Words By Dan Ravenall
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Hogtoberfest 5 lived up to the hype being the
biggest hoghill event so far! With riders from London to Wales, Beginners to
Shredders the scene turned up in full force.
Saturdays sign up opened midday-ish (skater time) with
special shiny event wristbands and free stickers- what’s not to love already. All the shop tents were set up along the sides
of the hill with a mouth-watering array of gear. Once the hill opened most
people started to chuck on the big wheels and go for a few pack runs down the
hill. I was riding my quiver killer the Makali SK and Mindless talismans set up
the way I like em , with just a wheel change for freeride and some big wheels
for downhill the set up was prime for hog hill.
*Dan's Makali SK Above*
Pretty soon it was time for the Slide Jam on the freeride hill.
There was a pretty big crowd all sitting on the hill ready to compete. With the
music pumping it was the hard wheeled tech sliders who kicked it off first.
Using the kickers and blasting sweet 360s and dank blunts, it was going to be a
tough one to judge, everyone brought something different to the party. From
knee slides to laybacks it was a spectacle to watch.
Up after the hard wheels was the soft wheel slide jam, which
had a lot more people participating in it. The freeriding every Hog event just
keeps getting better, with people going faster, bigger and ultimately better.
Whether you liked steezy sit downs or a long toeside the freeride jam had you
covered.
While the freeride jam was happening the slalom
skateboarders battled it out on the hybrid course, making use of start ramps
and a tight rapid course. It’s always great to watch them in action in 1v1
races where the racing is so close it comes down to less than a second.
After the slide jam was over there was still time to cram in some quick runs on the hill and make use of the great weather before day 1 came to end. Everyone packed up, crammed in to sticker bombed cars with loud music and convoyed out to the campsite. With tents pitched and the Sainsburys food run done it was time to relax!
Campfires, music and skateboards what more could you need?
After a cold night and a damp dew morning we all packed up
eager to get warm skateboarding. It was time to practise those tucks and go
draft some packs! With a lot of close skateboard riding accomplished the
chicane was closed off while the slalomers hit the big hill on the GS course
giving us plenty of much needed lurk time. Before you knew it, it was time to
line up because it was all downhill from here.
MC Higgins and Mr Tharp were sending down the race heats in
a quick time. With some of the UKs best racing it was a fun experience!
Blasting through the chicane as photographers and medics blur past with less
than an arms distance between riders it was pretty close at times. After the
scores had been handed in it was all over and it was time for the prize giving.
The winners took their place on the podiums and the all the swag was all shared
out which sadly meant hog was coming to a close. With the cars loaded up all
that’s left was to ride on home and grab some much needed shut eye.
Many thanks to the Great Timmy Peters , UKSSA and everyone
who makes it happen. Catch you guys next time on the hill!
Bonus Images:
