Group Y Panel Discussion & Gathering
“Inside the La Jolla Group”
presented by FUEL TV

Thursday, December 10, 2009
La Jolla Group headquarters

Executive speakers will include:
+ Bill Bussiere , LJG President & CFO
+ Steve Ward, O’Neill VP of Marketing, All Categories and VP of Sales, O’Neill Men & Boys
+ Michelle Devine, O’Neill VP of Sales, Juniors & Girls
+ Ryan Rush, O’Neill VP Men’s M&D
+ Michael Tomson, Design Consultant
+ Ryan Divel, Lost VP Sales & Marketing
+ Ryan Hagy, Metal Mulisha Marketing

Panel moderated by Jim Shubin

More info & upcoming events at www.groupYnetwork.com

group Y Panel Discussion & Gathering; “Inside the La Jolla Group”

Watch it LIVE at 6:30pm on lajollagroup.com/live

presented by Fuel TV

Thursday, December 10, 2009
6:30pm – 10pm

La Jolla Group headquarters
14350 Myford Rd
Irvine, CA 92606 map

A panel discussion on the inner workings of the La Jolla Group (Rusty, O’Neill, Lost & Metal Mulisha), presented by group Y and FUEL TV.

Execs from the company will discuss various topics including: the dynamics of having multiple brands under one roof, developing and designing a collection from A-Z, the importance of maximizing athlete relationships to engage & influence brand perception and purchase behavior, and more. Guests are encouraged to mingle outside the discussion and enjoy complimentary drinks and appetizers – and a holiday gift bag at the end of the night.

Executive speakers will include:

* Bill Bussiere , LJG President & CFO
* Steve Ward, O’Neill VP of Marketing, All Categories and VP of Sales, O’Neill Men & Boys
* Michelle Devine, O’Neill VP of Sales, Juniors & Girls
* Ryan Rush, O’Neill VP Men’s M&D
* Michael Tomson, Design Consultant
* Ryan Divel, Lost VP Sales & Marketing
* Ryan Hagy, Metal Mulisha Marketing

Panel moderated by Jim Shubin

Registration

$25 pre-registration, $30 at door (cash only) CLICK HERE TO REGISTER
Doors will open at 6:30 p.m. Apps, drinks, beer and wine will be provided.

The panel discussion will begin promptly at 7:30 p.m.

group Y and La Jolla Group invite all those involved with the action sports, youth marketing, brand marketing, entertainment & communications industries to attend. College Students interested in action sports and youth marketing are welcome to join us.

PLEASE READ:
-Pre registration ends on Wednesday, December 9th at midnight. If you are not pre-registered and paid before it closes, you must pay the walk-up fee of $30–CASH ONLY–at the door.
-If you need a receipt for business purposes, please use pre-pay!
-If you have any other questions and/or problems with registration, please email us.

As CEO and Chairman of the Board at La Jolla Group, Toby Bost oversees the Metal Mulisha, O’Neill, Lost, and Rusty brands. When he lost one of his friends and best Metal Mulisha riders to an FMX accident earlier this year, he helped take the lead to establish the Lusk Legacy Foundation and signed on as a founding member of the Board of Directors for the new American Freestyle Motocross Association.

Full FuelTV Article here.

We caught up with Bost after the 1st Annual AFMXA Awards and amateur contest to find out more about his involvement with the AFMXA, his vision for the future of FMX, and the legacy he’d like to leave in honor of the life – and death – of Jeremy Lusk.
Obviously the Metal Mulisha is heavily behind the AFMXA, with you and Brian Deegan on the Board and Ronnie Faisst as the official spokesperson. Why was it important to you personally to take the lead as a Board member with AFMXA?

We all have a vested interest in the growth and evolution of freestyle motocross. Given the sport’s increased popularity, additional support was needed to keep it moving forward: i.e. structure and guidelines for organized events, corporate backing, better safety policies and procedures in place, attention to emerging talent. As CEO of a company leading the industry, it was important for me to be a part of the Association to help implement these things and support the future of the sport.

Is the AFMXA something that had been in the works previously, or did it fully spring from the death of Jeremy Lusk and the establishment of the Lusk Legacy Foundation?
Through Jeremy’s untimely death, we realized how little organization there was in the sport. We knew we could collectively make a difference in the areas of safety and education, and want to build a legacy that Jeremy and the sport can rest on.

What do you personally hope will be Lusk’s legacy in terms of the future of FMX?
The Lusk Legacy Foundation (LLF): a non-profit established to protect and support athletes and their families in the event of severe injury and/or death. It offers a support system that comes to the aid of riders that go through life changing experiences as a result of the sport. We can’t prevent accidents from happening, of course, but through the work of the AFMXA and the LLF we can cut down on the number of them and be prepared to respond in an appropriate manner when required.

