Local contests and jams at skateparks are a huge part of BMX, and have been for as long as anyone can remember. They bring riders together, helping unite scenes and communities, and encourage BMX to grow from the ground up by stoking the beginner riders and exposing new-comers to what we are all so passionate about. This past weekend I got the chance to be a part of a local contest in the area where I grew up, and it was an amazing experience. Here’s a quick look at what went down at Ramp Age in New Orleans, and my homage to local comps everywhere…
The Local Shredder: Every skatepark has that one kid who just owns the place. In this case, that phrase is a bit more literal… Broc Raiford’s parents own Ramp Age Ramp Park, so he rides there several times a week, and it shows. He is by far the best local, and is constantly progressing. Here’s a brand new one for Little Beefy…flair invert.
The Squirly Shredder: You’ve all seen the kid at the park that makes everyone cringe when he drops in, and squirm when he airs a quarter pipe, only to surprise everyone when he throws out some wild move and somehow pulls it off. Chris “Nancy” Nance often has that same affect on people at Ramp Age. This kid is so distant from the “BMX scene” that he doesn’t know who Van Homan is, doesn’t know trick names, and has been know to ride in white rubber boots when he forgets to bring his riding shoes to the park. In the best trick contest he managed to pull a clean as hell 360 downside whip over the box jump on his first try (ever), and may have even surprised himself on that one.
The Smooth Shredder: On the opposite end of the spectrum from the squirly shredder, the smooth shredder is the guy who rarely crashes and always has smooth style while blasting tricks like this over-clicked lookback. Danny Josa is really consistent, and always on his A-game, which helped him snag a spot on the podium of the expert class.
The Groms: Shaw Gillotte traveled two and a half hours to the contest and took second place in the novice class with tricks like tuck no-handers on the box jump and tabletops like this on the quarter pipe. Every park has local groms and up and comers that help the park stay in business, and give reassurance that the scene is continuing to grow.
The Out-Of-Towners: In addition to the droves of local riders at a skatepark contest, there are always the dedicated few who cross state borders to ride with their friends from hours away. Shadow made the drive from Pensacola, Florida and busted out a 180 over the box jump in practice, then a huge 180 to flat from a wedge to wedge in the contest.
The Broke Bastard: Brandon Sanford is one of those guys who is a badass on a bike, but broke as a joke, so instead of paying to enter the contest (which he probably would have done really well in), he sat back and saved his money for another time.
The Old Dog With New Tricks: Sometimes some of the hardest shredders at a park are the old guys. At 33, Damon Sampy has been around the Louisiana BMX scene for a very long time, and was one of the oldest riders to enter the contest. As motivating as it is for me to see the groms out there killing it, it’s just about equally motivating to see someone still at it after all those years of riding hard.
The Visiting Pro: Not every local contest is this lucky, but Ramp Age was fortunate enough this weekend to have a visiting pro in town to hang out with the kids at the park. Premium Products sent JJ Palmere down to Louisiana for a few days, and the kids at Ramp Age were beyond stoked. Hanging out with and seeing a pro ride in person is an experience a beginner rider will likely never forget.
The Bunnyhop Contest: Grab a few pieces of wood and a handful of nails and take it to the parking lot…bunnyhop contests never get old and are always a favorite for the riders and the crowd. Broc Raiford won a grip of shoes and T-shirts from Duffs for hopping somewhere in the neighborhood of 46 inches. Photo by Alex Williams.
The Crazy Hucker: Almost everywhere you go there is one dude that just sends shit. Sometimes he pulls stuff, and sometimes he doesn’t, but no matter what, it’s always entertaining. In this case, Bazsi Ivanfi sends crazy shit on a regular basis, but almost always pulls it off. This icepick in the rafters was done during the best trick contest, but didn’t win. His 180 flip over the box is what gave him the win and awarded him a frame from Premium Products. Another crazy hucker at this comp was a kid named Zack Langly who’s run consisted of three attempts at a Beringer style frontflip over the box jump. When his bars moved and he couldn’t try anymore, he sent a cartwheel and a backflip in the flat bottom just for the crowd. Good times… Photo by Alex Williams.
