Colten Moore Adjusts to an X Games Experience Off of His Snowmobile

Feb 5, 2018

Colten Moore eyes the future as he works to get back to top form (photo ESPN / X Games)

It can’t be easy for a seven-time X Games medalist to sit by as other athletes compete in the sport he loves. However, K&N-sponsored snowmobile competitor Colten Moore is making the best of his new, temporary role as an X Games judge. Being a two-time Snowmobile Freestyle gold medalist, Colten is clearly qualified to assess the runs of his fellow extreme athletes.

X Game snowmobile athlete Colten Moore in competition

Moore is itching to again 'catch the sky'

So what necessitated Colten’s move to the judge’s table? The 28-year-old Texan suffered a serious spinal cord injury attempting a double backflip at the 2017 X Games. The double would have been a first in X Games history, but Colten hit the ramp too hot and landed in such a way that he compressed his spine and broke a vertebra.

After emergency surgery to repair the spinal damage, Colten regained feeling in his legs and even walked out of the hospital under his own power two weeks later. 2017 was a year filled with rehab, setbacks, and recovery, but Colten has remained positive.

X Game snowmobile athlete Colten Moore in the rehab room

Moore is tirelessly rehabilitating his surgically repaired spine

Colten and the rest of the Moore family are not strangers to the severe risks inherent in extreme sports. Colten’s older brother, Caleb, died tragically in 2013 when he succumbed to injuries suffered in a catastrophic crash in that year’s X Games.

After the loss of his brother, Colten penned an inspirational autobiography entitled “Catching the Sky,” which reflects on his relationship with his brother and his return to competition after the grieving process. The book was released in 2016.

Colten's insights struck a chord with readers and critics alike. "Catching the Sky" became a finalist for the prestigious PEN America / ESPN Award for Literary Sports Writing. Clearly, Colten is not one to let tragedy and setbacks derail his goals and aspirations.

Don’t count on Colten being a judge for long. His recovery from the 2017 crash has been painstaking and grueling, but the competitor is determined to get back to his former glory. While his goal of competing in the 2018 X Games was stymied by doctor's orders, his sights are now squarely set on the 2019 games.

K&N is proud to be a part of Colten Moore’s team and we have no doubt that he will soon be ‘catching the sky’ again aboard his K&N equipped sled.