Skateboarding
Skateboarding
Real Big: Zion Wright's non-stop ascension through skating's pro ranks!
One of the biggest blow-ups from Florida, Zion Wright has steered a gilded career to become a one-man demo, handling every facet of pro skaterhood with grace and poise: learn how he got here.
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Rarely was there a better-liked person in pro skateboarding than Zion Wright. In many ways, Wright has become the consummate skateboarding pro: a footage machine, guaranteed demo-rocker, contest killer and natural. During his visit to Red Bull Pool Drop in Munich, he graced our commentary on the live broadcast – and, on the occasion of his first music interview with Red Bull Skateboarding, we thought we’d take a look back at his skateboarding story so far.
Zion Wright
© Anthony Acosta/Red Bull Content Pool
Zion Wright – Smith Grind
© Ricky Aponte
Much like his lifelong friend Jamie Foy, Zion Wright’s childhood in Jupiter Beach, Florida, rotated around skateboarding. Starting aged just four, the friends rapidly came to regional and then national and international fame through all-round talent, which many credit Florida's skateparks like the Skatepark Of Tampa for developing year-round.
Zion Wright
© Mike Blabac
01
How did Zion Wright get into skateboarding?
Zion Wright's Early Career
Wright’s rising star didn't take long to fully express itself: at 16, he knew he had to commit fully to trying to make it in the skate industry heartland, so he moved to Los Angeles.
Zion Wright – Lipslide
© Kenji Haruta
Just one year later, in 2016, and while still aged just 17, Wright took second at the industry hothouse Boardr Am contest and later that year went on to win the equally-coveted PHX AM. 2017 would see him turn pro for the widely-regarded Real Skateboards – and his time to shine began in earnest.
Zion Wright – indy air
© Andrew Durso
Skating is a feeling you can’t really describe!
02
His first Red Bull mega-project: Eolo
5 min
EOLO: Skate the Wind
Watch Zion Wright, Danny León, Alex Sorgente and Ryan Sheckler skate wind turbines in Asturias, Spain.
In 2017, Wright joined the first of his epic Red Bull quests, which helped to take his profile beyond skateboarding. Acting on an invite from Dacero and Windar Renewables based in Asturias, Spain, Wright and friends Ryan Sheckler, Danny León and Alex Sorgente leapt at the chance to skate through the process of constructing a wind turbine. The project to skate these behemoths was dubbed Eolo, after the ancient Greek wind god.
03
His European debut at Simple Session
2 min
Simple Session 2018 Highlights
Watch every hammer worthy of the name as Estonia’s annual ding-dong crowns a new boss.
2018 was the start of Wright's European affair, with three huge performances at Estonia's Simple Session, Red Bull Rollercoaster and touring industry shindig CPHBER. His Simple Session run was like an orchestra performance, with the crowd rising and falling with every trick.
04
Keeping the momentum going at Red Bull Roller Coaster
2 min
Zion Wright at Red Bull Roller Coaster
Check out Zion Wright's run from Red Bull Roller Coaster 2018.
The novel 2018 Red Bull Roller Coaster contest format required skateboarders who could mix street and ramp skills at speeds on the edge of control. Wright instantly stood out as one of the most complete skateboarders on the entry list. His European come-up was continuing apace, but the summer's highlight was yet to come.
05
Zion Wright's star confirmed as he dominates CPH@BER
3 min
CPHBER 2018 skate contest highlights
Watch Zion Wright barge the hectic CPHBER contest right across Berlin.
Summer 2018 in Europe was pivotal for Wright's worldwide profile: not only did he experience a new understanding of the scale of the regard in which he was held internationally, but he discovered that when he needed to, he could bring the hype like few others. Dominating every stop of the Berlin contest series cemented that in the minds of the European skate scene and beyond.
06
Filming for You Good?
