Back in the day, yes back in the day, Hans Rey was "The Man". Because nobody else did what Hans did on his bike. His actions were too radical, too crazy and breakneck. All the other bikers said: no way. And the Swiss, who is actually German, had already lost his nickname: "No Way Rey".
Hans Rey was ahead of his time. Until the early nineties, he was synonymous with extreme biking. Today it is called freeriding and is said to have been invented in Canada. But Hans was the original freerider, growing up in Emmendingen, at the foot of the Black Forest. This is where he learnt to ride a bike in 1978 and became the king of tricks among the local youngsters. This is also where Hans' lucky streak began, which continues to this day. One competition success follows the next. He becomes German champion, Swiss champion, the only non-American to become US champion and world champion in trial biking. In 1987, he emigrated to his dream country of California - where the sun always shines and anything is possible.
From now on, Hans Rey stages himself. You see him on his bike on still-warm lava, biking along the Great Wall of China, down skyscrapers, in the jungles of Borneo, through the desert and under water. Hans appears on big stages: on Frank Elstner's "Wetten,dass???", on "Aktuelle Sportstudio" or at the opening of the Olympic Games. Hans becomes a household name and earns big bucks. In the boom years of sport, "No Way Rey" is unrivalled at the top.
After 20 years of competition, now a bike millionaire with homes in Los Angeles and Tuscany, Hans invents a new media spectacle with his adventure team. He now likes to think of himself as the "Indiana Jones" of mountain biking. A TV documentary has now been made about his life. Because Hans Rey has written mountain bike history.
PROFILE OF HANS REY
Name: Hansjörg Rey
Nickname: "No Way Rey"
Born: 4 June 1966 in Kenzingen
Nationality: Swiss
Hometown: Laguna Beach, California
Achievements/titles: Former German, Swiss, US and world trial champion, 3rd place in the Slalom World Championships '93, member of the Mountain Bike Hall of Fame
Favourite film: Gladiator
Favourite book: "Siddhartha" by Herman Hesse
Favourite drink: Beer
Favourite bike video: Mudcows
Favourite website: www.hansrey.com
Sponsors: GT Bicycles, Adidas, Swatch, Ischgl, Luk, Maxxis, Shimano, Fox Shox, Syntace, Bell, Mavic, Evil Eye glasses, Clif bar
Dimitri Lehner
Editor
