Some types of amateur and youthsports have emerged that are so new or so untested that insurancecompanies, agencies and brokerages shy away from underwritingthem.

Parkour, for example, has been seen in some televisioncommercials and music videos, although anyone over 30 may not haveheard of it. That hasn't stopped MIC Insurance Brokerage Inc. ofNaperville, Ill. from investigating the sport.

President Tony Pulgine says his company has seen some inquiriesabout Parkour, which he describes as “an urban 'free tumble' typeof activity very popular on YouTube.” Several gymnastics outfits inhis area have considered offering these types of services, but sofar standard-program writers have been hesitant to entertain thisexposure.

According to the sport's Web site, www.americanparkour.com,“Parkour is the physical discipline of training to overcome anyobstacle within one's path by adapting one's movements to theenvironment.” Players basically jump, flip, climb and roll over anyurban obstacle in their path—whether it's a mailbox or a fenced-inalley.

MIC is also seeing a “significant increase” in policies forMixed Martial Arts (MMA) and personal-fitness areas, Pulgine says.Many new operations are opening in these segments, and so far, theinsurance carriers have been receptive to the risks, he adds.

Others, like Philadelphia Insurance Cos. of Bala Cynwyd, Pa.,won't touch MMA programs. The high-contact sport combines theelements of traditional martial arts with other fightingtechniques. It has not been tested enough to be able to underwriteit properly, says James Decker, assistant vice president for thecompany's commercial-lines division.

“We'll do martial-arts studios, and cross-fit studios, and thehealth and fitness realm,” Decker says. But in MMA, “there's a lotof [injuries] you can't pretend don't exist.”

Typical MMA injuries include broken bones, cervical injuries,whiplash and concussions, as well as subdural hematoma (a commoninjury in boxing that can cause tearing to the bridging veins thatconnect the brain and the sinuses that carry blood away from thebrain).

Tough Mudder is a sporting event that's a subset of triathlonsbut also includes the perils and pitfalls akin to an armed-forcesbasic-training camp: players must climb, swing, long-jump and dodgedangerous traps to traverse the course. Although there's not muchphysical contact among players, the sport is so new that ToughMudder needs to establish itself more so insurers can reallyunderstand the risks involved.

Decker knows this all too well: his non-insurance passionsinclude Iron Man competitions, triathlons and, yes, Tough Mudderraces.

“It's a very untested sport,” he says. “They do a lot of stuffthat's a little scary for an insurance carrier: There a lot ofheights, a lot of climbing, fire pits, live electrical wires,barbed wire and ice pits.” The ice pits seem to be among thegreater risks to the athletes, he adds: “You're jumping intosubzero temperatures. There's a shock to the heart thathappens.”

Another obstacle-racing challenge that many insurers are notquite ready to underwrite is Spartan Races, he says. Created in2005 by “seven insane ultra-athletes and a Royal Marine,” accordingto www.spartanrace.com,Spartan Racing is said to be tougher than Tough Mudder racing,involving such feats as the Spartan Sprint: more than three milesof running, with 15 or so obstacles to overcome.

Sounds like an underwriter's dream.