Many young Chinese were previously unaware of the X Games and the sports involved. Compared to music festivals and other events geared toward young people, the X Games is a very new concept for most Chinese youth.  We noticed a large portion of the attendees were there for the first time, and had never before seen such a massive aggregation of international athletes and musicians all working together.  Many of them, while amazed by the impressive skill and daring of the athletes, were far too nervous, and understandably so, to attempt these sports themselves.  Many people were content to wait in line for up to half an hour to play basketball, something they could do any day of the week, than watch some of the best athletes in the world do ridiculously mind-boggling things.

Furthering the ignorance was the organizers’ failure to successfully market the event.  Even the scalpers had no idea what was going on!  The “Huang Niu” (ticket scalpers) were selling tickets at less than 10% of their face value outside the venue.  Perhaps they thought it was the only way to convince potential attendees to buy them.

Showing a Chao Identity

Since extreme sports is part of the Chinese youth chao (hip, trendy) culture, going to the X Games is a good way of demonstrating how chao one can be, even though one may not be very knowledgeable about any of the activities.  The X Games provide a great opportunity for young Chinese to take pictures of themselves and your friends, all wearing their trendiest gear at a cool sporty event, and later post them Renren, Kaixin, Weibo, and various other blogs, so everyone can see how chao they are.

There were also plenty of meinu (beautiful girls) to be found at the Games, as it can be at most any promotional event geared toward a primarily male audience.  Kia car models, Pony show girls and Mountain Dew girls definitely were a highlight for the male audience.  Observe how Nero tweeted his picture (below) with one of the Kia car models.

Brand Presence

All the brands’ advertising booths shared a black background, but beyond that, they were free to customize.  Mountain Dew, for example, earned lot of traffic with their ball game.

Pony was one of the busiest booths because of their basketball machine as well as their free product give-aways.

This past Saturday, I headed out towards the watermelon farms in rural Daxing district of Beijing for the grand opening of Woodward Beijing. While I missed the attendance of Beijing’s municipal officials and actor Yu Xia to inaugurate this special day, the real action started after all the prototypical Chinese ceremonial ribbon cutting was complete.

Woodward Beijing IS supreme. Situated on a four-star resort property, 410 acres of land is now home to indoor and outdoor ramps and bowls, with a gigantic outdoor skate plaza as the centerpiece. The 32,000 square foot outdoor skate plaza consists of skateable ledges, rails, hubbas, euro gaps, bank-to bank kickers, granite manual pads, steep banks and more. Escape from the sun and head into the 40,000 square foot indoor facility that features two different street courses with rails, banks, hubbas, and pyramids; a multi-level mini ramp; a wooden bowl with a spine and deep end; foam and resi pits; and a giant vert ramp with resi and foam pits attached.

Even if you don’t skateboard, you’d wish you did just by looking at the facilities. I was salivating and wishing it was all covered in snow the whole time (I’m a snowboarder).

While I didn’t see them all, I know I was present among many of the world’s best action sports athletes at the grand opening such as: Tony Hawk, Sandro Dias, Ryan Sheckler, Neal Hendrix, Pierre- Luc Gagnon, Dan Murphy, David Loy, Jaws, Andrew Cannon, Jimmy Carlin, Tom Asta, Chase Hawk, Chase Dehart, Dakota Roche and Olympic gold medal-winning gymnast and “Dancing with the Stars” winner, Shawn Johnson.

What caught my attention (other than Tony Hawk) were the gazes of the local Chinese skaters and audience members of the wicked skating before them (I am sure they didn’t really understand what they were witnessing). Interest in extreme sports has been growing amongst Chinese youth and the arrival of Woodward Beijing will not only stimulate this growth, but provide staying power. Education and training is an essential component to the development of extreme sports in China. Woodward Beijing is the new breeding ground for China’s future X-game competitors. And whether you’re a beginner or semi-pro, it is a space that provides access to skill development and professional training.

