B-boys Battle for Crown at BVHS

The "Ashes to Ashes" b-boy competition on Saturday was sick, tight, wicked, and in a word: mad ridiculous, yo! O.K., that's three words, but my point is that the show was definitely worth the eight bucks.

The competition, held at Bella Vista High School on Saturday, Oct. 28, included The Pathway to the Crown, a 1-on-1 battle that is the fourth round in the West Coast qualifications of "Ashes 2 Ashes," whose winner heads to Portland to continue in King of the Hill. It also included a 3-on-3 crew battle, the prize again being the advancement in the "Ashes 2 Ashes" competition . Hailing from Seattle, San Francisco, and Sacramento, among others, 30 crews attended to battle for the "crown."

While I had never been to a competition like Saturday's, I'm not exactly spanking new to the b-boy scene. My ex-boyfriend break-danced, and we had a b-boy club at my high school that performed at rallies; however, a couple things I noticed indicated my break-dance status was still decidedly "newbie." For example, at the competition, standing on the outskirts of the spectator circle, my "whoo!" cheers were out of place amongst all the deep voiced "oohhhs!" I thought I had caught on after I lowered my voice a few octaves, but then I realized my cheer placement was wrong. Apparently, what I thought was impressive and cheer-worthy was just a regular old dance move or transition to the rest of the urban crowd. They seemed to give their props after the b-boys sequence of moves were completed, usually during the pose that seals it off.

Speaking of props, break-dancing seems to be such a polite sport, one based on respect. It seems to be an unspoken rule that respect is given when an extremely difficult or impressive move is executed, usually in the form of a single arm bobbing up and down towards the deserving performer, as if to say "O.K., O.K., that was dope." They weren't in the circle singing kumbaya, but there was no hostility. Aside from the occasional mock slaps and implied motions, the competitors are good sports in good spirits.

All good spirits aside, however, tension did develop between two b-boys. It appeared one b-boy got too close to the other's face during the usual taunting in the battle circle. Their crews quickly grabbed them, whispering something in their ears with a pat on the back. I like to think they were saying, "Dance it out!" And that's just what they did. After the set, they made up with a brief man-hug, tap on the back, then called it a day. There's nothing quite like a dance-off.
The 3-on-3 battles were fun, especially when they busted out routines. One move seemed to be popular among the crews. It went a little bit like this: two boys on the outside start out doing identical moves in sync (standing), then the middle guy, who the audience temporarily forgets about while distracted by the others' moves, would come out of nowhere and somersault through the middle of the two outsiders, punching out some tricky move that made his legs appear independent from his body. A grand finale followed, usually with all three perfectly synchronized in floor moves. Wow! I don't know what it is about seeing planned choreography, but it's so pleasing to the eye and, dare I say it, cute. It has something to do with the element of surprise of choreography amid all the free-styling, the fact that they worked on something together, and that they make it look so easy on top of it all.

If the competition seems like all fun and games to this point, it all stops at the 1-on-1 battle. O.K., keep the fun, but this battle is much more serious. If there's one thing that defines a stand-out b-boy, to me at least, it's diversity. The really good ones don't just stick to one style. Every time they step into the middle of the circle, their approach is different, they step it up, they showcase new moves almost every time. "Kid David," from San Francisco's Renegade Crew, won the 1 on 1 battle. He was my favorite. With an attitude of a performer, he always had a little smile on his face, even when twisting and turning and popping all over the laminated wood floor. And, of course, his moves were incredible - extremely fast, as if the fast-forward button on a remote control was stuck.

As for the 3 on 3 battle, Sacramento's own Flexible Flave (including "Future," "D-trix," and Nick Young) took the title.

I'm not going to lie; I did get a little inspired. I want to be a b-girl! Plus, one b-girl crew held their own. The only indication of girliness was their matching corn-rowed hair and coordinated purple and black outfits. From San Francisco, they were tough, talented, and a serious match for the b-boys.

So maybe I never will be a b-girl, but being a b-boy groupie for a night was enough for me. It was so exciting and it felt good to be a part of local culture.