Rick Stewart is calling in extra staff, banking on a big night Friday at his downtown Ventura coffee and retail shop.

Downtown merchants are counting on the 50 athletes, their entourages and spectators in town for this week's Ultimate Boarder sports competition to provide a windfall for their all-too-quiet cash registers.

"I'm surviving, but it's tight," said Stewart, the longtime downtown proprietor of Palermo who, like others, has experienced sluggish first-quarter sales, hampered by a sagging economy and an underground utility project that has ripped up Main Street outside his store.

"I'm stoked about this event," he said. "Any kind of boost will help."

Ultimate Boarder organizers and downtown business leaders have set up a string of nightly events and deals aimed at capitalizing on potentially hundreds of visitors.

Block party on Friday night

The centerpiece is a free, family-friendly block party Friday night.

The entire 400 block of Main Street will be closed to allow a stage for three live bands, a car show of restored Woodies, local art, and a 50-foot half-pipe for the high-flying skateboard competitors to show off their aerial talents.

The block party will run from 5 to 10 p.m.

Organizers purposely chose not to sell food or drinks on the street. "The point is we want people to dine inside one of our many restaurants," said Rob Edwards, director of the nonprofit Downtown Ventura Organization.

Connecting the competition to downtown was critical, said Jim Luttjohann, director of the Ventura Visitors & Convention Bureau. Surveys show day visitors to Ventura typically spend about $60 a day, while overnight guests spend more than double that, he said.

The key, he said, is casting Ventura as more than just the beach — as a source of every aspect of good living, including fine dining, a cool arts scene and distinct shopping. "We want to give them a great first impression of Ventura," he said. "Just as important, we want them to come back."

The crowds could have extra cash to spend because admission to Ultimate Boarder events is free, said Kathleen Fitzgerald, the Visitor Bureau's director of sales.

Amtrak offers rides for kids

Amtrak, she said, agreed to let children 15 and younger ride free to the competition. In addition to the block party, Fitzgerald produced a brochure offering a slew of dining, entertainment and merchandise discounts to Ultimate Boarder fans.

"We know the competitors will have their parents, their grandparents and girlfriends in tow, and we want to give them plenty of choices," Fitzgerald said.

The beachfront Crowne Plaza Hotel, the de facto headquarters for competition participants, expects to be full for the weekend.

"This first year is a trial," Edwards said. "If we pull off a successful block party, coupled to the four-day competition, this could mean great national exposure to Ventura over the next few years.

"This could be our Sundance," he added, referring to the Sundance Film Festival that turned sleepy Park City, Utah, into a noted destination.

"If Ventura wants this event, I'm staying," said Tim Hoover, the founder of Ultimate Boarder who grew up in Goleta.

"I'm just trying to create a cool vibe and hopefully it stokes the local community in a tough time."

Eager to browse Ventura's boutiques was Pam Miller, a Seattle event planner and mother of Sky Siljeg, 13, the event's youngest competitor. As a first-time visitor to Ventura, Miller said she was excited to see downtown.

"I think it's important to support the businesses and the community that are supporting this event," she said. "And Sky has already made me promise that we will come back next year."

— Staff writer Zeke Barlow contributed to this report.