Pedro Barros emerges triumphant in skate bowl final at Pantech Open – Dew Tour 2011
Proving wise beyond his years, Brazil’s pint-sized 16-year-old Pedro Barros clinched the win in the final of inaugural skate bowl event at Pantech Open, the first of the four stops on Dew Tour 2011, on Saturday, July 23. The event is taking place in Ocean
City, Maryland,
The Maryland-local, Bucky Lasek finished as runner-up, while Vancouver’s Ben Hatchell finished in third place to round out the podium.
Barros had already been under the radar because of making waves in the sport at such a young age. However, watching him secure a maiden skate bowl victory by prevailing over the likes of Lasek, Hatchell and California’s Andy Macdonald was undoubtedly a feat
that he would be boasting for years to come.
Since the very start of the event, Barros came into spotlight with his excellent and consistent performances. After finishing in Top 5 in the semi-finals, he managed to post the highest score in the first round of the finals.
Pitted against four in-form skaters in the super-finals, the 16-year-old Brazilian threw down a string of massive transfers, 540 variations, combined with style and speed to seal the fate of the contest with a score of 85.63.
Talking to a reporter after the contest, an ecstatic Barros said, “I feel really good about winning. It always gets you a little more excited and a little happier. Just being in the finals like this with everyone killing it so much creates energy that only
this contest can come close to. It’s incredible.”
The 38-year-old Lasek remained quite impressive throughout the event as well. He continued to put down exciting runs in the super-finals, which included a huge front-side rodeo. Finishing with a score of 84.00, he settled for second place.
The 21-year-old Hatchell made it to the podium as well after throwing down a combination of McTwist and an Indy Kick-flip, along with alley oop front feebles, to finish with a score of 81.63.
During his post-contest interview, Hatchell said, “Overall I think it was an amazing event. It was really cool that it was on the beach in Ocean City because I live in Virginia, so I can drive here and avoid Cali flights. It’s way sicker on the East Coast
(laughing).”
The 37-year-old bowl veteran, Macdonald finished in fourth place with a score of 80.13. His run included a kick-flip melon grab, massive transfers, Indy Kick-flip into a 540 varial and a huge transfer attempt at the end.
The 18-year-old Nolan Munroe from Rindge, New Hampshire, finished fifth in the super-finals after throwing down a run that comprised of a massive 540, air-walk lien to tail and attempting a 540 transfer in the end to score 77.38.
The event turned out to be an exciting experience for both the skaters as well as the crowd. According to Barros, the addition of bowl to the first two stops of Dew Tour 2011 is enough to highlight the significance of the discipline in the progression of
the sport.
The fans will be able to catch the next skate bowl contest at Portland Invitational in Portland, Oregon, next month.
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