REEF SANDALS FOR GUYS AND GALS

Vacation coming up? Come to The Board Room to gear up for that relaxing trip. We have a great selection of REEF sandals for men and women and dont forget to grab a pair of sunglasses too!

Novedad DC

Nuevos bañadores DC.
Y acordaos que aun sigue la siguiente oferta, si compras un articulo por valor minino de 25€ obtendrás un 15% de descuento, si compras dos artículos obtendrás un 20% en los dos, si son tres un 25% y si son 4 o mas un 30%. La oferta es valida para cualquier articulo de la tienda, iguales o combinados.*

*Nixon tiene un descuento fijo del 10%.

Uno Nº43

Ya está disponible el numero 43 de tu revista gratuita Uno, pásate por steel a recogerla antes que se acaben.

THE BOARD ROOM KOOZIES ARE IN!

The Board Room koozies are in! Keep your beverage of choice nice and kool while supporting your favorite action sports shop!

DYNASTAR TROUBLE SKI SALE

MEMORIAL DAY SALE

Drop into The Board Room this Holiday Weekend and take advantage of some SPECIAL savings. All Spring apparel is 20% Off and all Winter apparel is 60% Off. We also have discounts on footwear and all skate gear. Come in for the Memorial Day Sale this Friday, Saturday and Monday. Enjoy the weekend!

DADS & GRADS SALE!

Right in time for fathers day and graduation!

NOW at FLAVOUR...

ALL NIXON WATCHES are TAX FREE!
+ Plus select models have been dropped in price!
(See store for details)

Makes a great pat on the back to any new graduate!
Also a great way to give props to Pops for being the coolest!

Don't miss out on this one folks!

http://www.flavourfashion.ca

Space Invaders Soap

As someone who may or may not still have a Space Invaders comforter stashed somewhere in his parents' house, these little soap invaders quickly caught my eye.

$9.50 plus shipping here.

via boingboing

RESPECT the ROOSTER

Tuong ot Sriracha, or Rooster Sauce as those in the know (or who can't pronounce the Thai name) call it, is my favorite condiment, and receives some well-deserved notoriety in this piece by John Edge for the New York Times.

The Rooster and I have a love-hate relationship: he can sometimes push a meal beyond glorious, but if you abuse him, he will peck your eyes out with a chili-powered fire beak. You heard me.

Thanks to Dano.

BUTCH VS. THE WATER HOSE

Butch, the shop dog, has found a deep fascination with the water hose.

Sherlock Holmes

Dick Cheney: Torture Saves Lives

So Dick (The Manhunter) Cheney has recently chided President Barack (The Guy to Whom We Handed This Giant Bag of Shit) Obama for not releasing classified memos on the Bush Administration's use of torture to elicit information from terrorists, goat farmers, and German schoolteachers.

Cheney appeared on one of Fox News Channel's fair and objective pop-journalism talk shows to discuss torture, warrantless eavesdropping, and other facets of his plan to relegate the United States Constitution to several pieces of very old toilet paper. Cheney's verdict on his 8-year reign of anti-terror? "It worked." Fascinating.

In justifying his conclusion, Cheney cited several classified incidents which he couldn't elaborate on in which torturing people gave the United States the ability to thwart terror attacks that would have resulted in numerous American casualties. This is, logically, more than a little flawed, given that the legal and moral issue is not whether the interrogations resulted in usable intelligence, but whether the techniques amount to torture, which is 100% illegal under the terms of the Geneva Conventions, the United Nations Convention Against Torture, and United States law.

In essence, Cheney argues that because the ends justify the means, "it [torture] worked." This is a man who was a heartbeat away from the Oval Office for eight years.

Yeah, and then there's the "Saving American Lives" deal... Some numbers:

American casualties in the September 11, 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center: 2,699
American casualties in the War on Terror as of today: 4,985
American (military) casualties in Iraq (a country which played no part in 9/11): 4,299
Iraqi Civilian deaths (reported) during American occupation: 92,098-100,544

It is a poorly kept secret that Cheney, former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, and Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz were responsible for planning and executing the war in Iraq. Iraq, which gave the world nauseating images from Abu Ghraib, rape and murder by U.S. marines, and Blackwater contractors murdering 17 Iraqis in broad daylight in the middle of Baghdad.

Cheney did more to destroy this country's international credibility than any man in the history of American politics. In various older civilizations, he would have been shamed into killing himself for the abject failure of his designs. Instead, we give him a bully pulpit to justify the former administration's actions and attack those who are trying to clean up this mess. God Bless America, right?

