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 h yes, a mixed blessing -- riding on ESPN2 in the form of the X-Games. On the upside, riding is getting good publicity, people see it as "cool" rather than dorky (the memory of the movie "Rad" is fading at last), riders are making money, and the sport is growing. Of course, there's the other side of the coin: ESPN's using of our sport to make money, the commercialization of everything, the clueless announcers, idiot spectators, and all the companies rushing in to cash in while the getting's good.
Now that I think about it, it's weird for me to be writing on this topic -- I haven't competed in a major contest since 1988 (hell, I haven't even ATTENDED one in years); the popularity of riding or whether the public thinks it's "cool" or not has never influenced me or affected my desire to ride; I went to some of the X-Games when it was in Rhode Island, but not 'cause I was a huge fan of the whole deal, but just because it was close by
I guess what it boils down to is that I really like riding, it's undoubtedly part of my life (from the looks of things so far, a pretty permanent part at that), and as a result I have thoughts and opinions on this whole thing. So if you're interested, read on. If not, no big deal, since nothing I say will have any impact on things one way or the other. And that's fine with me; I ride 'cause I like doing it, not to get on TV.
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