As if 2018 hadn't delivered enough from Wright, 2019 saw his one-two punch in the form of his outrageous part in Red Bull's only full-length skate video You Good?, which involved him going all-in at unforgiving skate spots around the world from Portugal to Taiwan. Just when anybody else would be ready to kick back, Wright was offered a chance he just couldn't pass up: to skate the Petrified Park.
8 min
Zion Wright – raw edit
Watch previously unreleased footage of attempts, slams, makes and throwaway clips from Zion Wright's part.
07
Once in a lifetime opportunity: skating the Petrified Park
2 min
Petrified Park
Join Ryan Sheckler, Barney Page, Ryan Decenzo, Alex Midler and Zion Wright as they rip the oldest skateable terrain on Earth in Russell Houghten's incredible Petrified Park edit.
A very select crew were required for this never-to-be-repeated 2019 skate project by photographer Sam McGuire, featuring the work of acclaimed visual creatives Jonathan Mehring and Russell Houghten.
A remote and ancient stone formation interpreted by skateboarding, Petrified Park was another silo-jumping production in which Wright was joined by Ryan Decenzo and Ryan Sheckler in one of Red Bull Skateboarding’s most-watched projects of all time.
08
Back in the van: Wright joins the Drop-In Tour
By now, it was clear to everyone who watched Zion Wright that he was capable of bringing any crowd to its feet – and having felt that perfect moment of being young, free and on the road, he joined Red Bull's rolling mega-tour in 2022. Red Bull Drop-In brings the old-fashioned skate energy of the travelling demo tour to the world and Wright has become one they all want to see.
Zion Wright – Hardflip
© Anthony Acosta
09
The demo machine: 5 countries and 5 demos in 12 days
32 min
Join the Red Bull Skate team on tour
In this special no-filters look at life on tour, we let you inside the van with the Red Bull Skate team.
Traversing Europe in 2022, our rolling skate demo tour took in Barcelona, Prague, Cologne, Marseille and Amsterdam as the Drop-In Euro Tour saw Wright lead the charge alongside Ryan Sheckler, Felipe Gustavo, Jamie Foy, Jake Wooten and Alex Sorgente in one of the biggest demo tours in recent memory.
Alongside a five-nation road trip throwing a series of ram-packed demos, there were side missions in the street all along the way. and Wright's reputation as a one-man demo machine and hype train was born.
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Wright takes Japan as the Drop-In Tour continues
August 2023 saw Wright join another international skate squadron assembled to put on two ballistic demos in the cities of Tokyo and Osaka on a 500km whistle-stop tour of that fantastic country. Rolling 25-deep, the tour crossed Japan via bullet train, hitting up the street terrain that they came across along the way. Wright's energy was vital to keeping the tempo high and vibes right duringn a gruelling, but fascinating, schedule!
11
Wright conquers Australia
33 min
Australia Tour
The skateboard demo tour hits Melbourne, Brisbane, Gold Coast and Sydney with Jamie Foy, TJ Rogers and more.
The Red Bull Drop-In Tour of Australia was the most daunting to date. It's Australia, the land of so many skateboarding rulers that you absolutely have to bring your A-game. Cometh the tour cometh the man in his prime: Wright rocked all four demos and brought the crowd into the action in a way only some skateboarders can. His demo legend status was by now certified.
12
What's next for Zion Wright?
Two projects loom just over the horizon for the man from Jupiter Beach now zigzagging the globe filming and blowing minds as he goes. The first is a debut video part for his footwear sponsor ,Vans, a brand with a heavy legacy in skateboarding.
Zion Wright skates at the Vans Park Series in Huntington Beach in 2017
© Anthony Acosta/Red Bull Content Pool
Even down to each trick you choose to do – it’s like a painter choosing which brush to use
The second is this year's Red Bull Drop-In Tour of South America, which given Latin America’s appetite for insane skateboarding, promises to be the wildest leg of our rolling world tour yet. In parallel, Wright has developed his passion for music and is interested in the directions that may yet take him.
Zion Wright – Ollie
© Jonathan Mehring
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