ESPN's event last month drew about 20,000 people to the Dallas suburb, said officials there.

"These big events are good for your economy," said City Manager Tom Hart of Grand Prairie. "They're spending money in our city."

The X Trials are a qualifying event for the X Games, a sort of Olympics of so-called "extreme" sports like skateboarding, inline skating and trick bike riding.

The first of two X Trials for the Summer X Games were held in May at GPX Skate Park and Entertainment Center, the new city-owned skate park in Grand Prairie. The other will be at Lake Compounce June 15-17.

Hart said he was "very impressed" with the X Trials.

"It was a good way to market our park," said Hart. "It was a good way to market our community."

Grand Prairie, a city about twice the size of Bristol, depends on tourism, according to Hart. He said they have a major flea market there as well as a racetrack, wax museum, camping and other outdoor activities.

The X Trials, said Hart, were "good for the image of the community."

Hart said he saw kids "truly excited" about the event and families having fun together.

The city negotiated with ESPN to hold the X Trials in Grand Prairie two years in a row, and is attempting to be the site for a future X Games.

"From the city's perspective, it went great," said Amy Sprinkles, a spokeswoman for Grand Prairie. "ESPN was easy to work with."

Sprinkles said there weren't any problems to speak of at the event.

"Everything went real smooth," Sprinkles said.

The big drawback for the city, according to Hart, was seeing all the people stay in other towns because Grand Prairie doesn't have enough lodging.

"We need more top hotels for all the big events we're doing," he said.

Sprinkles, who said she attended the X Trials when they were in Grand Prairie, said, "I thought it was pretty fun."

"It was a really great event," said Lillian Zars, a spokeswoman for the GPX skate park, which is run by an outside operator but owned by the city.

The X Trials, said Zars, were "huge" for the skate park, giving it "some great exposure on ESPN."

There weren't any major injuries at the X Trials, Zars said.

"It was a lot of fun," said Zars. "The crowd seemed to like it and be entertained."

The athletes are "just incredible," said Zars. "They scare me to death."