Isn’t Snowboarding a Little Extreme?

Is snowboarding an “extreme sport?”

Think about it this way: Is driving a car a sport, extreme or otherwise? It depends. Are you driving a Honda Accord down a suburban street, or are you driving a Formula 1 car through the streets?

Got the picture? It all depends on what you’re doing with the equipment.

If you’re cruising down groomed blue trails, that’s not extreme. If you’re riding off cliffs and dropping 50 feet, that’s extreme.

Merriam-Webster dictionary defines “extreme” as “of, relating to, or being an outdoor activity or a form of a sport (as skiing) that involves an unusually high degree of physical risk.”

Writing in the Tampa Tribune, Eric E. Coris, M.D., wonders if today’s kids are a little too interested in extreme sports. “What,” he asks, “is this infatuation with going faster, higher and more dangerously than ever before?”

Participation in traditional sports such as baseball and basketball are down; participation in skateboarding and snowboarding is up. (“Snowboarding now claims 7.2 million participants, up 51 percent from 1999,” he says.)

Dr. Coris, who serves on the faculty of the University of South Florida, has stitched up patients after skateboarding accidents, asks if it has all gotten out of hand.

His response? No.

“Extreme sports offer an opportunity to challenge and express yourself. There exists an air of cooperation, without specific winning and losing that may help some children’s development of self-esteem. There is little organization into teams or leagues, and no overzealous parents screaming at their kids through the backstop fence.”

Another reason: injury rates for most so-called extreme sports are low.

Sensibly enough, the good doctor, who describes himself as “a very bad snowboarder” and “a slightly better downhill skier,” advises helmet use.

(“Are Extreme Sports a Good Thing?, Tampa Tribune, May 9, 2008)