Dundas Square in downtown Toronto is the Land of the Freaks. The only place in Canada where Taliban supporters, religious street prophets hailing the coming of Christ, homeless men applying peroxide to their infected feet, and the biggest freaks of all - skateboarders Ryan Decenzo and Magnus Hanson - all compete for tourists cameras.

Ryan, getting his game face on.

In this public space modeled after Times Square and Piccadilly Circus it can be hard to standout amongst the avalanche of advertising. Screens the size of drive-thru movies blast ad's, Virgin Mobile giving out free poutine from a delicious smelling chip truck, free samples of this and that are handed out, and billboards as big as farm fields drape down pollution stained buildings, but leave it to Red Bull to bring to life an idea that turned all eyes on the small red and yellow bulls-and-sun logo on Ryan Decenzo's New Era.

The plan was executed so flawlessly that the average bystander might not have realized that the stunt was more than just a lawless skateboarder climbing on top of some perfectly aligned trucks without their drivers even knowing. That is until the full-camera crew came into view post-stunt.

The rolling setup.

It went down like this: two large 18-wheeler semi-trucks pulled up at the Yonge-Dundas intersection followed by a mini-van with a secured flat roof that would serve as a mid-drop landing pad. Once all three vehicles came to a complete stop with bumpers touching, Ryan and Magnus rushed out of a nearby van to get into place. Decenzo climbed on top of the first truck, ran full speed towards the man-sized gap between the two semi's - kickflip - still flying 20 feet above Canada's busiest intersection the second gap comes up fast - ollie down to the reinforced van - not a second later another 8 foot drop down to street level sneaks up almost too suddenly - frontside 180. Boom. You can't put a price those youthful knees.

Kickflip.

Magnus over the gap. Forsythe photo.

Ryan Decenzo. Forsythe photo.

By this time thousands of cameras, including those of every skateboard industry person in Toronto, were turned on Decenzo as he ran up for another go around. The street protesters and religious billboard wearers started getting restless at the lack of attention they were receiving. Damn skateboarders.

To the in-the-know bystander they would already have posters of Decenzo's first successful Red Bull stunt on their bedroom wall. You know the one: massive gap between two freights on a floating barge with a breathtaking sunset over Vancouver in the background and Ryan Decenzo floating effortlessly in the dead-space between.

Three flip from Decenzo.

Another kickflip.

Red Bull Canada decided to go for round two, and what better place than Dundas Square at noon; our nation's busiest intersection at our nation's busiest time of day.

Were there a practice sessions and a film permit? Were undercover cops hired in case the unruly mobs tried to steal Ryan's branded hat in a celebrity-induced fit? Were twenty Red Bull employees cheers'ing another successful athlete project with Jagerbombs from the Jack Astors patio twenty stories above? Or did Ryan Decenzo and Magnus Hanson just happen to come across a perfect double gap step-down in the middle of Dundas Square - a perfect storm of three vehicles coming together in the perfect location for one-time only? These are things we don't need to concern ourselves with. Just enjoy the stunt for what it is: one of Canada's best skateboarders putting on a show for thousands of spectators who will be talking about how "extreme" skateboarding is for the next ten years of their lives.

Red Bull's video

Photos: Shane Hutton

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Related:
Red Bull Shoot In Vancouver
On The Horn with Ryan Decenzo
Magnus Hanson: Destined For Greatness