The Growing Popularity of Extreme Sports
analytical Essay
1262 words
Extreme Sports
Over the past ten years I have noticed that my local snowboarding park has become more crowded every season, especially with younger kids. This has not only been the case for snowboarding, but for all extreme sports. I’ve noticed this trend at my local skateboarding park also. More so, there has been a noticeable increase of extreme sports being broadcast on television today than ever before. These changes caused me to ask the question: why have extreme sports become so popular to youngsters? It could be the appeal people have toward the imminent possibility that someone might get seriously hurt, but I doubt it. I think the media, especially television, has definitely increased extreme sports popularity. In this essay I will explain how the media, and other dominant resources have sparked and created the presence and increased popularity of extreme sports.
When extreme sports were first invented they were not meant to be a product of media culture. For example “Sherman Poppen was looking for an activity that would keep his young daughters occupied so his pregnant wife could get some me-time when he nailed two wooden skis together and called it a Snurfer. This was the snowboard born thirty-seven years ago.” (McCallum p.3) However, when extreme sports made it to television, they were became a huge product of the media culture and were not spread by word of mouth anymore. Media coverage of extreme sports has shown people what these new sports are all about. In 1995 ESPN started an extreme sports contest called the Extreme games; know now as simply “X Games”. This event is so popular that they broke the televised event into two annual shows: the “Winter X Games” and the “Summer X Games” to make it possible for s...
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...me products are reaching an all time high on the popularity scale. We can thank television and other media types for this trend. When we look at this increase we can’t leave out the support that local skate parks and resorts have made to support this uproar of extreme sport popularity. For example, the resort Keystone as added as of last year a super terrain park that extends all the way down the mountain. Two years ago, they had nothing. This is because Breckenridge, with one of the most well know terrain parks in the nation, has attracted more people in the past than Keystone. With this in mind, the up rise in extreme sports has not only changed the major business persona of attack, but has greatly influenced the activities performed by youngsters of today. Ten years ago, who would have thought a seven year old boy would pick up a skateboard instead of a baseball.
In this essay, the author
- Explains how the media, especially television, has sparked and created the presence and increased popularity of extreme sports.
- Explains that extreme sports were not meant to be a product of media culture, but they were popularized by nbc and fox sports net.
- Explains that extreme sports have increased in popularity with the creation of the "x games".
- Analyzes how bennet, henson, and zhang preformed an experiment with 367 middle and high school students to seek their perceptions toward extreme sports.
- Explains that tony hawk's "boom boom huckjam" offers skateboarding, bmx, and motocross freestyle in a "jam style" competition. the complex design of the jumps and ramps was so extensive it had an "almost unheard-of 23-hour load-in/load-out time."
- Explains that televised competitions have kept extreme sports to the extreme. it is difficult to make a living off an extreme sport because of the difficulty of tricks and small contest earnings.
- Explains that extreme sports have become more popular because of the creativity of extreme sport players.
- Explains that extreme sports and extreme products are reaching an all-time high on the popularity scale. keystone added a super terrain park to support this uproar of extreme sport popularity.
Related
- analytical
- opinion
- explanatory
- To some individuals, the phrase “professional athlete” is a simplistic term to describe a person who engages in sports at a professional level, but to others, they are role models and admirable individuals that society aspires to be. Because pro athletes are constantly in the public eye either through magazines, sports gear advertisements, commercials, and games, the community has constant access to view their lives and athletic ability. Consequently, the image they display to society is not only inspirational to young athletes, but to those who may relate to their lifestyle outside athletics. However, there are certain individuals who believe that professional athletes are a negative influence to all ages and genders within society, because
In this essay, the author
- Explains that pro athletes are role models and admirable individuals that society aspires to be. they are in the public eye through magazines, sports gear advertisements, commercials, and games.
- Opines that publicizing an athlete's achievements and achievements is a responsibility, and that the use of drugs, excessive training and aggression can be harmful to their development. fans minimize the gravity of the situation and defend the athlete.
- Analyzes how chris herren, a basketball player for the denver nuggets and boston celtics, ended his athletic career due to excessive painkillers, heroin, and driving under the influence.
