There is one benefit of rain, and more rain in Vancouver. Jackson is not skating as much and editing up videos more.

Embedded from the Rayne Youtube Channel and scraped off skatehorde.

JAKES RASH !!!!

dial up that HD.

Did you notice K-Rimes’ modifications on his Killswitch at Newton’s Playground? The big mod was drop thru trucks. It is no secret Rayne is bring out a new version of the Killswitch, it was featured in the Concrete Wave Buyers Guide.

Rayne quietly released details to skateshops last week. The tweaked killswitch is available and coming to a skateshop near you.

The evolution continues. The 2010 Drop Killswitch.

The board that blew everyone’s minds last year, and what every manufacturer copied. Just got better. Universal Drop Through Truck Mounting. Lowers your board for easy pushing and stability.

All the other key adavantages to this deck remain the same. K-Rimes unique design of locks in the deck to create a more ergonomic board.

Sharp edges: For locking your feet in.

Vert Lam Bamboo Core: stronger than steel but light as a feather.

Sublimated Artwork: scratch resistant ink is tattooed on to the deck.

Pre tensioned fibreglass: adds long life, durability, strength and energy return.

Speed Stiff: Dont get bounced! Stiff boards make you stable at speeds.

New stock arrives in the country in the next 10 days. Check out all the new webpages, and if you are in the market for a new board or an update, put your email address down for notification when they arrive.

Drop Killswitch longboard deck only

Drop Killswitch longboard complete

Today we bring you another tasty piece of Rayne longboard bling.

Rayne Hustler longboard – 2010 edition

The new 2010 Hustler has been updated, and it looks like they have made an all round longboard, suitable for most occasions.

First thing we noticed was the new shape and larger wheel wells. Deck now allows a wider range of wheel options. This was one of the biggest issues with the older model, only bear trucks could be used with larger 75mm wheels.

Rayne have come to longboard party with an absolute stunner. Hard to imagine they can get more creative!
Just when you thought life was meant to be dervish, along comes a Hustler to waken the senses. Graphics are eye poppin. It is definitely artwork, and according to Rayne, it is scratch-resistant ink, tattooed into the deck.
Here is what we are liking about this deck:
Construction: Vertically Laminated Bamboo Core and Pre-Tensioned Fiberglass making it strong but light. This deck will be strong, durable and have a huge energy return.
Shape: Offset Camber that helps initiate powerful turns and smooth exits. Sharp edges that make it look sleek, but has a function effect by creating an extra dimension for your feet to lock onto. New shape makes for better foot placement, 2010 model is a better all round longboard.
Flex: Flex has always made the Hustler special. It makes carving fun, creates those surf style turns, more rebound when pumping, and flex just makes a comfortable skate when you spend a bit of time on your board.

What is board is not is a downhill board. It is fast, you can bomb hills but the flex makes it unsuitable for high speeds.

Our review on this deck remains unchanged. This is the deck for the individual and the skater with style. Let all your friends get hustled on a dervish, stand out on a hustler!!

Hop: You are about to leave for the overseas race season, what are your tour plans?
Jackson: First up I return (3rd time) to the Great White North, aka Canada and visit one of the raddest places to be a longboarder in the world, Vancouver. From there I’m gonna hit a little bit of the Canadian tour and race at Danger Bay, Jakes Rash, The Goldrush, and VernonDH, all while hanging out and kickin it with some of the world’s best skaters.
From Canada, I’m gonna cruise down to LA with fellow ozzies Leigh Griffiths, Michael Bowditch and Hopkin Team Rider Gabriel Gwynne (aka. grommet) for some Cali Gnar and go hang out at the skate house with Louis Pilloni, James Kelly and Brian Peck (and also other skate house tennants)
Next up on the list is the IGSA World Cup tour! Starting in Norway at a cool festival race, then  I’ll will make my way across Europe to France, Germany, Italy, Austria, the Czech Republic racing for the number 1 spot in the World Cup rankings. Final European tour destination is Switzerland, skating hills most people only see in their dreams.
After Europe I’m gonna stop by the Philippines and check out the scene in Manila, get some R’n'R and hang out with some rad skaters before heading back to Sydney and getting ready for Newton’s Nation!

