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Giving you one great Dam Deal at a Time
Today's Deal till Noon:
VON ZIPPER LEXICON SUNGLASSES
$34.99 was $95.00 63% Savings
Thursday, February 12, 2009
Finally Lake Tahoe is getting some well deserved snow and so today I took full advantage of our proximity to all the Lake Tahoe area ski resorts. On fun pow days usually I go through a list of resorts to hit starting with those of best pitch and possible snow collection... right, I just go to Squaw just like everyone else and get some high speed chair runs. It was nice to see a line of traffic heading towards but I was super surprised that I was able to once again walk right up and onto the Funitel. That trend kept up for the rest of the day and I was able to hot lap Siberia, granite chief and Headwall repeatedly . Today was great but this weekend into next week things should keep getting better so if you missed today... YOU HAD BETTER MAKE IT FOR NEXT WEEK!!!
a title="Burton Snowboards" href="http://www.porterstahoe.com/">PortersTahoe.com
So the
Smokin Snowboard
factory tour last week had more to it than just the tour, we also went
down to pick up some 2010 newly pressed decks. I was lucky enough to
nab the new M.I.P. D.I.R.T. Rocker with Magne-Traction with some custom
graphics brought to you by JP Lagos at
Thesnowlife.com .
I was even more excited to try out Smokin’s Magne-Traction since out
snow has been rock hard as of late and last time I rode a board with
magne it made the saying “Turns ice into powder” hold true. Friday
afternoon of last week Squaw was still pretty firm with a nice east
wind keeping things rather chilly, so what better time to go try out
Smokin Jay “the evil genius’s“new concept.
My first thoughts was
the same as any of the other reverse camber boards I have ridden, the
nose seems to hook a little quick when you really get the board on
edge. Once I detuned the nose and tail a little the board simply took
off. The M.I.P. has a great predictable flex that reminds me of many of
the old boards from the good old days. Jay doesn’t use fancy barely
known named stuff to create his sticks yet he produces a board that
rivals all those high-end uber scientific factories. The M.I.P. holds a
super fun edge, makes a snappy turn and rebounds really predictably
that you can stray away from the park and still rip turns. I have
complained for a few years now that many companies are making boards to
specific to one discipline and are hard to enjoy on every part of the
hill. I think the smoking M.I.P. brings back the idea that you can have
a great park board that doesn’t sacrifice the rest of the mountain.
If
you are looking for a great park and all around board that’s actually
handmade the new 2010 Smokin M.I.P. D.I.R.T. Rocker is gonna blow your
mind.
What about the graphics? JP Lagos designed the graphic based loosely off the
Obey “Obama”
Poster series. Taking funny pictures and translating them into the Obey
scheme, JP created a series of Bromodel snowboards. All the boards were
either using Smokin’s 2010 M.I.P. blank or the 2010 Superpark blank. So
the boards that were in the pictures being finished during the factory
tour were none other than the bromodel boards. Special thanks to JP for
including my funny grill on a snowboard and Smokin Jay for pressing a
super fun board!
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
Where
is your snowboard made? Some foreign country where all the workers have
no idea what snowboarding actually is? In northern Reno NV, in an area
where trailer parks abound sits a snowboard factory where a creative
evil genius lives. You won’t find any high tech computerized equipment
or even security guards protecting the company’s secrets from prying
eyes. You will find the type of place where some of the best innovation
has always come from… a ghetto garage!
Smokin Jay is an evil
genius… not in the crazy axe murdering type way, more the artistic
friend you had in school that you weren’t sure where his mind was. Jay
was busy gluing one of his new 2010 models when we arrived and as soon
as he had a chance to step away he was off and running with the
“Factory Tour”. I use the term factory loosely since most of the time
you might equate the term Factory to thousands of square feet and a
building in an industrial district of town. Smokins factory looks like
a cross between an old bomb shelter and chop shop. Inside most of the
equipment has been piecemealed together, with bare wires and jays own
inventions throughout the building.
