This has already occurred in many sports and the newest and most "extreme" will likely mirror these effects of technology within the next few years.
Technology, according to some, has taken the fun and danger out of many sports that were once considered highly dangerous or extreme. This has led to the abandonment of some sports that were once considered extreme in favor of other ones that are relatively new or are actually more dangerous, technological advancements aside (Horton, 2004). But just as technological advances in other fields invariably appear and creep forward, so too with the advances in these most extreme of extreme sports.
Extreme sports, in one way or another, have been around as long as sport has existed. The effects of commercialization and of technological advances on many of these sports have been profound, and the media's influence and advancement of access for more participants has changed the extreme sports landscape forever. More and more people see extreme sports as a way to build a specific social or ego reputation, and not as personal challenges like many previous extreme sports participants had. Technology has also played a large role in the development, advancement, and even downfall...
Extreme sports will always exist, just as there will always be people who are looking to push the envelope of the sport world and ride the fine line between risk and reward. But extreme sports have become part of the mainstream experience, and will likely continue to be for decades to come. The basic human psychological drive to overcome fear and death is easily expressed through participation in these types of sports, and that is something that cannot be said for most daily human activities.
Works Cited
Brimer, E and Oades, L.G. (2009). "Extreme Sports- A Positive Transformation in Courage and Humility." Journal of Humanistic Psychology. Vol. 49, No. 1. Pp. 114-126.
Horton, David. (2004). "Extreme Sports and Assumption of Risk: A Blueprint." USFL
Review. Vol. 38. Pp. 599-613.
Le Breton, David. (2000). "Playing Symbolically with Death in Extreme Sports." Body
Society. Vol. 6, No. 1. Pp. 1-11.
Puchan, Heike. (2005). "Living "extreme": Adventure sports, media, and commercialization." Journal…
