Vans – U.S. Open of Surf 2016 Collection

Jun 21 16 under 50th, Contests, Events, Heritage, History, Surf | Comments Off

“Just ahead of next month’s event in Huntington Beach, CA, Vans has released the annual US Open of Surfing collection. Consisting of 5 men’s styles, the collection features one Slip On, two Authentics, an Old Skool, and Sk8 Hi.

Three models in the collection feature a photographically printed sunset and palm tree graphic. The Sk8 Hi opts for black canvas vamp and heel counters while the printed canvas drapes the entire upper of the Slip On and Authentic.

The other two pairs in this set make use of the classic checkerboard pattern which the brand is so well known for. Both heel counters of the Authentic and the Old Skool are wrapped in the black and white check canvas while the vamps are dressed in red suede for the Authentic and blue on the Old Skool. Additionally, the US Open of Surfing logo is printed along both sides of the Authentic’s midsole.

The Vans US Open of Surfing 2016 Footwear Collection is available now from Vans.com. If you are in Huntington Beach and would rather pick them up in person, head to the event from July 23 – 31st. ”

Vans Announces the 1st Annual Vans BMX Street Invitational (6.25.16)

Jun 17 16 under BMX, Contests, Events, Heritage, History, NEWS, Pro | Comments Off

The first ever Vans BMX Off The Wall BMX Street Invitational is a unique BMX Street event that brings together the biggest names in BMX Street riding – from the undisputed gold medalist to the video filming champ to the local boy battling it out at the Vans Off The Wall Skatepark & Jack’s Garage in Huntington Beach, CA.

The Vans BMX Street Invitational honors the sport’s elite as they illustrate their style across urban terrain including stairs, handrails, ledges and banks. The inaugural event welcomes the world’s best BMX street riders including Dakota Roche, Ty Morrow, Dan Lacey, Sean Sexton, Bruno Hoffmann and more.

more info after the jump

Vans Crowns John P. Stevens High School Winner of the 2016 Vans Custom Culture Design Competition #VansCustomCulture

Jun 9 16 under Art, Contests, Customs, Heritage, History | Comments Off

Words via Vans:

“Vans, the original action sports and youth culture brand, is proud to welcome John P. Stevens High School from Edison, N.J. to the ranks of winners of the Vans Custom Culture design competition. As the grand-prize winner, John P. Stevens High School has been awarded a donation of $50,000 for the school’s arts education programs to help foster the students’ #RightToArt and support the next generation of creative individuals.

In partnership with Americans for the Arts, Journeys, truth®, Laguna College of Art and Design and Blick Art Materials, Vans hosted the top five high school finalists at a final event held on June 8 at MAMA Gallery in downtown Los Angeles. Vans reached out to creative minds across action sports, art, music and street culture to form a panel of judges that exemplify what it means to invest in the creativity of their respective talents. This year, YouTube personality Maddi Bragg, Vans professional surfer Dylan Graves and top chefs Jon Shook and Vinny Dotolo behind Los Angeles restaurants Animal, Jon & Vinny’s and Son of a Gun, as well as special musical guest Echosmith, selected the winning custom Vans shoe designs among a talented group of young artists representing the top five high schools. The remaining finalists – Eastern High School (Louisville, Ky.), Moanalua High School (Honolulu, Hawaii), Orange High School (Orange, Calif.) and Sandy High School (Sandy, Ore.) were each awarded $4,000 on behalf of Vans toward their arts programs.

“Art has always been an essential ingredient of the Vans DNA. Whether it was through creating custom footwear for the skateboarders of the Dogtown era or young kids doodling checkerboard across their sneakers, Vans have been a canvas of expression for 50 years,” said Kevin Bailey, VF and Vans Global Action Sports and Outdoor Brand President. “We created Vans Custom Culture to not only raise awareness of declining arts education budgets across the country, but because we also inherently believe that today’s youth deserve the Right to Art. As such, it is our duty to provide a platform that enables creative expression for generations to come.”

Now in its seventh year, the Vans Custom Culture competition continues to inspire and empower creativity among high school students across the country. Since the inaugural competition, more than 10 percent of high schools nationally have participated in Vans Custom Culture and more than $600,000 has been contributed to support arts programs. Nearly 3,000 high schools registered for this year’s competition, designing four pairs of blank Vans based on four themes: Action Sports, Art, Music and Local Flavor. One of the designs from the grand-prize winners, John P. Stevens High School, has the opportunity to be produced and sold in select Vans retail stores, as well as online at Vans.com.