Joining on the tour was
Jay’s sidekick binky who was just as stoked to show us all the funny
corners in the building. While at first glance it looks like a lot
stuff packed around stuff but as Binky explains it you can start to see
Jay’s twisted vision of how the process works. From the room with all
the templates and edges, the room where he cuts out the sidewalls and
the workstation that he uses to glue the boards together. And as you
watch Jay and Binky work what looks like chaos starts to looks like an
interpretive dance where both play off each other though out the entire
process.
Smokin Jay takes a huge amount of pride in the boards
he produces and each board must be perfect for him to sell it. His
entire process feels more artistic than mechanical and each board seems
like its own individual masterpiece. He inspects each board for any
imperfection or graphic blemish before giving the stamp of approval to
sell the board. So when you see the tag handmade you know that the
board you are receiving was entirely handmade by Smokin Jay and the
pride taken to create the board reflects in the quality of the product
you are receiving.
When you get a chance try out a Smokin
snowboard, these are quality snowboards made by an evil genius
snowboarder who believes in making quality snowboards.
Thank you Jay and Binky for the Great night! check out
http://smokinsnowboards.com/ for more info or check out the
Smokin Snowboards we carry.
Labels: Handmade Snowboards , Smokin Snowboards , Smokin Snowboards Factory
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
This weekend my really good friend Jay came in from NYC, and we kicked
his ass. I picked him up at the airport at 11:41 am on Friday by 2:00
we were in the backcountry taking hot laps with Andy Spotts and Peter
Tankersley. By nightfall we were tired and went home. Up Saturday
morning with the sleds gassed up, lunches packed and a new tape in the
camera, we headed out again. We met up with Josh Hall and Dave
Harabedian and went full throttle making turns and shuttling on the
sleds. Sunday was an on hill day at Squaw, what a trip I have been in
the backcountry all season, that was my first day at the resort this
year. Squaw was fun, but the backcountry was calling us back. I hit up
Chappy, my boss and asked for Monday off, he said yes because he is
RAD. So up again Monday, more lunches packed and Andy, Jay, Dave ,
Peter and myself were ready for another day out back.... Check out the
Team Old Guy Vid...oh yes there are some funny bails too...
Wednesday, January 07, 2009
I love receiving last minute phone calls with the 2 stroke hum of snowmobiles in the background.
PortersTahoe.com Team Rider
Brendon Drury
hit me up and said he and his younger brother were up at Mt. Rose
riding around on his snowmobiles in search of some terrain for some
snowboarding.
It
is always fun riding side saddle getting up to your destination as it
can be quite a task. I did bail once off the sled on my belly like a
land seal! Out in the backcountry you never know what kind of
characters you'll run into as we ran into these slednecks who offered
us cheeseburgers, beer and some of that funny smelling "rope".
After
a brief chat with these friendly dudes (Brendon snatched a brew), we
proceeded to find our zone where we could get some shots. Brendon
dropped into a face that was really sunbaked and it was hard to get the
spray that we wanted. It was a fun turn but we wanted more.
Brendon
got another ride up on the sled and I was scouting a zone trying to
find a good place where he could snap a turn. The snow surface had
about a 3-4 inch crust layer on it so I had to find an area that was
thinner. I found just the spot.
Brendon hiked over to where i was camped out & we planned our shot.
In
pure anal photographer fashion...I had to light this shot up. Packing
light this time out I had my Lumedyne 400 WS Action Pack, Canon 1D Mark
II, Canon 15mm fisheye lens, Canon 50mm 1.4 prime, and my Canon
70-200mm lenses. This is a great 3 lens & one light setup to have
out in the backcountry or anywhere for that matter.This is what we got.
Not
bad considering the snow only had an inch of crust in this zone. He did
break through to the bottom and hit the rock, but in the end it was all
worth it. On the way down we had to stop just one more time to take in
another epic Lake Tahoe sunset.
