The competition is over. The party is over. The fun is over. Many athletes are heading back home to start work or school again and get back to their normal lives. A couple skaters lives will never be the same. They made it all the way through to the end and won the whole package.

It all started about 7 months ago when the tour kicked off in San Antonio Texas. The competition ramps followed alongside numerous vans full of Rock Stars and band equipment all around the USA and into Canada for several stops. Then they took the tour over sees to Europe and Australia & New Zealand. They signed up talented amateurs along the way who were the winners of the respective Vert and Street competitions to fly in to these here World Championships in Ontario California at the brand spankin new Vans Skatepark.

Upon arrival into Ontario the skaters were greeted to a slice of the So. Cal Badlands. They dont have that name for nothing. Warm winter air, brown skies, barren landscape are all most of the competitors saw of Southern California since they were housed in the hotel across the parking lot from the skatepark without any outside transportation. A few of them did manage to escape the confines of the mall/skatepark and the hotel and were treated to several area back yard pools that were nearby.

But on Saturday the partying was over and it was time to get down to business. The 1st heat of the street began at 11:00 a.m. after a morning practice session. It was time for many to shake of hangovers and lack of sleep and focus on doing the best tricks they could. 39 names were on the roster which was divided into 4 heats with the top 10 escaping to the Cage Match. A lot of guys who pulled insane tricks were cut right out. Technical ability and consistency were the rulers of today. Even Josh Spencer from St. Louis pulled by far the best trick and didnt make it. (see video clip of his monstrous ollie to noseslide).

After the heats were over and the top ten finalists were announced the finals were soon underway. It was over before we knew it and Colt Cannon from Oakland Ca. Took home the title. He definitely had a great ride as did many others.

2000 Street Finals

1. COLT CANNON, Oakland, CA.
2. P.J. LADD, N. Hampton, MD.
3. JASON BLOME, Asbury Park, NJ.
4. NICK LISTER, Waihi Beach, N.Z.
5. PATRICK MELCHER, Chicago, IL.
6. MISCHA ZWAAN
7. JASON SCHMALE, San Antonio, TX.
8. DAN MACFARLANE, Houston, TX.
9. DAN AUGUSTINE, Dallas, TX.
10. AVI LUZIA, Los Angeles, CA.

As for the vert, there were many dedicated riders who were quite a bit disappointed with the ramp. Tight and elliptical transitions were not optimal for the riders. I also dropped in and skated for a little while the night before and the trannys along with the coping were cumbersome obstacles to overcome to say the least. The vert dogs had come from around the globe to compete on a far less than top notch ramp. I personally think the Vans Park in Oranges ramp would have rocked.

Daniel Ehara pleased the judges outright, but it was great to see such mixed up results. They showed that vert is all over the map and still being practiced on a regular basis. Shout outs to the riders who continue their dedication.

2000 Vert Amateur

1. DANIEL EHARA, Orlando, FL.
2. THOMAS MADSEN, Copenhagen, DK.
3. PETER KING, Kent, GB.
4. SHAUN WHITE, San Diego, CA.
5. PEDER MEWIS, Minnapolis, MN.
6. MIKE SPERANZA, Cleveland, OH
7. BRIAN DRAKE, Washington, D.C.
8. SHANE SERENA, Kereela, AUS.
9. CHUCK POWELL, Atlanta, GA.
10. CRAIG WHITEHEAD, Los Angeles, CA.