Dallas Friday: she jumps! she flips! she twists! breaking records and the gender barrier in extreme sports

Winning a gold medal at the X Games, the Olympics of extreme sports, is perhaps the highest of accolades for adrenaline addicts--a totally unforgettable experience. Unless you're Dallas Friday, who, after taking first place in the 2001 Games' women's wakeboarding competition at the age of 14, forgot it all three days later. "I went out to practice and did a whirlybird [an inverted 360-degree spin], hit my knee on my chin and knocked myself out cold. I could not remember winning!' Fortunately, it all came back to her that night. What's more, odds are Friday will find herself on the first-place podium again at this year's games (August 15-19) in Philadelphia, where she's a favorite to win the gold.

Compared to seven X Games sports for men, there are only three in which the women can compete: in-line skating, speedclimbing and wakeboarding, the latter combining elements of surfing and water skiing, as the rider speeds behind a boat performing jumps, flips and twists. In 1999, after training as a gymnast for five years, Friday decided to try wakeboarding--three years later she's ranked number one in the world. "I wasn't scared to try new tricks because I was already doing flips and spins," she explains. "I just had to get used to doing them on water." This confidence is what sets the Orlando, Florida, native apart from her competitors, and her mastery of stunts previously considered impossible for women has raised the bar for the sport.

So what's ahead for our girl, Friday? "When I turn 18, I want to buy a bike and do a little motocross," she says. With her fearless facility for soaring above the competition and a name like Dallas Friday, it's sure to be a wild ride.

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