Playing it safe while taking sports to extremes

By Emily Edwards, 14, with contributions from Eric Peterson, 12; Eric Schafer-Nelson, 12; Matt Tryan, 12, and Clint Remsburg, 9.

Ian Thorely, 15, of Marquette, Mich. loves jumping and twisting in the air on a snowboard. He thrives on the challenge and competition. An element of risk adds to his enjoyment of this so-called “extreme sport.”

“I get scared a lot, but that's what I like about it,” he said. “If there's a new trick I want to learn, I'd be scared about trying it, but after I do it, it feels good.”

Ian has been snowboarding for seven years and skateboarding for two. He is one of a growing number of young people in the Upper Peninsula who are getting into extreme sports - individual sports that are often new and flashy, involve speed, jumps, and a surge of adrenaline.

Jeff Stasser, owner of Downwind Sports in Marquette which sells outdoor sporting goods, has seen a steady increase in popularity of sports such as snowboarding, mountain biking, rock and ice climbing, inline skating and sea kayaking. This winter Stasser helped to organize an indoor climbing competition for adults and kids. In the summer he leads a youth mountain bike racing team.

X-Games raise visibility of extreme sports. Stasser attributes part of the growing popularity of extreme sports among youth to the higher visibility of these sports on television. ESPN's annual Summer and Winter X Games have had a major impact on some sports, he said.

“For example, a small portion of the population knew anything about ice climbing before the X Games decided to cover it,” Stasser said. “All of a sudden there was a big interest in ice climbing. A sport that wasn’t competitive all of a sudden had a competitive edge to it.”

“I think the X Games got the word out,” Ian agrees. “It kind of showed the average kid at home that there are extreme sports, and how they can do them. I used to watch them on TV. I grew up thinking they were really cool.”

Jason Carstons, 12, of Marquette, is an avid downhill and cross country skier and mountain bike racer.

“I like these sports because there is a risk involved and it gets your adrenaline going,” Jason said. “Most other sports don’t give me the thrill that mountain biking and skiing do.”

Safety is serious business
Along with that risk comes the need to take safety seriously.

Ian and Jason have been hurt in the past. Jason has broken a few of his fingers and Ian has cracked his ribs. But both boys say those sorts of incidents are rare for them because they make safety a priority.

“It is very easy to have fun and still be safe," Jason said. “With all the technology that they have with pads and stuff, if you're careful, I don't think that there's a really big chance that you’re going to get hurt.”

The danger, they said, comes when people try to do things that are beyond their ability level.

“You can get people that don’t exactly know what they’re doing, and they can get caught up in it and just try stuff they’re not ready for and get hurt,” Ian said.

“It takes a lot of practice to be good at something and not get hurt,” added Jason.

“If you want to try a sport,” advised Stasser, “do it within your limits and get into a program that's going to help you learn and help you expand your limits and teach you about protective gear that's out there to keep you safe.”

He said that today's equipment, such as break-away ski bindings, are being made safer, and there are more safety products available. Most importantly, he said, kids are accepting those products.

“People are starting to wear standard equipment,” he said. “Helmets are cool to wear on the snowboard hill, and I'd look twice if I saw a mountain biker riding around without a helmet.”

Even though Ian and Jason try to stay within their limits, they sometimes wipe out. They say they learn from their mistakes and always keep trying.

“I think every time I fall, sometimes I regret what I tried or regret that I did that. But I always have the urge to go back and try it again, said Ian.

“I’ve thought about quitting before when I’ve hurt myself," Jason said. “But I’ve always just loved it so much that I wanted to keep doing it.”

Thrill of competition
Part of what Ian and Jason love is the competition.

“Competition is really important to me," Ian said. “I have a lot of fun doing it. It can take you really cool places like nationals out in California and Colorado.”

Ian has competed in the United States Amateur Snowboard Association national tournament for three years. He plans to go this year also. Two years ago, he ranked fourth in the nation for his age in slope-style snowboarding which includes jumps and tricks.

Jason competed in the 27-mile Ice Man mountain bike race in Traverse City last fall where he placed second overall for his age. He placed ninth in the Fat Tire festival in Copper Harbor.

“I like competing a lot,” he said. “I go out there to win, and I don't always win, but it's fun anyway for me. I might get close or I might get really far away from winning, but it's still a lot of fun.”

To prepare for competition, the boys practice their sport nearly everyday. Jason practices five to seven days a week for mountain biking.

“Anyone can go out on a mountain bike or a snowboard and go down a hill, but it takes a lot of practice to do good and to get better,” according to Jason.

Ian practices snowboarding six days a week.

“When school gets out, I’m normally out (at the ski hill) by 5:00, and I’ll stay until 9:30,” Ian said. “On weekends I’ll come out here at noon and stay until 9:30.”

Parental support helps kids succeed
The boys say that along with hard work, parental support is important to be successful in extreme sports competitions.

“My mom and dad are really supportive,” Ian said. “Right from the very beginning when I started competing, my mom was always there with the video camera. My dad was always there watching me and after every run they would tell me what I did good and tell me to keep it up.”

“My parents are very supportive of my sports,” Jason said. “They always come to my races. And they know that I know my limits. And they trust me to be careful.”