Justin Fabus Throwaway 2008

FIGJAM- AM Skater Justin Fabus

Got some new throwaway footage for 2008, this is some of the best throwaway u'll see anywhere.

Check it out here
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lcjcu8dQQwE

Matt Hutchinson Promo Video

Hi guys

FIGJAM Skater Matt Hutchinson got a new promo out for 2008- You can check it out here
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tUH2xKcBg20&feature=channel_page

Finesse Video Premiere

Hey Guys,
This Saturday make sure to check out the Finesse Video Premier at Switch Skate and Snow. FIGJAM's Kirk Harriot is featured in it!!
Click here to get more info!
http://www.finessevideo.blogspot.com/

Great Promo's on Youtube as well

Conflict Resolution Through Skateboarding?? Maybe one day...

"To me, skateboarding is like a brotherhood," -Hamid Shahram

Kabul: site of some of the most impoverished children in the Middle East is now home to a new flock of skateboarding fanatics. Skateistan started when a couple Australians brought over some boards to engage kids in non-violent and non-competitive sport. The kids and coaches began riding together in empty swimming pools that under the Taliban rule were used for public executions. If the proposed skate park gets built, it would pass into ownership within 12 months however, unlike some NGOs, this project would not collapse.
Percovich, founder of Skateistan, poignantly put it,
"The relationship between Afghans and foreigners is getting more distant," he said. "At least we're not pointing guns at them."

Check out the rest of the article here

Meet Kirk Harriot

What do England, Gymnastics, dodge ball, and Pink Floyd have in common? Well, nothing unless, of course, you’re Kirk Harriot.
An imperial ex pat, Harriot ditched the gymnastics and headed across the pond to Canada. When asked why he wanted to join FIGJAM, Harriot said, “the clothes and of course, they hook it up good.” Well, it seems Harriot knows a good thing when he sees it. After dabbling in other sports Harriot found his niche in skating. For the past 6 years he’s been hitting the skate scene hard and it all came together when he dominated the Ontario skate scene this year winning the Men's Open Division at this year’s DC National Qualifier.
Harriot’s desire to stay true to the skateboarding culture is apparent when he notes that his motivation comes from seeing younger skaters rip up the concrete. His leadership and incredible skills embody what FIGJAM is all about.
Welcome to the team KIRK!

Girls Girls Girls

ALL WE WANT IS GIRLS!

The first time I stepped on a skateboard I must admit, I nearly killed myself. My friends decided that I should be the first girl to test their 5ft half pipe built in a backyard barn. Me being the "I can do whatever the boys can do" kind of girl said "no problem". Little did I know the skill that is actually needed to fling oneself down a 5 ft. ramp. The guys strapped me up in hockey equipment and said, " just lean forward and go with the momentum of the board" ...uuh, ya right!
I think right then and there I decided I needed to perhaps stick to trying to master street style.
It seems more than ever, however, girls are starting to join the ranks of the males skate scene. Global Surf News reports that,
Of the 38 sports and activities surveyed by the National Sporting Goods Association (NSGA) in its Sports Participation – Series I and II reports, the female share of skateboarding showed the strongest increase. Females represented 26.6% (2.7 million) of total skateboard participation in 2007; in 2002, they represented on 19.5% (1.9 million) of the participants.

So what does this mean for the industry??
Well, for one we will have to start catering towards a younger female market in order to maintain a pool of up and coming female skaters. This will mean everything from competitions and sponsorships to clothing and and equipment. Will the industry follow suit? Well,  if it wants to cash in it will have to. Mark my words, look out for more and more female oriented skate gear in stores near you.

Back To School Skateboard Competition

On August 30th, FIGJAM co-sponsored a 'Back To School' Skateboarding Comp in Brampton, ON. We're glad to say our own Joey Bondi won the AM division-- Good job, way to represent!

Here are some pics of our product toss--- It was an amazing day, 30 degree weather, sun

'Back To School' Skateboard Competition

Well labor weekend, means thousands of peeps are headed back to School on tuesday, but not after winning some cash and cool prizes. If you are in the Toronto/Brampton area this weekend. Make sure to head down to Ching Park for the 'Back To School' Competition being held. Cash to be made, prizes to be won.

