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Bmx Head Set
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Tange Seiki MX-2 Headset Chrome for Old School BMX (Kuwahara, Diamond Back)
Tange Seiki MX-2 Headset Chrome for Old School BMX (Kuwahara, Diamond Back)
Paypal   US $26.99
Oldschool Bmx Pro Gold Headset fits Hatta GT Haro Hutch
Oldschool Bmx Pro Gold Headset fits Hatta GT Haro Hutch
Paypal   US $21.99
VINTAGE 1977 SCHWINN STINGRAY SCRAMBLER BMX BICYCLE HEAD SET FORK BEARINGS KRATE
VINTAGE 1977 SCHWINN STINGRAY SCRAMBLER BMX BICYCLE HEAD SET FORK BEARINGS KRATE
Paypal   US $27.00
Mongoose Supergoose Team HEADSET Old School BMX
Mongoose Supergoose Team HEADSET Old School BMX
Paypal   US $36.00
NOS red Hatta Alu headset Old Skool Vintage BMX made in Japan
NOS red Hatta Alu headset Old Skool Vintage BMX made in Japan
Paypal   US $239.99
diacomp tank headset s&m bmx standard fit fbm redline haro gt dk sunday subrosa
diacomp tank headset s&m bmx standard fit fbm redline haro gt dk sunday subrosa
Paypal   US $10.00
 VINTAGE  PINK  HATTA  BMX HEAD SET  OLD SCHOOL BMX  MADE IN JAPAN
VINTAGE PINK HATTA BMX HEAD SET OLD SCHOOL BMX MADE IN JAPAN
Paypal   US $55.89
 Headset Old Style BMX Type -old Schwinn 10 Speeds too -threaded 21.1x32.5x26.4
Headset Old Style BMX Type -old Schwinn 10 Speeds too -threaded 21.1x32.5x26.4
Paypal   US $9.50
Carbon fiber headset spacer NEW 1 1/8 X 5MM bikes bmx road bikes mtb bikes
Carbon fiber headset spacer NEW 1 1/8 X 5MM bikes bmx road bikes mtb bikes
Paypal   US $2.00
Nos Old School BMX TANGE MODEL MX 303 HEADSET PARTS JAPAN Chrome / black
Nos Old School BMX TANGE MODEL MX 303 HEADSET PARTS JAPAN Chrome / black
Paypal   US $145.99
GT Bmx Pro Series Epoch headset
GT Bmx Pro Series Epoch headset
Paypal   US $6.49
Fit Bike BMX CAMPY COMPATIBLE 45°/45° SEALED Integrated 1 1/8
Fit Bike BMX CAMPY COMPATIBLE 45°/45° SEALED Integrated 1 1/8" headset
Paypal   US $25.99
Tange Seiki MX-2 Headset Black for Old School BMX (Kuwahara, Diamond Back)
Tange Seiki MX-2 Headset Black for Old School BMX (Kuwahara, Diamond Back)
Paypal   US $27.95
old school bmx freestyle schwinn predator freeform ex bike frame fork headset
old school bmx freestyle schwinn predator freeform ex bike frame fork headset
Paypal   US $200.00
SE Racing Bikes Cane Creek 1 1/8
SE Racing Bikes Cane Creek 1 1/8" Headset Red Press Fit Very Rare Road MTB BMX
Paypal   US $2.26
2012 SE Racing BMX 26
2012 SE Racing BMX 26" OM FLYER cruiser BLACK frame, fork, headset & clamp KIT
Paypal   US $249.99
Old School BMX Blue Headset - Stunning Condition Early Unstamped Hatta?
Old School BMX Blue Headset - Stunning Condition Early Unstamped Hatta?
Paypal   US $14.54
MONGOOSE BMX HEADSET OLD SCHOOL BMX MONGOOSE HEADSET RARE 80s BMX
MONGOOSE BMX HEADSET OLD SCHOOL BMX MONGOOSE HEADSET RARE 80s BMX
Paypal   US $18.07
NEW CHRIS KING BMX 1
NEW CHRIS KING BMX 1" HEADSET IN BLACK
Paypal   US $30.00
Carbon Headset Spacers Road MTB Mountain BMX Bike 4 Crane Creek Token Bontrager
Carbon Headset Spacers Road MTB Mountain BMX Bike 4 Crane Creek Token Bontrager
Paypal   US $4.50
Chris King no thread 1 1/8th headset for bmx mtb or road - black
Chris King no thread 1 1/8th headset for bmx mtb or road - black
Paypal   US $53.45
OLD SCHOOL BMX EARLY 80s HEAD SET STAMPED TANGE- BMX- JAPAN MINT 1
OLD SCHOOL BMX EARLY 80s HEAD SET STAMPED TANGE- BMX- JAPAN MINT 1"
Paypal   US $70.00
VP-H755 old school BMX headset 1
VP-H755 old school BMX headset 1" threaded 32.5mm cups 26.4mm crown race CHROME
Paypal   US $13.99
GT EPOCH HEADSET BMX FREESTYLE CRUISER PURPLE NOS RACING VINTAGE
GT EPOCH HEADSET BMX FREESTYLE CRUISER PURPLE NOS RACING VINTAGE