Hop: Who are you looking at as the top racers on this year’s circuit?
Jackson: K-Rimes is already going strong, he’s on 2 for 2 right now (won the Slasher in BC and Buffalo Bill in coloRado). Also Switzer and James are coming back to Europe, and also Louis Pilloni with his new Sector getup. They are all extremely talented skaters and are more than capable of winning.

Hop: Which race will be the hardest?
Jackson: Danger bay is always the hardest race to win, doesn’t matter who you are.

Hop: You hooking up with Sector 9 team this year?
Jackson: I always hang with Sector 7-G, they are a big hit at Danger bay, their team is filled with such colourful individuals, all so friendly and fun to hang out with

Hop: Is it true Budro’s S9 corporate credit only gets used to buy beers?
Jackson: really? I’ll ask him about that…

Hop: Who are you traveling with in Canada?
Jackson: I’ll be hanging out with my ozzie buddies Leigh, Bow and Grom, and will also be hangin out with my Wingman Yate-dawg and a whole bunch of international shredders

Hop: Got any sessions lined up with any Canadians?
Jackson: The sessions are happening on an hourly basis… we do not stop shredding the gnar

Hop: You have made the trek to Canada a few times, what are you looking  forward to skate when you step off the plane?
Jackson: First place I’m gonna hit up is the British Properties for some endless freeride action… think super chilled and rad urban runs that go for a few kilometres… ohhh yeah

Hop: Any side shows happening, other than official races, you can tell us about?
Jackson: There’s some talk of going to Giants Head… but that’s a secret… shhhh

Hop: Do you think Yatesy gets more Australian when he goes to Canada?
Jackson: I get more Australian just when I hang out with him!

Hop: Your spending a week in LA, what gives?
Jackson: Its home to some of the most epic hills for downhill skateboarding. the hills there are so gnar, so long and so windy… its a longboarders dream. your bound to shed some skin there

Hop: Who you skating with? What are you hitting up?
Jackson: I’ll be skating with Louis and James alot, and also with my ozzie mates Leigh, Bow and Grom, and there will be a lot of thane (and ozzie skin) painted all over the hill of Malibu and Hollywood.

Hop: Your missing Maryhill this year and going to Norway, why?
Jackson: It was a hard choice to make, but I figured I’ve been to Maryhill twice, and there is an opportunity to visit a country I’ve never been to, and I’m good mates with a few of the Norwegians, so I figured it made sense to go check out their zone, and skate some epic fjords.

Hop: Do you know how to say “does anyone have a skate tool” in Norwegian?
Jackson: I wont need to ask that question… more importantly “does anyone wanna drink a beer?” I always have a skate tool.

Hop: How you getting around Europe, and with who?
Jackson: I’m gonna cruise around with Robin Sanberg from Norway and I think Leeso is hoppin in the car too. There’s also talk of an O-Tang Team Bus touring around Europe, visiting cool skate shops on the road and checking out epic hills…

Hop: Any favourite spots you are hitting up again in Europe?
Jackson: French Alps *drools*

Hop: Do you have a favourite IGSA race in Europe?
Jackson: Kosakov… the hill is epic, the beer is rad, and they let u buy hootch at the Rider’s Tent

Hop: Almabtrieb is the World Championships this year, you skated it in 2008, will that experience help?
Jackson: I think the 2008 experience would help me if we were running the same track, however there is a new hill so its start again time! This time its faster and kinda straight, and I’m a heavy dude these days so I’m gonna smoke everyone’s draft and they can eat my dust.

Hop: Is your injury fully recovered, this is a big tour, are you ready?
Jackson: My push is pretty crappy these days, I guess I don’t have the same strength in that leg as I used to anymore, but I guess a few weeks in BC will fix that. If my push is still crappy for the IGSA tour I guess I’ll have to rely on race tactics to get the win.

Hop: Is it true you are marching in the Padova parade this year in thongs and blue King Gees
Jackson: I’ll be in a wife-beater, boardies and bare feet…

Hop: What tastes better in Europe: Beer, Roads, Mountains or the chicks?
Jackson: all of the above

Hop: A week in Switzerland, is that enough time for all those mountains? Who you visiting there?
Jackson: I’m gonna go hang out with Ramon again, he lives near Zurich and there’s heaps of cool stuff to skate around the town. I think we will make time for all the radness Switzerland has to offer.

