RAAW Ambassadors: Jonas Salamon

Our RAAW Ambassador Jonas is not only a trained carpenter, photographer, kitesurfer, wakeboarder and full-time filmmaker but also responsible for his Madonna V2.2 collecting probably more airtime than any other. Let us introduce you to the creative Heidelberg native here and also take a look at his "frequent flyer" Madonna.

Name: Jonas Salamon
Year of Birth: 2000
Location: Heidelberg, Germany
Profession: Filmemacher
Bikes: RAAW Madonna V2.2
Instagram: @jonassalamon

Jonas has been part of the RAAW Ambassador family since summer 2021 and stands for creative lines, a lot of airtime and spectacular tricks. With his videos and photos he regularly proves that the Madonna is not only at home on the hardest trails in the world but also does not need to hide in terms of style and airtime. In addition, he regularly supports our own productions as a video- and photographer and was, for example, behind the camera for the launch video of the Madonna V2.2.

Jonas has been considered a daredevil and adrenaline junkie ever since he was a child, and various extreme sports have been an integral part of his life ever since. Shortly after learning to walk, he started skiing and soon his skis were up in the air more than on the ground. His two-wheeled career began similarly early: first quite classically in the form of mountain bike tours with his family, later increasingly with visits to the nearby Bikepark Beerfelden. In 2015, biking really took off and from then on Jonas spent every free minute on (or over!) the trails, shredding, building or maintaining them. Over the years, his focus shifted more and more to jumps and tricks: "I love feeling the flow, learning new tricks and perfecting them until even the most complicated movements look easy," he describes his motivation. "When biking, I can fully live out my creative side."

It was the desire to capture his many stunts and adventures that eventually led Jonas to become a content creator. The photos and videos, which were originally mainly used to check tricks and jumping technique, soon became another hobby. Quickly, the shots got better, the equipment more expensive and the follower numbers on Instagram grew. Simple video snippets from the GoPro gave way to the first edits and ambitious productions. It was the perfect playground for his deeply rooted creative streak, which he had already been able to live out during his carpentry apprenticeship and with his interpretation of mountain biking.

His Madonna V2.2

Jonas has built his workhorse, the Madonna V2.2 (Large) all in black. Working in the frame is the Fox Float X2 Factory, the Fox 38 Factory Grip is used at the front. In addition, an XT drive, Newmen wheels and a OneUp Components Dropper Post with a whopping 240mm of travel. "For this season I plan to buy a second seatpost exclusively for bike park use. With my long legs I ride a Dropper Post with 240mm stroke, which still protrudes a little. In the bike park, however, I want to have maximum freedom of movement for my tricks." Speaking of freedom of movement: the switch from 27.5" to the 29" Madonna was not a big problem for Jonas: "Of course, the larger wheels are first a matter of getting used to - especially in the air. But much more important to me than the wheel size is a balanced bike that simply feels "right". On the Madonna V2.2 I immediately felt at home and my gut feeling left no doubt that it is the right bike for me!"

Three Questions for Jonas

What are your favorite trails?
I feel most comfortable on flowy jumptrails - especially when there are many possibilities to combine the obstacles and there is room for creative playing with the terrain. More and more often you can also find me on pure dirtjump trails. The feeling of hitting every jump perfectly to take the momentum for the next ones is just incredible. If I had to name a favorite trail, it would probably be the Vinc Line in Chatel.

What motivates you more than anything else?
The "good times" when biking with friends and pushing each other towards perfect trick execution until it just clicks and suddenly everything is exactly the way it should be. In general, I like to work on my riding technique until everything looks chill and easy. Having a cool style is more important to me than "somehow" jumping big stuff.

What projects are you currently working on?
At the top of my list at the moment are backflips. They are no longer a big problem on skis, but I'm still working on them on the bike. In general, I want to continue to work on my style and riding technique and become more relaxed, especially on big jumps. No-foot-can-cans and flipping the Insbruck slopestyle line are some “projects” too. :)

"Just let the handlebars dangle", as Jonas prefers to say

You can follow Jonas' adventures and further evolution on his Instagram channel . To learn more about our other Ambassadors and to find out how you might become part of the ambassador program too, please visit this page.