MERGE4 is rocking the 80s in a collaboration with new wave titans Blondie.
MERGE4’s Blondie Sock Collection includes three striking sock designs, featuring artwork that captures their hit songs, iconic photography, and notable art style. Each sock is constructed with MERGE4’s signature “Cult Weave” which prevents any graphics from being “blown out” or warped when the socks are worn and stretched. The socks feature a self-adjusting welt cuff, elastic arch support, a moisture-wicking sole and strategic plush cushioning for added comfort.
Have to be honest — the Debbie Harry pink and checkers would be our first choice. For all the details from MERGE4 please follow the jump. [click to continue…]
The whole idea of a US Snowboard Team has always been an odd, slightly artificial construct that blooms its ugly head every four years just in time for the media hoopla of the Winter Olympics. Think of the Team as snowboarding’s own Corpse Flower.
This year that blossom is oddly twisted even more by the fact that the Tokyo Olympics were last summer (thanks, COVID) and the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics are this February. So, while we’re all still trying to figure out exactly what happened to skateboarding culture in the blur that was Tokyo 2020, the snowboard side is ramping up for another go-round at the five ring circus with a just-announced crew that sounds (while we’re on the subject of flowers) like the traditional prep for a wedding: something old (too many to list), something new (Dusty Henricksen), something borrowed (not sure), something blue (or Red in this case).
Here’s how the US Ski and Snowboard Association spins it:
This season will have no shortage of excitement as the U.S. Snowboard Team’s Olympic gold medalists get ready to drop in. Chloe Kim and Red Gerard continue their dominant marches toward the 2022 Olympic Winter Games, and veteran Jamie Anderson looks to continue to display her undeniable dominance of the sport. Shaun White will once again represent the U.S. Snowboard Halfpipe Team in pursuit of his fourth Olympic gold medal. . . “The teams have been working super hard and having tons of fun preparing for the big season ahead,” says U.S. Freeski and Snowboard Head Coach Mike Jankowski. “The anticipation has everyone excited and ready to get this 2021-22 action going!”
Oh, and Snowboardcross still exists so don’t think you won’t see Lindsey Jacobellis giving that Gold Medal another go. Congrats to the team. Good luck. We hope US Snowboarding gets you all sorted correctly before the Games begin on February 4, 2022. May you bloom to your full potential, ride beautifully, and refrain from stinking things up too much in Beijing.
For the official team announcement from the US Ski and Snowboard Association, please follow the jump.
Exquisite Corpse, from the original French term “Cadavre Exquis” is a method in which a collection of words or images is collectively assembled. Each collaborator adds to a composition in sequence, being allowed to see only the end of what the previous person contributed. . . This film was made by women of the Vans Surf team & friends in an attempt to reach across the seas, and create a piece that deeply connected us. . . .Original soundtrack featuring Lee-Ann Curren, Hanna Scott, AYO, Glenn Michael Van Dyke and Lena Simon of Kairos Creature Club, Chloé Thévenin, Maia Ibar, Thee Leatherettes, Big Joanie, Clovis Donizetti, Cécile Mestelan and more…
With art and music and some French thrown in for all the extra special feels.
Lots going on here in the world of news headline lists. This one is a big one because, well, we’ve been doing other stuff lately. But here it is anyway. Sharks, COVID, and all that jazz.
Tea in the Sahara with a skateboard? Is his name Rio? No, it’s the Mata Hari. Not really sure what to think. You? For the official word please follow the jump.
It’s rare that we get to hear a story that we’ve never heard before. Yeah, you might have, but we’d never heard the story of Creature of Leisure’s John Malloy. So here it is (introduced by Stephanie Gilmore). Watch it if you’d like and learn a little backstory on the surf leash as we now know it.
Curbed.NY has the whole story of AVE and the green bench. And it’s a good one.
Then in 2019, AVE got a direct message telling him that a guy had it in his garage in Huntington Beach. When he went to pick it up, it still had a U-lock around one of the legs. He soon set it up in a parking lot and began shooting another video (at 42, he remains an absurdly good skater). After a few days of shooting, AVE was annoyed with having to drag it back to a garage after he was done skating, so he chained it up in the lot one night. And you can guess what happened: Someone stole the bench a third time.
For the entire chain of events, please click the link.
Good-bye Burton US Open of Snowboarding. Sure, it limped along for eight years in Colorado. But we all know the Open died in 2013 when, after 30 rad years at Stratton Mountain, Vermont, it moved to the middle of the country. Now, according to a press release from Burton Snowboards, the US Open of Snowboarding is finally and officially done for good.
What will rise in its place? Who knows. But we do know that it will be called — The Burton Mystery Series. With a nod to the Craig Kelly Mystery Air, this new series will apparently be a collection of “global grassroots” marketing efforts eventually culminating sometime in the future at a big Mystery event that is not limited by the United States of America.
Burton’s vision is to build up the Mystery Series into a global series of snowboarding events that welcomes all levels of riders. Then, down the road, the ultimate goal is to host a pinnacle Burton Mystery event that includes elements from the global grassroots events and features the world’s best riders. Unlike the Burton U·S·Open which was always held in the United States, this final, pinnacle event would ideally be hosted in a different country each time, opening up the new event series to more international riders. . . “One of the major goals of the Mystery Series in the years to come is to get back to the roots of what events like the original Opens were all about – the idea that a young unknown rider could break into snowboarding through Burton events,” said Donna Carpenter, owner of Burton. “With all the passionate people working to build the new Mystery Series, Burton will continue its long legacy of hosting the greatest snowboard events in the world.”
So, RIP US Open of Snowboarding. It was really fun while it lasted. We will always remember bombing those hardwood Vermont forests hot on the tail of Jake Carpenter, laughing till we cried trying to untangle ourselves from those pesky Beech trees. Here’s the Queen of the US Open’s take on all the feels.
There’s a question we asked ourselves, while watching The Ultimate Surfer — Is this the pinnacle of surf entertainment? Was merging a group of washed and ok surfers with Survivor the best idea ever conceived by a man formerly employed by Oprah? Then we asked a followup: if we can seriously consider the first question, then what business do we have choosing stories for a long list of important action sporting news? The answer to the second question was is easy. We have no business. None whatsoever. Enjoy!
The whole idea of a US Snowboard Team has always been an odd, slightly artificial construct that blooms its ugly head every four years just in time for the media hoopla of the Winter Olympics. Think of the Team as snowboarding’s own Corpse Flower.
