X Games 15 is officially in the history books. New tricks were pulled, new and old faces were on the podiums, there were tales of victory and upset, and a bunch of riders went home with big, fat paychecks… This is the best of X Games 15 with a peek behind the scenes, and a look at some of the best riding shots of the contest.
Big Air
Despite what some of the ignorant and negative comments on this site may tell you, X Games is synonymous with progression and the biggest news from X Games 15 was that Anthony Napolitan pulled the world’s first ever double frontflip in competition. He had been doing them (somewhat in secret) on the resi ski jump at Camp Woodward and apparently had them dialed. When it came down to showtime during the Big Air competition, he nailed it on his second attempt over the 70-foot jump. The crowd at the Staples Center thought Anthony should have gotten on the podium, but because of how the contest is scored, Anthony didn’t go home with a medal this year. In Big Air, judges give the riders scores based on an overall run including the jump and the quarter pipe, and since Anthony didn’t go as high as the others or trick the quarter, he didn’t get a very high score. If you want to argue about it, hit up our own Editor In Chief Keith Mulligan as he was one of the judges for Big Air.
A 70-foot jump and a 26-foot-tall quarter pipe is something no BMX rider sessions on a regular basis, so the six riders in the Big Air competition really lay it on the line to put on a show for everyone during X Games. This is the third year that Big Air has been a part of X Games and the third year something insane has gone down in the contest. Some of the comments on this site sounded angry about only one new trick being done in Big Air, but I think one new thing a year is plenty when you are talking about only six riders and a ramp that massive. Kevin Robinson won with no-handed flips over the 70-foot jump and no-handed flairs around the 20-foot mark out of the 26-foot-tall quarter pipe-something he’s done before, but is still just as insane as the first time he did it.
Looking down the roll in of the Mega Ramp for Big Air. Photo by Fat.
Vert
The big story this year in the Vert competition was Jamie Bestwick getting a gold medal for the third year in a row, making him the third BMX rider to ever three-peat at X Games. Dave Mirra won Park three years in a row in the mid-90s, Corey Bohan won gold in Dirt the last three years they had it in X Games, and now Jamie Bestwick has won first place in Vert three years in a row. If he continues on this path and remains healthy, next year he will probably become the first BMX rider to ever win four gold medals in a row. Jamie is on a completely different level than anyone else who has ever ridden a vert ramp.
What else happened in Vert this year? Well, besides Jamie showing up with his own face painted on the top of his helmet, Simon Tabron became the second rider to pull a 900 variation with his one-handed, one-footed nine; second only to Mat Hoffman’s no-handed 900 in 2002 at X Games. Also, at the age of 42 Dennis McCoy pulled a 900 just like he did 15 years ago at the very first X Games-15 years of X Games, and 15 years of DMC being on top of the vert riding game and pulling 900s. Very impressive.
Coco Zurita getting high and twisty. Photo by Fat.
What ESPN didn’t show you, though, is how DMC may have cost Tim Wood a spot in the finals this year. The way the format of Vert works is that there is a 12-minute jam session for five riders. Each rider gets to ride for 30 seconds at a time, so at the end of the 30 seconds the next person has to drop in on their own accord. If you fall, your run is over and you have to get off the ramp so the other riders can continue to ride. On two separate occasions in the contest (once after crashing and once after pulling a run) Dennis wasted time by playing around on the flat bottom of the ramp, eating up valuable time on the clock that Tim Wood would have used to drop a run that could have got him into the finals. And with perfect 900s and lots of 540 variations, Tim could very well have scored well enough to make it to the finals had he given it another full run. Simon Tabron even passed on his run and gave it to Tim because he already had a good enough score to make it to the finals and wanted to see Tim get as fair of a chance as possible. I’m not here to call out a legend in our sport, but if I’m reporting on the contest honestly, I thought the showboating on flat bottom by DMC was in poor taste when so much was on the line, and I would have liked to see Tim Wood get in another full run.
(EDITED 7/16/10 – Editor’s Note: The above paragraph caused a lot of controversy in the comments on this page, and among pro riders. At the time I wrote and published this article I was unaware of some of the specific rules that X Games has in place regarding times and runs. I have since discussed the situation with Dennis McCoy and been informed that his “showboating on flat bottom” as I previously called it in no way effected anything in the competition. I have apologized to Dennis in person for my lack of research and knowledge in my journalism. I did not intended to cause such a stir, and certainly never intended to drag Dennis’ name through the mud. I mean, come on, the dude has been a pro rider for 25 years and can spin 900s at 43 years old. Nothing but respect…)
Park
Daniel Dhers won X Games Park the last two years in a row, so he was in contention for being one of the elite riders in the sport to three-peat at X Games this year along with Jamie Bestwick. However, the course just wasn’t very conducive to his riding style, and to everyone’s surprise, Daniel didn’t even break into the top five this year. Judges were looking for high-speed lines and transfers around the park, and even though he had a huge bag of difficult tricks, Daniel just didn’t use the course to its full potential and it cost him. Scotty Cranmer won X Games Park in 2006 and didn’t ride in ’08 due to an injury, but he came back this year and was on fire. He had the huge tricks like flip double whips and flip turndowns, but he also had wild transfers and gaps that he threw tricks into, which is what helped him get the gold medal once again.
The course got mixed reviews this year. It was the first time anyone has ever made a park that was half wood and half cement. The cement allowed the riders to go faster, and allowed the course designers to get the bowls and bends more precise. Some riders loved it, and some hated it, but even the ones that hated it would have loved it had it been a skatepark in their area and not the biggest contest of the year. The fact of the matter is that X Games is known for huge, crazy tricks and the “contest style” riding that it has helped create over the past 15 years. So some people were bummed that what they have grown to love about X Games was changed up this year due to a completely different style of Park course. I have mixed feelings about it. On one hand, I appreciate the fact that X Games is trying to change things up and is moving in a direction that is more relatable to the majority of riders out there. But at the same time I would have rather seen new, progressive tricks being done on a regular box jump, a spine, and quarter pipes than the same tricks we’ve seen for years being done up step ups and on to fly outs.
Ryan Guettler flairing over a Jersey barrier channel. Photo by Fat.
Street
Garrett Reynolds is to Street what Jamie Bestwick is to Vert. He’s simply on a different level than any other rider out there. This week Garrett won his seventh gold medal in X Games Street. This is only the second time they’ve had Street at a U.S. X Games contest, but he’s won at X Games in China, Dubai, Mexico, and a few other countries, too. After seeing riders like Brian Kachinsky methodically looking down a rail, calculating his every move before he makes it, then seeing Garrett ride, it makes it seem like Garrett is simply playing around the entire time he’s on the course. Everything he does looks completely casual and effortless, and his peers, the fans, and I all absolutely love it.
After a handful of amazing Web videos and winning Best Trick at Simpel Session in Estonia, the committee that selects the riders for X Games invited Ty Morrow to L.A. for his first X Games appearance. It was awesome to see a new rider like Ty do so well at such a huge contest, and with all the struggling “pro” riders out there I can’t help but be stoked for a hardcore, underground street rider when he wins $30,000.
Here is a quick peek behind the scenes at X Games along with a handful of our best riding photos from the week. See you next year!
TAGS: 2009 X Games, Behind The Scenes, X Games 15