Paypal   US $80.00
NOS TIOGA MX-2 1
NOS TIOGA MX-2 1" BMX MX 2 HEADSETS 21.1 QUILL STEM HEADSET
Paypal   US $9.99
5 10 15 20 mm Carbon Handlebar Headset Stem Spacers Road BMX MTB Mountain Bike
5 10 15 20 mm Carbon Handlebar Headset Stem Spacers Road BMX MTB Mountain Bike
Paypal   US $4.00
VP-H755 old school BMX headset 1
VP-H755 old school BMX headset 1" threaded - BLACK
Paypal   US $13.99
TIOGA MX-2 Headset 1
TIOGA MX-2 Headset 1" Old School BMX 1980s Style mx2
Paypal   US $17.90
5 10 15 20 mm Carbon 1-1/8
5 10 15 20 mm Carbon 1-1/8" Headset Stem Road BMX MTB Mountain Cycling Bike FSA
Paypal   US $4.00
Carbon Headset Spacers Road MTB Mountain BMX Bike 4 Crane Creek Token Bontrager
Carbon Headset Spacers Road MTB Mountain BMX Bike 4 Crane Creek Token Bontrager
Paypal   US $3.50
1-1/8
1-1/8" CARBON HEADSET ROAD CYCLING MTB MOUNTAIN BMX BIKE SPACERS - 5 10 15 20 mm
Paypal   US $3.50
5 10 15 20 mm Carbon Handlebar Headset Stem Spacers Road BMX MTB Mountain Bike
5 10 15 20 mm Carbon Handlebar Headset Stem Spacers Road BMX MTB Mountain Bike
Paypal   US $2.75
VP-H732 MINI BMX JIS Road Bike headset 1
VP-H732 MINI BMX JIS Road Bike headset 1" threaded 27.0mm crown race - BLACK
Paypal   US $12.99
Carbon Headset Spacers Road MTB Mountain BMX Bike 4 Crane Creek Token Bontrager
Carbon Headset Spacers Road MTB Mountain BMX Bike 4 Crane Creek Token Bontrager
Paypal   US $3.00
TIOGA Beartrap II 2 1
TIOGA Beartrap II 2 1" BMX HEADSETS 21.1 QUILL STEM
Paypal   US $15.99
Carbon Headset Spacers Road MTB Mountain BMX Bike 4 Crane Creek Token Bontrager
Carbon Headset Spacers Road MTB Mountain BMX Bike 4 Crane Creek Token Bontrager
Paypal   US $2.75
5 10 15 20 mm Carbon Handlebar Headset Stem Spacers Road BMX MTB Mountain Bike
5 10 15 20 mm Carbon Handlebar Headset Stem Spacers Road BMX MTB Mountain Bike
Paypal   US $3.00
1-1/8
1-1/8" CARBON HEADSET ROAD CYCLING MTB MOUNTAIN BMX BIKE SPACERS - 5 10 15 20 mm
Paypal   US $4.00
FSA DH PRO SEALED BEARING THREADLESS BLACK 1-1/8
FSA DH PRO SEALED BEARING THREADLESS BLACK 1-1/8" BMX HEADSET
Paypal   US $40.00
Cane Creek BMX/MTB Headset 1 1/8
Cane Creek BMX/MTB Headset 1 1/8" Threadless 350-002
Paypal   US $13.95
Mountain Bike, BMX, Road Bicycle Headset Press Tool
Mountain Bike, BMX, Road Bicycle Headset Press Tool
Paypal   US $27.50
S&M Pitchfork Alloy Fork Compression Bolt Headset Top Cap BMX Dirt Bike Aheadset
S&M Pitchfork Alloy Fork Compression Bolt Headset Top Cap BMX Dirt Bike Aheadset
Paypal   US $6.97
Onza Mongo 3 1/8
Onza Mongo 3 1/8" A Head BMX/MTB Headset WHITE
Paypal   US $32.93
Tange MX-2 Headset for OSschool BMX Freestyle Bike 1
Tange MX-2 Headset for OSschool BMX Freestyle Bike 1" threaded Chrome NIB
Paypal   US $27.99
BMX Bike Headset STOLEN Insider II Internal 45x45 CAMPY 45x45 Red FREE SHIP S251
BMX Bike Headset STOLEN Insider II Internal 45x45 CAMPY 45x45 Red FREE SHIP S251
Paypal   US $29.95
TIOGA BEARTRAP 2 HEADSET 1
TIOGA BEARTRAP 2 HEADSET 1" BMX
Paypal   US $15.95
NOS Blue Tange MX - 2 BMX headset 125 303 320 5 kuwahara
NOS Blue Tange MX - 2 BMX headset 125 303 320 5 kuwahara
Paypal   US $169.99
TIOGA/TANGE AW-27E Headset 1
TIOGA/TANGE AW-27E Headset 1" Old School BMX 1970s Style NOS
Paypal   US $14.99
Shadow Conspiracy Corvus BMX Headset - WHITE
Shadow Conspiracy Corvus BMX Headset - WHITE
Paypal   US $25.99
2012 SE Racing BMX 24
2012 SE Racing BMX 24" FLOVAL FLYER XL cruiser BLUE frame & fork kit w/ headset
Paypal   US $259.99
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Pinhead Bicycle Locking Skewer Set, 3 Pack Pinhead Bicycle Locking Skewer Set, 3 Pack
List Price: $64.99
Sale Price: Too low to display

