Calibrated Wakesurfing at World Wakesurfing Championship 2007

[bsnook212]

Yesterday when I saw the post from ragboy, it up set me to the point that I emailed Calibrate and told them they were a$$ "h" and would never purchase one of there boards. I was surprised to see the email that I got back from them.

Ragboy, it looks like they are going to pay for any damages hope this helps. I still will not buy a board from them.

Attached the email.

Brent -



Let me first apologize for the actions of my colleague and team riders. I wasn't able to be at the World's and I'm just as shocked reading your bulletin as everyone else who has responded. I've had a conversation with Mike, who is indeed the owner of the company and he's quite sorry that you, and from what it sounds like, many other people feel disrespected by the stickers adhered to many of your boats and cars. I in no way condone the actions of my partner and our team even though there intent was light-hearted and in no way malicious. In fact, as marketing director here at Calibrated Wakesurfing, I would have preferred those stickers been put to much better use.


If you haven't already done so, please send an invoice to the Calibrated Wakesurfing office at:


4350 Balfour Rd.
Brentwood, CA 94513


We'll mail you back a check and some t-shirts for your trouble (which you can wear or burn, up to you).


Lastly, while the actions of the team at last week's event were uncharacteristically out of hand, Calibrated Wakesurfing is a huge supporter of the wakesurfing industry and helped to bring you the World Wakesurfing Championships as well as many before and many more to come. We will continue to be frontrunners in the industry and do our part to develop the sport. We do so because we love wakesurfing as much as you do and we sincerely apologize for making your experience at the World's less than pleasant.



--
Dave Gitlin
Calibrated Wakesurfing
925.216.9096
dave@calibratedwakesurfing.com








On Aug 27, 2007, at 2:12 PM, Brent Snook wrote:


You guys are *** holes for what you did at the World Wakesurfing Championship! I will never buy one of your boards.


http://www.tigeowners.com/forum/showthread.php?t=5086



Brent R. Snook | Snook Insurance & Financial Services Agency | 303-708-1207 | Fax 303-221-2201 |bsnook@farmersagent.com

[dtown]

If this teenage crowd is the kind of crowd that attends the surf events, it may be time to go back to slalom and hydrofoiling.

Surfdad - you have an awsome opportunity to set a precedent and make it know that this kind of behavior is not acceptable at "your" events.

[Surfdad]

Mike knows it, my position in this is very clear. I want it to stop. I have made every attempt to get the Garcia's and Calibrated square, not sure that is possible AND...I do not want any company to benefit from this sort of tactic.

I doubt that I can be much clearer than that.

[da.bell]

Surfdad, you have done exactly what you needed to have done. IMO, Calibrated should be given a second chance but if this tagging happens again, then they (or any other company in this matter) should not be allowed back to any event sponsored by you. When fliers or mailings for support is sent out to companies, maybe a note reminding the sponsors about conduct would also be needed.

Again, it's just my opinion.

[Surfdad]

Good point Da.bell. I honestly don't think that Mike planned this from the onset, I truly believe it was a prank gone bad, but once it got legs...my guess is that there wasn't a sense of urgency to stop any of the postings.

[xpjim1]

If it was a prank gone bad it would have ended after day one.

Too me Mike had a second chance already. Once Robert talked to him and Mike said he would take care of it and then stickered again shows what a total lack of respect he has for people and their property.

I do not think I would have the restraint that Robert had the second time around.

The bad thing is wakesurfing is in its infancy and events needs sponsors to run. I do not see organizers turning sponsors down for this. Maybe a few vandalism charges could slow it down. Just my thoughts.

[LovinPowell]

I just visited the Calibrated web site, not impressed. I've never ridden one of their boards, so if I had to pick a board based on their web site, it wouldn't be calibrated.

[ragboy]

Internet marketing is my business. In the end, threads of unsatisfied customers that go unchallenged are always a bad thing. The only way they are NEUTRAL is if that thread is closed off with a happy ending. I have seen companies spend 10s of thousands of dollars to try to target bad press from threads. The days of any press are good press are over. Traffic to your site doesn't necessarily translate to sales.

Also, my goal was never to HURT him. My goal was to show my kids there are ways to stand up for yourself, without being violent. Also, to show Mike, and others behind him, that customers have value, and they DO have a voice. The days, of "one customer ain't going to matter" are also gone.

Surfdad, I appreciate you, and your family. My kids look up to James, and I think you are great asset to the wakesurfing community, so please don't take my words in any way offensive to you. I just disagree, and I felt like it wasn't the best thing to do NOTHING. What Mike did was both wrong and illegal, and I hope the organizers pay attention to that. What I did was both civil, and legal, and the truth.

[Timmy!]

I call on this whole story ragboy! Are you sure you didn't stage all of this to get a free surfboard????

KIDDING!!!

Honestly I had never even heard of Calibrated until all of this....

[ragboy]

Yesterday when I saw the post from ragboy, it up set me to the point that I emailed Calibrate and told them they were a$$ "h" and would never purchase one of there boards. I was surprised to see the email that I got back from them.

Ragboy, it looks like they are going to pay for any damages hope this helps. I still will not buy a board from them.

Attached the email.

Brent -



Let me first apologize for the actions of my colleague and team riders. I wasn't able to be at the World's and I'm just as shocked reading your bulletin as everyone else who has responded. I've had a conversation with Mike, who is indeed the owner of the company and he's quite sorry that you, and from what it sounds like, many other people feel disrespected by the stickers adhered to many of your boats and cars. I in no way condone the actions of my partner and our team even though there intent was light-hearted and in no way malicious. In fact, as marketing director here at Calibrated Wakesurfing, I would have preferred those stickers been put to much better use.


