Welcome to the next level! Known for pushing the evolutionary boundaries of vertical skateboarding, Elliot Sloan never had anything handed to him. Growing up in the shadows of New York City skyscrapers, he could have easily become a street skater. But after watching Tony Hawk put down the world's first 900 at the X Games, Sloan chose the hard path: halfpipe skating. After outgrowing the city's few vert ramps, he risked everything and drove all the way to California with dreams of making it as a pro. And it worked! Sloan found his calling skating Mega Ramp and claimed his first X Games gold in the Big Air discipline in 2013. Since then, he's pushed the evolution of vert AND Mega Ramp skating. Sloan's career came full circle when he received his own pro model board on Tony Hawk's company, Birdhouse. Still living the dream, Sloan perfects his next-gen tricks – documented in viral YouTube videos – on his private Mega Ramp compound in Vista, California. Safe to say that doing things the hard way has its rewards!