We feel so fortunate to be able to build boards in such a beautiful place everyday that we love to share it. That’s why we love throwing parties, offering classes and premiering some of the best surf films to be released. Fall is undoubtedly the best season in the New England, it’s the payoff for putting up with the crowds, heat and flatness of summer.

So, in an an effort to top our fall parties of the past, we’re teaming up with Korduroy.TV to present, Surf Re-Evolution, a day of sun, surf, art and music, Saturday September 10th 2011

We’ve selected a group of innovators, shapers and forward thinkers to be part of the day as our guests and exhibitors. Everyone involved will be sharing their craft either in the water, back at the Grain shop on a farm in York, Maine, on the walls of a hay barn-turned-art-gallery, or during the festivities throughout the evening.

The event will take place at our shop nestled in the farmlands of rural Maine and at nearby Long Sands Beach.

Following a day at the beach with shapers, demo-boards, and sun, the soon-to-be released “Under the Sun” – a 16mm surf film – and “Manufacturing Stoke” – a film looking at sustainability in the surf industry – will be premiered along with a couple of hand-selected KorduroyTV shorts.

An art show curated by Corduroy Gallery and housed in the hay barn will feature artists that depict and revere waves and the sea.

As a bonus to the festival, we have partnered with two specials guests to create two new class offerings – an Alaia class with Jon Wegener during the days leading up to the event, and a one-day handplane class with Cyrus Sutton the day after. For more information and to sign up for these classes, visit Grain’s 2011 Class Schedule.

If you are exploring new territories with your surfboard construction or design and would like to be a part of this inaugural event contact info@grainsurfboards.com for more information.

The Surf Re-Evolution is sponsored in part by Liquid Dreams Surf Shop.

LIVE MUSIC, ART & THOUGHTFUL PEOPLE ON A MISSION.

We spend a lot of our time thinking about sustainability and feel pretty great that we’re offering surfers the opportunity to think twice about the environmental impacts of their surfing. But we’ve also had to come to terms with the fact that, at bottom, we’re making stuff, selling stuff, and shipping stuff all over the world. There’s just no way to do that and claim that you’re “good” for the environment.

So in our quest for improvement, a growing interest for us is the life cycle assessment of stuff. That’s a whole science that we aspire to get more familiar with, but in a nutshell it looks at the environmental impacts associated with all the stages of a product’s life – from cradle to grave. (check the Colbert Report video below)

Re-using the resource: Shavings being Pug’d over to a horse stable

What we’ve figured out is that most of us aren’t thinking enough about the waste part of that cycle – which is really one of the biggest parts of the global problem. So we love it when we can use something from the waste stream, or keep something out of it. And to complement our own actions we’re always on the lookout for great partners that think the same way we do. Here are a few we’re particularly psyched about:

Entropy Resins – they intercept waste from paper and bio-fuel manufacturing and use it as a base for their resins. We’re going to get to know these guys real well.

Eco-Gear Apparel – We just took delivery of our first order of T’s from these folks. The fabric’s soft, looks great and is made from waste trimmings from apparel manufacture. One hundred percent recycled cotton and soda bottles. Awesome.

SustainableSurf.org – Founded by a couple of sustainability professionals, this new group promises to set new evaluation standards for surfboard manufacture. ‘Bout time.

Somehow we knew, practically from day one, that helping others build their own surfboard would be a key part of what Grain would become – and a big part of our lives. Opening up our shop and inviting people to come experience the sense of accomplishment that comes with building your own board has turned out to be even more rewarding that we ever expected. Looking back over the last few years, some of my best memories are of the people we’ve met and the relationships that we’ve formed with other surfers from all over the world.

York Maine is long way to come for a lot of people, so a few years ago we started thinking about taking our show on the road. Thanks to some friends on the west coast, we’re going to hold our first Traveling Workshop in the fabled City by the Bay. If it weren’t for help from San Francisco Surfrider, Sustainable Surf and our new friends Jay and Piper Adams, we wouldn’t be able to announce the seven-day class to be held in Jay and Piper’s cool old firehouse workshop. We’ll keep updating details in a “Fracas in Frisco” Class Page so check back there for lodging and other details as we have them. Class dates are September 25 to October 1. We expect this class to fill pretty quick, so sign up soon.