Chief executive officer and co-chairman of the USA Pro Cycling Challenge Shawn Hunter said that he was very happy with the way the event turned out this year. He was pleased by the gathering of the large crowds, their enthusiastic spirit and their generosity in spending money, as well as by the fact that many people actually came to Colorado just to see this event.

Several Coloradans as well as people from outside the state traveled for more than 50 miles to take part in the event. Estimates suggest that more than $67 million was earned from direct spending by fans and spectators on food, lodging, transportation and entertainment. Apart from gambling on http://www.partycasino.com/, people even placed bets on the likely winners and strong contenders. Other factors contributing to this economic impact included the team and staff, sponsorship, vendor spending, employment opportunities created by this sporting event as well as the tax revenue earned through expenditure related to this racing event.

An approximate 22 % of the total number of spectators came from outside Colorado and a majority of them promising to return next year for this annual event has led Hunter to be optimistic about a promising future for the State of Colorado.

This immensely positive response has led the organizers to announce last month that they are trying to bring this racing event back to Colorado again next year. At present they are evaluating the bids put forward by wannabe host towns and cities. The race will be held again next year from August 20th to August 26th.

John Hickenlooper, Governor of Colorado believes that Colorado has several special features; the combination of which cannot be seen in other places. These include beautiful scenery, several world-renowned destinations and plenty of great amenities. He hopes that someday this annual cycling event will draw more international crowd and turn Colorado into a major summer hotspot.

A survey about the visitors showed that the race had hit a popularity chord with the families and that majority of the fans appeared in groups of five or more people. The people really enjoyed all the different parts of the seven day experience and thought it was quite impressive for an inaugural edition. A majority of the people coming from outside Colorado said that the cycling event was the main reason behind their visit to Colorado.

Spectator Groups

Among the spectators, a large number of people claimed to be cycling enthusiasts regularly participating in races and club rides as well as supporting charity events focusing on cycling. Around 30% of the fans regularly ride bikes for health and fitness reasons and almost 25% said that they are occasional riders. Some said they don’t ride a bike at all.

Michael B. Hancock, Mayor of Denver commented that the figures of attendees is one thing but the enthusiasm that he saw in the eyes of a million fans who came to witness the event in downtown Denver as well as saw the live event on television, really made him consider this event as a great showcase for Denver as a cycling town.

The Tour De France guide therefore would be a special magazine where all the experts will be free to give their opinions on all the action, and any well seasoned sports enthusiast will tell you how important all that commentary is and how useful such a guide and magazine can be to stay updated about the race. So, if you are one of those people following the race, hurry and subscribe to the guide as soon as possible.

The other reason why fans all around are so excited about the Tour De France guide just as they are about the match itself is because of all the drama that the race is involved in this year especially. Lance Armstrong of course is going to be trying very hard so that his team can get back their glory again, but his bitter rivalry with Alberto Contador who of course was his teammate not so long ago is very thick in the air, and fans cannot wait to see how this all churns out. This Tour De France Guide therefore would be the perfect way to find out about all this drama as well, as they will be keeping you updated about everything happening in the race itself.

In fact, the editors who work for the Bicycling magazine are now claiming that this year’s race of 2010 is actually going to go down in bicycling history and become one of the classic races because of all the high stakes and the drama that is a part of it now.

Like skateboarding, inline skating is a form of extreme sports with skaters referring to their sport as aggressive inline skating, which has seen the addition of tricks and flips into a skaters repertoire.

Aggressive inline skating can involve a number of different locations such as vertical skating in half pipes, skating in specially designed skate parks and street skating. With each different environment comes a different set of skills from the skaters and technical requirements from the inline skates themselves.

Street skaters use their surrounding environment and the features of buildings, parks and street furniture to perform their tricks, and can involve a lot of grinding along railings. Skaters who visit specifically designed skate parks can find all the features that a street skater would look for in one place as well as half pipes and quarter pipes, which have been designed with the demands of their sport in mind and without the risk of hitting pedestrians. Vert skaters focuses on skating within a half pipe and demands the ability to perform complex aerial manoeuvres to become successful within this branch of the extreme sport.

