage of the ATSX Ice Cross Downhill World Championship in Ottawa, Canada, on March 4, 2017. #
Armin Walcher / Red Bull via Getty -
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Paavo Klintrup of Finland, Michael Johansson of Sweden, Derrek Coccimiglio of Canada, and Denis Novozhilov of Russia compete in the 2015 Ice Cross Downhill World Championship at Stormont in Belfast, Northern Ireland, on February 21, 2015. #
Sebastian Marko / Red Bull via Getty -
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Canadian Jaqueline Legere, Amanda Trunzo of the U.S., and Austrian Veronika Windish celebrate on the podium during the Ice Cross Downhill World Championship in Saint Paul on January 20, 2018. #
Lionel Bonaventure / AFP / Getty -
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Pacome Schmitt of France, Coleton Haywood of Canada, Paavo Klintrup of Finland, and Michael Urban of Czech Republic race in the first stage of the Ice Cross Downhill Championship in Quebec City, Canada, on November 28, 2015. #
Joerg Mitter / Red Bull via Getty -
Fabien Mels (second from right) of Germany and Tyler Witty of the U.S. (right) catch some air during the Ice Cross Downhill Championship World Series in Belfast, Northern Ireland, on February 21, 2015. #
Charles McQuillan / Getty -
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Winner Arttu Pihlainen of Finland, left, and third-place winner Kilian Braun of Switzerland, right, celebrate after the final of the Red Bull Crashed Ice competition in the former imperial estate of Kolomenskoye in Moscow, Russia, on February 26, 2011. #
Mikhail Metzel / AP -
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Cameron Naasz of the United States, Antti Tolvanen of Finland, and Tristan Dugerdil and Pacome Schmitt of France race in the eighth stage of the ATSX Ice Cross Downhill World Championship in Ottawa, Canada, on March 4, 2017. #
Joerg Mitter / Red Bull via Getty -
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Reed Whiting of the United States, Paavo Klintrup of Finland, Gabriel Andre of Canada, and Eli Krieter of the United States take a corner during the final stage of the ATSX Ice Cross Downhill World Championship in Saint Paul, Minnesota, on February 27, 2016. #
Red Bull via Getty -
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Joonas Evaekoski of Finland, Justin Docherty of Germany, and Aaron Loth of the United States race in the qualifiers at the third stage of the ATSX Ice Cross Downhill World Championship on January 19, 2018, in Saint Paul, Minnesota. #
Joerg Mitter / Red Bull via Getty -
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Martin Barrau of France, Vaclav Kosnar of the Czech Republic, Nathan Radke of the United States, and Skyler Diamond-Burchuk of Canada compete in the Junior Cup during the third stage of the ATSX Ice Cross Downhill World Championship on February 3, 2017, in Saint Paul, Minnesota. #
Sebastian Marko / Red Bull via Getty -
Mirko Lahti of Finland, Joni Saarinen of Finland, Samuel Nadeau of Canada, and Petar Sevo of the Netherlands race in the final of the Juniors Championship at the fourth stage of the ATSX Ice Cross Downhill World Championship on March 3, 2017, in Ottawa, Canada. #
Joerg Mitter / Red Bull via Getty -
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Dean Moriarity of Canada, Dan Witty of the United States, Tj Aubrecht of the United States, and Alex Mercier of Canada attempt a corner during the final stage of the ATSX Ice Cross Downhill World Championship in Saint Paul, Minnesota, on February 27, 2016. #
Red Bull via Getty -
Notre-Dame de la Garde and Marseille's Old Port can be seen in the background as skaters compete on a track during the "Red Bull Crashed Ice" Ice Cross Downhill World Championship in Marseille on January 14, 2017. #
Anne-Christine Poujoulat / AFP / Getty -
Maxwell Dunne and Cameron Naazs of the United States and Scott Croxall and Kyle Croxall of Canada leap from the starting line during a training session during the first stage of the ATSX Ice Cross Downhill World Championship in Saint Paul, Minnesota, on January 18, 2018. #
Mihai Stetcu / Red Bull via Getty -
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