Obviously there’s a lot of could’ve/would’ve/should’ve talk we could get into about Lusk’s death or any of the major accidents we’ve seen in FMX, but going forward, what do you see as the must-have goals to secure a future for the sport and the safety of the riders?

Short term: the goals are focused on better preparation in the event of an accident. This includes CPR/first aid training, medical consultation via a 1-800 number, and med evac insurance for all professional riders that join the AFMXA. Longer term: tackling the larger challenges that the sport faces. These may include standard equipment guidelines, race course standards, safety precautions at all events, and more stringent medical response requirements.

What was the thinking behind starting with an amateur event on November 7?
Freestyle moto is missing an amateur platform that nurtures and develops talent. To further advance the sport, it’s necessary to provide a safe environment where young international talent can compete. Through these competitions, we hope to develop professional athletes that move through an organized ranking system before going pro.

Now that the Dew Tour has essentially dropped FMX competition, do you see an opening for the AFMXA to bring its own pro events series?

I’m not going to rule out a pro event series. The AFMXA is dedicated to being “the voice of the riders,” so we will work with the athletes and sponsors to create the best possible scenario for everyone. There are definitely a lot of exciting possibilities down the road.
For the sake of shifting gears a bit…What’s on the horizon for Metal Mulisha? What are you personally looking forward to, in terms of the brand, riders, events, etc?

The Metal Mulisha is continuing to grow as a lifestyle brand. We have an authentic and extremely passionate audience that we want to continue to communicate with at the highest possible level via great products and content. There are so many things to be excited about going into 2010 – between freestyle moto, offroad trucks and MMA, the possibilities are endless. Look for a head-turning MM marketing campaign in 2010 that may be coming to a major city near you.

For more on the AFMXA, see our previous interviews with official spokesperson Ronnie Faisst, 2009 Lusk Legacy Rider of the Year Blake “Bilko” Williams, and founding member Nate Adams, and our complete list of winners from the 2009 AFMXA Awards.

CEO and Chairman of the Board, La Jolla Group and O’Neill Clothing
Age: 39
Fact: He was headed in the direction of becoming a third-generation orthopedic surgeon but went into the apparel industry instead.
How he chose his career path: “I knew in high school that I didn’t want to wear a monkey suit to work every day.”

Read the article here.

Toby Bost was just 36 when he became CEO of action-sports licensing company La Jolla Group, overseeing four wildly popular apparel brands – O’Neill, Lost, Rusty and Metal Mulisha. A sign of their success, and his: In July, the company’s headquarters moved into bigger digs. Still based in Irvine, the brands are now under the same roof, and the headquarters features skateboard ramps in hallways, basketball courts, a workout room, a retail shop and conference rooms named after popular surf spots.

“Growing up wakeboarding, skating, surfing, fishing – anything and everything outdoors – I knew it wasn’t my style to do something I didn’t have a passion for,” says Bost, who also serves as chairman of the company’s board of directors.

Bost landed at La Jolla Group in 1999, and by 2006, he’d been promoted to CEO. But he’s no newcomer to the action-sports industry – he’s been in it 15 years.

“No two days are alike, which is what makes my job entertaining,” Bost says. “It’s exciting to wake up and not know how the day is going to unfold. The more unpredictable the day, the more interesting it is.”

– Ashley Eliot

The article in INC. Magazine describes O’Neill’s use of contests to develop young talent.

As models strut down the catwalk, flashbulbs pop and the thumping bass of techno music is drowned out by the shrill screams of hundreds of teenagers. In this crowded hall in Laguna Beach, California, four budding clothing designers are facing off. To determine the winner, the audience members will send a text message with their mobile phones to vote for their favorite design.

It might sound like a reality show, but it’s actually the high school internship program of La Jolla Group, an apparel company in Irvine, California. Every September, a handful of teens compete, each of them designing an outfit for O’Neill, La Jolla’s surf-inspired clothing line. The winner of the fashion show receives an internship at La Jolla Group, a $4,000 scholarship, free clothes, and a mention in Teen Vogue.

La Jolla Group’s CEO, Toby Bost, came up with the idea for the contest in 2007, because of a shortage of designers specializing in surf fashions. As the industry grew, he says, La Jolla and its competitors would frequently poach one another’s employees. “I knew that we couldn’t keep going on by pinching designers from each other’s backyards,” he says. “We needed to manufacture long-term talent by targeting students early and focusing them on a design career.”