Tuesday, December 09, 2008
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AIRBLASTER JACKET
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Tuesday, December 02, 2008
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
Another event for Porters has come and gone but the Burton movie stop in Reno at The Underground will not be forgotten.
On Saturday night there were two showings of Burton's "It's Always Snowing Somewhere", a kiddie show at 7:30 with an autograph signing with Burton team riders, Mason Agguire, Danny Davis, Jussi Oksanen, Heikki Sorsa and Kelly Clark. The kiddies that showed up were totally stoked and walked out of The Underground with huge smiles and a bag of sweet swag.
The doors reopened at 9pm and the 21+ showing was under way. The night kicked off with Shawn Farmer's band Hunks of Metal rocking the roof off. Then our IT guy Josh Hall's band, Cohesion took the stage and threw down one of the tightest sets I have ever heard them play..... you guys rocked! Then the screen dropped down again and the second showing of Burton's "It's Always Snowing Somewhere" was off an running. As it was playing I was working the door... wait I worked the door most of the night, but I digress then the Supersucker fans started to pour in. Most had tickets but many had to pay at the door and when I told them it was $4.99 to get in they were super stoked. Corona was on hand as well supplying FREE Corona to the Porters crew and Burton team riders, as you would probably guess the free beer went fast. As soon as the movie was finished Eddie Spaghetti and the rest of the Supersuckers took the stage and I told the bouncer to let everyone else in for free because I wanted to rock. As always the Supersuckers played a rockin' set, they never disappoint me.
After the Supersuckers finished up their set the crowd thinned as it was like 1:30 am. For those that stuck around they were rewarded with some high strung punk rock from The Dirty Rigs and Anti Panti. Then the bar emptied and I went back to work... taking down banners, stickers and tents.
I hope everybody that came out had a freaking awesome time, I know Chris Wilmouth did. Thanks to everyone that helped Trevor and myself, much appreciated.
http://www.porterstahoe.com
The 4 annual Jibassic Pro Invitational went down last Saturday night, and the riding was better then ever. Porters team riders
Brandon Cocard and Chaz Guldemond dropped some heavy 270's in three different directions. Johnny Lazz had some awesome boarding, but was taken out by a heavy fall later in the competition, and Johnny Brady also had an immaculate backside 180 on to cab 360 out on the rail feature. Forrest Baily produced some awesome combinations on the down rail. And holding it down for the ladies was Jessie with a mean backside lipslide down the rail. All in all the event was a success, with Andrew Brewer taking first with his smooth style and well executed manuevers including a frontboard same way 270 to 5-0. Judge Sean Carney said " The riding was higher quality then the Vans Cup."
1st: Andrew Brewer
2nd: Brandon Cocard
3rd: Forrest Baily
Words: Alex Horgan
Photos: Zak Shelhamer
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
This is gonna be one helluva show.....
PortersTahoe.com,
Burton Snowboards, Corona, Transworld Snowboarding, Alpine Meadows,
Ubisoft, Sobe and the Supersuckers are teaming up on the evening of
Saturday, October 25th at The Underground club on 555 East 4th Street
in downtown Reno, Nevada to present the Burton Team movie
It’s Always Snowing Somewhere .
A 7pm all-ages, free showing will be followed at 9pm by a $4.99 cover
for a 21-and-over premier of the movie and after-party featuring the
Supersuckers. Tickets for the second, 21+ screening are available
online
HERE or at any of Porters’ four North Lake Tahoe shop
locations .
The movie It’s Always Snowing Somewhere
follows the Burton Team traveling the northern hemisphere, from Austria
to Alaska. It features action footage from Shaun White, Terje
Haakonsen, Natasza Zurek, Gigi Rüf, JP Solberg, Heikki Sorsa, Nicolas
Müller, Tadashi Fuse, Frederik Kalbermatten, Jeremy Jones, Jussi
Oksanen, DCP, Mads Jonsson, Trevor Andrew, Keegan Valaika, Kevin
Pearce, Danny Davis, Kazuhiro Kokubo, Mikkel Bang, Mikey Rencz and
Peetu Piiroinen.
