In the last two days, I've seen more than 200 skaters ripping it up. Most of the guys I predicted would do well have done very well, and I've been totally surprised by some guys I never heard of before, too. Tampa's been every bit as chaotic as I'd been told it would be too: On Friday night the folks who run the Hampton Inn went around knocking on doors and threw out anybody who had a skateboard with them. Contest promoters were getting calls from Bail Bondsmen in the middle of the night, and put up this handy Arrest Inquiry  link for parents and team managers looking for their lost friends.


As if the skating and hotel hijinx wasn't enough, there was last night's 15th anniversary party at the Czar Bar in Ybor City with The Hold Steady and This Bike is a Pipe Bomb: The place was packed, I saw a few underage girls passing out, I saw more than a few skaters who are lucky they don't have to skate today and a few who are skating today and it should be interesting, and by the end of the night about half the crowd was on stage singing along to "Killer Parties" with The Hold Steady.


I'm rushing off to catch this morning's Old Man Bowl Jam – I'm rooting for my friend Mike Rogers, and will send a full report and photos later – but will end this post with the all-too appropriate last line of the lyrics to "Killer Parties":

"Ybor City is tres speedy but they throw such killer parties / killer parties almost killed me / if she says we partied then I'm pretty sure we partied / I really don't remember / I remember we departed from our bodies / we woke up in Ybor City."


Good times. More tonight. Check the heat sheets to see who's skating today, then watch the live webcast at 411vm.com at 12pm EST.