Daredevil enjoying the ride
Apart from suspected concussion, Nitro Circus BMX star Jed Mildon is feeling amped about his upcoming tour of New Zealand.
After all it has been two years since he last showcased his daredevil skills on the public stage in his home country and a lot has happened since.
Many know Mildon, who grew up in Taupo and who largely trains at Franklin Farm in Tokoroa, for being the first person to ever successfully land a triple backflip on a BMX which he did in Taupo in 2011 making him a Youtube sensation with over seven million views.
It was in 2015 however that he well and truly cemented his place in the history books after becoming the first person to successfully land a quad flip on a BMX in Maryland, America which is the home of action sports star and Nitro Circus founder Travis Pastrana.
Mildon, who joined the circus six years ago after the powers that be took notice of his impressive talent, said it has been a wild ride getting to where he is today. With crowds of up to 37,000 that’s no exaggeration.
‘‘It has been a dream scenario and I have probably now done about 100 odd shows from Australia, Japan and China to Western Europe and the United States of America and now back here,’’ he said.
He said it all began at Christmas when he was six.
‘‘I got my first bike and all the kids in the neighbourhood had bikes which was how we got from A to B,’’ he said.
‘‘All of a sudden you were thinking outside the square and jumping off curbs and building jumps. I grew up in an area which was being subdivided so there were always dirt piles and that was all we did, that’s how we got our kicks but it wasn’t until I was 14 that I learnt BMX was actually a sport.’’
‘‘I played rugby for 13 years and liked the team aspect but I liked the individualism of BMX more and had a real passion for it which is the key to life.’’
‘‘It was something I loved doing with my mates, I never thought I could make money out of it but now it’s eventuated into travelling the world with Travis Pastrana which is a real trip,’’ he said.
The Nitro Circus’ New Zealand tour will visit six New Zealand locations including Tauranga on February 11. For tickets visit nitrocircus.com.
‘‘It was something I loved doing with my mates, I never thought I could make money out of it but now it's eventuated into travelling the world with Travis Pastrana which is a real trip’’