EXTREME SPORTS – WHAT’S THE ‘X’-FACTOR?
Extreme sports are … well extremely popular. It seems that people are pushing the boundaries everywhere – going higher and harder than ever before on bicycles, motorbikes, skis, skateboards and surfboards.
It’s a multibillion dollar industry – and growing. In the United States, the surfing industry was estimated to be worth over seven billion dollars in 2008, while the snowboarding industry expanded by thirty per cent. Paintballing grew by 63% in the same period, with over nine million people taking aim. Other extreme activities such as mountainbiking, base jumping, skydiving and bungee jumping are also said to be on the rise.
Any suggestions for the reasons behind the growth in this industry? Are our lifestyles becoming increasingly regulated and stifling and people need to break free from that or is it just that these extreme activities are simply becoming more accessible to ordinary people?. It may be that these extreme sports offer an opportunity for self-actualisation that isn’t possible with more conventional sports, and they provide participants with opportunities to defy ‘officialdom’.
An alternative viewpoint is that the media have created the hype, which in turn leads to higher viewership and higher ratings – which translates into a very clever media coup. Whatever the perspective, the fact remains, that the industry is big. Multibillion dollar extreme sports complexes are under construction, BMX is an Olympic sport, some universities offer extreme sports management as a degree and there are dedicated channels on TV covering extreme games.
What motivates these sportspeople to risk life and limb? Many of the people who do these alternative sports say it’s all about overcoming personal limitations.
Australian research suggests that extreme sportsmen and women weren’t pursuing the adrenalin rush, but were careful to minimize risk, they loved doing the sport and they found a real sense of peace, a closeness to nature and had sense of humility.
So if you feel up to plummeting towards earth at over 200 kilometres an hour or putting some air between you and the snowy ground on your snowboard – best you trade your chess board for an indemnity form. If it doesn’t fire you up but you know someone who’s itching to push the envelope, read on to find out how you can get their heart racing.
The growing popularity of extreme sports led to the birth of another industry – gift certificates for a range of high-adrenalin activities such as white water rafting which give participants an adrenalin rush of their own thanks to the unusual gifts ideas. Presenting someone with a piece of paper which is their key to their lifelong dream, be it a joy flight, jet boating or kayaking could enable them to unlock a whole new perspective on life.
One experiential gift certificate company, BigThanks which offers extreme adventures ranging from jet boating gifts in Perth to race car driving gifts in Melbourne, and they say demand comes from across the board – including wedding and birthday celebrations, gifts for women and men to companies looking for fresh ideas for motivating staff and team building
Not everyone is able to jump from a plane or take a corner at breakneck speed, but it’s worth taking a moment to consider the words of John Wooden who said : “Do not let what you cannot do interfere with what you can do’.
Sydney Motorbike P’s Test Course
