BOWLZILLA Gold Coast 2024 Finals

For the ninth year in a row BOWLZILLA Gold Coast delivered the Australian Skateboarding Federation’s National Park Skating Championships to a raging audience and a raucous field of competitors. There were big differences this year in both and as a result everyone in attendance said it was the best one for years.

Energy levels were high and everyone there was up for the best day’s skating on the Gold Coast all year. So a bit of rain and a lot of humidity did not deter anyone. The crowd stayed through the showers and pitched in to dry the bowl during the breaks in rain and screamed louder for everyone each time the skating took off again. There’s no crowd like a Gold Coast skate crowd.

SAVE THE DATE: BOWLZILLA Wellington 2024

PEACE IS WORTH SKATING FOR

BOWLZILLA Wellington, Waitangi Park 17/02/2023

BOWLZILLA Wellington is celebrating its 9th year as New Zealand’s biggest skateboarding festival the week of the 17th of February and capping it all with the New Zealand National Bowl Skating Championships.

For the ninth consecutive year, BOWLZILLA Wellington will be putting on the biggest week of skating in New Zealand. With more events, bigger gatherings, larger celebrations and the best week of skating Aotearoa is likely to see. The weeklong festival highlights all the best of skating through ARTZILLA, music, barbecues, catch ups, our incredible friends and family and of course the competition.

“The BOWLZILLA community has always been enthusiastic in their celebration of the most important parts of skating; fun, unity, music, arts, creativity, and all-round heavy ripping. There have been many changes to skate gatherings the last few years and we believe the best parts of skating that have always bound us in fun are worth that extra effort to ensure we maintain the stoke. For our ninth year we are dialling up the good times and making sure everyone knows how grateful we are for all their years of support in the best little city in the world.” BOWLZILLA Director – Chad Ford

BOWLZILLA is renowned for its full week of festival happenings and this year there will be new additions celebrating the wider skate community and their awesome talents. The biggest week of skating in New Zealand is growing even larger. Everyone is welcome to come along and cheer and be part of the whole festival for free. There are exciting announcements coming in the New Year about sponsors and the festival.

Wellington City Council, Wellington Skateboarding Association, Redhead or Dead Events and Miryoku Agency have joined forces once again to bring this fantastic festival to the New Zealand skaters.

BOWLZILLA was born out of likeminded friends in the skateboard community looking for new platforms to promote the extraordinary talents of their friend’s talents that run in oversupply within skateboarding but are not often seen in the outside world. BOWLZILLA Wellington is the biggest platform for showcasing all of this amazing talent in skateboarding in New Zealand. There is an open invite for everyone to come and be part of the celebration.

15th February: Women’s Learn To Ride Clinic

15th February: Welcome Party

16th February: WSA Street Jam

16th February: ARTZILLA

17th February: BOWLZILLA™ Wellington competition – Waitangi Park, Wellington

17th February: Dive In – official after party

18th February: Karori Vert Jam, Ian Galloway Park, Karori, Wellington

BOWLZILLA Gold Coast 2023 Highlights

Beautiful one day, ripping the next. The BOWLZILLA Gold Coast highlights clip is here to warm up the southern winter with a scorching summer recap – watch, enjoy and GO SKATE.

Higher, faster, longer, funner. Competitions can push skaters to challenge themselves and risk that little bit more. The best of it is when they’re pushing their mate in the next run to do better than they just did. Yeah, people won but that wasn’t ever the point. Nothing and no one was left behind this year and everyone celebrated together at the end. BOWLZILLA Gold Coast 2023 was a uniform free zone of rad times and ripping skating.

The Gold Coast skate scene is massive and growing with so many rad spots and generations of shredders keeping the torch lit it is no wonder that it is being called the skate mecca of Australia. Everyone’s welcome to come and grind the epic concrete and share in the stoke of it all.