Bost worked with Shelley Sheppard, the director of marketing for O’Neill, the company’s most popular clothing line, to develop the concept, which they dubbed Generation Next. Bost and Sheppard planned a six-month program that would culminate in a fashion show featuring O’Neill’s spring collection. They would pair four teenagers with their designers, who would guide them through the process of creating a beachy dress and a handbag for O’Neill’s junior line for women. Besides being able to form an early relationship with talented young people, there were other benefits to the contest. Working with teenagers seemed like a great way to get some insights about the company’s younger customers. “It gave us a chance to get inside the minds of our target audience,” Sheppard says. It was also a chance to drum up some publicity.

To find participants for the inaugural competition, Sheppard contacted career placement offices at nearby high schools in Southern California. Interested students were asked to write an essay about what fashion meant to them. Sheppard also contacted Teen Vogue. O’Neill had been advertising in the publication for several years, and the two organizations’ marketing teams had worked on some events together in the past. “They said yes right away,” Sheppard says. “From then on, our two marketing teams worked together.” Teen Vogue offered to co-sponsor the contest and began promoting it to some of its readers via targeted e-mails.

Thanks to La Jolla Group’s aggressive push — as well as a tough job market that has created a high demand for internships — the company received several hundred applications. One of them was from Rebekka Schuman, then a student at San Clemente High School in San Clemente, California. To Schuman, it seemed like the ideal opportunity to turn her interest in surfwear into a career. “It was like a light went off in my head,” she says. The O’Neill marketing team and designers narrowed the pile to 10 applicants and conducted in-person interviews. Then they chose four finalists, including Schuman.

The teens worked with the designers about three days a month for a few hours after school. They put together trend boards of fashions that inspired them. Then they created several sketches of their designs. After that, the employees showed the students how to input their designs into Adobe Illustrator and create a so-called technical package, which specifies the measurements and fabrics to be used in manufacturing. After the dresses were made at O’Neill’s factories, the teens did fittings with models.

Then the students focused on putting together the fashion show. That included promoting themselves and learning to be managers. Each of the contestants had to put together a team of 15 students from her high school: five to model clothes, five to help backstage, and five to help market the show by putting up fliers and using Twitter and Facebook to promote the event. One of the finalists even persuaded the cheerleaders at her high school to do catchy chants during football games. Building a team wasn’t just about choosing friends, says Schuman. “I asked people who I didn’t really know personally but who I thought would be perfect models or marketers,” she says. “Everyone I talked to thought it was a really cool thing to be involved in.”

Maybe it was cool, but participating in the contest was time-consuming, for both the students and the employees. “Besides this program, the girls had other activities like sports and clubs, and we didn’t anticipate how difficult it would be to coordinate meetings,” Sheppard says. “Our staff ended up working with them on weekends and late nights, which meant lots of extra hours for them.” Schuman says the days leading up to the show were stressful as she and the other students worked several hours a night after finishing their schoolwork.

In the end, the effort was worth it. On the night of the fashion show in 2008, more than 500 people packed the exhibition hall. The turnout and enthusiasm were beyond anything La Jolla Group had expected. Schuman won for her white eyelet dress and faux leather metallic bag. Although there was only one winner, all the teens walked away with an impressive portfolio of designs and an insider perspective on La Jolla Group’s industry. “The contest is creating talent for the next generation in surf design,” says Bost. “My vision is that this talent will come work with us in the future and design some great lines.”

It’s too soon to see the program’s long-term results, but the company received a record number of applications for its 2009 program and was able to get even more students involved by holding a pep rally at each of the finalists’ high schools and providing buses to transport students to the venue to cheer their classmates on. Plus, three of the four contestants from 2008, the first year of the contest, have gone on to study fashion design, including Schuman. She recently started her freshman year at the Fashion Institute of Technology, a design school in New York City, and says that Generation Next altered her college plans. “Before, I was looking at going to local California colleges and wasn’t sure what I wanted to focus on,” she says. “The experience helped me discover a love for this industry, and now my goal is to build a career in it.”

The Transworld Motocross Awards have concluded from the The Joint inside the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, and the winners have been awarded their trophies. Just in case you still don’t get our live updates via Twitter or Facebook and Brian Deegan receives the ROCKSTAR LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD!

Check out the article here.

SurfAid has launched an Emergency Response Appeal to help the people of Padang who were hit by a huge earthquake (7.6 on the Richter scale) on Wednesday 30 September.

Our Program Director, Dr David Lange, narrowly escaped death as he fled the Ambacang Hotel, which then collapsed, killing many and trapping others.

Any donations you can make are greatly appreciated.

Please donate here.

