Since the dawn of time, man has sought to fly through the heavens with the gods themselves. Unfortunately modern science has taught us that it is, as of yet, impossible to give people wings or cost-efficient jetpacks, so man has been forced to go with the next best thing. We strap on a pair of skies or a snowboard and we rocket down mountains in search of “big air”.

Of course skiers, snowboarders, and mountain bikers have absolutely no way to quantitatively state how much 'air' they got or how difficult a slope they skied. It's all up to the eyes of onlookers (which are unreliable) and subjective opinion. Enter Apple, your friendly neighborhood gadget company with a raging hatred for things that remain unmeasured. AppleInsider's just released an exhaustive report about their favorite company's new patent application for an activity monitor designed for extreme sports fanatics.

There are a few different designs for the new device, most of which seem to center around sensors placed in the actual skies/snowboard/bikes themselves. They'll measure every aspect of your ride, from your speed to your highest “air time” and everything in between. The next time you go biking down a rocky hillside while your friend takes the concrete path you'll be able to shove your monitor in his face and bellow your manly superiority to the world.

Or you could use the device to measure your runs and look for ways to improve. But, let's face it, that's way less fun than bragging.