Tim Brauch Memorial Contest XIV

Posted on September 23, 2012 by Ozzie Ausband

It was a bright sun that met us early this morning at the Lake Cunningham Skate Park. The Tim Brauch Memorial Contest was in its fourteenth year and there was going to be some serious bowl destruction to commemorate the man and his special place in our world. The ladies, Ams, Masters and Pros would be hitting it hard all day. The ladies rolled and Lizzie Armanto crushed it. I didn’t feel that the ladies received a fair contest. It was kept short and they were all placed together. It didn’t really showcase what they could actually do. We were on a time constraint, so I understood. It will be nice when the ladies get a fair venue to really show the world what they can do and how important they are for skateboarders everywhere.

Lizzie Armanto- Back D

All the heats were heavy in the Ams and Tristan Rennie dominated. He was really throwing down some heavy tricks and his lines were amazing. Griffin Chase tore the bowl up and ended in 2nd and a teflon-smooth Bobo ended up in 3rd. When Bobo was riding, I was smiling… he is rad!

Tristan Rennie- Madonna

The Masters was unreal. Steve Caballero defended the title and really lit the place up. He stood on the podium triumphant. Mike McGill stood tall beside him in 2nd Place. Mike threw down a super gnarly McTwist in his final run. It was really something to see! Eddie Elguera was flowing through the pool like water. He made some serious trick combinations and was inspiring to watch. Eddie ended up 3rd and it was well-deserved. He ripped!

Steve Caballero -flying into victory.

Mike McGill- McTwist

Eddie Elguera- Front Rock

The Pro riders were on a tear. There was so much going down that half the time, I was standing and yelling. These guys were going crazy and staying on everything. In the end, Michael Brookman, Josh Rodriguez and Sky stood on the podium respectively.

Michael Brookman- enroute to 1st Place Pro

Josh Rodriguez- Saran Wrap banger

Sky- the name fits perfectly

Daniel Cuervo- Tuck-knee Invert.

Criss-cross absurdity. When is enough enough?

Daniel Cuervo was ripping hard and took a serious slam after colliding with someone. When will we stop hurting each other? I saw a good deal of disrespect this week. Riders dropping in and snaking legends and each other… while in the middle of a run! I saw groms unregulated. I saw Daniel Cuervo flying head high and another rider just rolling right into the deep end with him. Oblivious. Collision. Daniel was hurt but came back around. He ended in 5th place and I am very stoked he is okay. My pool pal Josh Stafford took a mean slam but kept at it as well. It was a great event and WCS pulled off another fine contest. A bit of advice though… Please regulate. I don’t like seeing my friends getting hurt. Tim Brauch lives on in the memory of all the riders and I’m sure he was smiling down on us all day long. Thanks to MRZ for the images. Skate- Ozzie

Parting shot: one of my favorites- Josh Stafford. FS Boneless

Tim Brauch Practice

Posted on September 22, 2012 by Ozzie Ausband

Daniel Cuervo- kiss the sky

Practice has been raging the last few days in anticipation of the Tim Brauch Memorial Contest. It has been super hot and super heavy. There was a few moments when we had to regulate the groms as they were dropping in on McGill, Elguera and Cabbie. They were taking three runs to each one of theirs. That just couldn’t be left alone. I had to say something. I let them have it and order quickly returned. It didn’t last. Close calls, slams and Duane Peters crushing all in his wake… he was reigning supreme.

Duane Peters- crushing.

Colton Woods- FS Invert

Tristan Rennie

Max Jenson- Indy

Colton Woods is on a tear as is Max Jenson, Tristan Rennie and a few others. There is a huge leap in ability these days. It seems that every year, more insanity is thrown down. The bar is raised. See you tomorrow at Lake Cunningham . Thanks to MRZ for the images. Skate- Ozzie

Hackett

Posted on September 20, 2012 by Ozzie Ausband

Dave Hackett

He was doing this, long before most of us. He was there at the start. Dawn. The beginning of what we now do. It must be strange to have that type of longevity. How would one view themselves and the sport that one helped create? Would there be justifiable pride in one’s accomplishments? Would one look back with bitterness on what one never received? Would one be filled with nostalgia of a bygone era when everything was fresh and new? Questions. It would be difficult. I think that with the current financial windfall and media exposure that surrounds skateboarding, it must be hard for legends like Dave Hackett and others. If it wasn’t for them, we might not have such things happening. Dave never stopped ripping. He can still roll into the Combi pool and put down lines and tricks. Yet, some of these guys get lost in the past… melancholy. Bitter victims. It’s okay. We know who you are and what you’ve given us! Thank you to Dave Hackett and legends like him that still rip and have never stopped ruling. Thanks to those that came before and paved the way. Thanks to Grant Brittain for the image. Skate- Ozzie

