Extreme Sports California: Where it all began?

Mark Pawlak    Adventure Sports & Travel Thoughts, ash     California, extreme sports, mountain biking, moutainbiking, San Fransisco, Skateboarding, trekking holidays, US

California, it’s all in the name. This golden state has a draw, a lure much stronger than that created by Hollywood and the films of fantasy, and we can see why…  Away from the urban centres, headed south along the coast from San Francisco to Los Angeles there’s an endless summer going on.

A nutrient-rich current bathes the California coast and volcanic nitrates infuse its central valley; if neighbour Nevada is bleak desert, ‘Cali’ is the oasis on every road trip.

Initially prized by the Spanish for its fertile land, California was later settled by prospectors looking for gold. Granted, the rewards are now more likely to be found in Silicon Valley, but there’s still riches to be found in them there hills…

And it’s rockin’ adventure sports! Head north of San Francisco’s Golden Gate Bridge and there’s Mount Tamalpais, spiritual home of mountain biking; roam south 180km and you’re into big surf and the eco-wonderland of Big Sur.

Highway 1 offers stunning views at the apex of every coastal switchback; the Pacific Ocean turns a deeper blue as it reaches the horizon and inland, Los Padres National Forest pushes 350km to the western edge of Los Angeles County. Almost two million acres: hiking and trekking holidays here really could go on forever…

Way up in the High Sierras there’s more extreme activities going on. As the state boasts top skiing resorts, and even claims to have been the birth place of snowboarding, could it be argued California is the extreme sports capital of the world?

We’ve included the skate sensation ‘Second Nature’ as it reveals a little of the space and beauty of the place – and a couple of suit-wearing super-dudes loving their sport, immersing in nature and grinning ear-to-ear.

The movie has won too many awards to mention (Best Sports Film at the 2010 Sonoma International Film festival/ X-Dance Action Sport Festival and many more) and it’s guaranteed to win you over! Enjoy and ask yourselves: Is California the extreme sports capital of the world?

If you think you know the adventure sports capital of the world, vote here in our Facebook poll.

5 reasons adventure sports fans love Egypt

Mark Pawlak    Adventure Sports & Travel Thoughts, ash, kiteboardingholidays, Kitesurfing Travel Talk, New Site Features on ASH, snowkitingholidays     Adventure Sports, extreme sports, kitesurfers, multi-activity-holidays, watersports

Unrest in Egypt remains top of the news agenda, still it’s a country favoured by the extreme sports and adventure sports community, and as soon as the political temperature falls, they’ll be back.

Here’s why:

It’s great for kitesurfers. Sea temperatures rarely fall below 18C, conditions remain excellent for all standards, and destinations are really well developed.

Kitesurfing on Egypt's flat waters

It’s a scuba fans dream. While all we are seeing above the surface is drama, under the water Egypt has some of the best dive spots in the world. As well as a collection of reefs, there are submarine canyons and the submerged wreck of the SS Thistlegorm to discover.

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Trying extreme sports:at night!

Mark Pawlak    Adventure Sports & Travel Thoughts     extreme sports, night surfing, Surfing, surfing holidays

Some people just need to take things to a new level, but there’s only a few that are brave enough, or crazy enough (you decide) to go trying extreme sports at night.

If you’ve ever been on an expedition and had to walk through the night, you’ll know how hard it is: overhanging branches appear closer, and small shapes in the ground look like potholes as every sense gets fine-tuned to the new environment.

Now, as for surfing at night, it’s utterly mental! Take a look at the vid clip. Not only is this guy surfing at night, he’s taking on massive waves in Maui. And he’s jacked his board up to lights designed for a space craft!

Skydivers jump at night and endurance athletes have to face long night sections, but can you think of other extreme sports people that deliberately wait till nightfall to get it on?

Mark Visser:  ”Surf’s up and lights out, dude!”

Mark Visser Rides JAWS at Night! from Fortrus Sports on Vimeo.

The Olympics Needs You!

Mark Pawlak    Adventure Sports & Travel Thoughts, ash     Adventure Sports, extreme sports, Olympic games, olympics, United Through Sport

Pierre de Coubertin helped launch the modern Olympic movement. And with one sentence set the frame for everything the Olympics stands for:

“The most important thing in the Olympic Games is not winning but taking part; the essential thing in life is not conquering but fighting well.”

