Illumination Dynamics Helps Pull Off Summer X Games 17

Extreme athletes gathered once again for the 17th Annual X Games put on by ESPN and for the 10th year, Illumination Dynamics is helping to broadcast the event. While BMXers, rally car racers, skateboarders, motocross bikers and more brought their nerves of steel to compete in the California heat, ID brought lighting, power, air conditioning and talented technicians to assist in the four-day live broadcast. In 2010, 35.4 million viewers in the U.S. tuned in during the four-day broadcast which was also aired in 175 different countries and territories outside the U.S.—to more than 382 million homes. Given that viewer numbers were expected to be just as high this year, ESPN and ID had their work cut out for them. Along with people watching at home, 138,525 attendees showed up to the 2010 X Games, a 24% increase from the year before, expecting to be impressed not only by the athletes, but by the on-site broadcasting displayed on screens at the event. Ensuring such a large event is broadcast correctly takes collaboration and incredibly hard work from an array of people and ID is proud to show up year after year with the equipment and staff needed to help make the X Games everything fans hope it will be.
About two city blocks, including LA Live, Staples Center, multiple parking lots and the Event Deck, were transformed into race tracks, skate parks, motocross and bike ramps, etc. in a matter of days in the hot Los Angeles sun. Employees from Illumination Dynamics, including the Director of Broadcast, Rich Williams and Generator Technician, Bruce Ward, begin visiting the site more than a month in advance to make sure incidentals were taken care of and nothing was left to chance or error. Approximately two weeks before the live broadcast began, ID brought paralleling generators which provide redundant powed, air conditioners and lights to the X Games broadcast compound. In addition, this year ID provided a hydrogen fuel cell to ESPN’s environmental department along with a hydrogen light tower with cooperation from Altergy Systems and Multiquip, Inc. Employees worked long hours rigging up redundant generators which ensured power was never lost during the live broadcast, and standby generators were set up for the TV offices and other portable trailers. This year, 100 tons of air conditioning was provided to the TV operations tent to keep the people working the X games, as well as the massive amounts of high tech equipment, cool. ID also provided HMI and LED lighting for the announce positions for the event and TV broadcast. ID’s skilled technicians and Broadcast department heads were always available on site so that any help needed was readily available. The Event Technical and Broadcast operations departments of ESPN worked tirelessly with ID’s Broadcast department to transmit a live broadcast that would impress viewers on a huge scale year after year.