Hop: Airflow are cranking up the downhill scene over there, you going to put the hard word on Chris and Ramon to start sending product to Australia?
Jackson: I’m gonna hit em up about an airflow board that Luca ordered but never got… they are going down

Hop: Philippines looks more than a stop over, who you visiting there … the lady boys?
Jackson: kiss my ass…

Hop: Philippines…Who’s the contact, what are the hills?
Jackson:I got in contact with some fellas called Raphael and Gerrard, they came to Ozzie for Newtons and I got to skate with Gerrard some time last year before heading over to Europe (he was in Sydney). I’m not sure what sort of hills there are there but they’re talking about throwing an Outlaw Race… I think Switzer is gonna come too.

Hop: Any shout out to sponsors?
Jackson: Hopkin Skate Bitches! Best shop in oz… we rip. Also big shout out to o-tang and Rayne for their help getting me to all these rad places, and for making such awesome products. Big thanks to Kahalani for putting me on their team and opening my eyes to the best downhill trucks in the world.

Hop: Are we going to get some news from you on the way?
Jackson: I’ll be uploading a few blogs/photos/videos as I go, I will be doing at least one video per month. To check out the radness go to skatehorde

Hop: Are there any goal this trip?
Jackson: To become the World Champ AND the World Cup Champ

Hop: How hard is it to win an IGSA race?
Jackson: Not hard if you don’t make any mistakes

By Jackson Shapiera

If I could use one word to describe this board, it would be: Perfection.

The vendetta is everything that a longboarder wants in a freeride board. The concave is deep, but not too aggressive, the standing platform looks small but there is plenty of room for your feet: be it pumping, carving or throwing down some big stand up slides, and the deck is thin and light but strong enough to take skaters’ abuse. Overall this board is a dream platform for freeriding and general longboarding.

I set my Vendetta up with Kahalani 184s and Orangatang 86a Stimulus wheels, and it only took me 5 minutes to realize this is the board I’ve been wanting my whole life. I have the Kahas set up with purple Saber bushings to allow for maximum lean and hard carves, which made the board come alive. I was really astounded with how agile this setup was considering the fact I set it up with CNC downhill trucks. My feet felt so locked into the concave while pumping down the street and I had so much control over each rail to perform tight turns and throw the board around. The light weight of the board coupled with the drop-thru mounting made it really easy to push around, and I had no problems pushing up to top speed in no time at all.

The next test was to see how this bad boy stood up to some fast hard sliding, and let me tell you it stood tall! The deep concave gave so much leverage with each turn I made to initiate slides, and this made pushing out the tail a breeze. The board seemed to glide effortlessly over the road as it is so light, which made holding bigger faster standup slides so much easier. Throwing this puppy around from regular to switch and back seemed like it took no effort at all.

The next session I smashed this board around in a sweet little alley session. Pumping down the line, hitting bins and carving driveways felt so smooth. The board was so nimble and responsive. Cruising through the alleys near the shop has always been a favourite for me, but on the vendetta it was a whole new realm. Quick sharp carves into hard slashes and stand up slides were all this board wanted to do, like it had a mind of its own. It was so easy to control with the deep concave and the drop-thru mounting made the slashing so much smoother.

I think this board is a must-have for any longboard quiver, its extremely light yet strong, its a small neat little package yet it has enough wheelbase and standing platform to handle faster downhill runs, and most importantly, it has a kick-ass graphic…

Rayne have released their long awaited Vendetta. To celebrated the boards release and generally create some worldwide longboarding stoke, they are running a competition. Yes, the Aussies can get involved.

The Challenge
Create a 20+ second video of why you want/deserve a new Rayne Longboards Vendetta and you can win one of two Free Vendetta decks.

How you can win
The video with the most video views wins – Free Vendetta Deck
The video with the most likes wins – Free Vendetta Deck

Contest rules
You must post your entry to the Rayne Vendetta video page. The link to the video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CIdX9efoI0o (see below instructions)
Your video must incorporate www.raynelongboards.com and Vendetta somewhere in the content. BE CREATIVE!!!
Contest end date is Friday May 7^th, 2010 – so HURRY UP!

How you post to Rayne Vendetta page

Rob McWinnie raced in the Red Bull Downhill Night Sessions last night in Peru and pulled off a big win. The night sessions are being held in Centinella Lima Peru. Racing started a 1am in the middle of the night. The final was at 2am. Rob had an interesting night, having a funny crash in practiced when he got run over by the motorcycle cameraman!