It’s the community that makes BOWLZILLA Gold Coast happen and as rad as it is. Without their support it just isn’t possible to have festivals like these. The week is really a celebration of how epic they all are. Watch the shredding in the 16 & Unders, Masters, Yeah Girl Women and Opens and you'll see the next step that Australian skating took in 2023.

Sponsors and partners like; Dickies, Santa Cruz, Independent, Kangol, Yeah Girl, Gold Coast Skateboard Coaching, Australian Skateboarding Federation, Truckstop, Fuel TV, Girl’s Skate Gold Coast, Etnies, Rattlesnake Motel, Gold Coast City Council and Tourism & Events Queensland made sure everyone got thanked properly.

Massive shout outs go to all the friends, family, fans, media, sponsors, supporters, community, crew, and skaters for what was truly one of the best years ever for BOWLZILLA Gold Coast.

BOWLZILLA Wellington – Once Again Back Is The Incredible

Wellington is set to again be the Capital of Skateboarding with the return of BOWLZILLA Wellington on Saturday 29th October. New Zealand’s National Bowl Skating Championships will be roaring back bigger than ever to crown the Nation’s best skaters.

BOWLZILLA Wellington is going to be the biggest gathering of skaters in New Zealand this year. With New Zealand opening back up again, this year’s festival is going to be a celebration like no other. The week offers; parties, music, art shows, industry catch ups, governance meetings, barbecues, ramp jams, the competition and most importantly community.

BOWLZILLA was established as a foundational event that the New Zealand skating community can depend upon and utilise as a platform for all things skate every year without fail. The competition is what makes it all possible but the whole week of all the things is the point. That is why this year there are a couple of new gatherings being added to the permanent schedule.

In addition to the Welcome Party, ARTZILLA, BOWLZILLA Wellington National Bowl Skating Championships, Dive In after party and the Karori Vert Jam and barbecue, a free women’s Learn To Ride clinic will be added at Waitangi Park during the week and some surprises with the inclusion of the more diverse creative outlets of New Zealand’s skate community for the art show. There are a few other awesome gatherings being announced as we get closer to the festival.

This is the second year in a row that BOWLZILLA Wellington has had to postpone due to COVID lockdowns and it will be the second year in a row New Zealand skaters will come out the other side with a bigger and better gathering to celebrate the awesomeness and resilience of their community. More skaters, more events, more fun and it’s all free.

There are returning sponsors ensuring the Tech Deck 16 & Unders, Santa Cruz Open, Masters and Yeah Gnar Women’s divisions will be just as spectacular as always and to make it more interesting Protec are doing a special prize for the hardest skating most spectacular slam of the day. The parties are getting a bit of extra wow this year that will be announced shortly and Wellington Skateboarding Association, Skateboarding New Zealand and Wellington City Council via its Community Events and Sports Event funding are lifting the week to even bigger heights. To top it all off there is international broadcast via the live webstream with an international media partnership being announced shortly.

“Wellington City Council is excited to welcome back the annual BOWLZILLA Wellington event. Following the debut and success of so many incredible skaters at the Olympics, we look forward to seeing these athletes in action at the National Championships in the Capital. An incredible opportunity for our community to witness the skill of these skaters. To all of those competing at BOWLZILLA Wellington 2022 – we look forward to seeing you in action.” Mayor Andy Foster

Wellington City Council, Wellington Skateboarding Association, Redhead or Dead Events and Miryoku Agency have joined forces once again to bring this fantastic festival to the New Zealand skaters.

“Skaters are some of the most resilient people in the world. We are brilliant at adapting and taking whatever is in front of us and turning it into the best moments possible. BOWLZILLA 2022 is going to be a case study in this and we can’t wait to reunite with our friends and family in Wellington for the week of the 29th October to celebrate. The continuing support of Wellington City Council and our sponsors, which make it all possible, will be rewarded with the biggest skate party Wellington has seen to date. The whole week is free and everyone is welcome to come celebrate with us.” BOWLZILLA Director – Chad Ford.

With the new run date and borders now open, overseas friends are able to return. BOWLZILLA will be working with everyone to make this possible with accommodation being provided by the legendary Cambridge Hotel, which will also be the daily gathering spot away from the bowl for the week.