San Jose

Posted on September 19, 2012 by Ozzie Ausband

Malibu. Woke up early. First light over the hillsides. Angelo and I had coffee, fed the dogs and both of us went our separate ways. I took the long drive up to San Jose. I thought about the Tim Brauch Memorial contest. Tim came to Woodward years ago when I was the director there in Pennsylvania. I liked him quite a bit. He was a really great skateboarder and a wonderful spirit.

Tim Brauch

The world needs a few more people like Tim Brauch. The bad folks just seem to be digging in and making life a real problem for the rest of us! I arrived in San Jose and drove over to the Lake Cunningham Skate Park. If you haven’t been there, you should visit. It is mind-boggling in its overall awesomeness. There is virtually EVERYTHING to ride. Almost.

Steve Caballero – depending on your era, this is either a Gunnair or an Indy

This is Christian Hosoi. He is awesome! Just so you know…

Daniel Cuervo didn’t slow down and didn’t let up…

Jordan Richter was going off!

Steve Caballero, Christian Hosoi, Daniel Cuervo, Jordan Richter, Jimmy Wilkins, Archer Braun, Max Jenson and a few others were on hand to throw down an early practice session in preparation for the contest this weekend. Good stuff!

Archer Braun- floating

Max Jenson- front lip

All in all, it was a stellar first peek at some of the contest skaters. I can’t wait to see what happens tomorrow. Skate- Ozzie

Big Al

Posted on September 14, 2012 by Ozzie Ausband

Al Brunelle- BS Smith at Ridiculous

It is 104 degrees outside here in San Bernardino, Ca. It was hot at first light! Al drove over and we got a little warm up session which proved to be far too warm for either of us. We stopped and will give it a try again in the late afternoon. He wants to shoot a video sequence… We’ll keep you posted. Skate- Ozzie

Daniel

Posted on September 12, 2012 by Ozzie Ausband

Daniel Cuervo is ripping right now. We rode DC together last week as he has been practicing for the Tim Brauch contest in San Jose next week. Daniel has been landing new tricks and recently put down kickflip mutes… Nice! He has been riding daily at Carmel Valley and the Combi in preparation for the San Jose beatdown… I will be there on the deck to cheer for him and our other ztuntz rider – Al Brunelle – as they give it all the got! – Ozzie

Al Brunelle, Corbin Harris and Arto Saari- get busy in the heat.

Posted on September 6, 2012 by Ozzie Ausband

Corbin Harris – tailslide

Corbin Harris. Al Brunelle. Arto Saari, Andrew Peters and me… Pool Mission. It was July 30th. It was very hot. I think that the temperature was somewhere in the 105 degree range. By eleven am, we were dying. Sometimes, when we skate out here, we can ride and drink a ton of water and I will only pee once the entire day. The heat takes everything… Dehydration.

Al Brunelle, Arto, Corbin and me… down in the hole

Corbin getting his hands dirty

Arto Saari- back D

Al Brunelle – back Smith

Arto came out and brought a crew. We bucketed an old favorite, checked a few new ones and even hit up a pretty cool street spot on the way in between pools. Skateboarders view the world differently. Where others see obstacles, we see opportunities. They say, “I can’t.” We take the ‘T’ off the end and do something about it. I think we may have to reinvent the language of life. We are not like them. Opposites. Individuals. Spontaneous. Free.

“Hey! Pull over right here…!”

I have no business being at a street spot.

Arto Saari- front feeble

Thanks to Andrew Peters for the images. Skate and hydrate- Ozzie

diving in

Posted on September 4, 2012 by Ozzie Ausband

Al Brunelle diving in the only way he knows how

“This life is like a swimming pool. You dive into the water, but you can’t see how deep it is.” Rodman
Sometimes you have to dive right in. Problems. Resolve. Tenacity. At Aerial Action Sports, the crew has been working hard to develop new ways of dealing with old problems. We are currently working on new designs, graphics and product manufacturing that will benefit skateboarders everywhere. We have a new product line and it is ready to go. BLR, Malibu, Rove, ztuntz, Logan Earth Ski and Aerial wheels are all designed to fit varied needs. We have a product line that will cover any skating discipine. Skateboards designed and developed by skaters… for skaters. – Ozzie