MEMORIAL DAY SALE

Drop into The Board Room this Holiday Weekend and take advantage of some SPECIAL savings. All Spring apparel is 20% Off and all Winter apparel is 60% Off. We also have discounts on footwear and all skate gear. Come in for the Memorial Day Sale this Friday, Saturday and Monday. Enjoy the weekend!

Descuentos para animar el Verano.

steel vlc pone a tu disposición por un tiempo limitado unas verdaderas ofertas que no podrás resistirte.
Si compras un articulo por valor minino de 25€ obtendrás un 15% de descuento, si compras dos artículos obtendrás un 20% en los dos, si son tres un 25% y si son 4 o mas un 30%. La oferta es valida para cualquier articulo de la tienda, iguales o combinados.*

*Nixon tiene un descuento fijo del 10%.

Dudas o consultas: info@steelco.es

BUTCH SAW THE LIGHT

Initial Impressions of the Pentax K7

It's the eve of my biggest photo/surf trip.  I'm uncertain if the insomnia is from the worldwide press release of the new Pentax K7,  or the excitement of the upcoming trip.  

A classic look of the K7 mounted to the FA Limited 77 f1.8,  supported by the Joby SLR Zoom Gorillapod.

Pentax K7 mounted to DA 15 Limited

Well it seems many “in the know”, or related to those in the know have taken the liberty to break embargo earlier than usual. Globally, as the official announce time neared, many sources started to leak info like that of a flood. I chose to break news at the official time. Discussion forums were buzzing, and servers were getting jammed up, and you could sense a New Era for Pentax.

 By now, there are many sources (like DPR), which show size comparisons, detailed angles, and discuss specifications. So to avoid being redundant, I will make a few comments about my initial impressions, provide only web scaled small images, and highlight what I enjoy most about the new “K.”  The info you find here is “official”  and over the next few days, I will blog about how I intend to utilize this camera as I float through Los Angeles, Singapore, Japan, Sumatra,  on into my final destination of Kandui and the Mentawai Islands.

Simplified setup for travel editorial assignments: Pentax K7, DA 15, DA* 60-250, DA 35, DA 70, Joby SLR Zoom Gorillapod, Tamrac Express 7 messenger bag, Tamrac N25 shoulder strap

I usually travel with 2 setups, one for water use and the other for land based shooting.  This usually amounts to about 40 pounds of excess gear and a sore back.  On this trip I will streamline the equipment to complete a travel assignment while in Singapore and using only water-based equipment for the Surfing end of the trip.  I intend to use mostly the DA* lenses for their weather sealed designs which are a great utility whole shooting from the channel in a boat. In lieu of a traditional tripod and to save on weight,  I will use Joby Gorillapods.

 

What I really enjoy:

 1. The shutter is well dampened, nearly silent, and solid in its operation

2. 5.2 FPS (40 JPG Continuous Hi /15 Raw PEF, 14 RAW DNG)

3. Viewfinder with 100% field of view

4. Improved low light AF performance and AF algorithms 

5. “Green” almost subdued focus assist lamp (it operates quick and efficiently and more subtle than a bright white light)

6. AF tracking in AF-C is vastly improved

7. The AF point selector toggles faster than on K10/K20

8. The mode dial locks in place with a centrally located release button

9. When in portrait mode, the rear LCD will orient itself in the portrait view as well.  (No more tilting of head to read info.)

10. The dust removal system is now “hypersonic”, no longer a vibration, but a high frequency shake that is almost inaudible.

11. 3” TFT IPS LCD (it’s the same LCD technology used in the best color proofing monitors) improved clarity, anti-glare, and with 921,000 dot resolution

12. Longer battery life 900+ shots per charge

13. Magnesium alloy shell over stainless steel chassis (can operate at temps 14 – 104 degrees F)

14. 77 Multi Segment metering

15. EV comp is +/- 5

16. HD video recording at 720p (1280x720 resolution with 16:9 aspect ratio) at 30 FPS

A sample of speed & focus accuracy:

Sample shots with K7 & DA* 60-250

More to follow...

PROTEC SKATE HELMETS AND DAKINE SKATE PACKS

We carry a full line Dakine skate packs ranging from $39-$59 and ProTec classic skate helmets in all flavors for $29.

NIKE 6.0 AIR ZOOM ONCORE

This is the newest release from NIKE 6.0. It's the

midnight/multi color way. Only a few in stock!

Review of Zaca Organic Hangover Patches

Well, I didn't have a hangover...

I received two free Zaca organic hangover patches for review a few months ago and have been anxiously waiting for a good time to try them out. These patches are exactly what they sound like - they are similar to the nicotine patches smokers use to quit except instead of nicotine they leech "hangover stopping" herbs and supplements into the bloodstream.

