Fan faves such as Ryan Sheckler (star of MTV’s “Life of Ryan”), Dave Mirra, Shaun White and Youngstown native Anthony Napolitan are just a few of the 150 athletes competing in skateboarding, BMX and freestyle motocross events against the backdrop of Lake Erie and the Cleveland skyline.
“We couldn’t ask for a better venue than Cleveland, to be right on the water with a fantastic view of the city,” says AST vice president of events Chris Prybylo. Cleveland is one of two completely outdoor location on the five-city annual tour, and competed against about 30 other cities to make the cut.
Afraid your kid might be embarrassed to have his mom tagging along to one of Cleveland’s coolest summer events? Prybylo insists you won’t be the only mom there.
“Parents take their kids to the ballpark, but kids bring their parents to this,” he says. “Parents are more surprised than anything when they see what these truly great athletes can do.”
Just $15 per person ($7.50 for kids 12 and younger) gets you a full day of competition plus a kids’ skate park and dirt course, musical acts and an outdoor festival complete with DJ, movie theater, food and beverages, an airbrush tattoo parlor and lots of opportunities to score autographs.
Expect a slightly older demographic in Voinovich Park on Friday evening for a concert by an as-yet-unannounced band, free to anyone with a Friday day pass.
With about 50,000 expected, plan to come early and stay for a while to take in the full AST experience. Just try not to embarrass your kids too much.