Wind or current may sometimes push you toward or away from the pier where you intend to dock. To find the direction and force of the wind or current, stop your boat someplace nearby and see which way it drifts—and how fast. Armed with that knowledge, you can plan your docking approach and avoid surprises. When wind and current come from opposite directions, they sometimes cancel each other out. Read the rest of this entry »
Safe and easy trailering depends on preparation and practice. Once you know the basics, towing a trailer is simple. Backing up is more difficult. Remember that no one is a “natural” at backing a trailer, and even the experts needed time to master the tricks. Before you drive off to launch your boat at a busy ramp, take time to practice backing the trailer in a deserted parking lot or empty field. Read the rest of this entry »
Americans enjoy waterskiing each year, making it one of the most popular waterborne sports. But there’s more to it than just having a boat and finding a deserted body of water. For maximum pleasure and safety the boat should be properly outfitted and the skipper must understand what skills are required. An observer facing aft, toward the skier, must be as involved as the skipper. Read the rest of this entry »
Not only a safety requirement, but also a legal one in this country. An approved motorcycle helmet must be worn by riders and pillion passengers when the motorcycle is used on the road.
There are two basic motorcycle helmet styles, open face and full face: both are available in either glass fibre or polycarbonate. Read the rest of this entry »
Pointing your skis downhill as fast as you can is something that millions of us do every year when taking in any one of several ski resorts or cross country touring centers around the globe. Each skier has sought out a bump or jump from time to time, and all can appreciate the rush that even a small launch into the air can provide. That thrill has driven skiers to seek jumps for as tong as there have been skis. Read the rest of this entry »
The ground broken by skateboarders over the past three decades has been invaded by a new group of urban athletes. Aggressive inline skaters have co- opted much of the style and culture of skateboarding into their sport. Aggressive skaters have taken what were initially just fitness and training devices and transformed them into urban assault vehicles that have been embraced by pop culture.
Inline skates can trace their roots back to the Chicago Skate Company, and perhaps further, as evidence of wheeled boots dates back to the early days of bicycling. But it wasn’t until brothers Scott and Brennan Olsen created the first Rollerblades in their Minneapolis basement that the sport took off. The brothers stumbled on a pair of Chicago Skate
Company’s inline skates in the bargain bin of a used equipmentstore while looking for a way to trainfor hockey in the off season. Theskates offered minimal support and awful wheels. The Olsens added greater support and urethane wheels, and the rest is history. Read the rest of this entry »
As off-road motorcycle riders have become more skilled, and as the equipment available from manufacturers has become consistently lighter and more powerful with an ever-increasing range of suspension travel, the physical boundaries of what can and can’t be done on a motocross (motoX) bike are expanding. In the early days of off-road motorcycling, the thought that riders would someday leap 40 or 50 feet (12-15m) in the air, regularly, would have seemed absurd. However that is precisely the state of extreme motoX today. Extreme riding is not as new as today’s riders would make it seem, though.
Extreme Riding is not as new as today’s riders would make it seem, though. Hill climbs, trials riding (riders negotiate through a broad range of obstacles, requiring low speed, highly technical, balanced handling), and motoX racing have been part of motorcycle sport for years. In their day, many other riders pushed the limits of what had been done to that date. Daredevil riderexample of an early extreme pioneer, who also had a pretty good grasp of self-promotion. Evel Knievel is a classic Read the rest of this entry »
Traveling down a snow-covered 60-degree slope at an excess of 125 mph (200 kph) on a skis is without question extreme. In fact, the 150 mph (240 kph) record for speed skiing was recently established. Is there any doubt that riding a mountain bike down that very same slope and seeking to achieve that very same speed is extreme too?
Over the past few years, downhill mountain bike racers have been pushing the limits of speed on specially outfitted mountain bikes, and have already broken the 125 mph threshold. The bikes are fitted with special aerodynamic fairings and tires modified with large spikes to grip the snow and ice-covered surface as they accelerate to maximum velocity before racing through a speed-trap zone (a timed distance that determines the official speed established by the rider). Read the rest of this entry »
Snowboarding was reviled for years by skiers and the ski industry. Early on, most mountains would not allow snowboards on their lift systems or their slopes.
