Jordan Trahan and James Capp go pro!

[too fakie]

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trahan already was pro:

[close]

They did the same thing with Yonnie. Seems like Chocolate likes to take their time announcing people as pro if they don’t come up in the Crail system but join from a smaller brand.

[close]

That’s what they did with Lil Stevie.

[close]

Damn, it really went back that far? That’s insane.

Definitely shows a big level of disrespect to the smaller brands.

[close]

He was the first. Pro for Profile and FIT (basically the same company done out of Experience Skateboards) prior.

I think they just wanted to bring him out properly with some promotion.

All of those guys accepted the terms of whatever deal they were offered. If Trahan would rather wait it out on Crail flow than be pro for 5Boro, that’s his choice. Maybe there weren’t that many offers out there. We don’t know.

[mynameisnotjeff]

Capps and Trahan are very talented.
Unfortunately, Crailtap has done a great job at shooting themselves in the foot. Stoked on both and glad on the news Chocolate guys and VA.

[gub]

crailtap for sure have made mistakes, like as far as i know not saying anything about yonnie cruz or even the broader issue of consent and not being a scumbag etc.. on this stuff i assumed they haven't wanted to look like they were poaching riders straight from small brands .. and more recently maybe jordan trahan took his time deciding if he wanted to sign on or not

[Velcro Wallet]

I thought Jordan had been pro for years..

Craig really needs to turn Carl and Hose pro right now. Both of them are on fire at the moment.

[Low standards]

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trahan already was pro:

[close]

They did the same thing with Yonnie. Seems like Chocolate likes to take their time announcing people as pro if they don’t come up in the Crail system but join from a smaller brand.

Idk dude trahan was never officially announced on the team. Sure he was in ig posts but nothing official. I don't see this as a disservice at all, it probably just took a while to get everything together given covid wood shortages and the amount of time it takes to get a new graphic out.

Don't get me wrong I'm not saying crail hasn't made a mountain of other mistakes, i just don't think it's like what you're saying here.

[Grind King Rims]

You can say that crail takes longer than any other company to make team moves, but that's really all it is.

If they insisted on pros from smaller companies (Jordan from 5Boro, Yonnie from Traffic, etc) going back to amateur status when they joined crail, that would be disrespect to the smaller brands, but they don't do that.

Also, I really doubt either Jordan or Yonnie were "flow" in the sense that they were only getting product and not getting paid. I reckon they were getting at least a small paycheck in the years that they were waiting to be fully announced. I don't recall how long Trahan was waiting but for Yonnie it was at least two full years between Traffic and Chocolate.

[Low standards]

Stoked to James and Jordan, kinda surprised it aint Carl tbh but he will have his moment im sure hopefully sooner than later.

Also kinda funny to me how Crob, Eldy and Dubs all have the attention span to watch what's going on in the industry for the sake of their show but seem clueless about things going on in their own crailcamp.

Some "family" they have going on.

[Matthew_James]

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So jeron and Eldridge are really that far out of the loop at girl? Or are just good at acting dumb. Wasn’t it like 2 or 3 weeks ago they both seemed aloof when asked about Trahan and chocolate?

Jordan is the man though



Free max b

[close]

I think they’re that far out of the loop. Also feel like they stopped paying them much at all and they stopped caring.

I’m gonna go out on a limb and say that they’re no longer getting regular checks from Craig, just royalties. It’s been that way for years, hence the lack of interest. It was the same way with guys like Gino too, why bother when board royalty checks from Craig are so small that they aren’t even worth paying taxes on?

Also, Trahan was getting paid as a professional from New Balance the whole time he was in board flow limbo. It wasn’t like having his name on a Chocolate board was a make or break condition for the lion’s share of his earnings. Since he’s a new guy he’ll receive a monthly plus royalties, and I’m pretty sure he was only getting royalties from 5Boro.

[oyolar]

You can say that crail takes longer than any other company to make team moves, but that's really all it is.

If they insisted on pros from smaller companies (Jordan from 5Boro, Yonnie from Traffic, etc) going back to amateur status when they joined crail, that would be disrespect to the smaller brands, but they don't do that.

Also, I really doubt either Jordan or Yonnie were "flow" in the sense that they were only getting product and not getting paid. I reckon they were getting at least a small paycheck in the years that they were waiting to be fully announced. I don't recall how long Trahan was waiting but for Yonnie it was at least two full years between Traffic and Chocolate.