3-pack includes 100mm front and 135mm rear locking skewers, plus seatpost lock.

Diamond Edge Classic Safety Razor And Blades Diamond Edge Classic Safety Razor And Blades
Sale Price: $7.26

Diamond Edge Classic Safety Razor And Blades. Diamond Edge Classic Safety Razor And Blades Provides a smooth, close shave without irritation Double edge stainless steel blade design Head of razor easily opens to replace blade Non-slip grip handle Includes 5 double-edge replacement blades

Butler G-U-M Micro Tip Toothbrush, Full Head, Soft 470 , 2 toothbrushes Butler G-U-M Micro Tip Toothbrush, Full Head, Soft 470 , 2 toothbrushes
Sale Price: $0.79

BUTLER GUM T-BRU MICRO TP FULL Size: SOFT

Tireflys Motion Activated Blue Skull Bicycle Valve Stem Lights (Set of 2) Tireflys Motion Activated Blue Skull Bicycle Valve Stem Lights (Set of 2)
List Price: $10.00
Sale Price: $2.79

Tireflys Motion Activated Blue Skull Bicycle Valve Stem Lights (Set of 2) Lights for your wheels! With the UV Blue Skull from Tireflys, everyone gets something that they like. Children get a cool light up skull they can take with them wherever they go on their bike, and parents get the safety function of a motion sensitive flashing light. The lights add increased nighttime visibility for riders, and raises awareness to motorists that they may be sharing the road. The Tireflys UV Green Skull provides a unique opportunity to create fun in motion while providing the safety of an added light for the bicycle . Features: Increases night visibility Cool Blue skull shape Can be easily attached and detached Provides Safety as well as fun Includes extra batteries Includes: Tireflys Motion Activated Blue Skull Bicycle Valve Stem Lights (Set of 2) Extra batteries ( LR1130)

BMX - VSI PRODUCTS HEAD SET REDUCER 1-1/8 TO 1 BMX - VSI PRODUCTS HEAD SET REDUCER 1-1/8 TO 1" SHR-01
List Price: $1.00
Sale Price: $5,445.00

Photo's are for reference only. Please read item title carefully as the manufacturers part number is the item you will receive.

Snugg High Quality Set of 2 Super Bright Bike Lights, 1 Red (Rear light) and 1 White (Front Light) for Safety - Fits all sized Handlebars and Installs in Seconds! 2 Settings - Flashing light or Constant Light Snugg High Quality Set of 2 Super Bright Bike Lights, 1 Red (Rear light) and 1 White (Front Light) for Safety - Fits all sized Handlebars and Installs in Seconds! 2 Settings - Flashing light or Constant Light
Sale Price: $14.99

Snugg brings you these high quality super bright bike lights that installs in seconds! They fit any handlebars and and very easy to use. They have 2 different settings click once for flashing lights then click again for a constant light and again to turn them off, its that simple!

FSA The Pig Headset FSA The Pig Headset
List Price: $0.00

1-1/8" caged bearings. Oversized 1/4" bearings (lower), 5/23" bearings (upper). Forged chromoly crown race. Forged chromoly lower cup. Gyro compatible. Stack height 16.4+13.6=30. Weight: 180g.


Featured Article:
Bmx Head Set

The Giro Remedy Full Face Bike Helmet is hands down the best bang for your buck, when it comes to full-faced bike helmets. Whether you're into Downhill Mountain Biking, Dual Slalom, Dirt Jumping, or BMX riding you'll love all that this helmet has to offer. It's a tough, comfortable, good looking, inexpensive helmet and that's why we bought it, use it, and love it!

Design

This fiber glass shell helmet comes in nine fresh and sharp color schemes. The design offers 14 vents with internal air channeling to keep your head cool while bombing through those rock gardens. The Remedy features a 3 bolt visor, washable interior liner, and the popular EVA lined chin bar. The fiberglass Giro Remedy Helmet weighs 1050 grams, which is not bad for such an aggressive helmet. If you ride hard, you won't care about the weight of this helmet, you'll worry about protecting your head! If you're a "gram counter" or just conscious about weight, Giro offers a Carbon S Remedy version. As always, this helmet complies with U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission's safety standards for bicycle helmets.

