VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — Friday begins three days of intense competition at the Virginia Beach Oceanfront, featuring skateboarding, BMX, bouldering, skimboarding and more.
The JACKALOPE festival is back for its second year in Virginia Beach.
The festival kicks off at 5 p.m. on the sand near the King Neptune statue at 31st Street and Atlantic Avenue.
Watch: Tony Hawk influence felt at JACKALOPE festival 2023
Festival organizers say more than 50,000 people attended the free event in its inaugural year and they expect more this weekend.
Professional skateboarder, and Virginia Beach native, Collin Graham is among the world-class athletes competing.
“(Last year), it was basically just we were skating for fun, showing off what we can do to the city. This year, it’s competition style. There’s money on the line. Everyone is competing against each other instead of a fun session so there’s some bragging rights up for grabs," he told News 3 ahead of the competition this week.
Watch: VB skateboarder wins JACKALOPE VIP treatment
Graham's first competition will be in the "Best Trick" portion starting at 6:30 p.m. on Friday. News 3 is told the first base jumpers will leap off the roof of the Hilton Oceanfront at 7 p.m.
Though it's still relatively new to Virginia Beach, JACKALOPE has been held in Montreal, Quebec and Mississauga, Ontario in Canada for a number of years.
JACKALOPE is free and also features live music, food and merchandise sales.
It's part of a busy weekend at the Virginia Beach Oceanfront. The Point Break music festival, featuring Sublime, Wiz Khalifa and more, opens Saturday near 5th Street.