BOWLZILLA was born out of likeminded friends in the skateboard community looking for new platforms to promote the extraordinary talents of their friends and their talents that run in oversupply but are not often seen in the outside world. BOWLZILLA Wellington is the biggest platform for showcasing all of this amazing talent in skateboarding in New Zealand. There is an open invite for everyone to come and be part of the celebration.

There will be more information coming shortly about all the great events and sponsorships happening as part of BOWLZILLA Wellington 2022.

26/10/2022: Women’s Learn to Ride clinic – Waitangi Park Skatepark - FREE

27/10/2022: Welcome Party – The Cambridge Hotel

28/10/2022: ARTZILLA

29/10/2022: BOWLZILLA™ Wellington competition – Waitangi Park, Wellington

29/10/2022: Dive In – official after party

30/10/2022: Karori Vert Jam, Ian Galloway Park, Karori, Wellington

BOWLZILLA Wellington – DATE CHANGE!!!

DUE TO CURRENT COVID RESTRICTIONS IN NEW ZEALAND WE HAVE POSTPONED THE FESTIVAL UNTIL NEW ZEALAND IS BACK IN ORANGE CODE. THE EVENT WILL RUN IN 2022 AS SOON AS EVERYTHING OPENS UP AGAIN. Please let everyone know. Follow @bowlzilla for updates.

Wellington is set to again be the Capital of Skateboarding with the return of BOWLZILLA Wellington once the current traffic light guidance changes from Red to Orange. Skateboarding New Zealand’s National Park Skating Championships will be roaring back bigger than ever to crown the Nation’s best skaters.

BOWLZILLA Wellington is the biggest gathering of skaters in New Zealand every year. The festival offers; parties, music, art shows, industry catch ups, governance meetings, barbecues, ramp jams, the competition and most importantly community. That is why the festival will run in 2022 as soon as soon as it is possible. And, it will be bigger and better than ever!

The initial goal of BOWLZILLA was to establish a foundational event that the New Zealand skating community could depend upon and utilise as a platform for all things skate every year without fail. The competition is what makes it all possible but the whole week of all the things is the point. That is why this year there is a couple of new gatherings being added to the permanent schedule.

In addition to; the Welcome Party, ARTZILLA, BOWLZILLA Wellington National Park Skating Championships, Dive In after party and the Karori Vert Jam and barbecue, a free women’s Learn To Ride clinic will be added at Waitangi Park during the week and some surprises with the inclusion of the more diverse creative outlets of New Zealand’s skate community for the art show. There are a few other awesome things to be announced once the date is finalised.

Last year BOWLZILLA Wellington was delayed three weeks due to a COVID lockdown and once it ran it was the largest gathering of skaters and fans from the regions that the event had ever seen. So upon return, this year will be even bigger and better as it will be the first truly National celebration of skating once the country goes back to Orange.

There are returning sponsors ensuring the Tech Deck 16 & Unders, Dickies Open, Masters and Yeah Gnar Women’s divisions will be just as spectacular as always and to make it more interesting Protec are doing a special prize for the hardest skating most spectacular slam of the day. The parties are getting a bit of extra wow this year that will be announced shortly and Wellington Skateboarding Association, Skateboarding New Zealand and Wellington City Council via its Community Events and Sports Event funding are lifting the week to even bigger heights. To top it all off there is international broadcast via the live webstream with an international media partner being announced shortly.

“Wellington City Council is excited to welcome back the annual BOWLZILLA Wellington event. Following the debut and success of so many incredible skaters at the Olympics, we look forward to seeing these athletes in action at the National Championships in the Capital. An incredible opportunity for our community to witness the skill of these skaters. To all of those competing at BOWLZILLA Wellington 2022 – we look forward to seeing you in action.” Mayor Andy Foster

Wellington City Council, Wellington Skateboarding Association, Redhead or Dead Events and Miryoku Agency have joined forces once again to bring this fantastic festival to the New Zealand skaters.