Aggressive inline skating once featured in the X Games but since 2005 it has not been a part of this competition, but the popularity of the sport continues to grow as does the technical abilities and skills of the skaters.

The skates themselves are comprised from a cuff, a shell with an inner liner, a soul plate, which has the frame attached to it. The frame acts as the chassis for the wheels of the skate. Like with the skateboard as the popularity of the sport has increased the skate itself has developed technically, with materials being manufactured which are lightweight but strong enough to support and protect the skater’s feet and ankles. Likewise wheels have developed to result in wheel sets which are optimised for hardness, durability and size.

Inline skating continues to be a popular extreme sport, and as the wheels are fixed to the boot the skater has the ability to perform some tricks which traditional skateboarders struggle to achieve such as some of the more technically demanding aerial tricks.

So strap on a pair of inline skates and take to the streets.

Of all the competitions it is the X Games which draws in the celebrity skaters and the skate-loving crowds. The first X Games was held in 1995 and has proven to be hugely successful with a winter version of the games having its inaugural event in 1997. The 2010 Summer X Games is due to be held in Los Angeles, California.

Skateboarding and the X Games

Just what is it that brings the crowds to the X Games? What about… Extreme sports, sport celebrities and of course NEW TRICKS.

It was at the 1999 X Games that Tony Hawk first landed the “900”, that’s right 900 degrees of aerial spin, they even relaxed the competition rules to allow Tony Hawk to keep trying beyond his permitted time slot and eventually he landed the trick.

Skateboarding and in particular trick skating has risen in popularity across the 1990s and into the new millennium. This rise in popularity has resulted in the evolution of skateboards to match the new demands and needs of riders.

A skateboard comprises of a deck which has two sets of wheels attached to it via trucks. The wheels are mounted to their axles via two bearings. The technology and materials of skateboard design have had to evolve as fast as the rise in popularity, as skaters are looking for light-weight but strong decks and trucks, bearings produced to higher tolerances and wheels which won’t crack on landing.

A skater looking to perform a set of flips and tricks on the streets will often look for a set of smaller wheels to make the tricks easier, but a vertical skater will prefer larger wheels to help generate the necessary speed.

Skateboarding is a great extreme sport to take up, all you need is a board, and you can start off with a cheap one and then you just need to hit the streets and get practicing.

Know Who You Are Travelling With!

It seems obvious but plan ahead and understand what demands will be placed on your tent by who is going camping. If you are travelling with a partner, alone or with a friend you will most likely be best off with a small dome tent. These tents will not have the most storage space or headroom but will pack up easily and can be easily transported… perfect for an adventure trekking holiday.

If you are going on holiday with your family then there are an additional number of factors to consider when choosing your tent. You will probably have more equipment and need more space within the tent, and it is ideal to have a tent large enough for the whole family to sleep in. For this instance you may want to buy a four man tent as there is enough room to sleep the average size family, store your equipment and have enough headroom that your kids will not keep banging there heads on the tent supports.

Where Are You Travelling To?

If you know that you are heading into the wilderness and can expect to meet some extreme weather while camping then plan ahead, don’t just buy the cheapest tent you can find but invest in a tent which will serve you well on this trip and your future trips. A dodgy tent can ruin a holiday and if you are caught up in some extreme weather then your safety could also be at risk if you have not selected an appropriate tent. While a dome tent may be perfect for a spot of summer camping by the beach if you are in higher altitudes or expecting wet and windy weather then you may want to choose a geodesic tent. These tents are similar in size to dome tents, but there pole configuration means that they have greater strength in windy conditions.

What Is Your Tent Made of?

Careful consideration of the correct tent fabric can be the difference between sleepless summer nights or a night of rain dripping on your face. A cotton tent can result in a more comfortable night as the material is more “breathable” but these tents require careful as the material is prone to rotting if not cared for properly which can ruin the next trip!

If you are planning a walking or trekking holiday then a lightweight tent will be a primary concern for you, in which case a nylon or polyester tent will be your best choice. These synthetic material tents are lightweight and can be easily packed down to a small size, perfect for fitting into a rucksack or saddle-pack. Just be aware that sunlight can affect the synthetic materials and the quality of the material can deteriorate with prolonged exposure.

