Life of Adventure

Eric D. Naftulin asked:


Remember camp when you were a kid? You spent your days horseback riding, petting farm animals and shooting bows and arrows. Your nights were filled with skits, s’mores, and singing songs around the campfire.

You can still find summer programs like these. There will always be a market for the tradtional camp experience. But today’s youth often demands more stimulating camp activities. Extreme sports camps are where it’s at!

Extreme sports camps run the gamut from surfing camps to wakeboarding camps to dirt biking camps and more. Though extreme sports camps are often viewed as “riskier” than traditional camps, the risks or dangers are often more perceived than actual when the camp takes proper precautions.

What are the “proper precautions” needed to keep kids safe at extreme sports camps?

In general, the camp staff requires additional training and expertise in the activities being offered. New, modern, and well-maintained equipment must be utilized. And weather conditions (such as at a surf camp, for example) must be just right; you don’t want your child learning to surf on a 5 foot wave when a 1-foot wave is more than appropriate for a beginner.

Since extreme sports camp activities are typically more challenging than traditional camp activities, your child’s potential for personal growth and development is enormous. It is not unusual for parents to report a dramatic increase in their child’s self-confidence and esteem after participating in an extreme sports camp. Imagine your son or daughter’s sense of pride and achievement after conquering the biggest wave at surf camp!

The thrill and fun of attending an extreme sports camp can’t be beat. But remember, the necessity for proper safety provisions, supervision, equipment, and personnel cannot be overstated. Assuming these important variables are in place, your child could be in for the most amazing camp experience of their life.

Harry Wilson asked:


Extreme sports are enjoyed by people all over the world. Extreme sports are often practiced by adrenaline junkies seeking a way to escape their dull lives. Although these sports are quite exciting, they can be dangerous and can result in the occasional loss of a life or broken bones. However, they are a craze and many people love to undertake them without any fear or terror.

Skydiving

Also known as parachuting, skydiving involves a planned drop from a height using a parachute. There are records about successful parachute jumps from hot air balloons in the year 1797. The sport became international only in 1951. This sport demands free-falling skills and knowledge about parachuting techniques. Today it is among the most popular recreational activities and competitive sports.

Surfing

Surfing is one sport which is undertaken by almost every individual in U.S. This term is often referred for a surface water sport in which the person surfing is carried along the face of a breaking ocean wave (the “surf”) standing on a surfboard. Surfboards can also be used on rivers on standing waves. Some people practice this as a hobby while others become professional surfers.

Mountain Biking

This sport is highly dangerous and involves a lot of practice, concentration and biking skill. It basically entails the sport of riding bicycles off the road and often over rough terrains and other dangerous mountain sites. Mountain biking is divided into four categories: cross country, downhill, freeride, and trials/street riding. Each has differing levels of safety-consciousness with different types of mountain bikes and riding gear.

Bungee Jumping

This activity involves jumping from a tall structure while connected to a large elastic cord. This sport is extremely thrilling because you have a feeling of free-fall or flying in the air. It makes your adrenaline rush and takes you to the extremes of excitement.

The above are some of the extreme sports enjoyed by people everywhere.

XTRA INFO asked:


Extreme Sports



Nobody can deny that the newest crazes with kids are the extreme sports. The phenomenon has reached all the way down to kids as young as early elementary school. Is it a problem, or is it a blessing? Much of it depends on whom you ask, but a deeper look will shed a little bit of light on the entire matter.

Why Choose Extreme Sports

The TV in your living room is starting to collect dust and burn less electricity while the video game system sits in the corner doing the same. It is exactly what you may have wanted all along, but it does mean that your child is likely deep into the fun that is extreme sports. Don’t let the name fool you, extreme sports can be used to describe a number of activities, but for your child, it is likely BMX biking, skateboarding, or trickblading (tricks on roller blades specially made for the job).

Trickblader

Essentially, a trickblader will use a special type of roller blades that have smaller thicker wheels, wider boots, and what is called a grind plate that allows them to slide across surfaces when so desired. The blades are made so that participants may perform many of the same tricks that skateboarders do, only now you will see them on roller blades, more or less.

BMX Bikers

BMX bikers are a different sport altogether. These are special bikes with pegs on the wheels for tricks, pads on the places where impact will most likely occur, and no front brakes. The bike is made for racing and tricks, but primarily to be used on dirt or certain types of urban setups.

