In 1984... I opened what would become the first snowboard shop in Southern California.. “Green Sector…So Cal’s Leading Edge” There were a couple shops around me that sold some boards before us, namely Kennedy Surfboards, and Val Surf. These were surf shops and surf/ski shops. The other ski shops were complete dicks. Based on their early short-sightedness they should have never been allow to sell snowboards. Example: Back in the day, there were no snowboard boots. We would get old Sorel’s, (mostly an after ski boot) take the felt liner’s out, and put in a old ski boot liner. This worked out great, and really it is the same basic concept used in today’s boots. So in an effort to get some real snowboard boots, put together for my store.. Went to every ski shop in town.. Including Val Surf.. Well.. all the hardcore skiers just laughed us right out of their stores and to the goodwill.. lol.
Anyway… I bought my first snowboard from Kennedy Surfboards, who was like my mentor in opening my shop, and how I wanted it to feel, yes shops have feelings. He also shaped a number of boards for me when I was a kid. He was stoked.. Charlie and I bought the snowboards, and Kennedy put some our early snowboard pics up on the wall, which was a pretty big deal, for a 16 year old… Glen Kennedy, I just had a surf with him a few months ago in Ventura 28 years after I first stepped into his store. Kennedy Surfboards, still one on the only shops that sell ,and shape their own boards exclusively. The only other one I can think of off hand is Rincon Designs, shapes and designs by Matt Moore, right here in my home town of Carpinteria, California. Though, there are still are a few of the Old School shops out there.
Sorry… that’s a little off track.. But this is back before any ski areas allowed snowboards.. When I open the store in ‘84 there were exactly 4 Ski Areas in California to snowboard. But before that, here’s how it happened. This was probably ’80 or so.. Ski Sunrise in Wrightwood, California.. We didn’t even know if we could go, but it’s one of those ski areas where you start at the top, and ride down to the lifts. There was a lot of fresh snow that day for Southern California… We had old boards with out steel edges, just fins. So we just charged it, there was a perfect, kind of gully, kind of pipe, kind of snake run, to the right… And in that moment I just had the best run of my life. Well, we had great runs in the backcountry around Mt Pinos, that featured, road drops and lots of hiking, but, we were about to just hop on a lift and do it again, again, and again… So, we get to the bottom, hmmmm, walked over to the lift, and asked if we could ride up. They said, “I don’t see why not???” Well, that was the start of the snowboard revolution, for me. With lifts, everyone would want to do it.. Hiking for your turns is great ,and rewarding , and the purest form of the sport/lifestyle but, not for everyone.
So… 1984, The boards still look like surfboards, but finally have steel edges. You can snowboard at Ski Sunrise and Mountain High in So Cal.. In the Tahoe Area, you had Donner Ski Ranch and Boreal/Soda Spring… That’s it. Perfect time to open a snowboard shop.. Really! Our early customers came from all over California most of those went on to make something of themselves in the industry.. Things obliviously got going from there, and the snowboard industry pretty much went huge in the ‘early nineties. For my store the peak years were the mid nineties, we could do no wrong. It had to happen though. ..With this much money being made the Big Guys had to get in on it. Big Five, Sport Chalets, Garts, you name it, even freakin Costco. Plus don't forget about all the ski shops that laughed us out of their store in the early ‘80’s. They like $nowboarding now, too.Do I seem bitter??? Well I was... I felt my store losing it’s soul, spent more time surfing, and hanging out with the kids, and hating the snowboard industry. I will say however, that all the cat-skiing trips that K2 took me on, and the Heli-Skiing in the North Cascades of Washington, courtesy of Lib Tech, were the highlights of my snowboarding carrer. You can’t beat unlimited powder , with just your friends around. I sold Green Sector, in 2000, down shifted, semi-retired, and now love snowboarding more than ever.. I really like retail and selling cool stuff to people, people, who love to just get out there and enjoy life.. So I just started up the eBay thing… It’s really cool. Get to meet a lot of interesting people via email, all over the world, and I come back from surfing and, hey stuff has sold. How cool is that???
RinconRaxWorks...
New and Used , Quality Sports Racks to carry all your toys, plus Surf, Skate, and Snow Toys for your roof racks, some vintage skate and snow stuff when available, and some other random goods. Visit my store if you have a chance. It is my goal to maintain the highest standards, great customer service, quality products, and hopefully some soul. If that’s possible on eBay…
Chuck Barfoot , one of the true pioneers of snowboard design… Well, he’s just south of here, in La Conchita.. And for all the latest in snowboard gear check out my friends at Seattle Snowboard Connection... If your looking for a good party, greensector.com
Attn:
This is a repost of my eBay "me" page and, I might just decide it's a little to personal, or maybe even too bitter for eBay, so here it is for the permanent record. It's actually quite short and I am holding a lot back. I could probably write for the next year about the rise and fall of Green Sector. Well you probably haven't heard the last of it..
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