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Freestyle is about far more than X Games medals and Dew Tour titles. Sure, a select few win contests, get TV time and score Axe commercials, but there are dozens of other riders making a living jumping their dirt bikes. They don't get interviewed by Jamie Little. They're too busy crisscrossing the continent performing at car dealerships, rodeos, county fairs and private parties. From corporate functions to backwater bars, demo men are often an audience's early introduction to live freestyle. They are the grassroots of the sport, often audiences' first look at motocross, and they deserve our support.

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THE BUSINESSMEN
Rudy Waller is just another successful business owner — he pitches clients with a PowerPoint presentation and has his own multimedia team. Oh, and Waller's business? Jumping dirt bikes. So maybe he's not like everyone else. But he is like Clint Esposito, another dedicated demo man. Esposito and Waller both own East Coast-based companies dedicated to taking freestyle motocross to the people. And both men have been featured demo riders since the early days of freestyle.

Waller, 36, grew up in Panama and was one of Latin America's best racers before injuries in North America slowed his career. "I got into freestyle at the beginning, 1997 or so, before we even called it freestyle," he says. "At places like the Costa Rica Supercross I'd race and do halftime jump shows with Carey Hart, Mike Jones and Tommy Clowers."


Esposito's story is similar: a racer who transitioned to freestyle. "My first jump show was in Englishtown, N.J.," the 29-year-old recalls, noting that Waller also worked the demo. "Ronnie Renner was there, and I think the headliner was Clifford Adoptante. I only got $200, but I thought the guaranteed money was awesome."

Both Waller and Esposito were looking for a way to parlay their love of dirt bikes into a career. "When I raced, I worked at a tanning salon, delivered Chinese food and was a plumber's assistant for a year," Esposito says. "An older racer sat me down and told me I'd never be able to make enough money to compete full time. And then freestyle came along."

Hard workers with entrepreneurial spirit and riding skills, Waller and Esposito believed that coordinating shows themselves would be more profitable — and offer more freedom — than simply performing for someone else. "I started a little demo business in Florida," Waller says. "I designed my first ramp on a napkin, we eyed it out, built it and got going."

They drummed up business by making tons of phone calls and leveraging old connections. For Waller, that included going back to his Latin American roots. "I've been pushing freestyle down there since the beginning, and a lot of people remember me from my racing days," he says. "I grew up with a lot of the promoters and sponsors."

Now, both men employ a stable of riders and are on the road more than 100 days a year, performing for crowds that range from 50 schoolkids to 100,000 NASCAR fans. They've been to dozens of countries and sometimes are treated like rock stars abroad. "I don't speak Spanish, and people in South America usually have no idea what I'm saying," Esposito states. "But they'll act like I'm Tom Cruise or something. Women even approach me in malls."

Esposito describes himself as an average rider whose business sense keeps him busier than peers with more talent. Like Waller, he's doing what he loves. "I just want to ride my dirt bike," Esposito says. "I knew I'd be miserable doing anything else, and I want to wake up happy each day."

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THE FLIPPER
Contrary to what is seen on the TV, not every freestyler flips. In fact, a lot of riders doing demos don't get inverted. That's where Dustin Nowak comes in. "I'm the 'flip' guy," the 24-year-old says. "In 2008, I was on the road doing demos almost every single weekend from January through November, and pretty much every job I got was because I backflip."

Nowak says he worked far more — and made far more bank — in 2008 than ever before, but he admits that the heavy schedule causes various events to "blend together after a while." The promised paydays demos provide also prevent Nowak from competing. "Last year I went to Baltimore [Dew Tour], but then I didn't even ride it," he says. "I had so much planned right afterward in Europe, and I didn't want to get hurt."


While he has done well at some IFMA events, Nowak is OK with skipping contests. "Demos are low pressure compared to a normal comp," he explains. "You do well because you want to put on a good show, but you can keep it relatively comfortable; it's not do or die. If you hit a ramp at a comp and get sideways or know you're gonna come up short, you still have to go for it. At a demo, it's just 'Well, I guess I'm not doing a trick this time.'"

