AST Dew Tour Arrives In Baltimore To Kick Off Fourth Season, June 19-22, At Camden Yards Sports Complex - New York – The AST Dew Tour, the world's premier season-long action sports tour, begins its fourth season on June 19 with the Panasonic Open at
AST Dew Tour Arrives In Baltimore To Kick Off Fourth Season, June 19-22, At Camden Yards Sports Complex
New York – The AST Dew Tour, the world's premier season-long action sports tour, begins its fourth season on June 19 with the Panasonic Open at Baltimore's Camden Yards Sports Complex. The five-city tour also includes stops in Cleveland, Portland, Salt Lake City and Orlando.
Entering its fourth year, the AST Dew Tour is the most watched and attended action sports property in the world. Attendance for the 2007 AST Dew Tour totaled nearly 300,000 and an average of 41 million viewers tuned in via NBC and USA each year. The top athletes in the world will take part in this year's Tour, all competing for the highly coveted Dew Cup that will be awarded in Orlando at season's end to champions in each of the six disciplines. The 2007 Dew Cup winners include Nate Adams (Freestyle Motocross), Jamie Bestwick (BMX Vert), Ryan Nyquist (BMX Dirt), Daniel Dhers (BMX Park), Shaun White (Skateboard Vert) and Ryan Sheckler (Skateboard Park).
There are a number of athletes to watch on the fourth season of the AST Dew Tour—both veterans and a few new faces. A list of a few of those athletes to watch is as follows:
Skateboarding
· Bucky Lasek, native to Baltimore, boasts of two Dew Tour titles in Skateboard Vert from 2005 and 2006. In 2007 he was recovering from a knee injury and placed third overall, but his win at the final event of the season at the PlayStation Pro proved that he's back on top of his game. Expect great things to come from this seasoned vert skater.
· Mathieu Therres was a new face on the AST Dew Tour skateboard park scene last season after winning the open qualifiers in Baltimore and earning a spot to compete on the Tour. He is entering his second professional season this year and has been embraced by his native Baltimore.
· Thirteen-year-old Chaz Ortiz is the rookie to watch this year. The Chicago native held his own against the likes of Ryan Sheckler and Greg Lutza during the PlayStation Pro season finale last season. All eyes will be on him to see how he fares this year in his first professional season on Tour.
· Ryan Sheckler of San Clemente, Calif. will be on a quest for a perfect season this year, narrowly missing that goal last season. The three-time Dew Cup champion in skateboard park won three of the five stops, placing second only to Greg Lutzka for the remaining two events.
The complete 2008 AST Dew Tour schedule is as follows:
Event Date Location
Panasonic Open June 19-22 Baltimore, Md.—Camden Yards Sports Complex Right Guard Open July 17-20 Cleveland, OH—North Coast Harbor Wendy's Invitational Aug. 21-24 Portland, Ore.—Rose Quarter Toyota Challenge Sept. 11-14 Salt Lake City, UT—EnergySolutions Arena PlayStation® Pro Oct. 16-19 Orlando, Fla.—Amway Arena
