# Lamar Brand Revival



## bakesale (Nov 28, 2008)

It will be a cold day in hell before I ride a Lamar board into it.


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## Xelorz (Nov 4, 2010)

Has Lamar ever been a real competitor? I've only been at this for 4 or so years and they've been garbage the whole time I've been around.


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## linvillegorge (Jul 6, 2009)

Good luck with that. I mean, their brand name is viewed as garbage by anyone with any inkling of knowledge about snowboarding gear. 

Not that it can't be revived, but if they really want to make a run at being relevant other than selling crap boards to newbs that don't know any better, then they'd probably be better off completely rebranding the company and basically starting from scratch. No one except those who really keep up with industry happenings would even catch on. In other words, 95% of the snowboarding world would have no clue that this "new" company is Lamar with a facelift.


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## bakesale (Nov 28, 2008)

Xelorz said:


> Has Lamar ever been a real competitor? I've only been at this for 4 or so years and they've been garbage the whole time I've been around.


maybe back in the early 90s when your options were Burton, Sims, 5150 or Lamar they made some money but they got left behind in board tech and manufacturing quality. Burton relinquished the other three to the dark pits of discount sporting good stores. Then a bunch of awesome new companies started making boards applying what those that came before had learned and just made it all better.


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## HouseMuzik (Dec 22, 2008)

Well, I'll give their boards a shot if they're at a demo I'm at. That said, if they work hard enough it can be done. Stranger things have happened


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## Xelorz (Nov 4, 2010)

I second the notion that they're probably just better of completely rebranding. Too many people would have a hard time accepting lamar as anything but crap.


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## jmacphee9 (Nov 11, 2008)

lamar in 1080 snowboarding was the shit! lol. it would be really interesting to see lamar pull this off but it will be extremely costly...with possibly no hope..


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## Method (Apr 3, 2009)

linvillegorge said:


> Good luck with that. I mean, their brand name is viewed as garbage by anyone with any inkling of knowledge about snowboarding gear.



That's the main hurdle they're gonna have to overcome. Their gonna need to do a shit load of PR and demo's to get the word out that they're upping their board quality.


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## HouseMuzik (Dec 22, 2008)

Plus really in the end they need to reach out to the MAJOR ski shops. Entice them to carry their equipment.. its gonna cost a lot of money just to get them in front of the customer much less riding em..


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## Cavman (Mar 1, 2010)

Years ago Honda made a Civic, it was a piece of crap. Subaru was not much better in those days. Then things chnaged and along came Honda Preludes and Subaru Impreza WRXs and so forth.

Mercedes cars are NOT what they used to be, but they have realised this and are changing direction to go back to the level of luxury and finish they used to have. Companies can change what they manufacture and their levels of quality. 

If Lamar produces a board that is equal to other top manufacturers then only an idiot with his head up his arse would not look at the the new boards. Prejudice can be blinding.

Good luck to them and all the better for us, that would mean another brand to push prices down and further selection for each boarder to choose from.

I think we will call the new board a Lamar Phoenix, for it shall rise from the ashes and smite thy enemies upon the snowfields of battle.


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## Snowfox (Dec 26, 2009)

Cavman said:


> Years ago Honda made a Civic, it was a piece of crap. Subaru was not much better in those days. Then things chnaged and along came Honda Preludes and Subaru Impreza WRXs and so forth.
> 
> Mercedes cars are NOT what they used to be, but they have realised this and are changing direction to go back to the level of luxury and finish they used to have. Companies can change what they manufacture and their levels of quality.
> 
> ...


At the same time, there's also all the companies that made pieces of crap products and never recovered. 

In all honesty, it could work. As most have said, it will be very hard to overcome the image the brand has. Time will tell if they succeed or not.


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## Cavman (Mar 1, 2010)

Just get Shaun White to ride their boards hehehe


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## JoeR (Oct 30, 2010)

TheMasterOfNone said:


> Fairly interesting read over at Angry Snowboarder. As a TL;DR Lamar is trying to revitalize it's image, create decent boards and is trying to sign up some decent riders. I think the interesting point he makes is if any riders today are willing to give the brand a try again.