Final Tips

Remember that your tent requires pegs; guide ropes and a mallet in order to be put up correctly so always check and check again before setting out on a trip. It is also important to read the manufacturers instructions which come with your tent as this will give you the specific information for the tent you are travelling with, so don’t get caught out and take ten minutes to read over what the manufacturer recommends.

Finally :  Have fun and be safe! Camping is a great way to holiday and as long as you take all the correct safety precautions you will have a great holiday.

A small tool-kit which is easily transportable can be a great blessing and can potentially get your bike back up-and-running if you have any faults while out riding, get some tips from your local bike shop on what is best to carry and you could potentially save a day’s riding!

As well as looking good a lot of modern biking clothing also incorporates padding and protection, Fox Racing and Troy Lee Designs for example produce a range of body armour, guards, gloves and helmets which help keep you safe and the armour can fit under your outer clothing.

The importance of a good quality and well-fitted helmet cannot be under-estimated as a fall at any speed could potentially result in some bad injuries. If you can, when out travel with some mates, take good quality maps of the area, familiarise yourself with the routes before hand and make a small first aid kit as part of your biking equipment alongside the tools of the trade.

But most importantly check your bike is in good working order before setting out, and then you can enjoy a great days riding.

In Wales there are some great single track routes particularly in Coed y Brenin, the handbuilt all-weather singletracks are situated in a forest and there is a new dual slalom course.

Coed y Brenin is situated in the Snowdonia National Park and offers fantastic riding to mountain bikers of all experience, if you are looking for some of the best mountain biking in Wales then Coed y Brenin could be the course and experience for you.

There is some great riding to be found in the north of England particularly in North Yorkshire where you can find yourself up on the Moors challenging yourself to complete the Cropton Loop or taking an off-road ride around the Howardian Hills, a slightly easier route and perfect for an evening of riding.

So grab your bike, a map and some mates and get outdoors and enjoy some of the best mountain biking in the UK.

Ok, so you’re packed and heading to your favorite spot. You’ve got boards, wetsuits, some wax and loads of beer. But what about fun on the beach at night? Have you prepared for that too?

No worries, Extreemblog prepared the Top 10 Surfing Gear You Must Have On The Shore. Shall we start?

10. Hot Surfing Boardshorts ($28-∞)

That’s the essential part of the surfing subculture. No boardshorts, no surfie. Pick the most colorful one, and show you have cash: Billabong, Quicksilver, Rip Curl… This one on the left looks great.

9.  Extremely Water Resistant Aussie Suncream ($25/two pack)

Make sure you have the best sun and UV protection when surfing. Simply grab a nice Suncream with “Australia” label on it – now everyone will respect you.

8. Colored Waterproof Sunblock ($6)

Zinka has rolled out a new line of sunscreen products in bright colors. Now applying it on face, nose, ears, etc. is going to be an art. But please, use it wisely and don’t look like a surfing Geisha.

Full list of colors >>

7. USB Green SurfDrive ($20/4GB)

Accidentally, while you were surfing you got awesome waves, and luckily there was a professional photographer on the beach taking the photos of your unbelievable tricks (even though you were actually just scared, fighting to survive). Or you met a nice girl and wanted to save the photo as a proof for friends.

Anyway, what you need is a USB flash dive with original design.

6. Surfing Monopoly ($35)

When weather sucks, play the best-ever variation of Monopoly. Rule the most formidable surf spots in the world including Pipeline, Restaurants, Todos Santos and Maverick’s.  Plus stunning photography of the world’s best breaks.

And you can pick up girls saying that it benefits the Surfrider Foundation, dedicated to preserving our oceans and waterways.

5. A Surf Watch ($10)

“The stretchy colorful 100% latex rubber band hugs to the contours of your wrist and ensures that it won’t fall off even in the most demanding sports. The Surf Watch is extremely comfortable and lightweight so you will hardly notice you are wearing it.”

Black, whit and red available.