“There is no stopping New Zealand skating, which is why BOWLZILLA Wellington will be running in 2022 as soon as is possible. We have the usual full week of amazing with the parties, music, art, skating and friends and family but we are really stoked to be growing it this year with the free Women’s Learn to Ride clinic, some awesome additions to ARTZILLA from the creative geniuses at Manky Chops and some other very exciting announcements to come as we get closer. Skateboarding is a verb, so we can’t wait to get back to the action of it all as quickly as possible. Be ready to go because once we can, we will. See you all in Wellington soon.” BOWLZILLA Director – Chad Ford.

Depending on when the run date is possible, overseas friends may be able to return. BOWLZILLA will be working with everyone to make this possible with accommodation being provided by the legendary Cambridge Hotel, which will also be the daily gathering spot away from the bowl for the week.

BOWLZILLA was born out of likeminded friends in the skateboard community looking for new platforms to promote the extraordinary talents of their friends, talents that run in oversupply within skateboarding but are not often seen in the outside world. BOWLZILLA Wellington is the biggest platform for showcasing all of this amazing talent in skateboarding in New Zealand. There is an open invite for everyone to come and be part of the celebration.

There will be more information coming shortly about all the great events and sponsorships happening as part of BOWLZILLA Wellington 2022.

Dates: Competition; Festival events 2022 ANNOUNCING SOON

Event info: TBC – coming soon!

2022: Women’s Learn to Ride clinic – Waitangi Park Skatepark - FREE

2022: Welcome Party – The Cambridge Hotel

2022: ARTZILLA

2022: BOWLZILLA™ Wellington competition – Waitangi Park, Wellington

2022: Dive In – official after party

2022: Karori Vert Jam, Ian Galloway Park, Karori, Wellington

BOWLZILLA Gold Coast – Boarders Open

BOWLZILLA Gold Coast 2022 is going to be the biggest skating celebration of the year. With the newly opened borders there will be skaters coming from far and wide. The Australian Skateboarding Federation are ensuring the National Park Skating Championships will be bigger and better than ever.

2022 is already shaping up to be amazing and the annual week of skating festivities on the Gold Coast is going to put it over the top. With a packed line up of Learn To Ride clinics, Art Shows, workshops, Music, Parties, Food and the Competition, everyone is guaranteed a good time at BOWLZILLA Gold Coast.

ASF are again ensuring Australian skating is properly supported with the seventh annual BOWLZILLA Gold Coast National Park Skating Championships. The biggest competition of the year in Australia has nurtured Olympic champions like Keegan Palmer, Poppy Olsen and Kieran Woolley, along with underground legends like Shaun Boucher, Aimee Massie, Nixen Osborne and Shanae Collins. With divisions across all ages, abilities and sexes, the goal has always been to get everyone together to inspire each other and have all the fun. A source of pride is that it is the largest Equality in Skateboarding event in Australia with equal prize purse across the Open and Women divisions. It also has a huge prize pool for the 16 & Unders and prize money for the Masters.

It is important to skateboarding and BOWLZILLA, that ASF competitions are run by members of the skateboarding community across Australia as a collaborative effort, and ASF are stoked to have BOWLZILLA as the peak National Park Skating event for 2022 with all its fantastic partners and amazing festival events.

Once again back is the incredible; Yeah Girl. Their support of BOWLZILLA Gold Coast is invaluable each year. They kick the week off with a women’s Learn to Ride clinic, continue the awesomeness with workshops and art shows, ensure the Equality in Skateboarding prize purse is funded and finish off the celebration with curation of the Dive In after party.