There are only ten other screenings of the movie across the country, and this will be the only
showing anywhere in Northern California or Nevada this year. The first
100 people at the family-friendly, all-ages, free showing at 7pm sharp
will receive a free lift ticket voucher to Alpine Meadows Resort and a
free tour stop t-shirt. An autograph session will follow at 8pm with
Burton Snowboards team riders Jussi Oksanen, Danny Davis, Kevin Pearce,
Mason Aguirre, Heikki Sorsa, and Kelly Clark scheduled to appear. Doors
open at 9pm for the 21+ movie and after party. Tickets are $4.99 in
advance and this is expected to be a sold out show.
Local
Tahoe bands Cohesion and Hunks of Metal will play before the second
showing of the movie. Hunks of Metal feature early pioneers and legends
of snowboarding such as Terry Kidwell, Shawn Farmer, and Bob Klein.
When asked to play at the event Bob said, “Who has a chance to open for
not only the Supersuckers, but a world class snowboard movie as well?
We’re looking forward to rocking the Underground for the first time,
hopefully not the last, unless we get too drunk and rowdy!” Immediately
after the 11pm screening of It’s Always Snowing Somewhere the greatest
live rock ‘n roll band in the world – Supersuckers – will take the
stage for a rowdy and raucous set. More local bands are scheduled to
finish the late night / early morning in the back lounge room while The
Underground’s resident DJ will spin the rest of early morning in the
main showroom.
For more information on this awesome night email me at
chappy@porterstahoe.com or call us us toll free at 866.967.6783.
You won't want to miss this doozie.......
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
NEW FREEBASE!
Exclusive to the NEW
Con-Dom
Freebase features a fully concave top and convex base construction all the
way around with scoop tip and tail. When you stand flat on the Con-Dom, the
edges aren’t touching the ground until you lean from edge to edge. This catch-
free shape lets you jib and butter in entirely new ways and is guaranteed to
enhance your video part upwards of 300%. Zero camber adds to the loose and
forgiving feel this new design creates, making the board even easier to press,
revert, and butter.
What
is the hardest thing about Snowboarding the first day of the year?
Putting down the board and taking pictures. The mood was epic on the
afternoon of the 11th, boards and shovels in hand we embarked on a
journey that would bring friends of all types and styles together.
While most kids were playing video games and sleeping in we were
playing in the snow that friday nights storm left for us. Matty
McInnis, Chris Bartowski and
I headed up there around 11 and met up with the heavy hitting crew including
Brandon Cocard ,
Nick Visconti, Joshua Parker, Niki, Brandon Dury, Who, Brandon Hays,
Andrew Brewer and RV. Check out these photos from our long trip to our
patch somewhere above the greater Reno/Carson City area.
So for those of you shredders in the know, you've just been waiting to
walk into your local shop to check out the Burton Hero Late Release
snowboard. For the rest of you wondering what the big deal is, well
this is Burton's entry into the "rockered" category.
What's that?
While
I personally refer to them as rockered boards as opposed to "reverse
camber", sometimes the less initiated, or non-surfer or
non-wakeboarder, or cross-over skier is only used to hearing the word
"camber". The result of camber in a snowboard or ski is the slight arch
running lenthwise from tip to tail that you can see. When you put one
on a perfectly flat surface, it rests on two spots - near the tip and
near the tail - with a very small gap between the ground and the middle
of the snowboard or ski. Obviously then reverse camber would be where
the contact occurs in the middle and the same contact points in a
traditional shape are slightly off the ground. Think of it as this
shape ...(... turned clockwise versus this shape ...)... turned
clockwise.....or looking sideways at a banana with its tip and tail
making a frown shape versus rotating it to make a smile.
Eeegads how's that for layman tech?
In
the medium of water there are tons of recreational things with rocker -
including surfboards, wakeboards, water skis, kayaks, and on and on.