Woodward Beijing is the first international property in the U.S. -based Camp Woodward roster. For over forty years, Woodward has been providing premium-training facilities for both young amateurs and professional action sports and gymnastics athletes, including many Olympians. This camp will offer Skateboarding, BMX, Inline, dry land Snowboarding and Free Ski, Urban Dance, Digital Arts (Digital Photography / Video Production and Graphic Design), Music, Chinese and English language programs.

The camp is now OPEN. Check out their website: http://www.woodwardbeijing.cn/

Looking back at 2009, the promotion of bike culture in China came from many global and local channels. The Danish Expo Pavilion plans to offer 1500 bikes to be used during the Shanghai 2010 Expo, Alley Cat races in both Shanghai and Beijing and a future race in Guangzhou united bike enthusiasts in urban environments. Bike culture amongst Chinese youth was further empowered by initiatives in Shanghai including the Good to Shanghai – 01Cool Bike program and a local government initiative in Minhang providing free bikes to university students. Youth magazines, such as URBN and 1626, began to recognize the fashionable and hip nature of local fixed gear bike products and riders, publishing multiple articles over the past year on the fixed gear bike culture in China. In addition, we saw online and offline bike groups popping up all over China promoting fixed gear bike culture. Even the Shanghai Government chimed in with their expressed desire to create more biking lanes in Shanghai that focus on getting commuters with the last 3 kilometers of their destination–often the most troublesome and inconvenient for public transportation. Looking back at the steps being taken to promote bike culture in China, it’s safe to say a movement has begun.

Local Shanghai Bike enthusiast and co-founder of Shanghai’s People’s Bike, Karl Ke also has noticed a renewed focus on China’s bike movement.

“Basically, I think people more and more fancy riding a bike, based on four key areas: 1) the government began extensive promotion of environmental protection concepts. 2) More and more Western media are promoting the concept of bike riding and healthy living, which is a cool thing for young riders. 3) More people want to escape from depression and immerse themselves in city life. Cycling is one of the most effective and easy ways to escape and control things in one’s daily life. 4) Fixed gear is simple and close to the concept of extreme sports, but has its own unparalleled noble temperament.”

As with most trends, it’s the early adopters that create the initial first steps that lead to an entire movement. For biking culture in China, we turn to the introduction and spread of fixed gear bikes as a blueprint on where this overall movement is headed and how organizations and environmental groups can capitalize. The global popularity of fixed gear bikes is a storied one from the velodrome to the streets of New York and San Francisco. These brake-less bikes, with a fixed gear hub, making biking both dangerous and exhilarating, came across the oceans and spread into fashion circles in Japan, Hong Kong and Australia. 2008 and 2009 marked their arrival into China. But could such brake-less devices catch on with local riders throughout China?

We asked Ethan, a fixed gear bike rider in Dalian his views on the advancement of this movement in China.

“The young people riding Fixed Gears through the concrete jungle general think Fixed Gear represents a way of life and an attitude that is simple. There’s no compromise; it’s a free cultural product. Different from other extreme sports such as skateboarding, Fixed Gear is quickly popular in China. The key reason is the popularization of the network, and it includes the development of exchanging online information and e-commerce (Most of the Fixed Gear parts are sold through the internet because they are rare and hard to locate in China.)”

These youth values of freedom, self-expression, and simplicity have been some of the most prominent in 2009 and we don’t see this changing in the coming years. In addition, environmental protection is another value we have seen emerging over the past year. As we have written previously, events such as Copenhagen, the movie 2012, and also the daily reality within most cities, has led to an increased focus on small changes youth can make in their daily lives to help the environment. As the government and organizations (in Shanghai, especially related to the 2010 Expo) continue to focus on the environment, we believe biking will become an important way for youth to take action.

People’s Bike co-founder, Tyler Bowa agrees with a renewed community and government involvement.

