Here's an EPIC video brought to you by mr SUPER ALOHA, Mason Valenzuela. This guy hardly had his camera out and was able to pull off a masterpiece like this! A favorite on my list.
Gnar bombing, epikal parks,
waterfalls, volcano’s, crip food, good crew, great vibes … Hilo, Hawaii is
where it went down. On October 20 – 21st wheel turners from all over
the state gathered on the Big Island of Hawaii for the 2nd event of
the Hawaii Winter Outlaw Series. This was our first event on the Big Island,
but thanks to the help of B.I local Brian McOuat… boy was it a good one!
Over twenty riders gathered at
Hilo’s Oasis skate shop early Saturday morning to register and get briefed on
how the day would go down. We had 10+ racers from both Oahu and the Big Island.
It was great to see the crews united to vibe the winds together!
Once the plan was set, the parade of skate
mobiles headed down the country road out towards the race course. When getting
to the top of the hill, all riders had the same thoughts of the hill… it’s a
FAST one. Steep, wide, big sweepers… a tuck and go type of road where you can
hit around 50mph.
Everyone started to gear up and get
the pre race jitters out when… dun dun dunnnnn, an upset Ha’ole resident
stopped by us to inform us that she had called the Police on us. So we took off
down the hill for a sample run, then bailed.
The skate parade headed back down
the country roads en route to the back up course. When arriving to the course,
the vibes here were much more mellow and relaxed. And the course was AWESOME!
Like the last road this course took little to no drifts, but the TECH o meter
went up for sure. This course was one lane wide, a lot more turney, and fast!
You are constantly on the edge of grip, and to top it off… there are little
speed bump/ launch ramp things in crucial spots!
Riders all agreed that the course
needed to be shut down due to the narrowness. So the Big Island boys got on it,
and we got ready to race!
Now that we are on a different
course, the heats dropped down to 1 vs 1 heats instead of 4 man.Everyone paired up for their first heat and
H.W.O.S event 2 got underway!
The first few heats took off fully
tucking from the start of the course, riding close to utilize full draft potential.
Heats were intense! Though the course is narrow, it proved to have multiple
passing spots due to how technical it was. Perfect lines and exit speeds were
the way to the win.
We were underway with round 1, all
heats on the course in intervals, when somehow there was a break in
communication and 4 cars were let onto the course. GNARLY! Some Oahu style
skating went down! Heats were forced to dodge cars in all directions resulting
in many skaters exploding the bushes on the side of the road. Luckily everyone
got out of the gnarliness ok, with only a few minor road burns to be had.
Skaters regrouped to head back up
the hill. This time we needed the road GAURENTEED shut down, so we took a few
minutes to situate cones and cars. Then BOOM, the Hilo rains hit. Good thing we
had a back up day scheduled!
Everyone packed up and headed down
the hill to the BEAUTIFUL camp site. We were blessed to stay at a beach park at
the bottom of the course… and this zone was as prime as it gets. Ocean front. A
waterfall ending in a stream, which leads to the ocean. Rope swing. Bathrooms.
Electric Outlets. Hawaiian Lush Jungle Goodness. Not a bad way to sit back and
relax for the rest of the day.
Day two we woke up on the beach to
epic weather. Skaters were amped! We got briefed on how the day would go, and
everyone headed back up the race course.
After the issues we had in the
previous day, we came prepared on day two to shut this road down! Cones,
multiple cars, human chains… you know, the necessities.
We went up the hill and redid any
heats from round 1 that may have been interrupted by machines.
Once that was settled we were into
round 2, and half of the riders pool was cut in half. HEATS WERE STACKED!
Seeing rounds such as Nikko K vs Rhys M , Ethan L vs Mackenzie Y and Ben F vs
Datne A.
Now that all riders are comfy on a
closed course with several runs under our belts… the heats were even heavier.
In this round you could see many different strategies come into play. Some with
the strong push and stay in front, others with the sandbag approach or some who
just went for the passes in the most hectic sections. It all made for some top
notch racing.
We opened up the road in between
rounds to allow traffic to go by. All residents on this hill were full of
loving vibes. They were all stoked to see what we were doing and we wanted to
do it safely. I LOVE IT!
Next round is the quarter finals,
the top 6. Now in order to make the final rounds even, racers would have to
skate a 3 man heat, eliminating 1 rider per heat to get us our final 4 for the
semi finals.
The heats were Brian M, Ethan L and
Dante A in heat 1. Erik S, Dusty O and Rhys M in heat 2.
Heat 1 was insane! Brian kicking
into first, then Ethan and Dante closely following. In the top of the course,
Brian held his lead as the two stayed in his draft bubble. As the riders went
through a few corners into the “speed section”, Dante started to make his move
drafting from 3rd to 1st right before the gnarliest
double apex left, speedbump ,to right S turn. The skaters were 3 deep going
into the right when Big Island boy Brian just couldn’t hold his line, sliding
out, leaving Dante and Ethan to finish top 2.