You're right in that they don't announce them as am and then make them pro, but it's definitely shitty for Yonnie to be off Traffic for two years before announcing him. Jordan has been off 5boro since Feb. 2020 so it's been over a year for him too. And yes, COVID did mess everything up but it's definitely a pattern that I don't think shines well on Crail.

I also understand the not wanting to have the perception be they're poaching people from smaller brands but there are other ways to do that too.

[HORSES]

Is the argument that Roberts, Eldridge, Mike-Mo, Jeron, still selling boards relevant when Crailtap doesn't do non-pro boards?

[Matthew_James]

Is the argument that Roberts, Eldridge, Mike-Mo, Jeron, still selling boards relevant when Crailtap doesn't do non-pro boards?

Craig actually does make non-pro boards.

[HORSES]

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Is the argument that Roberts, Eldridge, Mike-Mo, Jeron, still selling boards relevant when Crailtap doesn't do non-pro boards?

[close]

Craig actually does make non-pro boards.

Ah, really? I had a look and couldn't see any in the Crail store.

[Fongstarr.]

I remember when James Capp was a bartender at some SF bar. Glad he is getting paid to skate.

And at least you can count on Chocolate to do a cool pro deck unlike Girl.

[Matthew_James]

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Is the argument that Roberts, Eldridge, Mike-Mo, Jeron, still selling boards relevant when Crailtap doesn't do non-pro boards?

[close]

Craig actually does make non-pro boards.

[close]

Ah, really? I had a look and couldn't see any in the Crail store.

Yeah, there are actually non-pro Craig boards on their site. Also, Girl and Chocolate will make team boards for specific shops, they’re basically just logo boards that you can only get at ccs or wherever.

[figureitout]

Are Justin Eldridge, Chris Roberts, Raven Thersy, Stevie Perez and Kenny Anderson still on the actual team? Or is it like kinda "legend status"?

Legend at being racist/homophobic and abusive/phony/date rapey, respectively.

i'm sure i'll catch some kooks as the apologists come out of the woodwork. 

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You can say that crail takes longer than any other company to make team moves, but that's really all it is.

If they insisted on pros from smaller companies (Jordan from 5Boro, Yonnie from Traffic, etc) going back to amateur status when they joined crail, that would be disrespect to the smaller brands, but they don't do that.

Also, I really doubt either Jordan or Yonnie were "flow" in the sense that they were only getting product and not getting paid. I reckon they were getting at least a small paycheck in the years that they were waiting to be fully announced. I don't recall how long Trahan was waiting but for Yonnie it was at least two full years between Traffic and Chocolate.

[close]

You're right in that they don't announce them as am and then make them pro, but it's definitely shitty for Yonnie to be off Traffic for two years before announcing him. Jordan has been off 5boro since Feb. 2020 so it's been over a year for him too. And yes, COVID did mess everything up but it's definitely a pattern that I don't think shines well on Crail.

I also understand the not wanting to have the perception be they're poaching people from smaller brands but there are other ways to do that too.

that scumbag sure could have used those two years of increased pay.

These two among others on Craig deserve so much more in my opinion

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Is the argument that Roberts, Eldridge, Mike-Mo, Jeron, still selling boards relevant when Crailtap doesn't do non-pro boards?

[close]

Craig actually does make non-pro boards.

[close]

Ah, really? I had a look and couldn't see any in the Crail store.

Horses please clear your web search history, i don't want you to contract a virus.

[oyolar]

Fair point about my comment about Yonnie: I'm not saying he deserved more money or recognition. I'm just commenting about a tendency Crail has for signing (some) people who went pro out of Crailtap. I think that knowind what we now know about Yonnie, he shouldn't have been sponsored.

[Shuh]

Crob is coming with a "twin paddle" board so yeah i guess he still gets paid.

[DannyDee]

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trahan already was pro:

[close]

They did the same thing with Yonnie. Seems like Chocolate likes to take their time announcing people as pro if they don’t come up in the Crail system but join from a smaller brand.

[close]

That’s what they did with Lil Stevie.

[close]

Damn, it really went back that far? That’s insane.

Definitely shows a big level of disrespect to the smaller brands.

[close]

He was the first. Pro for Profile and FIT (basically the same company done out of Experience Skateboards) prior.

I think they just wanted to bring him out properly with some promotion.

I think Stevie Williams didn't have a great reputation at the time. I think the deal was basically, we know you have the footage for a full part, it comes out in like 6 months, don't fuck up and we will make you pro (back when having a board on Girl or Chocolate was a massive deal prestige and financially) after the video drops.

