Four-Time Finalists Bowerbank and Webb Ready to Compete Again

In the six years that the Gatorade Free Flow Tour has been around, it seems like the names Chase Webb and Tyson Bowerbank get brought up again and again. And there’s definitely a reason for that. Although both are just 15 years old, Tyson and Chase will be competing in the Gatorade Free Flow Tour’s skate park finals for a whopping fourth time, a feat only one other skater has ever accomplished on the amateur circuit.

Chase Webb through the years

You’d think winning on a national tour since the age of 11 would be difficult, but Chase and Tyson have made it seem easy, racking up wins throughout California, as well as Maryland, Arizona, Nevada and Kentucky despite being from California and Utah, respectively. And after Tyson took fifth and Chase claimed seventh at the 2009 Gatorade Free Flow Tour Finals, both are poised to crack the podium at this year’s event in Salt Lake City.

Alli caught up with both four-time Gatorade Free Flow Tour finalists to get their thoughts on winning year after year, their competition at the Finals and what it would mean if they won it all this year.

Tyson Bowerbank through the years

What has it been like being able to compete in the Finals so many years in a row?
Chase: It’s been cool because I get to go to Utah and skate the best course and chill with all of the homies!
Tyson: It’s been fun, because I get to see all my friends from out of town, and I get to skate the sick courses. 

What’s your secret to winning year after year on the GFFT?
Chase: There is no secret, really. I just go to the contest and hope I skate good.
Tyson: I don’t have a secret. I just try to skate as good as I can, and hope that’s good enough.

 Does it help having been to the Finals before so you know what to expect?
Chase: It helps in some ways but it’s not a major thing.
Tyson: Yeah, I know what the format will be like, and who will be there.

Chase en route to his win at Skatelab this year (Photo courtesy of Chris Huber)

Who do you think your biggest competition will be this year?
Chase: Everyone kills it, so it’s everyone that’s my biggest competition.
Tyson: Everybody there. All of them will be super good.

What’s it going to be like competing against guys as old as 21 this year? Do you think it will make any difference?
Chase: I’m kind of used to it because of other contest that I have been in, but I think it will be just that much gnarlier.
Tyson: I think it’ll just give a chance for older kids to do the contest and maybe allow me to meet some new cool people.

What was it like the first time you made it to the Gatorade Free Flow Tour Finals?
Chase: I was stoked that I won a stop and was going to Florida and gonna compete with people from all around the US.
Tyson: It was really fun! I was only like 11, and it was in Portland. I was the little kid of the contest.

Tyson competing at last year’s Gatorade Free Flow Tour Finals

What would winning the Gatorade Free Flow Tour Finals and competing against the Dew Tour pros mean to you?
Chase: It would just make me that much more excited but at the same time nervous.
Tyson: That would be really sick! It would help get my name out there, and it would mean a lot to me since I’ve been doing the Free Flow Tour so many years now.

 

To read about how Tyson and Chase earned their spots in this year’s Gatorade Free Flow Tour Finals, check out the Charm City and Skatelab recaps.