Capitalize: THE DOCUMENTARY

Capitalize: The Documentary from Craig McCallion on Vimeo.

Last year I was fortunate to be invited to MC a local rail jam hosted by friend Craig McCallion. I had obviously heard about Capitalize at the Clocktower before and attended in years past, but it was the first year that I would be participating. 

I can remember showing up to do my thing and was completely taken aback by the size of the setup and how well everything was put together. All the final details were coming together at this point and the Half Cab crew resemble a little army of ants bustling around making sure of it. Before I knew it, the mic was given to me and away we went, Capitalize 7 would go down in the books as the best one yet. The riding was absolutely amazing; it was big, it had style, and shit got technical! 

In watching Capitalize: The Documentary, not only was I able to relive last year's experience but it also helped paint the bigger picture for me. Like I said, when I showed up last year I had no idea what I had walked into. As the night progressed, I couldn't believe the amount of work, dedication, and seamless teamwork demonstrated by the Half Cab crew as a whole. It worked like a well-oiled machine that just kept going and going. By the end of it, I had to ask Craig: "how the fuck do you do it?". And his answer was simply "I don't know, we just do." (Although, the after-party debauchery that followed at Babylon provided more answers than Craig would readily admit)...

Nevertheless, this documentary goes a long way in telling the story of how something very small and humble can come to take on a life of its own. Any person with a brain and a heart should watch this video to appreciate what can be gained from love and the unbreakable spirit of fraternity.

All I can say now is that I'm very excited for what's next. THIS SATURDAY IS THE NEXT CHAPTER, CAPITALIZE 8 - SAME PLACE SAME TIME. SEE YOU ALL THERE!! CH-CH-CHYEAH!!

The National Aftermath.

Yesterday was a sight to be seen. The 2012 Canadian Cable Championships took place in the unique environment that is “le Beach Club”, Canada’s first full sized cable park.

Upon my arrival I was quickly overwhelmed with all the faces I recognized on the dock and on the water. Mavrey, Dustin, Tibo, Savoie, Kelsey, Dylan, Robbie, Andy, Drew, Braden, Ally, Erika, Balzer, Oli, Ben, Trudel, Vince, Joe, Christian, Jono, and countless others. Never have I seen the number of riders outnumber enthusiastic partygoers at the Beach Club! Woah.

Not sure if the organizers anticipated such a big turnout, but Canadian cable riding was alive and well. And although time was not on our side this day, we cannot lose sight of what was accomplished.

First off, let’s give it up for Drew Austin who split his cheek open in practice after taking his own knee to the face. Although the subsequent trip to the hospital forced him to pull out of the men’s expression session qualifiers, he returned only to prove his worth in the obstacles only round.

Speaking of the obstacles only category, the Derome brothers were there and participated in the pro division. It was a real treat for all those in attendance to see these boys ride.

Watching Braden Ioi become Canada’s newest wakeskate champion was pretty special and capped off what was surely a breakout season for the 19 year-old who started wakeskating on his own just a few years back with only a winch to his name.

On the women’s side, it was again the youth leading the way with 18 year-old Carmelle Côté-Ouellett becoming Canada’s first female national cable champion. In stomping a backside three off the kicker, Carmelle had sent the ladies packing with some homework to do.

But I think the crowning moment was the men’s expression session final. As the sun was setting on this beautiful day, after spectators and ravers were long gong; all there remained were all the boys on the dock ready to show each other up. It was a great mix of youth and experience with Tibo, Mavrey, Ben, Christian, Jesse, and Jordan in the final

Tibo had his best run of the day, stomping a huge cab 9, and a stylish front roll to fakie tail grab, to claim his second consecutive national title. To do it in style like that on his home turf is an experience that I’m sure he’ll never forget, and nor will I. The smile on his face and sense of accomplishment was all but infectiously glorious.

Unfortunately I was unable to stay for the celebration that was sure to follow. On the drive home with my brother Justin, we excitedly discussed the events of the day only to arrive at the conclusion that it was all in all a great day both on and off the water.

The 2012 Canadian Cable Championships achieved a benchmark for the sport. It showcased tremendous growth since last year’s inaugural event and a new generation of Canadian riders. I can only hope that this will be a sign of things to come. 

from www.wake2wake.ca

#WDR x BROssard

--Props to YANN ROY for the clean snaps @ le Wake Dans Rue in Brossard, QC!--

Wake Dans Rue #2!

The second stop of the Wake Dans Rue urban wakeboard series is going down tomorrow in Sherbrooke, QC! Myself, Craig McCallion (Half Cab Productions), Kelsey Chiappa, and Charles Sirois will be making the trip from Ottawa with Charlie's van.

Regardless of the contest outcome, we are in for a sick weekend of riding, partying, camping, and more riding. On our way back from Sherbrooke we will be stopping in at the Derome's for a cable shred. I cannot wait to check this year's setup!!!

