Ukee Salmon Slam 2022For the bowl skaters of the Lower Mainland and Vancouver Island, Ucluelet’s annual Salmon Slam is a triumphant end-of-summer bash – a perfect cap to a season spent camping, swimming, and crushing coping. Conspicuously absent over the last two years due to the pandemic, this year’s event was anticipated even more hungrily than usual. Although technically a contest, the Salmon Slam feels more like a party, and a celebration of everything we love about this lifestyle. The bowl itself is amazing to skate, but the surrounding environment of wild, wind-swept coast and rainforest, as well as the laid-back community-run atmosphere of the event, creates a vibe that cannot be replicated anywhere else. Even after the official runs were over, the skaters at this year’s contest kept firing on all cylinders, unable to turn off the stoke that the Salmon Slam ignited. And as per tradition, a rowdy punk show at the local hall kept the fire lit deep into the night. Big ups to Alicia Gilmour for spearheading this epic experience, and to all the other volunteers, organizers, and sponsors who played a part. Here’s to many more Salmon Slams! Filmed and edited by Shawn Robottom Words by Stepan Soroka