4. HangGoose Wetsuit Hanger ($39)

Easy hanging is critical to good wetsuit care. With that piece, you will hang anywhere: shower heads, car racks, tree branches, door trim, rain gutters, rafters… ok, for some almost anywhere. ; )

3. Waterproof First Aid Kit ($15)

“The heavy-duty nylon bag is specially coated and has a waterproof zipper to ensure that your first aid supplies stay dry. Doctor-selected contents for a day trip on the water.”

In short, it means the kit is good for surfing.

2. Surfsling Board Carrier ($30)

Hands-free surfboard carrier, a towel and a bag in one. Useful, when you have no car, or just a bike.

1. True Surfer Condoms ($1,36/6 pack!)

Surfrider Foundation just released new collection of recycled surfer condoms. Try it if you are such a hardcore you claimed to be. And it’s only $1,36/6 pack! (via 5Ones.com)

Have fun!

What the essential extreme equipment in yor bags? Share your ideas for the next Top 10 series!

(First pic credit: halle, rest borrowed from their appropriate resellers, links in titles)

Land Sailing at El Mirage dry lake in very high winds at 50-70 MPH filmed from a Toyota CJ-7 4 wheel drive truck.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Andrew, the author, comments:

“(..) this would not be possible with out David Bone spotting at 70 miles an hour in high wind focusing on the sail we really needed a spotter to keep us from having a collision with other vehicles, sails quads, dirtbikes.

Safety is really so important in an environment like this.”

Well, you’re probably right, but… that’s what extreme is about. ; )

Andrew Waldron Camera
Ross Addiego driver
David Bone Spotter

Flying in the Red Bull World Championship is very much a team effort according to the pilots who compete. It’s non-stop for everyone involved and with every year that passes, the pressure on team members increases as the sport fast becomes a global phenomenon.

As in all motorsport disciplines, the person at the controls tends to get the most attention as the ‘ambassador’ of the race team but in reality the pilot is supported by key people who make it all happen long before they hear the ‘Smoke On’ signal to fly into the track.

Aside from the actual flying – which only represents the tip of the iceberg – there are continuous technical refinements being made to the aeroplanes behind the scenes, never-ending media requests to deal with and strategy meetings to be held.

Range of expertise

“The Red Bull Air Race really is all-consuming for pilots and teams,” says Nigel Lamb (UK), now in his fifth year of racing. “There’s so much to do in between races as well as during the off season that you need a solid team around you to get everything done properly and on time.”

Generally the teams comprise pilot, technician and team coordinator (known as a TC in the trade). This trio should equate to a well-balanced combination of expertise across the relevant disciplines but in many cases, the knowledge overlaps. Many of those involved have a flying background and often this shared interest provides the setting for how friendships and business relationships first formed.

Paul Bonhomme’s TC Nigel Warren – who the UK pilot describes as the team’s “travelling quartermaster” – is famed for his ability to multi-task and admits he’s fanatical when it comes to paperwork.

The former corporate jet pilot, who has “known Bonhomme for years”, points out just how varied the TC’s backgrounds are and says: “There are people from all walks of life doing this job – you’ve got a lawyer, a wine merchant, a propeller salesman, an online entrepreneur, a nightclub promoter… it just proves that there are many different skills that can be of use in this role.”

Team building

Choosing the right people to support the campaign for championship success is essential and one that 2009 newcomer Pete McLeod is all too aware of. “If you have one weak link in the team then it’s just not going to come together,” says the youngest ever competitor in the championship who secured his first point in Windsor, Canada, last month.

“For me this isn’t a ‘one shot, one go, one year’ thing so I looked for young, hungry people like me who I think have a lot of talent. I selected them with a view to us growing together as a team.”

Nathan ‘Nate’ Herbert, a professional snocross rider and recreational pilot, is McLeod’s team coordinator. He has shown great marketing and PR aptitude in his inaugural season and as someone that McLeod says he “trusts and can work with” Herbert has helped to put Team 84 in the spotlight.

He’s not alone. All teams have realised that they must play ball with the media, give interviews, be photographed… and generally allow the public access to them as people. To ensure this is dealt with in an appropriate manner, one of the main responsibilities of the TC is to field journalist enquiries.

