Kingdom of Stunts | India

Its been a long time coming, India has been starving for an alternative sports extravaganza since the inception of this genre across the globe. May 2011, Pune City, Maharashtra, saw ‘Kingdom of Stunts’ a conglomeration of the best FMX and Mountain bikers from US, Canada and Australia all in one arena. Apart from the jaw dropping feats performed by the Riders, the spectators were entertained by some of the finest pyro techniques, fire performers and laser show.





This Kingdom showcased the bike riders as warriors along with their fire breathing fearless damsels. Performing riders included X Games medalist Clinton Moore, whose one of the handful of FMX stars in the world who kills it with his body varials and super flips. Joining him in his gravity defying acrobatics were FMX underdogs from Chile and USA with their flip combos and mind numbing extensions. Along with the Motorbike maniacs, ‘Kingdom of Stunts’ had the 'Flow Riders' from Canada psyching up the spectators with their massive step down hits, flip whips and 360 combos. Adding to the controlled chaos, this two day event had incorporated professional fire entertainers from UK; the Fuel Girls. These fire spitting maidens feel as much at home in a fire pit as they do in the mortal world. As if the heat raising performance by the Fuel Girls wasn’t hot enough, the ‘KOS’ evening showcased India’s top professional Street Bike Freestyle Riders along with the swift footed break dancers. Some of India’s finest body builders also made an appearance on this evening of sports entertainment.




















Speaking about the pedal pounding bros from Canada, the riders included the North Shore legend Dangerous Dan, street riding maestro Vass, the sender Mighty Mike, Andrew Baker and Bigelow. Dangerous Dan on the microphone kept the ecstatic audience in check for their sanity, which they were losing every minute as the ‘KOS’ show was rolling. With ‘Mighty’ Mike throwing suicide no handers off the 20ft step down, moto whips and X-Up no footers on the Dirt Jumps and Frankie & Mr.Biggs showcasing their flip combos, 360 tail whips, bar spins & tuck no handers; the Freestyle Moto guys had to step up their game every run. The two nights gig at I.L.S Law College Ground, Pune left the spectators stunned and screaming for more! With an increasing population of the Indian sub-continent looking out for sports other than the hyped cricket, we can surely see a surge in the number of alternative sports maniacs!















After a two week long stay in the ‘educational hub’ city of Pune, post ‘KOS’ event, the Canadian mountain bike clan including ‘Dangerous’ Dan, Mighty Mike, Vass (Banshee), Andrew Baker (Transition)and Bigelow (Banshee) along with my photographer buddy, we decided to visit the touristy city of Goa for the weekend. With the sunny beaches and clear sky Goa turned out to be a laid back trip, rather than a riding visit. Though we had our bikes along, never did the two wheeled fun machines leave the hotel room. The red dirt trails kept calling out as we splurged in some rental scooter hill climbs and some full throttle jump fest. The four day stay in Goa sure was a memorable one, making new friends and meeting old ones. With some brain drowning sea food and amazing sights, good times were rolling. As our trashed rental scooters were being treated and the scooter mechs looking for us all over city, we cramped ourselves into a Bus for Mumbai. With a compressed sleeping section on the bus, more like a casket we reached the Bollywood city of Mumbai after a 12Hrs drive through the night.





With a day left for the Mountain Bike crew to head back to Canada, a Mumbai stay was planned at a buddies place. The chaotic traffic, population tsunami and incredible food left the riders wanting to stay around for longer. The ‘Incredible India’ experience sure is something that entrenches in one’s mind. Already in talks about future events in this part of the world, Dangerous Dan and his brigade sure have tons of exciting stuff lined up for their next visit!











A big shout out to all the sponsors for supporting the first of its kind alternative sports entertainment weekend in India, ‘Kingdom Of Stunts’. And to all the insane riders, performers, technicians and enthusiastic volunteers, family and friends who made this event a huge success. The entire ‘Entourage Sports & Entertainment ‘ team thanks the media for helping us bring FMX/Mtn Biking to a larger audience. The future for alternative sports in India sure looks promising now!


- Vinay Menon