Analog (Burton Corp’s streetwear clothing company) will be hosting the opening reception for a photo gallery showing of images by some of the action sports world’s most creative camera cowboys at the Shorebreak Hotel in Huntington Beach, California on June 23, 2010.
Method Mag nailed down a twofer interview with Shawn Farmer and Terry Kidwell when the guys were in Stuben, Austria for the Longboard Classic. Watch and learn.
When you have your own snowboard factory you can do silly things like lay up boards with vinyl record and/or album cover top sheets. . . that’s what Dave Lee and the crew at Signal Snowboards did for their monthly “Every Third Thursday.”
It just goes to show, good snowboarders can ride anything.
Shaun White upped his celebrity status last night at the MTV Movie Awards. Best snowboard kiss? As TVSquad.com said: “I think Shaun White was trying out for the lead in ‘The Robert Plant Story.'”
Norwich, Vermont packed the streets today June 5, 2010 as they officially welcomed Kevin Pearce home, according to a story from the Associated Press.
Walking gingerly but on his own, Pearce hugged his friends and well-wishers, threw T-shirts to children and thanked anyone who would listen for rallying to his side. . . “I’d just like to say thank you you guys so much for everything you’ve done for me, and it’s just so incredible how helpful it’s been to me,” he said. “Thank you all so much.” . . . Fire trucks blew their horns, hand-lettered signs saying “Kevin is Home” and “KP Our Hometown Hero” adorned a white clapboard gazebo and Town Recreation Director Jill Kearney presented him with a baseball cap and golf shirt in a ceremony that drew about 200 people.
Quite a lot to go through for a golf shirt, but we know KP was stoked.
Looks like those whirling blades of sticks and poles may get their shot at Olympic glory as the FIS has apparently approved the concept of ski halfpipe for the 2014 Olympics. All that is missing now is IOC approval.
A U.S. and French proposal to submit ski halfpipe to the International Olympic Committee for consideration as early as 2014 was approved without dissent as the International Ski Federation concluded its biennial FIS Congress Friday in Antalya, Turkey. The Congress also unanimously passed proposals from the USA and other nations to accept both snowboarding slopestyle and team snowboardcross into the FIS World Snowboard Championships.
Skiers have copied everything else snowboarding has done lately, so they might as well get a medal for it. Follow the jump for the entire release [click to continue…]
Shaun White has reportedly left his long-time agent Mark Ervin and IMG and made the move to Hollywood’s uber-huge Creative Artists Agency, according to a Tripp Mickel story in the Sports Business Journal.
After eight years of working together, White last week dropped Ervin and IMG for CAA. He now is represented by a team of CAA agents who will work to develop marketing partnerships, appearances and television, music and motion picture opportunities for the 23-year-old.
Creative Artist Agency represents pretty much every A-lister in the business including (but not limited to) Steven Spielberg, Tom Cruise, Brad Pitt, Ashton Kutcher, David Beckham, LeBron James, and of course, Tony Hawk.
Meadowlands SnowPark is “more than just a ski slope…it’s an Alpine resort,” the website reads. Kirkos calls it a “tourist magnet.” SnowPark will feature skiing, snowboarding, novice slopes, lessons and a snowplay area for kids. The 800-foot-long indoor snow facility is the first in North America, according to the site. The SnowPark will feature a quad chairlift, magic carpets for beginners and a platter lift. . . .New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority (NJSEA) officials are working with Miami Dolphins owner Steve Ross and his Related Companies in hopes of an investment of the $500-700 million necessary to move the stalled project forward. . . .
Hard to believe that anyone would think they would see a return on that kind of investment.
Yesterday, (Tuesday, June 1, 2010) the California State Senate approved Senate Bill 880 which would require everyone under 18 to wear helmets while snowboarding or skiing, according to a story in the Fresno Bee.
Senate Bill 880 by Sen. Leland Yee, D-San Francisco, was approved by a 21-13 vote, mostly along party lines. . . Sen. Dave Cox, R-Fair Oaks, split with most of his Republican colleagues and voted for the bill. Yee gave Cox a helmet to thank him for the vote.
Apparently, resorts are not required to enforce the new law, but local law enforcement will with $25 fines to parents who allow their kids to ride without helmets. One more reason to be an outlaw. The bill still has to clear the State Assembly before being signed into law by Mr. Schwarzenegger.
It’s been quite a while since we’ve mentioned Jamie Salter, but the guy who took snowboarding public on May 6, 1994 (when Ride Snowboards hit the NASDAQ) is still going strong with his company Authentic Brands Group, LLC.
In fact, he just landed a “$250 million equity capital raise with Green Equity Investors V, L.P an affiliate of Leonard Green & Partners, L.P. (“LGP”), Knight’s Bridge Capital Partners Inc. (“Knight’s Bridge”), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Counsel Corporation,” according to news released today.
The deal reportedly brings him back together with former Gen-X partner Kenneth Finkelstein. Together the two owned, operated, and/or were closely involved with Ride Snowboards, Airwalk, Sims, Duffs, and a host of other second tier action brands like Lamar, LTD Snowboards etc. Finkelstein’s Knight’s Bridge Capital currently owns the Poloroid brand.
“I am very excited to embark on this new venture with my partners at LGP and Knight’s Bridge. LGP is among the world’s most experienced private equity investors in the retail and branded consumer products industries and Knight’s Bridge will provide its own exceptional investment and brand licensing expertise,” Mr. Salter said. “Our collective experiences will enable Authentic Brands Group to acquire and grow a global portfolio of world renowned brands.”
Currently ABG manages the Bob Marley brand and is looking to “actively acquire and manage iconic consumer brands in the apparel, sporting goods, action sports, home, celebrity, entertainment and consumer electronics segments.” That $250 million war chest can’t hurt. Wonder who they’re going to buy first?