Overcoming a bad brand image is only one hurdle for Lamar. The bigger one is probably establishing some _positive_ selling points, i.e., positioning the revamped brand in the market in terms of the _benefits_ it will provide to riders. Lamar will need a viable niche, and I did not detect any hint of intelligent planning in that direction in the article cited. The snowboard market is crowded (I realize that it used to be much more crowded, but that's irrelevant now). A new or resuscitated entrant needs an attractive "value proposition." What exactly will Lamar offer? An incredible price/performance ratio? Stunning new board technologies? Graphics from world-renowned artists? They need something to distinguish them. If the only plan is to offer a smallish line of decent-quality snowboards with several camber options, the new Lamar is doomed. The world already has plenty of lines of decent-quality snowboards with several camber options -- another one would simply disappear in the crowd.


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## HouseMuzik (Dec 22, 2008)

Like somebody said above.. "get shaun white to ride em"..we know thats not possible because he's so far up burton ass its not funny hehe.. they're really gonna have to steal one of the big names from the big dogs. That's the quickest way to get people back on their decks. A lot of people may hate it in here, but a significant contingent of snowboarders are riding a brand or equipment just cause their favorite pro is.. that brand placement can go a long way


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## Dano (Sep 16, 2009)

I'd like to see them turn it around, the more decent brands out there will make all of the companies strive to be better. However I don't see it happening, they dug themselves a very deep hole. In fact, after Option folded, I was amazed Lamer was still making moves. If I had to bet money on who'd loose their company, i probably would have lost my house


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## earl_je (Oct 20, 2009)

Lamar will be the next Hyundai...


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## Cavman (Mar 1, 2010)

Better than Dae Woo hehe. But yes I agree, Hyundai has come a long way.


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## mallrat (Oct 27, 2009)

For a little Lamar history, look at early Mike Ranquet and Don Szabo video parts, mainly in the Creatures series I believe or even better...

Jay Nelson and Gilligan Yoder's part in Anthem I think. Doing nose presses and butters on the Lamar Ranquet 162 (the guitar board) the heaviest and stiffest thing I ever ridden, crazy skill.


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## mallrat (Oct 27, 2009)

Here you go...

YouTube - Plaster Caster Snowboarding 1993 [2 of 3]

YouTube - Mike Ranquet Snowboarding 1994


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## OneManSteezKr3w (Oct 8, 2010)

Lamar should just start over, change the name and everything, cause there in such deep of a hole that i doubt they can get out


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## JeffreyCH (Nov 21, 2009)

Yeah I agree, they would have to change the name to have any chance at all. They can start making good stuff, but the amount of the crap they made in the past that is sitting around warehouses is gonna kill any chance of a revival. It would take a number of years before all that crap goes away, till then it will continue to damage their rep. Most of the time I see Lamar on the deep discount sites they don't even list a year for the model. Since they are trying to turn things around I suggest the name Ramal (first model "The Dessert Fox") :laugh:


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## david_z (Dec 14, 2009)

wait you spelled "Rommel" and "desert" wrong, but I like your style.

Then again, maybe you did mean "dessert fox" like with a big piece of German chocolate cake. mmmmmmmcake...


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## Cavman (Mar 1, 2010)

Just don't call one of the boards Hedley, as in Hedley Lamar - Blazing Saddles (1974).

YouTube - Pledge to Hedley Lamarr


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## david_z (Dec 14, 2009)

I rode one of their decks with Angry on Monday. Gotta say I was impressed.


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## Snowfox (Dec 26, 2009)

david_z said:


> I rode one of their decks with Angry on Monday. Gotta say I was impressed.


As I said earlier, demos are the way to go. Word of mouth can do wonders because it has such a greater personal and emotional connection rather than just another bought out ad in Transworld or another snowboard magazine. People start seeing you and other reviewers like Angry riding the board and actually liking it and they'll give it another thought at the store or website...

and then probably pass it up for something else. Let's be honest, it's Lamar. :laugh:


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## david_z (Dec 14, 2009)

Snowfox said:


> As I said earlier, demos are the way to go. Word of mouth can do wonders


Absolutely. Word of mouth will make or break it. They need to rebuild their credibility/reputation and that can only happen if they get enough people on their boards, and people aren't going to go out and drop $400 or so, they need to be able to demo them first.