Real Life Riding Test

We put the Giro Remedy to the test.

Our first test was at the local dirt jumps. We hit the dirt jumps and sure enough it involved a nice head "smack" to the handle bars when landing the first set. The Giro Remedy Helmet worked! Helmet score of "1", injury "0". This is exactly why we bought this helmet! Confidence in your protective equipment will help you go big when jumping!

The second test was a brief urban assault through town. While attempting to pull a manual off of a loading dock, the bike came back too far leading to a nice "head smack" on the pavement. Giro Remedy Helmet score of "2", injury "0".

The third test was at the local BMX track. On our fourth pass through the park, we hit a table top with maximum speed, which resulted in a "bail out" of the bike and a nice "tuck and roll" on the track. Giro Remedy Bike Helmet score of "3", injury "0".

A great helmet like the Remedy instills confidence in your riding. This new found confidence may cause more crashes, but will improve your riding ability!

Price Point

We have seen this helmet sell for a prices between $130 and $180. A helmet of this quality in other manufacturer model lines could cost you more than $200. We believe that when it comes to your noggin, a good quality full faced helmet under $200 dollars is a steal.

Bottom Line

Head protection is to be taken very seriously. We ride hard and have the scars and bruises to prove it! A couple years ago, a member of our family came short of a "double" during a dual slalom race and landed on his face. A couple shots of morphine and an ambulance ride later he had his mouth wired shut and an oral surgeon's business card.

It's vital to purchase and wear the appropriate head gear and that's why we believe that the Giro Full Faced Remedy Bike Helmet will do the job at a spectacular price.

Bobby Hanswell is a contributing author of [http://www.pedalcrunch.com]

PedalCrunch offers a community for aggressive cycling enthusiasts. At PedalCrunch you'll find Reviews, How-to Guides, Rants & Rights, News, Videos, Great Deals on Products and more! If you're into Mountain Biking, Downhill Mountain Biking, Dual Slalom, Dirt Jumping, or BMX, check us out at [http://www.pedalcrunch.com]

Shredding Stereotypes: Modern Perceptions of Extreme Sports

 

Shredding Stereotypes: Modern Perceptions of Extreme Sports

By Cameron Livermore

As humanity has continued to evolve and adapt to the rise of new technology, so have our pastimes.  In the late twentieth century, the combination of sport and technology began to give birth to a new breed of recreation: the extreme sports.  Simple stick and ball games have changed over time with the advent of better equipment, but this new breed of sports is different in that the participants rely on specialized technology to achieve feats that the human body is ill-equipped for on its own.

Skateboarders reworked the existing technology of frictionless, high-speed travel that previously resided amongst skiers, who in turn began to notice an invasion of younger people at their resorts mounted on snowboards.  The offroad motorcycle improved steadily in the last half of the century until it was capable of tolerating extreme force, giving athletes the ability to launch their two-wheeled machines off of dirt mounds and specialized metal ramps to astounding new heights and distances.  Many offshoots and evolutions of old sports were enhanced by new technology, adventurous minds, and the idea that there was plenty of territory left to conquer in the area of recreation.

However, these sports came as somewhat of a shock to an older, more traditional population.  Young skateboarders and surfers in the 1980s carried themselves with a radical flair, both on and off their boards, evoking both excitement and outrage from the established authorities.  Snowboarders descended in droves on established ski resorts, and the patrons there reacted with disdain and sometimes outrage, regarding the new form of sport as an unwieldy and dangerous adaptation of their own.  Motocross riders watched skeptically as a segment of professional racers, disillusioned with sponsorship and professional racing politics, split off from the racing scene and began performing aerial tricks on their bikes. 

The general attitude of disdain evinced by a population that grew up playing more traditional sports fueled the new breed’s rebellious spirits, until many of them broke with societal norms in their quest to shock the majority with dangerous maneuvers and equally dangerous lifestyles.  Their attitude of rebelliousness was arguably necessary to keep their lifestyle from being affected by the forces compelling them to “get back in line,” as it were.  These deviant sports were viewed by the general public as the pastime of deviant citizens, and when one is stereotyped unjustly, they may exemplify that stereotype to validate their labeler’s suspicions, and in turn be somewhat validated by that irony.

Unfortunately, the people who stereotyped extreme sports began to see all participants of these sports as deviants, when in fact the second wave of athletes had already risen.  Younger people, inspired and curious about these new sports, had begun to take up the mantle of their older, wilder counterparts.  These newer participants dreamed of professionalism, of making a living doing what they loved, as other professional athletes had in the past.  On their rise to such a level, however, they encountered roadblock after roadblock: laws making their sports actual crimes, facilities banning their new form of sport, resorts denying entrance to their kind.  Extreme sports were once considered a harmful and destructive fad, and only recently has the general public begun to grasp the merits of both the sports and athletes involved.  What was once perceived as an offensive pursuit is becoming recognized for the true spectacle it is: one of hard work, dedication, blood, sweat, and tears.