"Yeah Girl was established to help promote and support the amazing talents of the international women’s skate community. We do this through our art shows, workshops, learn to ride sessions, advocating and support. BOWLZILLA Gold Coast is the perfect partner for us because they have always worked hard to ensure an equal platform for all skaters. They were the first international competition to have a woman as head judge for the entire competition and they are the largest Equality-in-Skateboarding competition in Australia. What we really love about BOWLZILLA is that it brings the skate community together and fosters great sports(wo)manship and camaraderie. BOWLZILLA regular Poppy Olsen was a prime example of this during the Women’s Park Finals at the Olympic Games when she lifted Japanese skater Misugu onto her shoulders in a show of support after she fell in her final run. This is what Yeah Girl stands for and BOWLZILLA Gold Coast supports.” Sarah Huston – Yeah Girl

Tourism and Sport Minister Stirling Hinchliffe said events like BOWLZILLA were important to the Palaszczuk Government’s Economic Recovery Plan for the Gold Coast.

“Events bring competitors and spectators to the Gold Coast which benefits local jobs, accommodation and transport providers, as well as restaurants and cafés,” Mr Hinchliffe said.

That’s why in 2022 we’re backing events that make a sound contribution to the Gold Coast’s visitor economy.

“Learn to ride clinics at BOWLZILLA 2022 are a terrific way to get immersed in Australian skate culture.”

BOWLZILLA is supported by the Queensland Government through Tourism and Events Queensland and features on the It’s Live! in Queensland events calendar. Their support helps promote the festival to a much wider audience and helps to show how participation in the skating community continues to grow each year. It helps show off the best of skating to the world and encourages them to come and be part of it all.

Gold Coast City Council have done fantastic things for skateboarding and also the local community through skating for decades. The number of facilities they have built, skate schools they support and events like BOWLZILLA Gold Coast that they encourage, has ensured the Gold Coast has the best skate scene in Australia. It also has benefits for the wider community with lifestyle and business opportunities. New world class facilities in the coming years heading toward the Olympics will only serve to cement this legacy.

“Broadening our annual events calendar has never been more important,’’ said Gold Coast Mayor Tom Tate.

“BOWLZILLA fits that bill perfectly as it attracts the best skaters from the country for a week-long program of workshops, shows, exhibitions and competitions.

“I applaud organisers and look forward to visiting Elanora in March for the action.’’

Chad Ford; BOWLZILLA – Director: “Seven years in and we’re just getting started with BOWLZILLA Gold Coast. When we began all those years ago the goal was to create a reliable, fun, entertaining gathering to show off our friends and family’s amazing talents and get everyone together once a year to catch up and celebrate. We have grown beyond that to become the biggest skateboard festival in the country, set international standards with equality in skateboarding with our prize purse and staffing, nurtured the local kids into becoming the current biggest sporting event finalists and gold medalists and most importantly become the dependable community gathering we had hoped we could be. None of this would have been possible without the foresight and investment made by Gold Coast City Council which provided the base for us to build upon and then the support from Major Events Gold Coast and Tourism & Events Queensland which has enabled us to support and promote the talents of our amazing community and of course the skaters and our friends and family that have driven it all from the outset. Everything is free and everyone is welcome to come and join us for the week to celebrate.”

All photos by Sarah Huston for Yeah Girl

BOWLZILLA Gold Coast – Lifting Boarders

BOWLZILLA Gold Coast was the last international professional skateboard competition of 2020 before the world closed down. It will be the largest competition of the New Year lifting boarder’s spirits around the country. Once again the ASF National Park Skating Championships will be back to bring the cheer.

With such a crazy year behind us, there are high expectations for 2021 and what it will bring. BOWLZILLA Gold Coast will be do its part in bringing back the positive with the festival hosting; art, music, learn to ride clinics, food, parties and of course the competition.

For the sixth year BOWLZILLA Gold Coast is the ASF National Park Skating Championships, which makes it the peak ASF park skating competition in Australia, with the highest prize money in Australia. The competition has equal prize purse across Yeah Girl Women’s and Dickies Open, the largest Masters prize purse in Australasia and an oversupply of prizes for 16 & Unders.

The BOWLZILLA Gold Coast festival is about the gathering of Australia’s skateboarding community for a week on the Gold Coast, which is the best skate community in Australia, to celebrate all that makes them great, art, music, food, friends, community and skating.

