All around the world are snowboard companies and in some cities like Portland, Oregon you have a variety of companies within a small area. During my trip to Portland, I stopped by the Bonfire Headquarters to find out what goes on behind the scenes at Bonfire Outerwear.
Designed for the rough weather conditions that hit the Northwest and with Mt Hood just a drive away it’s not hard to find Bonfire outerwear year round on the slopes.
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Bonfire Snowboarding
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I arrived at the Bonfire offices on Wednesday morning, still a bit sore from the snowboarding adventures at Windell’s Camp all week. Rian Rhoe was kind enough to give me the tour around the offices.
Bonfire and Salomon accolades on the walls
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The Team Manager desk
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Super friendly receptionists are the best
She did find me first before the twitter giveaway but unfortunately that didn’t count.
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The rad thing about Portland snowboard offices is how nice they are but also they don’t lose the casual fun vibes that snowboarding gives out. The Bonfire office was beautiful and each person had their own desk/workstation (some of which was top secret but up close I was looking at the 10-11 designs).
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Brad Steward (founder and president of Bonfire) talking with the designers
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I first met Brad at SIA this year, he checks in with the blog and is super nice to talk to whenever I see him.
I rode the Bonfire boots at camp all week, loved them and gave my feedback to Brad about the boots. The boots I was riding were in fact 10-11 Bonfire boots which was rad to try out boots that won’t be out for 2 years.
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A couple Salomon decks hanging out in the extra office room. The main Salomon office is located in France. Rian was telling me about her trip out to Salomon not long ago and wow it sounds amazing to have that opportunity and location.
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It was my first time being at a outerwear office which was cool because I’d never thought about a wall of fabric samples from each year until I got to see them in person. How cool to mix and match or just come up with new designs every year.
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Racks of Bonfire Outerwear
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Rian checking out the new 09-10 Bonfire site that is soon to launch, I got to check it out and stoked on what I saw.
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A huge thanks for Rian for taking time to show me the offices and be able to see behind a snowboard company that puts out great outerwear.
Rian
August 14, 2009 at 12:58 pmThanks for stopping by Shay! It was fun to show you around. You’re welcome here any time.
VancityAllie
August 14, 2009 at 1:04 pmTheir offices look amazing!
I would have sneakily put a couple of those rad coats in my uh…. pocket?
JT
August 14, 2009 at 1:10 pmI am a huge fan of Bonfire, especially their true-fit sizing! Thanks for the write-up!!
Brad
August 14, 2009 at 1:33 pmShay – thanks for being the first person to check the 10-11 boots out! You scooped the world! Nice to see you here in Portland, the City of Shred – Brad
courtney
August 14, 2009 at 1:37 pmThe 10-11 boots look rad! How’d they ride? Do they fit like Salomon?
Steve Powling
August 14, 2009 at 1:55 pmBonfire is the truth, most likely the most underrated outwear company out there.
JT
August 14, 2009 at 8:46 pmSteve, I couldn’t agree more. One of my favorite companies period! I love my pants soooo much!
Hanh
August 14, 2009 at 10:21 pmbonfire is one of my favorite outerwear companes, nothing beats bonfire’s seahawk blue the color of the gold jacket you are wearing on your banner. i got a jacket in the colorway and i swear it for the stormy days, love it
Shay
August 15, 2009 at 1:48 pmThanks Rian and Brad! Loving the 10-11 boots!
Courtney, they were comfortable right out of the box. I didn’t need adjustment in them, lots of padding and seriously saved my Windell’s session. My Vans hadn’t broken in and were painful to walk in the first day.
Madeleine
August 15, 2009 at 3:40 pmLove my Bonfire pants. Even my husband loves his. How are the boots different from Salomons?
Weekender « www.ashleyswan.com
August 16, 2009 at 12:15 pm[…] Shay got to check out the Bonfire headquarters in Portland this past week, and I couldn’t be more stoked on this article. I think Bonfire is easily one of the best outerwear companies out there. All their products quickly fall into my favourites category after just a few short days of having them. I love the fit and the simple yet technical designs that they offer. Although I probably won’t be wearing their stuff this season I’m still excited to see it, and to see the 2010-2011 line next year. Shay did a great job of giving us the inside look at the offices, so head on over there and check it out! Shayboarder.com – A visit inside the Bonfire Headquarters […]
Brad
August 25, 2009 at 9:34 amHi Madeleine,
Saw your note asking about the difference between Bonfire and Salomon boots – thanks for asking.
We build all Salomon and Bonfire boots on the same lasts – and complete multiple rounds of prototypes through our Italian development office. As you can see, I’ve already got Shay riding proto’s that are pretty close to final – and I’m still one year out. I believe in having a wide range of people test and evaluate products – so having someone like Shay, who has no real interest in helping us make good products, is invaluable.
All final design of Bonfire boots takes place here in Portland. Basically, I wanted to take the fit of Salomon’s sewn liners and give a slightly softer exterior with Bonfire’s look and feel. The result is a group of boots with a very even flex, and instant comfort. I don’t like the idea of having to break boots in – with all the technology and fine tuning we can do with sewn liners, I don’t want to be responsible for even one bad day on the hill for someone who rides Bonfire. By using good materials and sewn liners we can give you a good fit – and limit breakdown effectively.
If you get a chance to try a pair of the boots, for sure post your thoughts – positive or negative. Bonfire’s been around for a long time – and we’re committed to making products better each season, so all feedback is valuable to us. Keep well, Brad
Shay
August 25, 2009 at 8:11 pmThanks Brad for coming by and answering that question, I really appreciate it and I was unsure myself of the differences since I had only tried the Bonfire boots.
I completely agree on the Bonfire’s not needing to be broken in, they really saved me at camp where I would have had to deal with breaking in my Vans versus riding the Bonfire’s and having comfort and fit right from the start. Looking forward to being able to ride them more.