Equipo Roca

Opening Day at Valle Nevado 08

Spanish Version of Opening Day at Valle from El Gato on Vimeo.

These guys are stoked for the 2008 South American snowboard season - Valle Nevado, Chile.

Waterville Valley Recognized for Cultural Diversity

A paradigm shift is happening all over the United States, and the snowboarding industry is one of many who can play a part. Either you move with change or leaves you behind. Waterville Valley in New Hampshire seems to be open to change...Snowboard Mag article

"Keeping The Dream Alive" was created to develop cultural awareness in today's youth while helping them to become tomorrow's leaders. Students attend diversity workshops in the morning at the Waterville Valley Conference Center , then head to the slopes for an afternoon of skiing and riding Waterville Valley.

Connecting with Emerging Markets

Being interactive with consumers in the age of social networks and mobile marketing is what will bring success for growing with emerging markets. NaCo announced plans to team up with There.com to reach the growing online Hispanic population. Pay attention here...full story on Hispanic Trending.

The partnership represents a unique opportunity for both NaCo and There.com to target the Hispanic community currently found in the virtual world and to attract additional Hispanic members. While there is no official measurement of the size of the U.S. Hispanic online market, a recent ComScore study of U.S Hispanics online estimate the display advertising segment alone may account for around $140 million.

Latin America Inspired Street Art with Above

Street Artist: Above (Bilingual goes two ways, you don't have to be Latin to appreciate the ability to communicate in more than one language - see next post)

"DEJANDO LO MEJOR PARA EL FINAL." Is Spanish for "SAVE THE BEST FOR LAST."

This Word/Play was painted in Bogota, Colombia in an area where every building around this "Last" building was being torn down and demolished for new construction.
Bogota is going through a transitional period "rebirth" as many of the older buildings are being torn down. By now this building is probably already destroyed!

ABOVE: SOUTH CENTRAL TOUR (PART 1 OF 4) from ABOVE on Vimeo.

Marketing: Careful word play targets Hispanics

A person who speaks more than one language has a brain wired for code switching abilities. This is what I find most interesting about the new opportunities emerging for brands interested in targeting bilingual Latinos in the United States. You can engage interactively through language.

Any brand's advertising and marketing efforts that seeks to combine English and Spanish has to include a high level of creativity when being deployed. Knowing what does and doesn't work is key. I think it can be a valuable, fun, and engaging way to interact with bilingual consumers.

Check out the "Our heuvos are bigger" Stripes campaign in Texas as an example. It works because they obviously worked with a bilingual copywriter who understood the message and audience.

We're only going to see more of this in the years to come...some will get undoubtedly be upset, but again, when is knowing more than one language ever a bad thing?

The Rio Grande Valley has become a testing ground for this brand of marketing, and the sweep of highway between McAllen and Brownsville is the palate.

Roadside signs roll out in English, Spanish and Spanglish, sometimes promoting the same product.

This is possible because of the Valley's unique setting. Culturally and linguistically sandwiched between Mexico and the United States, the Texas-Mexico border is a test tube of sorts where locals move freely between Spanish and English in conversation, often tangling the two in a creative blend.

P-Rod: Becoming a Latino Kids Hero

Go Skateboarding Day Tomorrow...

Just in case you didn't know it, tomorrow is Go Skateboarding Day. I'll be at the Denver Skate Park for sure...

 On June 21 skateboarders around the globe will celebrate the pure exhilaration, creativity, and spirit of one of the most influential activities in the world by blowing off all other obligations to go skateboarding!

Skateboarders everywhere will hold fundraisers, contests, protests, demo’s, they’ll skate across cities, gather in skateparks, stream into their local skate shop and some will even revel in the solitary act of skateboarding alone, all bringing together the skateboarding community in the grind heard around the world.

ROI on Multicultural Youth Marketing

Looking for proof that youth multicultural market has a ROI, well here's Chris Jarnot the SVP and COO of Vail Mountain giving an update on what they've done.

