First Contest of 2021 UST Season Leads to First-Time Points Leader
The OBX Skim Jam provided some challenging conditions for professional men as the first skimboarding contest of the 2021 United Skim Tour season. On July 17th and 18th, the contest was held at the south end of Jennette’s Pier in Nags Head, NC. The field of 14 professional men included riders from five states on the East Coast as well as one rider from Mainland Mexico.
On Saturday morning, the contest area on the south side of the pier was hindered by a significant sandbar on the outside surf break. This sandbar meant decent sized waves broke far out of reach, occasionally reforming on the inside. As a result, the qualifying round one of the professional men saw a dizzying array of technical combinations as riders sought to rack up points with various shuvits and spins. Round one highlights included Naji Taha who pulled one of the only frontside 360 shuvits of the weekend as he took a unique, calculated approach to the conditions.
By round two, the wind started to pick up considerably, leading many riders to veer away from shuvits and instead take to the air. Gerardo Valencia was one who took this approach, and he was rewarded by the judges, performing a variety of airs in his heat scoring 18.8 points in the highest heat total of the round. Ryan McFarland also looked to use his air game, landing multiple backside 360s alongside local rider Perry Pruitt, both of whom advanced to round three. Derek Shenton had a notable performance in his heat, but unfortunately suffered a serious heel bruise leading to his early removal from the contest.
The quarter finals on Sunday morning saw head-to-head matchups. In the first heat McFarland took down Valencia in a major upset, an indication of things to come. Both Lucas McCoy and Sam McCoy made it through the quarters, setting up a sibling rivalry heat in the semi finals. Likewise, the local favorite Pruitt scored over 19 points in his heat over Chester Burnett, securing Pruitt’s spot in the final four.
McFarland continued his run in the semis, defeating the local favorite Pruitt by just 0.3 points. It seemed McFarland focused on consistency, leading him to perhaps the biggest upset of the weekend. Lucas McCoy defeated his brother Sam in a similarly close heat in the Semis, leaving just Lucas McCoy and McFarland head to head for the final heat.
McFarland peaked at the right time in the final, scoring the highest heat total of the entire contest. He completed nearly every ride, and increased the difficultly of his tricks and combinations as the heat went on, securing his lead over Lucas McCoy. For the first time in his professional career, McFarland is at the top of the UST points leaderboard.
Pro Men Results
- Ryan McFarland
- Lucas McCoy
- Perry Pruitt
- Sam McCoy
Words by David Haefele
On site notes provided by Brett Mahon
Photos: Maggie Fernandez photography (IG | Web)