Thursday, 06 May 2004
Time to Get Rad! Slam City Jam 2004! - PERSPECTIVES - THE COMMENTARY
By Michael Kwan
Describe the prototypical skateboarder. Probably a long-haired young Caucasian male, baggy torn jeans, a skateboard that looks like it's been through Hiroshima, head-banging to 80s alternative and heavy metal. He's probably a runaway from home, barely making ends meet as a squeegee boy perhaps, only making enough to just support his drug habit, as evidenced by burnt lungs or numerous infections in the inside of his elbow.
We all have our prejudices about people who we may consider to be on the margin of society, be it the homeless of the Downtown Eastside sleeping by the old Woodward's building, the lost traveller who is asking you for enough money to get back home to Winnipeg, or the avid supporter of the NRA saying how guns are a necessary part of civilian life. Some of these may by more accurate perceptions than others, but most are probably pretty far from the truth. The same applies to skateboarding and rock n' roll. Indeed, skateboarders aren't the outcasts or ghetto rats that we may have perceived them to be in the past - they are more and more becoming a part of the norm.
Growing right alongside the hip-hop culture, rock and roll skateboarders, sporting merchandise by Skates, Vans, or Billabong, have been popularized by the likes of people like Tony Hawk. Thousands, indeed possibly millions of people are fascinated by the X Games and other extreme sports - skydiving, snowboarding, and mountain climbing, among others. And skateboarding isn't exactly a cheap endeavour - I discovered this as I entered BC Place Stadium for the Slam City Jam 2004 finals last Sunday. Just the deck - that is, the actual board itself, without any wheels, bearings, trucks, and other things - was $50 minimum at the show. Adding on the necessary wheels and whatnot, you're looking at around $140 or more. That's not to say you can't find a complete set for a better price at a Canadian Tire, but to get the quality that the 'pros' use, it's quite an investment. Let alone factoring in the costs for helmets, elbow pads, knee pads, and the appropriate branded t-shirts, wrist bands, hats and shoes.
Slam City Jam's main draw was not the marketplace, or even the Public Skate Park where anyone attending the show could practice their skills on a makeshift street course for a nominal fee of $2. Why people paid $25 to get into BC Place for Sunday's session were the competitions and a chance to meet the stars of the skateboard world. Most people may not recognize the likes of Sandro Diaz, Paul Machnau or Bucky Lasek, but aficionados of extreme sports probably would. I belong to the former rather than the latter group, so I was more interested in watching the competitions for their specific moves and outrageous tricks than who was actually performing them.
I've waited outside the Forum building on the Hastings Park fairgrounds for a number of warehouse sales from Mexx and what-have-you, and while waiting, I can't help but glance over at the skate park across the way and see some of the amateurs on their skateboards and bikes, trying out what they saw last week on television. Needless to say, they are a far cry from what I saw last Sunday at Slam City Jam - which you will be able to watch on NBC on Saturday, May 8. There were two main attractions - the street course (a series of ramps and rails) and the vert ramp (a half-pipe) - wherein I watched the pros, male and female, pull off front-side tail slides, indy 360s, ollies, fakeys, and mute grabs.
I was told, for example in the Men's Vert Finals, that it was key to stay on your board for the entire 45 seconds of your run, pulling difficult trick combo'd with difficult trick. You had to "grab big air" - the higher you go, the higher your score. You had to take risks and hold nothing back because "you're against the best in the world." Indeed, this was an international affair. Competitors hailed from as close to home as Vancouver and Richmond, BC, to as far away as Australia, Germany and Denmark. And no, contrary to the stereotype, this was not an entirely Caucasian affair as the athletes also came from Brazil and Japan, for example.
Eight young women competed in the Girls Street Finals, where each competitor was given a 45-second individual run and a 10-minute "jam session," in which all eight finalists go at it in a free for all - simultaneously on the course. The girls were big on kick flips, with a few board slides and 50/50 slides on the rails. Honestly, the girls were rather disappointing with most tricks not landed or the ones that were completed were simplistic at best. That's not to say I could do it, nor could many of the people at Hastings Skate Park, but I was expecting professionals to perform at a higher level.
A higher level, no pun intended, was found in the Men's Vert Final. Lincoln Ueda of Brazil caught the most air. Flying several feet above the ramp, Ueda's tricks mostly weren't spectacular, but he sure got up there. Sandro Diaz, by contrast, wouldn't catch quite as much air, but his tricks were awesome. Combo 540s, alley oops, and a number of handstand-like manoeuvres made Diaz a human highlight reel, excuse the cliché. Unlike their Street counterparts, the Vert participants were fully decked out in full protective gear - helmets, elbow pads and kneepads - as if you wipe out in Vert, you really wipe out. We were told to beware of flying boards, and on a number of occasions, that was indeed, what happened. Competitors would lose their board mid-move and their board would go flying into the crowd.
Jereme Rogers of North Hills, California, who finished 19th in the Street Competition, broke his board mid-run, finishing his run with someone else's board. Afterwards, he threw his broken board into the crowd for one lucky fan to take home one (un)lucky souvenir. The Street Competition started with 160 competitors from around the world, and after a full weekend of action, Greg Lutzka of Milwaukee, Wisconsin took home the crown as the winner with a final run of 92.00. Rodil Junior of Curitiba, Brazil was the runner-up, losing out by only 0.25 of a point. Last year's winner, Ryan Sheckler of San Clemente, California rounded out the top three, a full point behind Lutzka despite a flawless final run. Ryan Sheckler, 14, was by the far the youngest competitor with the majority in their early to mid 20s.
Expect big things from Sheckler in the coming years. At age 14, he is already a champion, winning a number of competitions, and sponsored by over 15 different companies, including Oakley, RDS Skate supply, Sobe, Almost Skateboards and Ninja Bearings. Visit his website at http://www.ryansheckler.com. This young man has a very bright future in this budding sport. Perhaps he, with long blonde hair and an "anti-h8er" type personality, defines this skateboard subculture. Or maybe the long hair is reflective of his California heritage, who knows.
I've always said that if X Games ever comes to Vancouver, I'd jump at the chance to attend. Here Slam City Jam did not disappoint, with loud music, big air, and wicked moves. The SCJ organizers were adamant to keep the integrity of the competition by only allowing skateboard competitions, putting aside the BMX bikers, extreme auto-crossers and rollerbladers. Are these people stuck in the '80s with the gnarly head-bangers, wristbands, and long hair? Maybe, but they still are a heck of a lot of fun to watch. Time to get rad.
Visit The Commentary's Senior Contributing Writer Michael Kwan's own website, Now That's Entertainment. . .