April was a depressing month for the East Coast. The spring brought its usual share of rain, and an unusual amount of 40-degree temps that drove the thrillseekers of spring inside to rent The Sixth Sense. May came last week and I was still in pants and a sweatshirt.

Then came time for CFB Round Two, and the weather went straight to East Coast summer. That entails humidity, sunburns and helmets that hold your sweat like a sponge. Now put these conditions in a 70,000 square foot skatepark with no ventilation, add massive amounts of dust and dirt, and you've got the spot on conditions of Mat Hoffman's Crazy Freakin' Biker Series Round Two.

Inside Utopia Park International

Yes, it was a tad uncomfy for those attending, and even worse for those riding, but it was still an amazing weekend with top notch riding from all four events (flatland, dirt, vert, street). And when all was said and done a sweaty body and dust inhalation were your only drawbacks to having a great time.

The never-ending weekend began on Thursday with flatland, drawing the largest collection of international riders to compete during the course of the weekend. The humidity flew, sunblock was applied, and 25 riders competed for the $7,000 purse.

New faces in the line of competing riders included NorCal local Kerry Gatt, who placed fourth with turbine whiplashes and brakeless back wheel walkarounds. And from across the globe was Finland's Martti Kuoppa, who hasn't competed in the U.S. since the '98 X Games. Well, Martti made his inaugural contest in the states for 2000 a good one; he took first place with a wild assortment of tricks that only Martti is capable of. This time out, Martti made good on one-handed steamrollers kickflipped into wheelchairs and a ton of other original tricks.

Mat Hoffman/Jay Eggleston

Dirt followed on Friday, after scrambling to build a course in a matter of hours before the contest began. It was rough and dusty, and the wind made it worse. So after hosing down the jumps, everyone was happy, until the hose broke. Some things never go the way you planned, but the contest prevailed anyhow.

Several guys rode well and deserve recognition, including 14-yearold Andre Ellison, who pulled a massive tailwhip jump over the first set. Huffy's Todd Lyons, transferred spine style with 360's and no handers. Australia's Steve McCann just flowed with great trail style.

Hometown boy Chris Doyle, was on and no one could stop him. Chris rides without a competitive edge, and always seems to have a blast just riding with his friends. Of course, he's also more dialed than anyone, pulling turndown 360's and attempting turndown 360's to barpsin, making DK and Raleigh darn happy. Good job, Chris! Next up was vert.

Mike Laird

The great thing about CFB comps is they offer a chance to witness riders that you usually don't see in contests, and pro vert was no exception. England's Shaun Eglington, Las Vegas local Josh Lavietes and Specialized rider Jeremy Fanberg are all names that you usually don't see in contest results, but they all rode amazing proving their worthiness on vert here.

Taking the win was none other than the producer of the CFB series, Mat Hoffman. He is beyond good; you'll have to wait for the show to air to witness all that he is capable of. Another familiar name is that of the T- bird, Rick Thorne, who put down his microphone for a vert session, ending up with a 5th place finish. And you thought he just hosted EXPN's "X 2Day" because he has cool hair. Shame on you!

The climax of the weekend was street, with a combined entry of about 100 riders between the pros and ams. It was a long day, filled with technical difficulties and tons of Gatorade. The pros took the course around 7:30 PM, and they made the long day of sweating well worth it.

Rob Nolli/Adam Aloise

Dave Mirra participated with only one thing in mind: a double backflip. And yes, he pulled it, making CFB history for pulling the first double loop in a contest. WOW!!!! Dave decided that was all he wanted to do, so he pulled it and took it easy for the remainder of the day. Gary Fisher's Adam Aloise took third, with too many original lines, including a one-handed 5-0 grind to one-handed barspin sprocket transfer over the spine. Smooth and controlled are all I can say about Adam.

Taking second was Nirve's Mike Laird, who is semi-local to the park. Mike attacked the jump box with the highest 360 tailwhips ever seen, and a barspin to fufanu on a sub box. Mike rode awesome. Yet again, first place in the CFB comp pro street went to GT's Rob Nolli, who came up to the park weeks earlier to figure out his smooth lines, including a nosepick to barspin transfer over the sub box into the street course.

Somewhere around 10 PM, I finally left the never-ending contest and the humidity of the skatepark. I was glad to relax but craved more of the Utopia skatepark. If you get the chance, go. You won't be sorry. It's well worth the price of sweat, sunburns, and dust inhalation. Of course, you could also just tune into Mat Hoffman's "Crazy Freakin Biker Series" this month to see what you missed, a great contest and an amazing place to ride. See you in Woodward for Round 3. Now go take advantage of the nice weather, before it's winter again.