I.E. Skate Series Stop 1 Recap
The first ever I.E. Skatepark Series kicked off this past Saturday September 29th, 2012.
The first stop was held at the South Fontana skatepark in the Clover bowl, with 3 more stops in the coming months including North Fontana, Upland, and Palm Springs. The series, which was put together by Fontana Skateparks and the Serna Skate Clan, is showcasing the raw bowl skating talent of kids and adults alike from all over the Southern California area.
Things got started with the 10 and under division. These young guns showed no fear in the big clover bowl. Little Zach Herrera came out charging it with big 50-50s in the deep end and even pulling a frontside 270 to axle stall in the shallow end and securing his spot on the podium. Rylan Mancilla was charging the bowl each run and put together some great lines, but it wasn’t enough to overtake Kai Yamasaki for the top spot in the 10 and under division. Kai was ripping the clover bowl like a grown man throwing big backside airs and he even threw a Les Twist in there.
Up next it was the 11-13 year olds. These kids showed that they are the next generation of young bowl shredders. Ethyn Deamos displayed a deep bag of tricks, old and new, but it wasn’t quite enough to overtake the 3rd spot from David Branom. David put together some solid runs using every part of the bowl and walked away with 3rd spot. It was Wheeler Alba coming in the 2nd spot with some unique tricks(including a manual around the bowl on his knees to roll in!), good lines, and high speed runs. But it was Julian Torres coming out on top. With his unique lines, stylish airs, and fluid style he came out on top of the 11-13 division.
The next division was the 14-16 year olds. Coming in the 4th spot was Joshua “Peanut Butter” Conley. Just edging out Peanut Butter for the podium was Devin McCaffery with intricate lines using every bit of the bowl. Coming in 2nd was Greg Webb with his proper frontside airs and straight up inverts. But it wasn’t enough to hold off Ryan Hill who walked away with the win in the 14-16 division.
The 14 and under Girls were up next with Teris Alba rounding off the podium followed by Tarryn Ross in 2nd and Arianna Carmona coming out on top.
In next was the Masters. These guys were all out there doing it for fun and just having a great time skating with each other, showing what skateboarding is really about, having fun with your friends no matter how old you are! WE even had some of the young guns doing the judging for these guys, since most of our judges were skating in the Masters division. It was Art Miranda rounding off the podium followed by longtime buddy Kevin Burke. But it was Micke Alba taking the win showing that 30+ years of skating under your belt truly makes you a master!
The sponsored girls were in the bowl next. Every single one of these girls were killing the bowl and it was a tough one to judge! Rounding off the podium was Sarah Thompson, with some solid runs and smooth style Sarah earned her podium position. Just edging Sarah out was Arianna Carmona, who put together some great runs with big grinds and airs, but it wasn’t enough to hold off Julz Lynn who is no stranger to contests. Julz put together some amazing runs with airs in and out of every part of the bowl and big stand up grinds both frontside and backside secured here the spot atop the podium.
It was now time for the main event, the Open Sponsored division. Every single one of the 18 guys in this division killed the bowl! With only 6 people making it into the finals, these guys were giving it all for a coveted spot in the top 6. Everyone was charging it during the jam sessions and pulling out everything they can. It was absolutely nuts! Once the finals were set it was time for the Jam to begin. Each rider in the final got 2 intro runs straight into a 12 minute jam. Frank Fernandez rounded off the top 6 with his spontaneous runs, rolling in and out from every which way and charging whatever was in his way. Little Nathan Yerman came in the 5th spot with his big styling airs over the hips tweaking everything as far as it possibly could go and putting together some solid runs in the hectic final, even after a hard slam to flat in the deep end he still kept going! Just edging out Nathan was Dontae Overton. Dontae put together some great runs with big airs, inverts, good lines, and even pulled a layback air on the extension. Making it onto the podium was Logan Catt who was going all out all day long with ultra tweaked backside airs and judos in the deep end and some amazing lines throughout the whole bowl. But in the end it came down to Hayden McKenna and Tristan Rennie who absolutely destroyed every bit of the bowl. Each of them with an extremely deep bag of tricks, great style, and intricate lines. It was such a close call that the judges couldn’t even decide who took it after the jam, therefore taking it to a final run sudden death showdown between the two. Tristan was in first starting off the one run showdown. Tristan put together a long run showing off his deep, unique bag of tricks and lines before finally stepping off on huge backside air. Hayden was in next and he knew exactly what he was up against. He put together a solid run and threw some amazing tricks but it wasn’t quite enough to overtake Tristan who ended up walking away with the win in the sponsored division.
This was a great event and it was just the first stop! Congratulations to all the winners and a HUGE thank you to everybody that helped put this event together. Big thanks to Mike Serna and the Serna Skate Clan, to Gatorade for keeping everyone hydrated throughout the hot day, all of the sponsors of the event, thanks to all of our judges throughout the day(you guys did not have an easy job!), and a big thanks to everyone that came out and showed support! See you guys October 20th for Stop #2 at North Fontana!
