In Pursuit of Greatness: Dante Tabuyo  

Article by Javan Bair

Photography Executed and Directed by Jace Stephens

 

“I know him! I know him” two local skaters yell out as Dante Tabuyo launched himself out of the most western facing bowl of the Denver Skate Park. His first series of tricks were captured by Jace and his photography equipment. The strobes and the cameras always attract a crowd at the skate park. Their presence alone makes a local celebrity of the subject. However, I am certain Dante would have maintained his status as the center of attention with or without Jace taking his photos and me interviewing him. 

 

Dante is nothing short off a BMX superstar in the making. At nineteen years old, with seven years of BMX experience under his belt, Dante is an undisputed monster on two wheels. 

 

Dante is the son of immigrant parents from Zacatecas, Mexico. His parents settled down in the Denver area and started a family. He was born and raised in the Denver area and picked up riding by association. His older brother and his friends introduced Dante to the sport at age twelve, and unbeknownst to them they had opened the proverbial Pandora’s box for the Colorado BMX community.

 

Dante has long since departed from his humble beginnings of “flowing dirt jumps” just for fun. He explained to me that he has “been stuck to it ever since, wanting progress every day.” And progress he has undoubtedly found.

 

Jace, our chief photographer, began explaining his ideas for the photo shoot to Dante to see if it aligned with how he wanted to ride. Within minutes the two had formulated a plan and Dante dropped into the bowl. He took a smooth, flowy lap around the bowl before approaching the apex of the bowl that Jace knelt underneath, waiting for his shot. Dante hit his first backflip-bar-spin of the day and set an impressive precedent right off the bat.

 

I had no intention of writing an article about Dante when I arrived at Denver Skate Park that day. I knew that Jace was in need of a lighting assistant, and I was able to oblige. But shortly after watching Dante take a few laps around the bowl it became apparent that this was no ordinary photo shoot. We were able to capture a moment with a rider that is truly on the precipice of greatness.   

 

Dante has certainly put in the time and effort to be in the position he finds himself in now. He is gracefully bowing out from his time as an amateur rider and is breaking into the ranks of true professionalism. “An upcoming contest for me, is I’m pretty sure my last amateur contest, on October 8-10 … after that it should all be professional contests throughout the world, competing for Olympic spots.” Dante explained to me after I asked him about the future steps of his career. The BMX world is at the will of this fired up nineteen year old. Dante is filled to the brim with equal parts skill and determination.

 

“I’m not much of a bragger so this might be a bit hard for me.” Dante told me after I asked him to let me know what he was most proud of in terms of his impressive BMX career. But his talent speaks volumes over his admirable humility. Over the last year, he has brought home two first place trophies, a second place title at the national level, and in his own words “I’m easily the best rider in Colorado.” And after witnessing this young man in the flesh, that statement is not arrogant, it is entirely factual.

 

Apart from tearing it up in the pursuit of a spot in the Olympics and solidifying his name among the greatest riders of all time, Dante is currently flowing through the remainder of his amateur lines while representing his sponsors. Freeagent Bikes and Yellow Designs have been supporting Dante with equipment and gear which his skill as a rider has given a new life to.

 

Dante continued to draw attention from everyone at the Skate Park on his black and silver Freeagent bike and his Yellow Designs T-shirt that read, “BIKES NOT BOMBS” as he continued to throw around the biggest tricks of the evening.  

 

As the photoshoot went on, Dante continued proving to everyone in attendance why he is beyond ready to enter the ranks of the professionalism. Anyone fortunate enough to bear witness to the spectacle he created knows that he is about to make a reality out of his aspirations of being one of the greatest in the world.

 

The session finally came to an end after Dante showed us the more technical side of his riding capabilities and unfortunately popped a tire. But looking back on the evening, Dante’s bag of tricks appeared to be seemingly bottomless. Thankfully, we have the photographic evidence to back that claim up.  

 

Before we left that evening, Dante did mention that the Denver BMX community is not as big as he would like to see it. Even though BMX has transcended the space of a niche sport in many respects over the last twenty years, the scene (especially in Denver) could still use some stimulation in terms of reaching more participants.

 

Well, I believe a reckoning of a new riders is well under way. The stimulation needed to inspire new riders in Colorado is here. The messiah of the Colorado BMX scene has arrived. And he can be regularly seen at Denver Skate Park tearing the whole scene to shreds.  

 

To those residing comfortably on the pinnacle of BMX, there is a disturbance in the Force. Dante Tabuyo should be a reason to keep a close eye on the throne.