Bushell's Best Bits

Breakfast sport presenter Mike Bushell swaps his suit for shorts to showcase the thrills and spills of alternative sports.

Click below for Mike Bushell's best bits.

WHAT DOES IT TAKE TO BE WORLD'S STRONGEST MAN?

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The BBC's Mike Bushell impresses Geoff Capes with his truck pulling skills

Mike Bushell meets Geoff Capes to find out what it takes to be the World's Strongest Man.

Geoff Capes won the title twice and now he's training a whole new generation in the art of strong man events.

TENNIS DATE WITH DEMENTIEVA

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Gearing up with Dementieva

At this years Wimbledon the women's draw looks wide open, and half of the top 10 seeds are Russian.

They include the new pin up girl, semi-finalist from last year, Elena Dementieva, who's number 4 this year.

When she arrived from Moscow for her first practice on grass this year, Mike was there to meet her, to whisk her off for practice and lunch date.

GAELIC FOOTBALL

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"Pretty much anything goes in Gaelic football"

Gaelic football combines elements of soccer, rugby and basketball.

Now a schools initiative in eight UK cities a year ago is reaping dividends with clubs reporting growing numbers.

Mike Bushell has been to train with the Round Towers club in London.

TOUCH RUGBY - RUGBY FOR WIMPS?

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Mike Bushell tries out touch rugby

Touch rugby may sound like rugby for wimps because it does not involve crunching tackles, but 12,000 people play it every week.

Mike Bushell joined some of the Super league teams and found out that it is a fast, furious and exhausting game.

VAN RACING WITH DAVID COULTHARD

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David Coulthard's virginal van race

Not content with causing mayhem on the roads, van drivers are doing it on the race track too.

Mike Bushell and David Coulthard find out how the grassroots sport of van racing compares to Formula One.

SUMMER SKIING SEASON BEGINS

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Mike Bushell tries his hand at rollerskiing

As the summer draws nearer, most people are turning from thoughts of winter sports in favour of frisbees, beach cricket and tennis.

But for some, the summer does not mean an end to skiing or skating - and Mike Bushell met some people who have combined the two.

CHESS GETS PHYSICAL

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The ultimate test of brain and brawn?

Chess has been given a new lease of life - in the boxing ring. The rules of 'chess boxing' allow opponents to move the board aside and punch each other instead.

'FOOTBALL FREESTYLER' GOES FOR RECORD

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Dan Magness makes 'keepy-uppy' into an art form and record attempt

Dan Magness is regarded as one of the world's top 'football freestylers'.

Mike Bushell catches up with him as he attempts to set a new world record by keeping a football airborne for 24 hours using only his control skills.

SNOOKER'S HOT SHOTS OF THE FUTURE

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The 'Hot Shots' are hoping to revive the sport's fortunes

After Ronnie O'Sullivan's comments earlier this year that snooker was dying and needed the X Factor, a new generation of snooker "ambassadors" has been revealed.

Mike Bushell met some of the hot shots hoping to revive the game, including 12-year-old Nico Elton - who showed him a thing or two on the table.

EXTREME SKIPPING DOUBLE-DUTCH STYLE

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Where's the rope? Speed skipping skills on show

Fiercely competitive and physically demanding, rope-skipping is not for the faint hearted.

Mike Bushell jumped over to Birmingham and roped in the British team to teach him a little double Dutch.

ADVENTURE SPORTS IN AN URBAN SETTING

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Mike Bushell joins the urban sporting adventure known as the Rat Race

Hundreds of people fed up of being stuck in the city at weekends are taking part in a new sporting challenge, known as the Rat Race.

The idea is to make use of all the nooks and crannies of a city to participate in various outdoor adventure sports.

TWO BY TWO ON A MOTORCROSS BIKE

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Sidecar cross is a growing sport in the UK

If you prefer racing in twos, then sidecar cross is a growing team sport that gives you the thrills of motocross, but with a bit more stability as you're on 3 wheels rather than 2.

The world championship season begins this weekend in France and Mike has been for a spin with one of the top British teams.

SEA KAYAKING AROUND THE ISLE OF WIGHT

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The team will spend up to 18 hours a day in their kayaks

Mike discovers the growing sport of sea kayaking, venturing around the Isle of Wight with a team tackling 5 of the world's toughest kayak challenges.

You can meet them and experience a kayak at Birmingham's Outdoor Show at the end of March.

TABLE TENNIS AS AN ALTERNATIVE TO INNER CITY CRIME

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Darius Knight on how table tennis kept him on the right side of the law

An Olympic Youth Games gold medallist and 2012 hopeful says table tennis kept him from getting involved in youth crime.

Darius Knight told Mike Bushell how winning competitions when he was younger meant he could get the trendy items he wanted in a legitimate way.

THE SKI CHALLENGE OPEN TO EVERYONE

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Mike Bushell takes on the challenge of the Engadine ski marathon in Switzerland

Nearly 12,000 competitors from all over the world will cross frozen lakes and climb forest slopes in the Engadine 42km ski marathon.

The event based near St Moritz in Switzerland attracts amateurs and professionals as well as the odd celebrity. Mike Bushell went to see just how tough it is.

Click here to read more about Mike and contact him with sports ideas

HIGHLIGHTS OF 2008

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Highlights of Bushell's Best in 2008

Mike tried dozens of alternative sports in 2008 and is looking for suggestions of new pursuits for him to try in 2009.