Check out the flyer! $10 reg fee.

FIGJAM At DC Nationals

This past weekend, FIGJAM National AM Skater Justin Fabus competed at DC Nationals at Montreal's South Park for the chance to win $20,000. The competition brought 40 skaters who had previously qualified from acrooss Canada. J.S Lapierre took first place with an $8000 cash purse.

The weekend was truly amazing, lots of skating, lots of partying (We may no longer be welcomed at the Econo Lodge)

FIGJAM would like to congratulate Justin Fabus for qualifying and competing at the event.

FIGJAM Hits Montreal- AMGettingPaid

On the weekend of July 18-21st, FIGJAM skaters Justin Fabus, Keenan Beauchamp travelled to Montreal for this year’s AMGettingPaid with videographer Anthony Perre and Director of Marketing Justin Hanna. The trip was an eventful one to say the least, yes a lot of skateboarding got done, but as you can probably tell, you a get a bunch of guys in a city like Montreal, and you know fun times where ahead. Certain things where figured out during this trip, that you probably did not know about the FIGJAM crew.

Number 1: Justin Hanna speaks very good French- no matter what people say
Number 2: Justin Fabus does a terrible impersonation of a French Canadian. Don’t stand in front of him cause the spit that flies from his mouth is large enough to fill lake Ontario.
Number 3: Always always bring a shaver with you on a trip, just ask Keenan whose beard started looking so raggedy, people miss took him for a Vancouver Homeless man.
Number 4: Videographer Anthony Perre may not speak any French, but his moves with the French ladies, mostly the ones at Boston Pizza, are as we should say..parfait
Number 5: Don’t ever leave your phone number on the back of a receipt for a girl- it dosen’t work! Mostly when you’re out of town
Number 6: Justin Fabus is coming out with his own line of hot dogs... The Mayo Dog (aka the sperm dog) as seen below. This is not a FIGJAM product.
Number 7: Skateboarding in Montreal- bring a cheque book. The crew did some skating at the park in front of the Palais De Congres. Well it cost us, $120 fine and a confiscated skateboard. Thank god the ticket was a for a minor, cause if you are over 18 and skateboarding in Montreal the ticket is a wooping $620..Fuck Shit BALLS, that sucks. PS has the city of culture turned its back on Youth Culture?
Number 8: Nightlife in Montreal, still friggin rocks, and nothing beats it.
Number 9: If you ever have a chance to skate South Parc, take it!
Number 10: Montreal city police you haven’t seen the last of us!

I Ain't Sayin' You're A Gold Digger...

The Skateboard industry is a $2 billion a year business – and that’s just US alone. This is quite an accomplishment considering the majority of the apparel and equipment companies are not big box retailers. This of course is changing. Retailers like Kmart and Target are looking to cash in on this youth culture as it doesn’t seem to be going the way of the Kriss Kross look anytime soon (remember when we wore clothing backwards!? WTF were we thinking?).

While it’s pretty nice to able to afford skate and board style clothing – because I mean, let’s face it, $95.00 for a golf shirt can get a little steep for some 13 year olds, I have to question what the mass commercialization will do to the sport.

Take Shaun White for example: great guy, super talented, and sponsored by everything that walks but when you have to negotiate your deal with Sony Playstation because the event is sponsored by Microsoft X-box, you wonder where the integrity and loyalty to the sport has really gone.

