EDITORIAL:Bank of West Games was a crowd-pleaser

There is a lot to like about the Bank of the West Beach Games, which includes as its highlight the Honda U.S. Open of Surfing — a signature event held every year in Surf City, U.S.A.

Along with the surfing competition, there are BMX events, volleyball, concerts, promotions — a full week or more at the beach that captures what summer in Southern California lifestyle is all about. (We can understand why some people don’t like the games, but, all in all, the event serves the city well by reinforcing its image as a summer haven and, not insignificantly, bringing hundreds of thousands of people to downtown — with their money.)

This year, though, there is one singular thing to like about the games above all else: Dodger Kremel.

Kremel, who won the U.S. Open’s longboarding competition (against the likes of former world champs Colin McPhillips and Joel Tudor) and $2,500, became the first Huntington Beach winner of any of the open’s events. “I was really tripping out,” he told the Independent after his win. “To see all of my best, best friends at the shore was so crazy.”

A Huntington Beach High School graduate, the 22-year-old has now grabbed a full page in the event’s history just for himself. We hope he inspires other Surf City youngsters.

Kremel’s victory was just the biggest highlight from the games, which also saw popular California surfer Rob Machado capture his third U.S. Open win in front of a record crowd of 105,000 people on Sunday.

Such crowd-friendly victories are sure to bring the droves of spectators back next year, making the games even bigger — even if this year’s excitement might be hard to top.