What can I say? It's cold and crappy here with wind gusts around 6000 miles an hour but, besides that, everything is going well I guess. I mean, come on, it's April 20th and what should be an annual celebration of nature and springtime turned out to be another chance to break out the winter coats. But the show must go on, unless you're a bike vert guy who's competition is postponed until tomorrow, and most of the guys were out there ripping despite the conditions.

Chad Fernandez warming it up on the rail.

In the skateboarding park prelim, New Deal rider Fabrizio Santos seems to be leading the pack in qualifying scores. Fabrizio, who is a relatively new face to ESPN comps, put together a solid technical run and seemed to put in more practice time than almost any other skater. Emerica rider Chris Senn, winner of the Anaheim comp, seemed a little slow to adapt to the redesigned course but you really never know what Senn can pull off until he unleashes during the final which are slated for tomorrow afternoon.

In the Bicycle Stunt Flatland Prelim and Final, legend Trevor Meyer seemed to be putting together some good stuff, but in the end it was Matt Wilhelm and Martti Kuoppa battling it out in one of the most exciting finals I've seen in some time. Matt, who threw down what was very possibly the best run of his life, barely beat out Martti in an extra tiebreaker round. Big props to Matt for his first win in an ESPN or Hoffman BS competition.

Senior Powell in the flat land finals.

In extracurricular event activity: the town of Louisville is poised to go off like a roman candle in the next 24 hours. For the greater part of today, it seemed a little more like Da Nang than Kentucky as helicopters and low flying planes buzzed the riverside practicing for tomorrow night's Thunder over Louisville. Thunder, is the kick-off bonanza that last several weeks long and leads up to the party of all parties, The Kentucky Derby. Tomorrow night is the peak of Thunder and includes one of the biggest fireworks displays in the country and the entire state comes out to check it out.

Personally, I'm kind of scared because a not so commonly known condition dubbed drunkus mulletemus is quite common in this region and it's not funny contrary to what many think (see Shane Mckonkey at the Action Sports and Music Awards). Sure, they're fun to look at, sure they're cool to joke about getting, and in some cases' sure it's fun to get the clippers out and start chopping when one of your friends pass out. However, I assure you it's a dangerous phenomenon, especially when you mix copious amounts of alcohol and explosives. Even though there is a little fear and apprehension about what may occur in the next two days, we at EXPN are in it to bring you the real scoop, thus we plan on addressing the pressing issue so keep tuning in.

Martti Kuoppa plays spin to win.

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