In addition to the grand prize, Vans donated an additional $50,000 to non-profit partner, Americans for the Arts, the nation’s leading organization for advancing the arts and art education. This year, Vans Custom Culture was recognized for its innovative charitable approach, taking home top honors in the education category for the 2016 Cause Marketing Halo Awards.

Vans Custom Culture partners Journeys, truth® and Laguna College of Art and Design also provided participating schools the opportunity to raise additional funds for their art education programs. As a long time Vans partner, Journeys awarded a $15,000 ‘Local Attitude’ award to Moanalua High School for creating the most compelling ‘local flavor’ design.

truth®, one of the nation’s most successful and longest running youth smoking prevention campaign, challenged the students to customize a skate deck inspired by their reaction to a raw fact about tobacco. Station Camp High School in Gallatin, Tenn., took home the $10,000 truth® donation, for its winning design that shows what it looks like when smoking is finished for good.

Finally, Laguna College of Art and Design, a premier national art and design college and the first to offer a BFA degree in Action Sports design, partnered with Vans to provide the opportunity for every single student that participated in the 2016 competition the chance to apply for a $25,000 scholarship to be received upon admission. Almost 80 students will be eligible for the scholarship, which will enable them to continue their creative path and earn their BFA in Design + Digital Media.”

To view pictures from the final event please click here and for more information on Vans Custom Culture visit Vans.com/CustomCulture. Follow the movement on Instagram @vans.custom.culture and by using the hashtags #RightToArt and #VansCustomCulture.

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Vans 50th Anniversary ’77 Sk8-Hi Pro Reissue LIMITED RELEASE “Cinnamon” (Video Review by @samcolt12) #goodshoez #samcolt12

May 5 16 under 50th, Heritage, History, Pro, Reviews, Videos | Comments Off

Hypebeast Interview: Christian Hosoi Reflects On Being A Part of the Vans Legacy

May 4 16 under Articles, Heritage, History, Interviews | Comments Off

Hypebeast recently sat down with one of our favorite skate legends, Christian Hosoi, to reflect on his professional skateboarding career, and more specifically his role with Vans. He’s one of the most recognizable skateboarders of all time, and it’s no surprise Vans approached him a long time ago, along with many other greats, to go out and represent the brand and be the cultural icon that he undoubtedly is. This interview is great, and full of small stories that you’ll enjoy if you’re a fan of skateboarding history, culture, or just a fan of him. Check it out over on Hypebeast!

Vans Pro – 50th Anniversary LIMITED Sk8-Hi Reissue Pro ’77 “Cinnamon” (4.23.16 via Silo)

Apr 21 16 under 50th, Heritage, History, Pro | Comments Off

This month’s 50th Anniversary LIMITED release, is another retro model, this time paying tribute to the very first Sk8-Hi colorway, CINNAMON. You probably won’t hear that from too many sources, but we’re not just any old source, are we? The Sk8-Hi Reissue Pro comes in the common suede/canvas construction, and features the same Pro benefits that we’re all familiar with by now. I even overheard a young girl arguing with her father in my local Vans store, about them not having her size in the Checkerboard Classic Slip-On Pro, and her dad was trying to offer up the GR one across the shelf, and she was adamant about having the Pro model. I love it! Anyways, these have the same allocation as Syndicates, so same limited availability, and distribution. Look for them to release at Silo, as well as your local spot this weekend, the 23rd!

Thanks to Silo for the drop info and pics!

Vans – A Dissected Look At the Classic Slip-On Pro (via @hypebeast)

Apr 7 16 under Heritage, History, Pro | Comments Off

Words via Hypebeast:

“Introducing Style #98

Originally known as ”Style #98,” the shoe that was later to be dubbed as the internationally recognized Vans Classic Slip-On quickly found its feet firmly planted in the Southern Californian budding skate and BMX scene of the late ’70s. Today the Slip-On continues to reign as the brands most iconic silhouette. What we’re aiming to explore is whether this simple yet epochal silhouette to the brand — which obviously stood the test of time to today — can continue as an inspiration for the future. The style was introduced in 1977 and quickly became the solution to the culture’s insistence for something to wear without fuss, yet hold up to the battering and abuse dealt by the nature of extreme sports. It was a no-brainer for skaters and riders to look towards Vans as the answer to their problem, all in thanks to its then decade worth of experience and respect in producing arguably the world’s best all-around extreme sports footwear products. The company was not without other silhouettes that resonated strongly throughout the skate and BMX scene. A year prior to the Slip-On there was Style #95, or as you know it today, the “Era.” More notably, there was Style #44: the “Authentic,” Vans’ original hallmark offering that cemented its name on to boards and bike peddles all across the West Coast, then the world over