Kmart has announced it will launch a new line of affordable skate inspired clothing under the label “Boarding.” This rather dull name consists of a logo tha,t to Labelnetworks, is considered “a mash up between Quicksilver and RipCurl.” Ingenious guys! I mean, it’s not like we’re not going to notice the difference. Kmart says it intends to target 13-25 year olds, which is not surprising. This demographic notoriously has the most disposable income but I guess what really gets me is who manufactures the line: Orange Clothing out of Miami Florida. Their “About Me” section states:
“We provide high quality, desirable merchandise that stands out in the industry by leading clothing trends through innovative designs and cutting edge materials”
Well, I tell you what Orange Clothing, there is nothing “innovative or cutting edge” about you. In fact I am not sure you even manufacture your entire line in Miami. Why else would you have companies based in Bangladesh and China? Out sourcing for cheap labor is not innovative. Are you selling clothes to 15 year olds that are made by 15 year olds? Because that’s not cutting edge either.

So what to do? I say, it’s time for a gut check guys. If the boarding industry is to remain grass roots we have to be willing to resist the temptation for a fast cash grab. We have to remain true to the sport and to the integrity of what it means to be an extreme athlete. Going the way of the Big Box or following suit of questionable business practices is not extreme or risk taking. It’s boring and old and we’ve all been there already.

Fabus Places 2nd in Both AM and Open at Park He Designed

FIGJAM'S Justin Fabus skated to a second place finish in both the Amateur and Open competitionthis weekend at Brampton's Chinguacousy Park. Fabus' consistency might have something to do with the fact he was part of the park's design committee. Fourteen year old Fabus, a Brampton native, was asked for his input on the parks design and ended up designing the top section himself.
The Next big comp for Fabus is the DC National Skate qualifier...stay tuned, there is more to come from this rising star.

meet justin fabus...

With hopes of qualifying for this year’s DC National Skateboarding Championships, Justin Fabus is securing his place as one of the country’s top amateur skaters. Joining FIGJAM in 2008, this Etobicoke native caught the eye of president Justin Hanna right away and was signed almost instantly. Fabus cites FIGJAM as a supportive and “awesome” organization that has “amazing clothes.”

Skating for 5 years and currently residing in Brampton ON, Fabus likes to head to downtown Toronto to practice some of his best tricks like sw tailslide and sw 360. His long term goals include learning sw lipslide down handrails, heading to university, and having a great life. We think that with his positive attitude and thirst for all things extreme, there is not doubt there are only great things to come for Justin Fabus.

GenME and Daft Hands

This slays!

GIVE'R

A big part of the FIGJAM mantra is giving. Yes, we love to shameless self promote on youtube, facebook, blogger; and we'd love for the world to be wearing our kickass designs, but in the end we can only get back what we put out.

The Staff and TEAM at FIGJAM are selected because they know what it is to give and they know how important is to give right now! They believe that the reward of self sacrifice is astounding that's why FIGJAM decided to sponsor the Summer for SickKids.

Summer for SickKids is a 2 day urban rail jam fundraiser that takes place from May 31st through June 1st at Boardsports in Toronto, On. Ok, but, WTF is an Urban Rail Jam you ask?? It means that right in the heart of downtown TO a giant pool will be created and the best wakeskaters and wakeboarders in the city will be throwing down their moves all for the kids at Toronto's Sick Children's Hospital. Pretty sweet eh? WE KNOW! So come out and support your local skaters/boarders and most of all come support SickKids hospital....we'll be there, will you???

FIGJAM'S NEWEST SKATER!

meet keenan beauchamp….

Macbooks, Iced Tea and FIGJAM. This kid sure knows what cool means. Keenan is the newest member of the FIGJAM TEAM but you wouldn’t know it with his confident yet down to earth demeanor. Skating since he was young, Keenan’s abilities have made him a quiet force on the skate circuit. Placing 3rd in his last competition, Keenan cites his best and favorite tricks as the Nollie heel and switch frontside flip.
This St.Thomas, Ontario native’s long term goals include going to university, meeting Steve Jobs and working at FIGJAM (and no we didn’t pay him to say that). When asked about what motivates him to skate he says, “my friends. They are my main inspiration.”
He’s unashamedly got Spice Girls on his Ipod, can shred the concrete like no other and is loyal to his friends---what more could you ask for? Keenan’s got that it factor.

Skateboarding and Cycling--the same sport?

