Joe Gibbs sold James Stewart on joining his JGRMX team last October by showing a personal interest, convincing him the technology from his Sprint Cup operation could be used to build a better motorcycle than the competition and offering a five-year contract with the opportunity to move into a NASCAR program in the future.
It would be NASCAR's dream race in many ways: Ricky Carmichael, Travis Pastrana, James Stewart on the grid of the Daytona 500, legions of 18-to-39-somethings huddled around televisions and smart devices, breathlessly watching this triumvirate of motocracy as it prepared to compete in Sprint Cup's premier event. Oh, the brand new merchandise they would be wearing. Oh, the loyalty for their new sport of choice bursting from their young and impressionable hearts as they follow their motocross/supercross/action sports heroes loyally to their new vocation.
James "Bubba" Stewart isn't the first athlete to make more in endorsements than he does in winnings. But few have taken it to this extreme: At 25, Stewart is the titan of motocross, where championship races bring purses of $12,000 or less -- and yet he takes in $10 million a year in endorsements.
Walking on the white sands of Durban beach, with South Africa's powerful waves towering in front of him, surfing icon Shaun Tomson feels right at home.
South African pro surfer Shaun Tomson tells CNN about his spiritual experience on the waves.
Travis Pastrana does not look back. There's no need. YouTube catalogs his triumphs and failures. He also does not look ahead except to recite his exhausting schedule. Pastrana's focus, instead, is elsewhere.
Downhill long-board skateboard racing is making a comeback in the United States. It's considered a gravity sport along with downhill luge racing. That's when skateboarders lay down on their long boards and race downhill. But in this downhill skateboard racing revival, the skaters are standing up.
In 1972, rock concert promoter Mike Goodwin tried something that had never been done by bringing motocross -- a European form of motorcycle racing that was just starting to gain a foothold in the U.S. -- into a stadium. He called it the Super Bowl of Motocross, an appropriate title considering it was run in the Los Angeles Coliseum, the site of the first Super Bowl.
Ken Block was lounging on the balcony of a pleasantly elegant hotel in northern France, enjoying a view of rolling hills and vineyards while resisting the urge to theorize how fast he could rip through them in a rally car. In a day he and Ford would unveil his entry for the World Rally Championship, officially making him the first American to compete full-time in at the highest level of the ultra-popular, ultra-difficult off-road racing circuit.
Teens in the U.S. donate skateboards to their Cuban counterparts. CNN's Patrick Oppmann reports.
Rene Lecour's plan started out simple: Take his son on a skateboarding trip to someplace "epic."
A skateboarding school in Afghanistan offers more than an escape into sport for youth. CNN's Arwa Damon reports.
The girls come tumbling through the door giggling and shrieking with excitement. They dash towards the neatly stacked shoes, knee guards, helmets, and skateboards.
American racing produced few surprises in 2010. Jimmie Johnson won the Sprint Cup for the fifth consecutive year, Dario Franchitti took his second straight Izod IndyCar title, Scott Pruett and Memo Rojas drove Chip Ganassi Racing's Daytona Prototype to the Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car crown, Gary Brabham and Simon Pagenaud won LMP in ALMS, John Force had his 15th championship in NHRA Funny Car and Larry Dixon his third in Top Fuel.
HOMESTEAD, Fla. -- Tanner Foust was picking at the edges of the blue table cloth inside the hospitality tent Saturday morning at Homestead-Miami Speedway. He sat, nearly anonymous, in the shadow of 15-time NHRA champion John Force, who was holding court near the coffee pumpers.
Ice can't keep surfers out of the waves off the coast of New Jersey. Watch them ride in the documentary "Dark Fall."
The cold has cleared the sunbathing crowds from New Jersey's beaches, yet the freezing temperatures won't keep some surfers out of the water.
MT. WASHINGTON, N.H. - They had all stopped squinting toward the summit by now. There was nothing to see but rocks and clouds, nothing to do but try to find a spot where their phones could pick up a cell signal in this picturesque and remote sector of the White Mountains. The quiet, the wake in the energy field created when Travis Pastrana exited, stage up, was palpable. Almost unnerving.
SI.com: The Bonus: The Waveupdated: Thu Sep 09 2010 15:48:00
From THE WAVE: In Pursuit of the Rogues, Freaks, and Giants of the Ocean. Copyright © 2010 by Susan Casey. Published by arrangement with Doubleday, an imprint of The Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, a Division of Random House, Inc.
