Crimson Midwest Tour, Days 1 & 2.

The Crimson Midwest tour kicked off on April 25th with the team flying into Minneapolis, MN. Our crew consisted of Kris Markovich, James Atkin, Richie Belton, Rick Eusey, Vince Del Valle, Steve Fauser, Andrew Hutchison and myself (Charlie Thomas). Upon our arrival, we got our bags and luggage then headed for the hotel. James missed his flight and was going to call me when he landed. As usual as soon as we got to the hotel James called and I was on my way right back to the airport , which really didn't matter except for the fact that our filmer, Tyler Cichy, was coming in around midnight so I would be heading back to the airport for a third time later on. The rest of the night everyone chilled at the hotel, got some food, enjoyed the hot tub, and took her easy in anticipation for the first demo at 3rd Lair the next evening.

Our first demo of the tour was at 3rd Lair skatepark . The demo was part of the kick off festivities for 3rd Lair's 5th annual Top Shop contest and Trade show. All of the surrounding area's shops bring out their best riders and skate it out for the title of 'Top Shop'. If you are ever in the Minneapolis area, make sure you stop by the park; it's one of the best parks in the Midwest .

Since the demo wasn't until 6:00 pm, we decided to try and get some street skating in. Downtown was pretty close to the hotel and Hutch knew where a couple of spots were so we loaded up the crew. Downtown Minneapolis has some pretty sick spots and is big enough that you can skate around from spot to without getting hassled too badly by the cops. We skated this sick curved bank that was really fun, Steve did Bluntslides and Tailslides, James made Noseblunts and almost made a BS 180 Nosegrind, but we got the boot.

The next spot were these marble benches with a quick tranny connecting the seat to the back. I missed the tricks that went down because I dropped off Hutch in front with all of his camera gear and finding a parking spot in downtown on a weekday isn't exactly easy.

It was getting close to demo time so I swooped the boys up and we headed back to the park. Rick was supposed to be flying in earlier in the day, but bad weather in Chicago kept him from making it to the demo until we were just about done. The demo was fun and everyone stepped it up and gave those in attendance a good show. Afterwards, we skated the bowl until Kris and I were the last ones skating...

Come back to 411VM.com tomorrow for more journal entries from the Crimson Midwest Tour!

Kris Markovich looks mean with a beard!

Kris Markovich getting ready for the demo.

James Atkin thinking about the next 2 weeks in a van with 9 dudes...

Steve Fauser, Bluntslide.

Vince Del Valle, Ollie.

Charlie Thomas, Talislide.

James Atkin in the streets of Minneapolis.

I missed Steve Fauser's Ollie , but it was caught by someone else.

Welcoming sign outside of 3rd Lair.

Damn, this park is good!

If you haven?t been to 3rd Lair, you're missing out.

Check out Kris Markovich, James Atkin, Richie Belton, Rick Eusey, Danny Scher, Thomas Bonilla, Vince Del Valle, Steve Fauser, Joey Oregero, Nick Yamasato, and Michael Prince tear through the Midwest for the next two weeks!