Depending on your point of reference, riding conditions, terrain, and
some other things, you can obviously have an argument for or against
rocker. I haven't made up my mind which shape I like better in all
conditions and all terrain scenarios like powder, groomers, park, etc
yet., but I can say that I'm a firm believer in deep powder conditions.
And
I don't think it's a coincidence that when you have bottomless powder
turns on a snowboard that it's pretty darn close to how it feels to
make the same turns on a surfboard. The sensations can be felt good in
wakeboarding or even some water skiing too. It's that sensation of
pushing into the snow / water and sinking but then rebounding back to
the surface as the snow / water feels like it is pushing back. Making
huge untracked, first tracks, powder turns down a steep bowl and then
slashing into a deep, powerful "bottom turn" is heaven or nirvana or
zen or whatever you want to call it. For many of the early pioneers of
snowboarding - who came from the surfing world - this is the sensation
that made them snowboard junkies. They could surf the snow.
So all that to simply say that I've really liked how it felt the two times I've ridden rocker in good, deep Tahoe powder.
And
to make a long story short, after the huge success of Lib Tech's Skate
Banana and K2's Gyrator, Burton introduces its own interpretation that
it calls "V-Rocker".
So all that to say that the Burton Hero Late Release snowboard is now in stock:
http://www.porterstahoe.com/istar.asp?a=6&id=215849!BUR
Black metallic finish with a holograph
Of course in Burton's new ICS mounting system
2009 Transworld "Good Wood" Award Winner
A decent shot of the V-Rocker and the gentle rise in the gap between the floor and the base of the Burton Hero
the base...
Wednesday, October 08, 2008
The new 2009 Smokin Snowboards are in stock, and I know that a lot of
people are especially curious about two boards - Mike Basich's brand
new pro model as well as the M.I.P.
So here are some close-up
shots showing the tip and tail shapes of both boards, a close up of the
top sheet graphics, as well as one of each looking down the base to see
Smokin's version of magnetraction.
Yummmm...
2009 Smokin Basich Magnetraction Snowboard
Fairly normal nose, but more of a squash tail
Nose
Tail
Pretty dope topsheet graphic......yay pow pow
A slightly more mellow version of Magnetraction....Smokin style
2009 Smokin M.I.P. Magnetraction Snowboard
Check out the long effective running edge and blunt nose
A close up of the nose...
Close up of the top sheet graphic....some cool random stuff on there for you kiddies....
Again not as pronounced Magnetraction.....
www.porterstahoe.com
Thunderstorms
were pretty non-existent this summer, so last night was the first
soaking rain we've had since spring that I can remember. If we would've
had a little more cold air, this sucker could've produced well over a
foot of snow. Instead, snow levels remained about 9,000 feet and never
dropped to the 7,500 that were being advertised.
Regardless,
snow is snow.....and it got me excited to go see some of it first hand.
I had some errands to run in Reno, so I went the long-way around by
driving up the Mt. Rose highway. I pulled over about halfway up for a
quick shot across to the southwest corner of Lake Tahoe. In the picture
below, you can see Mt. Tallac and the Desolation Wilderness way off in
the distance.
So
then I continued on up Mt. Rose highway to the pass - the highest
year-round, open road in the Sierras at almost 9,000 feet. I finally
caught up to some white stuff I could actually touch 'n feel...
And
then going back down the other side of the Mt. Rose highway, it doesn't
quite look like The Chutes are ready to shred yet.....but it was just
good to see some white on my little drive, and I can't
complain.....kinda like seeing an ol' friend even if briefly
http://www.porterstahoe.com
Lake
Tahoe, Ca: The guys at Smokin Snowboards have been working hard this
summer getting all the new boards done and ready to be shredded this
coming winter along with moving into a new, larger factory. Making it
easier to make Tahoe's finest snowboard, Smokin Jay Quintin has moved
the factory to a location twice as big as the previous. With enough
room to grow and develop new tech and Smokin innovations, our new
factory is going to facilitate the needs of our company in the coming
years.
If
you haven't ridden one of our boards you are definitely missing out.
