Willis Kimball Wins Skate and Overall Ultimate Boarder® Champion Chad Shetler Takes Home $25,000 at Saturday’s Skateboard Finale
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Santa Barbara, California (April 9, 2011) – On a picture-perfect, sunny day at Seaside Reef in Cardiff, Calif., Dana Point’s Chad Shetler sealed his third straight victory as the reigning Ultimate Boarder Champion. By finishing fourth in the final skateboarding leg on the vert/mini ramp, Shetler took home not only bragging rights as the best all around board sports athlete on snow, surf and skate ramp, but he also pocketed $25,000 out of a $50,000 purse prize.
“ I am incredibly stoked to have come out on top, especially since this was the toughest year of competition yet in terms of the high caliber of athletes and the rough elements,” said Shetler.
“Overall it was a pretty amazing week, and getting to miss work to go snowboarding, surfing and skateboarding, is definitely something you can’t beat,” added Shetler who has a full time job in the marketing department at LOST, an action sports company based in Orange County.
For fans that came out to watch, it was an action packed day with over 50 athletes competing on the vert/mini ramp putting on an impressive display of performance maneuvers from technical grinds to big aerial maneuvers.
From young groms like Tom Schaar who won the youth division in skateboarding to today’s overall winner, Willis Kimball, and legendary skateboarder Steve Caballero who individually took first place in the team pro/am division, there was never a dull moment on the ramp.
“I think what’s so amazing about this event is that it brings legends with young kids who can beat guys twice their age and lets them all shine,” said competitor Bryan Richardson of San Diego, Calif.
“Today’s event is proof that fans and athletes alike love being able to watch and participate in all three sports. After all, surfing helps your skating, skating helps your snowboarding and vice versa,” he added.
At the end of the day, there was an award’s ceremony crowning today’s overall skateboard winners as well as the overall winners after the entire board sports triathlon. The awards ceremony ended with a few bottles of champagne being poured over Ultimate Boarders’s overall winner Chad Shelter as well as the second and thirds place overall Ultimate Boarder® Champions Trevor Jacob and Shayne Pospisil.
“This was by far the best year yet,” said event founder Tim Hoover. “I have never seen so much excitement from the fans and athletes at one event. I already have people calling me from France, Australia and in Asia to compete next year.”
The top ten overall placing athletes earned automatic entries for next year’s Ultimate Boarder® Championship. Along with Shetler, Trevor Jacob, Shayne Pospisil, Ricky Lovato, Tosh Towned, Bryce Young, Adam Taylor, Brian Richardson, Josh Morse, and BJ Linne all have reserved spots in the fifth annual Ultimate Boarder®.
Fans can check out the action from today and the rest of the week online at www.ultimateboarder.com,
Ultimate Boarder® is sponsored by San Disk, Flexfit, Kona Brewing Company and Mammoth Mountain. The event benefits Free Wheelchair Mission http://www.freewheelchairmission.org, a non-profit that transforms lives through the gift of mobility.
FOR MORE INFORMATION, PICTURES, OFFICIAL RESULTS, AND ATHLETE BIOS:
Please visit www.ultimateboarder.com.
