Dew Tour visits Long Beach

Mountain Dew has long been the ringmaster of all Dew Tour events, reaching as far as Portland, New York City, Vegas and San Francisco. Each city has inspired that contest’s terrain, unique to its own spirit. And this past weekend, Dew Tour took its traveling event to one of the United States’ true epicenters of skateboarding: Long Beach, CA.
The sun was out and raining UV rays for the crowd. The temperatures were hot, but the caliber of skating was making the event even hotter. From our long-time favorite pros like Theotis Beasley and Billy Marks to young guns like Louie Lopez and Tre Williams, the rosters were stacked and ready to fire. The summer heat of Southern California wasn’t enough to stop any of them. The first day of competition invited eighteen of the world’s most talented skaters to compete at the fabricated courses in the parking lot of the Long Beach Convention Center and Aquarium. The second day consisted of Dew Tour’s first ever pro team competition.
The calm before the storm at Dew Tour Long Beach
The calm before the storm at Dew Tour Long Beach
The most unique aspect of the weekend’s contests was the multi-faceted concentration of skateboarding required for a great all-around performance and a high-placing contest finish. There were four separate and very distinct courses set up for the riders: “Tech,” “Bowl,” “Rails” and “Gaps.” The Tech Course consisted of myriad boxes, ledges, step-ups, flat rails, and manual pads, each with their own shape, dimensions and angles. The course was well-designed and suggested lots of ways to hit them in lines. In the team challenge, TJ Rogers represented bLind Skateboards in the best way possible to bring them the Tech section win going forward.
The Bowl Course consisted of one square bowl with the west-side wall jutting in a bit, the east-side wall hosting an 8-foot-tall extension with deathbox and the northside wall with a steep tombstone extension. The transition looked fast but mellow enough to really unleash a full bag of tricks. Team-wise, Curren Caples took the top spot in the Bowl section for Flip Skateboards to put his team in a better position for the Rails section up next.
The Dew Tour’s Rails Course was one for the books! With A-frame rails, rainbow rails, long flat rails and standard hand rails, there were options for every grind and slide variation you could think of. With no advantage to any one rider, the Rails section was completely annihilated by each and every selected Rails section rider. When the teams took the courses, Micky Papa killed it for bLind Skateboards to pull in the Rails section top spot and secure a 1st place overall standing headed into the final section.
The last section of the contest was the Gaps section. Understandably, the final course to be skated, the gaps are the bangers of skateboarding. They provide the most “oooh”s and “ahhh”s of any other section, especially for the non-skaters in the crowd. Everyone can relate to hucking it and making the board spin, so the Gaps course took the hammers to the end of each day. Plan B SkateboardsChris Joslin stomped the most and best tricks in the final section to se

The bLind squad, accepting their 1st Place Team Challenge finish!
The bLind squad, accepting their 1st Place Team Challenge finish!

cure a Gaps course win for his team.

When the long days were done and the crowds had been pleased, the Awards Ceremonies were the only things left for the crowds to witness. And the glory was there for the individual winners and Team Challenge winners alike. Coming in the top three spots for individual competitors were Ryan Decenzo (3rd), Louie Lopez (2nd), and Ryan Sheckler (1st). Congrats to Ryan on his 16th Dew Tour win at Dew Tour’s first ever contest in Long Beach! On the second competition day of Dew Tour, the Team Challenges proved bLind Skateboards to be the ultimate victors. Big ups to the bLind guys and all of their hard work!
So much entertainment for one weekend! After all the ups and down, the makes and the slams, Dew Tour in Long Beach is a wrap! The first Long Beach tour stop winners are history, and the tricks are now mere footage. It’s special that Dew Tour decided to make its presence known in Long Beach, one of the hottest hotbeds in skateboarding. We’re grateful for an amazing event, and we hope to see you all out there next year!

Weekend Notice: Orders placed over the weekend will be shipped the following Monday.

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