9.24.08 THE SUITCASE CONTEST: GRAND PRIZE TRIP
After two years, the Osiris Girls Suitcase Contest is now officially over!
With over twenty girls winning the vintage suitcase all over the country, we’ve been wowed and impressed by the creativity of the photos we’ve received. This year, we chose two grand prize winners because we just couldn’t decide on one. Both girls got super creative with their photo scavenger hunt and proved to us that they deserved a sweet all inclusive 4 day long vacation to San Diego, California. Rachel, 22, originally from Pensacola, Florida, was living in New York City at the time that she won the suitcase and took some amazing photos in the city. Lizzie, 19, originally from San Diego but now living in Northern California, also did a fantastic job. She managed to find awesome locations and get some rad photos in San Francisco and Santa Cruz despite not having car. Both girls excelled beyond what we expected and in return, we hooked them up with an amazing vacation that included a catalog photoshoot with the Osiris Girls team, a wakeboarding sesh on Mission Bay, a private surf lesson from Surf Diva surf school, tours of three different companies in San Diego including Osiris Shoes, Jedidah Clothing and Foundation Skateboards and a bed, yes bed, full of brand new gear. Check out the pictures and what Lizzie and Rachel had to say about their trip:
RACHEL
“This is Rachel, one of the Grand Prize winners for The Suitcase Contest. It’s her first time in California.” I was the girl originally from Florida who had never been to California in 23 years despite her love for surfing and creative influence from West Coast artists. All I have to say now after having made the trip is, “It was about time!” My Osiris Suitcase Contest adventure began in Fall 2007 in New York City, which is where I lived when I received the suitcase. Sent out to take photos in various locations including the Empire State Building, the subway, and on Broadway, a good friend of mine, Dawn Wonder, and I had our work cut out for us. The photo scavenger hunt took major time management, a couple hundred photos, and hours of editing, not to mention Dawn lying on the ground in the middle of Times Square to get the right shot (Thanks, Dawn!). Once I picked all the final shots and sent them to Osiris in the suitcase, all that was left was waiting for the announcement of the Grand Prize Winner. In August 2008, I received the call from Kim Woo, Girls Marketing Coordinator. “Rachel, we picked two Grand Prize Winners this year and, YOU’RE one of them!” I was ecstatic. I was not only finally going to California, I was going to California with an entire line up of activities planned and paid for by Osiris. On September 7, 2008 at 6AM, I left the airport in Raleigh, NC (I currently reside in Durham, NC) and headed west.
DAY 1: PLANE RIDES, SUSHI AND CRUSIN’ PACIFIC BEACH
LIZZIE
As I sit here in my cool new gear, I reminisce on the new memories and bonds I had made this past week. Starting out my adventure on Sunday I woke up and threw some clothes into a broken luggage case and packed my new Maher wakeskate into my torn up board bag. After getting all ready for my flight I convinced my ride I didn’t have to be at the airport until forty minutes before my flight. I know you should check in early blah blah, but I didn’t want to get there too early and have to wait. Happy to say I made it on just fine on my flight. Funny thing is I ended up sitting next to my dad’s old co-workers. Super small world. Anyways, once on the receiving end of this flight I was picked up by the Osiris Girls Team Manager Kim Woo and Osiris team rider Stef Tor. I then met up with the other suitcase contest winner Rachel. She was jet lagged and napping on a couch. The four of us were then met up with Osiris team skater Annie Sullivan and former Liquid Force Maven Team Manager Kathleen Penny and all of us girls hit the beach on boards and beach cruisers. After shooting the breeze and getting to know everyone, Rachel and I were whisked off to check into our hooty pooty hotel: The Dana on Mission Bay. Ending our first day out, all of the girls reunited for some sushi and yogurt.
DAY 2: WAKESKATING AND MODELING???? YUP!
LIZZIE
Our second day was probably my favorite of the whole trip. We set out for the Mission Bay Aquatic Center for some wakeboarding and my favorite, wakeskating. We met up with our boat driver Kenny Planas, who runs year round wakeboarding camps and classes at the Mission Bay Aquatic Center. I was pumped because this was my home turf. I’m not one to ride first but once we got on the boat (Kim, Stef, Rach, Kenny) I asked who was going to start us off and pretty much ate my foot. So I geared up in my new Osiris Shoes, set the rope to 65, told them my speed between 22-24, vested up and hopped in. The water was alright for the time of day we were riding. It was pretty choppy for 3/4s of the course but that for that 1⁄4 of relatively calm water, I was on. The water got pretty blown out during my set so we moved into the ski course. I don’t remember if Kim rode next or if Rachel did. I know that Kim rode solid on her wakeboard, pulling W2Ws and when we threw her a skate she was then accepted. When Rachel rode there was nothing but smiles out on the boat. She had rode maybe once or twice in her life but this wasn’t her thing. Stef gave some great advice and everyone just cheered her on. Mind you this girl is a TOOTHPICK, but she popped up first try. She was coached to go in and out of the wake. Super inspirational. I rode one more set. I went for an acid drop dock start. HAHA I figured that since I did it at Odub over a year ago I should be able to do it now. Not quite. Maybe a couple more attempts.
RACHEL
Stef couldn’t ride due to a broken tibia that has kept her out of the water for almost 8 months! =( I would like to say I did some crazy tricks, but I didn’t. I’ve only been wakeskating one or two times in my life about 4 years ago. Today, I became more comfortable on the board after a few rides with instruction from the girls. I even caught a bit of air a few times as I pulled in to jump the wake…and then fell. It was a blast. Wakeskating is definitely a sport I will be picking up in the near future, especially since Lizzie is sending me one of her wakeskates! Thanks, woman!
