X Games 13 is over and, as promised, there was an amazing amount of action, and phenomenal tricks as well as some truly shocking wipe-outs.
There were several changes to the X Games this year; some competitions were added while others were removed. In the debut of MotoX Racing, Ricky Carmichael dominated and even treated the fans to a few tricks during his qualifying heat.
Some of the revised rules caused a bit of turmoil for the athletes. In skateboard vert, a new rule prohibited riders from continuing the run if they fell. That single rule seemed to cause a major upheaval as one X Games vet after another were forced to end their runs and accept relatively low scores.
It may have been the rule changes or something in the air but the X Games vets faced quite a challenge this year from the younger, greener athletes. In both BMX and skateboarding the newer athletes seemed more determined than ever to upset the balance and claim their spot at the top. They threw down some insane runs in their quest for X Games gold and they certainly grabbed the attention of everyone watching, including the vets.
SuperMoto fans were treated to a race which closely mirrored that of the 2006 X Games; the race between Jeff Ward and Mark Burkhart. Once again the race came down to the two riders battling it out for the win. This year however, on the second-to-last lap, Mark Burkhart pulled past Ward and shot ahead to claim the gold.
In addition to the tricks and wins of this year, X Games 13 will also be remembered for its injuries. Many of the athletes seemed plagued with minor to major injuries. The one image that won’t soon leave our minds though, and the one that is sure to be replayed repeatedly in the years to come, is that of skateboarder Jake Brown. After completing an awesome 720° from the Mega Ramp, Brown caught air off the vert ramp and fell approximately 40 feet to the bottom of the ramp, hitting with enough force to knock his shoes off. Brown suffered multiple injuries but, amazingly walked off the ramp on his own accord.
Here is a look at the final results from X Games 13- (Gold, Silver, Bronze)
Rally Car: Tanner Foust/Chrissie Beavis, Ken Block/Alessandro Gelosomino, Travis Pastrana/Christian Edstrom
Moto X-
Step Up: Ronnie Renner (33’); Brian Deegan, Matt Buyten & Tommy Clowers (32’)
Best Trick: Kyle Loza, Adam Jones, Todd Potter
Racing: Ricky Carmichael, Grant Langston, Kevin Windham
SuperMoto: Mark Burkhart, Jeff Ward, David Pingree
Freestyle: Adam Jones, Nate Adams, Jeremy Stenberg
Surfing-
Men’s: USA
Women’s: USA
Skateboarding-
Big Air: Bob Burnquist, Jake Brown, Pierre-Luc Gagnon
Vert: Shaun White, Pierre-Luc Gagnon, Mathias Ringstrom
Street: Chris Cole, Greg Lutzka, Jereme Rogers
Women’s Vert: Lynn-Z Adams Hawkins, Mimi Knoop, Cara-Beth Burnside
Women’s Street: Marisa Dal Santo, Elissa Steamer, Amy Caron
BMX-
Big Air: Kevin Robinson, Steve McCann, Anthony Napolitan
Vert: Jamie Bestwick, Simon Tabron, Kevin Robinson
Park: Daniel Dhers, Scotty Cranmer, Dave Mirra
For video highlights and information from behind the scenes check out the official X Games site at EXPN.com
