The Secret Life of a Designer: Wes’s Colorado Camping / Blading Trip

Fact: I’ve been rollerblading for longer than half the time I’ve been on the planet. Lesser-known fact: Rollerblading as an extreme sport still exists. No longer the popular phenomenon it was in the ‘90s, rollerblading has become a tightly knit subculture of people from all walks of life and all ages, doing what they love in the shadow of more mainstream extreme sports. While skateboarding, BMX’ing, snowboarding, and other sports get the spotlight in huge televised events like the X Games, we quietly thrive underground, producing video content, magazines and big annual events. One of these events is called the Colorado Road Trip, and it brings bladers from all over the country to a swath of land up in the mountains for a week of camping and skating the skateparks in the surrounding towns. This year, I got to take a break from my Senior Designer duties at Banowetz + Company and go to this awesome event, where I documented a bit of the scenery and did some tricks with my friends. Check out the video above to see what the trip was all about, and take in the beauty of the Rockies in the pictures below. (Be aware: The video contains rollerblading, lots and lots of rollerblading. And some cool music.)

– Wes Phelan, Banowetz Senior Designer

Watashi wa Nihon ni ittekimashita (I went to Japan)

Recently, I went on a trip I had dreamed of taking since I was a child; a trip to the land of the rising sun (Nippon). What did I experience in Japan? A culture full of considerate and reserved people. People that were quiet and kept to themselves, yet helpful and warm. Of course there are always exceptions, but more often than not, my friend and I felt welcome. To complement the locals there was a visible and deep history, kept alive while a bustling metropolis grew around it. In all, my friend and I were there for 18 days. We made our way by bullet train and taxi, and on foot to Tokyo, Kanazawa, Kyoto, Nara, Osaka, and Nikko. If you've never been, you should go. If not for the food, for the history. If not for the history, for the sites. If not for the sites, for the people. Just go. I took over 2,500 pictures while I was there, and I've finally edited them down to a manageable number. So if this little paragraph didn't convince you to buy a plane ticket, maybe some selects of those photos will. Ganbatte!

Fushimi Inari-Taisha, Kyoto

Osaka Aquarium Kaiyukan, Osaka

Street food under train tracks, Tokyo

Tōdai-ji, Nara

Daibutsu at Tōdai-ji, Nara

Wild Sika Deer, Nara

Wedding pictures with Sika Deer, Nara

Darkened street, Ueno, Tokyo

Shinjuku Gyoen, Shinjuku, Tokyo

The path to Kiyomizu-dera, Kyoto

Unknown bird, Kyoto

Canal lights, Osaka

Temple views, Kyoto

Philosopher's Path, Kyoto

Wild Japanese Macaque, Arashiyama, Kyoto

Takeshita Street, Harajuku, Tokyo

Kanazawa Castle, Kanazawa

Cherry Blossom in Kenrokuen Garden, Kanazawa

City street, Kyoto

Kinugawa River from our onsen, Nikko

Cherry Blossom in Kyoto Imperial Palace Park, Kyoto

— Wes Phelan, Banowetz Senior Designer

Nice Job!: Wes Phelan named Senior Designer

Join us in congratulating Wes Phelan on his recent promotion to Senior Designer. In his time with Banowetz + Company, Wes has proven to be as creative as he is hard-working. His intuitive sense of design and unique approach to problem-solving are definite assets to us, and we’re glad to have him on our team. Well done, Wes. 

— Team Banowetz