Alpine x Index Ink Deck

Why You Should "Watch Make it Count: The Element Story"

See the highlight in bold.

On August 1st, 2009, Element will release MAKE IT COUNT - The Element Story.
MAKE IT COUNT showcases Element’s defining moments and will delve into it’s compelling story. From it’s humble beginnings, to a forward thinking global brand. The full length film will release for free on the Element site.

"MAKE IT COUNT" - official trailer from ELEMENT SKATEBOARDS on Vimeo.

Good to know Element gets it. They've been doing solid clips online for sometime. This should be interesting. My advice: post it up on the Element site but also on iTunes as a free download (along with your old skate vids) and maybe even Hulu if you can sneak it in. Access is worth more than page views

Slackin!

Yeah, I've been slackin as of late but hey it happens. You get busy here and there in the jobs that pay money and the things that don't pay money (like blogs) fall by the wayside. anyways I'll be spinning it back up again on and off but in the meantime lets see what else is happening...

In the world of snowslash-yay-in Kevin Jones did this interview with EXPN, or ESPN action sports or whatever the hell they are calling themselves now. Hee's the summary: KJ was/is an amazing rider, got fed up with snowboard politics or industry contracts or whatever and split to go become a fly fishing guide. Now he's filming for a video part. Oh yeah he's going to do it on his own. Mostly it sounded like every other "why I left" story from action sports where these plot lines usually fragment is around why the leave it can usually be classified into the four following groups:
A. Drugs - Hosoi, Etc
B. Over it - Craig Kelly,
C. Old (but still in it yo!) Kendall, etc
D. Headcase - Scotty Wittlake

No word yet on which group Kevin fell into. From my perspective KJ fell into the "whatever happened to..." group. Usually I classify him as "whatever happened to Kevin Jones the amazing snowboarder who gave birth to Stephen Astephens career?" But, that's just me he did rack up lots of great video parts blah blah blah. Overall, I'm interested to see what he comes up with. He's been outof the game and now he's rolling back in. Hopefully it's on terms he's comfortable with.

On the same note of things interesting and connected only by a micorfiber of reality. I wonder if Kevin ever used to tell fly fishing clients: "I used to be a pro snowboarder". A quick rip down memory lane is always a treacherous journey when referring to the glory days (which is why never achieving your full potential is a blissful thing) but if that's hs or your thing check out You Will Soon's "Yeah I used to Skate post". Simply put this is an awesome reality check for everybody who claims it rather than does it. I actually remember being a "yeah I used to skate guy" back in 1999. Wow, I was ten years younger and acting 30 years older. Good thing I pulled myhead out of ass and strted skating again.

Finally on the skating front Alpine skate Shop and Convoy have got $99 completes. Good wood from a local company and Chris doing his best Crazy Eddie impersonation:

Alpine Convoy Summer Stimulus Package from Alpine Ski Shop on Vimeo.

Nike SB June 2009

Brian Tucci in the Washington Post

The Washington Post decided to shed some light on a DC legend of course that doesn't stop them from turning it into a tragic tale of fortune lost.

"Yet unlike skateboarding's biggest stars -- Tony Hawk, Rob Dyrdek, Bucky Lasek and Shaun White -- Tucci has never found a way to cash in on his renown. Instead he has lived a nearly destitute, nomadic existence, couch-surfing at the homes of buddies, shacking up with girlfriends or staying at his mother's house. "

Yes, Tucci deserves recognition. I could not agree more: Brian deserves his due. However, describing his existence as "nearly destitute" is an insult to him and skaters who sacrifice the comforts of a day to day life. He's forsaken what? a blackberry? health insurance he might use 2 or 3 times a year? a paycheck he can spend on things he doesn't need? I read this and I'm uplifted by Tucci's willingness to stick it through and pursue his calling. Everybody has a lifer in their town who won't release the dream. These are the folks who usually make it happen. If you've forgotten what skating is about read this piece on Tucci and go skate this weeekend. Remember why you started and quit making excuses as to why you've stopped.

VANS V-79 X SUPREME X MALCOLM MCLAREN

Solid

Nyle "Let The Beat Build" from Nyle on Vimeo.

BlueBird Wax and Travis Rice Give-Away

Do you like free stuff?
Do you like snowboarding?
Do you fan out when somebody mentions "That's It, That's All" or Trice?

This this contest is for you.
Boards before you can buy'em
Autographs and a weiner dog named Alphonse (not really but Willie is capable of anything)

The Funny Thing is it's Not a Joke

Creature once again reminding you that flannel is the new black if you ride 8.6 boards and your full name is Bob Gnar.