- Analyzes how the missteps a professional athlete exhibits to the audience gives them human qualities that everyone can relate to. the emotion and heart that they put forth into something they value and love also transmits constructive message to community.
- Analyzes how the role models inspire viewers to imitate their work ethic to be as great as them. professional athletes also promote health and fitness.
- Explains that professional athletes have a positive effect on society by demonstrating what sportsmanship is within and outside teams.
- Explains that athletes have an enormous impact on society whether consciously or unconsciously. their morals and ethics about sportsmanship, healthy lifestyles, and persistence are passed on to others as a way to continue the cycle of triumph.
1625 wordsRead More - Youth Sports are Too Intenseopinion essayYoung athletes put in danger by the competition, aggressiveness, and intensity of sports. Kids everyday are being pushed past limits by coaches parents and fans. The intensity of sports has become so high they are causing mental and physical exhaustion. Sports like wrestling has kids eat different to either lose gain weight. Football player, Baseball player, and even cheerleader have to work out in extreme temperatures. Some kids involved in competitive sports have been taking weight lifting classes and even just conditioning. The youth are being put in danger due to how competitive, aggressive, and intense youth sports have become.
In this essay, the author
- Explains how young athletes are being put in danger by the competition, aggressiveness, and intensity of youth sports.
- Explains that young athletes are being pushed past their limits and worked so hard it is becoming dangerous.
- Analyzes how young athletes are becoming more aggressive and competitive. they are motivated by coaches, parents, and fans chanting "take em' down!"
- Opines that youth sports are putting kids in danger. they are being picked on and yelled at for what may be an honest simple mistake. 74% of kids surveyed said they had witnessed out-of-control adults at their games.
- Compares how michael jordan, walter payton, lou gehrig, and gabi butler didn't get where they are now by being babied. they were worked and pushed, hard.
- Opines that the harder and more intense youth sports get the more kids put in danger, bullied, and feeling like they have been mentally or physically drained.
680 wordsRead More - The History of Snowboardingexplanatory essayIt’s hard to believe that back in the early 1980’s people “perceived [snowboarders] as daredevil adolescents who posed a threat to skiers” (Shipley). Though the sport was banned from almost every resort, it grew to be so popular that the resorts could no longer ignore the moneymaking possibilities. Resorts realized that the average young person was abandoning the sport of skiing, and learning the new trend of snowboarding. Not only that, but the younger generation who was taking up a new winter sport would choose snowboarding over skiing. These days, resorts spend thousands of dollars to attract snowboarders to their resorts with claims of the biggest halfpipe or the best board park. But how did this sport explode onto the scene? To answer this question, a brief history is in order.
In this essay, the author
- Narrates how a young girl in muskegon, michigan, tried to stand up on her sled while sliding down the hill, and her father, sherman, bolted the sky together with wood to act as foot stops.
- Explains that snowboarders were perceived as daredevil adolescents who posed a threat to skiers in the early 1980s. resorts realized that the average young person was abandoning skiing and learning the new trend of snowboarding.
- Describes sherman poppen's snurfer, which was a cross between snowboarding and snow. the brunswick corporation was the first company to mass-produce it.
- Explains that tom sims, a skateboarder from new jersey, had an idea for the snurfer while poppen was developing it.
- Explains that jake burton carpenter, a surfer from long island, new york, had the idea not to skate on the ice, but rather to surf the mountain. burton entered his design in the national snurfer open competition.
- Explains that burton snowboards have become the most popular boards on the slopes today. jake burton is considered "mr. snowboard" because he has 40 to 45% marketshare overall.
- Explains that snowboarding was outlawed at most ski resorts due to the snurfer's reputation for unpredictability. the insurance companies didn't cover the snowboarders, and the resort did not want to be liable if an accident occurred.
- Explains that snowboarding was becoming popular among surfers and skateboarders, and that the young snowboarders were discriminated against and created friction between them and the skiers.
- Explains that jake burton sponsored both instructional programs and put together teams that toured the country and demonstrated the sport of snowboarding.
