by The Editors on November 28, 2023
The Arena Group, the company who ended up with Surfer, Snowboarder, TransWorld Skateboarding, Powder and Bike magazine titles after the last round of brand swapping has been accused of using “fake AI writers” to write fake AI generated stories at their flagship title Sports Illustrated, according to a story on Futurism. They’re running zombie titles, why not hire a hoard zombie writers?
“There’s a lot,” they told us of the fake authors. “I was like, what are they? This is ridiculous. This person does not exist.” . . . “At the bottom [of the page] there would be a photo of a person and some fake description of them like, ‘oh, John lives in Houston, Texas. He loves yard games and hanging out with his dog, Sam.’ Stuff like that,” they continued. “It’s just crazy.”
Futurism says that as soon as they asked Arena about it, the stories and writers were gone from the site. None of this is surprising to anyone who has been following along. Arena did eventually claim that the content was provided by a third party who uses real writers to write real stories but sometimes under pseudonyms. But we don’t believe them.
Just so you know, although he may look like an AI generated handsome man, Blair Alley actually exists. . . but Justin Leveille? We’re not so sure about that guy.
[Link: Futurism]
by The Editors on October 21, 2023
When Canadian Alpine racer Ross Rebagliati won the world’s first snowboarding Olympic gold medal in Nagano Japan in 1996 it was kind of funny that he immediately tested positive for marijuana. Of course, snowboarders are pot heads. All that.
But Ross said recently, in an interview with CBC News, that when he was being held in Japan on the drug issue he decided that “I am going to fight for this plant for the rest of my life, start a cannabis company and show everybody what cannabis is really all about.” And it appears he’s done something close. . maybe.
And while he took on other jobs to fund his dreams, he kept at it, founding medical marijuana dispensary Ross’ Gold in 2013. And on Feb. 8, 2023 — 25 years to the day since he won gold in Nagano — Ross’ Gold products started being sold in licensed dispensaries, a moment Rebagliati said gave him as much pride as his Olympic victory.
Way to stick to it, Ross. Still doing snowboarding proud after all these years. For all the details from an audio interview with Ross, please click the link.
[Link: CBC News]
by The Editors on October 17, 2023
Shaun White’s ascent from snowboarder to cultural zeitgeist is perfectly represented in his new book from Rizzoli titled Airborne. See photos from when he was just a SoCal kid who loved skateboarding and snowboarding. Watch as the fame machine grabs hold of him and sends him into the orbit of rockstars, fashionistas, and Hollywood girlfriends. Here’s how Rizzoli sets the scene:
Some of the world’s best action-sports photographers capture White performing his extreme snowboarding and skating tricks around the world–from his groundbreaking aerial maneuvers such as his Double McTwist 1260 on Olympic half pipes, to his radical skating tricks such as his Frontside 540 Sky Hook at the X Games. White exceeded the imaginable limits of snowboarding and raised the bar for other snowboarding competitors to try to keep up with him. Narrated by White with detailed commentary throughout, this book is an autobiography in images and an intimate glimpse into the life of a celebrity athlete: training, competing, on the road and in the spotlight.
It’s obviously another Shaun White celebrity product, but if you’re a fan then this is the book for you. Click here to buy it.
[Link: Rizzoli Books]
by The Editors on October 12, 2023
There really is no escape from the ski business gobbling monster known as Alterra Mountain Company. They’ve just added world famous Mike Wiegele Heliski to their growing porfolio two short years after the founder’s death in 2021, according to a story that appeared everywhere, but we’ll link to Ski Area Management.
“Alterra is the ideal partner to celebrate and preserve the legacy that Mike Wiegele left behind,” said Elias Ortner, general manager of MWHS. “This will propel this operation to new heights, allowing us to enhance the guest experience further and deepen our existing community and loyal guest partnerships.”
We’re happy for at least some of the Wiegele family, sad for everyone else. Monopolies are bad. Don’t mind us. We’ll just keep saying that. . . over and over and over.
[Link: Ski Area Management]
by The Editors on October 4, 2023
From the “wonder what The Arena Group is going to do with all their zombie magazine brands” files comes news that Arena has partnered with AcTVe to launch five FAST (stands for free, ad-supported television) “channels” with their action sporting brands, according to story on Deadline.com.
Powder Mag, Surfer Magazine, Transworld Skateboarding, Bike Mag and Snowboarder will provide the backbones for the new channels, which will debut globally this fall. The channels will be available on free, ad-supported streaming platforms like SportsTribal, FreeMovies+ and FreeCast, as well as via Roku, Vizio and Samsung. More distribution platforms will be added in 2024, the companies said.
