Archive for April, 2009

Klassnine Guru Aparrel Threw Down April 25th

Published: April 28, 2009Posted in: SkateboardingTags: , , , , , , , , ,

On April 25th the Wright Group, Klassnine, Guru Apparel, Cecilias night club, Trinity irish pub, Bing Energy Drink, Coors Light and the board room all through down at A-Basin followed by an after party at Cecilias in Breckenridge Colorado. At A-Basin there was burgers and dogs, cotton candy, snow cones, raffles, go-go cages, Beruit, a double decker party bus and plenty of good times to be had. Frank, from Klass Nine, had two of his signature boards on display and the Klass Nine Team was shredding throughout the day. Groms, Chicken and Daniel where on the hill showing us all how its done with one footers on the boxes. Later in the evening we all joined at Cecilias for live music and some libations. Here are some photos of the day and night.








Campus Rail Jam Tour

Published: April 27, 2009Posted in: SkateboardingTags: , , , ,

Cricket Campus Rail Jam Tour – BSU RECAP!

Boise Idaho is stoked on potatoes. This may seem boring, but think about it for a bit, potatoes are rad. Without them we wouldn’t have hash browns, french fries, potato guns, or Mr. Potato head. Sounds like a sad world. Fortunately, Boise has got the spud scene on lockdown, making the world a better place one tater at a time. The Cricket Campus Rail Jam Tour is thankful of Boise’s hard days of farm labor and wanted to give back to the community with a whole boatload of shredding.


Skate competition as riders killed time waiting for the snow to arrive


It’s finally here!


Then, this happened…

The weather in B-Town couldn’t have been more perfect for the shred fest. Riders from all over the state came out of the fields to smother, cover, and chunk the three-feature setup. The event created a local media frenzy, with all four local news stations on-site, broadcasting live feeds of the event to the excited Boise public. With the sounds of Tour DJ Kid Couture filling up the Bronco stadium parking lot and the course prepped and ready, students poured into the lot curious to see what local riders and fellow classmate shredders had to show. As is par for the course, emcee Sub B started the jam off with hilarious commentary and some Thizz dancin’.


Thizz winners

As the 25 tons of snow poured onto the setup, the crowd’s stoke factor was at an all time high and it was rubbing off on all the rippers. The Bogus Basin locals came out to terrorize the rails, and that they did. Riders were pouring on the hot-sauce and baking something delicious.

In the end, the white fluffy flakes had been eaten up by the mid-April heat and all that was left was bacon bits, sour cream, and a handful of Cricket Campus Rail Jam Tour Boise winners. The snowboarding ladies mashed-potatoed down the 3 contest features. Third place was earned by Emily Boswell, taking home some sick Skullcandy headphones. Francesca Wilson walked away with a new Omatic snowboard after finishing in second, and Raelynd Tarnove took home the cash in first place.


Emily Boswell


Francesca Wilson


Raelynd Tarnove


(L-R) Emily Boswell (3rd), Raelynd Tarnove (1st), and Francesca Wilson (2nd)

Tater-tot Cameron St. Pierre, competing against 3 of his siblings, proved his position in the family by third place in the Men’s snowboarding division. Cameron was stoked on his new Skullcandy headphones! Ralph Kunz, who followed close behind first place victor Eric Singer to the podium, earned second place and a new Omatic stick.


Cameron St. Pierre


Ralph Kunz


Eric Singer

(L-R): Cameron St. Pierre (3rd), Eric Singer (1st), and Ralph Kunz (2nd)

After the excitement, tour entertainer and hip-hop phenomenon Luck One wowed the crowd with an on-snow performance for the dedicated bunch of Idaho locals. Everyone walked away with their new custom shirts from Cricket Wireless, and smiles on their faces. By now, Cricket Campus Rail Jam Tour crew has made it all the way down to Southern California, so be sure to check out our upcoming events in the next two weeks!


The crowd fanning off the hot fire jams of Luck One

Cricket Rail Jam Tour: Reno, NV

Published: April 14, 2009Posted in: SkateboardingTags: , , , , ,

Is being “The biggest little city in the world” really something to brag about? Some may interpret the statement as claiming something like “Being the best player on the worst team in the league.” However, you really need to visit Reno to understand the slogan’s validity and appropriateness. Besides, the iconic Reno arch serves as much more than a delightfully tacky sign, it is an entrance into the world of sin that is downtown Reno, NV. By passing through the arch, you are putting yourself at the mercy of the abundant temptation that awaits you in every casino, alleyway and female “companionship” establishment. To some, this is not an environment that sounds pleasant, but to the Galvanic Design crew it sounds like heaven on earth. And what better to add to the sinful mix than some good ol’ fashioned boardin’.


Tour DJ, Kid Couture


Pop, Lock, and Drop it

Last Thursday, the University of Nevada, Reno was home to the seventh stop of the Cricket Campus Rail Jam Tour. More than 100 local shred-heads applied to come out and compete for a chance at cash, product, and bragging rights. After sorting through competitor’s videos, competition history, and the likes, 60 of the area’s best skiers and snowboarders were accepted to compete. Riders must have been stoked to slide around on the 2009 CRJT setup because many traveled from all over the western U.S. to get in on the action. Whether it was the fun rails, the killer do-it-yourself shirts from Cricket Wireless, or the overall good vibes, it’s safe to say that everyone left with a smile on their face and a few new friends.