“The bicycle in China has a much maligned status as one of the lowliest methods of transport and is excluded from its roles as tool for exercise, competition and leisure. This stigma makes the sport prime for revitalization.  The overwhelming growth of youth riders in China within the last year has exceeded 100 times that of 2008.  I expect by 2012 to see a major shift not only in the youth trend, but also in the reaction and support from the Chinese community and government.”

In addition, customizable options on fixed gear bikes allow youth to re-engage with biking culture in China.  Bikes have obviously been the fabric of society for many years but youth will value a new take on the device. While some within the new Chinese consumer space may look down on bikes and biking as a representation of a lower class in society, alternative (and more expensive) options such as highly customizable bikes align with youth desire for trendy and personalized objects.

Over the next few years, look for the following areas to grow and expand the bike movement into more regions of Chinese culture:

Local online and offline bike movements.

As the bike movement speeds forward, look for more and more bike-interest groups to rise online and offline. A perfect example is Shanghai’s People’s Bike.

Founded by Canadian native Tyler Bowa and Shanghai local Karl Ke, these guys are on a mission to be the hub for all things “bike” in China. Through the bilingual site and their extensive foreign and local rider networks, they plan weekly rides, races, and have recently stared a movie project called Jhong.

“Jhong seeks to promote the idea that cycling is not merely a form of transportation, but also an exciting sport and a tool of cultural exchange. Based in Shanghai and using peoplesbike.com as a catalyst, they hope to expand on an already growing network of cycling enthusiasts throughout China through direct contact, mutual interaction, and, of course, bike rides.”

Support from non-profit initiatives and government programs

It takes a single order from the National Chinese Government in Beijing to change both public and local government mindsets. Beijing simply needs to focus their eye on improving bike culture in China for this movement to really take off.

Local initiatives such as Good to Shanghai – 01Cool Bike, led by passionate biking enthusiast Susan Evans, are working with local governments, Chinese bike companies and Chinese university students to promote bike culture in cities throughout China. Susan is planning many bike events throughout China to coincide with Shanghai’s 2010 Expo as well as global environmental initiatives.

Stay tuned for more and also lets us know your thoughts on biking in China.

The festival activities including skateboarding, inline skating and BMX competitions, as well as music perfomances throughout the day. Mountain Dew, Pizza boy and Budweiser were all sponsors of the event. Compared to traditional advertising, sponsoring an event is an effective way to target consumers. Extreme sports, music and trends are all connected.

I was surprised by the many different groups of Chinese youth who were passionate about what they were doing and dressing in their own styles. For me, those involved in extreme sports dress more fashionably than average people. They also have a lot of trendy followers, these people are influential amongst Chinese youth. Instead of hiding their passion, which a lot of chinese young people will do, skaters/bmxers are more willing to stand out and be themselves. Making them your first customers, can be seen as the first step to becoming an influential brand amongst Chinese youth.

This past week we took an exciting look at extreme sports among Chinese youth. Click on the above picture to download a PDF version of our broadcast, and make sure to sign up for next week’s broadcast on the right side of our blog!

Watching eno’s Sawtooth Feng Feng skate down the hallway outside the eno offices, I wonder if he has what it takes to assume this role in a Chinese context. He has the passion, the talent, the originality, but does he have the personal drive to become a well known designer?

27 year old Feng comes from a unique artistic and design background. Encouraged at a young age by his parents to follow his artistic dreams and painting abilities, Feng attended Xi’an Fine Arts College and graduated with a degree in Visual Communications. From there, Feng worked in an illustration company as well as local Chinese skatewear brand Fei Dian (沸点). Currently he works among eno’s talented team of young Chinese designers. When asked to describe his past job experiences, Feng points to his current work. “You can explore my past in my current designs.”

It’s Feng’s passion that gives him a great chance to break through as a well-known Chinese designer. Sensing a lack of action sportswear clothing made by actual action sportswear enthusiasts, Feng took it upon himself to pitch a complete new line to eno CEO and Creative Director, Tor Peterson. A nameless line embodying a unique black and white aesthetic, design principles following opposites and contradictions, and ancient Chinese ideas of Taiji and the Yin and Yang, the initial proposal turned into reality and Sawtooth was born.

