One of the world’s most famous action sports competitions is not only returning to California, part of the competition will take place in Ventura County. The X Games are taking place in July.
Steve Fliser is CEO of the X-Games. He says for the first time since the pandemic, fans will be able to see the best in the world in sports like skateboarding, BMX, and MotoX dirt bike riding in person.
"It's one thing to skate, and have a skate contest, but to do it with fans...tens of thousands of fans...it's something we've heard the most from the athletes that they love,"" said Fliser.
Curren Caples is a professional skateboarder, and surfer who’s won events around the world, but is excited to compete in his hometown of Ventura.
"It's pretty amazing...I never thought it would be here," said Caples. "Now that it is, I'm excited that I'm still skating at a level to compete."
Axell Hodges has won three X Games Gold medals in the Moto X dirt bike competition. He says it will be exciting to compete in front of fans again.
"You don't want to lose in front of a bunch of fans...it gives you that extra motivation," said Hodges.
Ventura has been trying to bring the X Games to the community for years.
The X Games are a lifestyle event, with live music, an interactive festival, plus food and drink. But, action sports are the centerpiece of the Games.
The three days of finals in Ventura will get national television coverage, with Friday night coverage on ESPN, and Saturday and Sunday coverage on both ESPN and ABC.
It will also mean a tourism surge, with thousands of fans coming to Ventura County for the weekend. Amtrak is planning to beef up service during the games, making it easier for fans to take trains to the competition as it stops in places like San Diego and Ventura.
The ticket waitlist has already opened for the X Games Finals at the Ventura County Fairgrounds July 21, 22, and 23, at XGames.com.
