Fridays Skate Vert Prelims gave a preview of what to expect for Saturdays Final non-stop action and guys risking life and limb to get ahead. Literally.

Heat 1 saw Aussie ripper Jake Brown almost knocking himself out of consciousness after slamming hard on a 540 tailgrab attempt and emerging from the side of the vert ramp covered in blood. Fortunately, after a quick trip to the medics he was back in action and continued to skate despite a huge gash in his eyebrow. His second run saw him land the elusive 540 tailgrab and shoot from tenth place all the way into second!

Dropping next was Floridas Anthony Furlong and Frances Jean Postec, who dominated the competition with sick varial flip indys, 540 stalefishes and loads of amplitude which gave them the high scores they needed to survive and guarantee their spots in the Final. These guys definitely need to be watched closely as they are on fire as of late and are clearly on the up-and-up in Skate Vert.

Crowd favorite Shaun White also had two flawless runs in Heat 1, skating sans-elbow pads and busting huge Japan airs and FS rodeo 5s over the channel. His skating on Friday let everyone know why he won in Denver and why he surely has his sights set on first in Portland.

Rio de Janeiros Bob Burnquist also threw down his usual switch-heavy bag of tricks but skated somewhat reserved. Perhaps after his win in Louisville and his recent Grand Canyon insanity hes over the contest pressure and is in chill mode for the rest of the year.

Heavy hitters Andy Macdonald, Bucky Lasek and X Games 12 Gold Medalist Sandro Dias were up in Heat 2, stealing the show with more flip variations than you can count, huge rodeo 5s, lofty airs and super-precise lip tricks which guaranteed their spots for Saturday and then some.

Aussie bulldog Tas Pappas also sneaked into the Final by landing the only 720 of the Prelims and skated with the supreme intensity that he is widely known for, and Californias Rob Lorifice and Mathias Ringstrom also delivered the goods and rounded out the qualifiers for Heat 2.

With only the top 12 advancing into Saturdays Final, the main event at the Vans® Invitational will surely be one to watch. And with the Panasonic Open and Right Guard Open each crowning new Vert champions, the Vans Invitational will likely follow suit and complicate the overall rankings for 2006. So dont miss Saturdays Skate Vert Final at 12:00 PM PST!

Results:

1. Bucky Lasek 86.75
2. Tas Pappas 85.00
3. Jean Postec 84.00
4. Andy Macdonald 83.50
5. Shaun White 83.50
6. Rob Lorifice 82.75
7. Jake Brown 82.25
8. Anthony Furlong 82.00
9. Mathias Ringstrom 81.25
10. Max Dufour 81.00
11. Bob Burnquist 79.75
12. Sandro Dias 79.00
13. Chris Gentry 77.25
14. Mike Crum 76.50
15. Neal Hendrix 72.00
16. Rune Glifberg 71.75
17. Lincoln Ueda 68.25
18. Buster Halterman 68.00
19. Benji Galloway 61.00