As we mentioned last week in “Snow Sports Industry Trade Show Gets Urban + Provides Lounge called “The Yard” for Up+Coming Brands; Action Sports Retailers Trade Show Goes Green,” the Yard at SIA January 22-25 is intended to be a space for new up-and-coming brands within the SIA show that represent the lifestyle of snowboarding and action sports. Upon preview, the area was by far one of the cooler aspects of the show. Once you got passed the unfortunate location at the end of an extremely slow ski brand area, The Yard was like a breath of fresh air. The Yard included cargo crates stacked two-stories high, a lounge with extra large brown bean bags, white carpet, stage, and live artists on site including Kofie One and rapper Lyrics Born, plus up-and-coming brands mostly hawing new art graphics on various snowboard designs. It was like how the snowboarding area at SIA used to be before it was integrated into SIA circa 1992.

The area was sponsored by The Block Hotel (themed-room hotel in Tahoe owned by snowboarders), plus the collective behind Frank 151 Magazine which provided the urban street vibe, artists, and authenticity. Overall, The Yard was created by visionary Styk, (formerly from Ride), who concepted the cargo crate ideas and innovation with Frank 151 and The Block. Daily DJ sessions brought in people from ski and snowboarding keen on getting away from their booths and checking out the scene. Top new brands included Mathematics, Southshore Soldiers, Lifepod, Monument Snowboards, Omatic Snowboards, Forecast Snowboards, Ghettoslider apparel, Liquid Mountain, Throe Clothing (see also fashion show story), Topper Crown Industrial, Tyrant Snowboards, VCAN Sports, and Venture Snowboards.

Stay tuned for more from The Yard next week.