Skateboarding

As for skateboarding, it is the sport probably most closely linked to extreme sports. For quite some time now, boarders have been hitting half pipes, grinding, and grabbing their board. Though you may associate the sport as a boy sport, many more girls are starting to get involved in these extreme sports and are having a great deal of success along the way.

Extreme Sports Advise

Go watch your kid working on his new extreme sports might just scare you. The first time you see your child “getting air” off of a ramp or pipe, you will be clinching with each landing. The important thing, though, is just to make sure they have the right equipment and they are as safe as with any other sport. In fact, one national safety organization performed a study and found that more injuries per participant occur in hockey, football, basketball, and soccer than in skateboarding. So you can breathe a little easier.

One important thing you can do is to make sure your child is wearing the right kind of safety equipment. Helmets, elbow pads, and kneepads are musts for the sake of safety. Most skate parks, in fact, will require kids to wear such protection before they are allowed to ride on the property. Falls are a part of the sport, but with proper protection your child will be in no more danger than on the football field or basketball court.

One problem that extreme sport kids have is finding a place to practice their new love. Many parks no longer allow extreme sports in the area, but the children need places to jump, grind, and try out new tricks. One solution that many cities have adopted is to erect extreme sport skate parks. In these facilities, ramps, half pipes, and even stairs and rails are provided so that kids can jump, grind, and get air all they want in an area free of traffic and pedestrians. This makes it safer, and in many ways more fun for the kids overall.

Summary

Future of Extreme sports are the wave of the future. Though you may not always understand these new sports your kids are into, they are still active and healthy sports. Competition is alive, but they may be perfected without 9 others or even one other kid around. A trip to the skate park alone can end in the perfection of new trick or technique. The idea is to just support your kids and allow them to compete how they want to. Get them the right safety gear and the right facilities and before you know it you may just have a world -class competitor on your hands.

For more articles related to this subject and others please visit ExtremeSports.info

Andy Adams asked:


For those who like the adrenalin pumping as they push their bodies to the limit many people take up some form of extreme sport.  We know most of them from television and video games, the main ones being skateboarding, skydiving and the nauseating bungee jump!

The fun doesn’t stop there, people can do most extreme sports anywhere but like most sports they have their true home, places which are perfect for that sport.  Like Wembley is to Football and Wimbledon is to Tennis there are places all over the world that are considered the Mecca of extreme sports.

Skateboarding is a common extreme sport you will likely see people in town centres performing tricks and doing jumps but the modern skateboarding scene has descended from the skate parks of California.  The home of world class skaters like Tony Hawk, California has many dedicated skate parks with both street setups as well as vertical sets like half-pipes. 

If California is too warm for your sport of choice then there are always the mountain ranges of Europe of which there are plenty.  Ski slopes are dotted all over Europe with the Alps as well as other European countries in the north like Norway.  Norway is a popular ski and snowboarding area with thousands of people learning the sports as well as seasoned pros cutting their way down the slopes.

For the more death-defying extreme sports nut New Zealand can help out with skydiving and white water rafting available in a picturesque country last seen in the Lord of The Rings films.  For those who are extra daring there is a bungee jump location in Taupo, New Zealand which hangs over a giant gorge to a river below.  It’s this river that you end up dunked in at the bottom of your fall, but don’t worry, you’re flung out of it and will surely dry out with all the bouncing around you’ll be doing!

As you can see from this brief overview that there are plenty of locations dotted all over the globe for extreme sports.  extreme sports magazine websites are your first port of call to find out where’s the best location for your extreme sports holidays.  Once you’ve decided what sport you want to try out and where is best then you should be able to begin making preparations.  So check out an extreme sports magazine today and find your extreme sports haven!

XTRA INFO asked:


The Extreme Sport Info

Have you noticed that the people who are dedicated to extreme sports seem a little ‘different’ from most other people? Extreme sports enthusiasts seem to have that “darn the torpedoes, full speed ahead” attitude that runs counter to the thoughtful, considered way most people lead their lives. They can’t really help it when they are in the “zone”. When they are in the zone, all the matters is the mission . . . their whole life is no more significant than the moment of execution. Those who study such things as the psychology of athletes, call the “zone” that temporary state of mind where an adrenaline high, awakened by a high-risk endeavor, is (at least temporarily) the absolutely dominant influence in your life.

