The Empire Games is a 2 stop series of unconventional skateboard contest concentrated on thinking outside the box and having fun. The second stop for 2016 was the “Drop Of Doom” on Aug 27th in Montreal, Quebec. The concept for the event was quite simple, highest drop in wins, 12” blocks were added to a 10-foot-high transition in a pyramid formation until we reach the maximum drop in point.
We saw some epic slams and makes throughout the day however it was Phil Dulude who came out on top with a mind blowing 20ft drop in, Leon Chapdelaine and Jordan Gallant tied for second dropping in from 18th.
Honorable mentions:
Highest Switch Drop In – Cody Cormier & Leon Chapdelaine – 13ft
Highest Roll In – Phil Dulude – 14ft
What a tremendous return for Jever Fun Wake The Line 2016. Beautiful 30+ degree weather, 10 000+ fans (Sold Out) and 24 of the best riders in the world battling it out!
With a stacked group of riders, the head to head format in the first and second rounds were very intense.
The UNIT Parktech presented course was packed full of features which added a lot of creativity and different lines to everyone’s runs. The first gap included two identical WTL UNIT custom features with dual Andy Kolb Signature Series TWO incline boxes, (for the wakeskaters) and a Nissan Navara truck with a Jever Fun bottle on top. Talking about options off the kicker… we saw a variation of tricks like Nico’s BS 7 or Blake’s B1 to same way 3 out of the bottle.
The next section was UNIT Parktech’s biggest pool yet with symmetrical options coming in and out. Everyone enjoyed this section of features and the consistent pull of the Sesitec System 2.0 HD allowed the riders to focus on presenting their most technical tricks like Daniel’s FS 270 off the safety of the drop down rail. The wakeskaters pulled through with a consistent flow of tricks to combat the big setup as well.
But the man of the day was Daniel Grant. He split his head open getting pumped up before his semi-finals run by jumping up into the corner of the Stadionbad’s low start platform but refused to go to the hospital to get stitches until after the contest. The double threat from Thailand proved that he is the master in both categories, fulfilled his dream, and is your 2016 WTL Wakeboard and Wakeskate Champion!