Vans Shop Riot 2019 – Manchester (Video + Photo Re-cap)

16/10/2019

Photography: Leo Sharp + Rafski

Words: Ryan Gray

Josh Rounding – sugarcane. ~ Photo: Leo Sharp

For over a decade now, Vans ‘Shop Riot’ has been a staple of the UK skateboarding event calendar. A lot has certainly changed in the scene since this grassroots get-together first graced Manchester’s infamous Central Skatepark way back when, but one thing that remains the same is this – skateboarders love carnage. The more unadulterated the better.

Tom Knox – 360 flip. ~ Photo: Leo Sharp

Eddie Belvedere - kickflip in. ~ Photo: Leo Sharp
Horsey - wallie. ~ Photo: Rafski
Charlie Birch - frontside fence bash. ~ Photo: Rafski
Photo: Rafski
Aaron Jago - 360 flip. ~ Photo: Rafski
Ralph Roberts. ~ Photo: Rafski
Harry While - frontside wallride. ~ Photo: Leo Sharp

Matt Beer – crail fence bash. ~ Photo: Rafski

Ben Grove – kickflip. ~ Photo: Rafski

Legends. ~ Photo: Rafski
A packed Pumpcage. ~ Photo: Rafski
Lost Art Crew. ~ Photo: Rafski
Death race. ~ Photo: Rafski
Dean Greensmith + Aiden Blaymire photo finish? ~ Photo: Leo Sharp
Photo: Leo Sharp

Jiri Bulin – kickflip back tail. ~ Photo: Leo Sharp

Horsey – wallride melon fakie. ~ Photo: Rafski

Matt Beer - backside boneless. ~ Photo: Rafski
Dave Morgan - frontside hurricane. ~ Photo: Rafski
Charlie Birch flying chin. ~ Photo: Leo Sharp
Dave Morgan adds in. ~ Photo: Leo Sharp
Manhead meeting his match. ~ Photo: Leo Sharp
Birch bot. ~ Photo: Rafski
Sam Pendlebury assisted rock fakie for Charlie Birch. ~ Photo: Leo Sharp
Madness. ~ Photo: Leo Sharp
Photo: Rafski
First night over. ~ Photo: Leo Sharp

Aaron Jago – bennett grind. ~ Photo: Leo Sharp

Vans Shop Riot, year after year, hammers this point home. Wether Vans intend for this to happen or not, it seems to be the way that if you choose to gather together representatives from the country’s finest skater-operated retail outlets, chaos always descends. So this year, Ollie Wright and co. decided to embrace it, not only summoning the UK’s most notable shop teams back to the Shop Riot spiritual home of Manchester for the main Graystone event on the Saturday, they threw a suitably riotous gathering at the Pumpcage (or Projekts Skatepark, if you will) on the Friday evening too. Car/train/MegaBus legs were skated off as the fading Mancunion sun slowly set, and once darkness had descended and the final straggling revellers appeared, the Death Skateboards endorsed Death Race got underway, which saw Horsey and Dan Cates attempt to maim representatives from all the landed shop teams as they darted around the park in search of the finish line. A spotlit hip and quarter session closed off the Pumpcage part of the proceedings, as Ben Powell encouraged all attendees to give their most aesthetically unpleasant tricks an airing in exchange for a turn on the loaded Blast Skates mascot piñata.

Northern Monk MCR refectory for the after party! ~ Photo: Rafski
Jim Craven losing his shit. ~ Photo: Rafski
Photo: Rafski
Oliver Birch has seen a ghost. ~ Photo: Rafski
Photo: Rafski
Photo: Rafski
Leo Sharp, Ryan Gray + Joe Gavin. ~ Photo: Rafski

In order to appropriately prepare for the following days battle at Graystone, everyone present was ushered to the Northern Monk Refectory in order to take in The National Skateboard Co. X Vans X VagueUnder Revue’ tour video whilst taking down a reasonable amount of Canhead beers.