Actually, I imagine they'll sell everyone of these. If it were fall and not practically summer everywhere.

Chaz Ortiz Trailer from 'Proof'

Coming soon. Keep those eyes peeled.

Bucky Lasek's New Bowl

Vans had a sneak peek of this long ago but now Bucy is showing the recent progress.

South of the North from SOTN

Rumor Factory #3: The Koston Nike SB Shit Talk Equation

Somebody once asked me what the internet was good for and in a sarcastic joking reply I shot back: "Porn, banking, gambling and raising shit talk to an art form". Now 75% of that was a joke but the part about talking shit was 100% true. I can't really remember a medium prior (maybe the anonymous caller on a radio show) that allowed so much smack to be dished out. Believe me, I've received my fair share of hate from the get go of South of the North. I figure if somebody is really pissed then fuck it ... I'm pretty easy to find/track down. 90% All other online smack gets filed in the "meh" category.

Once in a blue moon there's a really thoughtful insightful comment that is akin to "pull your head out of your ass you pompous douche." At that point in time I generally think for a moment or two and then go back to doing whatever it was that i was doing. But, some of the shit talk really makes me laugh. Case in point the ongoing commentary I receive to the Eric Koston on Nike Sb post I tossed up last month. Truth be told, I have no fucking clue who or what Eric plans on skating for since his departure from Lakai. All I know is what I know this amounts to the following:

You can't be a pro skater forever. Simply put your body gets older and shit breaks down. Just ask Jim T. about that one his twitter feed has more updates abut knee rehab than most NFL players. Factor in that life costs money. Koston just had a kid (congrats BTW, welcome to the realm of sleepless nights glad to have you in the FOD club). Pretty soon you have recipe where the long term outlook is shoring up to be mighty healthy for a bigger payday. Then again maybe he want to spend tiem with his family. Shit, maybe he's going to school to get that college degree. Who knows? but the comments form that earlier post listed below gave me a pretty good laugh. Typos and all.

DISCLAIMER - This is commentary from an April post: Koston on Nike SB
<-begin comments->
PEDRO said...
may be koston like the shoes but his name is not on the team roster on the lakai web site!!!!
April 24, 2009 4:13 AM

Anonymous said...
if you not noticed, hes of the lakai team,
that doesnt mean the next shoe he wears is directly his new sponsor.
April 26, 2009 2:48 PM

Anonymous said...
Koston is just another greedy american goin for the money and setting the stage for all skaters to just sign with someone for (more) money ...
I am sure Mike Mo will "sell-out" next !
April 28, 2009 5:41 PM

Anonymous said...
koston isn't on lakai anymore
i'm pretty sure koston has done more for skateboarding than you have so don't hate
April 30, 2009 9:18 AM

Anonymous said...
Fuck it he might be a sell out
but you gotta sell out to eat out
April 30, 2009 9:43 PM

Darren said...
Man fuck all this negative talk about Nike. They have a solid team and are doing something for skating. People have skated in Nikes for so long. And the Nike SB blazers are by far the best skate shoes I've ever skated besides the Lakai Manchester. Stop being such fucking idiots. Try a pair of SB's and shut the fuck up. I mean, look at their team...I guess Chet Childress, Lance Mountain, Daniel Shimizu, Matt Beach, Gino Iannucci, Stefan Janoski, Omar Salazar, Brian Anderson, and Weiger Van Wageningen are all sell outs and only do it for the money. Def not because of the support from Nike or the good shoes that they make. Oh theres more people on the team and plenty of kids that are am or flow for them.
May 1, 2009 10:02 PM

bullshit said...
"Fuck it he might be a sell out
but you gotta sell out to eat out"
So you are saying that Lakai didn't pay him enough to eat. What a joke.
May 3, 2009 9:12 AM
<-end comments->

OK, Jonny here, I'm back. Soooooo here's what I know. Eric seems like a nice guy. And he poses for pictures like the one above. Really, who gives a shit what sneaker company he skates for. I just hope he keeps skating. That's right, there's no earth shattering revelations here. Just some grade A smack talk. I'm sure we'll all know soon enough what Eri's plans are in the meantime keep speculating. As a heads up I'll be starting the rumor tomorrow that Eric is starting a skate division for the British Knights* brand and/or becoming the brand manager at Sneaux**. You have fair warning.

