Who really has the best whip?

There have been 863 Gold medals awarded since the X Games launched (as the Extreme Games) in Providence, 20 years ago. This weekend, as the X Games moves to Austin, Texas, six more Gold medals will be awarded in the Moto X division – Freestyle, Speed & Style, Step Up, Men’s Enduro X, Women’s Enduro X and of course, Best Whip.

A while ago, a mate of mine and I discussed what we prefer in the way of freestyle motocross; whips, or cramming in as many tricks as possible into a Backflip combination. The conversation boiled down to whether you prefer sunsets or fireworks (stay with me – I’m not crazy, or drunk).

You see, a perfectly executed whip is like a sunset. They can be hard to replicate in ways that some do it, and you don’t have to jump up and down at a Nitro Circus Live show to enjoy it. Less is more, you know? Now, we’re not saying that we don’t like fireworks (FMX and Speed & Style competitions are rad, too) – we’re just a little more pumped to see Beau Bamberg, Lance Coury, Vicki Golden, Tom Parsons, Jeremy “Twitch” Stenberg and Josh Hansen create beautiful sunsets this weekend.

Many may argue that last year, Josh Hansen threw down the biggest, baddest whip ever done on a dirt bike in Los Angeles. Many may also argue that Twitch wouldn’t have won his Gold medal in 2012 if it wasn’t for Snoop Dogg telling his millions of fans on Twitter to vote for him. Many may also that Brett Cue and Australia’s Jarryd McNeil not being invited to contest Best Whip at the X Games is very, very wrong…

Who do you think has done the biggest, baddest whip on a dirt bike, and when did they do it? Let us know in the comments section below…

Need to refresh your memory? Check out the Best Whip highlights from the last five years of X Games events below!