4 Daredevils
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| Michelle Christenson/Caller-Times |
| BMXers perform tricks most people can't imagine how to initiate, much less survive. |
Some people have to pay to watch sports extremists, but in
Corpus Christi, it's regularly on display - on the seawall,
in the water, in parking garages.
BMX
Skills
Good balance, along with being in fairly good shape
because lifting yourself off a bike to do a trick is not easy.
Risks
When it comes to broken bones - legs, arms, even
collarbones - Gulf Coast BMX track operator Donna Bailey has
seen it all. "When they fall," she says, "it is usually not
going to be good."
What to watch for
When trying to spot a good BMXer, look for the
less flashy. While jumps and tricks are difficult, the hardest
thing is knowing how to read a course. Certain obstacles should
be rolled - using just the back tire of the bike - and others
need to be jumped.
KITEBOARDING
Skills
Other than needing the thousands of dollars worth
of equipment, a kiteboarder has to know how to control the kite
- which is on average nine square meters - and balance on a
skateboard-size board in the water.
Risks
Kiteboarders have to be wary of using a kite that
is too big for their body, or using too big a kite on an extremely
gusty day. "You can get pulled up into the air one second and
be unceremoniously dumped onto some rocks the next," said Peter
Nordby, owner of local kiteboard manufacturing company Zero
Gravity.
What to watch for
Long airtime. The ability to stay in the air for
more than a few seconds shows good strength, as well as great
control of the kite. Also, the true masters can do skateboard-looking
tricks.
SKATEBOARDING
Skills
A good sense of balance and the ability to stop
quickly in order to avoid hitting stroller-toting parents on
the seawall.
Risks
Knee and elbow scrapes are among the most common,
but those who try to break their fall are at risk of breaking
wrists.
What to watch for
Skaters who frequent the bayfront have mastered
grinding - sliding down a rail or along an edge with the deck
of the board.
SKYDIVING
Skills
For the novice, the ability to jump out of a plane
without fainting. For those who skydive on a regular basis,
great body control is a must. The slightest movement - whether
it be a foot, a finger or a hand - can send your entire body
spinning out of control.
Risks
Parachute not opening, backup parachute not opening,
throwing up on the way down.
What to watch for
A group of local women recently broke a South Texas
record for the most women to skydive at once. Hard part? Try
having good enough control of your body 12,000 feet in the air,
to be able to move to a certain spot in the sky with four other
women and connect arms for five seconds.