Our very own Thomas Genon, aka Tommy G, is known for his unique style and fluid riding, that he easily demonstrates on a variety of bikes on all kinds of surfaces. With his 2021 season almost in the books, we look back at what has been a fruitful year with great collaborations between RASOULUTION, Thomas and his partners.
CONTENT & PR – Photography is an art and so is MTB, why not put them together?
Thomas loves to dedicate time and passion to elaborate but authentic projects, and RASOULUTION strives to assist him in the best way possible in financing, planning and releasing these. When Shimano approached us early 2021 looking for potential ideas for activating in MTB, we brainstormed possibilities together. Thomas had one strong focus: MTB photography as art.
It all made sense and Thomas, together with photographer JB Liautard, came up with the concept: The Art of MTB. They created some of the most striking MTB shots ever; Shimano was delighted. A few months later, Thomas and JB released the 2nd instalment of this ‘Art of MTB’ project that could potentially extend into further editions. At RASOULUTION, we are glad to have been a big part of this unique project.
“Cycling is a form of art in every way you look at it, JB and Thomas know it well and brought it to life with The Art of MTB project. Shimano is stoked to give people the opportunity to see the techniques and dynamics that lie behind such a masterpiece, born from the fusion between creativity and pure riding talent.” – Tommaso Amadio, Sports Marketing Coordinator Off-Road, Shimano
The work for RASOULUTION did not stop there as we lead the PR for the projects. For part one, we focused on written media and the project gained 20 pages of coverage in prestigious MTB magazines. Our focus for part 2 was online press, where the project was featured on 25 sites.
PARTNERSHIPS – Schwalbe and Look launch new exclusive collaborations with Thomas
A top-level slopestyle and freerider, Thomas Genon is one of the most versatile mountain bike riders out there. For that reason, RASOULUTION identified German tire brand Schwalbe as a potential perfect fit for Thomas, with tires capable of withstanding the most extreme jumps and landings, at Crankworx or Red Bull Rampage. Since the beginning of the year, Thomas has been riding his Schwalbe products all over the world, delivering great results. He also recorded an episode of Schwalbe’s podcast series.
2021 has also been a year of product co-development for Thomas and his new pedal partner Look. RASOULUTION wanted to enable Tommy to participate in the development of products made by riders for riders. Look, a world-renowned pedal brand, saw potential for Thomas to become their new ambassador on the MTB scene and both parties have been working together on developing a new product since the beginning of the year, with Thomas riding the prototype versions and providing feedback to Look, step by step.
CONTESTS – Crankworx shows and a last-minute invite for Red Bull Rampage
As a former winner of the Red Bull Joyride, Thomas Genon already is a veteran of the Crankworx contest and fest series. On his schedule for 2021: Innsbruck and British Columbia.
Competing across Whip-Offs, Speed & Style as well as his main discipline Slopestyle, Thomas once again demonstrates his versatility as a rider. With solid results across all Crankworx contests, Tommy G’s highlight of the Crankworx season has been the head-to-head finals of Innsbruck’s Speed & Style competition, that he lost with the narrowest margin to his close friend and fellow RASOULUTION athlete Tomas Lemoine.
Thomas Genon would not be Thomas Genon without Red Bull Rampage. For the 8th time in a row, he lined up at the start of the biggest MTB freeride event of the season in Utah.
“Every year Rampage becomes a little bit more important to me. I have the feeling that I truly can express myself here. I love to be able to combine freeride and slopestyle. Showing what I can do at the highest level of both disciplines at the same time makes me very happy.” – Thomas Genon in his pre-Rampage interview.
Combining his freeride skills with his slopestyle background, the Belgian ripper finished on a strong seventh place with 77.00 points and has already qualified for the 2022 edition.
The result becomes even more impressive considering that Thomas received his last-minute invite while already participating at Crankworx B.C. with a full focus on slopestyle. Tommy and RASOULUTION pulled out all the stops to bring him to the desert as soon as possible and have the best preparation possible. Highlighting the Belgian’s feeling towards the event, RASOULUTION furthermore distributed a press release with an interview that has been picked not only by special interest bike media, but also was publish across different general interest media.
Follow Thomas on social media:
Facebook: www.facebook.com/ThomasGenonMTB
Instagram: www.instagram.com/thomasgenon
Header picture: Bartek Wolinski / Red Bull Content Pool
