Okay, so having got over the worst of my sunburn and a week of work back in the real world I've got a few minutes to sit down and say a few thank you's I said dehydrated and exhausted last Sunday evening, but with a bit more thought, and hyperlinks! I had a ton of fun over the weekend, and I hope you all did as well!
Firstly, a huge amount of thanks to you lot: The riders who came along and skated in all conditions from hail to burning sun, were patient while three ambulances (2 more than any other Hog Hill ever I think) removed the carnage from the tracks, rode hard and got rad in all the disciplines and generally misbehaved just the right amount for the situation the entire weekend. All us organisers hope you all had a rad time!
Thanks to Sam and Rob, who have been the masterminds behind the organisation and the posting of content on the lead up to the Crackling, who organised the slalom and generally kept things together, and to Jorge for keeping things going sideways in the rescheduled slide jam, and MC'ing the racing. Also, Thanks to Louise who got you all signed up and looked after your stuff in the secondhand shop, and Tom and Robyn for marshalling the bottom of the hill during the races. The centre staff were ace, so thanks to Sylvia and her team for keeping us nourished or in the recovery position, as necessary!
And so onto the sponsors!
Thrill Magazine's edit went up fast! As the official coverage of the event, and provider of some prizes, check these guys out. Their goal is to better network and stoke the UK scene, and they're doing an ace job. Video's above here, innit.
Octane Sport stepped up to the mark with a huge amount of support for the event, covering everything form the slide jam through to the open class slalom through to some awesome extras for the grom who tidied the most litter and the youngest rider of the weekend! Check out the Grip Shack, a grip-dedicated spinoff from Octane that also put in a bunch of prizes.
Newton's Shred were also in attendance in full force; with some Jay and silent Bob Mc'ing and a shop that survived outside in the hail storm, the guys put prizes in to the pot for grom, mini moto and open. Their plans for a secret saturday Rom Skatepark bash would have added an extra chunk to the weekend's proceedings, but the rain had other ideas. I think there'll be a lot of riders up for it next time round!
Mindless Longboards have gone from strength to strength, their new voodoo range being the source of trucks and wheels we had the pleasure of handing out - Talisman trucks and their own version of built-in bearings are becoming a favourite.
The only physical everyday shop of the lot, Longboards UK (based in Camden) found us some cadillac bearings and wheels and a set of venom tweakers which were shared between slide jam and grom prizes. As an importer of Madrid gear, check them out for anything venom/caddilac/madrid/related, or pop in and chat to the guys next time you skate past.
Bournlands, one of the newer shops on the scene found a rather delicious looking Blue Sky Lotus deck to give away, taken by 1st place grom (the lucky git!)
Octane Sport stepped up to the mark with a huge amount of support for the event, covering everything form the slide jam through to the open class slalom through to some awesome extras for the grom who tidied the most litter and the youngest rider of the weekend! Check out the Grip Shack, a grip-dedicated spinoff from Octane that also put in a bunch of prizes.
Newton's Shred were also in attendance in full force; with some Jay and silent Bob Mc'ing and a shop that survived outside in the hail storm, the guys put prizes in to the pot for grom, mini moto and open. Their plans for a secret saturday Rom Skatepark bash would have added an extra chunk to the weekend's proceedings, but the rain had other ideas. I think there'll be a lot of riders up for it next time round!
Mindless Longboards have gone from strength to strength, their new voodoo range being the source of trucks and wheels we had the pleasure of handing out - Talisman trucks and their own version of built-in bearings are becoming a favourite.
The only physical everyday shop of the lot, Longboards UK (based in Camden) found us some cadillac bearings and wheels and a set of venom tweakers which were shared between slide jam and grom prizes. As an importer of Madrid gear, check them out for anything venom/caddilac/madrid/related, or pop in and chat to the guys next time you skate past.
Bournlands, one of the newer shops on the scene found a rather delicious looking Blue Sky Lotus deck to give away, taken by 1st place grom (the lucky git!)
Also on the roster and needing no intro and generating their own retro revival hype were Kryptonics, with 2 sets of wheels going to the open class riders, BTR leathers giving away teeshirts, Holesom pucks, Tempest clothing and of course Dangerous Decks with their Mini Motos.
Boom! There you have it. Results and more sponsor details will follow in the coming days and weeks. Remember, the facebook page is still active and the media can be found there until i do the media dump posts!
Peace, Love, Skateboarding and late nights!
Timmy