Popular Extreme Sports
In this article, we’ll introduce some popular extreme sports!
Are you familiar with extreme sports?
“Extreme sports” are activities that involve performing daring feats using various gear or your own body, often incorporating intense elements, or competing in height and speed.
In recent years, activities like slacklining and bouldering have become especially popular.
For those who’ve thought, “I want to try at least once!”, we’ve put together a list of popular extreme sports this time.
Some can be dangerous, so don’t push yourself!
Know your limits and enjoy them to the fullest!
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Popular extreme sports (1–10)
motocross
A sport featuring bikes with high ground clearance and light weight, distinguished by knobby tires, that race across unpaved roads—in other words, off-road terrain.
The courses are full of curves and undulations, and watching the bikes take to the air is one of the highlights.
In freestyle motocross, riders use ramps to jump like in BMX and compete on the execution of their tricks.
bouldering
Bouldering has become widely popular lately, with places to try it popping up around town—even inside karaoke venues.
It’s essentially a form of climbing, and one big draw is that you can enjoy it at indoor facilities.
In bouldering, you climb using protrusions called “holds.” Each difficulty grade has designated hold colors you’re allowed to use.
You don’t need much gear, so it’s easy to get started—but be warned, the muscle soreness at first can be pretty rough (haha)!
downhill
Downhill is a sport where you race down steep mountain slopes on a mountain bike.
Among mountain biking disciplines, it’s considered the most dangerous and is classified as an extreme sport.
Riders pick up speed by descending steep gradients, then use that momentum to power up slopes, launch into the air, and spin.
It’s incredibly fast, and the way they soar freely through the air—as if they had wings—is truly awesome.
Popular Extreme Sports (11–20)
Surfing
Surfing is a long-standing staple of marine sports and remains very popular.
It was added as an official event at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics.
You might think surfing is just about riding waves, but in competition, points are awarded for various maneuvers as well as for the ride itself.
There are longboard and shortboard categories, but the Olympic event uses shortboards.
Scores are determined by factors such as where and how you ride on the wave.
bungee jump
Bungee jumping—many people picture comedians doing it on TV.
It’s a sport where you leap from a high place, like a bridge or a skyscraper, with only a safety cord.
While it’s often seen as a test of courage or a kind of punishment game, it’s actually a competition that judges the beauty of your balance and form in midair when you jump from that height.
wakeboarding
Wakeboarding is a popular summer marine sport.
A handle is attached to the end of a rope trailing behind a motorboat; you hold the handle, get pulled by the boat on a board, skim across the water, and perform acrobatic tricks such as jumps and spins.
For beginners, just standing up on the water while being towed by the boat is a challenge.
Seeing riders pull off multiple tricks and land back on the water in that situation is nothing short of amazing.
kiteboard
Kiteboarding is a sport that’s like a combination of parasailing and wakeboarding.
It’s a water sport where you ride a board and glide or jump across the water, pulled by a wind-filled kite.
You steer the kite by controlling the bar attached to it, moving the kite’s position and catching waves smoothly with the board.
While handling the kite, riders compete in accelerating and decelerating, as well as performing tricks like spins and jumps.