April 20, 2009
PRESS RELEASE
On March 28, 2009, 15 hardcore athletes participated in the world’s first multi-sport challenge, involving six of the most popular action sports. The Push Games, a one day, non-stop decathlon or “Hexathlon” of actions sports was created to literally push professional and amateur athletes both mentally and physically from one event to another for over 15 hours straight across 160 miles of Southern California’s most beautiful locations.
“It’s a wicked combination of six of the most popular actions sports, including surfing, snowboarding, motocross, downhill mountain biking, skateboarding, and wakeboarding, all mixed up into a daylong adventure,” said Bob Krause, the creator of The Push.
The concept was devised by Krause, a seasoned events and production vet, and his 18-year-old son Ryan in April 2008 while completing 23 action sports in one day as a father-son bonding experience.
The crazy idea caught the attention of the press and gained a lot of interest, so Krause and his business partner, San Diego venture capitalist and sports enthusiast Marco Thompson, decided turn it into a public event. Lost Energy Drink came on board and helped lured professional and amateur athletes. The roster included professionals, amateurs, weekend warriors and a mix of business executive types, all hoping to be crowned the world’s best crossover athlete.
“I had never heard of an event quite like this one,” said Steve Jugan, Allied brand manager for Hansen’s Natural, which owns Lost Energy and Monster Energy. “We had to be a part of it!”
The Push kicked off early Saturday morning, March 28 on the slopes of Southern California’s Snow Valley, followed by motocross racing in Riverside County. “This event really pushed me out of my comfort zone and made me face some fears head on,” said professional surfer Pat Millin, who had never raced a motorcycle before. Millin and the other Push athletes drove themselves over 160 miles from one location to the other, impressing judges through a series of timed runs and freestyle showcases. The event concluded on the beaches of Carlsbad California
“The production crew did a bang up job for us, everything was handled well, and we just showed up ready to go” said Stath Karras, executive managing director of Cushman & Wakefield who placed 2nd in the Executive Level ranks.
The Woman’s Crossover Athlete 2009 and overall Push Champion crown was given to 17-year-old amateur wake boarder Kim Kirch from San Diego, Calif., who gave her male contingency a real run for their money. “It was such an awesome experience and I gave it everything I had,” Kirch said. “I can’t wait to do it again next year.”
Trailing only 1 point behind Kirch was The Men’s Crossover Athlete – 2009 Push Champion, Chris High, a self professed sports junkie and commercial real-estate broker from San Diego California who like Kirch, automatically wins a slot for the 2010 games. Taking the first place in the Executive Level category was allied brands manager of Hansen’s Juice company, 49 year old Steve Jugan, of Yorbalinda, Calif.
The Push games organizers are already gearing up for the bigger 2010 games, launching open registration in July 2009. Registration will be on-line where participants can tell the world why they think they are qualified in all six sports and a candidate to be in The Push Games. They will even upload bios, stats, pictures and videos of themselves. Anyone over 16 can enter and participants can boost their online ratings by having friends and family become their on-line fans and vote for them. In mid September 2009 a panel of experts will select the final 50 candidates to participate in the 2010 Push Games, which will be announced at the Action Sports Retail Show (ASR) in San Diego in September. Big purse money will be given to the top athletes in each category, attracting pros, amateurs, as well as unknown athletes who have what it takes to compete across all six sports.
To learn more about the Push go to:Â www.thepushgames.com
Around the track they go, a blur of helmets and elbow pads and knee-high socks, their skates clacking against the polished wooden floor. Michael Jackson’s “Don’t Stop” rings over the loudspeakers, bleeding into Guns N’ Roses and then “I Want Candy.”