The Kids Are Alright: Tenth Stop Recap

The unpredictable mixed bag of North Vancouver weather—fog, heavy snow, hail and only a few sun patches—couldn’t put the brakes on the Mt. Seymour stop of the Vans Hi-Standard Event on Saturday. Maybe it was the incredible level of riding here, or guest MC Renee Renee hyping everyone up but something awesome was going down at the only event series in the world where style is everything and no spins over a 720 are allowed.

“Seeing those kids today riding into the jumps one after another on new shapes riding with so much style was impressive,” said Vans pro Pelosi. “It's nice to see a contest not so focused on results, and it seemed like everyone was taken care of by the Vans crew.”

By that Pelosi means cold, hard cash. She and fellow Vans pro Jake Kuzyk were on hand to help hand out 2,000 $5-bills to all worthy competitors for reaching into their bags of tricks.

Like all other stops of the Vans Hi-Standard Series the day was broken up into two parts: a Big Air-style jam and the Van Doren Rail Best Trick, where another $500 would be up for grabs. The jump section featured two different take-off options, a 25 and 45-footer to make it fun for everyone. The rail section was made up of a flat tube, a down rail, and a down rail with a donkey, which was just asking for transfers.

“The best part of snowboarding is the camaraderie and fun, and today showcased that perfectly,” Pelosi said, summing up the day.

Up-and comer Finn Finestone took home lots of $5-ers and earned MVP for his great style and killer board control all day. The 12-year-old, whose dad Brian is the terrain park manager at Whistler Blackcomb, is definitely one to watch in the future.

In the afternoon’s Van Doren Rail Best Trick portion of the event, it was Truth Smith who grabbed $200 for his badass Noseslide Pretzel Out the on down rail in the 15 and Under division. And in the 16 and Up category, Sam Newman’s mouthful of a monster trick—a Frontside 180 to Switch 50-50 on the Flat Tube, Transfer to Down Rail, Switch 50-50, Cab 360 out—earned him the $300 in cash.

The Vans Hi-Standard Most Improved Rider went to Varvara Krasneva and the Worst Bail of the day went to Dexter Norris.

This stop’s House of Vans Art Workshop featured Vancouver artist, Ali Bruce, putting down some of the most delicious designs of the series on a giant pizza-covered Vans Sk8-Hi. Though eventually raffled off to one lucky winner, Sam Neumann—it was actually every participant who won today since they each got to take home their own free pair of Vans Sk8-His featuring their own custom wearable artwork. Artists Oscar Tweet, Tomas Danco and Jill McDonald were all recognized for their great designs.

And with Vans Canada BC Sales Rep Stefan Goulet, on the waffle iron throughout the day everyone from kids and parents went home with bellies full of tasty batter.