Either Stevie or McCrank were the first guy they put on who weren't connected through World or the EMB scene. I think SJ got on before Stevie but his connections with Crail run pretty deep (EMB, was on DC with a bunch of them and was in Meza's FTC projects)

[PatrickSkateman]

SJ was the first non World-affiliated addition, followed by Stevie. I remember how much the streets were buzzing here in Philly when rumors of Stevie getting on Chocolate and DC started circulating.

McCrank had already ridden for Plan B before Birdhouse, albeit the post-World Plan B distributed by XYZ.

I had always thought Girl/Chocolate only ever took former World riders prior to SJ. I think York might have been the only non-World defector from the early roster, but he may have been World flow prior to Stereo.

[Atiba Applebum]

SJ was the first non World-affiliated addition, followed by Stevie. I remember how much the streets were buzzing here in Philly when rumors of Stevie getting on Chocolate and DC started circulating.

McCrank had already ridden for Plan B before Birdhouse, albeit the post-World Plan B distributed by XYZ.

I had always thought Girl/Chocolate only ever took former World riders prior to SJ. I think York might have been the only non-World defector from the early roster, but he may have been World flow prior to Stereo.

Wasn’t Colin McKay on before SJ.  Don’t think he was on World before Plan B but I don’t know that era too well

[PatrickSkateman]

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SJ was the first non World-affiliated addition, followed by Stevie. I remember how much the streets were buzzing here in Philly when rumors of Stevie getting on Chocolate and DC started circulating.

McCrank had already ridden for Plan B before Birdhouse, albeit the post-World Plan B distributed by XYZ.

I had always thought Girl/Chocolate only ever took former World riders prior to SJ. I think York might have been the only non-World defector from the early roster, but he may have been World flow prior to Stereo.

[close]

Wasn’t Colin McKay on before SJ.  Don’t think he was on World before Plan B but I don’t know that era too well

Plan B was part of the World camp until ‘97, then they were distributed by XYZ.

[Frank]

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SJ was the first non World-affiliated addition, followed by Stevie. I remember how much the streets were buzzing here in Philly when rumors of Stevie getting on Chocolate and DC started circulating.

McCrank had already ridden for Plan B before Birdhouse, albeit the post-World Plan B distributed by XYZ.

I had always thought Girl/Chocolate only ever took former World riders prior to SJ. I think York might have been the only non-World defector from the early roster, but he may have been World flow prior to Stereo.

[close]

Wasn’t Colin McKay on before SJ.  Don’t think he was on World before Plan B but I don’t know that era too well

[close]

Plan B was part of the World camp until ‘97, then they were distributed by XYZ.

i think mccrank was on platinum with arto before he got on birdhouse and arto on flip. iirc plat was like the sister company to late first iteration plan b.

[PatrickSkateman]

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SJ was the first non World-affiliated addition, followed by Stevie. I remember how much the streets were buzzing here in Philly when rumors of Stevie getting on Chocolate and DC started circulating.

McCrank had already ridden for Plan B before Birdhouse, albeit the post-World Plan B distributed by XYZ.

I had always thought Girl/Chocolate only ever took former World riders prior to SJ. I think York might have been the only non-World defector from the early roster, but he may have been World flow prior to Stereo.

[close]

Wasn’t Colin McKay on before SJ.  Don’t think he was on World before Plan B but I don’t know that era too well

[close]

Plan B was part of the World camp until ‘97, then they were distributed by XYZ.

[close]

i think mccrank was on platinum with arto before he got on birdhouse and arto on flip. iirc plat was like the sister company to late first iteration plan b.

He was on Plan B after Platinum and before Birdhouse.

[Frank]

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SJ was the first non World-affiliated addition, followed by Stevie. I remember how much the streets were buzzing here in Philly when rumors of Stevie getting on Chocolate and DC started circulating.

McCrank had already ridden for Plan B before Birdhouse, albeit the post-World Plan B distributed by XYZ.

I had always thought Girl/Chocolate only ever took former World riders prior to SJ. I think York might have been the only non-World defector from the early roster, but he may have been World flow prior to Stereo.

[close]

Wasn’t Colin McKay on before SJ.  Don’t think he was on World before Plan B but I don’t know that era too well

[close]

Plan B was part of the World camp until ‘97, then they were distributed by XYZ.

[close]

i think mccrank was on platinum with arto before he got on birdhouse and arto on flip. iirc plat was like the sister company to late first iteration plan b.

[close]

He was on Plan B after Platinum and before Birdhouse.

ah, sick. thx for filling that knowledge gap.

