21 Jun THE BEST FAMILY BUSINESS: FROM SKI TO SKATE – SANCHESKI X DREAMSEA
“Por amor al arte”. It is a Spanish expression meaning literally ‘for love of art’ and describes when you do something out of passion rather than for money. And this is exactly what keeps the most authentic brand of European skating alive after 50 years: roots, skate and passion.
Sancheski is one the pioneers of skating in Europe… WHAT? I hear you ask… Yeah, maybe you’re too young to know or you were on another planet. But don’t worry about that, because we aree here to tell you how it all began. As many with many good ideas, it was born from tough times: the Sanchez family started to produce skis in 1930 (sanchez+ski=sancheski. Just saying) and they did really well. But the situation changed when France and Germany started to overproduce skis with the economic help of their governments. So they took a rad idea from the other side of the Atlantic sea: skateboards. The old presses they had for skis were modified to produce the decks and the iron presses were used for creating trucks.
The Sancheski team, the Spanish Lords of Dogtown. They had their own team, a group of young pro skaters that went from competition to competition in a blue Volkswagen 67’. Every week Ricardo Damborenea, Pedro Aranzábal, Fernando Cortázar, Ramón Aguirre, Iñaki Beloki, Neme and Remy tried new boards every week in the same old installation we were this week.
From the golden 70’s to the Surfskate. Sancheski family kept on innovating until they created their best seller at the end of the 70’s: the Orange TOP. An European approach to the Australian Penny. The material and the tail was a new addition, never seen before in the Spanish market. Today, the brand is still innovating with the Slide or Surfskate. A new generation of skates where the soft trucks simulates the surf movements.
Dreams melted with memories. At the museum you can follow the technical and material evolution year after year. A scent comes from the wood, the hard work and over 50 years of blood, sweat and passion. And the last one, passion is exactly what moved Juan Pablo Diaz, Chilean pro skater and videographer to collaborate together this season with Dreamsea France. By the time he entered by the door we took him to the Sancheski Factory so he could let out all the love he has for skating. For us, the factory is a time machine. It takes us to a place where roots, hard work, passion and art are still essential to survive.
Thank you Iciar and all the Sancheski family. Happy 50 anniversary!
