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In the world of extreme sports, Ryan 'R Willy' Williams of Queensland's Sunshine Coast is known as the world's best scooter rider.
And with world-first tricks like the triple back flip he has pushed human performance to the limits.
The 22-year-old has been described as a pioneer of the sport and has been contracted with American action sports entertainer Nitro Circus where he has already earned more money than most first grade football players.
Williams is the only professional scooter rider in the world on a contract, and he has returned home to Caloundra to kick-off the Australian leg of the Nitro Circus Live world tour to be held at the Sunshine Coast Stadium.
During the theatrical display, action sport stars attempt death-defying tricks and perform choreographed riding routines in freestyle motocross, BMX, scooter and skateboard.
Initially a YouTube star, Williams' daredevil antics went viral and resulted in him being catapulted into the international arena.
"I started with Nitro Circus five years ago, when I was 17-years-old," Williams said.
"They flew me down to a show because they'd seen a video on my YouTube and it had lots of views and they thought, 'we should give this guy a chance'.
"Sure enough, I went down there and there's a 50-foot roll-in and they were like, 'sign this waiver here and show us what you've got'.
"I did pretty well and I've been on the tour ever since."
From local kid to international sportsman
Williams is the only BMX rider to have successfully performed a triple front flip, although not without some serious tumbles, including one that resulted in him being hospitalised with concussion.
"I was here four years ago to do the show and I actually knocked myself out in practice, so this is kind of my redemption," he said.
"I just live down the road and can ride here in 10 minutes, so it's super cool to have Nitro Circus here after doing so many years on tour with them all around the world.
"I've been to all of Europe, America, Japan, China and New Zealand and now finally, the Sunshine Coast."
Most famous 'world-first' moves
Arguably the biggest talent in scooter riding, Williams has now moved on to BMX tricks and recently won first place at the Nitro World Games held in Utah, in the US, despite it being only his second competition.
"My most famous moves [would be] on BMX," he said.
"I do this trick on BMX called a 720 front flip and really, I'm one of the only people in the world that can do it.
"So at the Sunny Coast show, I want to add a bar spin and that'll be a world-first in my hometown.
"And then there's the triple back flip on scooter. That was one of my first ever world-firsts."
But when it comes to injuries, Williams said he was doing better than most action sport stars.
"I've been really lucky compared to some of the other guys," he said.
"I mean, maybe to a normal guy, maybe I've still got a few injuries but compared to the other guys on tour, like the motor dudes, they're coming off and breaking limbs every time they fall off.
"Whereas on our side, you've got a little bit of leeway, but you still can get very hurt."
Making a career from action sports
Williams said he spends a lot of time thinking about exciting, death-defying tricks to add to his repertoire.
"Well, normal people count sheep to go to sleep, but I think about new tricks to try that no-one's ever done before," he said.
"I wake up the next day and if I'm at a Nitro show, I'll give it a go, see how it goes and if I get close, I'll just keep going."
He said he never dreamed of making a career from scooter riding.
"No way. I mean, when I started scootering, no-one was making anything off it," Williams said.
"It was just a hobby and it still is for me.
"It's all about the fun, but it's good to make it a job and live a perfect life I would say."
Topics: extreme-sports, arts-and-entertainment, sport, caloundra-4551
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