Tech Deck is ready for the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris with new park pieces and signature boards from a whole slew of skaters we’ll see going for the gold. And, they’re the only officially licensed toy line of the Games.
The single pack assortment will roll out in two waves, one 4/1 and one 6/15 in stores at Walmart, featuring boards from these skateboarding Olympians: Felipe Gustavo (Brazil), Kalvin Hoefler (Brazil), Aurélien Giraud (France), Vincent Milou (France), Nyjah Huston (USA), Mariah Duran (USA), Jagger Eaton (USA), Rayssa Leal (Brazil), Shane O’Neill (Australia), Yuto Horigome (Japan), Sora Sharai (Japan), Micky Papa (Canada), and Bryce Wettstein (USA).
You know, collect them all! Look for them where toys are sold!
We’ve said it before, but when it comes to doing contracts with artists, and designing products with them, it seems many brands find it’s easier to get deals done when the artist is dead. Roark seems to agree as they’ve launched a new collection of clothing featuring the art of Jean-Michel Basquiat, who sadly died at 27 (he’s in the club) from a heroin overdose on August 12, 1988.
“It’s beyond special to present this collection inspired by the art of Jean-Michel Basquiat and share it with Roark fans,” said Roark Founder Ryan Hitzel, “We explore the merger of rhythm and flow with his iconic symbolism, raw creativity and challenging of the status quo. We find the best version of ourselves in that state of mind, whether we’re surfing, running or adventuring through the world.”
Obviously the collection looks great. As it did when Billabong did the same thing in 2018. For a complete overview, please visit Roark’s website . . . which we’re assuming is on the Internet somewhere.
Former TransWorld Snowboarding Magazine Editor Eric Blehm’s deeply researched, insightful, and heartfelt biography of snowboarding legend Craig Kelly,The Darkest White, is now available where ever you buy books. And, of course, you should buy it right now.
The Darkest White is the story of Craig Kelly’s life, a heartbreaking but extraordinary and inspiring odyssey of a latchkey kid whose athletic prowess and innovations would revolutionize winter sports, take him around the globe, and push him into ever more extreme environments that would ultimately take his life. It is also a definitive, immersive account of snowboarding and the cultural movement that exploded around it, growing the sport from minor Gen X cult hobby to Olympic centerpiece and a billion-dollar business full of feuds and rivalries.
Trust us. No matter how well you think you knew Craig Kelly and his story, you will learn something in The Darkest White. If you’re in San Diego, California this weekend Eric will be appearing at the Barnes & Noble Bookstore in Encinitas at 6 PM on Friday, March 1, 2024 to discuss Craig’s life, his legacy, and to sign some books. For more info click here and to get the book sent straight to your house, click here.
The Berrics is reportedly moving. And in the process of returning their warehouse to its original warehouse condition they’ve chopped the park up into little pieces. Feel how you will about that. The oddest part is that (in association with ABD Collectables) they have encased signed pieces of Berrics concrete in plastic blocks and are selling them for $99. But there’s more!
Every pre-order will have the chance to get a free flight and hotel to BATB 14 Finals Night.
No joke. Want a Berrics paperweight? (Can’t imagine why you would). But if you do, please click the link and shop away. You never know who might have signed the piece you get. And maybe, just maybe these will be even bigger than NFTs one day!
Steve Berra has done so much for skateboarding in SoCal and the world, and yet, few in the skateboard industry would be hard pressed to come up with at least a couple times when interactions with Mr. Berra went sour.
That’s why we were so stoked to see this opportunity to skate The Berrics without any interaction with Steve at all. It’s called The Berrics Transforming Park from Tech Deck.
Inspired by the legendary LA-based invite-only indoor skatepark, The Berrics, this skatepark playset is THE gift to wow just about anyone who loves the skating community!
So yeah, with this park you can skate The Berrics any time you want. You’ll just have to do it on your fingerboard. Click the link to buy one. And get it in time for the Holidays.
We’ve always laughed when someone claimed to “love barefoot walks on the beach,” but lately we’ve discovered that putting our bare feet on the earth each morning for a couple of miles makes a huge difference in the rest of the day. Apparently, John John Florence agrees and he’s added his name to a line of “barefoot” shoes from VivoBarefoot. ”
“Nature is where I find myself getting the most enjoyment out of life. Being in the ocean, surfing, sailing, or in the mountains exploring just feels natural. It’s where I choose to spend my time,” 2John says. “It all starts with getting moving, using your feet.”
Friends who have run barefoot for years say it improves balance, foot strength, and creates a more positive connection to the world around them (among other health benefits). We’re going to try John John’s shoes for a while. If you’re interested, click the link and check out them out for yourself.
Admit it. This Strip Mall Surfer Phantom Flyer kit is the raddest, funnest skateboard you’ve seen in years. Wide board, squared off, narrow tucks, Clay Pigeon wheels, round wheel wells. . . what more could you ask for when surfin’ the ditches? And it’s all new from Blockhead Skateboards. Click the link for all the details.
Legendary skateboarder and businessman Jamie Thomas has teamed up with OTIS Eyewear on a new frame named The Outsider.
The Outsider draws inspiration from vintage frames, while adding bow tie temple pins as a nod to the classic fashion of the 60s. An unpolished finish on the nose bridge then brings out the personality of Jamie’s skate culture – raw and unrefined. The frame comes in two different sizes, offering a tailored fit in the hero dual tone colour or matte tortoise shell, plus a larger version in classic black and tortoise too. Every piece is made with optically correct, scratch-resistant mineral glass lenses, offering the clarity and focus Jamie demands of himself.
Look pretty nice, don’t they? For a look at the official line click here.
Our long running love/hate relationship with the Apple Watch surf tracking app Dawn Patrol continues. It is, by far, the most elegant solution to putting a tide chart on the Apple watch, but when it comes to actual live tide data it falls way short.
Dawn Patrol gives the high and low tides along with the local time of each event, but for current tide measurements, and/or what the tide will be tomorrow or the day after, Dawn Patrol offers nothing at all. Some of this will reportedly change soon.
In our next release you’ll get a short term forecast on the Apple Watch! Stay tuned for the update, it will come alongside the release of watchOS 10.
In the meantime, we’ve found that by adding the free Ocean Watch app to our Apple watch we now have the live tide (lower right complication) and forecasting that we need. Ocean watch also has a tide chart complication, but it’s clunky. Dawn Patrol for pretty graphics and moderately close water temps, and Ocean Watch for real tide data.
Rad sock makers Merge4 announce a new partnership with skateboarder Minna Stess.
The MERGE4 x Minna Stess collaboration will showcase art by Kayla Caballero, skateboard legend Steve Caballero’s daughter, designed exclusively for her. The design will feature bats and donuts on MERGE4’s performance socks. “I have always loved my MERGE4 fam, and they have always been so supportive of me since I was a little SF Bay Area skater. Having my own sock means a lot to me and I’m super stoked on it!“ Said Minna Stess.
For a better look at the new socks, plus all the others, please click the link. Or follow the jump for the official word.
Tech Deck is ready for the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris with new park pieces and signature boards from a whole slew of skaters we’ll see going for the gold. And, they’re the only officially licensed toy line of the Games.
We’ve always laughed when someone claimed to “love barefoot walks on the beach,” but lately we’ve discovered that putting our bare feet on the earth each morning for a couple of miles makes a huge difference in the rest of the day. Apparently, John John Florence agrees and he’s added his name 
Our long running love/hate relationship with the 