- Explains that snowboarders are allowed to practice their sport at almost any ski resort in the united states and canada.
- Explains that snowboarding is easier to learn than skiing, since it is closely related to skateboarding and surfing. older people can learn the sport easier if they have gone skiing before.
- Explains that today's equipment makes snowboarding much easier to learn and takes less skill when compared to snurfer days. the invention of highback binding allowed snowboarders to have a lot more ankle support.
- Explains that the basic motions of snowboarding are very simple to learn. a person should keep their weight on their front foot, keep the knees bent, and use their arms to help with balancing.
- Explains that snowboarders are easier to get up and go down the mountain, since the board is attached to the feet with bindings. skis are designed to come unattached from the boots if they get caught in the snow.
- Explains that snowboarding has rapidly grown to a full medal olympic sport within the last decade.
- Explains that the lower cost of snowboarding appeals to many young people because most of them don't have near a thousand dollars to waste on ski equipment.
- Reports that the total number of u.s. ski area visits has remained flat overall for the last ten years, but the percentage of lift tickets purchased by snowboarders surged to 12.3% in the 94/95 season, an 18% growth over the previous year.
- Explains why the younger generation chooses to snowboard instead of ski. they feel freer to express themselves when they snowboard, rather than following skier's rules.
- Explains that there is a definant generation gap between the average snowboarder and average skier.
- Explains how snowboarding became a winter olympic sport with pioneers such as sherman poppen, tom sims, and jake burton.
1621 wordsRead More - competition led skateboardinganalytical essayBack in the 1960’s when skateboarding first became a pastime, it was not popular at all, and amongst those who did it, it was more of a dance than anything else. It wasn’t until 1975 that skateboarding started heading towards what we know it as today. The Zephyr Surf Team, based in Dogtown, began skateboarding as a substitute to surfing when the waves were choppy. They created their own style that was debuted to the public in 1975 at a competition that they won. That one competition is what changed skateboarding forever and converted it from a pastime to a sport. Stephen Holden, a film reviewer for the New York Times, uses the fact that, “the Zephyr Team gained national attention in 1975 when its members competed at the Bahne-Cadillac Skateboard Championship (Del Mar Nationals)” to show that without competition, some sports would never have made it at all. Some people might say that sports are played for the love of the activity and that games/competitions are not necessary. Most others argue that without competition it is not a true sport. However, competition is what fueled the beginning (and comeback) of skateboarding and competition is crucial to sports in three ways: promotion, notoriety, and money.
In this essay, the author
- Explains how the zephyr surf team, based in dogtown, began skateboarding as a substitute to surfing when the waves were choppy.
- Explains how the z-boys and bones brigade bolstered the sport through their fame of winning competitions.
- Analyzes how the exaltation of skateboarding promoted the z-boys and bones brigade. they had an augmenting fan base that followed their competition performances and tricks.
- Explains that the zephyr team and bones brigade members became rich professional athletes by promoting and sponsoring competitions, which gave the skaters a platform to be noticed and sponsored.
- Argues that competition made skateboarding prominent and lucrative, and the bones brigade made it accessible.
- Opines that sports are all about the competition and games. without competition, an activity can only be a pastime or hobby.
701 wordsRead More - ...the air trusting that someone will catch them. No matter what the sport is, injuries are a big concern but it should not stop a parent from letting their child do what they love.
In this essay, the author
- Analyzes the controversy of safety in american football. in 2013, former nfl athletes sued the nfl for past concussions.
- Analyzes how fujita tells his story about how he became an nfl linebacker at the age of eight.
- Analyzes how fujita's title, "would i let my son play football?" is the starting point of the article.
- Analyzes how fujita experienced professional american football; he uses the correct terms and defines them. the "heads up" campaign is a group trying to prevent concussions in various sports.
- Opines that fujita's lack of examples in the article is one of the weaknesses in his paper.
- Opines that fujita's use of stats and figures is a major weakness of the article.
- Analyzes how fujita's thesis is his response towards parents and reporters asking him if he would let his son play football. his mother said no and that she wanted to see him live a long life.