There is no doubt that these new sports can carry painful and even deadly consequences for their athletes.  “I always call extreme sports good for business,” says Dr. William Roberts, president of the American College of Sports Medicine.  “They produce injuries that generate more income for me than any other sport.” (Tresinowski et al. 1).

Injuries are a fact of life for professionals in extreme sports.  Broken bones, bruises, even paralysis or death can result from mistimed trick or faulty equipment.  Why, then, do these athletes choose to risk life and limb in order to participate?  For most, the answer is simple.  These sports provide a feeling that cannot be obtained in any other way.  Adrenaline rushes, confidence in one’s ability, even spirituality are all attainable through extreme sports. 

Perhaps it was best summed up by big wave surfer Mike Parsons, in this quote from the book Being Extreme by Bill Gutman, Shawn Frederick, and John Butman:

“The ocean for me is a totally spiritual thing.  It doesn’t matter if it’s small or big surf, just being in it is the important thing.  It’s my place.  You can have all kinds of problems and worries, and the second I begin surfing, I’m completely focused on that and the rest of the world goes on hold.  It’s almost like someone going to church.  Without a doubt, the ocean is my church,” (99).

The rest of the world goes on hold for participants in extreme sports.  A skilled athlete must use every ounce of concentration, muscle memory, and attention they have to complete the maneuvers they attempt, and this allows for no distractions.  As a motocross rider myself, I can personally vouch for this “clean slate” feeling.  All of my worries, troubles and preoccupations evaporate the instant I soar off of the first jump on a motocross track.  My attention is focused entirely on the next set of obstacles; my mind makes infinite tiny decisions every second, and as I progress, its capacity to make these decisions increases.  A well trained extreme sports participant does not think; they simply react, and it is perhaps this channeling of the primal “fight or flight” instinct that can make the experience so entirely rewarding for us. 

Recent studies have helped to corroborate this, as they show that extreme sports athletes have higher sensation-seeking needs than the average person.  Sensation-seekers are people who desire to experience new and/or novel sensations, or experiences that are not present in the course of everyday life (Malkin and Rabinowitz 34).  Extreme sports provide the means to feel new things and experience unique sensations.  Perhaps this is part of the reason that so many young people are drawn to them; in a life consisting mainly of school and work, in an environment where sexual urges are often repressed or discouraged, extreme sports offer young people a way to feel very alive.

These sports are also gaining athletes’ participation due to the dramatic visual effects achieved in their execution.  Risking life and limb results in spectacular displays of human beings leaping huge distances in a single bound, showing new degrees of finesse and skill, and generally performing feats that were once thought to be impossible (if they were thought of at all).  The consequential increased video coverage results in more viewers wanting to try new things.  “People are increasingly challenging themselves with activities which place their lives totally in their own hands and moving away from safer, more regulated activities,” says James Stewart, in his article “Taking the Plunge,” which appears in the Institute of Internal Affairs Public Review

Perhaps in a society where new laws are constantly made, old laws are rarely repealed, and people follow a somewhat set course of school, college, then work, we are simply beginning to yearn for a little chaos in our lives; or perhaps it is the feeling of controlling one’s fate that results from flying through the air or sliding down a rail that is compelling more people to try these sports.  As Stewart says, “These sports have less of a competitive feel about them, in many cases the only benefits come from the warm, fuzzy feeling one gets by beating one’s previous best or just by improving one’s skills”(1).  That “warm, fuzzy feeling” is synonymous with control.  As an avid motocross rider and snowboarder myself, I know this firsthand; the feeling of being in control, even when traveling at forty miles an hour while twenty feet above solid ground, is intoxicating and has increased my confidence in all areas of life.

This feeling may best be described as one of sheer self reliance and independence. Team sports, on the other hand, involve more of a feeling of unity and cooperation. Often times, a player will have to sit out large parts of the actual contest, such as in football, baseball, and basketball.  The notorious bench has no place in any extreme sport, however.  There is no one to catch a BMX rider if he fails to clear a twenty foot dirt jump, and no one to step in for a skateboarder after he’s fallen off of a rail onto concrete.  Extreme sports athletes rely entirely on their own proficiency, dedication, and natural talent.  This can lend the athlete a very powerful sense of satisfaction; when a new goal is met or a new trick performed, the feeling of accomplishment is not divided amongst a group.  After successfully reaching a higher level of performance, the confidence and sense of achievement gained provides more than enough motivation to continue pushing the limits.

