Survival of the Sickest, Spit and Sawdust
What is the Survival Of the Sickest?
It's a junior event made by Skateboard GB. This is a fun event with a great opportunity for up-and-coming skateboarders who want to compete in a friendly atmosphere and is a one-day event that runs at SBGB Hub Skateparks with two age categories, Under 16’s and Under 12’s.
On Saturday 23rd September 2023, Survival of the Sickest took place in Spit and Sawdust Skatepark, Cardiff. A load of Skaters came down from all over the UK including Ilka Rogers, Fraser Laird, Megan Stokes, Sebastian Lau, Corey Roper, and many more. For many of these skaters, it marked their first skateboarding competition. so to have this experience would have felt awesome, making new friends and having a fantastic time shredding around all day.
The Survival of the Sickest event series so far is unfolding over a year, captivating skateboarding enthusiasts throughout its journey. It all commenced at Baysixty6 in London, where the first event ignited the thrill. The series then continued its momentum, making a stop at Flo Skatepark in Nottingham for the second event, followed by the third event held at Graystone Action Sports Center in Manchester, and the fourth at Campus Pool Skatepark in Bristol. The most recent gathering took place at Spit and Sawdust Skatepark in Cardiff. The upcoming event of the Survival of the Sickest series is set to take place at the renowned 4 Motion Skatepark in Darlington in October.
The brands that sponsored this event series were Fracture Skateboards, Triple8uk, Stance, Tech Deck, and Aquapax. Special thanks to Rianne Evans for taking the mic. Rianna's charisma and passion for skateboarding made the experience even more enjoyable for participants and spectators alike.
The Survival of the Sickest had 4 categories, U12 Street Boys, U12 Street Girls, U16 Street Boys, and then U16 Street Girls. At this event, there was no park skating as the skatepark didn't have a bowl.
Because of the limited time and number of skaters to skate the comp had to adopt a jam format except for the finals, Jam formats can be quite hectic. To maintain safety and facilitate fair judging, the organisers implemented a system of heats. Additionally, the use of heats effectively reduced the potential for accidents, ensuring a more controlled and secure competition. Furthermore, the heats made the judging process more manageable, allowing for fair and accurate assessments of each participant's performance.
U12 Street boys winners were Nile Emmanuel in First, Rory Buckly in Second, and Sebastian Lau in Third. U12 Street Girls winners were Lona Gordon in First, Yuki Takahashi-McGilvray in Second, and Dottie Morgan-Kilenburg in Third. U16 Street Girls Winners were Ilka Rogers in First, Phoebe Mottram in Second, and Noni Gordon in Third. U16 Street Boys winners were Jowan Joyce-Richards in First, Corey Roper in second, and Ruwen Joyce-Richards in Third. Best Trick winners were Ruwen Joyce-Richards, Ilkan Rogers, Nile Emmanuel, and Lona Gordon.
Next time there's a skate event by Skateboard GB we highly recommend taking part. All you will need is a Skateboard, Skate Shoes, Helmet, and Knee Pads because falling over is a part of skateboarding.