[DannyDee]

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SJ was the first non World-affiliated addition, followed by Stevie. I remember how much the streets were buzzing here in Philly when rumors of Stevie getting on Chocolate and DC started circulating.

McCrank had already ridden for Plan B before Birdhouse, albeit the post-World Plan B distributed by XYZ.

I had always thought Girl/Chocolate only ever took former World riders prior to SJ. I think York might have been the only non-World defector from the early roster, but he may have been World flow prior to Stereo.

[close]

Wasn’t Colin McKay on before SJ.  Don’t think he was on World before Plan B but I don’t know that era too well

[close]

Plan B was part of the World camp until ‘97, then they were distributed by XYZ.

[close]

i think mccrank was on platinum with arto before he got on birdhouse and arto on flip. iirc plat was like the sister company to late first iteration plan b.

McCrank was on Plan B, but I don't think the World-era Plan-B. I believe he got on Girl through Colin and Koston.

York was very briefly on World (he says so in an old Transworld interview). But, his obvious connection to Girl/Chocolate was through being an EMB local.

[PatrickSkateman]

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SJ was the first non World-affiliated addition, followed by Stevie. I remember how much the streets were buzzing here in Philly when rumors of Stevie getting on Chocolate and DC started circulating.

McCrank had already ridden for Plan B before Birdhouse, albeit the post-World Plan B distributed by XYZ.

I had always thought Girl/Chocolate only ever took former World riders prior to SJ. I think York might have been the only non-World defector from the early roster, but he may have been World flow prior to Stereo.

[close]

Wasn’t Colin McKay on before SJ.  Don’t think he was on World before Plan B but I don’t know that era too well

[close]

Plan B was part of the World camp until ‘97, then they were distributed by XYZ.

[close]

i think mccrank was on platinum with arto before he got on birdhouse and arto on flip. iirc plat was like the sister company to late first iteration plan b.

[close]

McCrank was on Plan B, but I don't think the World-era Plan-B. I believe he got on Girl through Colin and Koston.

York was very briefly on World (he says so in an old Transworld interview). But, his obvious connection to Girl/Chocolate was through being an EMB local.

Yup, McCrank was on XYZ-era Plan B with the weird horizontal “B” logo that looked like an infinity symbol. Him getting on Girl was a huge shift in

Revolution was such a good video.

Fun fact, Henry Sanchez briefly rode for Platinum after bLind. XYZ Stars and Bars wasn’t a bad video either.

[DannyDee]

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SJ was the first non World-affiliated addition, followed by Stevie. I remember how much the streets were buzzing here in Philly when rumors of Stevie getting on Chocolate and DC started circulating.

McCrank had already ridden for Plan B before Birdhouse, albeit the post-World Plan B distributed by XYZ.

I had always thought Girl/Chocolate only ever took former World riders prior to SJ. I think York might have been the only non-World defector from the early roster, but he may have been World flow prior to Stereo.

[close]

Wasn’t Colin McKay on before SJ.  Don’t think he was on World before Plan B but I don’t know that era too well

Yeah, when people say World or World camp of that era they essentially mean World/101/Blind/Plan B. Most of the OG Girl team actually came from Plan B (Howard, Carroll, Sheffy, Tony Ferguson). It was basically half Plan B and Blind (Rudy, Guy, Jeron, Gavin), plus Jovontae (World) and Koston (101). Chocolate to start was mostly World riders (Chico, Mulder, Castillo, York, Shamil) plus Gabriel (101), Paulo (believe he got on from Stereo but was on Blind at one point) and Ben Sanchez (Blind). And, the first two riders they added who weren't on OG Chocolate in Keenan and Gino came from Blind and 101.

Basically, all of the early years of Crail can be directly tied to World teams, EMB, and the LA Boys. The first guys they put on who had no connection to that were essentially Stevie (although he was a Pier 7 guy for years), McCrank, B.A., and Chris Roberts who all got on at various points between 1997 and 2002.

[PatrickSkateman]

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SJ was the first non World-affiliated addition, followed by Stevie. I remember how much the streets were buzzing here in Philly when rumors of Stevie getting on Chocolate and DC started circulating.

McCrank had already ridden for Plan B before Birdhouse, albeit the post-World Plan B distributed by XYZ.

I had always thought Girl/Chocolate only ever took former World riders prior to SJ. I think York might have been the only non-World defector from the early roster, but he may have been World flow prior to Stereo.