I think Angry has ridden three of their decks so far this year so I'm sure he'll be posting reviews eventually. 

I rode the Click, and I've got the review pretty much finalized but I've got a short video riding it and I need to edit in some voiceover before I make it public.


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## Snowfox (Dec 26, 2009)

david_z said:


> Absolutely. Word of mouth will make or break it. They need to rebuild their credibility/reputation and that can only happen if they get enough people on their boards, and people aren't going to go out and drop $400 or so, they need to be able to demo them first.
> 
> I think Angry has ridden three of their decks so far this year so I'm sure he'll be posting reviews eventually.
> 
> I rode the Click, and I've got the review pretty much finalized but I've got a short video riding it and I need to edit in some voiceover before I make it public.


So out of curiosity, were you impressed because it was a legitimately good board or were you impressed because it was a good board considering it's Lamar?


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## david_z (Dec 14, 2009)

long story made short: I'd consider buying one; and I might do just that if I decide I don't really love the Bataleon that I picked up a few weeks ago. Course I'd have to sell that one or face the wrath of angry wife.

I normally ride about 161w. I've occasionally hopped on shorter boards in the past and never felt comfortable on them. this one was a regular 154, smaller than anything I've ridden, probably _ever_. So I had reservations about riding a board so short - if I'm considerably outside the size range for the board, it's hard to say whether I don't like it because of the board, or if it's just because I'm too damn big so I'm on the _wrong_ board. I wouldn't ask a semi-truck driver to evaluate a Prius, ya know?


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## BurtonAvenger (Aug 14, 2007)

Here's a quote for you "fuck this board I want that Lamar back I was riding" yeah that was me on the chairlift talking about a new 2012 deck that was sent my way.


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## john doe (Nov 6, 2009)

Whats the price point on these new and improved Lamars? If they are cheap and decent that could help me get people into boarding.


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## david_z (Dec 14, 2009)

john doe said:


> Whats the price point on these new and improved Lamars? If they are cheap and decent that could help me get people into boarding.


I think they top out at $450 for the highest price point others in the $300-350 range


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## OneManSteezKr3w (Oct 8, 2010)

i think these boards have potential check this clip out Park Day With Jake Black on Vimeo


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## HouseMuzik (Dec 22, 2008)

another way they could grab attention is by competing on price. They may have to in order to make a splash considering the damage done to the brand just to get them in rider's hands. Definitely going to have our people heading up to Stratton for the on snow demo get on these boards.. i'm interested to hear how they are

just saw davids post above.. oops. Well that answers that question. Pretty smart if you ask me.


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## soundwave27 (Jan 16, 2011)

john doe said:


> Whats the price point on these new and improved Lamars? If they are cheap and decent that could help me get people into boarding.


I'm brand new to boarding... and I'm loving it. Wondering what took me so long.

I have a mental hang-up dishing out money on rentals all the time, so I went to one of those "deep discount sites" and bought myself a Lamar Mission. It's one of their older cheap boards. I knew going in it wasn't a great board... but I have a seriously tight budget. I figured that to just get started I'd be more likely to get out on slopes if I had my own board, even if it was a discount brand.

On facebook I tagged a photo of my Lamar saying "To all my experienced boarding friends, yes I know it's not a great board, but let's face it, when I'm cartwheeling down the hill, the board doesn't really matter, I spent my money on a good helmet".

But after being out on it a couple of times, I gotta say, it's a decent starter board. I expect to replace it part way into next season once I have a bit of skill and know better what I'm looking for... but I think they are a decent way to affordably get into boarding.