Current world champion Hannes Arch has decided to include an additional team member to help with this task. Fellow Austrian Mario Schoby coordinates the pilot’s media appointments, photoshoots and generally ensures that Arch remains high on the sports news agenda without encroaching upon his TC’s time.

Good diplomacy skills are often required in the team coordinator role and having a commercial mind is a definite advantage in terms of keeping sponsors happy. There is also a very different side to the role, however, which involves dealing with the operational side of running the team.

Good time management and organisational skills are a must and a driving licence essential as there is plenty of ferrying around to be done during race week.

“It’s a case of booking flights, hotels, working with the official schedules and generally making sure that your pilot is where he’s supposed to be at the right time,” says Lamb’s TC Becci Allen, who has been praised for her willingness to pick up a spanner and help out team technician Nigel ‘Hux’ Huxtable. “Sometimes you’ve all got to get stuck in to get the job done!”

Under the cowlings

All the technicians are pilots and bring a deep-rooted knowledge of aviation engineering which is complimented by hands-on experience and a passion for aeroplanes. Many are involved in restoration projects at home having rebuilt many weird and wonderful classic machines over their careers.

Bruno Marlière, tech to Nicolas Ivanoff, is involved in the restoration and preservation of historic aircraft in France, while Sergey Rakhmanin’s tech is a top level aerobatic pilot from Lithuania called Antanas Marciukaitis.

In addition, some technicians – like Team Goulian’s Tim Hess – have specialist technical motor racing experience to bring to the party. There’s also a hint of ‘tech swapping’ that goes on, with some technicians having worked across different teams since the championship began. It seems some pilots are happy to share and share alike!

For rookie teams like that of Germany’s Matthias Dolderer, previous race experience on the technical side is proving useful. His technician, Kelley Brow, is completely familiar with the Edge 540 and the race environment, having been involved in the championship since 2007. It’s a clear technical advantage over some of the other rookie teams who only have limited race experience to draw upon.

Tailor-made teams

A fresh approach to shaping a successful race team this year has also seen new roles created. Spain’s Alejandro Maclean was the first to enlist the services of a dedicated sports coach. As a somewhat emotionally charged competitor, Maclean admits during the 2008 season he became distracted and was unable to remain fully focused on his flying.

He stresses that his team is looking to achieve the necessary synergy between the physical and psychological factors that have an impact on race success.

“I decided to find a professional sports psychologist to help me push the distractions outside of racing from my mind. I went to one of the universities in Spain where I found Eneko Larumbe, a Doctor in Psychology with a special interest in sport psychology. We have been looking at all aspects of racing and concentrating on how we can improve and work better as a team with specific goals and objectives.”

Maclean’s decision highlights the point that each team has a different set of strengths and weaknesses which can benefit from a bespoke solution. With that in mind, Bonhomme has also enlisted the help of a carbon fibre expert from California who has assisted technician Wade Hammond throughout the off season and also at the first three races of 2009.

Selecting this additional expertise underlines Team Bonhomme’s focus on improving aerodynamic efficiency of the Edge 540 and signals a growing trend of teams trying to get ahead of each other with more creative strategies. Having a second tech with a specialist knowledge of aerodynamics has definitely allowed the team to ramp up technical activity as four hands are certainly better than two.

It will be interesting to observe over the coming months how teams try to gain an advantage over their race rivals and whatever focus they take, there will be little sharing of advice. The pilots – and the teams that support them – are all focused on success but the right combination will inevitably vary from hangar to hangar.

The winning formula of personalities and skill sets will remain open to interpretation but a shared goal is the unifying theme. So when the fans see the smiling face of a victorious pilot on the podium after a race, they can rest assured that those back at the hangar will be sharing that sense of achievement.

And later on, when the celebrations are in full swing, the other members of the winning team will be basking in their well-deserved glory.

Anyway, if reading a big post gives you pain, watch those two videos:

Behind the Scenes of Racing: Red Bull Air Race Logistics

Click here to view the embedded video.

Behind the Scenes, Red Bull Air Race, San Diego, 2007

Click here to view the embedded video.