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Keeping it (kind of) real | page 1, 2
With the money, however, has come the predictable angst among the
skaters over whether or not the sport is "selling out." Aggressive in-line
skating, like skateboarding before it, has an affiliated lifestyle, and
the in-line trade magazines offer as much advice on what music to listen
to as on how to grind down a railing. The magazines shifting advice
on music offers an insight into how the sport has fought to keep itself
distinct from popular culture: Chris Mitchell of Box Magazine, writing
about the increasing mainstream popularity of grunge rock, instructs his
readers, "Plan on ditching Offspring, 311 and Sublime for the new Wu
Tang, Roots or DJ Q-Bert albums. A good indication you've succeeded in
choosing the right soundtrack is the frequency of expletives -- the more
offensive the lyrics, the more legitimate the sound." Judging from the music preferred
by many participants at X Games V, his advice wasn't taken lightly. Most of the skaters, echoing the magazines, talk without a hint of irony about keeping the
sport close to the "real street scene" -- never mind
that most of the competitors have about as strong a connection to the
"real street scene" as Vanilla Ice. And never mind that the
X Games has always been as corporate as a tech conference in Silicon
Valley. The government was even getting in on the action: The Postal Service introduced a new line of
extreme sport stamps at the games, and one of the sponsors of the X Games is the Office of
National Drug Control Policy, under the slogan "Get vertical not high." - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
- While sports like baseball and football are predicated
on organization, competition and discipline, alternative sports are about
finding thrills and showing off to your friends. Andy MacDonald, the
silver medalist in skateboarding vert at this year's games, says that he
doesn't train -- he just hangs out. "When you start," he says, "it's up to
your friends to teach you. It's completely self-motivated. No rules, no
coaches. Just straight trial and error." For a generation that views rules
and discipline as fondly as it views higher math, that formula is
attractive. Even at the X Games, with big money at stake, that relaxed code
still held. During the warm-ups for virtually every event, when music
blared out of the speaker and the athletes were "training," the scene on Pier 30
felt as familiar and relaxed as a backyard cookout. And when the competition
began and MacDonald put together a spectacular skateboarding routine, it seemed like
perfectly genuine moment when the Hawk stood up to cheer his performance. A similar
dynamic characterized the relationship between the athletes and fans. In these times of petulant professional athletes acting as if they're doing us a favor
by letting us watch them play, it's these alternative athletes who have managed
to form a true bond with their fans. Last week, when a stunt-biker nicknamed "Rooftop" gave his
busted BMX bike to a fan at the end of his routine, it was a reminder of how the fans' fierce loyalty
is reciprocated -- and that it's stronger than any brand loyalty could ever be.
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