Skateboarder Ryan Decenzo of the Greater Vancouver area in Canada's British Columbia province is one of the stars of "Shoot to Thrill," a unique production organized through the Red Bull energy drink.
Ryan Decenzo is among Shoot to Thrill skateboarders who formed 10 teams, with three skaters each, in 10 Canadian cities. Each Shoot to Thrill team was given a limited 10 rolls of film and 72 hours to record their best productions. Ryan Decenzo's team captured top prize money, and the compiled Shoot to Thrill footage made its debut shortly before Christmas in Vancouver.

Film for Shoot to Thrill was precious for Ryan Decenzo and other participants, because it would go to waste with a botched routine. "Sometimes it was hard to try and land a trick with the pressure of the 16mm film," recalls Decenzo, 23, who is among a rising tide of Canadian skateboarders who are cracking the world scene. "Or it was hard because sometimes tricks take an hour and you have to think like, 'OK, how long is this trick gonna take and when should I ask for these guys to use the 16mm?' There was pressure for sure. I think it only sprinkled for a minute during the mini-ramp session, so we got lucky weather wise."

For Shoot to Thrill, Ryan Decenzo came up with a skateboarding storyline based on a race. "The acting was minimal and funny, plus the story is sort of comical so it doesn't matter if we sucked at acting," Decenzo says in his usual modest and lighthearted way.

Greater Vancouver's winters are mild, compared to most of the rest of Canada, and so Ryan Decenzo says that as a youngster, he was a skateboarder for all seasons. "If I'm somewhere where I have some free space and my board, I'm definitely gonna be rolling around jumping on and off stuff or kick flippin' all over the place," Decenzo says.

See him in Shoot to Thrill, and in an array of other videos on YouTube.

Sources:
http://www.redbullskateboarding.com/articles/ryan-decenzo/2008/12/
http://www.push.ca/blogs/franksk/archive/2008/09/26/on-the-horn-with-ryan-decenzo.aspx
http://search.yahoo.com/search?p=ryan+decenzo+skateboarder&ygmasrchbtn=web+search&fr=ush1-mail

Vancouver, British Columbia is home to numerous skate parks. In fact, there are skate parks located in nearly every borough in the district. If you are in this city and have a need to grind rails or catch some air, try out the China Creek Skate Park. This skate park can be found inside the China Creek South Park in East Vancouver. This is an outdoor park that has a lot to offer beginner, intermediate and advanced skaters.

China Creek Skate Park - The Basics

China Creek Skate Park is a very basic, outdoor skate park. It is primarily made up of asphalt and concrete, with concrete lining the bowls and asphalt covering the street course segments of the park.

While not the premiere skate park in Vancouver, China Creek Skate Park has a reasonably good variety of skateboarding features to play around with. On the street course segment of the park, you will find benches, flat-bar rails, round-bar rails and various obstacles. In the interior of the skate park, you will find a variety of bowls, ramps and launches. Many of the ramps and launches are homemade, so be careful. Check the ramps and launches, especially those that have been brought in by skaters, to make sure that they are sturdy enough to handle you, your board and the momentum needed to trick off the ramp or launch.

China Creek Skate Park - Competitions

China Creek Skate Park is the location of numerous skateboarding competitions throughout the year. Two of the most popular skateboarding competitions held at this park are the Jaks Team China Creek Competition and the Memorial Skate Competition.

If you want to practice for these competitions, bring your board, your skateboarding shoes and your tricks to the China Creek Skate Park. To do well at these competitions, you will want to practice your tricks and skills both inside the bowls and on the street course. If you live in Vancouver, you can practice year round. However, if you are traveling to the city for the competition, arrive a week early so you can become familiar with the shape, depth and temperament of the skate park before the day of the competition. This will improve your performance and your chances of walking away a winner.

Learn about the great skateparks, events and resources offered by Vancouver, B.C.

Vancouver, B.C. is one of the best places in the world to take a vacation if you are a skateboarder. This city offers numerous high quality skateparks, it is the home to the X Games Trials for this region of Canada and it has great local board shops that you can peruse. So no matter if you are looking for a break from the typical tourist attractions or are in desperate need for catching some air, you will find what you are looking for in Vancouver, B.C.

Skateparks in Vancouver, B.C.

Vancouver, B.C. is the home to at least nine skateparks. One of the best in the city is the Vancouver Downtown Skateboard Plaza. This unique skatepark looks like a Downtown office plaza, but inside there is about 26,000 square feet of terrain and features to skate. Some of the features that this skatepark offers are rails, curbs, ramps, open space, embankments, walls and steps. It also offers a variety of terrain textures to explore including exposed brick, steel and concrete. To find this park, look under the Sky Train near Georgia Street and Main Street.

If you enjoy bowel boarding then you will want to visit the Hastings Skatepark located on the corner of Triumph Street and Renfew Street. This park is known as having the best skateboarding bowels in the world, so it is at least worth a look. In total this park has three bowels with depths of 1, 2 and 3 meters. It also features a halfpipe, hips, snake run and spines.

In addition to the above skateparks there are another seven parks to choose from. If you are in Midtown Vancouver then look for Bronson. In East Vancouver there is Canada's oldest skatepark China Creek as well as Strathcona. In North Vancouver you will find Park Gate and Griffin. Outlining skateparks include Richmond and Town Center.

Other Skateboarding Resources

When planning a trip to Vancouver, B.C., you may want to talk with the Vancouver Skateboard Coalition. They will be able to tell you what skateboard events are planned, what the city's skateboarding rules are and where to find the best skateboard park for your boarding style. Finally, they can help you find great local shops to find boarding equipment and clothing.