RODRIGUEZ SKATES AWAY WITH GOLD.Byline: Keith Lair Staff Writer LOS ANGELES Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. - Paul Rodriguez For Rodriguez's son, the professional skateboarder, see . Paul Rodriguez (born January 19, 1955 in Culiacán, Sinaloa, Mexico) is a Mexican American comedian. wanted to go running down the street, arms waving, whooping whoop n. 1. a. A loud cry of exultation or excitement. b. A shout uttered by a hunter or warrior. 2. A hooting cry, as of a bird. 3. The paroxysmal gasp characteristic of whooping cough. it up. Instead, the Chatsworth resident stood at the bottom of a set of steps just outside Staples Center This article has multiple issues: * Its neutrality is disputed. * It may contain original research or unverifiable claims. * It does not cite any references or sources. on Thursday, a gold medal gold medal traditional first prize. [Western Cult: Misc.] See : Prize dangling from his neck and signing autographs. ``I'm on Cloud 9,'' Rodriguez said after winning the Skateboard Street Men's competition before full grandstands at X Games X Games Sports medicine The official Olympics of 'extreme sports' sponsored by ESPN, held annually during the summer. See Extreme sports. 11. ``I dreamed I would be running down the street, cheering. ``But it's unbelievable. Hard to believe. You don't think this is happening.'' With the win, the 20-year-old became the first street skateboarder to post back-to-back victories in X Games history. He scored a 92.50. Greg Lutzka Greg Lutzka is a professional skateboarder from Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He started out riding for Beer City Skateboards. Then he went to Tampa and got discovered by Al Partanen, where he turned pro for Illenium Skateboards. of Huntington Beach placed second with a score of 85.25 and Chris Cole of Leittown, Pa. was third with a score of 84.25. The competition consisted of two runs through a park course and three jam sessions - on boxes and ledges, off a nine-step stairwell stair·well n. A vertical shaft around which a staircase has been built. stairwell Noun a vertical shaft in a building that contains a staircase Noun 1. that included a rail and ledge and a jump over a hedge. Rodriguez was the most consistent through each session, placing second to Ryan Sheckler after the two runs through the park course before taking the lead during the jam sessions. ``I just wanted to be consistent,'' Rodriguez said. ``I wanted to go for broke and pull things you normally don't pull.'' Rodriguez's gold medal run was solidified on the box sets, pulling several switch tricks, in which he rides with his back foot in the front spot. ``I think the judges score more for doing things like that, and I wanted to stay out front,'' he said. ``Last year was great, but this year was even better. I never pretended to have it in the bag.'' Sheckler, a 15-year-old from San Clemente, won X Games gold in the park competition in 2003, had two nearly flawless park runs, holding his own on the boxes and benches. Two minutes into the 15-minute rail competition, he fell trying a rail heel slide and injured his hip, rendering him a non-factor for the remainder of the competition. Sheckler's injury allowed Lutzka and Cole to move into medal positions. Lutzka said he took it easy on the park section, while Cole said he was in the competition for the jams, only. Lutzka hit some slides on the boxes and then pulled some 270 rail slides, including a 270 switchback switch·back n. 1. A road, trail, or railroad track that follows a zigzag course on a steep incline. 2. A sharp bend in a road or trail on a steep incline. 3. Chiefly British A roller coaster. noseblunt, a trick he had never accomplished before. ``Everyone was starting to pull,'' the 21-year-old said. ``The competition was awfully tough. My start was rough, but then I got going. I tried to do some stuff I hadn't done before and I was happy about that.'' Cole, competing in his first X Games, said his slow start made it tough to catch Rodriguez. ``He's one with the skateboard,'' Cole said. ``He was just superb. He was so smooth.'' Cole secured the bronze by nailing a 360 over the hedge as time ran out. Rodriguez, who dominated the hedge competition to win last year's event, wasn't quite as dominating, but he had such a big lead going into the final portion of the competition that it didn't matter. ``I felt I did really good,'' he said. ``I just wanted to be consistent and avoid cramping cramping see cramp. later on. ``The guys were ... doing everything. Everyone was really tough. It was hard to keep it up.'' Keith Lair, (626) 962-8811 keith.lair(at)sgvn.com CAPTION(S): photo Photo: Chatsworth's Paul Rodriguez became the first rider to win back-to-back skateboard street men's titles in X Games history. Evan Yee/Staff Photographer |
|
||||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion