Snowboarding
10 obstacles, 30 attempts: Clemens Millauer's perfect snowboard run
10 different obstacles, one continuous run and no room for error. At Austria's Kreischberg, Clemens Millauer set himself a snowboard challenge that would take around 30 attempts to conquer.
Clemens Millauer has tackled his fair share of unusual snowboarding challenges, but his latest project took things to another level. At Kreischberg, Austria, he tasked himself with linking 10 completely different snowboard features into one continuous run, on a specially designed course packed with rails, balance beams, wall rides, transfers and jumps.
But negotiating each feature was only half the battle – he also needed to maintain the right speed, balance and line throughout in order to complete the run in one clean and continuous attempt. With every landing affecting the next obstacle, one mistake could mean wiping the slate clean and starting again from the top.
See how Millauer finally cracked the 400m, obstacle-filled course.
10 obstacles, one perfect run
The course – a sort of Ninja Warrior-style obstacle course, but on a snowboard – presented Millauer with 10 unique features, each demanding its own technique, approach and speed. And, unlike a conventional trick sequence, there was no opportunity for him to reset and steady himself between features.
Instead, with each landing, he needed to set himself up perfectly for the following obstacle – too much speed could make the following feature impossible, while too little could leave him unable to clear a gap.
The creative course called for precise timing, speed and control
© Sam Strauss/Red Bull Content Pool
“When I rode the course for the first time, I realised straight away that this is going to be a massive challenge,” said Millauer, who is also known for completing challenges like the epic Snowboard Reverse in 2021. “When you're riding such a long course with 10 very different obstacles, every single one has to go perfectly. If I don't manage just one of them quite cleanly, the whole rest of the run suffers as a result.”
For instance, plenty of speed was required in order to clear the kicker, but then Millauer immediately had to temper that speed in order to negotiate the double wall ride. This was a challenge that called not only for technical ability, but also precision, consistency and, ultimately, a good dose of patience.
From Millauer’s imagination to the snow
Spurred on by a desire to challenge himself in a way he’d never done before, Millauer was heavily involved in developing the custom-built course. He sketched out the features himself and then enlisted Charles Beckinsale and his shape crew to bring his ideas to life.
Clemens Millauer helped to design the daunting course
© Markus Berger/Red Bull Content Pool
It's a really crazy feeling when, all of a sudden, what you've drawn becomes real
Warm spring weather and rain hampered what was already a difficult challenge, which was to build 10 obstacles that functioned not just individually, but as a flowing course. After around 10 days of construction, fine-tuning and testing – which included the crew pulling an 18-hour shift immediately before filming – everything was ready.
“It's a really crazy feeling when, all of a sudden, what you've drawn becomes real,” Millauer said.
Now, just one question remained: could Millauer actually complete the course?
30 attempts to crack the course
Unsurprisingly, putting together a clean run on the creative course proved anything but straightforward. Right from the first few attempts, it was clear that linking all 10 obstacles was going to take time and a fair bit of trial and error. The double wall ride proved particularly troublesome for Millauer, with that feature alone taking him around 20 attempts to get to grips with.
“That one really gave me a hard time. I've never ridden anything like this before in my life,” he said. “Then suddenly it just clicked. I got over the wall once and started to get the hang of it more and more.”
Clemens Millauer at the top – ready to conquer Kreischberg
© Sam Strauss/Red Bull Content Pool
A view from below as Millauer takes on the rail
© Markus Berger/Red Bull Content Pool
After that, the Double Rail Cube Pad required a precise transition without slipping sideways or losing height, while the eight-metre-high Rainbow Rail proved to be an intimidating feature where maintaining good speed was essential.
The final landing onto the cube provided one last test of control and nerves and, after around 30 attempts, Millauer at last linked all 10 features into a successful continuous run.
After 30 attempts… finally the perfect run
© Sam Strauss/Red Bull Content Pool