We showered at the hotel, and prepared for the catalog photoshoot. Hair and makeup were done for all five models: Stef, Annie, Lizzie, me, and team rider Karen Jones joined us as well. Kim and Nereida, Girls Footwear Designer, styled our outfits. The shoot took place on a rooftop in downtown San Diego. As the sun went down, we had an awesome view of the sunset over San Diego Bay. Our photographer was Dan Coronado. The shoot lasted a good four hours. It was lots of waiting around and lots of shots, but also LOTS of fun. The music was pumping as were we from all the Red Bull we drank, so we just laughed, goofed off, and enjoyed each other’s company. After the shoot was over, we were all starving, so we grabbed some Mexican food.
DAY 3: OSIRIS HQ, SURF SESH AND FREE GEAR!
RACHEL
Today, we headed to the Osiris Headquarters where Kim gave Lizzie and I a tour of the Osiris office, and then the three of us and Stef grabbed lunch with Krista Poehler, Girls Brand Director. After lunch, we headed to Surf Diva surf school in La Jolla. Lizzie and I met our surf instructor, Marnie, on the beach who sat us down to talk about water safety, the parts of a surfboard, and surfing etiquette. After a minute, she discovered we both have experience and didn’t really need all the precursor instruction. I just wanted to surf. We had a good two hour longboarding session. I hadn’t longboarded in a few years – I ride a 5’6” BPC – but given the small waves, I was happy to be cruising down the line taking a few steps towards the nose…in California!
Afterwards, Kim and Stef picked us up, and we headed to “The Cliffs.” This was by far my favorite spot. We were on the top of a huge cliff that overlooked the Pacific Ocean. We could see Blacks, one of the best surf spots in the area, from a bird’s eye view. The sun was starting to set while we were there, which made for an expansive, beautiful sky with sunbeams shooting through the clouds.
LIZZIE
After dinner we were taken back to our hotel and Kim “had to use the restroom.” As we turned on the lights, we saw the array of new gear spread out so fashionably on each of our beds. My eyes popped out of my head. I had eight new shirts from both Osiris and UGP, four pairs of shoes, a crazy backpack with speakers to connect your ipod to from Fi-Hi Original Soundtrack, new Sector 9 wheels, socks, stickers, beanies, and belts. We were set with gear from Osiris as well as Stef and Annie’s other sponsors including Sector Nine, Liquid Force Maven, Zola Acai, Fi-Hi Original Soundtrack, RockStar Energy Drink and Underground Products (UGP)….so rad!!!!
DAY 4: JEDIDIAH CLOTHING, FOUNDATION SKATEBOARDS AND A MOUNTAIN
RACHEL
We woke up, grabbed food, and went to the Jedidiah Clothing office. This was pretty exciting for me, because I have been working with Jedidiah for a little over a year now but haven’t met everyone in the company or been to the office. (Obviously, since it is my first time to California.) Kevin Murray, owner, gave us a tour of the facilities. We learned about the screen printing process, previewed the Spring 2009 line, and hung out with many of the key players in the company: Kevin Murray; Sherri Murray; Kelli Murray (Head Designer, also part of the Osiris Girls Artist Series Collection) Kahana Kalama (Brand Manager) Jonathan Foster, (Photographer/Videographer/Marketing) Luke Floeter (Shipping) and Jennifer (receptionist). They are an awesome group with an awesome vision. I am so blessed to be a part of what they are doing.
LIZZIE
After Jedidiah, we went back to the Osiris headquarters in preparation to head out to skate at Clairemont Skate park. We were stopped by one small detail: none of us had helmets or pads. Instead we decided to head to the Foundation Skateboards Headquarters with William Prokop, Marketing Assistant at Osiris, located in downtown SD. There, Team Manager Eric Wall, showed us around and Rachel and I got to pick any deck we wanted from their catalog and take it home for free! Super awesome. Corey Duffel and Leticia Bufoni on the Osiris team ride for Foundation Skateboards. With everything packed up, we went to our last supper and then to the airport.
FINAL THOUGHTS….
LIZZIE
I just want to thank Osiris for this amazing trip to San Diego. I want to thank Stef Tor for tagging along and showing us a good time. I want to thank Foundation for the new deck. Thanks to Annie Sullivan, Karen Jones and Stef Tor for the awesome gear from their sponsors, Kenny at the Mission Bay Aquatic Center for the pull and photographer Dan Coronado for the amazing photos. Mostly I want to thank Kim Woo for putting together this whole production, all the free swag, showing me the parts of San Diego I haven’t been to, and for the extra day so I could be with family. Rachel: I’ll be seeing you soon and keep your eye out for a package in the mail.
RACHEL
The trip was unforgettable and reminded me of my passion for board sports, traveling, and the water. It was great to finally step foot in California, spend time getting to know San Diego, the people who live there, the lifestyle, and see the places people talk about. I made lasting friendships and started a network in the industry. I went around the US in less than a week: Raleigh, NC to Houston, TX to San Diego, CA to Newark, NJ, back to Raleigh, NC, and on to Pensacola, FL for a visit home. I guess when I go back to California people will introduce me as, “This is Rachel. It’s her second time in California,” or maybe it will start with only “This is Rachel…”
PHOTO GALLERY:
