Introducing: The Drift

We’re excited to announce the launch of The Drift, our collaborative newsprint publication with Patagonia to celebrate all things snow. Issue 1 features Patagonia ski and snowboard ambassadors Caroline Gleich, Josh Dirksen, Gerry Lopez, Kye Petersen, Liz Daley, Pep Fujas, Forrest Shearer, Taro Tamai, Alex Yoder, and Aidan Sheahan. Pick up your Winter 2013/14 copy at select Patagonia stores worldwide.

For more information and to read the issue online visit: thedriftmag.tumblr.com and www.patagonia.com/us/sports/snow. For updates follow us @theusualmontauk, @patagonia #pursuitofpowder

Music: Jimi Hendrix Band of Gypsys – Who Knows (suonho raw-dub), thanks to Suonho https://soundcloud.com/suonho

Worn Wear, the Antidote to Black Friday

As an antidote to Black Friday, our friends at Patagonia recently released Worn Wear, a brilliant short film to share the stories of Patagonia customers and their beloved Patagonia gear that has stood the test of time. Worn Wear is an exploration of quality — in the things we own and the lives we live. This short film takes you to an off-the-grid surf camp in Baja, Mexico, a family’s maple syrup harvest in Contoocook, Vermont, an organic farm in Ojai, California and into the lives of a champion skier, a National Geographic photographer, and a legendary alpinist. It also features exclusive interviews with Patagonia founder Yvon Chouinard.

Watch the film: http://wornwear.patagonia.com
Watch the trailer:

#WornWear   #BetterThanNew    #AntiBlackFriday

One Year Later, Remembering Hurricane Sandy

One year ago today, Hurricane Sandy blasted the East Coast, leaving a trail of devastation in its wake. On this anniversary, we look back at our feature “Sandy From Afar’ in The Usual x Patagonia issue 4.

Continue reading…

The Usual in Canvas Magazine

We were stoked to be profiled in the ‘Draw your Life’ issue of Canvas Magazine. They swear they wrote about Emily’s illustrations and The Usual, but it’s in Japanese and based on the photos they chose of Emily, the text is more likely explaining to readers what not to wear. We’ll translate it when we get our hands on a copy.

Patagonia Bowery Surf Store Opening Party Tuesday, October 15!

We can’t wait for next Tuesday, October 15 for Patagonia Surf Bowery opening party! Join us for the festivities and benefit for Waves for Water, and get your free copy of The Usual x Patagonia’s surf edition. 313 Bowery @ Bleecker, NYC. 8pm onwards!

METALLICA: James Hetfield on Metal and Muscle Cars

Editor’s note: this interview was part of the magazine we created in collaboration with Metallica. click here to read the whole issue. Interview: Arye Dworken

Sometimes Metallica plays smaller venues to promote an album, other times you’re at the largest venues known to man, like those at a festival. They all have their own charm. We try to connect with the audience regardless of how many people are out there. I mean, stadiums are a reality for us, but we want intimacy. Ideally, we love eye contact, and sweating on people, and it’s easier to do that in a smaller club, but we try to do it everywhere.

 The Orion Festival must be a tremendous undertaking. Why would you want to get involved in that side of the business? We’ve been playing other people’s festivals for so long now. We did two, maybe three Woodstocks, and plenty of festivals in Europe. They’re a rite of passage and they’re historical. We wanted to create something like that in the States where we’re not focused on one particular fanbase. We wanted to curate some bands that are doing great stuff, so that someone could step out of their listening comfort zone and hear something new.

James playing his white Flying V guitar. Photo: Kevin Hodapp

Continue reading…

Spotlight: Chris Burkard

Climbing takes teamwork, especially when it comes to documenting the adventure. Chris’ image perfectly captures the moment when climber and photographer are aligned; with light, landscape, and emotion acting as collaborators for the perfect shot. Chris also recently won a Red Bull Illume award for his photography. Follow him @chrisburkard.

Photographer: Chris Burkard
Equipment: Nikon D300s, 17–50mm f2.8
Joshua Tree is known for its amazing evening glow. As the sun sets over the inland valley, it casts a warm light across the red granite. Rarely do I pull out a camera when climbing, as it has always been a refuge from my work as a photographer. But sometimes when everything comes together I can’t help it. Here, Jeff Johnson was working on a classic boulder—a classic Lynn Hill problem—that has become a test piece for JTree bouldering, known for its non-existent holds and stemming technique. Shooting bouldering is so much different than any other form of climbing: it’s more intimate. - Chris Burkard

Climber: Jeff Johnson
Equipment: 1 x Crash pad, 1 x Metolius chalk bag, 1 x La Sportiva shoes, 1 x Patagonia jeans, 1 x Patagonia merino wool shirt

Joshua Tree National Park, CA
33°47´18˝ N 115°53´54˝ W

The Usual reviewed on the Japanese New Yorker!

Living Legend: Patagonia’s Lynn Hill

Before the masses even knew about climbing, Detroit-born Lynn Hill was a pioneer. The Patagonia ambassador revolutionized the way people ascended mountains, and the notion of who could go up and down them, demanding equal pay and treatment for females in the field. With a background in gymnastics, her graceful style is that of a dancer, gliding up surfaces unthinkable by most men or women. She was the first to free-climb The Nose on El Capitan in under 24 hours, and at 52, she’s still inspiring us to tackle any challenge, vertical or otherwise.

Kansas City. Photo: Russ Raffa

Continue reading…

Don of the Dirtbags: An Interview With Yvon Chouinard

Yvon Chouinard has been wearing the same flannel shirt for 20 years. The 74-year-old conservationist, out-of-the-box thinker, athlete and craftsman is also anti-consumerism, always pushing Patagonia, the company he founded, to find solutions to the global environmental crisis. Below, we asked Chouinard what he thinks his legacy will be—turns out he “couldn’t really care less.” But we speculate it will be measured not by what he’s encouraged us to do more of (be in nature, be personally responsible, simplify) but by what he hopes we’ll do less of (buying, spending, polluting). In short, Chouinard wants us to stop being consumers and start being thoughtful global citizens.

Shooting line at Lago Fagnano, Tierra del Fuego, Argentina. Photo: Doug Tompkins

Continue reading…