These confrontations were when snowboarders, who justly felt they had a right to be on the hill, responded strongly and aggressively in their own defense. More than a few verbal and physical brawls resulted, enhancing skiers‘ perception that all snowboarders were bad news.
These cultural boundaries are now breaking down as skiers begin to appreciate three things; snowboarding is here to stay, snowboarders ride to have fun, just like they do, and snowboarders have attained a level of skill performance that is equal to or higher than skiing in many ways. Read the rest of this entry »
All forms of sport need an element of revitalization or they risk becoming commonplace. Skiing has been a part of life for anyone living near snow-covered or mountainous regions of the globe. With the advent of cheap international air travel, skiing as a sport for the masses progressed until it reached saturation point—interest and participation waned.
And then the surfer-skateboarder axis saw snow glinting on distant hills… Read the rest of this entry »
Skiing in its own right is a pretty extreme sport, and has been for years. One skiing discipline that is as amazing as it is extreme is speed skiing. Imagine screaming down a mountain at 150 mph (240 kph) on skis. That is exactly what current world Record holder and 1992 Olympic Bronze medalist Jeff Hamilton of Truckee, California did in 1995 at Vars, France, becoming the first skier to break the 150 mph barrier, and the fastest non-motorized human on the planet.
Consider the forces at play when traveling at 150 mph. The skier is literally skiing faster a sky diver in freefall. The skis are no r even touching the ground at that. Instead they are riding on a cushion of Even the slightest error in judgment or at that speed can be deadly. Read the rest of this entry »
For years skiing has symbolized the carefree pursuit of sport in paradise‑like winter settings around the world. Since the first skier rode downhill somewhere in Scandinavia, skiing has drawn free-spirited athletes to the mountains. But enjoyment of the sport became for much only a lifestyle statement and the thrill of challenging terrain and conditions seemed to dwindle. Now a new generation of extreme athletes is redefining the meaning of downhill skiing.
Ski Resorts have tamed skiing. Snowcats, towed terrain-grooming equipment, gentle pistes, vista spots, posh resort restaurants— not long ago skiing was a very different pursuit of sport and challenge, and the relaxation came from winning a personal test of ability. Read the rest of this entry »
The hydrofoil, a wing that creates lift in water, is not new, and hydrofoils are commonly used on powerboats today. They are even used on sailboats to minimize resistance and set speed records, which is itself an extreme endeavor. However, it wasn’t until 1989 that a hydrofoil attached to a chair became commercially available for athletes seeking a new tow-behind water challenge.
The air chair, as it has become known, was designed by a couple of friends on the Colorado River, one of whom was the co- creator of the kneeboard (a waterski that the rider kneels on) and a hot dog waterski pioneer, Mike Murphy. Murphy’s friend Bob Wooley became fascinated with the concept of riding a performance hydrofoil, and after several months of experimentation attached the foil to a “sit ski,” a seated version of a waterski. Read the rest of this entry »
Sports are about competition, but also about contact. Sports which involve the thrill of speed invariably require specialized equipment to undertake them, but for the sportsman, the nearer to the elements you can get, the greater the sense of accomplishment. So for water skiiers, what could make more sense than dispensing with the skis?
Barefoot Water Skiing began in Winter Haven, Florida in 1947. Water skiing pioneer Chuck Sligh theorized that water skiing without skis might be possible if the ski boat went fast enough. A 17-year-old boy named AG Hancock proved him right, becoming the first water skier to drop a ski and continue barefoot successfully. Hancock left on a family vacation before he could show the trick to Cypress Garden’s Dick Pope Sr.. A few days later, Pope’s son Dick Jr. successfully dropped a ski and got all the glory— photographs, newspaper stories, newsreels, the works. Barefoot skiers soon adapted many of the freestyle moves of traditional waterskiers. Spins, backward maneuvers, body drags, and other tricks made barefooting an exciting new discipline. Due to the speeds required to barefoot, the tricks are especially difficult, and dangerous, since the water becomes very hard in a high-speed impact. Read the rest of this entry »
Swimming long distances for sport is a challenge that only the most fit and determined extreme athletes pursue. Its roots can be traced back to1875 when Captain Matthew Webb became the first swimmer to cross the English Channel. Since then, crossing the channel has been one of the more defining feats of long distance, or open water, swimming. Open water is the appropriate term, since races and crossings are never held in a pool that would be too easy and lacking danger.
