Through owning and editing Breaks Magazine I get invited to a lot of press events, and as I'm 'lower down' the ladder in importance, (after Anna Wintour, FHM and The Daily Street), the events I get invited to are usually of the 'shop launch' variety.
These are simple. Launch a product in a store on Thursday night, provide free alcohol and invite down everyone you know with more than 500 Instagram followers. Hey presto, successful event. Such events are so commonplace in East London and within my circle of friends that every single Thursday in the 4 years I've lived in this city has become get pissed for free Thursdays - much to the delight of my bank balance.
This event however was to be a couple of notches above the humble shop launch. Timberland have decided that they would like to connect to the trendy taste-making media crowd in the hope of gaining some relevance outside of rappers wearing their boots.
The thinking behind the event was to set up a fun set of 'workshops' around some activities and call in the experts to host them. You're split into groups, you rotate around, and there's a free bar. Pretty foolproof to be honest.
So to attract the trendy crowd you had to cover some bases. First, cocktails. Lets learn how to make some proper ones! Unfortunately as myself and my non-alcohol drinking friend were late, we had to slip this bit, much to my disappointment.
We skipped cocktails and went to the bit I was really looking forward to - making burgers. And then eating them.
I didn't get a decent photo as I was busy pounding meat (wait, what?) but our host was DJ BBQ, who you may recognise from his column in FHM, his tenure as the host of Channel 4's 'RAD' in the 90s, or from his regular appearances on Jamie Oliver's Food Channel on YouTube. Thank fuck he wasn't wearing that dumbass leotard.
This bit was simple, make two thin pattys, put cheese between them, make one burger out of it. Cook, eat.
Helping us out was big Steve West, previous owner of two Walthamstow butchers, award winner for his lamb, and now head butcher at Jamie Oliver's Barbacoa restaurant in St. Pauls. He also told us smutty jokes and gave advice on how to hide a dead body, which was nice of him.
By this point I was starving and kinda sick of waiting around to make the damn thing. It was nice though.
The nice guys from Lovenskate were running the skateboard bit and it was honestly the most fun part of the night. I must admit thought that at this point I'd had a few drinks and skipped the lecture so I could write huge drunken odes to my hometown all over my new deck with a sharpie.
Props to Timberland though, they provided a decent set of trucks and wheels etc and I built mine up ready to go. I 'tested' it by almost knocking over a stylist trying to do a shove-it in the middle of the event.
Yung rogue fringe hair, Olivier (Fresh Habits) & Will (FHM).
This was the picture I took to check my camera was still working after I completely decked it trying to skate after way too many beers. Lesson learned. Cheers Timberland!