Thank you

By MATT HIGGINS
Published: July 30, 2009

LOS ANGELES — Two weeks ago, Cameron Sinclair, a professional freestyle motocross rider from Australia, crashed hard during a competition in Madrid, hitting the dirt head-first after failing to execute a double back flip on his motorcycle. With serious injuries, and with no one among his friends, family or support staff who were present able to speak Spanish, Sinclair needed help.

Full Story Here:

As he was whisked to a hospital in critical condition with bruising of his brain, a concussion, a ruptured liver and a fractured cheekbone and shoulder, members of the American Freestyle Motocross Association began to put plans into practice: Doctors in California who are fluent in Spanish soon called their counterparts in Madrid to consult on Sinclair’s care, and they translated for his fiancée, who was at the hospital.

Now that Sinclair’s condition has been upgraded to stable, a freestyle motocross association insurance policy will help defray the costs of a $190,000 air ambulance to his home in Melbourne, where he is expected to make a complete recovery.

“Those guys have been fantastic,” said Adam Bailey, Sinclair’s agent, who was in Madrid before returning to the United States last week to attend the X Games, where the freestyle motocross events began Thursday night here at the Staples Center. “Throughout the whole ordeal, we’ve never felt alone.”

In freestyle motocross, in which riders perform aerial maneuvers while soaring dozens of feet through the air while being scored by judges, competitors operate almost without a safety net, regularly flirting with danger and death. Although risk is a big part of the sport’s appeal, founders of the association are hoping to succeed where previous efforts have failed in trying to mitigate some of the risk by focusing on rider safety and assisting with medical care when things go wrong.
The association, a collective of riders and action sports industry figures, was formed almost six months ago after the death of Jeremy Lusk, 24, a top freestyle rider who won a gold medal at the 2008 X Games.

Lusk, of Temecula, Calif., died Feb. 9 after he crashed while attempting a Hart Attack back flip at a competition in San José, Costa Rica. Lusk failed to fully rotate while soaring more than 20 feet above the ground, landing on his front tire and crashing face-first into the dirt. He sustained severe head injuries and died three days later.

Riders say they believe he is the only professional to have died in competition.

Horrible crashes are part of the game in freestyle motocross. Brian Deegan, who has won more X Games medals in freestyle motocross than any other rider, lost a kidney — and nearly his life — after a crash in 2005 while filming a jump for a television program. He attributed the crash to windy conditions. He also said wind and a lack of adequate practice time were factors in Lusk’s fatal crash.

While mourning his friend in a Costa Rica hotel room last winter, Deegan hatched the idea of the American Freestyle Motocross Association. In addition to coordinating medical care, the association intends to create a unified voice to address safety at professional and recreational events and demonstrations.

“The sport of freestyle motocross is only 10 years old,” said Deegan, 34, who runs a freestyle team through his clothing brand, Metal Mulisha. “There’s so much money being thrown at it, but the riders are still on their own. There’s no voice for them.”

An offshoot of motocross, freestyle developed during the 1990s in Southern California when racers took to the hills to pull maneuvers while launching through the air. Soon small-scale competitions were organized. When freestyle made its debut at the 1999 X Games, the sport exploded in popularity.

Still, freestyle remained largely unorganized, with riders competing as independent contractors around the world.

Past attempts to unify failed, in part because of aggressive negotiating tactics by some athletes. Those efforts rankled promoters and cost athletes opportunities and money in a sport where many events are invitational. “At this point we’re going against the fact that a lot of people have tried and failed,” Deegan said.

The association hopes to build its membership through corporate sponsors and membership from professionals and recreational riders through its Web site, www.afmxa.com, while working with promoters.

Tim Reed, the senior director of sports and competition for the X Games at ESPN, said network officials believed that “we feel we have the proper stuff in place to make the athletes safe” at events like the X Games, like safe courses and proper medical care. But he said the association could help improve standards at smaller and newer events.

Travis Pastrana, who will compete Friday in the Moto X Best Trick event at the X Games, said a group like the freestyle association was not necessarily needed for the large, televised events, but was for smaller operations, where up-and-coming riders are pushing to prove themselves.
“This is a sanctioning body for the younger guys, who don’t have as much pull, and are afraid to speak up,” he said. “I think it’s a good time.”

At the 2007 X Games, Pastrana landed the first double back flip, leading to an exponential progression in tricks’ risk factor.

“It’s become more dangerous with people pushing the bar for the level of tricks that are being thrown now,” said Toby Bost, a member of the freestyle association’s board. “Somebody does a double back flip and then it’s, well, one-up that. Not only has it been dangerous, but it’s becoming more and more dangerous and that’s where we fit in.”