Land-locked surfers from Idaho, Montana and Wyoming gather at the Snake River to ride the river-driven waves.
A surfboard atop a vehicle, 700 miles from the nearest ocean, is your first clue that the surf's up in Wyoming.
From the first day he launched his online skateboard store in 2002, Mike Duncan faced a problem that has plagued retailers since the dawn of online shopping: abandoned shopping carts.
One man is on a quest to turn the industry he loves into a green venture by using what some board makers throw away.
Joey Santley's flip-flops rhythmically clap as he strolls through San Clemente's surf ghetto, a cluster of boxy surfboard-making businesses.
In Gaza, a handful of Palestinian men have found a way to escape temporarily from the hardships of life in their conflict-wracked home. They go surfing.
James Stewart begins pursuit of his third Monster Supercross championship Saturday at Angel Stadium in Anaheim. Like Tiger Woods and Serena Williams, Stewart didn't set out to break down barriers by becoming the best black athlete in a particular sport. He was pursuing his dream and made it to the top, becoming arguably the most successful of his race in American motor racing history.
Check out the 10-ft. great white cruising the bay where Matthew McConaughey and other celebs hang 10!
HOLLYWOOD, Calif. -- Ryan Sheckler can't sit still. He paces back and forth inside the Roosevelt Hotel before sitting down for a moment and then getting back up.
HUNTINGTON BEACH, Calif. -- Brett Simpson stared at the names scattered across the U.S. Open of Surfing bracket, which looked more like a Hall of Fame ballot than the field for the richest event in surfing history. There was Kelly Slater, Rob Machado, Andy Irons, Taylor Knox, Mick Fanning, C.J. Hobgood and Sunny Garcia -- winners of 15 combined world championships and the highest career earners in surfing history.
HUNTINGTON BEACH, Calif. -- Malia Manuel seems out of place walking among the girls parading around in thongs at Surf City, USA, fawning over every hulking surfer who walks past them. She smiles at the scene, her head hidden under a hat as she walks towards the shore unnoticed, like a Hollywood starlet in disguise while sneaking into her own summer blockbuster.
The sun has yet to peak over the mountains that line the Playa de las FAE, a secluded beach on the Ecuadorian Air Force base in Salinas known for its long waves. Sitting on a bus carrying them through dirt streets to the breaking shores are Kolohe Andino, Connor Coffin and Evan Geiselman, three 15-year-old surfers from different parts of the country that are collectively being hailed as the future of American surfing.
Microsoft Corp. on Monday unveiled its answer to the Nintendo Wii.
SAN CLEMENTE, Calif. -- Surfers are often judged by their ability to ride waves from the fronstide and backside, which seems like a good starting point in understanding one of the sport's rising stars.
An environmentally-friendly surfboard has taken to the waves after five years in development.
The Greatest of All Time is utterly consumed by the bear trap of a lawn chair. Delana and Kevin Harvick, each sitting nearby and pampering some sort of lap dog, gesture toward the television tucked into the ribs of their motor coach.
For pro-surfers like nine-time world champion Kelly Slater, flying from continent to continent looking for the perfect wave seems like a freewheeling lifestyle, but for amateurs, it requires careful planning.
Ricky Carmichael's nickname in motocross was "Goat", aka "greatest of all-time". He earned it in a spectacular career that included 15 American Motorcyclist Association titles in Supercross and outdoor national championships including two perfect 24-wins in 24-races seasons and led the USA team to four international Motocross de Nations titles. Carmichael even won gold at in two events at the X-games.
The skateboarder and wife Lhotse welcome daughter Kadence Clover
The four-time gold medalist marries Tim Shannon, an amateur wave rider
It's the dead end of winter. Mountains of work need to get done. Economic uncertainty looms. It's been a long year - and it ain't even April yet.
OAHU, Hawaii -- "If I die, I die. I've lived a pretty good life" says Mark Healey, a 25-year-old big-wave surfer. "I can't argue with the boss."
As surfers try to catch a wave, British Airways is catching flak for banning surfboards in the baggage hold of its flights.
British Airways has issued a ban on all surfboards, canoes and javelins from its aircraft. ITN reports.
