This was the article for the Michigan Skate Classic Pro-Am held in Lansing. The contest was on June 10 and 11, 1989. They built a vertical spine ramp. I didn't recall reading about this event before, which was odd given the unique ramp design.
Roger Bridges begins the story by stating that some companies declined to send riders for whatever seemingly important reason 35 years ago. That's probably why Thrasher and Transworld didn't cover the contest. Transworld did have a list of winners that included the date. The event was sponsored by Airböurne and Zorlac.
Even with a vague boycott, there were still some big names at the contest, particularly in the am section. East Coast vert was well represented with Mike Conroy, Tom Boyle, Sean Miller, and Buster Halterman. Florida, the South, and the Midwest were also well represented.
H-Street did send their team and this resulted in Danny Way earning his first professional victory at the contest. Reese Simpson finished second. The article suggests that perhaps Reese should've won and I'm inclined to agree with that take, but Danny's trick list is very tough to beat. It's cool to see some different pros in the top ten, too. Regardless of skateboard politics and turnout, I'm sure the locals were plenty stoked to have this competition in town for the weekend.
The article is by Roger Bridges. The photos are by Roger and Mike Ballard.
Poweredge - October 1989 Volume 2 Number 9
2 comments:
Nice to see a Madollie, and also an R.A.D. sticker on Reese Simpson's board.
There's some cool pictures and info in this article. I wish they had a better shot of the overall ramp. I think Reese was on BBC at that point and off Schmitt Stix. It's also a little strange because Schmitt did send riders.
There is a YouTube video of the contest. Search by the contest title. I only watched a little of it, but it's out there.
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