4 years ago I gave a lecture at my PRODUCT design thinking about how the the world is built to let truly creative minds hack built environments. Architects have unwittingly created a playground for us to thrive in as creative physical beings. And, we love it.

Cities and built structures are boring (and safe) by design. We are here to say that they can be redefined.

Skateboarding, parkour, mountain biking, extreme climbing, street artists and others turn utilitarian structures into something that inspires wonder. This article highlights some videos that really demonstrate the beauty of what this can be.

Thrasher’s Insane Water Park “High ‘N’ Dry” Video

Skateboard Magazine gets a team together to head to Palm Springs to ride an incredible water park. The keys to a drained water park and free rein to skate everything in sight leads to incredible footage. There are a lot of Epic Spots out there but this is truly Insane Terrain. And apparently upside-down ollies are a thing now.

Paris Rooftop Parkour POV

Benj, Drew and Sacha take to the rooftops of Paris for another Rooftop Parkour point-of-view (POV) mission.

Danny MacAskill has a ‘Wee Day Out’

Want to see what Danny MacAskill does on his day off? “Wee Day Out” explores the rural landscape around Edinburgh in a film that sets out to capture the simple fun of a ride in the country with moments of incredible riding and a touch of humor. Danny pulls off never-seen-before tricks, most of which would normally be assumed impossible on a mountain bike, like leaping onto a single train track, turning a hay bale into a giant unicycle, riding over a cottage, and disappearing into a 6ft puddle. Oh, and keep an eye out for a cameo from Danny’s dad, Peter!

On the Roofs Crew Climb Shanghai Tower (650 meters)

On the Roofs show us how to climb on second tallest building in the world. Shanghai Tower, China. This is not endorsed or recommended and is quite frankly insane. These guys just want to climb whatever we want to build!