Colt Morgan wins the award for happiest dude of the day


Classrooms were empty

At the end of the day it was Smokin’ Snowboards own, Dakota Whitaker who took the cake as the top male shred. Dakota’s effortless presses and fluid style were just too clean for the judges to deny. Blake Geis’ half cab 360 off the kink earned him a sick new Omatic snowboard and second place spot on the podium. Rounding up the pack was Chris Gulick, finishing in a very respectable third place and walking away with some killer Skullcandy product after an array of swivels and spins on all three features. Congrats boys!


Dakota lays it down heavy on the nose Photo: Andy Hatch


Blake teeters on the kink


Chris Gulick


(L-R) Chris Gulick (3rd), Dakota Whitaker (1st), and Blake Geis (2nd)

As for the ladies, Alice Gong held it down for the Omatic family and swept the competition to claim first place. Libby Helmer finished in a close second, scoring a ladies Omatic stick, followed by Becky Bruce in third.


Alice powers through the flat into first place


Libby blasts through the kink with a serious noseslide


Becky with the gangster lean


(L-R) Becky Bruce (3rd), Alice Gong (1st), and Libby Helmer (2nd)

A huge thanks to everyone who came out to slay the rails and make this a killer event. Big ups to Cricket Wireless for making the Tour possible and spreading the shred across the nation! Now that Reno is history, the Galvanic Crew has set sail for the eighth stop of the Tour in Boise, Idaho on Thursday, April 16th. Keep your eyes peeled for event updates and news from the open road!

009 Ultimate Boarder Stage 3: Skateboarding Qualifiers

Published: April 11, 2009Posted in: SkateboardingTags: , , , , ,

The venue was brought inside one of the hangers at the Ventura County Fairgrounds because of the chance of rain over the weekend. New additions to the ramp include a bowl at one end and a 10’ halfpipe at the other end with the mini 6’ in between. Riders were stoked on the new ramps and the skating was proof of that. We saw ten heats of four or five people throughout the day and there was huge airs and technical lip tricks going down all over the place.

Omar Hassan was impressive on the snow and held his own in the water which gave him a 10th place overall coming into his strongest discipline. It was impressive to watch him ride the ramps and absolutely max out the potential of each feature. Other standouts included skating from Kristian Philipp, Chad Shetler, Aaron Astorga, Tosh Townend, Kurt Wastell, and young buck Birdhouse rider Adam Taylor. We’ll see all these guys in the finals today.

Check out Ultimate Boarders Production page for all the details.

Woodward at Copper

Published: April 10, 2009Posted in: SkateboardingTags: , ,

Woodward camps just opened the first indoor/outdoor ski and snowboard camp on the planet at Copper Mountian, CO. When pulling into Copper Mountain head straight down Copper Road and just before lodging check in is the Woodward Camp indoor facility. “The Barn” is a 20,000 square foot facility filled with spring boards, foam pits, trampolines, mini pipes and a full size skate bowl. When you walk into “the barn” you immediately get excited from the sound of skate ramps and rails. You definitely need to check out the Woodward camp at Copper!





Ultimate Boarder Stage 1 highlights

Published: April 8, 2009Posted in: SkateboardingTags: ,

Check out some of the action from the second annual Ultimate Boarder! The features looked like a blast and people were throwing down, check it out.

More highlights, interviews and coverage to come soon. Check out the Ultimate Boarder Production site for all the details on the event including news, videos, photos and results.

Cricket Campus Rail Jam Tour –GONZAGA RECAP!

Published: April 6, 2009Posted in: SkateboardingTags: , , ,

Let’s face it, when you attend a small school you know everybody. Gonzaga University in Spokane, Washington is a perfect example. Home to only 7,000 intellectuals in training, GU is seriously tight-knit group of co-eds. So when a 15-person, ruffian-looking, shred mob rolled onto the GU campus, it was pretty obvious they weren’t looking for the career fair. Within hours of the Galvanic crew’s arrival at Gonzaga, word had already spread of the upcoming Cricket Campus Rail Jam Tour and the crew’s plans for total shred domination. On Thursday, April 2nd, their plans materialized and the sixth stop of the Tour unfolded on the Crosby quad at GU.


Alex and Corey, stoked to lend a helping hand!


Skipping class + screaming your face off = free stuff

Aside from the world’s largest Radio Flyer wagon, mechanical garbage-eating goats, and milk bottle shaped buildings, Spokane can also claim a hefty bunch of gnarly shredders. Fewer overall riders led to longer heats, more drops, and some serious progression during the three-hour competition. All the competitors must have fed their bad-ittudes to the mechanical goats, because the Crosby quad was all smiles and positive vibes. Hilarious commentary from emcee Andrae Cameron (AKA emcee Draedough) and beats from Tour DJ, Kid Couture fueled the crowd’s excitement and kept the riders stoked. Cricket Wireless was on-site as usual giving away custom t-shirts for everyone to get creative with. Be sure to pick one up at an upcoming event!


