A game team dazzles students with acrobatics

Seth Klinger of the BMX A Game Team executes a full 360-degree turn while jumping over teacher Carissa Fink during an exhibition at Nevada High School on Wednesday. Rusty Murry/Daily Mail

The entire Nevada High School student body gathered in the gymnasium on Wednesday afternoon to see what Lt. Col. David L. Coss, Senior Aerospace Science Instructor for the Nevada Air Force JROTC program said was "the coolest thing that's happened all year at school."

Students and faculty alike enjoyed the Rise Above Entertainment's BMX A Game team's high energy, entertaining program. During the program three professional BMX cyclists performed jumps, spins, flips and other gravity defying feats on bicycles that seemed too small for grown men.

The presentation was sponsored by the Missouri National Guard and is a traveling program designed to deliver "a positive message to students" according to Sgt. 1st Class Dan Thompson of the National Guard's Recruiting and Retention Battalion from Jefferson City.

Cyclist Cory Wiergowski makes a successful leap over six Nevada High School students.

Cory Yarbrough, master of ceremonies and one of the three riders, said his Detroit-based group travels year-round and puts on about 800 exhibitions annually. While trying to stir up the crowd, Yarbrough said everyone was going to see "tricks that are crazier and more insane" than anything they had ever seen before.

The three riders began their runs at the two sided, flat topped ramp from the hall. By the time they reached the ramp they were going fast enough to get 8 feet off the top surface. They did back flips and 360 spins and at times were riding the bikes backwards.

Several students called the display "awesome."

The bikers got the audience involved by giving away free carry bags and T-shirts during the half hour show and by asking for volunteers to lie on the gym floor so rider Cory Wiergowski could jump over them. Five students came out of the bleachers. Yarbrough assured them of their safety, but said if anything did happen they would get a signed poster. Biker Seth Klinger said he wanted a poster and grabbed another volunteer to make a total of six prone bodies that Wiergowski easily jumped over.

Family Consumer Science teacher Carissa Fink volunteered when the team asked for an adult. She was led to the top of the ramp and sat in a folding lawn chair while Seth Klinger jumped over her and did a full 360-degree spin in midair. Klinger was a good 4 feet over her head, but Fink said he looked closer.

The group rounded out the performance with a few more high speed jumps, flips and spins. Students had a few minutes for autographs and photos before finishing out the school day.