As you've probably heard by now, the Action Sports Retailer (ASR) trade show [finally] pulled the plug after 29 years in business. I'm not even going to bother doing any coverage or commentating on it myself, since Shop-Eat-Surf has been doing such an excellent job of providing up-to-the-minute, comprehensive reporting on events as they unfold. Check it all out, here:
www.shop-eat-surf.com
However, with ASR's immediate demise, a few of us outsiders-looking-in quickly realized that this would leave a huge gulf of uncertainty and inactivity in its wake. There would surely be a lot of solid questioning about the ramifications of all of this. What sort of show would replace ASR...? What would be the fate of Crossroads and Agenda...? Do we even need "trade shows" at all...? Are they ever worth the time, effort, and money...? The list goes on and on. And, it'll all probably be subject to debate and dialogue well into the future.
But, here's the deal: Some of us aren't the "debating" sorts. Some of us will always prefer decisive action to vacillating inaction.
Michael Brooke and I have seen all of this coming for a couple of years now. It's not like we're really all that bright: The rest of the planet saw it coming, too. Indeed, Mike has even been writing about it for a couple of years. As for myself, I just didn't give a shit. I long ago stopped caring about ASR, or anything that might (or, might not) have happened there. As for what I saw and experienced there, my lips are forever sealed. This is, after all, a child-friendly publication that I've got going on over here.
"First off... fucking awesome. What a pain in the ass it is, and no one writes orders like they used to at the show. I remember back in like 2000 they were crazy. Remember the Osiris "D3" booth... like 3 stories tall. The smaller, more core-related shows that are more skate-specific are better, cheaper, you don't have a light-up razor-scooter-wheel dude next to you, spend like 1/20th and reach the right dudes... no brainer. Rad! Thank you for brightening my morning!"
- Skull and Bones user "Goon", on ASR's demise [edited for grammar and spelling]. We're actually hearing a lot of this. Looks like ASR might not be missed that much...
Regardless: When the word came down, we had quite a powwow about it. My contention was that IASC would be powerless to act (as usual). And even if they did, they'd probably just screw everything up anyway (as usual). BRA might have a few good ideas (as usual), but might not be able to articulate them clearly enough to build any sort of consensus (as usual). Crossroads and Agenda would probably fight for dominance (a title that Agenda has already openly claimed on Shop Eat Surf, those arrogant bastards), while they both duked it out in the face of still-declining buyer turnout. And as for the buyers... well, they'd probably just opt to avoid all the bullshit, and end up staying home.
Which, apparently, is what they're already doing. Which brings us right around full-circle.
The bottom line was simple: If we in The Media wanted something to cover this year, then we in The Media would probably have to take the lead, and design some sort of Brave New Paradigm ourselves. Nobody's gonna do it for us, that's fersure. And besides, ASR was always a real bore to cover. Personally, I would have much rather slit my own wrists than cover another ASR. As for Mike, I'll let him speak for himself.
In the face of this, Mike hunched that the future of any sort of "trade show" might be in much smaller, much more intimate, much more realistic, much more accessible, and much more affordable trade show formats. I agreed, adding that it'd be extra-nice if it actually included some stuff to skate (that everybody could skate, not just the big-time pros), and dispensed with the usual "industry hogwash". A little bit of straight-ahead honesty, after all, might actually be kind of refreshing these days. Let's be totally truthful for a minute: Frankly speaking, this industry could use an open, honest, and fluff-free dialogue about a whole range of topics, far above and beyond the immediate ASR-news-of-the-moment.
So, what's the answer...?! Same answer any true-blue skater will give ya: When you need something done, you do it yourself. Enter the "Homegrown" industry summit/trade show...
When AJ Kohn concurred, and suggested a simple, no-frills, backyard-style BBQ/skate session/trade show, I was all ears. Any time that some head mentions BBQ and skateboarding, I'm usually all ears anyway.
Within 36 hours, we had it all set up. Lew Ross (of Fickle Skateboards) generously offered his acreage over in Cincinnati for the shindigs. On the property there are warehouses, a mini ramp, and the makings of a backyard, concrete bowl. And, there's a fire pit to boot. Which is bonus, because I'm planning on camping out. The weather is really nice that time of year, so why bother spending the dimes on a hotel...? This is skateboarding, people. Midwest/East Coast Style. We don't stay at the Marriott or the Ritz Carlton when we hit the road, because we're not weenies. We rough that shit.
