Back in the Fall, the crew from Planet Earth Clothing came by our shop to check out what we had going on. Feeling some kinship between their line of eco-sensitive products and what they saw happening in our shop, the Planet Earth guys decided to do a series of mini-documentaries. You might check out the films they made while they were here – they’re right on the Planet Earth Clothing home page and also here.

Soon after that, Planet Earth even decided to give away one of our 9′ longboards, so check out Planet Earth Clothing. Simple to enter, simple to win. Just fill out the form, sit back and wait for the good news.

One of the challenges of being a small business is managing cash flow. This can be particularly frustrating when trying to keep things like t-shirts and hoodies in stock. We try to order as much as we can, but it seems like things sell so quickly, we’re often out of stock until we can save up some cash to order more.

Well, that time has just come, and we just received a new delivery of American Apparel Organic Cotton Logo T’s. We’ve managed to hold on to most of our womens sizes, so the new delivery is just men’s sizes from small to XXL. Order soon, with the heat wave we’ve been having, who knows how long these will last.

In the interest of keeping people posted up on his whereabouts over the next month or so, we’ve handed over our Facebook and Twitter accounts to Rollin’ Nolan Collins. Maybe that’s a mistake… but we’lll see.

He does have a few places he’s supposed to be over the next month and a half and we’ll keep those dates and locations current on the page we set up for that. But Nolan has strict orders to roam and ramble so we expect that he’ll be showing up in unexpected places.

So if you want to help us keep tabs on him, check into Twitter especially, or Facebook to find Nolan somewhere on the road. He’s got our G’zOne phone with him, so he should be tweeting his spontaneous stops, surf conditions, people he’s met, places he’ll be and general reflections from the road.

If you’ve got a kit you built, bring it down and get some pics with Nolan so we can pass them along on our blog. If you’ve got a kit you’re building and you want some advice, track him down and he may be able to give a few tips (he’s built two kits for himself already).

Other friends of ours are watching Nolan’s progress too… You can track him at Drift Magazine which is a beautifully put together free online magazine that has both US and European versions. If you follow The Daily Shaka, or The Leucadia Project, you’ll see Ty William’s Pug logo as a link back to Nolan’s schedule and a twitter feed straight from Nolan. Stay in touch!

I’m not sure how they do it, but somehow everyone involved in the Grain process can pull off the impossible at the last minute. This seems to be the norm around the shop lately. Once the Rollin Nolan East Coast Ramble was decided on, it was full steam ahead making things happen, the biggest being outfitting the Pug for one man’s journey from Maine to the Outer Banks. This was no small feat considering the condition it was in just two weeks ago. Along with this, schedules were set, posters were made, new web pages designed, hell Nolan even got his own surf wax for the trip, thanks to Jimbo’s.
PowerMike put many hours into rewiring the main panel for the Pug. Brad and his wing-woman Alex pulled all-nighters working on the wood paneling, new awning, roofracks, auxiliary wiring for interior and exterior lighting, stereo, sink, stove etc. Mike, John and Nolan worked on truck details, kept the shop running smooth with orders in and out, and even started a board-building class amongst the chaos. Tyler in Portland designed posters and managed countless other details. All the while, I was roaming around the shop with my camera, observing in awe how all this stuff get’s done when a group of people put their heads together for the love of wooden surfboards.
Follow Nolan as he makes his way down the coast, stopping for shop visits and beach cleanups along the way. You may find him roadside working on his 5’4 fish or the Pug if it needs it.

We just added The Pump House in Orleans Mass, Sick Day Surf Shop in Wellfleet Mass and Air and Speed in Montauk to the list of shops that Nolan’ll be visiting with boards for people to try, discounts on kits, board building demonstrations, free Rollin Nolan organic surf wax courtesy of Jimbos Surf Co., and the chance to win a free kit of your choice.

Check the schedule often for details, locations and updates.

Nolan’s gonna be busy. Monday May 17th at 3pm come by Nor’easter Surf Shop in North Scituate, Mass. Then on Saturday May 22nd at 12 noon, Nolan and the Pug will be at Matunuck Surf Shop in Wakefield, RI, along with the gang from Endless Wave, makers of the Wax Buddy, the best wax scraper known to man.

Plans are coming together as we speak, so we’ll be adding events, beach and shop stops every day. Keep an eye on our site for more information, or just follow us on Facebook or Twitter.

Thanks to everyone for all their support. This is gonna be fun.

Nolan hits the road this weekend, but we thought a little shakedown cruise before the Pug puts on any highway miles would be smart. So this Saturday May 15th from 2- 6pm, Nolan’ll be parked in front of Liquid Dreams Surf Shop on Long Sands here in York Maine. His first official stop, he’ll be demoing boards, showing off the new digs and handing out wax. The crew at Liquid Dreams will also be firing up the grill so come on down and wish him farewell.

On Sunday, May 16th from 12- 3pm, Nolan will be at Cinnamon Rainbows in Hampton New Hampshire. Surf wood at The Wall, enter to win a free kit, chat it up and more. Look forward to seeing you down the road.

If you haven’t heard, we’re just 12 days away from kicking off the Rollin’ Nolan East Coast Ramble.

Who’s Nolan you ask? Nolan’s a Mainer, he grew up in Maine, was schooled in Maine, learned to play nice with others and discovered girls in Maine. Having graduated with a currently idle degree in Physics from Colby College of (yes, unbelievably) Maine, he now works day in and day out here in the shop… in York, Maine.

The newest addition to Sidehill Farm.

We figure, it’s time for Nolan to leave. For his own good, we’re sending him on a month-plus long surf trip. Our goal? Get Nolan to the Outer Banks of North Carolina and back with more stories to tell than he ever could collect here at home.

In our ’66 bread van (the Pug), he’ll take a pile of our surfboards, some schwag and some tunes and hit the road for parts unknown – at least unknown to him. To convince him to leave Maine for a change, we’ve told him the east coast’s beaches need to be cleaned up, and he’s got the job. Sure, it may seem like an impossible task, but hopefully he’ll connect with people along the way who want to help.

He’ll also be stopping along the way to surf and give people a chance to try our boards. Not wanting to loose his touch with a spokeshave he’ll be building a 5’4″ Waka roadside, so if you’re interested in the process or would like to get your hands on a kit, be sure to catch up with him. He’ll be handing out organic surf wax, and even offering 10% off all kits for people that come by to visit. To entice more people to keep tabs on him, anyone that stops by the truck can sign up to win a free HomeGrown Surfboard Kit, with the winner being announced the day the trip is over.
The Pug still needs some work…

Thanks Power Mike!

Thanks Molly!

Nolan’ll send updates to his schedule, video, pictures, and regular dispatches out over the internet each day, so you can stay connected through Facebook, Twitter and our blog. If you’re interested in being kept in the loop as the miles roll by, have a suggestion for place for him to check out, or you want to offer up a driveway to park in or a couch to crash on, please email Tyler at tyler@grainsurfboards.com.

Look forward to seeing you down the road.