DC Southeast Asia Skate Tour 2014: Defying Convention One Skate Tour at a Time
Madars Apse on the quarter pipe Photo by Lougie Dela Cruz
It’s not everyday that a handful of the world’s best pro skaters gather around and fly halfway around the world just to link up with their fan base and showcase their skills. Defying Convention since 1994, DC Shoes made this feat all too real for our local skateboarding community with the Philippine stop of this year’s DC Southeast Asia Skate Tour held last November 5 at the SM Mall of Asia Music Hall.
Photo by Lougie Dela Cruz
Inarguably the biggest skate event to hit our shores this year, the DC Southeast Asia Skate Tour kicked off with an exclusive press conference at the Sofitel Philippine Plaza Manila where the DC Skate Tour Team, which includes Matt Miller, Wes Kremer, Evan Smith, Felipe Gustavo, Cyril Jackson, Madars Apse, Tommy Fynn, Kota Ikeda, and Bobby Dekeyzer, whom talked about their experiences on the tour as well as what the skateboarding community can expect from the event.
Soon, the real action rolled off as the skate demo formally began, much to the raging excitement of skateboarders who flocked to the vast grounds of the SM Mall of Asia Music Hall which was converted into a bona fide DC skate park.
Given that the skateboarding community in the country is still in its infancy, Sammy Gosling, Marketing Executive of DC Southeast Asia, expressed his delight as performing for the Manila crowd is always a joy for the entire DC crew.
“Skateboarding in Southeast Asia is taking off and the skate community is becoming increasingly global due to social media.
The local skate communities are familiar with international athletes so it’s always great to meet them in the flesh,” he exclaims.
The overwhelming excitement that the DC crew felt was equally met with a roaring sense of anticipation from the crowd as the DC skaters were ushered into the skate park. First up was the autograph signing, which allowed hundreds of skaters a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to get up close and personal with their skate idols.
What followed next was the true climax of the event as the DC skaters began their rounds of skating demo. Evan Smith was first to ignite the heat as he began throwing and landing big airs, following suit was Matt Miller who donned his newly released signature skate shoes – pulling off trick after trick on the obstacles.
Catching up on the flow was the steezy Wes Kremer who kept landing technical as he blazed through the park while Bobby Dekeyzer swept the crowd off of their feet with his signature insane tricks. Like the ninja that he is, Kota Ikeda let out big airs that were technical as they are smooth while Madars Apse took to the quarter pipe, which truly impressed the already mystified crowd. Tommy Fynn continued to fire up the crowd with his grinds, while technical skater Felipe Gustavo went for the picnic table, which really riled up everyone.
Not one to back down, crowd favorite Cyril Jackson who suffered a minor injury early into the demo went back to hit the park to cheer and make his presence felt to the fans.
Indeed the biggest skating event of the year, the DC Defy Convention Southeast Asia Skate Tour proved to be bigger and bolder than its previous installments. Gosling could only hope that through events such as this, DC Shoes plays a role in nurturing promising skateboarding communities such as the one in the Philippines where an equally promising skateboarder might emerge in the near future.
Madars, on the other hand, boosted the spirit of aspiring skaters with a few words of skate wisdom. “You just gotta do it together [with] your friends. Every day, you meet up, try new tricks, shoot some photos and make the local skating grow.
” He adds, “Hopefully, people from all over the world is gonna see it and notice that you’re there and from there, the path is gonna be laid out for you.
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Meanwhile, Matt Miller also took the chance to promote his very first signature shoes with DC. Available in bright blue and black, the Matt Miller signature model features DC’s innovative technology with its cup sole construction to guarantee a lasting life span.
“Basically it just came from my inspiration from all my favorite skate shoes. The whole deal of it is that [it has] breathability [of feet] and [it] lasts a long time. It’s all I wanted in a shoe. All around good shoe for everything,” enthuses Miller.
After stops in Jakarta and Kuala Lumpur, Manila was the third stop of the DC Southeast Asia Skate Tour before heading out to Bangkok, Thailand. A decade after its inception, DC Shoes continues to defy convention as it goes around the globe promoting skateboarding culture and nurturing communities one awesome skate tour at a time.
The DC Defy Convention Tour is made possible by the generous support of SM Mall of Asia, Sofitel Luxury Hotels, Dan’s, GoPro, Department of Tourism, Mountain Dew, CLAVEL, Rappler, WhenInManila.com, Blunt Magazine, MyLifeOnBoard, SPEED Magazine, R.O.X., SneakPeek, GRIND, Bratpack, The Travel Club, ResToeRun and the Primer Group of Companies.
DC Shoes is a subsidiary brand of Quiksilver Inc. and is exclusively distributed in the Philippines by the Primer Group of Companies – Asia’s next retail giant. The brand is available at DC SM Aura, DC Shangri-La Plaza East Wing, DC Centrio Cagayan De Oro, DC SM Pampanga, DC Harbor Point Subic, DC SM Mall Of Asia, DC SM North Edsa- The Annex, DC Robinsons Ermita, DC SM Megamall, DC Trinoma, DC Eastwood Citywalk 2, DC Gateway Mall, DC Robinsons Galleria, DC Festival Mall, DC Nuvali Solenad 2, DC SM Batangas, DC SM Iloilo, DC SM Clark, DC SM Tarlac. Soon to Open: DC Marquee Mall Container Van, DC SM Bacolod, DC SM Davao, DC SM General Santos, DC Abreeza Mall Davao, DC SM Cebu, DC Ayala Cebu, Res|Toe|Run, Bratpack, The Travel Club, Royal Sporting House Robinsons Ermita, R.O.X. Bonifacio High Street, R.O.X. Marquee Mall, Shoe Salon, Toby’s Mall Of Asia and Shangrila, Olympic Village Alabang Town Center, Urban Athletics Greenbelt 3, Duty Free Philippines, NAIA Terminal 3, and Rustan’s Tower.
