Words: Sydney Pizza / Photos: Jeff Mathis
What a weekend! The 6th annual Spring Fling Skim Jam presented by Zap Skimboards and Skim USA in Nokomis, Florida has come to a close! With a full day of action and an amazing team behind the whole weekend the entire Zap crew could not be happier! It was another beautiful day on the Gulf Coast with temperatures in the mid-80s and a slight breeze that help steady around 10 mph out of the south again it was picturesque, and a perfect way to close out the weekend.
Starting finals day off with Semi Pro round three, our super grom Gio Tomasi has more than earned his way through these heats like nothing! He was throwing bigger spins, 3-shuv combos and 5-shuvs like nothing, making his way through to the quarterfinals! Joining him were team riders Evan Rubin and Yuan Bonhayag for an epic showdown in the second heat both advancing and mastering their way to the quarters as well! With a two-heat break we right back into the semifinals, where Yuan just short of the mark made it the 3rd and 4th place skim off for Semi-Pro, as Skim USA has reformatted the division to emulate the pro ranks that much more getting riders better prepared for the next step in their career! In the second heat Evan Rubin and Gio Tomasi went wave for wave, trick for trick, seeing who could pop the 3-shuv higher, who could get one more shuv-it into their line, and who could get that last extra style point! In the end Evan Rubin took home gold, a position that he is much too familiar with and had elected to stay amateur, while Gio took the bronze medal to the house with every drop of joy as he had an incredible run in his first ever Semi-Pro appearance. We are so proud!
After that, we moved into the Junior Men quarter finals, where two team riders that are no strangers to the later rounds, Yuan Bonhayag and Dylan DuBrow, dominated both of their respective heats showing finesse, steeze, control and pop. The boys ripped were throwing 5-shuvs, creative lines, 3-shuv combos, and finding some of the longest liners of the day!
Next came the Masters semifinals, where Evan Rubin, with an unfortunate and recurring knee injury, was back in action along with Nick Forfar, who both did great! Nick has a level of steeze that not many can match, and in flatter conditions like these gave him a leg up! Evan and Nick in their respective heats moved on to the final! Right after that came the Boys semifinals, with more non-stop action, Brody Chandler-Thompson and Gio Tomasi had a ball and are skimming at the highest level they have both reached yet! Gio pushing his limits with consistent 5-shuvs and Brody really dialing in his re-entries and his airs, both of the ‘Boys Bashers’ dominated their way to the final, with Brody suffering a minor lower back injury.
The most awaited part of the weekend, the Pro Men and Women finals were upon us! Top names have made tier way to the top six including Mason Broussard, Eoin Lally, Elian Juarez, John Akerman, and Graham Shelton! Broken into two heats of three for the third round, Akerman, like he never left, was busting out the most perfect bigger spins, 3-shuvs, 5-shuvs and airs of the weekend, earning himself another first-place finish and a guaranteed spot in the final four! In the second heat it was Zap on Zap on Zap, where Mason, Eoin, and Elian all duked it out for the remaining two spots of the final four, Mason and Eoin just best Elian with poppier lines of tricks and more airs, secured the remaining two spots. The level of professional riding this weekend is some of the best in the world and it was shown without a doubt 540 shuv-its like nothing, bigger spins with ease and full rotation airs, were on display! The semifinal heats were John Akerman vs Mason Broussard and Eoin Lally vs Sterling Myers of Exile Skimboards.
To give the guys a break the Pro Women took to the water and were just as exciting to watch as the men! Sydney Pizza and Kate Warrington were first up to skim for 3rd and 4th place, and this was an exciting heat to watch, with such differing styles and approaches, Syd stuck to her deep bag of tricks with 3-shuvs on the way out and back in, big spin re-entries, and busted out another massive 540 shuv-it! While Kate was throwing massive buckets, no comply re-entries, and 3-shuv attempts she is well on her way to being one of the greats! After that came Casey McCullough vs Nicole Phillips for the crown of the event! Both ladies again with very different approaches had a great time! Casey with a more aerial approach used her re-entries both frontside and backside with 3-shuvs out and massive combos, showed us exactly why she is still one of the best there is! Nicole with a more tech heavy approach took the win of the weekend with 3-shuvs and big spins out the back, 3-shuv re-entries, and combos on flat! Casey followed in second, Syd in third and Kate in fourth! Yay Ladies!
