Guardian angels no rest since the invention of bungee
Currently in Calgary we have 1) a visit from a Royal couple, 2) the 2011 Annual Stampede & Rodeo, so we'll start with a really extreme rodeo, or rather chuckwagon racing... without a chuckwagon
This is Maramadi Bull Racing & Bull Surfing - full of dirt and mud action. The thrilling splashing in the mud happens in Pathanamthitta villages of India during the annual Maramadi festival in the month of August. Here is the "surfing" part of it:
This is only a sample of the photographer Dustin Humphrey's highly surreal series called "Dopamine"
Unicycle hockey & basketball: this interesting variation is played using unicycles with plastic pedals, "both to preserve the court and the players’ shins":
Unicycle hockey & basketball: this interesting variation is played using unicycles with plastic pedals, "both to preserve the court and the players’ shins":
Sliding down a volcano in Nicaragua
It's called Sand Sliding, or if you use a board. You can try sand sliding down the Mongolian Dunes, for example, just remember, the sand is very hot!
Of course, when there's sand boarding, there's surely going to be Rock Boarding, so here we go!
A good stretch of sand is also good for... yachting. Here is beach sand yacht surfing, way back in 1917:
This sport is alive and well today: here is a modern sand yacht drifting on a beach in Saint Jean de Monts, France:
This sport is alive and well today: here is a modern sand yacht drifting on a beach in Saint Jean de Monts, France:
Sometimes doing extreme sports is a matter of necessity: people have to balance on a water pipeline for miles, as they carry buckets of water in Karachi, Pakistan:
Some Pakistani bridges also provide an adrenaline rush:
Canoe Jumping, brought to seriously extreme levels
You have to appreciate the guy's faith in his wooden sled... and the rickety construction of the ski jump. Yes, ski jump, as this was an actual winter sport back in 1933 (Alexandra Palace, London, England):
Bungee-jumping on a bicycle? Yes!! -
Even without a bicycle, bungee jumping can feel pretty extreme (if you're wondering about the crazy home-made Russian jump shown in the bottom right corner
Having fun yet?
Extreme ballooning? or the joys of Photoshop? -
Too bizarre to mention, but... perhaps this sport has a chance with those who practice extreme sleeping?
Another great sport would involve a maze and a few "ghosts" from a classic video game:
This is a car ad, but still pretty good:.
Army is not a place for stunts, or is it? -
A classic image, a classic stunt (anyone game for a biplane tennis?)... obviously staged:
Another classic stunt, performed in a Soviet-era Circus:
Stealing a kiss (another candidate for an extreme sport):
So we've seen a bunch of thrilling ways to improve on well-known sport activities. Some are more or less safe, others are... even less so. But they all make sort of sense, in an adrenaline-seeking, or slightly practical way. Yet, in Afghanistan, there is a sport called Buzkashi, which can be simply described as
...playing polo with a headless goat:
Wait, it gets better: "Buzkashi, which translates as 'goat grabbing', is the national sport of Afghanistan. The object of the game is to try to snatch the goat carcass in the field and carry it to the scoring area. This fiercely contested sport can sometimes last several days." Grabbing the goat for days surely classifies as an extreme sport.
This is Maramadi Bull Racing & Bull Surfing - full of dirt and mud action. The thrilling splashing in the mud happens in Pathanamthitta villages of India during the annual Maramadi festival in the month of August. Here is the "surfing" part of it: 
