Thorne’s Extreme Success Takes Him to California Dream

Professional stunt bike rider Rick Thorne is living the extreme California dream, riding when he wants and getting paid handsomely to do it.

Name a big event and he’s at it--X-Games, Gravity Games, Warped Tour. He is something of a media personality, hosting a monthly show on ESPN, “X2Day.”

Financial success has enabled him to buy a house in Old Towne Orange with his fiancee, Madona Galos, an amazing transaction considering that six years ago Thorne still needed to supplement his biking income by busing tables at a Kansas City restaurant.

Thorne moved west three years ago and still is counting his blessings.

“To come from Kansas City to California to buy a house in Orange County, doing what you love to do is insane,” Thorne said. “I have so much gratitude.”

Thorne started riding professionally at 15, when that meant putting on trick exhibitions at car shows, boat shows and other festivals. Eventually, he moved up to state fairs and in 1995 he quit his restaurant job and performed in more than 500 shows with the Hoffman Bikes Sprocket Jockeys team.

“I felt like a carny after a while,” Thorne said. “There was a time when the gnarlyist riders, the best pros, were just going off and there would be like four people in the crowd eating corn dogs.

“There were more people watching the Ferris wheel.”

Soon after, however, better opportunities arose. ESPN’s X-Games opened the floodgates to television exposure. Sponsorship money soon followed.

“Now it’s a whole other level,” he said. “It’s just a trip. The sport is finally getting the respect I always thought it deserved. It’s pretty cool.”

This week Thorne will be competing in the Lee Pipes Soul Bowl at the Mervyn’s California Beach Bash in Hermosa Beach. The final is scheduled for 1 p.m. Saturday.

The Beach Bash, billed as the nation’s largest combined extreme sports, beach volleyball and music festival, starts today with practice in the extreme events (inline skating, stunt biking and skateboarding) and qualifying for the men’s Assn. of Volleyball Professionals and women’s Beach Volleyball America tour. The events run through Sunday.

Skateboard star Tony Hawk is expected to make an appearance at a children’s skateboarding clinic from 3-5 p.m. today.

The finals of the beach volleyball tournaments are Sunday.

H.B. UNICORNS FINISH FOURTH

The Huntington Beach Unicorn Rugby Football Club finished fourth in the Division III national championship last weekend in Rockford, Ill.

Huntington Beach lost Saturday’s semifinal, 29-21, to Boston, rallying from a 19-3 first-half deficit to pull within one before Boston scored a try (five points) and a three-point conversion in the final 10 minutes to pull away.

“It was a great game of footy,” Unicorn manager Ray Viers said. “All the officials said it was the best game of the day.”

The Unicorns also lost the third-place game, 20-14, to Huntsville, Ala., after trailing by one with five minutes left.

The club is now recruiting players for next season and concentrating on its seven-man summer season. For more information about the club: (714) 591-3306 or

https://www.unicornrugby.com.

NEWPORT ROWERS VIE FOR TITLE

Five Newport Beach rowers--on a two-man and four-man boat--from the Newport Aquatic Center will be competing at the U.S. Rowing Youth Invitational Championships in Cincinnati.

Nick D’Antoni, 18, Matt Elder, 17, Scott Sommers, 18, and Nate Hoyt, 18, are on the four-man boat that won a Southwestern regional championship last month. John Zieser, 17, and D’Antoni make up the two-man boat, which also won a regional title.

AUSSIE TAKES TOP BILLING

Australian Luke Egan defeated Brazilian Guiherme Herdy in the final to win the Quiksilver Pro last week in Tavarua, Fiji. Egan beat Cory Lopez of San Clemente in one semifinal and Herdy beat Florida’s C.J. Hobgood in the other. Lopez moved up to third on the Assn. of Surfing Professionals World Championship Tour rankings. San Clemente’s Shane Beschen is tied for 10th. Sunny Garcia of Hawaii remains top ranked. The tour next stops in Jeffrey’s Bay, South Africa, June 29-July 9.

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CALENDAR OF EVENTS

RUNNING

Saturday

* Anaheim Downtown Discovery 5K, registration starts at 6:30 a.m. at Anaheim Blvd. and Broadway. Details: (714) 956-3586.

Sunday

* Orange County Track Club 5K and pancake breakfast, Fairview Park in Costa Mesa. Race on dirt trails is limited to the first 300 entrants. Details: (949) 497-3692 or https://www.octc.homestead.com/home.html

June 17

* Amnesty International’s Run for Freedom 5K and 10K. Start is south of Huntington Beach Pier. Details: (310) 815-0450.

June 24

* Wild Rivers 5K Challenge at Wild Rivers water park in Irvine. Features a 5K run and a two-mile “water park challenge” that includes running, swimming and water-slide riding. Details: (949) 768-9453, Ext. 202.

July 4

* Anaheim Hills Firecracker 5K and 10K. Start at Canyon High School. Details: (714) 765-7255.

* Run in the Park 5K and 10K. Crown Valley Community Park in Laguna Niguel. Details: (949) 495-9622.

* Tommy’s Surf City 5K. Start at Huntington Beach High School. Run in conjunction with Huntington Beach Fourth of July parade and expo. Details: (714) 374-1535, Ext. 4.

June 20

* Adventure 16’s Costa Mesa store is offering a free clinic for beginning and intermediate backpackers. “Learn how California’s diverse destinations affect gear choices and trip planning.” Details: (949) 650-3301.

June 21

* REI’s Santa Ana store presents a slide show and discussion on outdoor photography hosted by professional photographer Don Gale. Free presentation starts at 7 p.m. Gale is also offering a $40 outdoor photography workshop June 24 at Santiago Oaks Regional Park. Details: (714) 543-4142.

Saturday

* Orange Coast Velo cycling club meets at Worthy Park located at 17th and Main Street in Huntington Beach. Rides vary from 25 to 50+ miles and begin at 7:30 a.m. with periodic regrouping and rest stops. After-ride socializing at Noah’s Bagels on Main Street. For further information call Jerry, (714) 960-4214 or Peter (714) 848-7618.

* Orange County Wheelmen training, 8 a.m., Food Park, MacArthur and Main, Irvine. Beginner and intermediate training group will ride and stay as a group. Informal lectures will cover stretching, nutrition and hill climbing. Led by Fred and Peg Bauer, (714) 997-0892.

* Bicycle Club of Irvine meets at Deerfield Park, Irvine. Three routes, 10-15, 15-25 and 25-35 miles, each with a stop midway for breakfast. Rides start at 9 a.m. and finish at about 11:30 a.m. Ride leaders Scott and Sandy Angle, (714) 960-4068.

* Velo Allegro Cycling Club meets at 8 a.m. at Long Beach Marina off Second Street for 24-mile ride at 14-18 mph pace. Those with pace line experience meet at 7:30 a.m. for warmup and speed training of up to 50 miles. Details: Julio, (562) 988-8117.

Sunday

* Tour de Choc, 25- and 50-mile rides to raise funds for the Children’s Hospital of Orange County. Start/finish at Irvine Spectrum. Entry fee is $20, riders also raise money from sponsors. Details: (714) 532-8690.