If you haven't already done so, please send an invoice to the Calibrated Wakesurfing office at:


4350 Balfour Rd.
Brentwood, CA 94513


We'll mail you back a check and some t-shirts for your trouble (which you can wear or burn, up to you).


Lastly, while the actions of the team at last week's event were uncharacteristically out of hand, Calibrated Wakesurfing is a huge supporter of the wakesurfing industry and helped to bring you the World Wakesurfing Championships as well as many before and many more to come. We will continue to be frontrunners in the industry and do our part to develop the sport. We do so because we love wakesurfing as much as you do and we sincerely apologize for making your experience at the World's less than pleasant.



--
Dave Gitlin
Calibrated Wakesurfing
925.216.9096
dave@calibratedwakesurfing.com








On Aug 27, 2007, at 2:12 PM, Brent Snook wrote:


You guys are *** holes for what you did at the World Wakesurfing Championship! I will never buy one of your boards.


http://www.tigeowners.com/forum/showthread.php?t=5086



Brent R. Snook | Snook Insurance & Financial Services Agency | 303-708-1207 | Fax 303-221-2201 |bsnook@farmersagent.com

We have sent an invoice and note to Mike@calibrated. Still haven't heard anything.

[ragboy]

I call on this whole story ragboy! Are you sure you didn't stage all of this to get a free surfboard????

KIDDING!!!

Honestly I had never even heard of Calibrated until all of this....

You know, when I heard that surfdad was brokering that deal, I thought that could be cool, and save me 500 bones, since I am looking for a board for RJ. And I also was going to lay off posting for a bit. But that was BEFORE I realized the guy that did all of this was actually Mike, the owner. I had thought it was just one of their immature riders, not the owner. When I realized the guy that I talked to was the owner, the board didn't matter.

[dogbert]

Great response from their marketing dude...he clearly gets it. But, I agree with xpjim1, he's had a couple of chances by now. If it were my company, I would have publicly apologized and made good after the first day.

Surfdad, I'm certainly not suggesting you condone the behavior...just pointing out as an organizer, you have an obligation to your participants to make sure they are treated right. Clearly, this situation was not something you did, but it did happen. It's a PITA for sure, but you're dealing with it.

It's folks like Robert coming out with his kids that's gonna make the sport grow and create customers for Mike. Remember, wakeboarding once had a bad-boy stigma, but now it's all good clean fun. I'm just saying, organizers and sponsors have to make sure it stays that way or you won't get the momentum you're looking for. Like ascboards said, "can't we all get along". Mike betrayed that trust and needs to work hard to restore it and you (and the other sponsors) need to make sure that he does.

My advice for those guys is that they offer some sort of apology and work with those folks whom they stickered. Most of us are here for the fun and will most likely forgive those of us who occasionally do something really stupid. But, if you're arrogant about it, there's going to be hell to pay. It's the attitude we can all do without.

[Ks]

Bad press or good press a company like that is bad for the sport period!

When a company chooses a malicious act as a form of marketing, And it was ( these are expensive boats that people literally love) that company should pay heavy in a form that will directly punish them for their actions.

Surf Dad if I was you, ( and I think Centurion should be contacted as well) I would ban that company and team from the event(s) for a set period. The boards can compete with privateers but the presence of corporate tent or display would not be there to back up any results they might achieve.

Wakesurfing is young and now is a time to set ground rules for what will and will not fly at these events.

If this goes un punished now, just think what the "marketing"would be like in 2010 Would this idiot start hitting people over the head saying "buy my board"

[xpjim1]

Nice post by Mike over on wakeworld. He offers an apology.

[xpjim1]

Calibrated post on wakeworld

Mr. Garcia,

Please allow to publicly apologizing for this whole incident. It was simply just a prank that got a bit out of control. I never meant to make you, or anybody else, feel this disrespected. I am sorry.

This year during the height of the whole surf vs. skim controversy at the Centurion Spring Championships. We kind of started rivalry when we toilet papered the MoB Group, Shred Stixx, and the Wakesurfer Mag crew. It was all in fun and nobody was that pissed off. It was taken light heartedly and laughed off, just as it was intended to be.

Last week at the Worlds was supposed to be pretty much the same thing. Our initial targets were other vendors and manufacturers. We tagged the Shred Stixx van, Surf Tech, Roush, Vicky from kal-kustoms, and totally worked Bogdanoff and Oswald. It probably should have stopped there, this I now know. Getting everybody else was crossing the line, and for that I apologize. However, you must know that there was no mal intent. Nothing was placed anywhere that would damage a vehicle, it was all on glass and gel coat, and everybody knows that a sticker will not harm either.

When I got you the second time, I had the intention of seeing you at the finals that morning (maybe charging me like a pissed of buffalo) and cleaning up your boat. At that point it was just an extra ribbing to see if you would lighten up. I intended to clean your boat when I saw you. Once again, I am sorry.

To make amends I am boxing up and shipping out a 50” Lovett Pro for R.J. today. This is our top of the line freestyle model. It is a single fin pintail outline that has a divinacell core, carbon fiber and texialium glass, ABS rails, and epoxy resin, all the best composites we can get our hands on. This board will help R.J. to progress into the ripper that he is already becoming. If you don’t want it, sell it or do with it what you please. It retails for $420 so you should be able to get some cash out of it if that’s what you choose to do.

I would like to thank you for your understanding, and for your support of the sport. It’s dads like you that make it all possible.

Mike Armstrong
Founder/President
Calibrated Wakesurfing