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Bid To Host Summer X Games Shuts Campus Martius, Other Sites For Video Shoot

March 23, 2013, 6:11 PM

Stuck in traffic downtown Saturday? Can’t get to Belle Isle or around Michigan Central Station?

That’s because Detroit is making a bid to host the Summer X Games.

Campus Martius, Roosevelt Park, Belle Isle and Cobo's roof were shut Saturday to shoot a promotional video for the bid to host the 2014, 2015 and 2016 games. Helicopters and rally cars circled the city, showing off the extreme sporting possibilities in Detroit.

Detroit is one of 13 cities to rally for the contract to host the four-day competition organized by ESPN that includes skateboarding, inline skating, motocross, BMX biking, and rallycross.

Kevin Krease, 27, Garret Koehler, 26, and Ian Studders, 26, launched the movement to get Detroit noticed in 2012, working with ESPN and a slew of local movers and shakers including Susan Sherer, executive director of Detroit's Super Bowl XL Host Committee in 2006.

Video production is being led by downtown Detroit advertising agency The Work.

According to the X Games Detroit website, the group is “working with ESPN to create a new type of X Games partnership that uses conventional structures to create unconventional experiences all with the hope of reinventing our city and state.”

That means that possibilities include racing cars around Roosevelt Park or Campus Martius and building a massive skating park.

The specifics are speculation for now, but the official bid is due April 2. No word yet on whether they've found the $7 million in financial commitments previous reports said was necessary to place the bid.

The winning city will be announced in August. For now, we have the teaser video below to whet your appetite.

Previous Deadline Detroit coverage is here.


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