15 Memorable Moments:
1999 – Skateboarder Tony Hawk successfully lands the first ever 900 (3 rotations) on a skateboard at X Games Five on the San Francisco Pier.
1999 – Motocross icon Travis Pastrana completes a nearly perfect run in Moto X Freestyle with a score of 99.0 at the age of 15. During his second run, Pastrana launched into the San Francisco Bay off the Pier.
2000 – BMX pro Dave Mirra competes in the Bike Stunt Park final at X Games Six and successfully lands the first double backflip on a BMX bike, giving Mirra his ninth gold medal. 2001 – Skateboarder Bob Burnquist took his third run of the Skateboard Vert final and gave one of the most beautiful displays of skateboarding ever seen. Connecting a switch kickflip Indy to a fakie-to-fakie 540 then to a darkside to fakie, Burnquist did this fluently the entire run and didn’t repeat a single trick.
2002 – In the Moto X Freestyle final at X Games Eight in Philadelphia, Mike Metzger cemented his legacy by becoming the first ever rider to land back-to-back backflips.
2002 – After crashing in 2001 on an attempt, Motocross pro Carey Hart got the “monkey off his back” by sticking a backflip on his motorcycle at X Games Eight and took home silver.
2002 – BMX legend Mat Hoffman successfully landed the first no-handed 900 (3 rotations) on a BMX bike at X Games Eight in Philadelphia. 2003 – Skateboarder Ryan Sheckler made X Games history when he became the youngest gold medalist when he won Skateboard Park gold at X Games Nine in Los Angeles.
2004 – Motocross pro Chuck Carothers competes in the Moto X Best Trick competition and lands the first ever body varial that was dubbed “the Carolla.”
2006 – Once again, Travis Pastrana makes X Games history in the Moto X Best Trick final at X Games 12 when he successfully lands the first double backflip on a motorcycle in competition.
2006 – Rally racing legend Colin McCrae enters his first X Games Rally Race, goes head-to-head with Travis Pastrana for gold, rolls his car mere feet from the finish line in the “Super Special”, barely loses any time and leaves X Games 12 with silver.
2006 – BMX champion Kevin Robinson began competing in X Games when it debuted in his hometown of Providence, Rhode Island, in 1995. It took 11 years, but at X Games 12, Robinson successfully landed the first double flair ever done in BMX Vert Best Trick giving him his first X Games gold. 2007 – Skateboarder Jake Brown made headline news at X Games 13 when he fell from above the top of the quarterpipe after successfully landing a 720 (2 ½ rotations) over the gap, and after being examined by the medical team, Brown was able to walk off the ramp under his own power.
2007 – Skateboard and Snowboard phenom Shaun White completed a near flawless run during the Skateboard Vert final at X Games 13 to finally capture his first X Games (summer) gold.
2008 – Skateboard icon Danny Way showed off his determination and toughness at the Skateboard Big Air final after picking himself up to continue the rest of his runs after taking a hard spill on his second run. Way went on to finish behind champion, Bob Burnquist.
Fans will be able to select the most memorable moment in X Games history from among the 15 choices selected by the internal ESPN committee. To view video and vote on these specific X Games moments, go HERE. The 15th annual action sports competition will feature more than 250 of the world’s best athletes who will compete in BMX Freestyle, Moto X, Skateboard and Rally Car Racing. Tickets for X Games 15 are available for purchase at STAPLES Center and The Home Depot Center box offices or online through www.Ticketmaster.com. ESPN, ESPN2 and ABC will air 20 hours of live coverage of the X Games July 30-August 2 – all available in high definition. Additional coverage will be provided via ESPN360.com, Xgames.com, ESPN Classic, ESPN International, SportsCenter and ESPN2’s X Center.
Photos: SHAZAMM/ESPN IMAGES
After doing a BMX 'zine for ten years (1987 - 1996) FATBMX made it on the internet. The year was 1998. Here to stay.