Consider that fair warning: This show just isn't designed for the "Non-Skater Crowd". Got it, people...?
This is the flyer that'll start trickling out to skate shops all over the midwest this week. We don't screw around, and we don't wait for The Holy Ghost to give us a sign. We're skaters: ASR's suddenly ceasing to exist was all the "sign" we needed.
I've already fielded a whole lotta questions about "Why Cincinnati?!" Well, first of all: The world doesn't revolve around California, buddy. As much as Californians would like to think that it does. Truth be told, Cincinnati has a really bustling skate scene going on over there. There's world-class skateparks (Colerain's massive and flawless kidney springs right to mind)... Ollie's fabulous indoor facility is right there... Cincy's fully accessible to anyone east of the Mississippi... there's a full-on DIY skatepark, just south of the city (in Newport, KY)... there's hella legit shops all over the place (many that have never gone to a trade show in their entire lives)... and maybe most importantly, it's reality, boys. This isn't palm trees, big money, hookers, and blow after all. This is concrete, hamburgers, brews, and family. Good times, but not the fake-bullshit, let's-build-corporate-'excitement' variety.
And, that's exactly the way it should be. Either you're in, or you're out.
This map conveniently illustrates why Cincy was a logical choice for any sort of "midwest skateboard show". Chicago, Indianapolis, Louisville, Milwaukee, Cleveland, Dayton, Columbus, St. Louis, Detroit... they're all within 8 hours. And, 70% of the entire US population lives within a one-day drive. The skateboard industry loves to overlook the midwest, the east coast, clear statistics, as well as the blatantly obvious: That this is literally the geographic the heart of skateboarding, right here. In many ways, it's the ideological heart of skateboarding as well.
By the feedback that we've already gotten from the brands, as well as shops, we're on the right track. People can't believe that we're doing this, but we are. There's no time to lose, and no time to wait around for our salvation. If you want shit to get done (and done right), ultimately you're gonna hafta get that shit done yourself.
Everybody's invited to this deal. I'm not a higher-than-thou sort of jackass, and I'm always down to bro down with anyone. Lew's the same way, and he's a hella smart and hospitable chap to boot. A lot of the smaller companies snapped up spots straightaway, no questions asked. Every shop that I've called has been genuinely stoked that, finally, something's gonna happen in The Midwest for a change. But again, it isn't all about "us". East Coast, West Coast, whatever. We're all skaters, man. We're all one and the same.
Oh, yeah! Almost forgot: We don't discriminate based on "types of skating", either. Street, vert, mini ramps... they're all nearby. But longboarders, speedsters, slalom racers, cruisers, and freestylers are all welcome in this house, too. We believe that everybody should skateboard, and that there should be a skateboard for everyone. If you're a skate shop, and you want to see the full spectrum of what the future of skateboarding has to offer? This is the place to be.
If you're a brand, a manufacturer, or an independent skate shop, and you're down for having a good time on some random Saturday in May? Then, you're part of the family. Bring your board, a sleeping bag, a pillow, and a bowl of cole slaw, and you're good to go. We'd love to have ya, and it's gonna be a blast.
As for the costs: Brands, we're working hard to keep this thing as affordable as possible. Lew thinks it can be done for under $200 per manu, but I wanna try for $100. Either way, it's damn cheap. And charging more than what's absolutely necessary to pull the party off is for assholes. Nobody's gonna make a damn cent off of this, and my checkbook is open to help Lew out if he needs it. We lead by example.
Once again, just so everybody gets this: This isn't about us. It's all about skateboarding. It's grass-roots, it's budget, it's raw, and it's real. We like it like that around here.
Hopefully, we'll see you there.
This show is tentatively scheduled for Saturday, May 28th, 2011. Anyone interested in pre-registering for this event should e-mail (or call) Bud Stratford straightaway. Pre-registering is not a sign of absolute commitment, but rather an interest in participating.The e-mail is budstratford@aol.com.
By January, we hope to publish a complete list of pre-registrants. Based on the number of pre-registrants, we'll be asking for commitments at that time.
