Volcom Meadows Pro Invitational 2006
Posted on Tuesday, August 1, 2006 by Ryan
Volcom Meadows Pro Invitational 2006
Words by Ryan ClementsPhotos and Captions by Rob Meronek
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
We arrived at our camp site in Mammoth at about 10pm. Yes, you read that correctly. I wrote “camp site”. There was no hotel, which also meant no showers. That also means that there was no soft bed, internet, coffee, toilets…you get the point, right? However, there was plenty of beer to drink and grub to chow courtesy of our boys at Volcom. There were camp fires, too.
That was the beginning of our adventures with Nature.
Mother Nature Done Good
As much as this trip was supposed to be a skate-oriented trip, it also turned out to be quite a nature-induced experience. I live in Florida. There are no hills. So when I woke up the first morning at our camp in the ‘meadows’ I realized that I might have possibly woken up in what Heaven was supposed to look like. Other than the dust and lack of facilities (and no coffee easily accessible), I was totally at peace with my life. Damn, that sounds gay, huh? I don’t care. That’s how I felt when I saw the fields that led to the trees that lined the bottoms of the snow-covered mountains. The sky was as blue as a blue sky can be. The sun was coming up over the smaller hills and we were experiencing Mother Nature’s work firsthand. It was humbling.
The Earth is much, much more powerful than us measly little humans. We’re only occupying this place for very short time on the timeline of the existence of Earth. And let me tell you, Earth is alive in Northern California. I swear I could write a book about our experiences with Nature in Mammoth, but here are the highlights to get the point across.
- Since there were no facilities, we had to ‘shower’ in lakes. When I say that the water was cold, that’s probably the understatement of this article. The water was so unbelievably cold that I honestly thought that my heart stopped for a couple of seconds when I jumped in. I was hyper-ventilating, but my lungs felt like they weighed 100 lbs. each. I went through this scenario three different mornings, and on the third morning I lost the car keys in Horseshoe Lake. Frosty found them. Can you believe that?
- There are waterfalls everywhere. The snow at the top of the mountains melts and the water flows down creating waterfalls and then these lakes that we were swimming in. That’s why the water is so goddamned cold.
- On the opposite spectrum of the freezing cold lakes, there are also naturally hot springs in the area. To describe them more appropriately I should probably say that there are BOILING geysers. We went to one that someone turned into a hot tub and it was so hot that no one in our crew would even step foot in it.
- The other geysers that we experienced were in the middle of a cold-ass, flowing stream. They were actually so “alive” that areas of the stream would be literally boiling and others were freezing cold. You had to find that one spot in the middle in which you could get comfortable. The area we were in was actually closed off because someone boiled to death in there in the beginning of June. We hopped the gate and went for it anyway…and survived.
- Rob and I saw a bear running through a campground as we were driving around one of the lakes. Having never seen a bear in the wild before we were both just floored. I immediately put the car in park and we both went walking after the cute little guy that could have easily torn us into pieces. Probably not the smartest move ever, but at least Rob was able to get a good shot of him.
This is your invite right now to come hang out with us next year. I’m not joking. You’re invited. Hope to see you in freezing-ass Covict Lake or Horseshoe Lake next year.
The Contest
I’m sure you read that this Contest was titled as a “pro” event. So we snuck a few ams in there. And yes, they accepted the money. And no, they’re not “pro” now. We don’t have rules and regulations. You can’t refer to the SPoTlight Productions rulebook. Sorry about that, but it doesn’t exist. Now that that’s out of the way, let’s get down to the ripping.
The skate park itself is absolutely amazing. It was constructed by Grindline and it is dedicated to the life of Jeff Anderson…a pro snowboarder for Volcom and Mammoth local who left us too soon. I know that wherever he is that Jeff is honored for the efforts that were put forth to make the Volcom Brothers Skatepark possible.
We had about 30 entrants and each of them got to participate in a 10-minute Jam to get chosen for the Finals. The top nine advanced and skated in yet another Jam. The Jam format was pretty much the only way to go in a skate park like this one. Here’s how it ended up:
- 10th – $333 – Collin Provost – even though he didn’t technically make the Finals, Colin ripped and was awarded the odd amount of money for his efforts
- 9th - $1000 – Taylor Bingaman – this kid kills it and had the sickest crail-grab fs airs over the twinkie
- 8th - $1000 – Tim Johnson - Florida boy made the trek to Mammoth as a solo mission and killed the Contest. A knee injury in his Final Jam kept him from placing higher, but his blunt fakies on the tombstone will be remembered
- 7th - $1500 – Mike Peterson – straight out of Jacksonville, Florida and Consolidated’s newest pro, ol’ Peterdong skated with the realest smile of all. Mike is the real deal and he said, “Can you believe that I have the hottest team manager?”