This season Vail Resorts invested with SOS in a program to increase the diversity of participation in snowboarding and skiing over time. We provided lift tickets, season passes, rental equipment, instruction and cash sponsorship. We could not have been more pleased with the return on our investment. We and SOS hosted more than 1,900 participants for 6,693 days at our mountains. 78% of the kids were of racial groups other than white, 66% were from households with incomes of less than $40,000/year, and all of them had a great time snowboarding and skiing at our mountains. We’re convinced that through this program, we’ve planted seeds that will turn this diverse group of kids into lifelong snowsports enthusiasts.

Brazilian Skateboarding...o skate bonito

Brasil é já um jogador global...vai ser muito importante pra futuro.

The Brazilian economy is barely recognizable to those who knew it more than five years ago. In those days it was plagued by mountains of debt and boom-and-bust cycles. Now everything is different. Indeed, 2008 is quickly shaping up to be the Year of Brazil.

You can definitely measure national sentiments by the production of its youth in art, sports, and music. Its only natural that skateboarding provides a lens to understand the mood of that country.

Up Front Arn Menconi - State of the Ski Industry

This interview with Nate Fristoe of RRC gets really interesting about 15 min into the conversation...Gen Y and its ethnic diversity are going to play a huge role in the future of snow sports. Definitely worth the time to check out.

Book - Cholos and Surfers

The book details the life of a Latino growing up amid cultural change in Los Angeles. Jack Lopez recounts his boyhood exploits, family relationships, a brother who died from AIDS, the death of his proud father. Throughout his story Lopez comments on those aspects of our world that especially touched his own--as reflected in the title--and and which influenced individual choices for life.

Author: Jack Lopez

Megunica Teaser Trailer

Here's an update on Megunica trailer...

Latinos Influenced By U.S. Media

Something to keep in mind...Latin Vision

Hispanics were more likely than the overall U.S. population to be influenced by media last year. According to research, 23% of Hispanics were influenced to purchase a product by watching TV, and this demographic was 44% more likely to be influenced by the Web. eMarketer (06/11)

Red Bull X-Fighter

Makes a lot sense...show up in Texas, bring along a Latino motocross star, and suddenly your hitting a large percentage of the market in that state. Latino daredevil has arrived.

This year's Red Bull X-Fighters faces Hispanic domination as Spain's own Dany Torres continues to dominate the competition. Only 21 years old, Torres has accumulated a list of successes, including this year's competition in Mexico City, where he took a surprise second place on the heels of Switzerland's Mat Rebeaud. Torres is primed to take first place as we witness this Latino daredevil in action rodeo-style! 

Skateboarding Growth Highest Among All Sports Over Last Ten Years

This is actually staggering data when you think about it...Most of this is to be coming from Gen Y, which of course is the most diverse generation of all time.

Among sports and recreation activities that grew more than 15% the past 10 years, skateboarding led the way with a 74.1% growth, according to the National Sporting Goods Association (NSGA).

Skateboarding Original - Mark Gonzales

Zoo York Welcomes Chaz Ortiz

Young Latin talent is continuing to emerge...skateboarding athlete Chaz Ortiz gets bumped up to pro at age 14 by Zoo York.

Chaz is known for his super smooth, seemingly effortless style, and at only fourteen years of age he exudes a quiet confidence well beyond his years. With youth on his side, fire in his heart and a deep bag of man-sized tricks on lock, Chaz truly is the future of skateboarding.

By the way, recently learned where the term Zoo York originated. It all goes back to underground hip hop and street art culture...

Latin American Social Network Sonico Raises $4.3 Million

A friend just sent this over to me....Cada día tiene sus sorpresas.

I keep thinking of the Long Tail here, a Latin niche that influences the action+outdoor sports industry.

Sonico “the biggest social networking site you’ve probably never heard of”...

Technicolour Trailer

TECHNICOLOUR TRAILER from the tree project on Vimeo. Colorful look at snowboarding...