The main show, the competition is the Australian Skateboarding Federation’s biggest Park Competition of the year for them and the Nation. ASF competitions are run by members of the skateboarding community across Australia as a collaborative effort, and the ASF are stoked to have BOWLZILLA as the peak national park event for 2021 with all its fantastic partners and amazing festival events.

Global powerhouse Yeah Girl started on the Gold Coast and has grown to an international platform showcasing the many varied and awesome abilities of womxn’s skateboarding. They have supported BOWLZILLA since inception and work together every year to ensure the highest paid Equality-in-Skateboarding event in Australia and that it continues to support the ever-growing womxn’s skateboard community on its path to the largest international competitive stage.

"Yeah Girl began as a way to give voice and spirit to the ever growing and evolving womxn's skate community. Working with BOWLZILLA Gold Coast was a no-brainer — they have always tried to find ways to further develop their understanding and support of the womxn's skate scene. At the first BOWLZILLA Gold Coast in 2016, Shari Duffy became the first woman to judge an international skateboard competition and has since taken on the role of Head Judge. The competition itself, having the largest Equality-In-Skateboarding prize purse in Australia, and the many other things done during the festival and behind the scenes every year in planning, help promote the best of our community on the largest stage available in Australia.” Sarah Huston – Yeah Girl

The only reason BOWLZILLA Gold Coast is even possible is because of the foresight of the Gold Coast City Council. They have provided the support and the platform for what is the Nation’s best skateboard community. What they continue to do each year with building more skateparks and providing more learn to ride clinics and the supporting of events which help rally and showcase the community is beyond compare in Australia. BOWLZILLA Gold Coast being the largest event of its kind in Australia is testament to the great work GCCC has done so far.

“Our city is expanding its major events calendar, actively seeking out new format events to attract national interest in the coast,’’ said Mayor Tom Tate.

“You only have to say the word BOWLZILLA to make you want to hear more. Blending cool music with epic skate bowl skills, great food and world-class competition is the perfect recipe for a great event.

“I wish organisers and competitors every success with the program and look forward to the thousands of social media selfies being shared across the globe.’’

Major Events Gold Coast CEO Jan McCormick:

"I’m thrilled to see BOWLZILLA hit the Gold Coast once again in 2021. The action-packed event is an iconic feature in our city’s sporting events calendar. I look forward to welcoming the competitors, their families and the spectators to another memorable National Championships.”

BOWLZILLA Gold Coast is supported by the Queensland Government through Tourism and Events Queensland and features on the It’s Live! in Queensland events calendar. TEQ’s support helps promote BOWLZILLA Gold Coast and attract friends and family from far and wide, not just for the week of the festival but throughout the entire year. Being part of the It’s Live! in Queensland events calendar helps show off the best of us to the world and encourages them to come and be part of it all.

The BOWLZILLA Gold Coast festival is coming back for a sixth year! The week of fun on and off the board returns with a womxn’s learn to ride clinic with Yeah Girl and Gold Coast Skateboard Coaching, Beach Burrito Company is the night-time venue for the week for art, food and parties, there are several local hosted barbecues at some of the best skateparks in Australia and it is all wrapped around the biggest comp of the year in Australia at Elanora skatepark.

“This year BOWLZILLA Gold Coast is dedicated to the far too many we have lost in our community over the last year, especially Australian legend Grant “Biff” Murdoch. We realise how lucky we are to still be perpetuating our Peter Pan Complex with this festival and will do everything we can to lift the spirits of our community with a fantastic week on the Gold Coast. Our job is to spread joy and inspire and we will make sure there are equally high doses of both. We thank all of our supporters for assisting us in continuing the stoke that is BOWLZILLA Gold Coast. We are an Open Boarders event, so everyone with a positive attitude is welcome to come join us at our free week of skating celebration.” Chad Ford; BOWLZILLA – Director.