The next heat with Erik, Dusty and
Rhys was equally as intense. All riders switching positions at the top of the
hill several times before coming into infamous speed bump S turn. Once again
riders were charging 3 deep, forcing Dusty off of the road leaving Rhys and
Erik to take off towards the finish for 1st and 2nd.
We now have our final 4 riders, and
it looks like Oahu has claimed the podium spots. The Semi’s are Ethan L vs
Dante A and Rhys M vs Erik S.
Rhys and Erik’s heat was first to
race. Both of these guys are ninjas with perfect tucks. Erik decided to pull a
little sandbag action, so at the start Rhys gave it a second push to secure his
gap. From here on out it was Erik chasing down Rhys, but Rhys was able to hold
his lead and move onto the finals.
Ethan and Dante went next. Ethan
had the lead off the push and through the whole top section. Dante was in his
wind bubble the whole time but held off till right after the S to make his
move. Shortly after the turn, Dante went for the draft and pass. This left
Ethan only a couple turns to catch back up, but he couldn’t do it in time,
moving Dante into the finals!
We let more auntys and unko’s drive
through the course as we set up the final round. All residents were still
stoked!
Now, its time for the Finals. First
up was the race for 5th and 6th between two Big Island
boys, Brian M and Dusty O. Their heat was close. Both of these guys are locals
on this road and know it like the back of their hand. Midway down the course,
Brian goes for the pass in the “speed section” and Dusty takes a crash as soon
as Brian makes the swoop. Leaving Brian alone for the rest of the course
finishing up in 5th place.
Next up is the battle for 3rd
and 4th between Ethan and Erik. This heat was GREAT to watch. Both
riders started the heat barley kicking, almost wanting to be in the back. Once they
began to tuck Ethan held his spot in front for a little. Erik would catch him
every once and a while, but then stand up and hold back. Both riders went into
the S fast and clean, and this is where I expected Erik to make the move, yet
he still held back. When they were entering the second to the last corner is
when Erik finally decided to make his move, Zooming by Lau and holding the
front position till the finish line. Erik finishing in 3rd and Ethan
closely behind in 4th.
FINALS. Rhys Morishima vs Dante
Alston. Both from Oahu, both Tantalus boys… it was ON. Everyone chose their
viewing spot along the hill for this last round, then we got it started. Dante
chose to throw down at the start and Rhys gave it a push. Dante in first, Rhys
in his draft going into the first bend. Both riders held their tucks, not
moving a muscle in the first few corners. As the riders came into the flat
before the “ speed section” Rhys started to close the gap even more, getting
right into the pocket as they went into the quick sweeper left before the dip.
Right when Rhys was in the perfect sling shot position, he caught a quick wob
and it was all over from here! Barley loosing traction for a second sent Rhys
into a shake forcing him to eject and sprawl out across the road. His board
even decided to bail into near by coffee fields. Now Dante kept it together and
steezed it out for the remainder of the run, coming across the finish as 1st
place in the fist ever HWOS on the Big Island!
Following the race there was a
little slide jam on the hill before the awards… the vibes were just way too
good we needed to keep em going! The jam was rad, with skaters from different
islands we saw all kinds of styles! Taking the win for the longest slide was
Mike Broan from the Big Island with a BIGG ole front side. Mackenzie Yoshida
took the prize for Best Trick doing a Front side Wiggleply ( wiggle to no
comply) and Jeffery Khau swooped the best overall in the slide jam.
All skating is completed, everyone
is exhausted, so we headed back to the camp for some awards. Thanks to the
sponsors almost every participant left with something. The top 4 riders getting
cash and leaving with complete setups! Schwag Gallore.
The Big Island was EPIC. Another
great addition to Hawaii’s best race series! The Hawaii Winter Outlaw Series
couldn’t be more stoked to have another island as a part of its festivities.
Uniting the wheel turners of the Hawaiian island’s is my ultimate goal… and we
all full tucking towards succeeding at this!
See everyone at H.W.O.S #3 THE SCORCHER.
Hawaii Winter Outlaw Series Event 2
1st Dante Alston
2nd Rhys Morishima ( BIke Factory )
3rd Erik Sato
4th Ethan Lau ( Sector 9 )
5th Brian McOuat
6th Dusty Owens
Longest Slide -Mike Broan
Best Trick - Mackenzie Yoshida ( Landyachtz )
Best overall slider- Jeffery Khau BIG MAHALOS CALIBER TRUCK CO. Rayne Longboards Oasis Skateshop Orangatang Rip City Skate Randal Trucks Magic Bearings 808 Skate WHEELTURNERHAWAII.COM and the rest of out great supporters! Photos Pono Costa Mazon Valenzuela Paul Zurla WheelTurnerHawaii.com
Hawaii Winter Outlaw Series event 2 is going down THIS WEEKEND in Hilo, Hawaii. I know all of you racers will be arriving on Thursday or Friday, just in time for some good vibes before race day... or even a good after race celebration. Spock em bu!