Hail the Wonderboy #199
This year I think a lot of big things happened. I'm not a fan of the super condensed format, because we did lose a lot of things that used to be cool about Summer X. No more Wake, no more Surf, no more Roller blading. No more Dirt for BMX, no more Moto-X and thankfully no more Super Cross - it didn't translate. There were only 3 dedicated events for women this year, only one of which gets primary billing in the television coverage. The entire event is crammed into 4 days, and now has even been cut from ABC having coverage. Show times ranged from 1-2 pm to 4 or 5pm with a 2 hour break for the early evening Sports Center, and PTI then coverage again from 7-11pm - for those of us on the East Coast.
I get that things have to progress, because if there's one word that X-treme sports athletes know it's progression, but unfortunately I feel it's been molded and defined for television. I love that technology has pushed us to the point of having 3D television, but you can't take some of the coolest stuff like the Skateboard Big Air Rail Jam and only put it on ESPN 3D! That was killing me. Luckily they wasted a lot of time airing things I'd seen the previous day (aired again for the jackassed posers who don't go at it hard core) and then showed the last 16 minutes of the Rail Jam. If not I'd have missed Bob go huge with that 50/50 body varial or whatever he & Tony Hawk are calling it. What gets ratings stays, and what doesn't will go. I understand it because I wish that Street would go, it's boring as hell to watch even if Tony Hawk & Sal Masekela are commentating. Chris Pastras really burned my biscuits this year because he's not a well tuned "field" reporter. I know Kier Dillon wasn't great either when he showed up, but he upped his game by the end of his first games.
Let's talk about Rally having the EPIC of all PHAIL! The rally course could have been very cool, but it was just too confusing for it to count where it should have. The majority of the winners in Rally heats won by default because the other driver went the wrong way. 1 - label the course more recognizably if you are going to take away the co-driver. 2 - the street portion of the course was too small and didn't allow for there to be time for the dust to settle so a driver could see the course as they enter the coliseum. 3 - Time of day would really weigh in on how the course bakes. If you water it to help reduce the dust and allow for traction, would you not expect that the summer sun in L.A of all places would not bake it to death? and 4 - How is it possible that people who were seeded best got the least amount of practice?? Pastrana went out there for his elimination round and it was the second time he'd been on the course. That's just stupid.
The Street course was horrible. The spacing of the entire deck was off. Riders and skaters seemed to be having problems controlling gaps knowing there's only so much you can do with a 6 foot gap and your next trick is on the coffee cup like it or not. Transitions were hard because you have the front and the back but you can't mix it up too much because you don't plan out a street run like you would a vert run. Wasn't cool and was boring as hell. Adding SK8 - the Skaters version of Horse was cool. I've seen it done in parking lots, but this had serious potential had the street course been better laid out. Maybe Miami is not the place to model a street course anymore. It's bad enough the X Games is only in LA now, but lets take what may have worked in Miami and make some dudes reconstruct it to force suckage in LA... AWESOME!
Putting Vert in the Nokia Theatre is cool, and allowed for more room at the Staples Center for Moto-X events (Best Trick, Step-up (getting boring), Best Whip (weak - in a session style WHAT?), & Speed & Style. Using the L.A Coliseum is a great venue, though it seemed to have posed the most problems by not thinking things through. 1- By putting FMX & Rally there you opened a host of issues. a) the placement of the sun throughout events. - When you're flying above the crowds after hitting a 70+ foot kicker and the sun comes just over the edge of the Coliseum that's blinding and could make it hard to see a landing. and b) the drop in is so steep it's almost blind. 2 - Travis Pastrana alone kicks up too much dust to have the Mega Ramp outside on the same course. At least when it was in Staples Center the wind is not a factor - factor for dust or a factor for blowing mega ramp skaters slightly off course. Having to cover the Mega Ramp then uncover and clean it is too much to handle. Then complicate having it outside by the potential for condensation as the night air cools is a dangerous. If Danny Way is thinking twice - situations could be serious.
There were a lot of glitchy moments this year and that's for sure, but it didn't change the fact that I think every minute of X is a moment to look back and say WOW! Some of these kids are younger than the event it's self with Curren Caples knocking down doors in skate at only 14 years old & Pedro Barros taking home Gold from a 2 time winning veteran being only 15.
If you wanna know more, poke around this place. Facts & features are cool, and there's always a good break down of what went on. Videos, pictures, highlights & more check out XGames.com
Anyway, I'm sad it's over - I can go back to Twitter & Facebook without getting things ruined by those who were there live & giving shit away. Follow for your sanity, XGames: @XGames, Tony Hawk : @TonyHawk, Bob Burnquist: @BobBurnquist (though it's often not in english!), Travis Pastrana: @TravisPastrana (He's not much of a tweeter but check the Nitro crew too), Sal Masekela: @ImSalMasekela, Andy Macdonald: @andymacdonald, Brian Deegan: @mmgeneral, Nitro Circus: @Nitro_Circus or Erik Roner of the Nitro Crew: @ErikRoner. Check 'em out!
It looks like I need to come up with some money hunny because X-Games is all me next year!
No comments:
Post a Comment