Long before he was Jeff from Pantheon...
He was Jeff.
Not "just" Jeff, because he's one of those people. We all know one.
Naturally athletic, frustratingly casual in his good looks, an accomplished cellist.
The point of this newsletter is that we're now stocking Jeff's brainchild:
You already know that we only stock the good stuff, so read on to find out a little more about Jeff, Pantheon and a quirky corner of skate history...
I first met Jeff around 13 years ago in the humid air of Miami, lining up to race 26 miles of flat terrain on our longboards.
At that time he worked for Bustin Boards in NYC and had a big crew of heavy hitters around him. They weren't used to these free and easy closed roads - those guys race it out through downtown traffic, sending one guy in front to "block" each intersection for the rest to charge through.
With $10,000 on the line for first place, anyone who was anyone was at that race. Some had hungry eyes, others peacocked and paraded their warm ups in front of the TV cameras. Jeff was quiet, confident and unassuming.
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It was a time when the sight of these red short shorts would strike fear into the heart of any man, woman or child hoping to podium in a distance skate race. |
Alone on my first trip outside of Europe, I felt undergunned and unprepared. The months leading up to the trip I hardly touched my board, the pressure of the number 1 - and associated target - on my back being too much.
When I jump on my board I want to feel free - it's always been the antithesis of competitive sport. Pretty early on, I took "the winner is the one having the most fun" to heart and never looked back.
Nor did Jeff as he steamed past me on his way to victory and a cool $10k.
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And where did the money go? Jeff got laser eye surgery, a few new tattoos, and a sensory deprivation tank for his home.*
Rumour has it, Pantheon Longboards was born in the deep meditative state found within...
And so it is, (too) many years later that we've got a few of his shapes on our shelves.
Read more about them on their respective product pages:
- Pantheon Trip 33.25"
- Pantheon Nexus 36.25"
These are comfortable commuting and distance machines. Remember, if the thought of riding one (or your own board for that matter) for 24 hours is remotely appealing to you, you can get a 30% discount from the entry of the UK Ultraskate this year with the code: ULTRAVAN30.
Currently with ~5 hours in the shop enough to knock me out, I won't be taking on the whole 24, but I plan to be there handing out snacks and water for those in need.
See you out there,
Matt @ Vandem
*I was hoping to buy a Ford Capri, so it's probably more beneficial to both you and me that I didn't win on that day in Miami.
No more Loaded x Pantheon Trip. Now it's just the Pantheon Trip.
Same shape and similar construction - this one with a beautiful applewood veneer finish and classic Pantheon graphic. Higher consciousness concept credit to the aforementioned isolation tank.
The bigger brother with an extra 3 inches of standing platform and 2 plies of maple.
Sure the Nexus loves to push a long way like every Pantheon, but this one has that added old-school freeride/slide vibe, and I really like it.
Alex I
Stoked to read you’ll be at the Ultra Matt 🥰