Golden age of extreme sports?

It's just a cycle man because eventually regression results in progression

Oh yeah when aggressive inline was still a thing and Tony hawk doing a 900 was a big deal. 1999-2008ish was a different time...

Kinda odd how free skiing in its current form started to boom during the great recession

the skiing scene was more fun in the 2000's and I don't think it's just nostalgia that makes me think it.

Im 30 and have been part of skiing since the 1990's and back when the only widely distributed films were Warren Miller. Back then, extreme sports and skiing in particular were something new and exciting so all the big companies pumped money into it. Lol I remember when guys were repping gloves with the Target logo in halfpipe comps. It was all on cable as well so it was easier for corporations to get a realistic return on any kind of sponsorship investment. It was also the time when Poor Boyz, Level 1 and Matchstick were really able to sell DVD copies to make up for higher production costs. Then the internet took over ski media and the new expectation is free content. Unfortunately, this means less return on investment which means you cant dump a bunch of money to send a crew to AK with a private heli service.

The internet really did two things. First it provided a platform for many up and coming athletes to express their style and skills. If you really look at it, urban and park have some crazy creative things going on right now. The best example is probably Twoot and how a bunch of Russian kids who grew up watching Inspired Media etc started their own crew and ski company. The 'New Wave' is an expression of this and although it can be argued that its technically inferior, there are cool elements that will incorporate themselves back into technical park skiing like crazy butter hip hucks etc. Even backcountry has gotten more varied. Instead of the usual massive AK spines and pillows we have riders hiking up and doing awesome new lines in the Wasatch etc. (Faction- This is home Utah). Top tier filming equipment is also more widely available which means the production quality of independent media has gone way up which is cool to see.

On the same note, it took away part of the superstar aspect of skiing like we used to have with the epic Tanner vs Dumont pipe battle. I dont think anyone signs posters anymore and there is maybe a single movie premier if your lucky (This is one thing I am really bummed about, losing ski movie premiers is a huge loss to our community). This made it so the names are not as well known or as widely visible on a large stage. Corporations need these superstars as a rallying symbol to their brand but without the structured media outlets, its hard to manage this aspect.

All in all, I think the talent and production is still here. There have been some insane edits that dropped this year like Here After, Ruka, Twoot Hot Laps #1 etc but since everyone is watching on their laptop, the exposure is not nearly as visible. On the same note, "Extreme Sports" isnt a new cool thing so kids that are not in the actual skiing scene are less likely do deal with the logistical hellhole of watching X-Games in Aspen. Since nobody has cable anymore, those same random kids are less likely to seek out an online stream if its not advertised in their face like it used to be. I see skiing being more underground in that aspect but will continue to spread internationally, especially into Russia and China where any crew can buy a decent camera and some skis and throw together a professional level edit.

Im actually stoked as hell on where skiing is right now, maybe even more so than during the boom of the 2000's.

**This post was edited on Feb 13th 2019 at 4:30:36pm

idk i mean i have a huge soft nostalgia spot for the 98-2005ish era but i think objectively almost everything is better nowadays, especially skiing. the sport has matured, people have branched out and are doing all kinds of wild shit in every aspect of the sport, the attitudes and vibes are better and more inclusive, etc

also don't get me wrong, it's too bad that the fall movies don't happen like they used to, but the Wallisch Project model is tight IMO

and i get sooo much free, top quality ski content on instagram it's insane. that has downsides too of course but shit just these past two weeks ive been able to easily keep up with all the sick stuff going down in tahoe and at the corbet's contest at my leisure

I say now is the golden era of extreme sports because the gear gets better every year. Powder skis have gone through generations of redesign and now every company makes very similar types of skis with different constructions for different preferences. Even if you cannot afford brand new skis, the last ten years has been the best ten years in ski production history and it is easy to find used gear. The same gear evolution exists in rock climbing, skateboarding, and snowboarding

I say now is the golden era of extreme sports because the gear gets better every year. Powder skis have gone through generations of redesign and now every company makes very similar types of skis with different constructions for different preferences. Even if you cannot afford brand new skis, the last ten years has been the best ten years in ski production history and it is easy to find used gear. The same gear evolution exists in rock climbing, skateboarding, and snowboarding

early 90s-early 2000s

Why does everyone talk about the past so much? Focus on the future and it will be better than the past.

I am glad there is a bit of a regression in skiing. It was always supposed to be about style and having fun. Going big and doing bigger tricks is great and all, but the body can only handle so much. I think we are getting too close to these limits and its getting much more dangerous. You could win with a double frontflip superman. Now you have to do a triple cork, soon to be a quad...

That also made the "pro" level of skiing seem possible. Okay I landed my front flip, make it a styled out double and your basically pro. Now they have to think about doing a triple 1760 and they can't even count that high. It makes it seem like the highest level of skiing is not realistic anymore for many people.

SofaKingSickidk i mean i have a huge soft nostalgia spot for the 98-2005ish era but i think objectively almost everything is better nowadays, especially skiing. the sport has matured, people have branched out and are doing all kinds of wild shit in every aspect of the sport, the attitudes and vibes are better and more inclusive, etc

also don't get me wrong, it's too bad that the fall movies don't happen like they used to, but the Wallisch Project model is tight IMO

and i get sooo much free, top quality ski content on instagram it's insane. that has downsides too of course but shit just these past two weeks ive been able to easily keep up with all the sick stuff going down in tahoe and at the corbet's contest at my leisure

also, do you guys remember how much rock-rap and other terrible music there was in the early 2000s videos? yuck