Board the Lifeboats
Board the Lifeboats
In regards to what was left of the team, they’ve got to be applauded for sticking it out until the end. With Jake Johnson now sponsored by Converse, he could have the financial stability to ride for another company. He has however said he’d like to wait it out, to see if the company can get through this, thankfully hinting at the chance of AWS’ return. While Omar, Gilbert and Bledsoe may move to another brand, it would be amazing to see them wait it out with Jake and be re-abducted into the Workshop. If this is the case, it’s also exciting to speculate that a Heath comeback could be possible if the brand resurfaces. (Well, in my mind anyway…).
The lingering question remains of ‘who, if anyone, is to blame in all this’? No doubt fingers will be pointed at Rob Dyrdek and although owning the company but leaving everything down to Carter, Hill, AVE and Dill made perfect sense, the later partnership with PVH was risky as they appeared to be on somewhat rocky ground too: (if the information floating around the web is to be believed). But remember Kalis revealed that Rob Dyrdek lost millions out of his own pocket to keep the company afloat, implying that the riders would have been paid directly by him for a time. Lastly, if Dyrdek hadn’t purchased DNA from Burton, who’s to know whether it wouldn’t have been cut two years ago along with Gravis and Analog? AVE and Dill might be considered the catalyst for the other guys leaving; but I can’t imagine the difficulty in walking away from something so integral to your career and life. Last of all, perhaps it’s just time and the ever-changing nature of the skateboarding industry that Sect devotees need to face up to. 24 years is a long time for any company to survive in this world and we can see others with that lineage struggling to keep their graphics and approach interesting.