- Analyzes how fujita states that football gave him everything he has right now.
- Opines that stu woo, sara germano and jonathan clegg's article the football nanny state supports fujita’s indecisive opinion. there is almost zero evidence saying that football is dangerous to kids.
- Explains that they suffered minor injuries during their first three years of high school, but their junior year injuries became more common. they were hit in the shoulder and later strained their rotators cuff.
- Opines that injuries are a huge issue of sports, but parents need to understand that they can happen with sports or without them.
- Opines that player safety is a big concern for any sport, but it should not stop parents from letting their child do what they love.
- Explains that scott fujita's neck injury may be career-ending. pro football talk. nbc sports, 15 oct. 2012. sports science pits football against cheerleading.
1210 wordsRead More - Masculinity, Violence, and the American Sports Cultureanalytical essayThe sports culture produces some of the most revered and idolized figures in American society. Athletic achievements are glorified and the achievers are often elevated to an extraordinary, super-human status. The rewards, praise, honor, power, and privilege that come from exhibited athletic talent and ability can be enticing as well as addicting. Heroes emerge in our society when a line is crossed in record time, an unfathomable amount of points are scored, or beautifully placed, even lucky shots result in game-winning goals. For many athletes their sport defines them. They have participated in a sport their entire lives, modeled the moves and strategies of their predecessors in practice after practice, devoted to becoming the star that they dream of. For many young boys especially, sports are a way to gain acceptance within a peer group, identify with the male sex, and establish relationships. It is a context wherein boys learn how to be boys, to be masculine, to achieve status within our success-driven culture (Messner, 1).
In this essay, the author
- Explains that sports culture produces some of the most revered and idolized figures in american society. the rewards, praise, honor, power, and privilege that come from exhibited athletic talent and ability can be enticing and addicting.
- Opines that sports promote masculinity through the development of a morally compromised masculine identity. boys are judged by their ability, inability, interest, or ambivalence toward sport.
- Opines that when examining the influences of the american sports culture and athletic heroes on the lives of young boys, it is important to differentiate between athletic achievement and talent and the ethics of success.
- Argues that the need for unity between males can be accomplished through sport without diminishing a masculine identity.
- Opines that if one person said the truth, we're all in a big mess.
- Explains that at one point they were just going to deny everything, completely lie about everything. they figured that wasn't the best way to go.
- Analyzes how even the coach tried to mitigate the seriousness of the incident in a comment that can be seen as an attempt to downplay the immoral nature of hazing.
- Analyzes how performance-enhancing drugs, more common in men's sport, detract from its healthy image. male athletes believe these drugs will make them faster, stronger, and more attractive physically.
- Argues that sports can play an extremely positive role in young boys' development, but the value that our culture places on sports heroes needs to be reexamined.
- Cites messner, michael a., and sabo, donald f.
- Explains that many men define sports and athletic achievement as integral components of masculinity and hence male sex role identification as well. in his book power at play, michael messner points out some examples of the cultural support
- Explains that success is equated with masculinity and identity, so failure can be a problem. being physically dominant is one way of commanding respect.
- Explains that professional male athletes are considered the epitome of masculinity. they are powerful, dominant, successful, aggressive, competitive, and hard-working people, given immense privilege as a result of their stardom.
- Analyzes how male athletes are viewed as morally superior when they are physically superior. the pathway to success is not always laden with good-decision making.
- Explains that organized sports in america and around the world serve many productive purposes in terms of a boy's development to manhood.
- Explains that violence on and off the field is a vice that plagues the world of sport.
- Explains how hazing is defined by the university of vermont as a physical, mental, emotional or psychological act that subjects another person to abuse, mistreat, humiliate, harass, or intimidate.
- Explains that the players debated lying about the incident to protect their masculine image during the trials. they didn't want to admit that they had submitted to such degrading behaviors even if it was to be accepted onto a team that exemplified what it means
- Opines that attitudes like this perpetuate immoral behavior. activities such as hazing should not be a requirement for success. the players with seniority clearly took advantage of their power and privilege
- Explains that there is historical evidence of the relationship between violent sports and sexual violence toward women.
