High-flying pogo stick athletes defy gravity at O.C. Fair

Biff Hutchison seemed immune to gravity as he flipped through the air Wednesday afternoon on his pogo stick at the Orange County Fair in Costa Mesa.

Hutchison was performing as part of the Xpogo extreme pogo stick team, along with Dan Mahoney, Dmitry Arsenyev and Nick McClintock.

A crowd gathered in front of The Hangar concert venue to catch a glimpse of the high-flying act’s flips and jumps. At one point, the team performed synchronized tricks.

The short exhibit was capped when Hutchison executed three consecutive back flips.

Spectator Jose Ortega Jr., 7, of Whittier said he was scared at certain points because he thought the athletes wouldn’t be able to pull off the difficult tricks. He said he’s never used a pogo stick before but he might consider picking one up after seeing the exhibition.

Though pogo sticks have been around for a century, extreme pogo began about 20 years ago when a couple of people decided to take action sports into new territory, Xpogo co-founder Nick Ryan said.

Ryan, 28, one of those originators, said it started with tricks such as bar spins and backward jumps. The sport has since expanded worldwide.

Xpogo started in 2010 and quickly assembled some of the best athletes in the sport.

Hutchison, 23, has been with the team since its inception. He got into extreme pogo in 2004 after being interested in a variety of action sports. He realized that BMX tricks also could be performed on a pogo stick.

“Something clicked and I never really looked back,� he said.

Hutchison has developed into one of the world’s most renowned pogo athletes. He holds the record for highest jump at just over 11 feet.

“The lineup we have for the fair is pretty ridiculous,� Hutchison said. “Maybe only one or two other people can do these tricks in the world.�

Hutchison and the Xpogo team will be performing at the O.C. Fair at 1:25, 3:35 and 5:25 p.m. every day through Sunday.

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Twitter:@benbrazilpilot

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