It’s that time of year again and here are the top 10 moments in skateboarding for 2008. Drop us a comment below if you disagree of if we missed something you strongly feel should have made the list.

10. Chaz Ortiz winning a Dew Tour stop! Why did this make the list? Because someone finally won one of the darn contest stops other than Sheckler or P-Rod. So stoked to see some new blood winning a contest. This kid is breaking through fast. Pretty soon it’s going to be him winning all the contests.

9. Split clothing going down and out! This shocked and not only surprised a lot of people, but it let many know that even the big companies aren’t safe from the economic pinch. I would have never guessed that Split was going to call it quits. Especially with the new video about to drop. Where did all that footage go? I still want to see it. DEMONS IN THE ATTIC?! Where’s it at?

8. Southern California Skate parks! Yes this has been a massive year for newly opened skate parks here in So-Cal. including what I consider our first legit Skate Plaza. Well first one that I think looks spectacular. If you are ever in Wilmington, Ca go on by and have a sweet session there. Its so worth it, seriously.

7. Thrashers Bust or Bail contest had to make the list. The contest was held at the world famous Paul Revere 16 stair in San Francisco. $25,000 was at stake and none other than Ryan Sheckler took top honors. Tons of first time tricks were done there as well and the bar was set super high. I honestly don’t even know what else to think of someone doing on the set anymore.

6. Goofy vs. Regular is always a highly anticipated contest. This year the Regulars took the trophy back. Chris Cole seriously annihilated the course. Although I still don’t agree on the way they settled who won by playing a game of skate in the manner they did. I do agree that the Regular team killed it. I skate Goofy so I voted for my side but I got to hand it to the regulars this year. Goofy has it next year though just watch!

5. The Berrics!!!! Everybody knows about Eric Koston and Steve Berra’s private training facility. The Berrics took 2008 by storm. All year long there was something big happening underneath that warehouse of theirs. Not only that, but just the whole indoor training facility footage craze this year has grown tremendously. The Berrics has my vote though for the gnarliest. Clever, unique, intriguing, and always entertaining to watch. 5 stars for the Berrics!

4. The Blind team! These dudes took every team contest this year, like the Vans Downtown contest! These dudes held it down big time. And its rad because it seems that everyone voted against them or for some other team throughout the competitions only to watch these guys come up big. Still got my Gideon Choi deck! Blind goes way back. History for days.

3. S.O.T.Y. winner Silas Baxter Neal. Yes the man deserves it. A fabulous part in Es “eSpecial”, and a worthy winning of “Best Rookie” at the Transworld awards. Oh yea and an “Inhabitants”, and more recent Strange Notes part. Don’t forget all of the magazine covers and the mass array of photos featured just about everywhere. The dude needs his own pro shoe already!

2. Lakai’s the Final Flare! This skateboard video absolutely obliterated the stereotype that skate videos would no longer sell. It just goes to show that if you make a video actually worth buying, it WILL sell! It will forever go down as one of the greatest skateboarding videos of all time. And all throughout 2008 everyone around you was talking about this video and you know it. Hats down and a massive applause to the Lakai dudes for this masterpiece.

1. The Maloof Money Cup! This contest had the largest cash purse of any skateboard competition of all time. I was there and witnessed the craziness go down firsthand. It was amazing! Probably the biggest batch of big time skateboarding names in one location at one time skateboarding. The course was unlike anything I had ever seen. And to make it even more insane they destroyed the entire thing after its contest use. The skateboarding that went down during the contest was unheard of. And the star studded guests and world wide attention it grabbed shook the year 2008 with a seismic 10.0 magnitude earthquake. And the best part is that it looks like the contest is here to stay.

Tags: Eric Koston, lakai, Ryan Sheckler

Posted by Ruben 'Studdard' Najera on Tuesday, December 23rd, 2008 in Skateboarding.

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