by The Editors on October 14, 2008
UK artist Oliver Bishop-Young has taken dumpsters (apparently called “skips” in Britain) and turned them into all kinds of cool things, including a pool, a lawn, and more importantly a mini-ramp.
Mr Bishop-Young designed his ‘skip art’ as playgrounds for youngsters. But he also hopes the works will help encourage people to share their useful rubbish – such as old furniture and clothes – with friends and neighbours. . . . ‘It’s something an individual can do to make their impact on the city,’ he said.
One man’s skip. . .
[Link: Metro.co.uk]
by The Editors on October 11, 2008
Just a little reminder to check out the action live on the web.
[Link: Skateboard.com]
by The Editors on October 10, 2008
One of the green tickers up in the right hand corner this afternoon was Volcom even though it took what the Orange County Business Journal called “a wild ride” today. They’re saying VeeCo closed this Friday up because of a report by an analyst who said:
Volcom is in a position of strength boasting a balance sheet with no debt, approximately $80 million in cash and clean inventory levels,” Gallacher wrote. “While orders are weak from a shrinking addressable market, Volcom is one brand that continues to gain market share.”
Then again, the only companies in the space to not finish up today were PacSun, Billabong, and Globe. So maybe it had more to do with the market than with what Caris & Co. analyst Claire Gallacher had to say about it.
[Link: Orange County Business Journal]
by The Editors on October 10, 2008
WizzardX.tv is a new “site” created by podcast host Wizzard Media under the direction of a guy named Skip Fredricks. Here’s how they describe this new action sports video site in their press release:
WizzardX host, Emily Dickinson, will bring the tightest shots, gnarliest crashes and sweetest moves to life each week as the channel grows to include over 20 of the top podcast shows in the action sports genre. This week, Emily promotes four anchor shows, Dirt, Street, Snow and Water featuring some of the top professionals in their respective sport.
Okay, correct us if we are wrong, but there aren’t even 10 action sports podcasts worth watching and yet, WizzardX is going to include over 20?
Watching Wizzard X is like walking into some shady action sports past. All the footage is old, the events irrelevant, and the shows mostly unwatchable. The site seems to follow the idea that by throwing enough crap out on the web someone will eventually watch it.
Our big question: who do they think they’re going to fool with this? Certainly not the kids.
[Link: Wizzzardx.tv via Marketwatch]
by The Editors on October 10, 2008
Falling stocks really aren’t news these days, but we still have fun looking at the charts like this one from Quiksilver’s last year. With it’s $2.79 price today Quik has hit its lowest stock price since 1998.
We hate to admit it, but even to us it’s beginning to look like a bargain.
[Link: Yahoo! Finance]
by The Editors on October 10, 2008
Llewellyn Werner, the chairman of the Los Angeles, California based Customized Cooperative Capital LLC, announced in April that he would be spending a half-billion dollars building “a massive U.S.-style amusement park” in downtown Baghdad on the grounds of the old Baghdad Zoo, according to a story in the Globe and Mail.
Phase one of that project is to introduce skateboarding to Iraqi youth according to a story in Denver’s Westword. Werner plans to install “pocket parks” from Freshparks in neighborhoods around Baghdad and equip them with free skateboards thanks to help from Globe.
Werner estimates that he’ll spend a million dollars on the pocket parks and boards, which will be available to Iraqis free of charge. He considers that amount a relatively low-cost “down-payment” that will allow him to solicit support for BZEE, his multimillion-dollar entertainment zone. If he can show skeptical investors and wary locals that something as brazenly Western as a skateboard park can be successful in Iraq, then why not an American-style amusement park? But the rides and attractions themselves are just an incentive for something larger: the real estate around the park that Werner retains the rights to develop under his lease with the city.
The first skatepark has been set up for over a month, however, no one used it thanks to the Muslim holiday Ramadan and “daytime temperatures into the 110s.” But the park is scheduled to have it’s grand opening this week. It will be interesting to see how that goes.
Skateboarding will definitely give Iraqi kids a reason to look forward to tomorrow.
[Link: Westword]
by The Editors on October 9, 2008
The Action Sports Environmental Coalition has teamed up with Chipotle to give a free burrito to anyone who rolls up to any California Chipotle location on a “non-motorized” form of transportation on October 11, 2008. It’s all part of their Roll Anything Day celebration.
This is a day dedicated to the use of non-motorized transportation, try it for a day, participate for the rest of your life. That’s right, ride your skateboard or bike, I don’t even care if you walk or rollerblade, just don’t use some petroleum, coal powered electric, toxic diesel or veggie oil natural resource burning contraption. You can even not go anywhere, even better, but if you do try to make sure it roll’s.
And trust us, all you’ll have to do is tell Chipotle that you rolled in on a skateboard and ask for your free burrito. It’s that easy.
[Link: ASEC via TWBiz]
by The Editors on October 9, 2008
This afternoon at around 12:50 PM Zumiez stock broke through it’s previous 52-week low ($11.85 in July 08) to $11.55 and it appears the bottom has not been reached thanks to reports yesterday of a less than stellar September.
Interestingly, Zumiez’s number two competitor in the malls of America, The Buckle, was up $1.19 today to $49.14.
by The Editors on October 8, 2008
America’s core sports mall store Zumiez reported their same store sales were down 9 percent in September according to a story on Forbes.com.
The Everett-based retailer said its same-store sales results were dragged down by poor performance California, Arizona, Florida and Nevada – areas that are among the hardest hit by the nation’s housing market meltdown.
The good news is that net sales were up over last year to $33.6 million. Guess that’s what happens when you keep adding more stores.
[Link: Forbes.com]
by The Editors on October 8, 2008
A group of teenagers were hanging out near the Ecole sencondaire Macdonal-Cartier in Sudbury, Ontario, Canada when two kids with a skateboard approached.
One of them had a skateboard, so we asked him to do a trick,” a Macdonald-Cartier student said following the incident. . . . The skateboarder “wiped out and everyone started laughing and one kid called him a (homophobic slur).” . . . The skateboarder then walked up to the student who taunted him and the student “slapped him across the face. Then out of nowhere (the skateboarder) pulled bear spray out of his sleeve and sprayed him in the face,” the witness said.
It’s interesting how the skateboarders are portrayed in this story as the instigators when it’s obvious the bully jocks in the smoking section started it all. Hey, call a skateboarder a fag; get pepper sprayed. It’s the law.
[Link: Northern News]