“The floor is smooth” Feng comments hopping off his skateboard, thumbs in the monkey holes of a brand new Sawtooth sweatshirt. Feng is a designer, but he’s also a skateboarder. Sawtooth represents a line that actual skateboarders such as himself would actually skate in. It’s not a company venturing into uncharted territories creating a new action sports line. No, it’s one designer slash skateboarder creating something fresh for his own type of people.

Feng’s passion for his Sawtooth line has come up against many obstacles and setbacks. When the string for the Sawtooth hangtags did not match Feng’s critical standards, he personally went out and purchased the “right” type of string, slammed it on the desk, and said, “Use this!”

The urban clothing market in China is still growing at a rapid pace. It is crucial for this arena to continue its growth before designers like Feng can achieve global notoriety. This doesn’t bother Feng. As he puts it, “I’m usually only concerned about things that are ignored by the public.”

With the sports growth, more of the surrounding culture also grows. Clothing and apparel brands, magazines and media begin to aid in the economic growth of the extreme sport. The pioneers of the sport do not fall to the wayside but become legends and sport guides, similar to the founders of the American constitution.

The sport then begins to permeate the mainstream consciousness and officially peaks at the top of the trend bell curve. For example, skateboard pioneer Tony Hawk launched his mega-popular Sony Playstation game, “Pro-Skater” in the early 2000’s and sparked a revival in skateboard popularity. This brought skateboarding back into mainstream thought. In recent years it has sunk back to normal underground levels.

What happens next is an interesting characteristic of extreme sports. Unlike normal trends, they do not fade as quickly as other trends. Their low plateau level remains higher than other trends and is always ripe for a quick spike back to popularity. And every five years or so, the sport hits trend status and youth culture researchers proclaim it as the next “big thing”. But it’s always there, bubbling below the surface. Much like the aforementioned Tony Hawk skate peak, anything, such as a new product, or individual can bring back to life an extreme sport trend.

Welcome to China.

Extreme sports are in a completely different realm in China. Extreme sports have not been created by early adopters and pioneers. Rather, ideas, equipment, and techniques have been borrowed from pre-existing knowledge of extreme sports developed. The sports have not been created at a local level, thus certain aforementioned steps have been skipped. Adidas is doing a great job of working with local skateboarders and other athletes involved in action sports as a way to develop the sport, rather than simply promote the sport. This is crucial in driving a sport forward.

Early adopters of the extreme sports still remain in China. However, a sports involvement has no doubt been influenced by brands, existing sport culture from other countries, or from the government. What this does is take away a lot of the early innovation, history, and sport heritage that makes certain extreme sports so unique.

But that does not mean that innovation or progression doesn’t exist in Chinese extreme sports. Extreme sports in China have two rich opportunities. One is that there is room to localize and create uniqueness on a local Chinese level for an extreme sport. Two is that there is also room to create the heritage and history that is currently lacking in a Chinese extreme sport context. A sport like Parkour combines many elements of traditional Chinese thought and has strong potential to fully adapt from its French background into something that is uniquely Chinese. Imagine in 25 years where the Chinese extreme sports will be. It will be an interesting model to look at, both on a sociological level as well as to analyze the proliferation of trends.

So as extreme sports in China continues to grow, what are some things companies can be doing now to help these sports grow?

- Companies must educate their consumer about extreme sports. For example, in China, Burton Snowboards has launched their “Learn to Ride” program to teach new snowboarders the basics.

- Add legacy and legitimacy to the extreme sports heritage in China. A great example is Adidas Skateboarding. Rather than focusing only on international talent they’ve been building relationships with many local skaters, including Johnny Tang, and promote skating in China on an organic, grass-roots level rather than a top-down campaign style. Adidas gets it in China.

