Topic: Parkour in the X-Games...

[Eric Tracy]

i see what u mean, and these are definite points to consider if this is actually followed through with (probably not any time soon)

[Alec Furtado]

freerunning could become a competition sport, because of the tricks.

And it has. From what I've seen already, I'm not impressed in the least. Ignoring the obvious flaws in the concept, as a viewer I don't find it entertaining. Watch gymnastics, skateboarding, etc but the competitions are just lacking (I've only seen trick ones). The only viable concept I would want to see is an obstacle course type of thing. Can anybody say Ninja Warrior?

I prefer to think of parkour as an art not a sport anyway.

Technically it's not but that doesn't matter to quite a few people that don't visit a dictionary frequently.

[Eric Tracy]

i see your point and it is definately good to have a viewpoint of someone that has been there befor...

this being said i think this forum has changed from PK in the x-games to ways to advance PK and freerunning in our communities and our world...

if anyone has anything to say on this new topic or even the origional plz feel free to post your heart out
    -but remember we would like to support and uphold the principles of PK in everything that we do for it

[andrew aguilo]

I don't get the 'opening up a can of worms' metaphor... 

[JC*]

What im about to say is probably going to offend the lot of you but at this point I think it needs to be said. As Americans being raised in a controversial society where raging war and games dont go without competition (for example as young children) we go out with friends and live to compete weather its "racing to the finish line" or seeing who can swim the fastest. We as Americans are accustomed to competition. Though I personally do not favor it most people do and as painful as it is to say America is probably the leading cause of why parkour is going to become based over competition.

This reminds me of how Martial arts and even skateboarding started off, at first they were about sole skating anti-comp and a discipline where attaining strength and valor was necessary, now they are both about competition.

In conclusion its almost inevitable that pk is going to be and already has become competitive.

*Take this as you will but I see it as reaching out and getting this off of my chest.
*In no way do I approve competition but who am I to say!

[Chris Salvato]

i would say competition is more human than american...

[Dustin Miller]

Good lord, no. I am one of those people who strongly disagree with competition of any kind in parkour. I think that putting parkour in the x-games would be a debasement of the sport and a ravaging of all that it stands for.

No...

[Moa]

Definitely not.
I have been watching the x-games and if parkour were in it first off the best traceurs would NOT go so it would just be the extreme youtube "traceurs" who actually go. Aside from that the entire vibe given off by the X-Games is very commercial and counter-cultural, when I watch the X-Games I constantly feel like they are trying to sell me something and since there is very little commercial appeal to parkour meaning that you cannot really sell traceurs much maybe a pair of shoes but nothing else. Many of the sports in the X-Games have their own type of impractical clothing to sell to people who want to advertise what they do. The Parkour community for the most part attempts to be above that and most likely will wear whatever is practical so in short Parkour will most likely not be in the X-Games for a very long time.

[Matthew Wang]

One of the things I love about Parkour is it's lack of serious competition. You can compete against friends and push each other to increase your limits such as "I bet I can wall run up that wall over there" and eventually you'll both get it from this competition. But it's not a serious competition. No one is going around saying "Oh, I just smashed you." or "Ha! That newbie sucks!! Look at his failure of a kong!" Those who are traceur in mind and body never brag or boast about what they can do and someone can't. They don't yell at someone for not doing something right. They don't punish their friends with hard exercises because they missed a precision. They don't curse at fellow traceurs for missing one of the biggest jams/events of the year. There isn't any smack talk about "less skilled" traceurs.

It's all friendly competition, or no competition at all (excluding self-competition).

If Parkour was brought into the X-games or Olympics, I believe serious competition may arise. Then the smack-talk and the bragging rights and the orgranized-teams-with-coaches-that-boss-you-around will show up, and personally, I just don't want any of that. Parkour for me has always seemed like a friendly sport that never forms hate between two people because of the lack of competition. Lets keep it that way.

[Greg Davis]

I would like to say that the philosophy of parkour would stop parkour specifically from ever being in the games. Freerunning MAYBE but I still think that wouldn't work. Tricking, though seems reasonable. There's really no philosophy connected to it and it's VERY trick based. Then parkour and freerunning still wouldn't have competition tied to the name. Sounded good to me.

[Greg Davis]

O and if they ever put parkour in the x games it would only be parkour to viewers who didn't know what it was other than what they were seeing in the games. Parkour itself will NEVER be in the games. Not possible, not the real parkour.

[Sat Santokh]

What im about to say is probably going to offend the lot of you but at this point I think it needs to be said. As Americans being raised in a controversial society where raging war and games dont go without competition (for example as young children) we go out with friends and live to compete weather its "racing to the finish line" or seeing who can swim the fastest. We as Americans are accustomed to competition. Though I personally do not favor it most people do and as painful as it is to say America is probably the leading cause of why parkour is going to become based over competition.

This reminds me of how Martial arts and even skateboarding started off, at first they were about sole skating anti-comp and a discipline where attaining strength and valor was necessary, now they are both about competition.

In conclusion its almost inevitable that pk is going to be and already has become competitive.

*Take this as you will but I see it as reaching out and getting this off of my chest.
*In no way do I approve competition but who am I to say!

Almost everything in life is a competition literally from when you're conceived, to when you die.  It's hard for me to read topics like this because of the generally ridiculous things that people say in it.  NOBODY HERE KNOWS WHAT WILL HAPPEN WHEN COMPETITION GETS BIG.  The only person qualified to even talk about competition is Skipper.  The rest of  you keep on saying the shit that you really don't know about and is all speculation.  Parkour is all about competition its even in the definition.  Think of a utilitarian example of parkour and its competition.  Your running away from a rapist?  Competition.  Your saving a child from a burning building?  Competition.  It seems like all the people that want parkour to stay uncompetitive just want parkour to stay small so they're doing something different from anyone else.  I'm sorry it had to come out this way but i just cannot stand the dumb shit that gets said in these topics.  Oh and sorry JC i'm not singling you out or anything i'm just talking about the thread in general.