Vans Pays Homage to Iconic Motif with Spring Checkerboard Collection (2016)

Apr 7 16 under General Release, Heritage, History | Comments Off

With a nod to the past and eyes on the future, Vans celebrates its rich history with a range of footwear and accessories featuring Vans’ iconic Checkerboard motif. Originally inspired by the creative spirit of Southern California’s youth culture and Vans grassroots design contests, Checkerboard is synonymous with Vans’ irreverent and unique style. “Vans are a natural canvas and in the late ‘70s we started seeing Vans fans sketch all over their shoes,” recalls Vans Vice President of Events and son of the founder, Steve Van Doren. “Before we knew it, checkerboard was everywhere so we wanted to introduce our own version and make sure it was ‘Off The Wall’”

Decades later, Vans continues to release updates to the timeless pattern on a range of Vans products. From the new women’s Dazie-Hi, the Camper Hat and Checkerboard Backpack to legendary Vans silhouettes like the Sk8-Hi, Old Skool and Classic Slip-On, retro vibes take center stage on these styles staples conveying the perfect canvas for creativity. The extensive footwear offering highlights elementary tones reminiscent of the brand’s Southern California roots with colors like Spruce Yellow, Rhubarb Burgundy, Citadel Blue and Espresso Brown—painting a vibrant image of the Checkerboard history.

Vans Checkerboard gained international attention and appeal when actor Sean Penn donned a fresh pair of black and white Checkerboard Slip-Ons as the eccentric Jeff Spicoli in the 1982 film Fast Times at Ridgemont High. A true “Off The Wall” moment, it comes as no surprise that Checkerboard would remain a mainstay in Vans’ seasonal collections for years to come.

Vans – A Dissected Look At the Era Pro (via @hypebeast)

Mar 31 16 under Heritage, History, Pro | Comments Off

Since 1966, Vans has embedded itself in the very DNA of American culture through footwear. Although originally crafted as a casual shoe brand with an emphasis on a durable vulcanized rubber sole unit, the lifestyle footwear company has become a sports staple — especially in skateboarding. Almost everyone owns, or has owned a pair of Vans at one point in their lives — and there’s a very high chance that it was the Era. A classic, low-top design, the Era emerged as the “#95″ in 1976. Its design was a modification of the already classic Vans Authentic by none other than legendary Z-Boys skateboarders Stacy Peralta and Tony Alva. They added enhanced collar padding and a heel cap for added stability, making it the first shoe designed by skaters for skaters.

Vans – 50th Anniversary “Gold Pack” (Available Now!)

Mar 28 16 under General Release, Heritage, History | Comments Off

In a continued celebration of its 50-year anniversary, Vans releases the Gold pack to further commemorate the momentous milestone of “Off The Wall” heritage. With an aesthetic inspired by its golden year, Vans presents a collection of footwear and apparel that features gold embellishments and archived prints to honor its design legacy. This robust 22-piece assortment includes iconic Vans silhouettes such as the Authentic, Classic Slip-On, Era 59, Old Skool and Sk8-Hi Reissue alongside a deluxe range of hoodies, hats, bags and tees.

The Vans 50th Anniversary Gold pack channels the brand’s heritage by highlighting significant design emblems such as the checkerboard, the Sidestripe and Duke Kahanamoku’s vintage aloha pattern in an elevated aesthetic. In the footwear offering, the checkerboard can be seen as a unique perforated pattern atop a golden Authentic and a multi-toned execution of the Classic Slip-On, while Vans’ coveted Sidestripe marks the panels of the Old Skool and Sk8-Hi Reissue. Inspired by legendary surfer Duke Kahanamoku, the floral motif is brought back from the archives as a premium foil print across an additional colorway of the Authentic and a dual delivery of Sk8-Hi Reissues. The Era 59 finishes the sneaker capsule with a hit of gold on its heel mustache.

Within the apparel and accessories selection, the golden theme is applied across three pocket tees in the men’s line-up alongside the 50th Zip Front Fleece, two 50th 6-Panel Snapbacks and the Old Skool 50th Backpack. The women’s variety brings follows up with a similar set including pocket tank tops, a slim tee, the 50th Hoodie, two Beach Girl Trucker Hats and the Realm Backpack. Traces of gold accentuate the patterned pocket compartments, zip hardware, logos and woven labels within each ensemble.

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