Whether charging KT at Squaw or riding your local park line, we have
the best shred sticks for you. From our Eco-Friendly Mike Basich
Pro-Model to our twin shovel nose M.I.P. with Magne-Traction, Smokin
Snowboards takes rider feedback directly off the mountain and puts it
directly under your feet. Our flawless 100% aspen and professional
craftsmanship has been proven in the 12 years Smokin Jay has been
making boards and these are our best yet. As well as making one of the
best boards you've ever ridden, this season we will be testing our
Smokin “Brototypes” on the local hills of Lake Tahoe, experimenting
with different camber systems, edge designs, and other top secret
innovations to further increase our board quality.
Get to your
local snowboard shop today and ask for Smokin Snowboards or check em
out online at smokinsnowboards.com Smokin Snowboards are Professionally
Handmade in Lake Tahoe by Snowboarders who understand quality and
performance... !!!
YOU CANT FOOL THE YOUTH!!!
Tee see the entire line of
2009 Smokin Snowboards click here!
Saturday, October 04, 2008
It
was a dark and stormy night in Squaw Valley but that didn't stop the
kiddies from coming out to Mamasake to see Think Thank's Stack Footy
and Airblaster's August movies. Mamasake was packed to the hilt and
everyone was excited because the temp dropped and the winter jackets
and beanies came out of the closet.... perfect attire for snowboard
movie premieres.
Think Thank's Stack Footy was a great vid with
crazy urban shredding, big park jump lines and fresh powder turns. The
pants were tight but so was the riding in this vid. After the showing
of Stack Footy there was a little raffle and then Ariblaster/ Thirty
Two rep Eric Wallis hit play and "August" was off and running. Now for
those that don't know "August" was filmed entirely at Mt.Hood during
the first two weeks of August this year. I have to say this is a fresh
new concept to the snowboard film industry because usually a movie is
filmed through out an entire season, not just in two weeks. So for
starters I liked that about the movie. Second it was full of fun
jibbing and fun everything. A big thanks to all that came out and
braved the monsoon at Squaw and a big thanks to Mamasake
http://www.porterstahoe.com
Saturday, September 20, 2008
"Enjoy The Ride...More" is DC’s marketing slogan for their highly
anticipated release of snowboards this winter. Last night at 50-50
Brewery in Truckee, CA, PortersTahoe.com and the DC crew – including
riders Devun Walsh, Iikka Backstrom, Aaron Biittner, and Lauri Heiskari
– all came out with more than just their A-game to kick off this 20th
anniversary edition of Mack Dawg’s "Double Decade."
Somewhere
between 400 to 500 people joined Porters and DC at the biggest movie
premier ever at 50-50 Brewery. There were two screens – inside and
outside – showing the next progression in riding with several very
well-received segments from not only the DC crew, but riders like Wille
Yli-Luoma, Eero Ettala, and the closing part of Jussi Oksanen. The
movie also sprinkled in 20 years worth of snowboarding pioneers and
ground breaking MDP parts over the years from names like Chris Roach,
Nate Cole, Noah Salasnek, JP Walker, and Jeremy Jones (past and
present). "Double Decade" truly does give you more by throwing in a
great, eclectic mix of music from the likes of the Pet Shop Boys, Devo,
David Bowie, Doobie Brothers, and – believe it or not – the Grass
Root’s "Let’s Live For Today" for a very soulful and artistic Jussi
part.
But that wasn’t all for the day.
Chris
“Gunny” Gunnarson from Snow Park Technologies arranged for some of the
Porters crew and the DC boys – Devun Walsh, Iikka Backstrom, Aaron
Biitner, and first-time golfer Lauri Heiskari – to play a round of golf
at Northstar-at-Tahoe earlier in the afternoon. Conditions were ideal.
Scores were very competitive in a "best ball", two-man format of 5
teams. In the end, a little home-field advantage – and let’s face it –
just plain better skills from Gunny and Walsh propelled them to the win.