* No he won't
** That means he'd have to team manage Steve-O and all those creepy kids from the Sneaux ads. Ugh

Nice One Johan

Vans X Robert Crumb

Been sitting on some of this info. Hell, maybe it was already public. I lost count of who knows what awhile back and you know what? I'm OK with that. back to the business though it appears Adam Tschorn, the sartorial word smith of the LA Times has posted up on the impending Vans X Robert Crumb collaboration. As Mr. Tschorn lays it down...

Four different R. Crumb shoes are due to hit store shelves on Oct. 1; two in the Vans Classics collections -- including the Mr. Natural deconstructed SK8-Hi pictured above ($60) and a classic slip-on featuring Fritz the Cat ($52) -- will be available through regular Vans vendors.

Two additional higher-end styles (using suede and leather) will be sold through Vans Vault accounts; a "Modern America" Chukka boot ($95) and a "Keep on Truckin' " Authentic ($90)

Good catch and a nice lifestyle write up from Mr. Tschorn. As for the beard competition in Alaska, you are on your own good sir.

[Source: LA Times All the Rage Blog]

Nike SB Updates: Drops Dates, Debacle Premiers and uh... stuff

So with all the shoes leaking around the internets like my cars oil system I figured it was best to hit up the guys at SB for some actual dates. Obviously Stefan's shoe is pretty much on the street already but good to know that 'Debacle' will be avail soon andthe P -Rod 3 will be coming on it's heels. I'm most interested in the Skate Plaza...news to me.

So it's shaping up like this ...

Stefan Janoski official Street Date - May 8th (avail now)
Debacle Premier - Los Angeles, June 10th,
Debacle Premier - East Coast, Atlanta TBD (slated to be close to the LA premier though)
Skate Plaza Opening, Los Angeles, June 21st (Go Skate Day).
P-Rod 3 Shoe drops, August 8th



That trailer looks like every skate video should be equal parts sketchy and amazing.

Now Accepting Positions for Pro Douchebags: Ed Hardy Snowboards

I'm not one for lots of shit talking but really this sucks. I've said it before and I'll say it again this Ed Hardy crap is mass produced licensing apparel for the meathead crowd. This stuff is really nothing more than a starter jacket for people with too much self tanner, hair gel and no idea about snowboarding.

Don't ask me why I find this stuff so abrasive. One could make the argument that everybody has a line they won't cross. I can say that this just pushes me over the edge as it has nothing to do with, was born of, or contributes to snowboarding. At least some other commercial ventures are more overt in their intent. Ed hardy does a good job of portraying a brand that's a poor mans smoke and mirrors marketing effect. Also maybe it the fact that the Head D-Bag in charge was the same kook behind Von Dutch. Yeah, way to market a cantankerous old racist. Then again I guess if this guys is going after head cases Jason Jesse has a shot of being a billionaire in his twilight years.

Look at the catalog and have a good laugh. Remember when you spend your dollars next year these guys are out there for your money, not to support snowboarding.







I just threw up in my mouth a little bit.

Candidly Speakin #1 With Neal hendrix, Mike Mo, P-Rod & Terry Kennedy

So, the rock and roll lifestyle of a pro skater is much more mundane than you would ever really imagine. A pro once said to me the thing he hated and loved equally was the waiting. Killing time between sessions can be fun or a drag. through the power of Facebook and Twitter you can occasionally peer behind the curtain and realize these guys are pretty similar to you and I. Only they get to travel and make a living from doing what they love. But, truth be told, there's a sacrifice that comes with it. Injury to time away from friend n' family all take their toll. So take a quick peek at a few pics that made me smile or as I like to call it in the wonderment of Us magazine -- Skaters they're just like us!

TK, P-Rod and blended coffee drinks. I guess everybody needs their Starbucks/ Coffe Bean & Tea Leaf fix. But hey, it's been hot in Los Angeles I can dig it.
Photo - Shad Lambert



Dear Woodward,
Can you please put in the brochure if Mike Mo is an official vert coach or designated heckler. Thanks.
-Me

The best part here is Neal Hendrix cracking up
Photo: Unknown

Don't Sleep on the Nike SB FC or How Nike SB surprised Us All

So for those who await the official word everyone of what's dropping from Nike SB we all got a nice little surprise from the fine folks in Beaverton. This go around there were two FC's a soccer inspired shoe long since retired. Running from 2003to mid 2006 the FC had soem good colorways and was replaced in late 2006 by the Abington. Now it looks like shoes may come back in and out. NSB.org raises a good point that these may be regional or overseas only. At any rate nice to see SB keepin' everybody on their toes. Also, for the record these things are fun as hell to skate in for those of us with narrow feet.

Brad Pitt on Crailtap.com

Yeah it's a throwaway post on a Saturday.