Plus photos from Crossroads.
Down at Crossroads, I checked in with Jamie Thomas on Thursday to see how he thought the first event in conjunction with ASR went.
He said the vibe had been very positive, and that Wednesday had been particularly busy.
Having the event outdoors, with fewer rules and the ability to skate around, was really important, he said.
He said it was great to have a show that is organic and raw and outside so people feel free and comfortable, instead of trying to “bottle and package it into a contrived setting in a convention center,” Jamie said.
Jamie said it was also great to be surrounded by peers – just skateboarders.
ASR flew out a group of core skate shops that usually wouldn’t be able to afford to make it to the show, and even sent limos to the airport to pick them up, he said.
ASR was great to work with – easy and supportive, Jamie said, a real switch from how skateboarding was treated long ago.
“I think ASR felt for a long time that skateboarding needed ASR more than ASR needed skateboarding,” he said.
Now, ASR has made an honest effort to see how skateboarding and ASR can work together, he said.
“Andy (Tompkins) and his crew have been great,” Jamie said.
I did hear from a few cross-over retailers that carry skate and surf brands that they didn’t particularly like having to leave the Convention Center and walk down the street to see skate brands because of time constraints.
So I asked Jamie if he would ever bring Crossroads back inside the building.
Personally, he said he’s not into going back inside but he wants what is best for the skateboard industry and will consider other ideas if they make sense for the industry as a whole.
“But this is a nice solution,” Jamie said. “It’s a stone throw away … and skateboarding wants its own thing. It doesn’t want to be packaged into a surf, extreme action sports show.”