BOWLZILLA stands on the shoulders of giants and we strive in all we do to acknowledge the influential skaters and scene that came before us; Patti McGee, Tony Alva, Lora Thornhill, Jay Adams, Adrian Jones, Grant “Biff” Murdoch, Dog Town, Steve Alba, Suicidal Tendencies, Black Flag, Pearl Jam, The Red Hot Chilli Peppers, The Hellmen, Glen E. Friedman, Thrasher, Independent, The Bones Brigade, The Beastie Boys, Lance Mountain, Chris Miller, Cara Beth Burnside and Tony Hawk. The new guard of Poppy Olsen, Keegan Palmer, Taniah Meyers, Grant Taylor, Lizzie Armanto, Danny Leon, Nicole Hause, Rune Glifberg, Omar Hassan, Bucky Lasek, Jack Fardell and Pedro Barros, would not be here without this heritage. BOWLZILLA™ acknowledges and celebrates this with plans to build on the past and write a bright and energetic future.

Dates:

13th March 2021

Event info: TBC – information coming soon

9th March: Yeah Girl x Gold Coast Skateboard Coaching – Girl’s Learn To Ride Clinic – Tugun Skatepark, Boyd St, Tugun 4224

10th March: Gold Coast Grill – local hosted BBQ skate session – more to come

11th March: Tic Taco art exhibition / video premier – Beach Burrito Company; The Strand Shop 25/26, 72-80 Marine Parade, Coolangatta 4225 Ph: (07) 5536 4192

12th March: Gold Coast Grill – local hosted BBQ skate session – more to come

13th March: BOWLZILLA™ Gold Coast, Australia’s; National Park Skating Championships – 1 Pines Lane, Elanora QLD 4221

13th March: Dive In – official after party – Beach Burrito Company; The Strand Shop 25/26, 72-80 Marine Parade, Coolangatta 4225 Ph: (07) 5536 4192

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BOWLZILLA CAPITAL RAISING

Wellington City Council, Redhead or Dead Events, Skateboarding New Zealand and Miryoku Agency raised the Capital with the New Zealand 2019 National Park / Bowl Skating Championships with BOWLZILLA Wellington.

SBNZ made sure the New Zealand National Skateboarding Park / Bowl competition series was the best run, attended and most unexpected fun so far. The level of all parts of the festival were raised higher this year with great success.

Weather is always a factor in Wellington but nothing gets in the way of a determined skater. With the rain finally coming down after three months of unprecedented sun in Wellington and only allowing Open heats to be run at the bowl a quick decision had to be made. Manky Chops Gallery generously offered their awesome new mini ramp that was built for Manky Deck-Aid to be utilised to its fullest, and MINIZILLA was born. The Women, Masters and 16 & Unders all finished out the event riding indoors with a format change that proved incredibly fun and popular.

Manky Chops and BOWLZILLA have a fantastic partnership going back many years which is focused around ARTZILLA every year as part of the BOWLZILLA Wellington festival. This year the Manky Chops team went above and beyond with their ten-year anniversary show; Deck-Aid, which saw 100 skateboard decks painted and sculpted by as many artists especially for the exhibition, with a huge part of the proceeds going to several worthy charities. As part of this they also custom built a mini ramp which ended up saving the day and elevating the fun and comradery to unexpected levels. Congratulations Dave, Pearl and the family for all you’ve achieved and give back.

Thanks to Yeah Gnar this is the second year of BOWLZILLA Wellington being the largest Equality in Skateboarding event in New Zealand. This support has really seen the talent in the Women’s division develop exponentially. Regardless of the Olympics and whatever else lay ahead, the emerging Women’s skateboard scene is having the most positive impact on skateboarding in a long time. The fact that it is part of the whole of BOWLZILLA Wellington makes the festival that much more fun and important for the community.

The New Zealand National Champions for 2019 are; Women – Rhya Henare, 16 & Under – Rimus Henare, Pabst Masters – Steve Crump, Open – Shaun Boucher.

