The Action Sports Medicine Foundation is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization whose mission is to enhance the quality and availability of sports medicine to athletes participating in action sports. The foundation was formed in 2003, and is based out of Jacksonville, Florida. Our desire is to become a quality resource for athletes who are looking to receive sports medicine services, and for the various health care workers who are looking to provide these services. The primary sports that we will be serving are motocross, BMX, mountain biking, skateboarding, wakeboarding and surfing. Within this population, we will focus on the amateur athlete. Our goal is to enhance the level of medical care at the grass roots level. In so doing, we can develop a healthier and better conditioned group of athletes, thus enabling them to maximize their capabilities in their chosen sports. Secondarily, we feel confident that we can raise the level of understanding of these sports within the medical community, thus enabling other health care practitioners to better deal with the needs of this unique group of athletes.

We have outlined seven specific activities that our organization will perform. These activities will form the core of operations for our foundation, and ultimately enable us to reach the goals outlined above.

1. Provide on-site sports medicine coverage to athletes participating in various events. The intent here is to provide a training room atmosphere at athletic events that is similar in scope to what one would see at a more traditional sporting event. This would involve having a physician, physical therapist and athletic trainer staffed to provide medical coverage at competitions. The physician would be able to assess and diagnose the more serious injuries, and determine the athlete's capabilities to return to play. The physical therapist and athletic trainer are also able to assess musculoskeletal injuries, and provide the appropriate treatment modalities.

In addition, they are able to apply various taping, wrapping, and splinting techniques to support an injured joint, thus enabling an athlete to compete where he or she may otherwise be unable to.

Ultimately, the provision of this service will enable the athlete to receive quality preemptive care to diminish the severity or likelihood that an injury will occur, and thorough, professional immediate care and follow-up if an injury is sustained.

2. Provide a forum for education in sports medicine to health care professionals and the public. One of the main reasons we developed this foundation was the lack of interest in action sports from the general sports medicine community. With this lack of interest, you get a lack of understanding. We understand that the demands of action sports are unique, as are the athletes who compete in them. As such, we plan to take what we learn in working with these athletes, and educate other sports medicine professionals. For example, is there a specific injury in motocross that is more prevalent than others? If so, why does it happen, and what is the best way to prevent the injury and/or rehabilitate it. This will vary by sport, and is critical to understand if we are to progress the athlete's fitness and ability to compete.

3. Present conferences on sports medicine topics related to action sports. One of the reasons we developed this organization, was because of our passion for learning, and then educating others. One of Dr. Augustine's goals is to organize and present an action sports medicine symposium where physicians, trainers, physical therapists and strength coaches who work in these sports can convene to learn from one another and share information and techniques that they have learned . This could become an annual event, thus enabling a consistent flow of valid information to all health care practitioners who work with these special athletes.

4. Develop original research projects. Currently there is a lack of information in the journals regarding action sports. Scientists have long focused their research efforts on the traditional sports, leaving little in the way of scientific evidence on the new wave of alternative sports. We expect that this foundation will enable us to conduct numerous research projects and case studies on a number of different topics in a variety of action sports. The production of these projects will provide invaluable scientific data for sports medicine professionals working with action sport athletes. In the end, the athlete will benefit tremendously as the various techniques used to treat an athlete's injury or enhance performance will be based on scientific fact and not merely conjecture.

5. Educate athletes on the most appropriate means of injury prevention, rehabilitation and conditioning. Everything that we practice and learn will be channeled back to the athlete to enable him or her to compete in their sport at the healthiest level possible. We can achieve this by presenting formal injury clinics to the athletes. This web site will also contain information on training and injury prevention which will be updated on a regular basis. Our doctors and trainers will also be available at the events we cover to answer any questions the athletes may have.

6. Foster the development of amateur action sports by coordinating and sponsoring events. Our desire is to see action sports continue to grow and develop on many different levels. To achieve this, we plan to coordinate with local tracks, skateboard parks and other organizations to stage competitions in the various action sports.

7. Provide college scholarships to achieving student athletes. Since education is important to our foundation, we would like to see the athletes we serve demonstrate an interest in higher learning as well. We plan to set aside a fund that can be earned by an amateur athlete who has the skills and desire to continue his or her education at the collegiate level. The intent here is to provide incentive for these young athletes to learn, and achieve a high level of proficiency in the classroom.