Article:It's a Wrap: X Games 14 Day 1-2 Recap

The fourteenth X Games, which took place from Thursday-Sunday in different parts of California, were filled with big names, and dazzling excitement. Four days of action sports is always fun. But, I am feeling lazy, so I think I’ll split my recap in two.

Thursday July 31st
BMX Freestyle Street Finals:

G- Garrett Reynolds

S- Van Homan

B- Sean Sexton

The 17-year old Garrett Reynolds took home his first Gold medal in just his second XG appearance. Funny thing is, I’m bigger than this guy! Reynolds is just 5 foot 6, 130 pounds. This could be a new XG record for ‘smallest Gold medalist’.

Men’s Skateboard Big Air Finals:

G- Bob Burnquist

S- Danny Way

B- Jake Brown

The big story behind all this is Jake Brown’s return after last year’s nasty fall from 40 feet in the air. The impact of his fall was so dramatic that his shoes came flying off. But, Brown was miraculously able to walk away with a few bruised ribs, and a ringing in his ears. Brown wiped out in three of his five runs, but his third run score of 91.33 was enough to get him Bronze. The veteran, 31-year old Bob Burnquist, stole the show. On his final run he passed Danny Way for first with a score of 96.00. Burnquist held his competition off, and took home his fifth XG Gold medal, his first since the ’05 games.

Moto X Best Trick:

G- Kyle Loza

S- Jeremy Lusk

B- Todd Potter

The tattoo artist from California, Kyle Loza, won his second consecutive ‘Best Trick’ Gold medal. He actually flattened all his competitors with a first run score of 94.40, he didn’t even need his second run. Jeremy Lusk’s second run score of 92.80 gave him Silver, and Todd Potter fought off Blake Williams for Bronze. Williams’ best finish at the X Games is a Bronze, which he won back in the ’06 Best Trick Competition.

Friday August 1st
Skate Street Women’s Finals:

G- Elissa Steamer

S- Marisa Dal Santo

B- Amy Caron

The favorite, Elissa Steamer, destroyed her competitors with a final score of 87.83, which was about six points higher than the Silver medalist, Dal Santo. Steamer was the only women to have a session score of 90 of above, as she took home Gold.

Men’s Skate Street Finals:

G- Ryan Sheckler

S- Paul Rodriguez

B- Greg Lutzka

Fan favorite, 18-year old Ryan Sheckler, stole the show, narrowly beating out Paul Rodrgiuez for Gold. Sheckler was consistently racking up high scores of 94, 93, and 89 in his three skate sessions. Past the 23-year old Rodriguez, the field seemed rather weak. Nevertheless, Sheckler worked hard for his first X Games Gold medal.

BMX Big Air Finals:

G- Chad Kagy

S- Dave Mirra

B- Kevin Robinson

This event, to me, was the most exciting, hands down! Kagy, and Mirra turned it into a back-and-forth slugfest. Yes, that’s right, a slugfest! Each had the lead multiple times, but it was Kagy’s final, outstanding run, that proved to be the winner. Kagy’s score of 96.00 gave him Gold, bumping multi-sport phenom Dave Mirra down to Silver. All seven competitors were alive in this competition. Anthony Napolitan, the last-place finisher, had a final score of 85.00, which is unheard of in a competition like this one. Great performance put on by all!

Moto X Step Up Finals:

G- Ricky Carmichael

S- Ronnie Renner

B- Tommy Clowers

A Dirt Bike going 33 feet in the air! That’s outrageous…Well, I guess not for the X Games. Ricky Carmichael, the seasoned 28-year old vet, jumped over a bar that was set at 33 feet, giving him the Gold medal in the event. Ronnie Renner, the Silver medalist, just came up short, with a jump of 32 feet. Daredevils Tommy Clowers, Brian Deegan, and Mike Mason all jumped 30 feet, but Clowers was awarded the Bronze in the event.

Well, that just about sums up the first two days of action. I will later bring you the final two days of action sports, which consists of mainly racing (Moto X, and Rally Car), but with a little bit of skateboarding, and BMX mixed in.