Rob McWinnie, on top of the podium, representing Hopkin Racing and ASRA.
Rob, where are the dreads?

Rob is racing on a Rayne Killswitch, Kahalani trucks, Orangatang 4President wheels.

There has been lots of talk on the internet, and we have dropped a few rumours in our Hopshop Newsletter the last two weeks.

All the rumours are true, Rayne’s new deck is the Vendetta. First of many releases from the big manufacturers. The big hit board of 2010 will be anything associated with freeride. The Rayne Vendetta is a new deck shoved squarely in this pigeon hole, and it has brought a big smile to everyone in the Hopshop. Here is what we know so far.

You can summarised this deck as a hustler freeride machine.

The concave is deep tub, which means there will be plenty of edge to lock your feet in. It has 1/4 inch camber. If you know your Rayne decks, the Timeline has some camber. What this means it will have a bit of flex. It is by no means be as flexy as the Hustler or a dervish. It will give a bit so make pushing it around a little more forgiving, you’ll be able to get your pump on the flat. Make carving a bit more fun.

The good news is the deck has a nose and tail like the Hustler. This makes shovits, manuals and generally kicking the deck into your hand a lot easier.

Truck mount is drop thru.

Width is 10 inch, has a waist like the killswitch and plenty of room for your feet, right where you need it.

Length is 40 inch and wheelbase 30 inch.

It should be available in in the next 4 weeks, and we’ll be doing a pre sale soon.

This deck definitely looks like the goods. A combination of some of the best features from Rayne’s most popular decks. We see bits of the Hustler, Hellcat and Killswitch in this deck. Loaded got the right combination with the Dervish, looks like Rayne has score a home run on this deck. When we get one to play with, it will be reviewed and posted on the blog first.

We have a product page for the Rayne Vendetta. You can sign up to be notified when it is in stock.

The Pug was made for those that can handle a skateboard and want a Cadillac longboard ride.

Made of Bamboo and Triaxial Fibreglass it has one quarter inch of offset camber, stiff variable concave, a bit of nose and a full kicktail. The shape can handle cruising, carving, bombing hills, skateparks and bowls.

This board was a big hit in 2008, all the skaters we sold these too were stoked on their purchase and their Pug has become a well ridden part of their quiver. From a seasoned longboarder to an absolute beginner, this board would suit all type of skaters.

We are bring in limited quantities. Order now, dont be disappointed if you hesitate, someone else will have the pug grin on their face all year!!!

Recommended setups

For a stable fast longboard: Tracker fastrack 180 trucks, Orangatang 4President 83a purple wheels.
Pump around town, carpark mischief: Paris 180 trucks, Orangatang 4President 80a Orange wheels.
Carve, shop commute, boardwalk cruiser: Paris 180 trucks, Riviera 70mm Jelly wheels.

Rayne, retired to the labs and workshop over the Canadian winter and returned from their siesta with a bunch of amazing new goodies. The best surprise has been the new Rayne Hellcat.

Increased foot space, a more symmetric shape and the addition of what they have called Pleasure Dome to its deep tub concave.

This hellcat looks like the perfect all rounder for freeriding and racing.

What is the PLEASURE DOME? The PLEASURE DOME makes it easy for riders to master toe side corners, pre-drifts and slick stand-up slides by adding a second concave in the middle of the board! When engaged in sticky situations, this pleasure dome grips your toes where there is normally no concave. When in heel-side turns the pleasure dome ensures no foot slip.

This is where Rayne’s progessive development in technology and new pressing methods is starting to pay off. We have all had a bitch about quality over the years but Rayne has stayed true to their commitment to deliver better boards using better techniques. I think 2009 will be a landmark year for Rayne and their boards…and the Hellcat is just the start.

2009 Rayne Hellcat is in stock, and ready to deliver everything you want in a board.

Jackson is excited to get his hands on one of the first boards in Australia. This board looks to deliver an all round board. Why travel with the whole quiver for racing, free riding, corner sessioning? Hellcat is all you need. And to test the theory we are going to send Jackson off on a trip with one board. Look out for that review.

2009 Hellcat
Features: Bamboo core, biaxial pre-tensioned fibreglass skins, Sharp square edging
Length- 41.25″
Width- 10″
Wheel Base- 32″