The self-proclaimed 'World's favorite airline' has upset the surfing community by banning surfboards from its aircraft
Get your game on
updated: Mon Oct 15 2007 09:33:00
CNN's Matt West talks to Nicole Lapin about the latest video games on the market.
Skateboarding is all about cheeky defiance, which is exactly what Electronic Arts is sporting for going up against Activision's billion-dollar Tony Hawk skateboarding franchise.
Jesse Billauer rolls into the Beverly Hills Hotel with a blonde bombshell by his side and immediately attracts everyone's attention as soon as he opens his mouth. The tanned surfer is telling his friends to hold on to their girlfriends tight or he just might nab them up before the night is done. His friends laugh but quickly tighten their grip on their significant others. They know Billauer too well.
With six months to train for Europe's toughest mountain bike race, it should have been a simple journey from trembling sack of flab to whittle-thin cycling machine. It wasn't.
"There is no business to be done on a dead planet."
Imagine skiing on untouched snow where chairlifts, queues and other skiers don't exist.
CNN caught up with Chris Hines in Cornwall, England to talk surfing, sewage and saving the world...
Ask those who ride the waves, and they'll tell you surfing and music are like searing sun rays and cold beverages, wet suits and wakeboards, sand and sandwiches. They just go together.
The surfboard industry is going nuclear -- and greening up in the process.
A dozen or so representatives from the International Committee of the Red Cross are headed for our military detention center at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and frankly I am concerned for their comfort and possibly even their health. They plan to meet with detainees there, specifically the 14 terrorists who have been held in recent years at secret CIA facilities abroad. After those meetings will the members of the Red Cross delegation have access to showers, baths and possibly a sauna? I hope so.
Blue Hawaiiupdated: Thu May 25 2006 13:23:00
Hawaii's world-class waves, dazzling sea life and spectacular scenery make getting out on the water a goal for most visitors. Sunset magazine spoke with three islanders for an inside line on the best gateways to tropical adventure.
When Ray Petro started riding trails on his new mountain bike, he was looking for a way to keep in shape.
Oleg, Dmitri and Anton have come a long way from St. Petersburg, Russia.
FSB: Roll With Itupdated: Tue Nov 01 2005 00:01:00
When the weather turns Chilly, most mountain bikers push their bikes into the garage and keep them there until spring. For one biking devotee that wasn't good enough. Ray Petro, 39, a remodeling co...
FSB: Wave Makerupdated: Thu Sep 01 2005 00:01:00
In a recent issue of Transworld Surf, a trade magazine, Randy French was listed as the third-most-powerful person in the $4.5 billion industry. But if there were a list of the most controversial pl...
What with terrorism anxieties, security snarls, flight cancellations, lost luggage, lost legroom, reduced meal service, and deadly Cinnabon calorie counts, air travel has never been more stressful.
Surfing might one day be as much a part of landlocked countries as it is in Hawaii, Indonesia and Australia, thanks to a click of a computer button.
Tim Dicus was surfing about 200 yards off Florida's Panhandle on Saturday, when he heard the screams of a shark attack.
When the sullen and fearless blond teenage boys in "Lords of Dogtown" ride their skateboards, never pausing to think about anything that isn't directly in front of them, the movie joins them right on the pavement, racing forward with grungy velocity, showing us what the skaters are seeing and feeling as they ride along back alleys, dilapidated asphalt playgrounds, and any other available surface: a world of trash transcended.
Nearly two years ago, elite surfer Bethany Hamilton was attacked by a shark, losing her left arm and nearly her life. Today, the teenager is catching big waves once again on a specially designed surfboard, and she's written a book about her journey back to the water.
NRS Inflatable Kayak, $700 As a recreational boater in the 1960s, Bill Parks, then a university business professor, was disappointed by the low-tech kayaks he found. So he built a prototype and in ...
The Indonesian island of Nias, where hundreds of people were killed in Monday's quake, is a popular destination with foreign and local surfers.
An Australian company has developed technology that intends to protect divers and surfers from being attacked by sharks while they are in the water.
Once a skier's standard mode of transportation, the traditional incline lift faces competition in 2005, as alternative ski options emerge from beyond the backcountry.
One of the more unusual survivors of the Asian tsunami is an Australian drawn to Aceh by its surfing, caught up in the wave that the whole world knows about.
