Action Recon’s Top 10 Action Sports Events Of 2011

2011 was one hell of a year in action sports, we saw innovation, tragedy, milestones in filming, contest domination and so many other incredible feats of athleticism that it was really hard to narrow the list down to a top 10. We thought long and hard and came out with what we felt were the 10 most important and game changing events that took place over the past year. Some of the items on the list are one accomplishment, some are a number of accomplishments that resulted in greatness and others are simple mentions and tributes to fallen athletes. Either way the people that make action sports a reality (the athletes) really raised the bar this year and truly accomplished things that were never thought possible. So we dedicate this list to all the athletes out there doing their job and keeping the entire industry alive. Thank you.

THIS LIST IS IN NO PARTICULAR ORDER.

1) BMX Triple Back Flip by Jed Mildon.

One of the craziest things we saw all year, Jed Mildon cranked out a triple back flip on his BMX bike and landed it perfectly to become the first person ever to successfully land this trick on a BMX bike. If you missed it check out the video below.

2) Kelly Slater wins his 11th world title.

Judging fiascos aside no one can take away the fact that Kelly Slater had the best year of his life, again. 2011 saw him win his 11th world title and saw him take wins at the Quik Pro Gold Coast, the Billabong Pro Teahupoo, and the Hurley Pro Trestles to earn the title at the Rip Curl Pro Search San Francisco. At 39 he remains on top of the game and is truly a living legend. Congratulations Kelly Slater.

3) Torstein Horgomo lands first triple cork in a competition.

At the 2011 X-Games Big Air event it was more or less a given that if Torstein could land the triple cork he had pulled off in 2010 while practicing in the mountains he would be walking away with the gold medal in Big Air. Skeptics and even Torstein himself saw the jump as being too small to successfully land a triple cork, but when it came down to game time neither of these things stopped the Norwegian from pulling the triple off and leaving with a gold medal.

4) Jeff “Ox” Kargola passes away.

It was a very sad day when I got a phone call informing me that Ox had taken a bad fall in the Desert Assassins’ 2011 Rip to the Tip and surcame to his injuries on a Friday morning in April. Jeff was a good person who I had had the pleasure of working with a number of times. He lived his life to the fullest and will always be remembered as one of the best FMX riders to ever grace the sport. RIP Jeff you are greatly missed.

5) Nyjah Huston dominates “Street League” and releases “Rise And Shine”.

Nyjah had one of the biggest years of any action sport athlete. He won the first tree stops of the “Street League” event taking with him $150 000 each time, stopped by the X-Game and won the Gold medal in street, found himself back with powerhouse Element Skateboards where he enjoyed the sales of a very successful pro model and topped it all off with one the best video parts all year in his solo film “Rise And Shine”. Perhaps the most incredible thing about any of these accomplishments is the fact he was able to complete them all before he turned 17. Truly a remarkable kid and someone we are going to see many great things from in the years to come.

6) Sion Milosky drowns at Mavericks.

On March 16th the surfing world suffered a huge blow when it lost legendary surfer Sion Milosky. While surfing at Mavericks break Sion took a fall and was held under for too long and tragically drowned. A great big wave surfer who charged hard and lived a great life, he will be forever remembered and respected.

7)Mark McMorris lands a Backside 1440 Triple Cork.

The year in snowboarding was off the hook and we saw many snowboarders really pushing the limits in the parks, pipe, back country and in competitions. Granted Mark’s 1440 Triple Cork was not landed in a competition, but that does not take away from the fact it was a marvel. What else can we really say about this trick, it was something that was only possible in video games a few years back and now guys are sticking them for real. Is this the future? We will see what 2012 has in store.

8) Mark Monea lands a 360 front flip on a dirt bike and Jackson Strong lands the first ever front flip in competition.

Another sport that had its fair share of progression this year was FMX. It had been a race to see who was going to land the first front flip in competition and the winner of that race turned out to be Australia’s own Jackson Strong. It earned him a gold medal at the Summer X-Games and bragging rights for the rest of his life.

Second up in the front flip club we saw the first variation of the front flip when Mark Monea landed a 360 front flip and got himself some well deserved fame from the trick.

9) Snowboard movie “The Art Of Flight” sets new standard and blends disciplines.

When I was coming up in snowboarding there were really two camps of people, the guys like Peter Line, Devun Walsh, Chad Otterstrom and Mikey Leblanc who were your park, rail and booter guys and than you had Dave Hatchet, Jeremy Jones and Tom Burt who were ruling the backcountry. Essentially what the “Art Of Flight” accomplished was combining all these people and bringing the biggest park tricks to the gnarliest lines in the backcountry and really unifying the sport of snowboarding. Travis Rice pulls off some of the most insane tricks while riding the most intense lines in the world, he brings the idea of back county booters to a whole other level, size and danger and explores some of the most remote regions in the world while doing so. The filming speaks for itself and the movie as a whole was an entirely new experience for the viewer.

10) BMX Pro Dane Searls passes away, but not before changing the sport of BMX forever. The Giants Of Dirt sessions are complete.

One of the most tragic events this year was when BMX pro Dane Searls finally successfully completed his “Giants Of Dirt” mission only to pass away two days after it was all said and done. Dane sustained a traumatic brain injury while diving into a pool and after 5 days in a coma left this world for a better one.

Dane had been working on a vision of his called the “Giants Of Dirt”, essentially he wanted to build and ride the biggest BMX jumps that anyone had ever seen. His plans were botched a few times due to injury, weather and the schematics of building such jumps. However, in the end his vision came to fruition and Dane not only successfully rode these jumps, but in doing so opened a door into what is truly possible on a BMX bike. RIP Dane you left a true legacy my friend.

Final Note :

In closing we would like to give a shout out to some of the athletes that passed away this year some while doing what they love and others under different circumstances. You all have left your mark and given those coming up something to strive towards and more importantly someone to respect. Thank you so much for the love and dedication you have shown to your respective sports, you will not be forgotten.

Jim McNeil : FMX
Ryan Hawks : Freeskier
Kip Garre : Mountaineer and Big Mountain Skier
Aaron Robinson : Snowboarder
Josh Lichtle : Motocross Pro
Antoine Montant : Skier/BASE Jumper
Jamie Pierre : Big Mountain Skier

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