Shaun White Wins; PLG Second - Vans Invitational 2007 Skate Vert Finals

 
 
Portland, Ore. – Olympic gold medalist Shaun White continues his domination on the AST Dew Tour circuit winning his third event of the year Saturday in the Vans Invitational Skateboard Vert competition.
 
White, 20, fell during the end of his first run and was sitting in fifth at the end of the first round, but he rebounded with a near flawless second run to move to first place with a 91.25 score, and held on for the victory.
 
"I was just watching everyone else and after my first run, I just focused and landed it (his second run)," White said. "I didn’t want to pull another X Games and wait to the last minute (to pull out the win)."
 

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White, who won X Games Gold earlier this month, has competed the last two seasons on the AST Dew Tour, but this is the first time he has won three consecutive events. He is the only athlete on the AST Dew Tour to go undefeated so far this season.
 
"It was hard for me with all the snowboarding stuff last year, but I made a promise to myself that I would really focus on my skateboarding and go for it (Dew Cup) this year," White added.
 
Pierre-Luc Gagnon of Montreal, Canada finished in second with 89.00 and Bob Burnquist of Rio de Janiero, Brazil was third at 87.75.
 
The four-day competition is the third of five stops of the AST Dew Tour that features skateboarding, BMX and freestyle motocross. Sunday's action features Freestyle Motocross finals. White will continue his quest for the Dew Cup in Salt Lake City in September and the finale in Orlando, Fla. In October.
 
AST Dew Tour-Vans Invitational Results
Saturday, August 18, 2007
Portland, Ore.

 
Skateboard Vert Finals
 
1. Shaun White, Carlsbad, Calif., 91.25.

2. Pierre-Luc Gagnon, Canada, 89.00.

3. Bob Burnquist, Brazil, 87.75.

4. Andy Macdonald, Boston, Mass., 86.25.

5. Alex Perelson, San Diego, Calif., 85.00.

6. Rune Glifberg, Denmark, 84.50.

7. Jean Postec, France, 84.50.

8. Rob Lorifice, Carlsbad, Calif., 80.25.

9. Bucky Lasek, Baltimore, Md., 75.75.

10. Danny Mayer, Omaha, Neb., 64.50.  
 
AST Dew Tour Season Standings
 
Skateboard Vert Points
 
1. Shaun White, 300.

2. Bob Burnquist, 201.

3. Bucky Lasek, 168.

4. Andy Macdonald, 167.

5. Pierre-Luc Gagnon, 162.

6. Rune Glifberg, 131.

7. Alex Perelson, 108.

8. Mathias Ringstrom, 107.

9. Rob Lorifice, 107.

10. Danny Mayer, 105.  

Skate Vert Prelims Results

Determined to prove he’s as serious about his skateboarding career as he’s been about snowboarding, Shaun White showed up in Portland ready to continue the AST Dew Tour streak he started in Baltimore back in June and carried through to Cleveland in July.

Fresh off of yet another win in Los Angeles at X Games 13 earlier this month, White dominated Skate Vert Prelims at the Vans Invitational for the third stop on the 2007 Dew Tour, heading into his second run with the win already sealed and then improving his first place score of 85.25 by boosting it all the way up to a 90.00.

Commentators like Dave Duncan can’t help saying things like “Shaun White is on fire,” and not just because of his famous red hair or his current winning streak. The most accurate word to describe White’s allure is “Amplitude”. From the first hit to the last, every time he drops in, whether in practice or in competition, White is skating harder, pushing higher, spinning faster, and pulling more technical flip tricks than anyone else. More importantly – and more noticeably – White is having a tremendous amount of fun, and the roars inside the Rose Quarter during his runs are evidence that his fun is infectious.

White’s winning Prelims run included huge, floating airs off the extension, a heelflip indy to fakie, a half cab heelflip, a frontside lipslide, an enormous frontside gay twist, and a big backside 360. A victory lap to say the least.

Pierre-Luc Gagnon, and Andy Macdonald rounded out the top three, and a total of ten skaters are heading into Saturday’s Vert Finals, with Bob Burnquist, Bucky Lasek, Rob Lorifice, Danny Mayer, Jean Postec, Alex Perelson, and Rune Glifberg also in the mix.

Glifberg is another skater on fire this year. He won the Golden Otter and the Crown Royale, as well as this year’s Vans Pro-Tec Pool Party, putting him in second place in the overall 2007 Pro Bowl rankings for World Cup Skateboarding-sanctioned events. He finished in 10th place in Prelims and is currently in 6th in the overall Dew Tour standings.

Stay tuned: The pros on the Dew Tour have all become big fans of Shaun White themselves, but they’d also like to see somebody step up to his ring of fire.

Prelims Results

1. White, Shaun 90.00
2. Gagnon, Pierre-Luc 84.50
3. Macdonald, Andy 83.50
4. Burnquist, Bob 82.50
5. Lasek, Bucky 82.50
6. Lorifice, Rob 80.25
7. Mayer, Danny 79.75
8. Postec, Jean 79.75
9. Perelson, Alex 79.50
10. Glifberg, Rune 79.25
11. Dufour, Max 78.25
12. Furlong, Anthony 78.00
13. Dias, Sandro 77.50
14. Ringstrom, Mathias 77.50
15. Hendrix, Neal 75.25
16. Halterman, Buster 66.50
17. Gentry, Chris 64.00
18. Taylor, Adam 58.75
19. Ueda, Lincoln 51.00

--Press Release