I can testify on this point personally.  Recently I participated in a large desert off-road motorcycle ride.  A newcomer joined our camp this year: a twenty year old that had ridden off-road motorcycles only briefly at age twelve.  He brought boots and a helmet, but no motorcycle; we had four bikes and only three riders in our group, so we let him try our bikes out.  The person in question rode more than anybody else that weekend.  He progressed from barely competent in the high-speed, three foot wide trails to a respectable desert rider in only a few days.  After each ride, he would reminisce excitedly at the camp fire about overcoming a new obstacle, jumping over bumps at higher speeds, and learning how to take corners quickly.  Each achievement boosted his confidence and fueled his desire to learn more.  In this way, extreme sports can be an addictively satisfying pastime.

Perhaps it is no coincidence that the rider I met in the desert had his bike taken away at a young age after his dad crashed and injured his knee on an old off-road motorcycle.  Many parents still see extreme sports as a serious threat to their children and will not allow them to participate in anything of the kind.  In an article titled “Flying High, Falling Hard” from People Magazine, a mother from Wisconsin is quoted, saying: “I don’t shelter my kids, but I’m not comfortable with sports with high injury rates.  I want them to be safe,” (Tresinowski et al. 64).  This is a perfectly logical argument; however, not very many children are perfectly logical themselves.

Forbidding a child from participating in an extreme sport can increase their desire to do so as a form of rebellion, as I witnessed in the desert recently.  That particular person was responsible.  He wore safety gear and had fourteen experienced riders to coach him and watch him, but still crashed at high speeds twice over the weekend.  Had he been a bit more reckless and a bit more motivated to rebel, he may have been more poorly equipped and could have been badly injured.  Unfortunately, this is often the case.  Young children imitating professionals they’ve seen on television without parental guidance or proper safety equipment are much more likely to sustain debilitating injuries.

A better approach is given in the same article in People by another mother, Michele Soven of Longwood, Florida.  Her son is an avid wakeboarder.  Wakeboarders are towed on specially designed boards behind boats, jumping the wake thrown up by the boat’s propeller and performing tricks.  “From the beginning, my husband and I were very involved,” says Michele.  “Every injury he got, I would find out how and why it happened, to prevent it from occurring again.” (Tresinowski et al. 66) 

Her son Phillip has sustained multiple injuries, the worst of which he suffered while trying to jump onto a long, wooden rail floating in the water, an obstacle wakeboarders call a “slider.”  Phillip caught his board on the edge of the obstacle, shattered his nose, and split open his face.  It took 58 stitches and two reconstructive surgeries to repair the damage, but Michele never once thought of trying to take away Phillip’s wakeboarding privileges.  “It’s something he loves to do, so how can I forbid it?  If I did, it would be more likely that he’d do it without parental guidance,” said Michele (Tresinowski et al. 65).  This is a realistic viewpoint.  Extreme sports are definitely dangerous, but risk can be minimized with proper guidance, safety gear, and involvement from experienced athletes and parents alike.

Samah Boulis and Andreas Rehm, Orthopedic surgeons from the United Kingdom, share this viewpoint in their article Our Experience with Motocross Accidents in Children: Patterns of Injuries and Outcomes.  The article details the types of injuries common to motocross riders, and offers the opinion that the implementation of helmet and protective gear laws would substantially minimize the injuries that occur in motocross riding and racing (1). 

While most if not all public motocross facilities do require riders to wear helmets, few go beyond that basic safety.  The additional stipulation that riders be required to wear protective boots, gloves, pants, jerseys, body armor, and neck braces would substantially reduce motocross related injuries.  Again, I speak from my own experience; I have never broken a bone while riding motorcycles, and have ridden one thousand hours or more-always with the proper safety gear. After many high speed and high altitude crashes, I have still never suffered anything worse than cuts and scratches.  My safety gear has been destroyed and replaced many times, saving my body in the process.

The public has begun to recognize that with such safety gear, extreme sports can be participated in with some degree of safety.  Extreme sports were once thought of as something close to a death sentence, even with gear, but that has been shown to be untrue in recent studies of sports related injuries.  The percentage of people injured in extreme sports is often the same or even smaller than the percentage of people injured in conventional sports such as football.  In a list that compiled the number of injuries based on the time spent playing or participating in a sport, the only extreme sport even close to the top of the list was snowboarding, ranked third behind boxing and football.  Skateboarding sits at twenty-second, and BMX biking at twenty-fourth (Tresinowski et al. 64). The myth that extreme sports resulted in more injuries than traditional sports has been effectively broken by professional researchers in a number of studies such as this one, and that data is trickling down to the public awareness with increasing momentum.  Parents are now becoming aware that their child is just as likely to break a bone while being tackled by a linebacker in a high school football game as they are to break one while jumping down a set of stairs on a skateboard.

