Daredevils strut their stuff
Quisto van Greenman did a backflip on his mountainboard on Sunday - the 136 Big Air Final at Hazyview Adventure Backpackers was his first time landing the trick in this relatively new sport.
The past weekend’s Dirt Dayz was the third national mountainboarding gathering presented by 136 Mountainboarding and Hazyview Adventure Backpackers.
It took Van Greenman three attempts to land the jump. The first saw him land on his shoulder blades on the dirt when he lost his board mid-air after coming off the ramp. The second he sort of landed, but again ended up in the dirt when he couldn’t stay on his board. The third, he landed on his feet on his board.
Not only did Van Greenman make his landing, but Skolly Skolwani also accomplished his first backside 180 melon trick turn. They were the only two riders who completed the three-stage event by going down the steep ramp on Sunday evening.
The party, featuring bands like Mizera, St Dog and the Day, Monday Morning Justice and Courtney Gibson, was the culmination of the event, which started with a 6km downhill race in the Matumi Forest outside Hazyview on Saturday morning, and was followed by a slope-style stage where judges rated the participants’ jumps and tricks in the afternoon.
Van Greenman was crowned champion after his flip.
“It is a mountainboarding gathering,” he explained to Lowvelder shortly afterwards, still giddy from the adrenalin of his last-minute decision. “It is not taken too seriously.” Participant Byron Hogan chimed in, “Mountainboarding is still a new sport so the event is aimed at making it legit.”
The Big Air ramp is a new feature at Hazyview Adventure Backpackers so nobody had the opportunity to practise their runs beforehand. However, as of now it is a permanent structure on which boarders can play. Van Greenman started out as a BMX-rider and switched to mountainboarding about 10 years ago. “Whether you are cruising in the forest or flying down a hill, you hear only birdsong. I love the mountains,” he explained.