[Alec Furtado]

Parkour is all about competition its even in the definition.  Think of a utilitarian example of parkour and its competition.  Your running away from a rapist?  Competition.  Your saving a child from a burning building?  Competition.  It seems like all the people that want parkour to stay uncompetitive just want parkour to stay small so they're doing something different from anyone else.  I'm sorry it had to come out this way but i just cannot stand the dumb shit that gets said in these topics.  Oh and sorry JC i'm not singling you out or anything i'm just talking about the thread in general.

But, like, those things are not in the least about doing it for fame, money, or simply recognition. I guess I'd call it a more pure version of competition. You are technically correct but the idea in this thread is about gameshow/tournament kind of things. Maybe you still don't think there is a difference though.



In the end though, it is stupid to completely condemn competition. How did it start in the first place? DB and friends challenging each other, competing.

[Sat Santokh]

Parkour is all about competition its even in the definition.  Think of a utilitarian example of parkour and its competition.  Your running away from a rapist?  Competition.  Your saving a child from a burning building?  Competition.  It seems like all the people that want parkour to stay uncompetitive just want parkour to stay small so they're doing something different from anyone else.  I'm sorry it had to come out this way but i just cannot stand the dumb shit that gets said in these topics.  Oh and sorry JC i'm not singling you out or anything i'm just talking about the thread in general.

But, like, those things are not in the least about doing it for fame, money, or simply recognition. I guess I'd call it a more pure version of competition. You are technically correct but the idea in this thread is about gameshow/tournament kind of things. Maybe you still don't think there is a difference though.



In the end though, it is stupid to completely condemn competition. How did it start in the first place? DB and friends challenging each other, competing.

I'm not really sure whats wrong with doing it for fame, money or recognition.  Would you really have a problem with Levi making a money off competing against other people?  Sure theres the concern that people might get into it ONLY for those reasons, but not only is the likelihood small that, that will happen its even smaller that those people will be any good.  I just can't see somebody being like "oh i'm gonna get really good at this little known sport called parkour just so i can be rich and famous."

[Mathew C]

What's wrong with doing it for fame, money, or recognition is that those things are completely contrary to parkour's philosophy. Show me an athlete who's first, absolute priority as an athlete is self improvement, and who strives for fame - it isn't possible. Sure, you could find an athlete who only chooses the path that is best for him/herself, and will accept fame if it happens to be on that path, but to give it any priority is impossible while maintaining an ideal of self improvement. For one, humility is a necessary virtue if one is to truly progress as a person. Same goes for money. Although, I will concede that I see nothing wrong with parkour as a means of making a living - you have to live in order to improve after all...

And Sat, have some courtesy. Please. I respect your opinions and views, please have some respect for others'.

[JC*]

Sat everyone is entitled to their opinions and just because they dont fit a standard or dont sound good to you deosnt make nay sayers completly stupid at the least. I've got to admit that hit a littleclose to home although you werent singling me out. Take matt's advice and do have some courtisy. I really dont see Skipper on here contributing so for now this'll have to do.

[Greg Davis]

You know, although you're right about it being in the "future" the past is the best description of what the future will hold. So, you're correct in saying that we don't know EXACTLY what will happen in the future of Parkour, you can't say that we don't know anything that's goign to happen. Because Parkour is a sport, all "Extreme" sports started like this, and I can say with full confidence that people WILL start doing for the pure fame and fortune. It will happen. And those are the people that will ruin the name. Like I said before though, if they slapped a different name on it, it wouldn't have the same philosophy behind it therefore everyone's happy and you still get the "Parkour" based competition you're seeking.

[Spencer B]

It all comes down to person... If you remember the Traceur psychological study, and I'm only counting posts actually made in the thread itself, then you see that Parkour is a discipline dominated almost entirely by intuitive people. Other sports are dominated by sensory based people. Really what it comes down to is keeping people who have no self-discipline or are primarily extrinsically motivated (Sensory based people) out of Parkour, because they will sulley it's name and destroy the idea of no-competition or that we practice a discipline because they will get more attention from the general public and then, only then will we be faced with Parkour as a, ugh... sport.

[Sat Santokh]

all "Extreme" sports started like this

False.  Extreme sports didn't start like this.  I really wish i had time to go in depth about this whole thread but I don't right now.  I guess i don't fully know the history of all these sports, but lets take skateboarding.  Skateboarding had a very violent and tumultuous beginning in california with people breaking into backyards, and even harming other skaters when they were encroaching (see dogtown and z boys).  A much better example of what parkour or free running will be like in competitions is climbing.  Climbing competitions are something we could strive to emulate.  All of the climbers are super competitive, but at the same time they are all super friendly, and even encouraging to their competitors.  Come to think of it now, so are the xgames.  The guys are all really humble and always compliment their competitors more than they do themselves, since they are all really close friends. 

Mattew/JC I apologize but i stand by what i said.  People here really have no clue whats happening, and so far competition has worked out well for most sports especially climbing.  I'd love to keep talking about this but i have class so i may come back to this.

[Greg Davis]

Well, I give up. This is obviously going in circles. I'll pop back in every once and a while to see if it's gone anywhere. I'm pretty sick of these threads popping up to be perfectly honest.