Unfortunately, the average citizen’s change of perception is not always mirrored by official groups.  Signs proclaiming “No skateboarding, No bicycling, No rollerblading” are still a common sight in any city.  This is perhaps best illustrated by the outright ban on skateboarding that occurred in Philadelphia’s LOVE Park, a kind of Mecca for modern skateboarders.  Jeremy Nemeth’s paper Conflict, Exclusion, Relocation: Skateboarding and Public Space details this incident.  Policy makers in Philadelphia decided to restructure the park in time for a citywide festival, both physically and legislatively.  The legislative portion instituted an around-the-clock police patrol in and around the park to enforce a new zero-tolerance ban on skateboarding.  If any citizen was caught skateboarding, they would have to pay a three hundred dollar fine and could even be imprisoned.  Skateboarding became a crime (297). 

This did not sit well with the resident skateboarders of Philadelphia, who assembled for a march on city call on October fifth, 2003.  They accomplished nothing with their mass protests, however, so instead began a campaign.  Non-profit groups formed, dedicated to regaining the right to skate in LOVE Park.  After a long stalemate with city officials, a bargain was struck; the city would build a street-style skate park for skaters to use.  While this satisfied some, many skateboarders continue to fight for their right to skate at LOVE Park.  In a newspaper poll taken in 2004, ninety-two percent of two thousand resident Philadelphians polled supported the skateboarder’s fight to return to LOVE Park (Nemeth 304).  This instance suggests that the average citizen is starting to accept extreme sports, and again illustrates that institutions are not always doing the same.

Some might argue that such laws are made due to the damage caused to public property by extreme sports.  While it is true that skateboarding and BMX riding can damage public architecture, it is not true that the athletes involved are generally careless of this fact.  Philadelphia city officials estimated that skateboarding had caused approximately sixty-thousand dollars worth of damage to LOVE Park.  Shortly thereafter, the city gave the park an eight-hundred-thousand dollar facelift (Nemeth 301). This should adequately answer the question of whether or not the city had the funds to deal with such intense use by skateboarders.  If the city could afford to spend eight-hundred-thousand dollars to update the park, they could afford sixty- thousand dollars to repair it. 

However, the skateboarding community went even further to show their dedication to regaining the privilege of skating in LOVE Park.  A skateboard shoe manufacturer, DC Shoes, offered to pay one-hundred-thousand dollars each year for ten years to the city for maintenance of LOVE Park if skaters were allowed to return.  The city refused (Nemeth 303).  How is it that city officials claimed they refused skateboarders the privilege to skate based on the damage the sport caused, yet continued that refusal even after paying roughly thirteen times the estimated cost of the damage to update the park?  How can the cost of damage, at sixty-thousand dollars, when compared to one-hundred-thousand dollars a year for ten years from DC shoes, be considered a legitimate reason to continue excluding skaters from LOVE Park?  It seems that not all prejudice against extreme sports has faded with time.  Skaters continue to lobby for access to LOVE Park, and the city continues to refuse them (Nemeth 304).

Skateboarders have a similar complaint in Bronx, New York.  Street skating is nearly a crime in the Bronx, making it very difficult for skaters to progress and practice what they love to do.  “...We aren’t harming anyone, and we aren’t doing anything bad-just skateboarding,” says Chris Seise, a Bronx skateboarder (Mcdonald 1).  There is a park in the area called Mulally’s, but the park requires that a skater’s parents sign a waver before they are allowed to skate (Mcdonald 1).  This makes access difficult for the skaters whose parents do not approve of their child’s chosen sport, and may lead to more illegal street-skating by children under eighteen years old who cannot use the park.  If the city would provide a public skate park utilizing street obstacles like benches and handrails, the unnecessary commitment of city resources to the prevention of street skating could be stopped.

Another less harmful discrimination is often perpetrated by participants of “classic” or “ball” sports, such as football, baseball, and basketball.  In an issue of Sports Illustrated, a journalist asked many athletes whether they considered skateboarding to be a sport or not.  “Hell no.  It’s a recreational activity, like fishing,” said Blue Jays outfielder Jose Cruz (Albert and Mravic 28).

Other athletes showed similar scorn.  “They’re trying to make everything a sport,” said Marlins infielder Dave Berg.  “Why not grocery bagging at Albertson’s?  These days they even call putt-putt golf a sport.  That’s just trailer-trash activity.  Sure it takes skill to do these things, but is it a sport?” (Albert and Mravic 28).  It is true that many extreme sports athletes view ball-sport players similarly, and that the rivalry is far from one-sided.  It all seems to be a case of conditioning.  Whatever activity is done and watched in the household is often an activity the child will later consider a sport.  Certainly extreme sports and team sports are both valid athletic pursuits.

As the public demand for facilities in which to practice extreme sports grows, some institutions are finally responding adequately.  In the journal Parks and Recreation, Kelly Bastone cited many such instances in her article “Going to Extremes.”  Kelly writes that “Directors and managers elsewhere have also received requests to go beyond team sports and provide opportunities to skate, bike, climb, paddle, ski, and even surf...” (Bastone 60).  Some institutions have chosen not to take the “LOVE Park” route, and have risen above and beyond to provide safe, well-designed facilities for athletes.  Many cities are feeling the demand and responding aptly. 