The first stop was in Drummondville on June 10th, 2012. Peep the highlight video at http://www.sbcwakeboard.com/video_display/video:6220/Wake-Dans-Rue-Drummondville. 

Men's :

1- Benjamin Laclair (1000$)
2- Yan Thibault (500$)
3- François-Olivier Jutras (250$)
4- Alex Savoie (125$)

Women's:

1- Kelsey Chiappa (300$)
2- Marie Line Ouellet (200$)
3- Camélia Barrière (100$)

Wakin' the Streets of Québec!!

ProAm Productions have announced the official tour dates for Canada's premiere wakeboard and wakeskate winch tour: WAKE DANS RUE.

I'm super stoked for this summer's tour because I have been asked to recruit some fresh Ontario talent for each event. Rumour has it that there might even be a tv show deal in it for us! So if there are any Ontario riders interested in attending the Wake Dans Rue series, please send me an e-mail at bonney.jonathan@gmail.com if you would like to come along for a super fun, poutine-filled road trip through the belle province of Québec.

Information:

The WAKE DANS RUE series travels across Québec during the summer months in an effort to discover and develop the talents of wakeboarders and wakeskaters from across the country. Each event/tour stop offers an exciting and unique entertainment experience for both the riders and spectators alike. With more than $20,000 up for grabs this year, WAKE DANS RUE  is fast becoming the most prestigious urban wakeboard and wakeskate contest series in North America!

Dates:

June 16 - Drummondville

July 7 - Sherbrooke

July 14 - Trois Rivières

Aug 3 - Brossard

Aug 18 - Victoriaville (grand finale)

Cash Prize:

Men            Women

1- $1000      1- $300

2- $500        2- $200

3- $250        3- $100

4- $125

**This year will also feature a point system in order to determine an overall tour champion and the WAKE DANS RUE grand prize winner.**

Format:

QUALIFICATIONS: 5 minute jam session wherein the top 8 best trick advance to the next round.

FINALS: 8 riders will go head-to-head in a best of three format to determine the winner for each stop.

Registration:

You can secure your spot online by registering at www.proamproductions.com, cost is $50 /event.

**If you have any questions, or need help with french translation, please contact me directly at bonney.jonathan@gmail.com**

FOX spine and swine FINALS

This is how a contest should look and feel like. Super fun, innovative, and progressive...

Half Cab freshness!

Check out these two new fresh edits from Craig McCallion and Half Cab Productions!


Big Bang 2011 from Craig McCallion on Vimeo.


Beach Clubbin from Craig McCallion on Vimeo.

www.halfcab.ca

More of the best contest ever: Wake the Line 2011.

O'Neill Wake The Line from Ben Hall on Vimeo.

Another sweet video to surface from Wake the Line 2011 that takes you behind the scenes and a little more in depth about the sickest contest of the season. People just can't seem to get enough of this contest, and with good reason ay. Hopefully something like this can make its way back to Canada someday. Props to O'Neill for the video. Enjoy!

Wake'n in da street dere in Trois Rivières, Québec!

This weekend's mission took me to Trois Rivières, Québec. A small, and quaint little town pretty much halfway between Montréal and Québec City. I made the decision to go after waking up Saturday morning and having nothing really better to do on a beautiful hot sunny day. The reason for my slight hesitation was that I would first need to catch a bus to montreal at 11 am, then  board a "train de banlieu" for a 35min ride to Deux-Montagnes to meet up with Tibo, and then finally make the drive to Three Rivers. Amazingly everything lined up smooth as!

Once in Deux-Montagnes, Tibo was nice enough to drive some new friends I had made on the train and who were looking to make it to the Beach Club. So after dropping them off, we were on our way to Alex Savoie's, a.k.a Mr. Wake QC. And being the environmentalists we are, we all decided to pack into Savoie's truck and car pool our way to the 2011 edition of Wake Dans Rue in Trois Rivières.

(Arnauld going down, shoulder first)

(Marie-Line holding it down)

As per usual the setup was a good mix of fun and sketchyness. But it was really cool to know that this year's setup was designed by Raph Derome himself. Both boys AND girls were throwing down with of course the odd entertaining bail. (props to our boy Arnauld who sustained a dislocated shoulder, we wish you a speedy recovery bro!).

At the end of it all it was Yan Tibo in third, Alex Savoie in second, and p'tit Benjamin Leclair taking first place with 500$!

(Tibo's test run)

So after a few beers and having to pick up our man Arnauld at the hospital, we decided to call it a night and head back to Montreal. The next morning I headed over to check out Tibo's pimpin' new pad and for some delicious peanut butter toast. We then headed to the Beach Club for a shred on the cable with Seb Toots (yes he can also rip on a wakeboard!). So ya just another super fun trip and mission on a whim in the belle province of Québec! 

thank you Tibo, Savoie, and Stacey for some sweet québecois hospitality!! à la prochaine mes amies...