Rollin’ Nolan is on The Road
May 18th, 2010, by NickI’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.
May 18th, 2010 at 12:06 pm
What a tremendous transformation from rusting heap to surf truck Cadillac Extraordinaire. I hope Nolan has a GPS!
May 18th, 2010 at 8:53 pm
We also need to thank Bob, Nina, Tom, Molly, Nick and everyone else that helped us to get the Pug trip-worthy… it’s been four years that we’ve had this classic which we’ve mostly used locally, and it’s amazing to see it finally chugging out the driveway on a little odyssey with Nolan at the helm. Nolan’s mom provided the requisite hula-girl for the dash, and Eastern Mountain Sports the camping necessaries. For some reason, you all thought this could actually happen. Thanks everyone!
May 19th, 2010 at 2:53 am
Aloha form a little island in Hawaii! Here’s a shout-out to John Hamblett, a dear old classmate of mine. I love Grain’s “vision” and the boards are sweet! The Grain Van came out really nice, Nolan! Ahuihou Nui Loa, Sarah
May 19th, 2010 at 6:47 am
Great post Nick. Everyone involved definitely deserves a shout out for making this happen. Without all you, I would not be rollin’, that’s for sure!
And for the record, going right out of the driveway is just as fast as going left. Thanks(!) for all the supportive comments as I pulled away…
May 20th, 2010 at 11:43 am
Hey Guys
I’ve been so busy at the farm here that I haven’t checked in on your site to know about this rollin nolan trip. That’s awesome!! Hope to be invited to the welcome home party to see if the rebuilt engine held up. Good luck to Nolan and a shout out to the rest of the grain crew.
Tom
May 20th, 2010 at 12:22 pm
hey guys,
i’m in long branch, nj if you need to couch surf…got a decent break right out front..there’s a webcam of the break here: http://shakaeats.com/
-Dennis
May 23rd, 2010 at 5:32 am
Thanks Dennis… Keep in touch with Nolan as he gets closer. Tweet him an @reply @grainsurfboards and I’m sure he’ll get back to you.