VIRGINIA BEACH, VA – Lightening strikes. Thunder. Black clouds and heavy torrential rains fell last night. The local weather agencies cautioned people to take cover indoors and away from electrical lines.
Micah Desforges, the head of Tribu, the company that owns Jackalope, decided to pull the plug on Saturday’s events and hold everything over until Sunday morning.
“I thought it would be better err on the side of caution. It wasn’t easy to make the call to postpone – the skaters were super excited to participate,” Desforges said. “I didn’t wait too long before I made the call because I didn’t want to risk the chance of anyone getting hurt. In the end, it was the right call to make. Besides, we had a great after party at Beachside Social in Virginia Beach.”
The weather forecast is clear for Sunday. The first base jumper took a practice jump at 10:30 am EDT. The jumper landed in the target zone without any problems. There was a slight wind but nothing too gnarly.
The base jumping competition will conclude today and last for at least three hours.
Yesterday, we were only able to have a few competitors in the men’s open Semi-Finals. The action will pick up later today at 12:45 PM EDT as we continue with the men’s open competition.
The women’s Vertical Ramp competition will be held today. The women’s vert will start at 3:30 pm EDT.
Nina Ye, one of the top contenders to win the Women’s Vertical competition stopped by our media booth and told us what she has been up to.
“Last year, I participated in the Vertical Ramp in Mississauga. I got fourth place and was super stoked,” Ye said.
Ye is a fifteen-year-old from Oceanside, California. This is her first time skating in the Virginia Beach competition. She said, “Virginia Beach reminds me of home because of the ocean and sand.”
I asked Ye what she has been working on recently.
“I have been working on my Judo 540’s a lot. I’m really excited about this trick.
The Jackalope Festival and Block Parties are becoming more popular while attracting the younger skaters who hope to compete on the world stage. One of the principal ideas behind Jackalope is the idea that community and skate culture unite people from all different backgrounds.
In 2026, Jackalope will hold their first Block Party in Ventura, California. Ventura is located just north of Los Angeles and is a hotbed of skate culture. I met two Ventura city officials while watching Jackalope who said,
“You know, skateboarding is embedded in the Ventura’s DNA. Our vision is to make Ventura a healthy sport destination city. Jackalope is a community oriented event and it fits perfectly with the big city but small town vibe of downtown Ventura. Our businesses love it too,” the city officials said.
Today, we will conclude the final live competion for the men’s and women’s vertical competition and the street course. Watch the live stream here on 3rdstreet.tv by clicking on the link below.
The live stream starts at 12:15 PM EDT.
Content courtesy of Jackalope and Tribu. Don Hughes contributed to this article while on-site.