- 6th - $1500 – Chris Senn – Senndog got wrecked in the Final Jam and took himself out of there in the first few minutes or else he would definitely have placed higher and won some more loot
- 5th - $2000 – Dennis Busenitz – Boozen’tits destroyed the park with some of the fastest lines of the weekend and ollies over literally everything. It was amazing to watch him skate because I don’t think that he did the same line twice…a true natural
- 4th – $3000 – Steve Reeves – the no-comply tailslide revert was his highlight, but Steve had airs and grinds on everything. He skated fast and consistent and gave the pros a serious run for their money. Also, I know that he was absolutely tripping when he was holding those 30, $100 bills in his hand
- 3rd - $4000 – Jimmy "The Greek" Marcus – what? Another Florida homie in the mix? Nice work, fellas. When you let The Greek loose on that type of terrain is when you really get to see him shine. He was doing tricks in the Jam that he hadn’t even done in the bowls at all the entire weekend. Truly creative, exciting, and improvisational
- 2nd – $6000 – Chad Bartie – come on, you know that all of the Aussie’s have mad tranny skills, right? Bartie has an amazing style with his ollie shifties over the twinkie and ability to throw tricks in pretty much anywhere. The white pants might have been funny, but Bartie was no joke
- 1st - $10,000 – Benji Galloway – his Confederate flag bandanna and handle-bar mustache say, “That’s right, I’m from the South,” but Benji’s skating adds up to complete ripping regardless of his heritage. The judging was right on point with this call because Benji’s difficult tricks and long lines definitely earned him the 10 G’s. After the Contest he said to me, “I don’t even know what I’m going to do with it.” That’s the best
As soon as the event site was set-up it was broken down. By sunset you would have never known there was even a Contest a few hours before. That evening Volcom hosted yet another great party at the camp site and we all rejoiced on what was the beginning of a great tradition.
The next morning Rob, Brian, Frosty, and I took our time, drank some coffee at the local joint, and went swimming in freezing cold water once again. Well, Rob didn’t swim. We then drove to Reno where we slept on beds in a hotel…with climate control. Rob was able to finally take a shower after four days without. Lil’ Puss don’t like cold water. The rooms at Circus Circus might have been cheap, but we paid for them dearly on the casino tables.
Many thanks to the City of Mammoth Lakes for tolerating our presence in their quaint town for the few days that we occupied it. All I can tell you is this: Everyone is welcome to attend this Contest next year. Come and camp out with us, skate an amazing park, and experience the beauty of NorCal. Trust me, it’s worth the cost of the flight.
Ryan
Comments
Article Archive by Category
- All Ages Contests
- Anniversary Parties
- Art Shows
- Awards Ceremonies
- Boards for Bros
- Booze Cruise
- Celebrity Sightings
- Chill Cam Dumps
- Christmas
- Clash of the Crews
- Coastal Carnage
- Comedy
- Cons Triple C's
- Contest and Event Coverage
- Copenhagen Pro
- Course Construction
- Damn Am
- DC King of Series
- Demos at SPoT
- Digital Product Toss
- EOTM Parties
- Event Schedules and Details
- Franks for Nothing
- Go Skateboarding Day
- Heat Sheets and Skater Lists
- Industry Event Coverage
- Information About SPoT
- Make-A-Wish Contests
- Maloof Money Cup
- Nerdsday Thursday
- News and Press Releases
- Parties
- Product Watch
- Red Bull Events
- Road Trips
- Shoe Releases
- Shop Tours
- Skate Bid'niss
- Skate Missions
- SPoT Skate Shop Ybor
- Tampa Am
- Tampa Pro
- The Bricks
- Throwback Thursday
- Tourist Missions
- Toys for Tatas
- Trade Shows
- Vans Downtown Showdown
- Video Premieres
- Warped Tour
- Zaturdays
Shop
- Accessories
- Backpacks/ Bags
- Beanies
- Bearings
- Belts
- Complete Skateboards
- Decks and Boards
- DVD's
- Girls Gear
- Griptape
- Hardware
- Hats
- Headphones
- Jackets
- Jerseys
- Kids Shoes
- Long Sleeve Shirts
- Magazines/ Books
- Pads and Helmets
- Pants/ Jeans
- Sale/ Closeout
- Shoes
- Shorts
- Socks
- Stickers
- Sunglasses
- Sweaters/ Hoodies
- Tank Tops
- T Shirts
- Trucks
- Wallets
- Watches
- Wheels
- Woven/ Polo/ Knit Shirts