Leonard Gonzales
California
It all started more than 30 years ago in Imperial Beach (“IB”) California. In the 1980s, IB was home to the U.S. Open Sandcastle Competition, one of the largest events in the country for decades. In grade school at the time, Leonard joined his family and friends in creating the “IB Posse“ amateur sculpting team. Over the years, the Posse climbed to the top of the Masters competition. They claimed many championships and awards through the 90s and early 2000s. As competition formats changed, the team has had to adapt, which now opened up to individual sculpting events. In 2021, Leonard and teammate Mark Durazo were featured in the inaugural season of CBC’s Race Against the Tide television show.
This is Leonard’s fourth year at SandFest. So far he has received a 2nd and two 3rd Place awards in the Semi-Pro category. Maybe this will be the year for the elusive 1st Place award!