Back to the Pro Mens, Mason and Akerman was a final in the semifinals, mind-blowing action that left the beach speechless but making the most noise of the day! Back and forth between waves, the scores were all over, between massive combos that were either faster or poppier than the last and more and more technical as the heat went on! In the last seconds of the heat Mason retook the lead and moved onto the final to skim against team rider Eoin Lally. Eoin in his semifinal heat also went wave for wave with Sterling, until he suffered an ankle injury. Eoin was blasting frontside and backside re-entries that didn’t stop there but were combined with big spins or an extra shuv-it up to the dry sand!
Mason and Eoin battled it out for the top spot on the podium, with every wave changing positioning of the heat, Mason came out on top, with some crazy airs to 3-shuv combos and 5-shuv combos, it was like he was at the skatepark on water. Throwing late big spins and late shuv-its, he was the best skimmer on the beach all weekend! Rounding out the rest of the podium Eoin finished in second, John Akerman in fourth, Graham Shelton in fifth, and Elian Juarez in sixth!
Junior men semifinals were up next and a great showing of what the nest generation holds for the sport, where team standout of the weekend, Yuan Bonhayag, edged out his teammate Dylan DuBrow for a spot in the final with his speed and control! One of the most exciting heats of the day was the Mini Boys final where up and coming ripper Maverick Smetts had a wonderful time charging waves and using the whole contest area to slide for miles, and do his first ever 180 and 360 spins, making his way to a second-place finish! Way to go Mav!
The Boys final was up next and was so exciting to watch! Brody and Gio are pushing the envelope, not only for themselves but also for the other boys in their division. With their combos and style that is beyond their age, they absolutely killed it! Using priority to their advantage, they 3-shuved, aired and combed their way to a first-place finish for Gio and a close second place for Brody, a rivalry that grows better and better every contest! The Junior Men's final was up next where Yuan Bonhayag had his final big showing after a weekend of pure dominance with speed, board control, massive pop, and quick combos his 5-shuvs look too easy, helping him steeze his way to a first-place finish!
The Women’s final was very exciting as Willow Huellemeier had her debut contest as a team rider with a fresh new Fuse-X to break in for the weekend! She skimmed great throwing 3-shuvs, backside liners to 360 spins and big spins, the future looks bright for Willow! The Men’s final was cool, calm, and collected as team rider Trent Moranda landed huge 3-shuvs, massive re-entries and stylish lines earning himself a very solid second-place finish in one of the largest divisions of the weekend!
Grandmasters final with none other than one of the most dependable team riders, Alex Bevard, earning himself a first-place finish with floaters, big spin re-entries and backside 180 airs, all while keeping his hair dry, Alex had a day! He is always killing it in a jersey, but he also rocks it under the tent, and we are so grateful for all that he does!
The Senior grandmasters final was a special one as one of the most beloved team riders, Emanuel “Mega” Embaixador, skimming like a grom through an ear surgery recovery launched massive 180 and 360 backside re-entries, shuv-its and big spins off the lips with some of the most stylish liners of the weekend, making his way to second-place! It is always a blast when Uncle Mega is in town!
Finally ending with the Masters final where Nick Forfar and Evan Rubin showed us why it is called the Masters division with calm and collected lines, that show control and ease, Nick gave us quick and snappy 3-shuvs after a stylish line, while Evan was throwing combo after combo! Evan working through an injury skimmed calm and clean to earn the win and Nick landed in third with steeze!
A very special shoutout to team riders Yuan Bonhayag and Graham Shelton for earning the Best Amateur and Professional Trick awards for the weekend with a massive 180 backside air with a nose grab and a Superman air, respectively!
Thank you to everyone that pitched in to help make this weekend as incredible as it was! See you all in Virginia!
For full results, click here: https://liveheats.com/events/471716
DOWNLOAD HIGH RES VERSIONS OF ALL THE PHOTOS FROM DAY 1 & DAY 2 HERE!!!