I'm excited to get back out on it this weekend. Just gotta learn how to wax it now. Off to troll other forums. LOL


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## sabatoa (Jan 18, 2011)

soundwave27 said:


> I'm brand new to boarding... and I'm loving it. Wondering what took me so long.
> 
> I have a mental hang-up dishing out money on rentals all the time, so I went to one of those "deep discount sites" and bought myself a Lamar Mission. It's one of their older cheap boards. I knew going in it wasn't a great board... but I have a seriously tight budget. I figured that to just get started I'd be more likely to get out on slopes if I had my own board, even if it was a discount brand.
> 
> ...



haha, that sounds exactly like me. My budget is crazy low but I wanted to practice as much as I could locally so I got a Lamar Legend (I dont even know what year it is...if that even matters) and try to hit the hill around town whenever I can. I know people view it as a low-end board but I barely know what I'm doing, how the hell am I going to know the difference right now? I do look forward to the time when I can tell though.


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## david_z (Dec 14, 2009)

sabatoa said:


> My budget is crazy low but I wanted to practice as much as I could locally so I got a Lamar Legend (I dont even know what year it is...


Until this season they don't even have model years really, won't make much of a difference. 



sabatoa said:


> if that even matters) and try to hit the hill around town whenever I can. I know people view it as a low-end board but I barely know what I'm doing, how the hell am I going to know the difference right now?


Truth, you don't know, and you won't know until you're more experienced. You can snag a Lamar or some other cheap board for the price of a few days' rental fees. Even though it's a lower-end board, most rentals aren't very good either.


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## linvillegorge (Jul 6, 2009)

soundwave27 said:


> "To all my experienced boarding friends, yes I know it's not a great board, but let's face it, when I'm cartwheeling down the hill, the board doesn't really matter, I spent my money on a good helmet".


That's good stuff right there! :laugh:


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

soundwave27 said:


> "To all my experienced boarding friends, yes I know it's not a great board, but let's face it, when I'm cartwheeling down the hill, the board doesn't really matter, I spent my money on a good helmet".


:laugh:

There are certain tricks that don't require a good board, like double cartwheel to cab snow-angel, frontside faceslide, and the ever-popular backside 270 to faceplant.


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## alecdude88 (Dec 13, 2009)

i think they need to make an Isenseven quality film and upgrade their products BUT still maintaining decent entry level boards cause I'm sure thats where most of their profit comes from


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## Steery (Oct 25, 2010)

Haha, backside 270 to faceplant. Brings back painful memories of learning 3's.


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## soundwave27 (Jan 16, 2011)

Donutz said:


> :laugh:
> 
> There are certain tricks that don't require a good board, like double cartwheel to cab snow-angel, frontside faceslide, and the ever-popular backside 270 to faceplant.


I've almost got those nailed I think... but I'm going to try and practice to perfect them this weekend.:laugh:


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## danielle (Apr 2, 2009)

Ok, I will go out on a limb and say I do have lamar boards. They are for my kids, they do make cheap price boards that are fine for kids. Our first kids board was a burton but after that, we have only gotten Lamar since the kids grow at crazy rates. Spending hundreds of bucks on a board on a kid who is going to out grow it in a year is not cool. It seems that only Burton, Lamar and LTD only make kid boards. My 11 year is already on her 3rd board, good thing we pass them down.


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## SimonB (Oct 13, 2010)

This guy seems to think Lamar as become the cool thing again!!

Planche à neige!!!! - Ville de Québec objets à vendre - Kijiji Ville de Québec

Probably the funniest thing I have seen in a while...


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## david_z (Dec 14, 2009)

danielle said:


> It seems that only Burton, Lamar and LTD only make kid boards. My 11 year is already on her 3rd board, good thing we pass them down.


I know Never Summer makes a grom-sized Evo and there are a few other brands that have kids' sized boards but usually they don't have a full line-up, only one or two models so yeah your choices are pretty limited.


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## david_z (Dec 14, 2009)

SimonB said:


> This guy seems to think Lamar as become the cool thing again!!
> 
> Planche à neige!!!! - Ville de Québec objets à vendre - Kijiji Ville de Québec
> 
> Probably the funniest thing I have seen in a while...


Woah. That board is 15 years old if it's a day I lol'd at "Prix de valeur, $1,300" but they're selling it for $700 and it comes with a storage bag! Snap that up it won't be there for long!


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