The first leg of the Tech Deck “Young Guns Series” 2012 kicked off at the small but beautifully formed Exist skatepark in Swansea, Wales. Many of the skaters had traveled from much further afield hoping to qualify early for the final at the XC in Hemel Hempstead.
Overall the standard was exceptionally high, particularly in the Under 16’s category which quite frankly blew my mind. Tricks went down in the jam sessions that would have been respected in any UK pro comp. As usual nicknames were encouraged and often handed out on the spot, notables from this leg were: Fruit Boy, Big Mac and MC Hammer (who didn’t look remotely like MC Hammer and didn’t have big pants).
There were a few familiar faces around, notably Jordan Sharkey and Charlie Birch who’ve both impressed everyone who has seen them skate. What was cool was to see a whole new crop of kids coming through who were ripping. One to look out for would be Lewis Mottishaw from the Derby area who knocked out some big man tricks including a frontside flip down the stairs with ease.
The final was very tight but unfortunately Charlie fell a few times too many and placed third, whilst Lewis stepped up his game and got 2nd. Top boy was definitely Sharkey though, he was definitely in the top three anyway but sealed the deal with a ridiculous Merlin Flip third go and right on time. The crowd went wild and the over 16’s wondered how they were going to top what they’d just witnessed.
In the 16 and over category there was a wild variety of styles and personalities which made for a really fun and interesting comp. Fruit boy looked to be odds on favourite, he seemed to be able to skate everything every way, switching it up between hesh and tech – 360 boneless down the stairs and a fakie hardflip for example! Tom Tanner judged edged him out of the top spot by hitting up the whole course and styling it up. 3rd went to Eric Wade who came out the blocks strong but suffered after breaking a board in the final jam.
Thanks go out to all the sponsors: Tech Deck, Vans, World Industries, Spitfire, Rocket, ProTec and Skull Candy
Please join us for the Scottish leg at Transgression Skatepark in Edinburgh on the 1st July!
– Nic Powley.
http://vimeo.com/44241308