It’s the taking part bit that really resonates.

With the 2012 London Olympics just around the bend; isn’t it time we got involved? UK seems stuck in a pre-Christmas lethargy. Winter nights have drawn in, gym membership is on the up and the Olympic vision seems a little clouded at the moment…

In the adventure sports world we don’t care so much about medals, it’s the taking part that counts. But that’s easy for us to say: What we should be doing is reaching out through sport (cringe) bringing it to people who don’t do enough of it (not so cringe) and getting people off their arses by making sport accessible, inclusive and lots of fun. read more

Lewis Crathern: The Kitesurfer Who Jumped Brighton Pier

Mark Pawlak    Adventure Sports & Travel Thoughts, ash     extreme sports, extreme sports news, kitesurfing, kitesurfing Brighton Pier, Surfing, Windsurfing

If you haven’t seen the footage yet, kitesurfer Lewis Crathern jumped Brighton Pier! We just had to interview him.

Here it is, exclusive to us, enjoy!

Q: Brighton Pier: Did you know it was on, or did you decide when you got on the water?

A: I knew it was on by the forecast; it just had to match it up in reality, which it did in the end.

Q: With a good kite and a strong wind, is there a limit to how high you can go?

A: No, there isn’t really any limit of how high you can go. That’s what I like about it. That’s what keeps you out after three hours on the water, the possibility you could go higher…

Q: Wind, kites and energy, is there more to kitesurfing than the sport?

A: It’s more then a sport. It’s a permanent connection to the elements, you can only do it when the weather is right – something most extreme sports share. Kitesurfing is the green sport of the 20th century.

Q: It’s a solo sport. So how do you explain kitesurfing in your educational work?

A: Kitesurfing is one of the most obvious ways to show the potential of wind energy especially to kids. It’s very exciting so it grabs their attention allowing you to deliver some equally important messages, like keeping fit, staying healthy and thinking about ways of being eco-friendly.

Q: Which are your top three kitesurfing spots?

A: Worthing/ Worthing and WORTHING!!!

Q: And last of all: Any advice to people new to the sport, looking for big air?

A: Take your time; learn in lighter winds and deep enough water. Key points in getting air “Wham it back full speed for a Biggy!”

Check out a video of Lewis jumping Brighton Pier here.

For more information on Lewis’ educational work and to check out his great site, check out http://www.windmachine.biz/

Full credit is also due to Martyn Wells for the images

We’ve kitesurfing holidays all over the world, check them out!

Kitesurfer jumps Brighton Pier

Mark Pawlak    Adventure Sports & Travel Thoughts, ash     Adventure Sports, Brighton Pier, extreme sports, kitesurfing, Pier Jump, Risk, Worthing Pier

Lewis uses kitesurfing to help educate young people to the importance of sustainable energy and healthy lifestyles. That’s ‘healthy’, not ‘safe’, because as you will see from the clip below, this guy takes some big risks.

We’ve just interviewed him, so watch out for the chat coming soon to this page. In the meantime, check this…

Is London really the world’s best destination?

Mark Pawlak    Adventure Sports & Travel Thoughts     Adventure Sports, Croatia, Europe, extreme sports, London, Poland, Scuba Diving, Skiing, trekking, united kingdom, world travel awards

Not for adventure sports it’s not! Reading that the UK capital just won the prestigious World Travel Awards Leading Destination 2010 got me thinking: Who exactly is it the best destination for? Just how can you ever have a ‘World’s Leading Destination’?

Photo from Flickr user: Dimitry B

For lovers of history, monarchy or fashion, you could have a world’s most historic, regal or fashionable destination. But you just can’t bulk it together like this and expect it to represent or reflect anything – adventure sports fans in UK love London, but more for its connections than its challenges.

London’s hidden strength is its location, because anywhere in the British Isles is within reach.

But as with every metropolis, there’s rarely any way to get really adventurous without leaving it behind. Think about it: does anyone visit London for its adventure sports? Well, not if they enjoy the great outdoors kind of sports that we specialise in. read more