Thursday, May 2

Boom Boom Huckjam Kickoff

By Hezekiah Blake
EXPN.com

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For me, a skateboard enthusiast, it is difficult to know where to begin this tale. I am now 27 years old and have 24 years (on and off) of my own skateboarding memories. My father bought me my two most important boards…the first (when I was 3) was an oval plank with clay wheels and real ball bearings and then my first pro model, a Santa Cruz Jeff Kendall with Gullwing trucks, 2 green, and 2 black Slimeballs, when I was 12. I saw Mr. Hawk do a Mctwist in my hometown in the eighties, I remember The Search for Animal Chin and at 13 I had a long meaningful conversation with a seldom-remembered Canadian freestyler named Kevin Harris. I wore a Bones Brigade t-shirt to picture day in the seventh grade. It is hard to determine the point in my life when skateboarding stopped being a pastime and became a way of life.

But I digress...on to Tony Hawk's Boom Boom HuckJam. The idea of combining action sports and alternative music has been kicked around quite a bit over the years. It proved difficult to find someone capable of putting up the money necessary to put the nation's best athletic talent together with recognized musical talent and putting it on the road. No one would step up to the plate, even Tony was doubtful. But, after visiting the 2001 Summer X Games in Philadelphia, he was convinced…the ball was rolling.

The crew gets ready for the show.

After months of planning, custom construction of a one-of-a-kind, portable ramp system (custom steel and European Birch), countless hours of negotiation, and a couple of schedule changes, the ramps were done. The talent began to arrive…Tony Hawk, Bob Burnquist, Andy Macdonald and Shaun White showed to represent the skateboard community. Mat Hoffman, Dave 'Miracle Man' Mirra,Dennis 'DMC' McCoy,Kevin Robinson and John Parker rounded out the BMX delegation. FMX had a diverse lineup; Carey 'Hart Attack' Hart, Clifford 'the flyin' Hawaiian' Adoptante (M. Dymond later stood in for Clifford), Ronnie Faisst, and Mike Cinqmars were on hand to knock the roof off the rehearsal hangar.

The event floor is 95% covered by the custom ramps that Tony wrote the check for. The outer oval is a track with 2 huge moto jumps so the guys can jump OVER the vert ramp. Inside the moto track, just as Smaug left it when he went to terrorize Rivendale, lives the treasure…simply put, there are two full-sized vert ramps separated by a fairly wide channel on one side and connected by a bridge of death on the other side. The track for the long jump runs through the channel between the twin towers of vert.

Social Distortion rocks it as the riders take it in.

The Las Vegas show opened with each of the performers in a separate spotlight. This flowed into a two-minute intro in which everyone took part. The lights go down and you find yourself humming along to 'Sentimental Journey' as you see several "viruses" cleaning the ramps. Beautiful women in skintight sliver suits are positioned around the arena with cards to announce the next act…BMX. The ramps are rocked by the fury of the Condor, the Miracle Man, DMC, Kevin Robinson and John Parker. The Condor flew in while Mirra showed off the style that has made him a consistent top ranked finisher. Kevin Robinson departed from his trademarked white attire and showed up in a red outfit and turning in an amazing performance after a soft fall early on. Kevin's corkscrews are something of which I shall never tire.

The fembots show the next action card…Skate. Tony is on, and like Felix, he came with his bag of tricks. Bob flows like only he can, Andy Mac lands 4 consecutive flip tricks. At one point, Lincoln airs his four fellows. Everyone seemed at ease with the entire width of the ramp, the channel and the bridge of death don't present an obstacle to the boys. Shaun White, although he views himself as a snowboarder, is one to watch. At 15 he makes easy work of the monster vert ramp.

The action was so fast we couldn't catch it on film.

After another viral cleansing, it is time for FMX. It is amazing when the right person combines a motorcycle, some testosterone, and an indoor venue. This was my first time this close to FMX and it changed my perspective. I am a believer. Mike Cinqmars, who is coming off a broken back last year, was in rare form. Hart killed the crowd with his signature Hart Attack. One of the originators of FMX, Mickey Dymond made an impressive showing. In my opinion, the FMX show crown goes to Ronnie Faisst…his style can make you weak in the knees. Halfway through a seemingly innocent jump, he would throw a fat Indian Air or Superman to it's fullest extension, then hop back on the bike in the nick of time to land.

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Related Photos:
Huckjam Scene Photos
Huckjam Backstage Photos