Arbor Celebrates Turning 25 With Limited Edition Snowboard Collection & Documentary
To celebrate 25 years of creating sustainable snowboards, Arbor is releasing the documentary “Crossing The Grain” which details their story; from being just an idea in the minds of the Founders to becoming a brand well respected for their environmentally friendly and high-performance boards. Alongside the documentary, Arbor is releasing a very special, limited edition collection of Koa-topped snowboards, crafted using the last 2 Koa logs sourced by Arbor’s co-founder, the late Chris Jensen.
Press Release:
ARBOR MARKS 25th ANNIVERSARY
Releasing “Crossing The Grain” a Documentary on the Ups, Downs, and Ultimate Transformation of the First Action Sports Brand Founded to Focus on Sustainability
Offers First Hawaiian Koa Topped Snowboard Since 2008
In 1995, two friends launched Arbor to make sustainability the guiding principle in the production of their snowboard and skateboard products. They would be the first traditional Action Sports brand to do so, while also being the first to formally commit to donating a portion of sales to the conservation of the environment. Arbor entered the market with a line of snowboards made with sustainably sourced wood tops and cores, a reduced reliance on plastic, and a commitment to the preservation of forests. The story of how Arbor got from this idealistic start to the brand it is today has never been told.
“We were out there in the 90’s talking about sustainability and wood tops, when the competition was focused on graphics, fashion, and larger-than-life personalities,” said Bob Carlson, Arbor’s Founder & CEO. “We were like foreigners in our own industry; different enough to cut through the noise in the mid-90’s, but not cool enough to hang on as the industry consolidated at the end of the decade. How we survived and learned to thrive in Action Sports is a good story about how snowboarding and skateboarding will always be about people, and how the collective approach we took allowed us to find our way, while staying independent and true to our founding.”
The documentary is set to premiere this winter and will feature a host of current and former team riders such as Bryan Iguchi, Marie-France Roy, Mikey Basich, Rob Kingwill, Nick Visconti, Shuriken Shannon, and Amelia Brodka; current and past staff including Eddie Wall; media icons such as Snowboarder Magazine’s Pat Bridges, longtime action sports host Pat Parnell, NBC Olympics snowboard announcer Todd Harris, and ESPN Senior Writer Alyssa Roenigk; and industry legends including Rome’s Founder Paul Maravetz and Sector 9’s Founder Steve Lake. The film is directed and produced by longtime Arbor family member, and former Arbor Snowboards’ Marketing Director, Sean Black, along with business partner Asher Koles.
Arbor 1995 Founder Chris Jensen Harvesting Sustainable Koa
To further celebrate Arbor’s 25th anniversary, the company released its first Hawaiian Koa-topped snowboard since 2008, the limited-edition Koa Element. Arbor launched in 1995 with a small collection of environmentally friendly snowboards made with sustainable Hawaiian Koa, making it the first company to offer wood top sheets. Over the next 15 years, Koa became the brand’s calling card, visually anchoring Arbor’s message about sustainability, craftsmanship, and performance. The Koa was always secured by the brand’s founders, who believed the best way to ensure something is sustainable is to know its source.
In 2008, Arbor stopped using Koa, as sustainable sources became hard to find. To celebrate the anniversary, the company used the last two Koa logs sourced by Arbor’s co-founder, Chris Jensen, who passed in 2018, to create the limited-edition Koa-topped Element. The Element is Arbor’s cornerstone Mountain-Twin. For 25 years it has been the board Arbor has built its line around. Arbor is proud to offer it one last time with Hawaiian Koa.
For more information: https://www.arborcollective.com/ Instagram: @arborcollective @arborsnowboards @arborskateboards