The interest in skateboarding is growing and that could clearly be seen by the doubling of competitors in the 16 & Unders, and larger fields for the other divisions. Pabst Blue Ribbon beer generously stepped up this year to support the Pabst Masters division and all the other sponsors and encouragers ensured a larger level of support for all the skaters and should all be thanked for the generosity: Wellington City Council, Skateboarding NZ, Manual Magazine, Pabst Blue Ribbon Beer, Fusion Surf / Skate, Skullcandy, Irrom Distribution, GoPro, Vans, Manky Chops, Red Bull, Redhead Or Dead Events and Miryoku Agency. Because of all of them there was NZ$12,000 in prize money and more than $2000 worth of prizes. Every competitor was over the moon to be able to benefit from the biggest prize pool in New Zealand.

BOWLZILLA Wellington 2019 placings:

OPEN

1 Jakob Robinson

2 Shaun Boucher – New Zealand Champion

2 Jett De Haan

4 Bowman Hansen

5 Josh Wilson

6 Chris Wood

7 Barry Taniwha

8 Chris Curran

9 Mike Bancfroft

10 Brodie Jarret

11 Jordan Nunns

12 Felix McZiveneg

13 Tyler Holdsworth

14 Brent Muskat

15 Shannon Boyd

16 Orson Reynolds

17 Luke Hayward

18 James Tuckey

19 Ned Simpson

20 Patrick Moessen

21 Ken Maaka Pakaariki

22 Scott Wilkinson

23 Kyle Monaghan

24 Callum McInnes

WOMEN

1 Taniah Myers

2 Paula Costales

3 Rhya Henare – New Zealand Champion

4 Ela Poynter

5 Krysta Ashwell

6 Poppy-Joe Garratt

7 Allanah Wilson

8 Georgia Hudson

9 Amanda Perrin

PABST MASTERS

1 Stephen Crump – New Zealand Champion

2 Ramon Thackwell

3 Dave Crabb

4 Kevin Moran

5 Eddie Elguera

6 Von Griffin

7 Tony Chavez

8 Aaron Animal Bell

9 Nic Couscouris

10 Robin Oneleg

11 Mason Lockyer

16 & Under

1 Zane Hetherington

2 Rimus Henare – New Zealand Champion

3 Mitch Jordan

4 Joshua Godward

5 Rico Henare

6 Niwa Shewry

7 Leroy French

8 Max Hancock

9 Ephram Stocks

10 Zedyn Fellows

11 Isaiah Godfrey

12 Monty Graham

13 Felix Griffin

14 Carter Williams

15 Orlando Dreaneen

16 Jake Harris

17 Dax De Haan

“BOWLZILLA upheld its reputation of pulling a great crowd of spectators and skaters committed to having fun, in spite of the tumultuous Wellington weather this weekend! Kudos to the community for their versatility and perseverance – the future of New Zealand Skateboarding looks Bright!” Ramon Thackwell – Director, SBNZ.

There was a much larger attendance of internationals this year which really raised the excitement and energy of the locals. Jakob Robinson, Jett De Haan, Brodie Jarret, Brent Muscat, Taniah Myers, Paula Costales, Kevin Moran, Tony Chavez, Nic Couscouris, Zane Hetherington, Dax De Haan and Skateboarding Hall of Fame inductee Eddie Elguera who is considered one of the greatest skateboarders of all time and Tony Hawk’s major influence.

"The fourth year of BOWLZILLA Wellington saw us able to offer greater support to the skaters and generate more interest and opportunity. The newly energised SBNZ board is a real game changer for what we are now able to do for our community and that was reflected in the new support from sponsors and larger attendance. Wellington is one the greatest little cities in the world and being able to work with Wellington City Council in the ways we do to create a festival like BOWLZILLA Wellington which has such great community impact is what encourages us to keep the forward motion. We’re very grateful and humbled for everyone’s support and look forward to many more years of great times for all.” Chad Ford – Director, BOWLZILLA Wellington.

Stay tuned for announcements about BOWLZILLA Wellington 2020.