- Explains that sport supported male dominance through the exclusion or marginalization of females, and equating force and aggression with physical strength, legitimizing a challenged and faltering system of masculine domination
- Argues that academic dishonesty is the use of cheating by athletes to maintain their eligibility.
- Cites lapchick, richard e., mckay, jim, michael a. messner, and don sabo.
5124 wordsRead More - Brain Tissue Oxygenation Monitoring System and Subsequent Nursing Interventions for High School Athletes Diagnosed with a Severe Traumatic Brain Injuexplanatory essayWithin the last 20 years, the number of adolescents participating in high school sports has dramatically increased (Kerr, Collins, Fields, & Cornstock, 2010). Subsequently, the level of competition within high school sports has considerably increased as well, further causing a rise in aggression and physical contact among these young athletes (Kerr, Collins, Fields, & Cornstock, 2010). This exemplified culture surrounding high school athletics coupled with the developing brain of an adolescent, places high school athletes at an extremely high risk of sustaining a sever...
In this essay, the author
- Explains that a traumatic brain injury (tbi) is defined as any form of trauma directed at the brain and its surrounding anatomical structures.
- Explains that children and adolescents sustain approximately half of all diagnosed traumatic brain injuries, according to a literature review study conducted by abelson-mitchell (2007).
- Explains that the number of adolescents participating in high school sports has dramatically increased in the last 20 years, causing a rise in aggression and physical contact among these young athletes.
- Explains that the brain needs a consistent supply of oxygen and glucose, which is negatively impacted by pathophysiological changes affecting intracranial pressure and brain tissue oxygenation saturation.
- Explains that a brain tissue oxygenation monitoring system is highly recommended for pediatric patients.
- Explains that the nurse must ensure that all necessary nursing preoperative interventions occur before the surgical implantation of the catheter.
- Explains that the nurse must document the patient's cerebral oxygenation, brain temperature, and icp readings from the pbto2 monitor and make sure that all subsequent documentation follows hospital protocol.
- Explains that the nurse must also perform periodic neurological focused assessments for the pbto2 monitor. negative changes can indicate a neurological complication.
- Opines that the nurse should monitor the patient's vital signs to determine the development of cushing’s triad.
- Explains that when caring for a high school athlete, the nurse must also take into consideration the developmental stage of the patient.
- Opines that the nurse must take into consideration cultural and ethical components when providing care to a high school athlete.
- Explains that adolescents sustain nearly half of all diagnosed traumatic brain injuries and approximately 150,000 will die as a result of the complications associated with the tbi.
- Cites belson-mitchell, n., and centers for disease control and prevention.
- Cites hession, d., and workman, l. m. on the management of traumatic brain injury: nursing practice guidelines forcerebral perfusion and brain tissue oxygenation.
- Cites kerr, z. y, collins, c. l, fields, s. k., & cornstock, r. d. epidemiology of player-contact injuries among us high school athletes, 2005-2009.
1475 wordsRead More - Trends In Intercollegiate Sportsanalytical essayFun at organized, purpose-driven sports is associated with achieving goals rather than physical expression and joy. The process is now secondary to the product, and the journey is secondary to the destination. People in postindustrial societies live with the legacy of industrialization. They emphasize organization according to rational principles based, whenever possible, on systematic research. Being organized and making plans to accomplish goals is so important that spontaneity, expression, creativity, and joy- the element of play- are given low priority or may even be considered frivolous by event planners, coaches, and spectators. Snowboarder Terje Haakonsen decided against performing in the Olympics because he didn’t want to endorse a form of sport in which organization and rationalization had subverted play. Haakonsen believe that fun and effort merge together in sports when they are done in terms set by participants. This merger collapse when sports are done for judges using criteria that ignore the subjective experience of participation. When creating sports, these are important things to remember because there is a tendency in postindustrial cultures to organize all physical activities for the purposes of rationally assessing skills and performances. Working to improve physical
In this essay, the author
- Explains the current trends in intercollegiate sports, such as escalating expenses for big-time spectator sports and struggles over gender equity.
