SacTown
came out in force Saturday night to see the aerial assault on display as the
Gravity Slashers took to the floor of the Arco Arena. Things jumped off quickly with Shawn Nielson
going upside down twice in his run, including a nac flip that helped him score
an impressive 85.8. Our second
competitor was the tenacious Keith Sayers.
“Say Ya” had his best run of the year, 86.8, and it won’t be long before
he finds himself back in the finals.
Derek Burlew wasn’t able to crack the top 4 Friday and was looking for a
little redemption on Saturday. He pulled
out all the stops doing an impressive cliff hanger and a perfect double grab
Hart attack look back. His 89.9 had him
on the bubble with two riders left in the first half. Dustin Nowak broke cover next and had a solid
run but came up short of the number for a transfer spot posting an 86.4. Rich Kearns finished things up for us and
laid down the top preliminary score with a 92.5.
Heath
Frisby brought his Ski-Doo out for the fans to admire during our first break
and did a couple of basic tricks. He
came to the landing ramp for a quick chat and the crowd seemed to really enjoy
hearing from the best trick gold medalist.
He promised to come back after the Subway Restaurant finals and get
inverted for the fans at Arco Arena. He
made good but upped the ante a little by bringing Nick Dunne and Keith Sayers
to the floor with him for a triple flip which they pulled off perfectly.
The
second half of qualifiers started off with the local kid Nick Dunne. Nicky took his time getting started and I
know he was feeling a little added pressure being so close to home but the
crowd was fully behind him. He kept it
together nicely and made his way to the finals with a 91.5. Drake McElroy rolled next and kept the crowd
pumped for a total of 87.0. Julian
Dusseau went to the floor hoping to advance from his new starting spot 8th. He is used to going first and the extra time
waiting obviously served him well because he locked up the second qualifying
spot with a 91.8. Greg Hartman got funky
with the crowd dancing on his bike to “Low” to start his run off. He was feelin’ it but again tonight came up
one trick short and was only able to post an 86.9. The last rider vying for a spot in the finals
was Brody Wilson. The “Wilson Express”
started strong but a dead sailor hurt his chances for the finals and he was
only able to put up an 84.0.
The
crowd was pumped and with all the noise they were making we had them judge for
the whip contest. Burlew, Dunne, DMC,
Dusseau and Wilson all set up for bragging rights tonight. “Six guns”, Wilson and Dusseau put up good
whips but the crowd was feeling DMC and Burlew.
The loudest cheer of the season decided our winner and it turned out to
be DB.
After
his win in the whip contest Burlew had to make a quick turn and be the first
guy out for the Subway Restaurants finals.
He made a serious bid for the win by throwing in a BASE jump to score a
90.3. The kid from just down the block,
Nicky Dunne came out next to a rousing ovation and slammed it from start to
finish hitting a super flip and a BASE jump as well. The judges agreed with the crowd and gave
“Six Guns” a 93.0. Dusseau ran third and
worked in a side show and a no footed can to heel clicker but he came up short
with his 92.0. Rich Kearns smoked the
tires on his way out of the tunnel and mixed in a cordova flip along with
stripper flip on his way to a 92.3, but that wasn’t enough for the win giving
Nick Dunne his first win of the year.
The
crowd was awesome here in Sacramento and the riders to a man said they had a
great time. We are headed to Phoenix, AZ
next week and you should get you tickets now!
Stop by Gravity Slashers on Facebook and say hello, if you have any
questions or comments e-mail me at
mxannouncer@hotmail.com
.
David Knisley