Dave Mackey – frontside ollie. ~ Photo: Leo Sharp

Vans Shop Riot - Manchester 2019 at Graystone Skatepark. ~ Photo: Rafski
Tom Knox. ~ Photo: Rafski
Belter. ~ Photo: Rafski
Jordan Sharkey + Seb Batty. ~ Photo: Rafski
Rammo'd! ~ Photo: Rafski
Photo: Rafski
Photo: Leo Sharp

Jiri Bulin – backside tailslide. ~ Photo: Rafski

Too many legends to list! ~ Photos: Leo Sharp + Rafski

Josh Arnott – ollie over to back lip. ~ Photo: Leo Sharp

Charlie Birch - frontside feeble. ~ Photo: Rafski
Harry While - floating one over. ~ Photo: Leo Sharp
Eddie Belvedere - frontside noseblunt. ~ Photo: Rafski
Adam Keats - front crook. ~ Photo: Rafski
Charlie Birch - backside smith. ~ Photo: Rafski

The main Shop Riot event took over Graystone Skatepark in the mid-morning, and by lunchtime the place was full to the brim with crews from literally all over the country ready to represent their local store.

Adam Moss – kickflip nosepick. ~ Photo: Leo Sharp

Ryan 'Clev' Price - boneless. ~ Photo: Leo Sharp
Aaron Jago - backside 270 lip. ~ Photo: Rafski
Lola T - rock n' roll. ~ Photo: Rafski
Slick Willies fella - frontside feeble. ~ Photo: Leo Sharp
Josh Arnott - frontside smith. ~ Photo: Rafski

Dale Starkie – tail drop. ~ Photo: Leo Sharp

Rikk Fields - backside nosegrind. ~ Photo: Leo Sharp
Marcus Palmer - hardflip. ~ Photo: Leo Sharp
Jiri Bulin - frontside noseblunt. ~ Photo: Rafski
Aaron Jago - backside noseblunt. ~ Photo: Rafski

Lola T – frontside air. ~ Photo: Leo Sharp

The more traditional and less chaotic ‘qualifiers – semis – final’ format ensured that each shop had to keep constantly upping their game in order to progress to the next round.

Alex Hallford – backside noseblunt. ~ Photo: Leo Sharp

Ben Rowles aka The Skateboard Physiotherapist. ~ Photo: Leo Sharp
Ben Rowles aka The Skateboard Physiotherapist. ~ Photo: Leo Sharp
Ben Rowles aka The Skateboard Physiotherapist. ~ Photo: Rafski
http://theskateboardphysiotherapist.co.uk ~ Photo: Rafski

Matt Beer – frontside stalefish. ~ Photo: Leo Sharp

Flatspot eventually came out on top and earning themselves a well deserved spot at the Vans Shop Riot European finals in Amsterdam at the end of the month click HERE for details! Here’s to another round of grassroots carnage in 2020!

The Vans Team would like to extend a special thanks to:

Northern Monk

Graystone Action Sports

The Pumpcage aka Projekts Skatepark

Ben Powell

Blast Skates

Death Skateboards

Our Esteemed Judges

Ben Rowles – The Skateboard Physiotherapist

All of the skate shops and skateboarders who took part

A classic product toss! ~ Photo: Rafski
Ben Power on the mic. ~ Photo: Leo Sharp
Photo: Leo Sharp
Photo: Leo Sharp
And the winners are.... ~ Photo: Leo Sharp
Slick Willies - 3rd Place. ~ Photo: Leo Sharp
Black Sheep Store - 2nd Place. Photo: Leo Sharp
Flatspot - 1st Place. ~ Photo: Leo Sharp
Congrats Flatspot! ~ Photo: Leo Sharp
Two absolute beasts! ~ Photo: Leo Sharp
See you at the finals in Amsterdam! ~ Photo: Leo Sharp

Vans Shop Riot 2019 – Manchester – Video Re-cap

Filmed and Edited by: Ryan Gray