X Games 16
The folks from Adaptive Action Sports (AAS) will bring back adaptive events to X Games 16 in Los Angeles on July 29-31. The event will feature Moto X Super X competition, along with skate and wheelchair disciplines.
Daniel Gale (AAS co-founder) says: “Our mission is to raise the ability of, and the opportunity for, permanently disabled individuals to participate in action sports. We strive to raise the level of expectation, and respect for the abilities and potential of adaptive individuals. This attitudinal change will be experienced within both the adaptive and non-adaptive community.”
Speaking of attitude, don’t look for the Adaptive athletes to get cut any slack… they race on the exact same track as the pros in the Moto X Super X racing. In fact, defending Moto X Adaptive racing champ Chris Ridgway’s (#181) times at X Games 15 would have put him right in the mix with the pro field. Look for Ridgway to “adapt” to the new track and put in the same sort of blistering pace he was on last summer at the Carson Center.
Hosted in the same historic stadium that was home to both the 1932 Summer Olympic Games and the original Super Bowl Of Motocross, the Los Angeles Coliseum will feature two classes of Adaptive motocross racing. According to AAS, both amputee and athletes living with paralysis will medal in X Games 16 Moto X Super X racing (formerly known as Moto X Racing).
Paralyzed riders will be defined as a rider who is strapped down to their bike. The top two riders of each class from X Games 15 were automatically qualified for X Games 16 in Los Angeles, so that means Ridgway and runner-up Mike Schultz were invited, while fan favorites like Ricky James (#824) and Ranel Cox had to qualify for a spot in the field via the Extremity Games.
Don’t miss Super X adaptive along with Moto X Freestyle, Men’s and Women’s Super X and Skateboard Big Air on Thursday, July 29 at the LA Coliseum. Tickets are only $16 and available at ticketmaster.com/xgames.
