Minden residents Jones, Buyten prepare for X Games

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Minden residents Matt Buyten and Adam Jones have been invited to compete in the Moto X competitions at X Games 13, which starts Thursday in Los Angeles.


Jones will participate in the Moto X Freestyle competition and Buyten will compete in the Moto X Step Up competition.


Buyten, making his fifth X Games appearance, will attempt to defend his crown in the Moto X Step Up event.


He won the gold medal in the event in 2003 and 2006 and is the favorite in the event this year.


Buyten began riding when he was 11 years old and started racing a year after. He graduated from Douglas High School in 1998.


He is perhaps most well known for his classic duel with Jeremy McGrath in the Moto X Step Up at X Games 10 in 2004.


He ended up with a silver medal despite his shoulder popping out of its socket twice during the competition.


The Step Up is best described as high jump on a dirt bike. Riders line up 30 feet from a nearly-vertical dirt ramp and vault off the ramp in attempt to clear a crossbar far overhead.


The final of the event will be telecast on ESPN Friday at 5:30 p.m.


Jones will be appearing in his fourth X Games. Last year, he took the silver medal in the Moto X Freestyle competition.


His medal-winning run included the Cordova flip, the Big Holy Man and a no-handed flip.


In January 2006, Jones became the first person to successfully land a Cordova flip in competition.


In Moto X Freestyle, riders tackle a complex dirt course made up of a variety of different jumps. The elimination round will be televised on ESPN Saturday at 4 p.m. and the final will be at 6 p.m.