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Dirt Jumping
By:
Published: September 30, 2006
Tabletops, barspins and shooters. While these may all be indulgent touchstones of fraternity life and crazy, hazy bar-hopping nights, they also represent mainstays in the world of dirt jumping, the subculture of the bicycle macrocosm in which bike riders pedal on muddy terrain over mounds of soil.
Dirt jumping is like a deviant, underground form of gymnastics, but on two wheels and with a seemingly higher risk of injury.
Similar to gymnastics, the goal is to propel one's self and bike as far off the ground as possible and to increase the force of gravity between the two participating elements, one willing to take the fall and the other indiscriminately willing to give the bruising and cracking.
Dirt jumping requires a variety of bikes. BMX bikes are probably the most popular due to their size and weight. Cruisers and occasionally mountain bikes also tend to populate the local dirt jumping scene. Of course, gas-powered bikes (freestyle motocross) also are used in this genre of biking, especially in those involving racing.
The sport's underground quality is perceivably one of the most attractive aspects of dirt jumping. Its acts are deviant in terms of the forces of nature, but even its courses lend a sense of underground credibility because many of the mound-ridden courses are constructed illegally.
While there are some races, the winning times are rarely featured on SportsCenter's highlight reel. Instead, it is the gravity defying, consequence-indifferent stunts performed by meticulous, highly-skilled dirt jumpers responsible for getting the crowd out of their seats and making a rousing commotion. The tricks are completely acrobatic and awe-inspiring.
Unlike its road cyclist counterparts, dirt jumping riders need to have sufficient upper body strength in order to leverage and propel their bikes to take flight. These riders also tend to boldly retreat from spandex or shaving their body hair. They flee from tight-fitting, half-zippered jerseys. Fashion in BMX riding and dirt jumping is an integral part of the sport. It is an act of individual expression.
Though dirt jumping has yet to become part of popular culture, besides its annual appearance on ESPN's X Games, most of the younger generations are familiar with the sport's most talented gear-riding gymnasts, such as Dave Mira and TJ Lavin. These riders have both hosted MTV shows, such as the Real World/Road Rules Challenge, and consequently boosted some interest in MTV's targeted audience.
Traditionalists may argue dirt jumping, like skateboarding, is a sign of deviance or an act for hoodlums. Perhaps they cannot find the value in creativity, expression and jaw-dropping acrobatics without the use of safety nets or catastrophe-preventing bungee cords. But what other sport in the world can claim to amazingly utilize tabletops, ski jumps and whips all on a course purposefully designed with muddy mounds? Probably none.
Dirt jumping is like a deviant, underground form of gymnastics, but on two wheels and with a seemingly higher risk of injury.
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Dirt jumping requires a variety of bikes. BMX bikes are probably the most popular due to their size and weight. Cruisers and occasionally mountain bikes also tend to populate the local dirt jumping scene. Of course, gas-powered bikes (freestyle motocross) also are used in this genre of biking, especially in those involving racing.
The sport's underground quality is perceivably one of the most attractive aspects of dirt jumping. Its acts are deviant in terms of the forces of nature, but even its courses lend a sense of underground credibility because many of the mound-ridden courses are constructed illegally.
While there are some races, the winning times are rarely featured on SportsCenter's highlight reel. Instead, it is the gravity defying, consequence-indifferent stunts performed by meticulous, highly-skilled dirt jumpers responsible for getting the crowd out of their seats and making a rousing commotion. The tricks are completely acrobatic and awe-inspiring.
Unlike its road cyclist counterparts, dirt jumping riders need to have sufficient upper body strength in order to leverage and propel their bikes to take flight. These riders also tend to boldly retreat from spandex or shaving their body hair. They flee from tight-fitting, half-zippered jerseys. Fashion in BMX riding and dirt jumping is an integral part of the sport. It is an act of individual expression.
Though dirt jumping has yet to become part of popular culture, besides its annual appearance on ESPN's X Games, most of the younger generations are familiar with the sport's most talented gear-riding gymnasts, such as Dave Mira and TJ Lavin. These riders have both hosted MTV shows, such as the Real World/Road Rules Challenge, and consequently boosted some interest in MTV's targeted audience.
Traditionalists may argue dirt jumping, like skateboarding, is a sign of deviance or an act for hoodlums. Perhaps they cannot find the value in creativity, expression and jaw-dropping acrobatics without the use of safety nets or catastrophe-preventing bungee cords. But what other sport in the world can claim to amazingly utilize tabletops, ski jumps and whips all on a course purposefully designed with muddy mounds? Probably none.
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