We have absolutely no idea what these “platforms” are, who watches them, or what this means for the brands. Nor, do we believe they will spend any real money on content. So what is going to be on the channels (aside from paid advertising against no viewers)? If you understand any of this, please let us know in the comments.
[Link: Deadline.com]
by The Editors on September 27, 2023
Today (September 27, 2023), Jamie Salter’s Authentic Brands Group announced that they have chosen Costa Mesa’s Liberated Brands as the licensee for several of their recently purchased Boardriders brands.
In the deal, Liberated will run retail and e-commerce ops for Quiksilver, Billabong, Roxy, RVCA, Honolua and Boardriders in the US and Canada. They will also act as the official licensee for the Billabong, RVCA, and Honolua brands. The press release makes it seem like they’ve reached outside Authentic Brands to do a licensing deal, when it’s actually more of an inside play. ABG owns a rather large chunk (officially a “minority stake”) of Liberated Brands so they’re basically licensing the brands to themselves while building in a little distance. Here’s how Nick Woodhouse explains it:
“We are thrilled to expand our partnership with Liberated,” said Nick Woodhouse, President and CMO at Authentic. “As evidenced by their focus on the growth of Volcom and Spyder, Liberated’s unwavering commitment to innovation and community engagement makes them the ideal partner to take on Billabong, RVCA and Honolua, as well as the retail operations for the best lifestyle brands inspired by skate, surf and snow. Together, we look forward to implementing our strategic vision for growth and expanding the brands’ presence in the US and Canada.”
Yes, your own business usually makes a great “partner.” Sorting out the facts of this announcement are well above our pay grade, but let’s just say it is always entertaining to see how these businesses shuffle things around. Side note: if you’re a graphic designer, Liberated is looking for a few good people to shape the vision for the brands moving forward. For the official release, click the link.
[Link: Authentic Brands Group]
by The Editors on September 6, 2023
A great snowboarder who became the darling of the art world. How did Trevor Andrew do it? If you’ve always wanted to know the story behind Gucci Ghost, he explains it right here in an interview with Art Plugged.
With skateboarding and snowboarding, my mom worked at the little local ski hill in Nova Scotia, and I went there every day after school and then started competing, and those older guys started bringing me around to contest. Then I left home at like 15, dropped out of school and just went for it. I was committed to making it work. There was no plan B.
Apparently, he has applied the same all-in method to music and art. Click the link for the entire interview.
[Link: Art Plugged]
by The Editors on September 1, 2023
Authentic Brands Group has officially completed its purchase of Boardriders (parent company to most every action sports brand you remember from your youth) for the alleged sale price of $1.25 billion and added a reported $1.4 billion to its annual sales totals, according to a blurb in Women’s Wear Daily.
In March, the brand development, marketing and entertainment firm inked a deal to acquire Boardriders, the parent of Quiksilver, Billabong, Roxy, RVCA, DC Shoes, Element, VonZipper, Honolua and Boardriders, for a reported $1.25 billion. At the time, Authentic had sales of $27.6 billion. . . The company said it would shortly begin to orchestrate its plan to “announce a roster of best-in-class partners around the world to help drive the brands in their next stage of growth.”
And to think, it all started for Jamie Salter with a little company called Kemper Snowboards. Ah, those were the days, weren’t they?
[Link: WWD]
by The Editors on August 1, 2023
The most expensive house in Whistler just sold for $32 million, according to a story in Pique Newsmagazine. What more is there to say? Not a bad looking place, but what a hassle to keep clean.
The [8,700-square-foot “architectural masterpiece”] residence features a curved, floating staircase suspended by cables that doubles as an art installation, a 25-metre pool cantilevered over the cliff edge it’s built into, in addition to three fireplaces, a wine cellar, grotto spa, floor-to-ceiling windows and an elevator.
Remind us to be a little more motivated (and evil) next time around.
[Link: Pique Magazine]
by The Editors on July 27, 2023
David Bloch, the founder of the Woodstock Union High School snowboarding team in Woodstock, Vermont found out what can happen when teachers discuss gender and athletic competition with their students, according to a story in the New York Post.
[Bloch] lost his job in early February, a day after having a three-minute discussion with some of his athletes, during which he said that biological males have a physical advantage over female-born athletes.
Now, Bloch is suing his former employer and giving everyone on both sides of the gender identification debate ammo for days. If you’re interested in the ins and outs of the gender ground war circa 2023 please click the link.
[Link: New York Post]