- Explains the current trends in high school sports, such as increasing financial and public relations stakes, struggles over gender equity, elitism favoring skilled and highly specialized athletes, and outsourcing certain sport teams to private clubs.
- Explains the current trends in youth sports, including declining public programs due to budget constraints, increased privatization benefiting people who can pay club and facility fees, increasing de facto segregation of sports by socioeconomic status, race and ethnicity, and decreasing opportunities for children in low-income families and communities.
- Explains that an ideology emphasizes individualism and a form of family values that expects every family to provide for itself. people with resources will create playgrounds on their own property and buy access to private sport programs and facilities.
- Explains that technology is the application of scientific or other organized knowledge to solve problems, expand experiences, or alter the conditions of reality.
- Explains that television and the internet provide visual images and narratives that many people use to imagine future possibilities for sports. media producers worldwide have considerable power to create the future.
- Argues that organized, purpose-driven sports are associated with achieving goals rather than physical expression and joy. people in postindustrial societies live with the legacy of industrialization.
- Argues that public policies at all levels of government can create or subvert possibilities for noncommercial sports futures.
- Explains that sports are social constructions, and the richest sports environments are those in which people have diverse cultural backgrounds and sport experiences.
1543 wordsRead More - One of the assumptions Statsky makes is that, “One readily understandable danger of overly competitive sports is that they entice children into physical actions that are bad for growing bodies” (627). This statement rests on the assumption that children would not perform any “physical actions that are bad for growing bodies” (Statsky 627) without organized competitive sports. This is simply untrue. Children jump from swings, climb trees, skateboard, “pop wheelies” and otherwise put themselves in physical peril with alarming regularity. Children’s free and unorganized play often results in broken bones and stitches, even for the most timid children.
In this essay, the author
- Analyzes jessica statsky's essay, "children need to play, not compete," which refutes the belief that organized sports are good for children.
- Explains statsky's assumption that overly competitive sports entice children into physical actions that are bad for growing bodies. this is simply untrue. children’s free and unorganized play often results in broken bones and stitches.
- Opines that competition is an adult imposition on the world of children's play. children compete to win in the same way that adults do, and they do so on their own without any adult pressure.
- Analyzes statsky's faulty assumption that winning and losing are an inevitable part of adult life, but they shouldn't be in childhood. to assume that children are psychologically incapable of handling competition and the occasional inevitable loss is to underestimate their abilities.
- Analyzes how statsky uses the all too common phenomenon of the overzealous parent or coach to support her thesis.
- Analyzes statsky's claim that children are unsuited to play organized sports. she quotes a statistic which states that organized sport is selective and singles out exceptional athletes from more unskilled children.
- Analyzes how statsky's essay contains no examples of lasting damage to a former child athlete. if it is her intent to show that organized, competitive sports can cause lasting harm and have no benefits for these children, then lack of benefit must be shown.
952 wordsRead More - The Influence, Role, and Meaning of Sports in American Societyanalytical essay1. It has become much harder to identify the true and amateur-taught values around sport in our culture. The passion for competition, the aspect of a team, and the actions of sportsmanship are deep values that sports act to instill. It becomes one of the most important ways to teach those values to our young and unfortunately is becoming easy to forget. Throughout the semester we scrutinized sports, looking at their influence, role, and meaning in our American society today. Two foundations to view sport, critical and functionalist theory, were brought upon early in the semester, laying groundwork for looking at the rest of the topics. To better understand these two view points a working definition of each is needed. The three C’s of: capitalism, coercion and commercialism help describe the critical/conflict theory and view of sport in our United States. When looking with this viewpoint some of sport’s purposes in society include, promoting and expanding capitalistic drives as well as showing the power and privilege of elite groups within society. (Coakley, 2001) On the contrary the ...
In this essay, the author
- Analyzes how the three c's of capitalism, coercion, and commercialism describe the critical/conflict theory and view of sport in the united states.
- Analyzes how sport and ideology interact. the skybox symbolizes wealth, superiority, class, and power, while football players compared to warriors and coaches comparing the game to militarism.
549 wordsRead More