hold on to what you’ve got

Posted on August 20, 2012 by Ozzie Ausband

They gathered on the horizon like a black plague. Leprous. The end of all good in this world. The buildings had turned to dust. The stars burned out. I shivered. I lit a small fire and checked the shotgun. I had five shells in and nine extra. If they came again, I’d have to be careful. This would probably be it. The last attack had been brutal. They fell back and watched as I hacked one to pieces with a shovel, lit his head on fire and stuck it on a stick as a warning. I shrieked at the godless sky in primitive fury. I don’t think they liked that too much but I didn’t really care what they thought. They pushed and now I was pushing back. I pitied them. Outside the house, I could hear them gathering… grunting, shouts, screams of the dying. Those that have escaped told stories of mind-bending horror. “They were peeling the skin off…” I stopped such thoughts and prepared myself. I took my long Gerber Mark II knife and slit my forearm lengthwise. Rivulets of blood ran onto the floor. I was surprised at the color. In the dim light it was black. “Well, one of my past lovers had called me a black-hearted bastard… I guess she was right.” I mumbled to myself and chuckled. Taking two fingers, I smeared blood across my cheeks and face. I put on my war paint as it was time to take a stand. Picking up the shotgun, I heard the rush of approaching feet as the door burst inward in a shower of wood and violence…

Grant caressing some lady finger under the glare of a San Burn wilderness

I woke up with a start… my phone was buzzing. A truck rumbled through the intersection outside. Clawing at my phone, silence soon reigned again at Ridiculous. I peered at the time. 5:53 am. I pulled myself from the bed and made coffee. I shook my head to clear away the remnants of a nightmare world. What dreams I sometimes have! I mumbled and stretched as I looked at the pool in the backyard. Pool pals were coming to visit. Devin Scott, Theo Van Bruggen, Grant, Jen, Josh Nelson, Brandon, MRZ, Chelsea and Al would be over at around nine am. Ridiculous resident and all around ruler- Bunk- was getting up and ready as well. I drank coffee and listened to Massive Attack – Angel… memories of apocalyptic battle faded with the growing dawn.

Josh Nelson- rock-n-roll

Bunk- light box

Chelsea Castro- first grinds in a backyard!

Al Brunelle- killing it!

The crew arrived and everyone was really stoked to be going out and skating. We wanted to get an early start as the temperature was already in the nineties. By noon it was going to be a brain burner. We loaded up and headed out. First pool. Fire pool. Everyone jumped in and swept and cleaned. The girls surprised everyone and quickly put lines down. Chelsea pulled her first grinds in a backyard pool. Devin, Theo and Grant threw down light box and Al hammered disasters and other insanity. Josh Nelson pulled rock-n-rolls and Bunk crushed light box. MRZ took some amazing photographs but the heat was already beginning to take its toll.

Devin Scott mauled the Triple Bubble…

Brandon Wong- deathbox… all day long.

Theo giving up some High Fivage

We headed out and stopped for refreshments. Cool beverages. Life. The next pool was going to be the Triple Bubble. Theo had been wanting to get into the Bubble since he saw us drain it last summer on the BTO. It was his turn and after a sweep and a quick cleaning, he didn’t disappoint. Side cup grinds, deathbox lappers and all around ripping were put in under the heat. The Triple Bubble has a big tree that provides welcome shade and we were all posted up trying to take advantage of this fact. Brandon Wong decided that he wasn’t going to stay on his BS deathbox attempt. The promise of a “High Five Parade” from everyone changed his mind. Minutes later, that ghost was slaughtered. Good stuff! Regardless, the heat was intense and after everyone had a good session, we headed out again… San Burn Gnar Dino. It lived up to its name.

Theo punched the shallow end silly… FS 5-0

Josh Nelson wasn’t playing around at all… BS Ollie

Jen dropped her brew just long enough to put the drop on this BS Gnarler

Big Al with a big Heelamonster- Yikes!

friends- hold on to what you’ve got… it could be much worse.

I had to leave and deal with some things but Bunk took the crew over to a nearby pool for a ten minute quickie but by then, the heat had really become unbearable. The entire day made me think of a few things. My dream had been fresh in my mind. It was of a bleak world. A world of no happiness, no love, no friends… only despair and violence. I have been around the world. I have seen things. People live in a violent world right now! War. Conflict. Catastrophe. It made me think that we might want to hold on to what we have. What we have is far better than what is brooding on the horizon. Fini. Thanks to the crew and to MRZ for the images. Skate- Ozzie