The zone, as described above, may seem to symbolize a period of extreme irresponsibility, but it is actually a period of extreme focus and near-maximum control – it is a mental state that is similar to, but more intense than, taking that first-ever dive off the high dive at the deep end of the pool. It is also called “the adrenaline effect.”

An important the body reaction

Adrenaline is an important key to the body’s reaction in times of stress, danger or anger. At those times, your brain increases the adrenaline, which increases your heart rate and blood flow. In addition, it increases glucose production (glucose is the “food” your body burns when you exercise) and increases physical stamina — in short, you feel invigorated. This process is called the “fight or flight response;” it gets your body “primed for action” . . . and its somewhat addictive!

These enthusiasts are called, somewhat facetiously, “adrenaline junkies,” and to these extreme sports devotees, it is a colloquialism that fits. They crave activities that require intense concentration and extreme performance, activities such as: bungee jumping, skydiving, hang gliding, mountain climbing and auto racing. Adrenaline junkies, however, are not just into extreme sports. You will find them living extreme lifestyles. These are the same people you will find making their living as SWAT team members, emergency response personnel and members of military Special Forces such as SEALS and Green Berets. Professional gamblers and stock market traders are also “addicted” to the possibility of an enormous win or an enormous loss — the possibilities of which will get anyone’s adrenaline flowing.

How do you find your “zone”?

So how do you find your “zone?” It is not as difficult, or as strenuous (or even as addictive) as it may sound. Those who go in for and, to some extent, become addicted to extreme sports and the adrenaline high, are extreme examples of those in the zone. In simpler and less extreme terms, the zone simply means determination and focus.

You “psych yourself up” for any particular activity (it might be an action sport or it might be passing a mid-term exam) by becoming determined to accomplish your task and by focusing on learning what you need to learn, and doing what you need to do. While you are in that mental state (that zone) you are so focused on your objective that what other people say, think or do is mere background noise. You picture the task and see yourself accomplishing it.

What’s really happening here?

What’s happening is that you are learning to harness the power of your mind. Your body — your muscles may be doing the work but your mind is making the work easier, making the task more comprehensible, making the task more doable. It is the extreme sports version of the “Power of Positive Thinking.” Wow! Deja Vu from 1952! That’s when Dr. Norman Vincent Peale’s self help book was first published and when the seeds were first planted that would grow into millions of success stories.

The power of the mind is an awesome thing! Your mind is like a super-computer that is programming itself every minute of your day with ideas, concepts, idle thoughts, feelings, wishes and desires. The key is staying positive! Staying with the computer analogy, there is a saying amongst computer programmers: “GIGO,” that means “Garbage In — Garbage Out;” in other words, the result of any effort will only be as good (successful) as the effort put into it.

Summary

Normally, so the experts say, humans use only a small fraction of their mind’s potential. The amount of additional potential that you might be using when in your zone has not been quantified and is not important — what is important is that, whether participating in an action sport or trying to learn a line of poetry, the focus and determination you use will make success more possible. The only limitations we have are self-imposed limitations — that’s the secret of the zone!

For more articles related to this subject and others please visit ExtremeSports.info

Kylie Evans asked:


Well, my fellow Queenslanders, I hope you are having a fabulous Labor Day (and for those of my many pregnant friends who are set to drop their bundle, please don’t take that literally).

The sun is shining, birds are singing, and the man of the manor suggested that, given the perfect conditions of the day, (ie: Kylie overindulged last night on Yalumba Merlot. Vintage 2006. Very good year for “Headache-In-A-Box”) what could be more delightful than a gentle spin around the Ormeau Go-Kart track?

He has been harping at me to come and “feel the joy” of go-karting for some time now, so I thought to myself , “I’m a big girl, these things are small, how much damage could I possibly do?”

So, we motored out to the pleasant township of “Ormeau” to the Pacific Go-Kart Arena. (and for those of you who are local on the Coast – have you seen the new sign just off Exit 45 that reads “PACIFIC HIGHWAY VIEWING PLATFORM NEXT RIGHT” ( Sorry, but if you feel that spending a gorgeous day looking at semi-trailers and rusty Monaros speeding along the M1 is quality time, you need to perhaps broaden your horizons a little)

Excitement grew as we drove up into the car park, all good and ready to feel the need for speed. I did have a general idea of how this would play out….little kiddy carts and some parents with Mario Andretti visions of the future for little John Junior. Perhaps even some strains of “Ventura Highway” in the background to complete the picture

In some sort of demented bizarro world of go-karting this may have been the case, because I was immediately overshadowed by fifteen to twenty very large, very mean-looking teens with tattoos reading ” Fuck The Highway” or even more specific, “Going to Crush Your Ass Into the Concrete”.

