2008 Volcom Wild In The Parks: Stop #13 - The 13th stop on the 2008 Wild in the Parks tour went down as smooth as ribs from Atlanta’s Fat Matt’s Rib Shack on Sunday, September 7th!
2008 Volcom Wild In The Parks: Stop #13
The 13th stop on the 2008 Wild in the Parks tour went down as smooth as ribs from Atlanta’s Fat Matt’s Rib Shack on Sunday, September 7th!
This was our second trip to Atlanta in as many years for a Wild in the Parks and it ended up being just as memorable as the first! While not as eventful outside the park as last year’s visit (Phil’s street fight, bullied by cell phone stealing drug dealers, cab rides from hell, etc, etc), it was the skating that won’t be soon forgotten! Don’t get me wrong, we see rippers at every stop on the tour, but Atlanta was particularly impressive due to the skill-sets that flew in just to compete! Among others, we saw the grom phenom Kyle Walker from Oklahoma, Devin Cain from Wisconsin and Justin Cymbalski from Arizona! Combine these guys with the best amateur talent in Georgia and you’ve got a heck of a show on your hands!
Proving once and for all that it’s not a fad, the contest got rolling with the 14 & Under Division. The groms stormed the three WITP zones and challenged our three judges to keep up! All three contest zones were struck with lethal force and tenacity, which only Atlanta’s next crop of talent can summon! We saw kickflip back lips, front board flip outs, nollie flips and a huuuuge f/s 180 down the sprawling big four-set! Seeing as how winners must be named, the close scores needed to be painstakingly separated to get to the heart of the matter. In the end, it was Ryan Burns deservedly taking 1st; Zeke Logan claimed 2nd and the formidable Alex Smith proved himself worthy of 3rd place!
The jam-packed 15 & Over Division spilled onto the park next and displayed some serious brilliance! This Division’s 4 heats were particularly entertaining to watch because they were populated with familiar faces like Grant McCartney, Barrett Clayton Jordan Halley and Brandon Nelson. Adding to the already intense plot that was unfolding, Wisconsin’s own Devin Cain had flown himself to Atlanta a quest to earn an invite to the $30,000.00 WITP Championships (Arizona, Sat Oct 18). With such an intriguing storyline starring such a diverse mixture of mutts, its no wonder tensions were as high as the level of skating! After watching a plethora of tricks go down in all three zones, it was Grant McCartney in 1st; Kevin Cardell 2nd and Jordan Halley in 3rd! We later learned that Devin Cain had qualified (5th) despite not understanding the contest format. A staggering accomplishment considering the numerous WITPs he’s attended over the past few years! Atta boy Devin, stoked!
Building on the intensity of the previous two divisions, the Pro-Am skaters were up next and elevated the scene yet again! Kyle Walker, Warren Devarennes and Michael Manion were big men on campus and pulled out all the stops in search of a birth in the aforementioned WITP Championships! Kyle Walker systematically destroyed all three WITP contest zones with his effortless style and tech wizardry while Warren Devarennes dazzled everyone with a bag of tricks reminiscent of a recent WITP graduate by the name of Cody McIntire! After a finals heat that was chalk-full of highlights and extended to 18 minutes, 14 year-old Kyle Walker took 1st, Warren Devarennes 2nd and Jordan Lucas was a close third!
Thanks to Shane Harrison and everyone else at Atlanta’s Woodward Skatepark for all their hard work and for making us feel at home! Thanks also to Partrick, Bob and Marky for judging as well as Volcom’s own Granger Clark for battling in the trenches with us. Thanks to Electric Visual for stoking the winners with shades and the $50 “Hype of the Day” with some cold hard cash!
Results:
14 & Under
1st: Ryan Burns 2nd: Zeke Logan 3rd: Alex Smith 4th: Jonny Dasht 5th: Niko Howard 6th: Justin Cymbalski 7th: Justin Garcia
15 & Over
1st: Grant McCartney 2nd: Kevin Cardell 3rd: Jordan Halley 4th: Barrett Clayton 5th: Devin Cain 6th: Brandon Nelson 7th: Brahnsen Lopez
Pro-Am
1st: Kyle Walker 2nd: Warren Devarennes 3rd: Jordan Lucas 4th: Michael Manion 5th: Kerry Webb 6th: Travis Glover 7th: Johansai Curz
Electric’s $50 “Hype of the Day”: Warren Devarennes!
