Young Women in Extreme Sports

The line to get into the ESPN X Games moves slowly. The crowd pushes their way under the large banner bearing an enormous X and the free, weekend-long competition is already underway. The smell of sweaty bodies lingers in the air as the crowd anxiously awaits the beginning of each competition. Once the athletes begin, the crowd cheers, cameras flash and video cameras roll. Parents hoist their kids on their shoulders while teenagers push their way to the front, where they anxiously await the first sign of superstars like Tony Hawk and Travis Pastrana.

This year marks the eighth year of the X Games -- the yearly competition, which brings together hundreds of professional athletes to participate in alternative or "extreme" sports. Both the crowd and the participants range in age from teenagers to parents to athletes in their thirties. And although the crowd is a mix of all genders, one thing is clear: The extreme sport world is essentially a man's world.

Well, almost. There are women competing in three of the six X Game categories: speed climbing, wakeboarding and in-line skating, but not many. At this year's games a group of women were also invited to demonstrate their talent in freestyle motocross and both vertical (or "vert") and street skateboarding. As the women ripped up the courses and put the audience in a state of awe -- it might have been easy to forget that they weren't part of the competition.

What difference does it make? Well, even if women were allowed to compete in the most popular alternative sports at the X-games -- like skateboarding, motocross or BMX competitions --female athletes wouldn't make enough prize money to support themselves. At the Xbox World Championship of Skateboarding, the top three male street skaters took home a total of $34,000, while the top three women took home $3,600.

Young women have participated in alternative and extreme sports since their inception, but they have not been given the same recognition as their male colleagues. Still, many are creating a place for themselves in this testosterone-filled world.

Alternative sports have been around for decades but have only recently been branded "extreme." The whirlwind of publicity around the word "extreme" extends into the marketing arena as well. One can now enjoy the "extreme flavor" of Doritos chips or drink a Code Red from Mountain Dew for an "extreme taste." By contrast, the industry describes an extreme sport as a "non-traditional sport that focuses on extreme and varying conditions, and challenges both the mental and physical abilities of its participants."

While most extreme athletes average in their early 20s, some involved are much younger.

Sasha LaRochelle is a good example. At 14 years old she competes at the professional level. Sasha says she started skating at five years of age when a friend gave her a board. Nine years later she is making her way through the professional women's skateboarding circuit, skating in competitions like the Vans Triple Crown, the Sound and the Fury, Slam City Jam and the All Girl Skate Jam. Even though Sasha is one of the youngest on the pro circuit, she is one of the best, placing in the top five whenever she competes.

Sasha says she skates because, "it helps me relieve stress, I get to travel, meet new people all the time, learn new tricks, conquer new territory and accomplish goals I set for myself."

Sasha skates at parks and seems to know people everywhere she goes. But she says she has a hard time finding other girls to skate with. At times, she admits, it can be frustrating riding with so many guys.

"The boys sometimes make fun of me until I start skating, then they are usually very impressed," she says.

At competitions, she says, "some of the guy skaters will cut you off, try and hit you and take up the girls' practice time."