Amazing foreign riders like Ailo Gaup, Mathieu Rebeaud, Robbie Maddison, and Blake "Bilko" Williams are all on the top of their game and when they show up to a contest the other riders dont exactly know what theyve been practicing, as theyve most likely been an oceans length away.

With that said, its often difficult for international competitors to know what theyre going to face in a competition abroad, as the style and level of riding differs country to country. AST Dew Tour is considered the biggest competition series in action sports and if riders havent been riding big comps, it can be overwhelming to them.

So what measures do these riders take to make it a bit easier? Its simple; they make sure that they get plenty of rest and mentally prepare for competition. Mental preparation can even be done by ensuring that they have a bike thats dialed and runs good. Bikes arent the easiest thing to check at the airport, so often times these guys will borrow a bike in the states, or will buy and keep a bike in the US. This can sometimes make things challenging though, as it isnt the bike theyre practicing on and havent had enough riding time on it, or made the tweaks necessary to break it in.

Generally, course design, in any action sport, varies country to country. Typically, European ramps are steeper and have a different grade, meaning that these out of town riders cant just blast off toward a ramp here; they talk with the US riders and try to get a feel for the course before dropping any big tricks.

Its not all cons on the P & C List for these international competitors though. There is an obvious benefit to living overseas and that is that no one knows what tricks will be unleashed from stop to stop. Most of the US FMX riders stick tight and ride in packs; when one guy learns a new trick, the bar has been raised and the others know to step up their game, making it difficult to unveil new tricks in competition.

The international guys are able to keep their riding on the down low, whereas the rest of the FMX roster is kept in the loop on what tricks are being mastered from the east coast to the west coast. Regardless of where in the world these guys are riding, the progression in FMX is off the chain this year. By the time October rolls around, it will be hard to imagine what could possibly be next in the sport.