The action was announced play by play live at the stadium-style setup by longtime skater/announcer Dave Duncan. He kept the crowd cheering, educated and hyped on the riders, tricks and miscellaneous trivia. Ironically the live TV broadcast was not up to speed as far as announcing went. Later, as I watched the rebroadcast with Dave, a
couple of the pro’s and skateboard judges, we got a good laugh as Indy’s were called methods, etc. To the credit of ESPN’s production and camera placement, the unusual angles and nice slow-mos and close ups were definitely cool to watch. If you did not get to see it - check with ESPN for any possible rebroadcasts and don’t miss it!
Dave Duncan
Rune Glifberg
All the riders went all out for each of their runs. The crowd and TV presence dramatically increased the skateboarding energy in the air. The air was so thick you could feel it. The best riders were able to feed off it and reach new limits. A variety of styles and tricks, huge airs, switch riding, inverts, lip tricks, kickflips, etc. must have made the judges sweat.
In the end it was all Tony Hawk. His first and winning run, which scored a 97.5, consisted four McTwists - each with a different grab, and flawless execution of an array of tricks and airs using every corner of the ramp.
His domination over so many years is truly amazing. That contest run was called “...the best skateboarding run in history...,” by the ESPN announcers. Arguably, it probably was...
Tony Hawk
Bucky Lasek
Final Results:
1) Tony Hawk 2) Rune Glifberg 3) Bob Burnquist 4) Bucky Lasek 5) Lincoln Ueda 6) Danny Way 7) Max Dufour 8) Mike Frazier 9) Colin McKay 10) Chris Gentry