Bost is chief executive of the La Jolla Group, a licensing company for several prominent action sports brands. His involvement, along with that of an ESPN executive and two doctors on the freestyle association’s advisory board, should give the association the kind of credibility previous efforts have lacked.

The successful response to Sinclair’s injury, which occurred at one of the sport’s largest events — a Red Bull X-Fighters tour stop — has already demonstrated that the association can get things done.
“This is an example of what can go wrong,” Bailey said about Sinclair’s crash. “But this is a success story.”

NOTES
Two years after he made television highlights with a 45-foot fall from the mega ramp, Jake Brown of Australia won the gold medal in skateboard Big Air as the X Games opened. Brown and Bob Burnquist, the two time-defending champion, tied with a score of 94.0, but Brown won a tie breaker.

IRVINE — La Jolla Group, the action sports licensing company, will officially open its  new corporate headquarters today during a private party. The massive site, some 200,000 square feet, houses four of the most prominent brands in the industry, O’Neill, Lost, Metal Mulisha and Rusty.

I got a tour yesterday from Toby Bost, La Jolla CEO and chairman of the board. He told me that the company planned the $4 million in improvements to the facility before the recession hit, but that the company decided to stick with the goal of moving from its former campus-style site on Pasteur in Irvine. La Jolla is looking beyond the current bad economy, he said, and is working to attract “the 21st Century executive,” a 20- or 30-something employee who is dedicated to the surf and skating lifestyle.
“We definitely embrace the social aspect of the age group,” he said. “We wear what we make.”

Among the 13 conference rooms, four showrooms, photo studio and two warehouses was a room dedicated to marketing by social networks, which Bost said he believes will be a major business consideration for the future.  There’s also a fitness room, basketball court, model retail store and indoor skate park with quarter pipes and rail hits.

Click here to watch the video.

Athletes and Action Sports Leaders Take Proactive Role in Promoting Safety Regulations and Cultivating Overall Growth in Freestyle Motocross and Affiliated Events

Irvine, CA (July 20, 2009) – The American Freestyle Motocross Association (AFMXA), a collective of Freestyle Motocross riders and action sports industry leaders, today announced its official launch as an organization established to manage, protect and develop the sport of freestyle motocross at both the professional and recreational levels. Inspired in memory of American freestyle rider, X Games gold medalist and Metal Mulisha team member, Jeremy Lusk, the AFMXA is dedicated to improving rider safety, preparation and education through programs and services that will assist athletes in improving their skills and experience in the sport. Additionally, the Association is committed to increasing awareness around medical treatment, emergency response planning and training at events worldwide.

With interest from recreational riders, corporate partners and action sports companies around the globe, the AFMXA was organized in an effort to create a unified voice at all sanctioned and non-sanctioned freestyle motocross events, parks, facilities and demonstrations; and implement a safer environment for athletes. The Association will encourage neck braces for riders; report on standards for suitable weather conditions and proper ramp landings at events; assist with providing trained on-site and on-call medical assistance; and prepare safety policies and emergency response plans. In addition to providing guidelines for safer practices, the AFMXA will host an annual awards ceremony to recognize top athletes and companies for their accomplishments and influence on the sport.

The Association’s advisory board consists of prominent figures in the action sports and medical industries, including Metal Mulisha founder and most decorated Freestyle Motocross rider in X Games history, Brian Deegan; CEO of La Jolla Group, Toby Bost; ESPN’s Lizz Leach; Ryan Hagy, Cameron Steele, Dr. Pete Katsyiannis, and Dr. Gus Gialamas, among others.

“With the tragic death of Jeremy Lusk, it became clear that this sport, which has grown significantly over the last few years, needed an Association to develop and oversee stricter safety guidelines,” said Toby Bost. “The AFMXA works to define racing rules and evolve the sport for athletes and supporters. As corporate sponsors, it’s our responsibility to do more than just put our product on riders. We need to be activists for the industry as a whole — and that means being proactively involved in establishing processes that enable freestyle moto to keep growing.”

“The AFMXA is the voice of all freestyle riders and the time has come for us to properly organize our sport — it starts with safety,” commented Brian Deegan. “It’s also about time that athletes and industry leaders are recognized for their achievements and dedication. I look forward to the positive changes this Association and its members are going to make for freestyle motocross.”

Earlier this year, the Lusk Legacy Foundation was established to help improve overall safety in the sport, protect the livelihoods of riders and their families, and provide them with legal, medical and financial consultation and representation. The Lusk Legacy Foundation has been named the official charitable organization for the AFMXA.

On July 30th at 5pm PST, ESPN will broadcast a special presentation on Jeremy Lusk and the AFMXA.