This past weekend presented the perfect opportunity to test the patches out - Sunday was San Francisco's Bay to Breakers. For those who haven't heard of Bay to Breakers, it is a "marathon" stretching from the San Francisco Bay to the Pacific Ocean. In reality, it is a seven mile walk filled with extravagant costumes, huge floats (many containing kegs) and enough alcohol consumption per capita to lay waste (wasted?) the entire route.

Since the race starts early in the morning, I put the patch on at around 8 AM. Almost immediately I felt a nice jolt - whatever herbs were in the patch really perked me up - I didn't even need my morning coffee. At around 9:00 I met some friends out in the street and started celebrating. As the day moved along, I continued to feel upbeat and energized (for the record, I did plan on recording my entire day for this review, but lost my camera sometime around 1 PM).

(Pouring one out for the homies)

The party started slowing down at around 1:30, but I stayed in the park with some friends until around 3:00. Still, I was disappointed; with this much time to recover before even going to bed, there was little reason for me to be hung over, patch or no patch. Determined to continue the experiment however, I left the patch on as we went out for food and then back to my apartment to watch a movie.

I was still feeling good at around 10PM that night and got into bed expecting no problems what-so-ever the following morning. "All in all," I thought to myself, "the hangover patches might actually be worth it." Then it happened. Out of nowhere: PANIC ATTACK.

I am not at all prone to panic attacks, so it took a few minutes before I even realized what was happening. All I know is that one second I was thoroughly enjoying my comfy bed, and the next I thought my heart was going to pop out of my chest and I couldn’t keep my thoughts straight. After trying some deep breathing and meditation to calm myself down (no success) I got up and washed the patch off. From that point on it took about an hour of pacing up and down my apartment and trying desperately to concentrate to bring myself back down. I ended up getting to bed at around midnight for about six hours of extremely fitful sleep.

Can I say for sure that these patches caused this random panic attack? No I cannot. However, the fact remains that I have never really had a panic attack before, and while this was my first time at Bay to Breakers, it was NOT my first time enjoying the San Francisco street party scene. Coincidence? It's possible. But let's just say I am in no hurry to put my second free patch to the test.

Images provided by Zacalife.com and The Green Dude himself

K-HERING TEE'S

SIZE: M
PRICE: SOLD

graniph tee's

SIZE: M
PRICE: RM40

MIGHTY FINE TEE'S (50/50)

SIZE: M
PRICE: RM40

NAPOLEAN DYNAMITE tshirt

SIZE: L
PRICE: SOLD

Art Institute of Chicago Modern Wing

This weekend marks the opening of AIC's Modern Wing. A bastion of contemporary masterpieces and random flotsam being passed off as contemporary masterpieces, this is definitely worth a day trip. In addition to contemporary, the new space has Modern European, Photography, and Architecture/Design collections. More info here.


via curated

Burberry Wrap Strap Watches

The hit of Burberry's Spring '09 Prorsum runway show, these watches are available in the UK via Burberry for 325-395£, which is like $600ish I think. What am I, a currency trader? No. I just write stuff.

via selecticism

Art-a-Whirl 2009 Studio and Gallery Tour

The Northeast Minneapolis Arts Association will be sponsoring Art-a-Whirl this weekend in...well...Northeast Minneapolis. Anyway, this is a great opportunity to check out the local art scene as well as network with bespectacled hipsters wearing scarves and Chuck Taylors while cruising around on their fixed-gear bikes (fixed-gear bikes = trucker hats circa 2002).

Studios and galleries all around the Northeast Arts District (was unaware that such a thing existed until today) will be holding open houses and there will be great bands playing at cool bars all weekend. I recommend the 331 Club where you can catch Lookbook, one of Minneapolis' best local acts in my expert opinion.

From NEMAA:

"More than 500 artists participate in AAW, including potters, tile makers, painters, sculptors, musicians, photographers, glass blowers, printmakers, and textile designers. They showcase their art in warehouses, galleries, homes, storefronts and cafes."

The NEMAA site has a map of venues and whatnot. So, yeah, super fun stuff all weekend up in Northeast. Enjoy.

BUY 1 GET 1 HALF PRICE HOODIES / THURS MAY 14th to SUN MAY 17th

Le Coq Sportif x M&M's Eclat Sneakers

Yet another pair of limited edition sneaks that I will probably never see. I really love the fact that they made the upper out of the less-heralded brown, kind of brown, orange, and yellow M&Ms rather than the flashy green, red, and blue candies. Those RGB bastards always get top billing, but not any more. Rise up, you earth-toned M&M's, and seize the carp!

500 pairs to be released worldwide, presumably in places that are far from Minneapolis. No further info on retailers, but the release date is June 15 according to sneakerfreaker.com.



via sneakerfreaker