Lakeland, Florida, was overrun by tens of thousands ofstuntriders and stunt fans over the weekend of February 11-13 as the best stunters from all over the US (including Hawaii!) turned the quiet city upside down during the 2005 Stuntwars competition.
Things kicked off on Friday the 11th on Lakeland Dragstrip's quarter mile as dozens of competitors (and stunt wannabes) gathered for the Friday practice session. Action was all over the place, ranging from amateur power wheelies to pro-level high-chair circles, as the local heroes attempted to mix it up with the pros. One-upmanship between the stunters without the pressure ofthousands of bleacher teachers like later in the weekend at the actual event meant that some of the hottest stunt action of the weekend happened at the practice spot.
Saturday was the qualifying portion of the event for individual freestyle, longest endo and no-handed wheelie events. Saturday's crowd attendance nearly matched that of Sunday's main event the previous year, so the placewas packed. Intense qualifying cut the field of riders from hundreds to a little more than 30, who all competed for a spot in Sunday's main events. The weather gods smiled on the crowd, with nearly perfect temperatureswelcomed by the many fans and riders who traveled from frozen states to Florida for the event.
Once the sun went down and the track cleared out, action in Lakeland really picked up--local Lakeland residents were hardly prepared for the wrath of thousands of alpha males that descended on their tranquil town and turned things upside down. Tree set on fire, parking lot bowling, rental cars jumped for distance, and ghost-riding water trucks were just a few of the "alleged" happenings on Saturday night, a bedlam that had Lakeland police scrambling though their cop manuals in search of new techniques for crowdcontrol. It got so bad a one point that anyone wearing a black t-shirt, hoodie, or baggy pants was pretty much barred from entering any Lakeland establishment.
Amazingly, nearly all the fans and riders (note that we said "nearly") made it back to the dragstrip the next morning for Sunday's main event. And what an event it was! Kyle Woods proved that he is pretty much the ValentinoRossi of the stunt world, blowing other riders into the weeds in nearly every judged event. Placing first in sickest trick and individual freestyle, Woods also ruled the no-handed wheelie contest, rolling right off the end ofthe dragstrip and all the way into the woods before falling off in the trees, effectively making the no-handed wheelie contest obsolete. After last year's disappointment Woods came to Stuntwars this year with something toprove, and proved it convincingly.
In contrast to prior years' events, West Coast riders definitely came on strong in 2005. Eric Hoenshell, Warren James, Darius Khashabi and Kane Friesen, all from west of the Rockies, rounded out the individual freestyle results.
Chris Nichols, Todd Colbert and Adam Chumita,better known as Team X-Treem, are the trio that organized this historic event, and deserve huge props for putting on a weekend that everyone will surely remember. Crowd attendance was record setting, with estimates that more than 10,000 spectators filed into the stands from 8:30 am to nearly 8:30 pm on Sunday when the competition finally came to a close. With every inch of grandstand covered by fans at Stuntwars 2005, it looks like this stunt season is off to a great start. Street freestyle has arrived.
Stay tuned for extended coverage of Stuntwars in the July issue of Super Streetbike, in the meantime, enjoy these photos.
2005 STUNTWARS RESULTS
Longest Endo
1st: Eric Hoenshell - 477'
2nd: Matt Lindamood - 476'
3rd: Chris P - 474'
4th: Alex Florez - 451'
Tandem
1st: Tony D./Melissa McEnery
2nd: Joe Dryden/Gixxie
3rd: Tom/Amy
No Hand Wheelie
1st: Kyle Woods - 1,872'
2nd: Micheal M. - 1,601'
3rd: Jason Britton - 1,440'
4th: Alex Flores - 1,423'
Sickest Trick
1st: Kyle Woods
Individual Free Style
1st: Kyle Woods
2nd: Eric Hoenshell
3rd: Warren James
4th: Darius
Team Event
1st - ' Stunt Rags'
Rick Payne,Kyle Wood,Aaron Brunell,Jacob BrunellSteve and Allie, Tom and Amy