Mendes Wins DC King of Skate LA in Santa Monica

Jul 03 2007 / Santa Monica, CA

SHARE Digg it   del.icio.us   LAT34 RSS Photo Galleries   Features   Daily News

DC's King of Los Angeles Skate rolled into Santa Monica's Barker Hangar Sunday with Chris Mendes coming out on top.  Barker Hanger was the third of four stops on DC Shoes' search for the top amateur skateboarder in Los Angeles.  Last September the "King of" series kicked off in New York, and after Los Angeles, DC will hold "King of" competitions in Barcelona, Spain and Sydney, Australia.

The format for "King of" pits 25 skaters from participating LA-area skate shops against 25 skaters who earned spots through the open qualifiers Sunday morning.   About 100 skaters took part in the open qualifiers, supported by friends and family. The large Barker Hangar at the Santa Monica Airport, which has hosted numerous awards shows, was an ideal location for the competition, able to easily handle the skaters and 200+ onlookers.

While most skaters were from the greater Los Angeles area several came from farther away including San Diego and as far as San Paulo, Brazil.

PHOTO GALLERY    See some action shots from the DC King of Los Angeles comp in Santa Monica on July 1, including DC skater Danny Way (above) and the top three finishers. View Gallery>    PHOTO GALLERY    Check out some of the people who were on hand at DC's King of Los Angeles comp in Santa Monica on July 1, including DC skater Devine Calloway... View Gallery>

"The level skating is really high, it's good to see these guys who don't have any sponsors outside of being flow killing it," said Heath Brinkley, DC Team Manager,  "The level of skating has always been high in Southern California but we are definitely seeing some of the next generation come through these events."

Vince Bailie from Downey, one of the semifinalists, said, “I’m just here to have fun today and this is a good time”

It was a full showing by the DC Skate team, including Dannny Way (who, despite being injured, still hit the course), Josh Kalis, Ryan Smith, Brian Wenning, Greg Myers, Sammy Winters , Ryan Gallant and Devine Calloway, with Calloway and DC Team Manager Heath Brinkley being part of the judging team.  The Canadian and European teams were also there.

Jefferson Pang, DC Brand Manager. East Coast Skateboarding, from New York, said Sunday’s event was “Excellent, there is a great turnout today.”

"Our King of New York event last fall was great but the King of Los Angeles is just as big,” said Pang, “this is a way for DC to give back to the skate community.”

The final DC King of Los Angeles event takes place on Saturday, July 7th at Los Angeles Community College, 855 North Vermont, Los Angeles, CA starting at 9 a.m.

The top overall point leader from all four events will receive $5,000 and a customized iPod from DC Shoes.

Here are the results from the first three DC King of Los Angeles skate competitions.

DC KING OF LOS ANGELES SKATE COMPETITION WINNERS - 7.1.07 @ BARKER HANGER IN SANTA MONICA, CA

1.      Chris Mendes
2.      Keelan Dadd
3.      Javan Campello
4.      Jason Vanzant
5.      Josh Grossguth - Lancaster, CA
6.      Kyle Brogan
7.      Trevor McClung – Huntington Beach, CA
8.      Tim Thomas
9.      Taylor McClung – Huntington Beach, CA
10.   Jose Garcia – Los Angeles, CA

DC KING OF LOS ANGELES SKATE COMPETITION WINNERS – 6.24.07 @ BANCROFT MIDDLE SCHOOL IN LOS ANGELES, CA

1 - Josh Grossguth
2 - Vince Alvarez
3 - Ruby Felix
4 - Dom Johnson
5 - Mark Goode
6 - Scott Pfaff
7 - Jamason Decew
8 - Tislan Smith
9 - Tom Ryan
10 - Keelan Dadd

DC KING OF LOS ANGELES SKATE COMPETITION WINNERS – 6.23.07 @ LOCKWOOD SCHOOL IN LOS ANGELES, CA

1 - Vince Alvarez
2 - Austyn Gillette
3 - Jason Vanzan
4 - Keelan Dadd
5 - Josh Grossguth
6 - Rudy Felix
7 - Zack Wagner
8 - Craig Cring
9 - Chris De Fillip
10 - Matt Rodriguez