This was no pleasant trundle in the country – this was imminent death by the The Tonka-Truck Gang!



Swallowing my fear and a couple of mouthfuls of Mylanta, I strode up to counter and squeaked “Two thanks…and how much extra for a Panzer …”?”

I took my helmet and stood beside a gentile young skinhead wearing a Black Sabbath Tee and sporting a scowl that I interpreted as ” I am going to knock you, and your Bay City Rollers Tee-shirt out of this hemisphere, and then, if the mood takes me… I may just bite the head off a chicken”

Determined not to wuss-out of the deal, I strode towards the turnstile and reached for the handle. It was only then, that I had quite a traumatic flash-back….



 July 2000



I had won the prize for a the Christmas party sweepstakes in our office. Don’t ask me how, I never win anything. If I added up all the dosh I have poured into Surf Lifesavers Raffles and the like over the years, I could perhaps have acquired a nice little penthouse in Broadbeach by now.

Anyway, I ripped open the envelope eager to see what fantastic prize I had won.

Catching sight of a bright blue piece of paper, I squealed in delight. Was it a shopping voucher? Maybe I had won myself a weekend away at Hayman Island Resort. I could have used a bit of a tan. Perhaps it was tickets to the up and coming Bob Dylan concert?

Wasting no time in yanking the coupon out, I feverishly ran my eyes over the small print.

“This voucher entitles the bearer to a FREE BUNJEE JUMP courtesy of “Jump and Wet Yourself Inc.” You too will be able to experience the lung-twisting thrill of free falling 80 meters from a stand-alone tower over a puddle in Kuranda. Feel the excitement! Feel the exhilaration!!”

Feel the bile…..

Of all the prizes that I could have possibly won in the world, I just happened to snag a “Free Ride to Panic Attack Central.”



It was decided, after much lively debate, that I would just ‘buck up and do it!

My new motto was going to be “Live once! Take a chance! Dive off a bloody tall tower into oblivion!” ‘

I even psyched myself up into believing that this was going to be fun. After all, people pay hundreds of dollars to get their legs tied together and thrown off a short plank. I should feel privileged.

We parked right behind a busload of Japanese tourists who, armed with their cameras, videos and obligatory “Hello Kitty” accessories, were eagerly gathered at the base of the jump ready to capture the looks of by those lobotomy-jobs who were insane enough to actually do this.

I was greeted by “Dave” who cheerily asked me if I was ready to “take the fall dude”?

“Dave” seemed a nice guy, to be sure and, apart from the matted dreadlocks, and the tee-shirt that sported multiple marijuana plants and read “I Support the High Life!”, he fulfilled my every confidence.

Dave the dude, strapped my ankles together with a velcro mat.

I vaguely remember telling him, on the verge of hysteria, about my experiences with velcro and how it occasionally had a habit of coming undone. (If ever you had a case-in-point – just look at jeans in the 1980s)

Dave laughed at me. “Man, you don’t have to worry. I’ve done it heaps of times. Hey? If you get into trouble, they have a little boat underneath you, just in case dude. Chill out.”

Great.

I had no more time to dwell on Dave’s reassurances. It was time to rock and roll. As they poked me forward on the narrow plank, like a pirate poking his victim off the side of the galley, I uttered a quick word to God and to my taxation accountant.

Of course, Dave the dude was there to assist….

“Now when I count to five, you just jump dude. Don’t think, just jump. If you don’t, you won’t man.”

“One..”

I can still turn back. I can, I can still turn back. So what if my husband thinks I am a coward, I have seen how he reacts to Daddy Long-Legs. I have bargaining power here.

“Two..”

Oh my God, I am wobbling. I am going to fall, I am going to fall!

“Three..”

Dave, you didn’t tell me about the fun part here, dude. When does that kick in?



“Four..”

I can’t. I can’t..I can’t..!!

“Five!!”

