Many who commute daily on state Route 503 through Battle Ground have probably seen a longboarder performing unique tricks.
That longboarder is Ke'Vionne “Kiwi” Robbins, who has found a home in Battle Ground and a unique hobby that has delivered him to the world stage.
For Robbins, longboard dancing began with an electric board, a small-town lifestyle and a search for a new way to get around.
It eventually took him to the Netherlands, where the Battle Ground resident finished eighth in the Intermediate Freestyle Division at the 2026 So You Think You Can Longboard Dance World Championships, competing against riders from 26 countries.
The result ranks among the strongest performances by an American in the international competition and puts Robbins closer to a milestone no American has yet reached: a podium finish at the world championships.
“I think it's not only just a personal milestone, but also on the international circuit, I think it's a really big step because of how few Americans there are in the sport,” Robbins said.
Longboard dancing combines footwork, balance, freestyle tricks and choreography. Riders move across the length of their boards in a style that Robbins said is as much an art as it is an athletic pursuit.
For Robbins, the journey into that world did not begin with traditional skateboarding.
“I got into this whole e-board thing, these electric boards, which is really weird because usually people start off by skating,” he said. “Yeah, I didn't skate it until I was 26.”
While living in Whitehall, Montana, Robbins began buying parts to build an electric board as a way to get around town. He eventually came across videos of longboard dancers and discovered an entire community he had never known existed.
“I was like, ‘I've never seen this before.’ … I was like, ‘I got to get in it,” Robbins said.
His first attempts came on an electric board, where he had to learn the movements while simultaneously controlling the throttle. In March 2023, he received his first traditional longboard from Zenit and decided to leave the motors behind.
“I started taking my steps and I was out in California with my auntie and had my dog with me," Robbins recalled, “and we're like taking these little steps rocking the helmet and walking, wobbling. And then it just became something really good and positive to focus on.”
Robbins soon discovered that longboard dancing was not simply a recreational activity, but had an entire global competitive community. Riders around the world were competing, practicing and gathering at sessions in different cities.
He traveled to California to watch and participate in sessions before entering his first competition, the Nashville Disco.
“And so they have the you know, they have the non-sponsored and sponsored and I went there and won my first competition,” Robbins said.
That success encouraged him to test himself internationally. Robbins eventually traveled to the Netherlands for the world championships, where he said the experience exposed him to riders with different styles from around the world.
“It was like one skate sesh that lasted several days, but we all flew there to kick it and then I guess from then on I started getting more into the technical side,” he said.
When Robbins returned to the world championships in 2026, his goal was more modest than simply winning.
“That's basically how that started and then I recently came back 2026 and had a goal to place in the top 10,” Robbins said.
He did exactly that, earning eighth place.
The achievement carries additional weight because Robbins is balancing longboard dancing with life as a stay-at-home father to an almost 2-year-old, while studying zoology at Oregon State University and pursuing a veterinary technician program through Penn Foster.
His wife, Darcy, is a physician in Battle Ground, and the couple has built their lives around family, education and service while Robbins continues to pursue longboard dancing.
Robbins said that balance has also shaped how he approaches competition. He said he once trained as much as six hours a day while preparing for an international event, eventually realizing that more practice did not necessarily mean better preparation.
“Six hours a day. That's not how you want to do anything. Really,” he said.
Robbins wants to see more Americans enter the sport and eventually become the first American to win the world championship.
“It's gone from just having it as a personal goal to win to more so putting our country on the map and any other future opportunities that we might have to expand the sport,” Robbins said.
For now, Robbins is continuing to practice in Battle Ground, often riding along local roads and at a nearby church where he has permission to train.
And for anyone considering picking up a longboard for the first time, Robbins has a simple message.
“You just got to do it,” he said.
To see more of Robbins’ longboard dancing, visit his Instagram page at @l.b._dancer-kiwi.