Longtime
Nor Cal industry veteran and DC sales rep Ron Depp put the evening in
perspective this way, "It’s amazing that we could draw such a large
crowd with only 5 days advance notice and have so many ex-pros and
industry people come out of the woodwork...or the Truckee woods!" Bill
Markham, DC Snow Sales Manager, added, "Double Decade is a walk down
memory lane that showcases many legends of the 90’s rail brigade. The
film also captures how shredding has progressed from backyard rails to
big mountain kickers. Couple this with almost 500 kids, beer from
50-50, great support from Porters and DC pro shreds Iikka, Devun,
Biittner and Lauri and you got a night you won’t forget....or remember
in some cases!"
Judging by how big of a smile Lauri Heiskari had at the end of the night, everyone truly had a great time...and MORE!
http://www.porterstahoe.com
Tuesday, September 16, 2008
Monday, September 08, 2008
Friday, September 05, 2008
dude, it’s been a rockstar few weeks in minnesnowta. the state fair just rolled through, the republicans had their little convention , and rage against the machine played. yeah, rage against the machine .
i
usually tell people that minneapolis and saint paul are like big cities
nobody has moved into, yet. they look like big cities, but traffic
isn’t that bad (i’m looking at you, bay bridge), and it’s mostly just
half-rich white kids getting bored and causing trouble. that safe
feeling fully eroded after seeing what the police had done to our
cities.
credit (required): http://flickr.com/photos/trevino/
since
last saturday, 422 people have been arrested in association with the
RNC, with like 280 of them happening on monday. some of those rowdy
rousers were the anarchist type, and you know how dumb breeds dumb. a
mini riot broke out on monday, and that set the tone for the rest of
the week.
the rage concert was ok. i wish i could say it
was great, but the acoustics sucked. not their fault, but at $72 a
ticket, i want my f*cking acoustics. rage played a lot from the first
album, a few less from evil empire, and even less from battle of la. i
was ok with that. single encore, then a plea from the band to “leave
peacefully, but not passively.” zach encouraged everyone to show
discipline, to show the police that we can get down in peace while
still saying “f*ck you, i won’t do whatchu tell me.” yeah, it’s ironic,
but get over it. it’s still possible.
the papers said we were
greeted outside the concert by about 50 riot police. unless they meant
“per sidewalk,” that number was a bit low. whatever. point is, unless
you’re insanely drunk (i wasn’t), there’s no way you can walk past that
many armed and armored police and feel like sneezing won’t get you your
sheat beat down.
it took about a half hour before any
half-assed protest broke out. the loudest kids didn’t like being told
they couldn’t sit in the middle of the street (me: let evolution do its
thing). the rest of us just didn’t like the idea of being told you
can’t stand on this sidewalk by police in riot gear (and now gas
masks). the police stopped us about half way down the block.
credit: http://flickr.com/photos/diversey/
after
some fat guy yelling through a loudspeaker about as clear as they do at
the airport, the police blockade broke down. someone in the group said
“walk that way” and everyone did. and we kept walking, probably about a
few blocks, in the road, mostly because it was cleared. as soon as the
block wasn’t cleared of traffic, these retired american gladiator cops
on schwinns started riding people down, shoving them to the sidewalk,
and almost getting a couple of the crowd to push back on them. dude, i
know there are good cops, but some of the cops out that night had that
look like “say what again mother f*cker.”
somewhere
between the schwinns and the cops on super horses, 3 little piggies
came riding up on one of those atv golf carts (didn’t see any segways)
with that short stubby looking thing that usually shoots tear gas.
after we heard the pop pop, we looked for the area with the least
amount of cops, ran, and gtfo. police said it wasn’t tear gas, but,
they were the ones wearing the gas masks.
hey man, there’s usually not shi*t to talk about in minnesota.
read more about the rage show post-party or the fun around the
##
matt
albiniak is a sellout that traded days in tahoe for doing interwebs
stuff for a route 29, a small candy company in minneapolis, mn. (http://www.route29.com )
www.porterstahoe.com