If you’re in the Cali area, head out to the Supergirl Rail Jam on August 22nd at Venice Beach. Akinz team riders Erika Vikander and Claire Hewitt-Demeyer will be competing and if you’re lucky enough to be a contestant, expect a little extra something in your swag bag from Akinz!
A little late, but things have been busy in the Akinz world and social scene, so here goes the recap:
The setup was killer, with the first rail leading into a quarter pipe, which you had to come out of onto a box or rail on either side of the initial rail… made for some action for people watching from both sides of the event. The quarter pipe made for some excitement for the crowd and some great shots.
Final results from the Rail Rodeo:
Snowboard:
1st – Erik Van Assche
2nd – Pat Rafferty
3rd – Richie Eaton
Ski:
1st – Chappy Geer
2nd – Adrian Pougiales
3rd – Kevin Todd
Akinz team rider, Brandon Krentz was in a solid third place before finals, but just missed the podium after Round 2, taking home 5th.
The crowd was a lot of fun and there were lots of people running around in Akinz gear since we were one of the featured sponsors. Even though it was supposed to be part of the “Springalicious” event at Steamboat, the snow was dumping for most of the day, but it cleared up just in time for the rail rodeo to begin. Thanks Mother Nature.
The akinz booth in the base area
Brandon Krentz on the rail
To see more photos from the event, check out the article at Shayboarder
Come out and watch the Steamboat Rail Rodeo, which is a jam style competition sponsored by Akinz, Steamboat, Ellis Snowboards, Volkl, Marker, Urbane and RideSports.
The comp will be followed by a free concert by the Dirty Heads at the base of the mountain.
Akinz after party will be held at Amante Saturday night… stay tuned for more details
Saturday the 20th of March marked another beautiful spring day up here in UT. We have had a lot of those lately, and I’m very happy about it. With the sun shining, and the sky blue I knew it was going to be a good day.
After registering with the friendly staff of the Canyons, I took the gondola up the the Upper Respect Terrain Park. This park is so much fun, and has been all year. The Canyons park crew really do a wonderful job with what they have to work with, and I know a lot of people including myself will be buying passes there next year instead of Park City.
I ran into a few people I knew there, including Kiri Bennersly. She is a rad ripper from New Zealand, we were stoked to see each other and tear up the park all day. Kiri is a local canyons girl, and she showed me the ropes a little bit. I love The Canyons, it has such a great vibe, and it is very spread out.
After a couple laps through the park it was time to start the competition. This competition had an unusual format. There were 3 zones to choose from. The first was an option between a down-flat-down rail, and a down-flat-down skinny box. The second was the first two jumps in Upper Respect. The third was a log jib, or a big stall/bonk option. You had the choice of competing in all three to win the overall, or just do certain divisions. This park is too much fun so I had to do all three right??
We started with a 30 minute rail jam on the two down-flat-down features. People were throwing down, and they were playing really good music, so I decided to get a little technical with my tricks. I got a couple of solid Cab 270′s on and off the down-flat-down skinny box, and a 50-50 to switch 50-50 on the down-flat-down rail. Feeling pretty confident we moved to the jump section which is my favorite.
We were judged on the first two jumps, as I normally have to practice with three jumps in other competitions, I was slightly thrown off by just two, but I adjusted accordingly, and it was just plain fun. I landed a couple of Cab 540′s and some backside 360′s and ended with a huge method grab! Luckily we were able to ride the lift during this portion, hit the bigger part of the park, and rest a bit.
Up next came the final Jam session on the log jib, and the Skullcandy Stall. I had never hit either of these features before in the park, so I was a little hesitant at first. But after watching where a couple of the guys dropped in from, I went for it. Happily all went well, I did a couple of mellow tricks, and walked away with an overall win! Mission accomplished! Thanks for putting on another great event CANYONS!!!
Max Middlestadt talks about his upcoming rail jam comp set in his very own backyard:
For everyone who rides, you know there’s no better feeling than that first pre-season drop-in on your backyard jib. After a solid shoveling session at the local arena, the trailer is loaded up and en route to the about-to-be shredded setup. Every year around this time me and the local crew get together to enjoy those first runs of the season. To me its hard to beat having your good friends out, best tunes, and a fun setup to throw down on right at your own place, so last season i got the idea to get all my buddies out and have one big jam. With a 28′ long down flat down box, live DJ, product to give away (courtesy of Akinz, Dialogue, and United Riders) and my birthday the day after i think there is definitely potential to have a wicked night with close friends, and good tricks. Sights are set on Friday October 23, to hold the jam and things are looking up right now just hoping the weather holds out for us.
Akinz is delivering some goodies for the winners, so if you’re up in Canada… get out there. 
Regular Showroom hours are Tuesday/Thursday from 1:00pm to 6:00pm. Additional hours as posted.