Nowak's first paid demo came at a monster truck show in 2003 in upstate New York. Like most well-compensated demo riders, he now makes frequent trips outside the United States. "Any time you leave the country, people are excessively pumped on freestyle," he says. "Crowds are just insane."

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THE DUAL THREAT
Quick — name the only person in the world who regularly backflips both motorcycles and snowmobiles at the same event. Give up? Try Justin Hoyer. The 26-year-old Wisconsin native gained a measure of fame when he earned a Snowmobile Freestyle silver medal at the 2009 Winter X Games.

Hoyer has spent the months since Winter X jumping KTM dirt bikes at demos across Europe. When the setups — and budgets — allow, he breaks out a wheel-equipped snowmobile, too. "I'll jump both at bigger shows, like the Gladiator Games in Prague or Masters of Dirt," Hoyer says. "It makes for a long day and it's really stressful, but I prefer it; it's more satisfying."

Not to mention more lucrative. "I get about twice my regular fee," Hoyer says of shows where he pulls double duty. "But I've put in a lot of time to get the sled working well on dirt. It's a challenge, but I enjoy it."

Hoyer has been a podium staple at snowmobile freestyle contests. Not so in the moto world, where he very rarely competes and has focused on demos since his first one several years ago in Perris, Calif. "It was a big event, and [Brian] Deegan was riding, too," Hoyer remembers. "I crashed and felt like a jackass, a tool. I took that really hard."

It's safe to say he's over it. When in Europe, Hoyer stays with Swedish rider Morgan Carlson at Carlson's place in Spain. During the week, Hoyer rides at Andre Villa's compound, kicks back on Mediterranean beaches — known for topless hotties — and visits famous tourist spots. "I love traveling and history, and it's so cool to see all these awesome places."

Hoyer also loves performing for the rabid European crowds. "In the U.S., people see the X Games on TV all the time, and they expect a lot," he says. "They'll get bored if you're not doing a double backflip. In Europe, they go crazy for almost anything, and I just feed off that energy."

Demo Dangers

While demos are usually lower pressure than contests, they do come with special challenges. Unfamiliar bikes, sketchy setups and shady promoters are all par for the course, but the guaranteed paychecks almost always compel riders to perform regardless of conditions. "I've always made it work," Rudy Waller says. "The show must go on. Sometimes you have to move ramps in or something, but you do it. We definitely take risks." "I've never walked away from a show," echoes Clint Esposito. "Some monster truck shows had landings like little nipples, but I did it anyway. The promoters ask us to at least do something, so I work with them. The first time I went to Colombia they had a scaffold landing with huge metal extrusions and jagged edges. I wasn't flipping that cheese grater, so I gave a little money back and the next time they had it covered with plywood." Jumping in foreign countries can also pose problems. "I don't speak any Spanish; I can barely order at a restaurant," says Esposito, who frequently rides in South America. "Imagine laying in a hospital bed trying to explain an injury to someone. You have to have a strong conviction that things are going to work out." Waller lived every freestyler's nightmare while doing a show last December in Colombia. "I actually hit the roof on a Kiss of Death," he says. "We were worried about it — guys were getting really close to it — but I thought it would be OK." It wasn't, and Waller paid the price, though his injuries easily could've been much more serious. Virtually every demo man tells tales of bad bikes and varied setups. Waller says he's ridden "some junkers," while Nowak describes the typical day: "Everything you can imagine — bikes, ramps, whatever — changes from event to event. Nothing is ever the same, it always switches up. "It's weird," Nowak continues, "I'm super-picky about my own bike, but I'll ride anything at shows. At one in Mexico, we put a bike together and the crank was completely toasted, so I just borrowed another one and jumped it cold. That's usually how it works, anyway: You get about three minutes to practice and that's it, and then you just have to go for it." "It gets gnarly," adds Justin Hoyer. "You take whatever bike or setup or job you can get. I've done bad shows and sworn I'd never put myself in that position again, but then I end up right back there. No one wants to say no because we depend on these and feel like we have to do them. Plus, if you turn something down, there's a whole list of guys ready to take your spot."