[close]

Wasn’t Colin McKay on before SJ.  Don’t think he was on World before Plan B but I don’t know that era too well

[close]

Yeah, when people say World or World camp of that era they essentially mean World/101/Blind/Plan B. Most of the OG Girl team actually came from Plan B (Howard, Carroll, Sheffy, Tony Ferguson). It was basically half Plan B and Blind (Rudy, Guy, Jeron, Gavin), plus Jovontae (World) and Koston (101). Chocolate to start was mostly World riders (Chico, Mulder, Castillo, York, Shamil) plus Gabriel (101), Paulo (believe he got on from Stereo but was on Blind at one point) and Ben Sanchez (Blind). And, the first two riders they added who weren't on OG Chocolate in Keenan and Gino came from Blind and 101.

Basically, all of the early years of Crail can be directly tied to World teams, EMB, and the LA Boys. The first guys they put on who had no connection to that were essentially Stevie (although he was a Pier 7 guy for years), McCrank, B.A., and Chris Roberts who all got on at various points between 1997 and 2002.

Yeah, Paulo got on bLind and had one board out for them shortly before Chocolate and after Stereo. That dope white board with the human-bodied saxophone graphic.

I remember picking up one of Paulo’s first Chocolate boards with the VW van and palm tree sketch graphic at my local shop back in the day.

Imagine if Kareem, Shiloh, and Henry would’ve said peace out to Rocco for Girl/Chocolate.

[GuessAgain?]

These guys are sick, sure. But I think they turned the wrong dudes pro… the buzz is pretty much around Carl, Erik and Horsea.

Craig’s always gonna be a couple steps behind what’s going on because of their hilarious backlog of pros. Kenny can’t even get the boot for rape accusations. Other dudes just openly don’t skateboard anymore.

Anyway congratulations and apologies to the both of em, they’ve been had deserved better.

[DannyDee]

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SJ was the first non World-affiliated addition, followed by Stevie. I remember how much the streets were buzzing here in Philly when rumors of Stevie getting on Chocolate and DC started circulating.

McCrank had already ridden for Plan B before Birdhouse, albeit the post-World Plan B distributed by XYZ.

I had always thought Girl/Chocolate only ever took former World riders prior to SJ. I think York might have been the only non-World defector from the early roster, but he may have been World flow prior to Stereo.

[close]

Wasn’t Colin McKay on before SJ.  Don’t think he was on World before Plan B but I don’t know that era too well

[close]

Yeah, when people say World or World camp of that era they essentially mean World/101/Blind/Plan B. Most of the OG Girl team actually came from Plan B (Howard, Carroll, Sheffy, Tony Ferguson). It was basically half Plan B and Blind (Rudy, Guy, Jeron, Gavin), plus Jovontae (World) and Koston (101). Chocolate to start was mostly World riders (Chico, Mulder, Castillo, York, Shamil) plus Gabriel (101), Paulo (believe he got on from Stereo but was on Blind at one point) and Ben Sanchez (Blind). And, the first two riders they added who weren't on OG Chocolate in Keenan and Gino came from Blind and 101.

Basically, all of the early years of Crail can be directly tied to World teams, EMB, and the LA Boys. The first guys they put on who had no connection to that were essentially Stevie (although he was a Pier 7 guy for years), McCrank, B.A., and Chris Roberts who all got on at various points between 1997 and 2002.

[close]

Yeah, Paulo got on bLind and had one board out for them shortly before Chocolate and after Stereo. That dope white board with the human-bodied saxophone graphic.

I remember picking up one of Paulo’s first Chocolate boards with the VW van and palm tree sketch graphic at my local shop back in the day.

Imagine if Kareem, Shiloh, and Henry would’ve said peace out to Rocco for Girl/Chocolate.

What happened with Henry is always up for dispute. He says he turned them down because he thought he needed the check from Rocco and didn't want to risk it. Other people (including Gavin), said that Henry managed to piss everyone off on a trip before it was official, and Gavin got the last pro-spot due to that. I tend to believe the one about him managing to piss everyone off, I do think Gavin is exaggerating about taking his spot (since he apparently got Jeron on and it was planned at his apartment).

You also missed the other big name. I believe Daewon was considering jumping to Chocolate when it launched as he was close with the guys who jumped at that point (mainly Daniel and Mulder). He like Shiloh and Kareem decided to stay at World.

I doubt Jenkem could ever get them all to sign-off on it, but I would kill for an oral history of the World exit/formation of Girl/Chocolate similar to the recent Tilt Mode piece. So many rumors etc about that it'd be interesting to hear people associated with its take.