XAIR 2025 - The Best Action-Sports Event in NZ.
XAIR 2025 went down over ANZAC weekend here in New Zealand, and what an incredible event it was. The level of riding from local athletes competing alongside international pros was absolutely insane.
I was there to compete in scootering, which meant I had the awesome opportunity to watch the entire competition unfold. Including the D1NZ final and car show.
Thursday: Practice Day
The weekend kicked off with practice on Thursday: one hour of practice for every competitor before diving straight into semi-finals and qualifiers the next day. Pretty ruthless, but at least it was fair, everyone got the same amount of time on the course.
The course itself was a small but noticeable step up from the previous event. We finally had a roll-in for the box jump this year, after it was almost unrideable back in 2022. The only other major change was the location of the spine, which was now tucked in right next to the box jump, making transfers much easier and opening up more creative lines for riders.
Friday: Semi-Finals
Straight into semi-finals on Friday morning. We had 27 competitors in scootering, but only 10 spots available for finals, so everyone was going all out.
I managed to qualify in 2nd place behind Jordan Chan, with local ripper Harry Payn locking in 3rd. After a lot of back-and-forth conversations between riders, it became clear that to score well at XAIR, you needed a good balance of difficult and well-executed park and street tricks. Riders who leaned too heavily into one style - either pure street or pure park, didn’t make it through.
Honestly, I love this format. It forces competitors out of their comfort zones and rewards well-rounded riding. It's humbling but fair.
A highlight of the semi-finals for me was Harry Payn’s run: a crazy combo of massive park tricks and technical street moves. He even pulled a heel whip to front lip down the rail, a trick that not even some of the world’s biggest street riders would risk throwing in a contest run.
Saturday: Finals Day
Finals day was both exciting and nerve-wracking. Scooter finals were first up, and with the cameras rolling live on Sky Sport, we had a quick 10-minute warmup before it was go time.
The finals were run in reverse order of qualifying, so with my 2nd place from semis, I dropped second to last. I landed my entire first run cleanly and sat on the podium briefly in 3rd place. Until Jordan Chan bumped me off by throwing down a flawless hybrid run to jump into 1st.
In the second runs, most riders struggled to improve on their first scores. A lot of foot slips and small mistakes crept in. My second run started strong, I stepped up a few tricks, but a silly mistake cost me dearly. I looped out trying a 540 on the smallest ramp in the park. That little bail ended my podium hopes, but honestly, that wasn’t what the weekend was about. Catching up with friends, having fun, and soaking up the experience mattered way more than where you finished.
One of my favourite moments from finals was Jordan Chan’s last run. Already sitting in 1st, he took a "victory lap" smiling the whole way through and throwing every trick he could squeeze into a minute. His balance of street and park was perfect. No one could argue with him taking the win. The final podium: Jordan Chan 1st, Corey Sponseller 2nd, Connor Ransley 3rd.
Rollerblade, Skate, and BMX Finals
Next up were the rollerbladers, and honestly, they blew me away. Their final was a jam session format, and although I’m still learning the names of some of their tricks, the riding was insane. Huge airs like a 900 over the box jump and wild grind combos lit up the park. Dan Robinson took 1st, Tom Schofield 2nd, and Johnny Jenson 3rd.
Skateboarding finals followed, and the level of riding was nuts. Some of the young local riders gave the internationals a real challenge. 13-year-old Ari Saffer, for example, threw down a kickflip backside lipslide on the A-frame rail and finished 6th. Jessica Ready nailed a flawless run and placed 5th, technically 1st in the women’s final, since the men’s and women’s events were combined.
Keefer Wilson, the previous XAIR skate champion, came out swinging with a hybrid run full of big 540 airs and heavy street tricks. But for me, the standout was Mount Maunganui local and NZ champ Sean Boucher. His stylish, flowing run earned him 2nd place behind Keefer, with Beaver Fleming taking 3rd. What a show.
Finally, BMX closed out the day with a stacked finals lineup featuring international legends like Logan Martin, Brandon Loupos, Boyd Hilder, and Jaie Toohey. The riding was next level. Huge amplitude, crazy trick combos, and massive flips everywhere.
Boyd Hilder’s run stood out for me, mixing immaculate style with super creative tech lines across the whole course. But Brandon Loupos’ insane run ultimately took the win, with Boyd in 2nd and Jaie in 3rd.
BMX Best Trick Session
One of the coolest parts of the weekend followed BMX finals: the Best Trick session. All the riders jumped back on course to throw down.
It was absolute chaos (in the best way), tricks going down everywhere. Highlights for me included local Auckland shredder Ben Hart getting redemption after missing finals, stomping a 540 to disaster, a 180 over the spine hop barspin and even 180’ing the box jump! The crowd was getting so loud for him.
Rwilly turned up too, throwing down massive tricks like a flair across the quarter-to-quarter gap. But it was Alec Danelutti who stole the show, stomping a 360 backflip downside tailwhip over the spine, going absolutely massive. My jaw literally dropped. Alec rightly took home the Best Trick win.
Wrapping Up
As the livestream ended, the pressure lifted. A bunch of us grabbed a final few laps on the course together - riders from all sports sharing the park in pure, relaxed chaos for about 20 minutes before getting kicked off.
Honestly, that last jam was one of my favourite moments of the entire weekend.
Events like XAIR, where all action sports are celebrated together, do wonders for the community. They break down barriers between disciplines, create new friendships, and build mutual respect that you just don’t get naturally at the skatepark. This unity is exactly what I hope Thrive will help achieve in the future.
An action-packed, inspiring weekend. We’re lucky to have events like this in NZ, and we need to do everything we can to make sure they keep happening.