- Work with the government both locally and nationally to push extreme sports in both schools and communities. Much like Nike did by pushing for more adoption of basketball courts in public schools around in China in the 1980’s, extreme sport brands can increase the amount of extreme sport parks in large AND small cities around China. This will encourage more kids at a younger age to participate in extreme sports.

Like most things in China, once something pushes past niche status, the floodgates are open and water is gushing out. And there is always one brand that is leading the way. There are many extreme sports right now in China at the niche level, waiting for both consumers and brand to push them to the next level.

1. Beijing Fashion Sports Park

Beijing Fashion Sports Park is located in the Daxing District of Beijing. It covers an area of over 8000 square meters. American extreme sports camp company Woodward is one of the main investors. The whole area includes skateboard parks, a U skateboarding pool, and other areas for BMX, Aggressive In-line Skating, motorcycle, women’s gymnastics, and even a trampoline!

2. Shanghai New Jiangwan City SMP Skateboard Park
Shanghai New Jiangwan City SMP Skateboard Park takes up over 12,000 square meters! SMP features areas for surfing, skateboarding, small wheel bicycles, water sports and other extreme sports. It is not only China’s first extreme sports theme park, but also one of the largest extreme sports theme parks in the world.

3. Changzhou Qingfeng Park Extreme Sports Field
The project of Changzhou Qingfeng Park fully embodies sports, vitality, and other features. Their skateboarding, mountain climbing and street basketball courts are built from international standards.

4. Jiuhua Mountain Park Extreme Sports Center
Jiuhua Mountain Park Extreme Sports Center is equipped with rock climbing, base jumping and other extreme sports, so that extreme sports fans have a unique place to meet new people and share their experiences.

5. Shenyang Extreme SportsTheme Park
Shenyang Extreme SportsTheme Park is located in Shenyang’s Zhongshan Park, with an area of over 8,000 square meters. The park boasts areas for skating, street basketball, BMX, rock climbing, and over 26 other extreme sports! Total investment of the park was over 300 million RMB.

1. Skateboarding 滑板

Crossing over into the China realm in the early 90′s, it was not until Quiksilver brought Danny Way into China to jump over the Great Wall of China in 2005 that skateboarding entered the mind of many Chinese youth.

Top Chinese skateboarders include: Du Han, Hutian You, and Car-lin.

2. Aggressive In-line Skating 直排轮滑

In-line skating has crossed over from more conventional rollerblading and rollerskating into a sport full of tricks, jumps, and spins.

Top Chinese In-line skaters include: Zhao Bao-qiu, Zhang Chi, and Yang Yun-Dong.

3. BMX (Bicycle Motocross) 小轮车

BMX biking combines the historical relevance of bike-riding in China with an extreme flair, adding tricks, jumps, flat events, and racing. BMX bikes can be found on the streets of China as well as skate parks.

Top Chinese BMX’ers include: Zhong Youcai, Jian Shen, and Chen Jinjiang.

4. Snowboarding 滑雪板

Starting to pick up steam in the early 2000′s, snowboarding is coming into its own in China. The sport is gaining in popularity with the opening of many new ski and snow resorts. The addition of snowboarding as an Olympic sport will make this sport more and more mainstream.

5. BikeTrial (or Trial Biking) 自行车攀爬

Trial biking pits mountain bikes against man-made and natural obstacles on a course to the finish line. The riders feet are not allowed to touch the ground. It’s popularity lies outside of the United States, and is also extremely popular in Europe and Japan as well as China.

6. Parkour 跑酷

Parkour gained global awareness in the late 1990′s / early 2000′s in France. It’s name translates to the “art of movement”. It’s unique philosophies and “do-anywhere” nature has allowed it to gain traction in China. It’s spirit continues to thrive as more and more Chinese youth find out about it.

The notebook advertisement features an alpine ski design with the slogan, “Extreme is a state of mind” along with the signature of Italian designer Ludovico Annoni who also designed the drawing in the ad.

The G430 has seen success in the notebook market and one would like to think it is because they have the most extreme computers on the planet.