Three-Time Skate Vert Finalist Zac Rose Takes the Free Flow Tour Title

Back at the 2011 Free Flow Tour Finals, if you asked any of the vert finalists who the man to beat was, you would have heard them all give the same name: Zac Rose. It may seem like Zac’s been flying under the radar because of his quiet personality, but actions speak louder than words, and his actions have already elevated his profile in the amateur ranks and beyond. Afterall, the kid had the kickflip body varial 540 in his bag of tricks, something that would even make plenty of pros jealous.

As it turned out, 2011 wasn’t to be Zac’s year. About 10 minutes before the Finals, the odds-on favorite took a hard crash in practice that forced him to sit out the contest.

Back in May, video emerged of Zac stomping his first 900, which means he’s already joined a pretty exclusive club. So it really came as no surprise to see Zac back in the field for Finals for the 3rd year in a row following a victory at the Woodward East stop.

Zac Rose

This year’s Finals were hosted at the Dew Tour venue on the beach in Ocean City, Maryland, providing quite a scenic background for the vert comp overlooking the ocean.

As things got underway, Evan Doherty was the first rider to stick a full run. “Big E” showcased his technical ability, landing a mctwist and a 720 in his run. The 9-year-old sparkplug had just competed in bowl finals not longer before, but clearly still had plenty of energy left in the tank.

Zac Rose had the benefit of being the last rider to drop in for each round, but it ultimately became a pretty moot point after Zac took his first run and immediately laid down the hammer. Linking back-to-back 540’s, a kickflip indy, lien varial, kickflip varial and a body varial, Zac easily vaulted to the top of the leaderboard.

Evan “Big E” Doherty

From that point on, the field cycled back through for the final two rounds, but no one was able to touch Zac Rose’s 87.67.

Eavn Doherty held tight to the 2nd place spot, while a strong final run from Jake Ilardi was enough to bump him up from 5th to 3rd, solidifying a podium position for the 15-year-old from Florida.

Jake Ilardi

Up next for Zac Rose: a spot in the Dew Tour’s skate bowl semi-finals on Friday. With a trick arsenal that can hold its own against the pros, the question is, can Zac make it into the main event? Find out for yourself when the Dew Tour’s vert semis air Friday night at 9pm ET on NBC Sports Network.

Results

1. Zac Rose, 87.67
2. Evan Doherty, 79.67
3. Jake Ilardi, 75.67
4. Cory Juneau, 68.00
5. Heimana Reynolds, 67.67
6. Mats Hatlem, 59.33
7. Luke Russell, 49.33
8. Brennan Campbell, 48.00
9. Nick Wallace, 45.33

Jake, Zac and Evan