A German man has become the first person to cross Australia on a skateboard.
Ask any parent--if you tell kids what to do, they're sure to do the exact opposite. Tylenol seems to have read that child-rearing chapter, because lately it has been acting like the coolest parent ...
Upstart extreme sports are getting all grown up.
In Virginia Beach, Virginia, this week, a fishing trawler pulls into port. Not necessarily noteworthy, until you consider the mission the Indies Trader has been on.
When Ted Monney opened a new skateboard shop in Hollywood five months ago, he decided to stock it with a surprising line of skate shoes: Nikes. More than a few of his customers chided him about car...
Guess what? "Jersey Girl" is a whole lot better than "Gigli."
A professional snowboarder was injured Thursday after falling 25 feet while performing a stunt outside the Ed Sullivan Theater in Manhattan where the "Late Show with David Letterman" is taped.
Aspen's longest running freestyle competition has received a facelift. Freestyle Fridays recently changed to a Friday Big Air competition, which kicked off December 28, 2003. The event will continue every Friday during February and March 2004.
The harsh chop of the helicopter blades cuts through the silence as the craft lifts away from a mountaintop in British Columbia, Canada.
The coolest things these days on America's ski slopes probably aren't the skiers, or even the snow-covered trails.
Surfing isn't fun unless it's dangerous. I got injured last Easter at my house on the north shore of Hawaii. I pulled my hamstring--tore it two inches off the bone. I'm still recovering from that. ...
On a rotating stage bathed in blue light, the vehicle looked otherworldly, like something from far in the future. It was called the Autonomy, and vaguely resembled a giant skateboard. The only feat...
Some business disasters are so big you can actually hear them coming. This one sounded like a crack, followed by a gasp. The ugly noises first began in the fall of 1995; skiers checking out the new...
If you're willing to set aside for a moment the gigantic chicken-and-egg problem of where to get the hydrogen to run a new generation of efficient, nonpolluting hydrogen-powered cars, General Motor...
For them, office hours are based on weather conditions. Seed-round funding comes from the money they've earned promoting other companies. More often than not, they conduct business not from behind ...
Robert Earl Wells IV likes to call himself the Martha Stewart of youth culture. God knows why. Perhaps it's because the 31-year-old marketing expert has hosted cooking segments with skateboarders a...
Fortune: Hang Looserupdated: Mon Nov 13 2000 00:01:00
I didn't tell my mother that I was going kitesurfing in Hawaii. I'm a grown man, yet when it comes to activities that might lead to massive reconstruction of expensive orthodontic work, I tend to k...
In my spare time, I am an elected borough councilman in a tiny town near the Jersey shore, where recently the townsfolk debated whether we should build a skateboard park near the local soccer field...
Israel "Izzy" Paskowitz has surfed thousands of waves, but the one he remembers most clearly is his first. On a Corky Carroll longboard, the 6-year-old and his father paddled out tandem-style into ...
Fortune: X Appealupdated: Mon Sep 28 1998 00:01:00
When Apple Computer announced plans to soft-pedal its Rhapsody operating system in favor of the forthcoming Mac OS X--pronounced "OS Ten"--we couldn't help but wonder, Why "OS X"? Apple spokesperso...
Now that in-line skating is the sport of choice for about 16 million free-wheeling Americans, including the likes of Madonna and J.F.K. Jr., the number of model styles in this $250 million market j...
I WAS LEAVING SCHOOL WITH OLLIE, MY associate, when a kid with a pair of hockey skates slung over his shoulder came hustling toward us. ''Hey! Are you Jack B. Quick, sports detective?'' he asked. '...
JENNIFER ORCUTT AND JOE Galvin are on a roll. The two 9-year-olds from Redwood City, California, spend three to four hours a day jumping, twirling, and spinning around a roller-skating rink in perf...
IT'S EIGHT O'CLOCK IN THE morning, an hour when most high school kids are just beginning to think about first-period class. Steve Reynolds is already in his first ''class'' of the day: He's skiing ...
Feeling blue because football season is drawing to a close and baseball is months away? Join the millions of other armchair jocks who are increasingly tuning their TVs to ever more popular alternat...
Five days into the Senate hearings on the Bork nomination last September, the Washington Post/ABC News Poll picked up a blip -- a ''slight plurality of the public'' turning against confirmation. In...
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