Motocross and BMX fans will have a chance to see some of the world’s top action athletes when the Nitro Circus 2.0
Tour rolls into St. Paul’s CHS Field on Sunday, August 16th.
The tour features 20 athletes performing never-before-seen stunts, including freestyle motocross, BMX, skateboarding, snowmobiles, and even a high dive off Nitro Circus’s massive Giganta ramp.
KDWA recently caught up with freestyle motocross star and eight-time X Games medalist Adam Jones, who says this year’s show has raised the bar.
“I’ve been riding with Nitro Circus for 15 years or maybe more, and I love it. I’ve rode for every promoter in the world regarding freestyle motocross, and the minute I rode a Nitro Circus show, I was like, this is where I want to be for the rest of my career because the show is just so much fun, right? Like the athletes get a chance to showcase their talents, right? The things that we work the hardest on, and also, you know, we’ve mixed that in with, like, a live show that’s really fun and it’s really captivating, whether you’re an action sports fan or not, which is great for us, right? Because we want to open the door to everybody in the world to experience and enjoy action sports, and that’s what Nitro Circus does; it brings it in at a level that everybody can understand and just enjoy. It’s not, you know, a gated thing. But this year’s show especially has, like, really stepped it up with the high dive—we’re bringing snowmobiles back this year, and then somehow I got forced. I’m going to say forced into a firewall backflip that’s never been done before. So the Nitro Circus 2.0 tour has definitely, like, the stakes have been raised. We’ve leveled everything up to bring in a fantastic show for everybody.”
Jones says Nitro Circus isn’t just for hardcore motocross fans.
“This show is built for the masses. It’s built for everybody to enjoy. It’s built, like, so they tell you what’s going on if you don’t understand, and half of it is like you don’t need to understand. When they do this segment called contraptions, which is like literally sending the strangest things that should not be jumped, like a couch, down the roll-in and jump it 50 feet, like there’s no explanation is needed for that. It’s just like silly. It’s goofy. It’s crazy, and it’s fun. So you know, the show really is a show that’s made for everybody out there. If you’re looking for a fun family night, this is where to do it.”
Jones says his love of writing started at an early age and quickly became a lifelong passion.
“It was just one of those things that I got on the bike, and I just—I really liked it. I literally was just driving around a concrete parking lot for like the first couple months that I got a bike, and I couldn’t stop doing it. Literally, it just became my life very quickly. And I really, as much as I thought I was going to be like a professional racer when I was younger, I was really good at tricks, and you know, racing doors closed and freestyle doors open, which was better for me because I, yeah, I mean, I guess I have a knack for doing tricks on a dirt bike, and it’s carried me a long way.”
When it comes to performing gravity-defying tricks year after year, Jones says the secret for maintaining momentum is simple.
“You just gotta ride all the time. I’m not so much chasing that progression and innovation in the new stuff anymore, but I am chasing a level of extension that I don’t think people are going to see from anybody else. So it’s like I’m adding my own thing that’s within my comfort level, and you know different riders have different levels they’re willing to go to. So like for me to have that thing where I want to make sure I’m the guy at the show that everybody goes, “That guy’s extension was that was the best one,” so for me to do that, it’s just it’s a lot of reps. It’s going out to the practice spot for years and years and years, and making sure every time you go out, you’re doing the trick numerous times. You’re making the movement second nature. That way, when you get to a show, right, it’s second nature to go really big, and then you get that little bit of extra show energy that the crowd gives you when they cheer, and then you get this extra extension, right? So, literally, that’s a long way to explain that it’s all about reps and creating like massive amounts of comfort within the tricks that you’re doing.”
Jones says Nitro Circus has also lowered ticket prices this year and encourages fans to purchase tickets through the official Nitro Circus website.
The Nitro Circus 2.0 Tour comes to CHS Field in Saint Paul on Sunday, August 16th.
[Click the soundbite to listen to the report.]