I was screaming before I even became aware that I was falling. The world became weightless around me as the platform dissolved away.

It was at this point, during my flight that I became acutely aware that, out of all the rules and instructions related to free falling and human aerodynamics, I had neglected the most critical one of all.

The rule that says you must tuck your shirt “in.”

Maybe those who indulge in this sado-masochistic pastime on a regular basis actually do get a chance to take in the scenery on the way down, but all I could see was the white tee shirt that was now billowing around my neck like a mini-parachute.

The next few minutes went by extraordinarily swiftly. I can’t remember if I was hollering in sheer terror or in absolute embarrassment, as I fought to keep my wayward shirt where it should be……over my chest.

I have never professed to having glamorous boobs. In fact, I would go as far as saying that I am rather mammarily-challenged.

Having said that, displaying them in such an undignified fashion as falling spread-eagled from a tower, was not really what I had in mind to prove the point.

As the bunjee boatman rowed me into the shore, I distinctly remember two things occurring simultaneously.

One, my husband running towards me with a large coat …and two, the Japanese tourists cheering and clicking their cameras as if they had just witnessed the second coming of Buddha.

The staff were extremely nice to me afterwards. They told me how brave I had been and that I should be really proud of myself. They might have been just a bit puzzled however, as to why I ran away screaming when the video-man asked me if I wanted to watch the re-run of my fall on the big screen in the public forum.

So, back to back to the present, Labor Day 2007…..

I guess you could say that my sudden decision to ditch the Go-Kart helmet and jump in the car might have been construed as cowardice.

I think it is more of taking on what is reasonable within one’s own comfort zone, which in my case was driving 100 metres to the neighboring complex of the Go Kart track….

The Mt Darlinghurst Winery.

Much more my speed……..

XTRA INFO asked:


Welcome To TopExtremeSports info

Our website provide a few information and advice on the activities of Extreme Sports…

We hope you enjoy our range of informative extreme sports articles, topics and latest news. Whether you are doing specific research on this subject, or looking for content for your ezine or websites, you have come to the right place.

On every page of this site you will also find a variety of our recommended sports related products. Every item is offered at highly discounted prices and is provided from two of the most trusted and longest established names on the net

1. Defining the Rock Climbing Craze

Rock climbing has become a nation and even worldwide craze. People are coming to the sport in droves because it offers exercise and excitement at the same time. Do you see the appeal? If not, perhaps you should take a look at exactly rock climbing actually involves. You never know, you may be lining up to be a part of the crowd in no time flat.

Those who have attempted rock climbing before will tell you that it is many things, but easy is not one of those things. Most people, on their first attempt, come away feeling defeated by the sport. What beginners soon realize, whether they try indoor climbing or outdoor climbing, is that this sport requires an incredible amount of physical and…..

2. Kids Fascination with the Extreme Sport Phenomenon

Nobody can deny that the newest crazes with kids are the extreme sports. The phenomenon has reached all the way down to kids as young as early elementary school. Is it a problem, or is it a blessing? Much of it depends on whom you ask, but a deeper look will shed a little bit of light on the entire matter.

The TV in your living room is starting to collect dust and burn less electricity while the video game system sits in the corner doing the same. It is exactly what you may have wanted all along, but it does mean that your child is likely deep into the fun that is extreme sports. Don’t let the name fool you, extreme sports can be used to describe a number of activities, but for your child, it is likely BMX biking, skateboarding, or …

3. Snowmobile Racing aka Snowcrossing

What is it that draws so many people to snowmobile racing? Is it the snow, the snowmobiles themselves, or perhaps the crisp fresh air of winter? Suffice to say the draw is all of the above mentioned. Snowmobile racing is a cross between watching the Daytona 500, speed skating, and roller derby. Throw in a few hairpin turns and paint the snowmobiles bright neon colors, and you have yourself a snowmobile race. Where are some of these snowmobile or snowcross races held?

Eagle River, Wisconsin has had a snowmobile derby for the past 41 years and this race and location is rich in history. In 1944 the first snowmobile (well at least one that closely resembles the models of today) was built. It basically consisted of a toboggan on skis that could be driven over the snow. During the 1960s is when the thought of using snowmobiles in the form of a sport caught the attention of many. The idea came as a way to boost the winter economy and boost, it did. The snowmobile derby in Eagle River today can draw crowds upwards of 50,000 …

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