Dyrdek Charms Me Again, in Seconds

Ryan Sheckler (Photo by Joe Kunkle)

Day out with Dyrdek

(Photos by me, unless otherwise noted) 

Who is the coolest aunt in the world? According to my nephews, Jorden and Devin—Me! Take that Brea (my sister and fiercest best-aunt competition in the Owen family).

Jorden and Devin in front of Dyrdek's world-record setting skateboard

This past Saturday we, along with my daughter Chloe, headed to the Street League DC Pro Tour's second stop in Ontario. I covered the contest for OC Weekly (see below). 

Devin, Jorden and Chloe with Josh Kalis

But first, let me explain that 13-year-old Devin has barely spoken to me in a year. It gets tougher and tougher to impress—let alone entertain—a child once they pass the tween stage. So I seized this opportunity, and it paid off big time. By the end of the day, Devin actually smiled, thanked me and told me that the day was really cool. Success.

Devin's highlight, Terry Kennedy signing his deck

And even though they weren't down in the media area with me and Chloe, Devin and Jorden did get to meet plenty of the pros after and get autographs. Chloe, on the other hand, had no idea who any of them were, but she quickly caught on to what all the Ryan Sheckler-mania was about. At 7, she is already acutely aware of cute 21 year olds. Cue cringe. 

As she stood at the railing hoping for some sort of encounter with Sheckler, she spotted Rob Dyrdek, who was standing in the middle of the chaos minutes after Sean Malto was declared the winner. He was having a conversation with someone, saw Chloe (who was about 25-feet away) and made a b-line toward us. 

Sean Malto and Chloe

"You look so excited, I just wanted to see what you were so excited about," Dyrdek said to her. I had not met him in person before. She was delighted. He signed her Diary of a Wimpy Kid DIY Journal, which has a spot for autographs. Chloe had to of been the only one getting a Wimpy Kid book signed. He was unphased by it, as were the rest of the skaters. 

Chloe went on to talk to and get autographs from Greg Lutzka, Torrey Pudwill, Nyjah Huston and more. She even sat in on the press conference and got her picture with Malto. If she was not a fan of skateboarding before, she should be now.

When I offered to help her learn to skateboard—she has all her own gear in the garage just waiting for her interest to evolve!—she told me she was quite content remaining a scooterer, which I explained to her is not an actual word.

"Too bad," she said. "That's what I am."

It was like Paul Rodriguez, left, knew I was obsessed

So aside from what is in my article, below, what I couldn't stop wondering all day was: What does Paul Rodriguez, Jr., do when he has his face in his hat before every trick he attempts? Is he thinking about all the errands he needs to run, how he is starting to overshadow his father's career as a comedian? God? Is he praying? Is he thinking about his girlfriend? Is he visualizing what he will spend $150,000 on if he wins? 

It was driving me crazy.

Dyrdek, as always a man after my heart, asked P. Rod during the press conference. 

"When you do the hat ritual, do you hear nothing?" Dyrdek asked. 

"I'm pretty zoned in there," Rodriguez said. "The more nervous I get the more intense I get."

But it was Sheckler who made the most sense to Chloe. "The falls really hurt," he said jokingly. Yes, as does falling for a 21-year-old skater when you are 7.

Chaz Ortiz, realizing that all that dumb stuff in math he's been learning really does matter in the real world—and some guy named Ryan Sheckler

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Sean Malto Wins Cali Stop of Street League DC Pro Tour

By Arrissia Owen Turner, Tues., Sept. 14

(Photo by Joe Runkle)

​ 

Sean Malto barely pulled it off. After a day of nearly 100 percent accuracy, Malto capitalized on skater Chaz Ortiz's shoddy math skills and walked away with $150,000 first place prize money.

Sept. 11 was the second stop of Street League DC Pro Tour Fueled by Monster Energy at Ontario's Citizen's Business Bank Arena, and the contest boasts the biggest prize purse ever for a skate contest, a whopping $1.2 million overall between three stops.

The final is Sept. 25 at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas, perfect for the Kansas City, MO, resident Malto, who turned 21 just days before the Ontario leg of the tour.

The contest is Dyrdek's newest venture, utilizing his much-anticipated instant scoring device that he hopes will revolutionize the way street skating contests are run. He also wants to break down the action to where regular joes can understand the brevity of what's going on with the boards. 

Click below for the full story:

http://blogs.ocweekly.com/heardmentality/etc/sean-malto-wins-cali-stop-of-s/