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IFMA Freestyle Motocross is coming back to the Lowcountry

By Cara Jordan

The Post and Courier

Adrenaline junkies rejoice!

Sure to induce vigorous heart palpitations in the Lowcountry's adrenaline junkies, the IFMA Freestyle Motocross competition, hosted by the North Charleston Coliseum, will take Charleston by storm this weekend when riders compete to see who can pull off the biggest and best tricks.

Unlike its racing counterpart, motocross, freestyle motocross (FMX for short) brings riders together in an acrobatic display of aerial jumps and stunts, where participants launch themselves atop their motorcycles from custom-built ramps and travel a distance of 70 or more feet while soaring in excess of 30 feet in the air. Judges evaluate the skill, technique and difficulty of each trick performed and then rank each contestant on a point scale ranging from 0-100.

Shawn Connors, a 24-year-old FMX competitor, spoke of his passion for FMX when Preview caught up with him after practice last week.

A freestyle rider for four years, Connors has been riding motorcycles since he got his first bike 10 years ago.

"I bugged my dad to let me get a bike, and then I started racing. Motocross was always a passion for me," he said.

Connors said he got into freestyle when a friend in his home state of Vermont built a ramp and asked him to try it out. "I made my first jump on that ramp, met the right people, and now I'm doing what I love," he recalled. "The jumping part came easy. The tricks take practice and patience. Some of them are so gnarly, so you definitely have to work up to them."

During the show, spectators can expect to see a variety of aptly titled tricks, including the Superman Seat Grab, Cliff Hanger, Rock Solid and Connors' best "Dead Body," in which he arches his body over the front of the handlebars while looking backward with his arms extended.

Once considered impossible, the back flip is one of the most dangerous tricks in freestyle and was not successfully completed until 2001.

Now, the trick and many of its variations are commonplace in freestyle competition and, in 2006, Travis Pastrana completed the first double back flip.

Following in the footsteps of his FMX predecessors, Connors attempted to perform a back flip last August, but was injured when his landing came up short. Now, he sports a metal plate and five screws in his left arm. "I don't recommend that," he said with a chuckle. He's also suffered a broken collarbone and foot in his freestyle career.

"I know that getting hurt is part of what I do, but if I wasn't doing this, I would be a miserable person," said Connors. "It's what I love."

Ironically enough, freestyle riding is not nearly as hard on the bike as it is on the body, nor is it as costly as racing. Connors said he spends far less money in maintenance costs on his Suzuki RM 250 than he did in his racing days, which leaves him much more time to practice. This year, he says, will be the year he lands his back flip, again.

"I definitely just want to keep progressing," he said. "I'm looking to gain some more recognition, but I don't want to put any undue pressure on myself because I don't ever want to get burned out. Really, I just want everyone to have a safe and fun tour because we are all such good friends. Everyone behind the scenes is like a big family."

The coliseum will host two consecutive nights of FMX on Jan. 11-12 at 7:30 p.m. with doors opening at 6:30 p.m. A pit party will precede Saturday night's competition and give fans the ability to walk the track, meet the competitors (including Connors) and get autographs.

"Knowing that the crowd is excited about what we do is the most rewarding thing to me," said Connors. "It just really gets me pumped."

Pit passes are free at local participating Southeast Toyota Dealers but must be accompanied by a valid Saturday event ticket. All other tickets are $5 for children and $17 for adults. Adult tickets increase by $2 on event days.

Tickets are available at the North Charleston Coliseum box office, all Ticketmaster outlets, online at www.ticketmaster.com or charge by phone at 554-6060.

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