Open Water Swimming races are held globally, and were included in many of the early Olympic Games. Course lengths are usually 5, 10, 15, or 25 kilometers (3-15.5 miles) and require several hours to complete. The courses are set between two points on any large body of water. Some races require athletes to do several laps to complete a given distance, while others may consist of one very long lap. Read the rest of this entry »
Motorcycles have always attracted people with a yearning for speed and an appetite for adrenaline. For years, the closest thing anyone could get to that sensation on the water was in a small boat with a big motor. These were fast, but could hardly be called maneuverable. Then in 1965 a Californian banker with a passion for motorcycles conceived of an aquatic version which would become known worldwide as the Jet Ski.
Clayton JACOBSON enjoyed building racing motorcycles in his spare time. He loved going fast on motorcycles— but crashing on hard pavement was not what he considered to be their appeal. The concept of the Jet Ski was born from Jacobson’s theory that a motorcycle for the water would be just as fun to ride as the ones he enjoyed building, but without the pain of a hard landing if you fell off. Mr. Jacobson would be correct. Read the rest of this entry »
Wakeboarding is a relatively new extreme sport. Its heritage can be linked to waterskiing, surfing, windsurfing, skateboarding, and snowboarding, and it is quickly redefining how we look at boat-towed sports.
Towing a surfboard behind either a boat in the water or a car on the beach on waveless days is as old as modern surfing. The need to ride on a board drives many “sideways” sports enthusiasts to try whatever they need to get out and ride on their boards. That’s how skateboarding began, and later windsurfing and snowboarding. For decades, if there was no surf, surfers were known to grab a line and get pulled by a boat or even by a truck running onshore. This was no easy trick, since this was not the intended purpose of a surfboard. Strong surfers could pull it off and get some turns in on a flat day. Read the rest of this entry »
The best precaution is to use your common sense, observe avalanche warnings, and never travel on closed routes. They have been closed to keep you out of danger, and even if you take the risk and get away with it, your tracks may tempt others into danger and they may not be so lucky.
Most avalanches occur at known spots, and when avalanche conditions exist, a warning is issued, ski pistes are closed and the emergency services stand by. Providing the skier does what he is told, and stays out of danger, little harm can come to him. Read the rest of this entry »
When you get really cold, the body transfers warmth from the skin surfaces to the body centre in order to maintain core heat. This causes shivering as the skin tries to generate heat and can lead to frostbite. Frostbite is a term which means an actual freezing of the flesh, until ice actually forms in the tissues. A less serious, but still painful form is frostnip, where the skin becomes burnt and blistered by the effects of exposure to winds and low temperatures, but swift action in covering the affected parts and re-warming the flesh can quickly prevent this, or reduce the effects.
Slight frostbite is usually indicated by a whiteness of the skin and a loss of sensation. The ears, toes, fingers, nose, cheeks and chin, are particularly vulnerable. If such signs are noticed and the areas concerned covered and re-warmed at once, then no further damage need result. Read the rest of this entry »
In the wilderness hazards are mercifully few and far between. Even where they exist they are merely potential hazards, quite safe if you, the traveller, take the correct action or observe a few simple precautions. The main danger lies in failing to recognize the existence of this potential danger. Unfamiliarity with the terrain is a prime cause of hazard, and any city-dweller venturing into the wild is automatically at risk for this reason. The same would be true of a shepherd who leaves his flocks and wanders among traffic.
Two good examples of terrain which will always be unfamiliar to the majority of outdoor people are deserts and the jungle. Unfamiliar as they are, they can still be entered in safety, provided certain basic situations are understood and allowed for. Read the rest of this entry »