Forget manscaping. Facial hair is so hot right now.


Group stretch session. Pulled muscles are for suckers.

Before the comp got underway, emcee Draedough led the contest kids in a pre-shred stretch session. With loosened limbs, the competition kicked off with a bang and competitors rallied through three heats of riding. By the time the finals began, all the kids had shaken off their contest jitters and warmed up for the final showdown. After taking a beating all day, the skiers were determined to throw down and show Gonzaga what they could do. Third place finisher, Tyler McManigal put down some killer moves on the metal and walked away with some new Spyder gear after 450ing off the Red Bull “Tall Boy” box. Noah Wallace nailed second place after spinning 270 degrees off the down-flat-down rail and got hooked up with some fresh Boone skis. Landing in first and claiming the cash was Pete Arneson, killing the competition with a super clean pretzel 450 off the handrail.


Noah Wallace winds up


Pete Arneson gets prepped for the drop

When the male snowboarders began to drop it was clear that the pre-contest stretch session had paid off. Loose limbs must have been the key to landing the dozens of techy tricks that were laid down in the finals. Local riders, Yudo Kurita and Gary Abbrederis showed up right as the jam started, but their late arrival didn’t seem to phase them much as they finished in second and third place, respectively. Those guys must constantly ride together because both unloaded an arsenal of swivel tricks on all three features. Judges rewarded Gary with some rad Skullcandy headphones and gave Yudo a super fun new Omatic snowboard. Claiming first place was tech whiz-kid and Zac Marben look-alike, Corey Schneider. Corey can ride switch better than most can ride regular, with tricks like switch front blunt 270s and switch hard-way 180s to backside 360s off the handrail. You know a trick is tech when it takes over six words to describe.


Gary Abbrederis, pre 270


Yudo, working out the kinks


Not sure what the trick is, but Corey’s style is on-point no matter what

As for the ladies, Canadian transplant, Kendra Scurfield scooped up a third place spot and walked away stoked on a fun day. Portlanders Becky Donaghy and Randa Shahin, took second and first place respectively with solid showings on all three rails. Randa has been killing it at the last two events, so be sure to keep an eye out for her at the Portland finals.


Kendra Scurfield pokes out the tailslide


Becky Donaghy shoots down the barrel


Randa Shahin holds it down for her second win of the Tour

(L-R) Kendra Scurfield (3rd) Randa Shahin (1st), and Becky Donaghy (2nd)


(L-R) Tyler McManigal (3rd), Pete Arneson (1st), and Noah Wallace (2nd)


(L-R) Gary Abbrederis (3rd), Corey Schneider (1st), and Yudo Kurita (2nd)

After the smoked had cleared and the winners had been crowned, the Galvanic crew packed up shop and valiantly traveled off into the horizon towards the land of Nevada. Be sure to check back for updates on the next event at the University of Nevada Reno on April 9th!

2009 Ultimate Boarder STAGE 1-Snowboarding

Published: April 6, 2009Posted in: SkateboardingTags: , , , , , ,

This year marks the second annual Ultimate Boarder and brings with it, some new additions. New to UB are the “Team” collaborations where teams of 3 have selected specific athletes for each genre, snow, skate and surf. These teams are stacked with rippers like Bjorn Leines, Chris Bradshaw, Greg Bokencamp and Tyler Flanagan, holding it down for team Volcom, Val Surf, Hurley and Hosoi. The teams came out reppin’ hard and it was no wonder that we saw veteran snowboarder Bjorn Leines taking the top spot and wearing the Blue leader jersey for the Hosoi Team.

The Ultimate Boarder event is growing and so is the number of participants wanting to showcase their skills. Snowboarding Stage 1 was highlighted by the talents of Kurt Wastell, Shane Pospisil, Dave Downing, Chad Shetler, Todd Richards and last years UB champion, Aaron Astorga. The results from today have outlined exactly why this event is so great. The podium headed by Kurt Wastell puts him in the top spot with the most points and the leader jersey. Kurt is a strong surfer and an incredible skater. 2nd place went to Shane Pospisil who grew up surfing the tough waters of the East Coast and can skateboard quite well. The 3rd spot went to Chad Shetler, who’s strong point, believe it or not, isn’t snowboarding, but is in fact skateboarding. Chad is sitting pretty on a 3rd with his weakest event behind him and looking forward to the next couple event days. Stay tuned to REELcomp.com for the latest on the Ultimate Boarder.









Ultimate Boarder 2009 Launches Production Page

Published: April 4, 2009Posted in: SkateboardingTags: , , , ,

The second annual Ultimate Boarder event is set to start with Stage one at Bear Mountain tomorrow. This years event will have complete coverage available on their REELcomp.com Production Site that has been designed to make sure the viewers find out all the action taking place as it happens. Throughout the week news releases, video recaps, interviews and results will be posted so be sure to check out their production site throughout the week to follow the Ultimate Boarder.