Cooter Con 7, In Review

On April 11^th, some of the worlds best freestyle scooter riders met at Skatebarn West in Washington to compete against one another. This was the seventh CooterCon Scooter Competition to take place at Skatebarn West, and it was easily one of the best competitions not just in Washington, but in the US. Not only were there more riders riding on a level that was unseen at previous CooterCon Comps, but the sponsors and prizes of this years competition made it one of the most sought out competitions to attend in 2009.

Sponsoring the competition this year, was a really solid list of companies. Paid sponsors included Inward-Scooters and Dominator Scooter Accessories. With prizes from companies like Micro, YAK, Fuzion, Exode wear, PROTO, Lucky Scooters, and Scooter Tees. With 1^st, 2^nd, and 3^rd place winners taking home stuff from all of them. With sponsors like this, and the amount of riders that paid the entry fee to ride in the competition. 1^st place riders were taking home as much as 1,000$ in cash, and about another 1,000 in parts and merchandise from these companies. All of the companies couldn't be happier with what they saw at CooterCon, their parts were being ridden by numerous riders, and they could showcase even more parts in person at the competition. Inside-Scooters recently caught up with a few of these companies to see what they had to say about the CooterCon competition.

“This was by far my best contest to date! The turnout was more than expected and the competition was fierce to the very end when we saw tricks like the 1080 and the sex-whip! (i don't know if thats the correct way to say 6 whip or spell it!). I was very pleased with the amount of spectators, sponsors, competitors... and the prize bags awarded were ridiculous! Not to mention a cash purse of $2,300.00, that's unheard of! After many unsuccessful attempts at a great judging system, I am very pleased at how the peer judging system worked and will continue to use that format in the future. The contest could not have gone any better and I feel like I have concreted a very legitimate contest bigger than I could have ever imagined (it only took seven tries!). I'm already working on upping the ante for CC8 in October and can't wait to see everyone again!” - Jimmy Hoffa of Skatebarn West

"Cooter Con 7 was a great event for parts manufacturers for this growing sport. It gave us a chance to show our latest products, meet our customers, and see our products put to the test." - JP of Inward-Scooters

However these sponsors wouldn't have been there at all if it weren't for the riders that rode in this competition, supporting their favorite companies. Some of the riders that showed up to this event were; KC Corning, Tyler Bonner, Cary Mosbrucker, Raymond Warner, Capron Funk, and all the way from New York City, Greg Cohen, better known as HepGreg. The sponsors and prizes weren't the only thing that made this competition one of the best, It was also the level of riding that went down during the competition. Each year every rider that rides in the competition gets better and better. This was made clearly evident in April. It was obvious that some of the amateur riders, will be riding in Pro at CooterCon 8, and that the Pro riders will have an even more intense challenge when riding against eachother next time.

Tyler Bonner was at the top of his game taking yet another 1^st place in the Pro division with his insane trick lines. One of them, being where he started at the top of the roll in, 180d to fakie, full cabbed down a small bank back to fakie, and half cabbed INTO the roll in. Only to hit the big box with a textbook 360 tailwhip to late barspin. Raymond Warner and Capron Funk of ScooterTees from Southern California made their way to Washington this year to give the CooterCon competition a shot, and they did not disappoint. Both of them having near flawless runs, and Raymond taking 2^nd place, and Capron taking 3^rd. CooterCon 8 is going to be exciting for sure, with riders KC Corning, Serjey Noga, and James Gee gunning for a podium spot. Considering all three of them had amazing runs in April. Expect some new names competing in the Pro Division come October. Because the riding in the amateur division was just as intense. Taking 1^st place was Kingsley Okocha, 2^nd place was Corey Funk, and 3^rd place Alex Dorantes. If these guys ride hard until CooterCon 8, we might be seeing some new names on the podium for the Pro division. Heres what some of the riders from CooterCon had to say about the competition.

“The comp was great! i think that comps should be ran just like this. CooterCon set the bar with the prizes for pro with 1st place being a grand. Nice to see the comps growing as much as the sport!!!” - Cory Vanlew

"I was suuuper stoked about the outcome this year, I have never road with that many people, all with really great talent. With an event like cooter con (told to be the biggest scooter competition in the Northwest) tons of kids in Washington, Oregon, California, all come out and it really encourages kids to ride and get more involved into the sport. I’m super stoked to see where this sport will be going, and how many kids skatebarn brings in next year." - Jake O'Donnell

"Every year i feel like atleast one division is rigged. Some kids throw big tricks and dont win while other kids just do simple easy tricks and win. Some kids that arent very consistent in their lines win also. It can get frustrating, but its getting better over the years" - James Gee

"Cooter con was pretty fun, my runs could've been better, but I was just cruisin around having fun. everyone tried some pretty crazy stuff, and i think it went well. I hope there's another one." - Hep Greg

So that wraps up another CooterCon competition. With hopefully many more to come. As long as companies continue to take interest like they did this year, and as long as we continue to get the support from Jimmy Hoffa and Skatebarn West. We can be sure that the riding, the sponsors and prizes, and the companies that support CooterCon will only get better in the future. We will see you in October for CooterCon 8!!

Written by Steven Tongson

Contributed to by Jordan Jasa

Photos by Jake O'Donnell