The Winners: Where there is a contest, there are winners, and as long as you were at the event and had fun, you are a winner in my book. But since an actual competition took place, there were the guys who won prizes and money, too. Expert class riders Cody Miller (2nd place), Broc Raiford (1st place), and Danny Josa (3rd place) each walked away from Ramp Age with some cash in their pocket courtesy of a local bike shop sponsor Bicycle World Of Louisiana. All the riders in the other classes won a ton of prizes from the event’s other sponsors, too.
The DJ: What’s a BMX contest without music, right? I was really psyched to “keep it in BMX” with this event when I got a former BMX rider and my long-time good friend Blake “DJ Blakepaul” Muller to spin the music at the contest. Blake was a huge inspiration to me when I started riding, so it was super rad to work with him and have him help out with this local comp.
The BBQ & Raffle: Almost as important as the riding itself at a local jam is the must-have barbeque. BMX and BBQ go together as well as a sprocket and a chain, and Ramp Age’s owner Ryan Raiford was cooking up all afternoon with the help of his family and some of the locals. In addition to the BBQ, there was a raffle for a Colony frame that one lucky young’n scored at the end of the night.
The Dudes In Charge: Possibly one of the most important, but least-thanked positions you can have is the manager of a skatepark. Andrew Sanford (center) put a ton of time and work into making the Ramp Age contest possible, and even though they may not have told him so, everyone who was at the park on Saturday was insanely thankful for everything he is doing for the community.
The Product Toss: What’s better than free stuff? Fighting for free BMX stuff thrown in the air from companies you are stoked on… More than a dozen companies threw down prizes and products for the contest, and every kid in attendance got to go home with something new and a smile on their face. Product tosses will be fun as long as people are still pedaling…
The After Party: Hitting the town with all the homies is a great way to cap off a long day of riding. After the dust settled in Ramp Age a huge crew of dudes hit up Bourbon St. and partied until late into the morning.
2010 Ramp Age Ramp Park Spring Contest Final Results:
Beginner Class:
1. Michael Ciccone
2. Ridge Attardo
2. Denzen Blossom
4. Trey Broussard
5. Kiddo
6. Tyler Thigpen
7. Brenton Larose
8. Cole Lauman
9. Terry Gynes
10. Mario Aguirre
11. Tyler Massengale
12. Nordi
13. Steven Mixster
14. Connor Lauman
15. Hasson Comeux
16. Justin Woods
17. Kolby Diggs
Novice Class:
1. Jacob Lachute
2. Shawn Guillotte
3. Kyle Champagne
4. Ashton Guidery
5. Gary Cochran
6. Zach Osborne
7. Brandon Gauthreaux
8. Gregory Keller
9. Jacob Oliver
10. Aaron Saucer
11. Dean “Doug” Rando
12. Shane Ruggles
13. Mark “Annie” Nance
14. Rico
15. Zack Langley
Intermediate Class:
1. Devon Danos
2. Nano Escamilla
3. Kyle Fagan
4. Alex Wright
5. Sheldon Schiefflar
6. Nick Lejune
7. Fasial Hijaz
8. Gus Gus Lewis
9. Matt Hunter
10. Dylan Diamond
11. Steve Harris
12. Jarrod Bartlett
Expert Class:
1. Broc Raiford
2. Cody Miller
3. Danny Josa
4. Andrew Sanford
5. Bazsi Ivanfi
6. Doug Morrison
7. Colin Sanford
8. Damon Sampy
9. Chris “Nancy” Nance
10. Dylan “Performer” Gunnall
11. Shadow
TAGS: Broc Raiford, Local Contest, Louisiana, New Orleans, Ramp Age Ramp Park