While I can recognize the need to increase the Olympic's youth viewership I cannot fathom the thought of seeing skateboarding under the direction of the International Cycling Union as suggested in this article posted last year by ESPN.

In order for Skateboarding to appear at the 2012 Games in London, the sport must be filed as a new discipline under and already existing sport as it is too late to add any more sports to the 2012 roster. Skateboarding, like most extreme sports, is a little late on the organizational bandwagon and has no unifying international body of governance. Maybe it's the rebel ingrained within the culture or maybe it's plain laziness, whatever it is, it better find one fast before it ends up under the discipline of this organization.

Bondi Rips Up The Concrete

meet joey bondi...

Skating since he was 5 years old, Joey Bondi has quickly become a force to be reckoned with. Dominating the Florida skateboard scene since early 2000, the London, ON resident has placed in the top three in every contest he has entered over the past 8 years including: The Counterpoint Skate Challenge, Spring Break Skate Jam, Thrasher, Pampano Indoor Skatejam, M.R’s Street Contest and Spring Break Jam.
No competition is too tough for Bodi. He has skated against competitors 5 years his senior crushing them with his natural talent and dedication to the sport. Last year Bodi placed 2nd at the DC Nationals and most recently he won the St.Thomas Skate comp and was awarded best trick.
He is currently sponsored by FIGJAM, THE BOARDSHOP and GLOBE.

Burton Builds and Nike Buys

When my brother was 9 he came home from a local pipe competition with a Burton backpack as a prize.
“What’s Burton?” I asked thumbing the bag’s tag.
“Snowboarding company. Basically, they started snowboarding” he replied.
“Never heard of them.”
“Good,” he said over his shoulder.
No longer the early 90s, the Burton brand is synonymous with snowboarding and snowboarding culture. Nevertheless, the conversation between my brother and I brings up two interesting points. The first was that the brand was acknowledged within a particular community: the tight-knit snowboarding community, which at that time was still considered a grassroots extreme sport. Burton was known as the grandfather of snowboarding; their boards and apparel were used and coveted by boarders of all levels. But interestingly enough it was still recognized as a unique brand that hadn’t “sold out” and that was probably why I had never heard of it. Burton was committed to snowboarding; it didn’t sponsor track and field athletes, it didn’t start making basketballs, and it sure as hell wasn’t seen on the backs of girls roaming the shopping malls, which brings me to my second point. The Burton brand, although high recognizable was built on the idea that they had created a sport and a culture. If you weren’t aware of them then you probably weren’t part of the snow and skate scene and well, then you really had no use for them. As far as I could tell, for Burton that was OK.

Flash Forward 17 years.

Picture the Vancouver skateboard scene: the quintessential hotspot for Canadian skaters due to its mild temps and its proximity to the manger of skateboarding, Cali. Skaters are gathering to shoot a skate video, which is not uncommon to do in local skate parks and urban landscapes within the sprawling ocean side city. However, something was different. The video was being shot in the dome and shot by Nike. Nike? Ya, don’t bother rubbing your eyes because you read that right. No longer part of the grassroots extreme sports, Nike had, in one day, equated the skate scene with the common baseball game. People scoffed at Nike making hockey skates, stick and golf clubs and while their equipment isn’t top notch, their brand’s worth has risen simply due to the fact they have purchased top athletes. The monolithic company, acquiring Hurley, decided that the next sport to be purchased was skating. Would Tony Hawk be next?
But what does this mean for a brand such as Burton who is known for building a sport not buying one? Well, although Burton still remains a company committed to snow sports it did something unheard of for skate and snow gear companies: they made a television commercial. Whether or not this was due to impeding competition from super brands remains to be seen however, the clever teaming with HP was genius. It diverted the attention of it being simply a Burton commercial (something a super brand would do) and became Burton promoting and the HP product it used to make its boards. But the question still remains whether or not Nike will succeed in the snow and skate scene. What will happen to the foundations and founding fathers of these sports if Nike and other likes start acquiring athletes with the lure of the shiny green Benjamins??

To read more about Nike and the Vancouver Skate scene click here

The Burton Commercial