EASTERN
SWING
For the past few years the Kona Variflex Pro/Am held at Kona Skatepark in
Jacksonville, Florida has brought together the best vertical skaters from both
coasts, and just about everywhere in between.
What started out as more of a showcase for West Coast talent on tour, notably
the Variflexers in the days of Eddie Elguera and the famous Grisham/Hirsch
doubles team, has grown into a major annual event. Every year the California
kids return to Kona to find a stronger contingency of eastern challengers
ripping the ramp, local park regulars as well as traveling skaters from distant
locales meet to skate and have fun.
One such caravan of skaters that makes the annual trek eastward is
Jeff Newton and his wild pack of skatenecks from Dallas, Texas. This year
we decided to tag along on with Newtron, John Gibson and Craig Johnson as
they skated their way through Jacksonville and completed an eastern swing
that became loosely dubbed the "Thrasher Summer Tour '83
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The trip included a
Jaunt down to St. Petersburg for a ramp jam with the Pros on the
beautiful St. Pete ramp with owner John Grigley and skatrepreneur Paul
Schmitt hosting. From there our skate tourists embarked on a ramp to ramp,
criss cross of the southeast, meeting and sessioning with a slew of skate
characters and locals along the way, and finally turning back only after street
skating the avenues of New York City. Let's drop in on Newtron's diary of the
trip from day 1.
Clockwise from top left Salad Mary at
Knoxville John Gibson boning up at
Somer's Point, Ohio. Lester Kasai on the
Kona hallpipe Mark Rogowski, sweat
session, daytime practice at Kona. Craig
Johnson rims the Bro' Bowl near St
Pete Tony Hawk takes a fakie olie fight
over the St. Pete channel. Far left: The
new Ramp Ranch Il, stilted and complete
with a clubhouse rollout
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