RAY BARBEE VAULT/VANS COVERAGE - Concrete Disciples Skateboarding BBS

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Concrete Disciples Skateboarding BBS / Photos / RAY BARBEE VAULT/VANS COVERAGE

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MRZ Member	# Posted: 15 Nov 2009 19:04 - Edited by: MRZ Reply BLKPRJKT and I checked out the VANS / VAULT Ray Barbee shoe release party on Saturday. Vans/Vault honored Ray for 20 years as a professional skateboarder by releasing 3 shoe styles in 4 color ways. Most of you are familiar with Vault , but just in case ... Vault is a division of Vans and was created for limited specialty shoes. They use special materials and are pretty exclusive. Ray's new kicks. The event was held at Proper in Long Beach. Proper is a skater owned and operated boutique shoe store. Tristan (one of the owners) created a great space to showcase Ray's shoes and memorabilia. The open bar was also a nice touch. On display was a large collection of Ray's decks from over the years. Powell, The Firm, and his current sponsor Element. Lots of history on the walls. It was cool to see Sean Cliver in the mix. He did Ray's first pro model with Powell and fittingly his current model on Element. Ray and Sean. Ray took the time to include a little background description under each deck. This one " High-school sweethearts" was drawn by Lance Mountain and is one of Ray's favorites. This one is also a Lance Mountain design and was my favorite. Also on display were a few items from Ray's past. I asked Ray to explain a few of the items and what were their significance. The Deck. "This is the deck I rode in my first Pro Spot Light in Transworld. Spike Jonze shot it." " What's really cool to me about it , are the stickers." "Back then, we would put stickers on our boards to support our friends and the people who we were down with." "Not because we were getting paid." " It's certainly different now." The Shoe "This was my 15 year shoe." "The hats people might recognize from the old Powell videos and that camera was THE point and shoot on trips." Now Ray uses a Leica. I was super stoked to see Tommy Guerrero play. I asked Ray before the event if he was gonna play also. He told me he wasn't sure. It was one of the first times he didn't have to worry about playing and could just relax and enjoy. I knew he'd end up jamming with Tommy. I sorta ribbed him the following day about it. "I thought you weren't gonna play?" Ray laughed and told me how special it was to have Tommy there. He explained how Tommy was instrumental in getting him on Powell and later with introducing him to the record label. "Tommy has alway been there for me." Of course they jammed and it was GOOD. When I asked Ray about "Twenty Years" he said he really never thought he'd be around as a pro this long. But that the recognition and acknowledgement were a blessing and it motivates him. "This is a huge honor and I thank Vans." The event was packed and I'm sure everyone enjoyed the sights and sounds. Check out: PROPER @ 425 E. 1st STREET Long Beach , CA 90802 (562) 628-9100 Ray's a good friend and I'm super stoked for him. All the best! Enjoy. MRZ Sell Out. Hold out. Blow out. Whatever.
Sumdumsurfer Member	# Posted: 15 Nov 2009 21:23 Reply Very cool. Thanks for the report. SKATE/SURF 4 LIFE!
cbfmtl Member	# Posted: 16 Nov 2009 07:36 Reply In 89 Barbee came up to Montreal for a Powell demo. After the demo a couple of guys wanted to go out so we took them out to our local watering hole. 18 is the optional drinking age here. Barbee went to the bathroom and when he came out he was so stoked. We asked him why and he responded, "Man the bathroom says Hommes on the door."