Reno, Nevada built a whitewater rafting park on the Truckee River, the town of Steamboat Springs in Colorado runs a community ski and snowboard slope called Howlsen’s Hill, and city Officials in Chattanooga granted permission to a group of rock-climbers when asked if they could begin climbing a limestone support column on one of the city’s historic bridges (Bastone 63-65).  Many cities are welcoming extreme sports athletes with open arms.  Word spreads quickly in the athletes’ world, and once a town is known as a good destination for a sport, its economy reaps the benefits as adrenaline-seeking tourists spend their money while visiting (Bastone 64).

In Kelly Bastone’s article, one city stands head-and-shoulders above the rest. Oklahoma City’s director of parks and recreation, Wendel Wisenhunt, is quoted, saying “"We were hearing that our emphasis on stick-and-ball sports just wasn't serving everyone, particularly the younger population."  Wisenhunt responded to the need for extreme-sports facilities in dramatic fashion; in 2005, at a cost of seven-hundred-thousand dollars, the Mat Hoffman Action Sports Park opened in Oklahoma.  Oklahoma City’s director of parks and recreation worked closely with professional BMX rider and native Oklahoman Mat Hoffman to create a facility that would allow beginners to progress safely while simultaneously challenging veteran athletes (Bastone 2).

This is approach to building facilities is by far the best, as simple logic shows. A dangerous, boring skate park is a bad investment, but not many public officials have thought to go as far as to seek out the input of professional athletes to help build the courses.  The necessity of doing so is obvious, as extreme-sports facilities are products of creativity and have no set boundaries, obstacles, demarcations, or other mandatory features.  A football field is a football field, and can be duplicated rather easily, but skate parks, motocross tracks, and other extreme-sports arenas are unique facilities, each with their own obstacles, safeguards, unique attractions, and creators.  If the city official overseeing the project acquires the help of a professional athlete to design a safe, fun, and challenging course, they are likely to see much larger attendance numbers.  The local economy again feels a pleasant surge as athletes spend money in the park’s proximity, which can transform the cost of the park’s creation into a profit, in time (Bastone 63).

Another factor that is helping win over officials is the changing perception of extreme sports participants as a type of people.  Skaters, particularly, were once associated with illegal activity such as drug use and vandalism; that association is now rapidly dissolving as kids and teens campaign for the addition of skate parks to their city and take pride in keeping the parks safe and legal once they are constructed (Weller 567).  Once looked upon as apathetic deviants, skaters are now being respected as socially active people with strong voices in their community (Weller 568).  As more and more athletes practice their sports without participating in the unsavory activities that were once associated with those sports, more non-athletes are beginning to see them as respectable public figures. 

As extreme sports continue to grow in popularity, people are beginning to accept this new view of the athletes, and are realizing that extreme sports may not truly be as bad as the old stereotypes implied they were.  City officials are helping to build new parks, parents are more likely to let their children choose to ride a skateboard or motorcycle, and television networks are scrambling to provide more coverage of high-flying bikers and boarders.  While the public’s increased exposure to extreme sports still far from matches the popularity of older, more well-know sports, the stigma once attached to athletes participating in them is quickly eroding.  For the athletes in question, this acceptance has come somewhat late, but is nevertheless deeply appreciated.  No person enjoys persecution, much less so for performing difficult and skillful feats of athleticism, and extreme sports athletes are no exception.  As ESPN’s X Games grows, Mountain Dew’s Dew Tour appears on network television, and other forums for extreme sports are piped into America’s living rooms, the true athletic and mental fortitude displayed in extreme sports is beginning to be so readily observable that outdated stereotypes can no longer be applied.  More cities are giving in to the demand for skate parks and other facilities for extreme sports athletes to use, and more children than ever are idolizing motocross riders or snowboarders instead of baseball or basketball players.  The former black sheep of the sports world are slowly becoming the main attraction.

 

 

Works Cited

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Boulis, Samah, and Andreas Rehm. "Our Experience With Motocross Accidents In Children: Patterns of Injuries and Outcomes."  Internet Journal of Orthopedic Surgery 3.3 (2006). EBSCO. Dana Library Clacakamas Community College. 17 Oct. 2008        

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About the Author

Cameron Livermore is an aspiring author, journalist, and poet.

ok i need to spend no more than 200 dollars on bmx parts?

i need pedals, a stem, a seat, head set, and forks
i have a fbm frame eastern ultra light bars if this helps

So go for it. For 200 bucks you'll need to buy used if you expect quality parts.

Barros, 15, takes Skateboard Park gold at X Games
An X Games dominated by age and experience finally got a dose of youth on closing day. Fifteen-year-old rookie Pedro Barros beat 37-year-old veteran Andy MacDonald to win Skateboard Park on Sunday at a games previously dominated by repeat winners and older athletes. Skateboard Park was designed to allow young skaters versed in street style to compete with the older riders of vert ramps, and this ...

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