Concrete Wave and AXS Longboard Retailer Magazine were privileged to be at several events during the first quarter of 2012. First up was the Agenda Show held in Long Beach. It was much larger than previous years and was well attended – including a longboard area that was buzzing all day. We decided to hold a launch party for AXS Magazine at Famous Dave’s BBQ. More than 150 industry folks showed up and were treated to a delicious lunch, complete with liquid refreshments. The event was held both inside and outside, and everyone agreed it was a great way to kick off the trade show season.The A.skate Foundation does wonderful work for children with autism. Here they celebrate another successful session.Paul De Grassa (Left) of Navigator Trucks proudly shows off his Drone truck. Bud Smith (Mr. Griptape) of Mob Grip gets into some serious reading!Robert Lininger (Left) of Bangfish Trucks. You’ll be hearing more about these trucks in the months to come. They ride over cracks pretty damn well. East Coast skate legend Bruce Walker (Right) proudly shows of his latest pro model from Sector 9.Micheal Furukawa of Skate One/Powell (Left). Thanks to the new film about the Bones Brigade, his life is about to require a clone. Morgan Griff (Right) and Matthew Weil of Shitewear. These guys have nothing to do with longboarding, but their shirts are so damn amusing, we just had to feature them.
Biker Sherlock and Kurf Hurley of Dregs (Left). they wound up doing four trade shows in six weeks! Ryan Theobald with Australian longboard kingpin James Hopkin (Right). We also wound up at the Slate Show in Las Vegas (part of MAGIC). However, due to the rule that “what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas,” we don’t have any actual photos. The Slate show was a great success. A huge thanks to the folks at Slate and Board Retailers Association for hosting a really enjoyable evening at the Palms Hotel, followed up with a concert at House of Blues (featuring Lauryn Hill).