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BLADE FINGERBOARD PARK 778-383-1199

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1754 West 4th Ave., Vancouver BC Canada

MFG Profile: Harfang

Harfang-MFG-Profile-HeaderEvery day we are faced with new products that beg to be supported. How many kick starter campaigns have you seen this year involving a newly reinvented skateboard product? It is rare that we come across something truly ground breaking and genuine. There is no kick starter campaign behind Harfang, only sacrifice and ingenuity. This small owner operated brand is currently helping pros like Patrick Switzer, Jonas Richter, Niko Desmarais and John Barnet just to name a few. His product has solved an issue that every downhill skateboard racer faces; racing in the rain.Harfang-CNC-Machin

A third floor apartment in downtown Montreal is the home of Yann Lhermitte, and the headquarters of Harfang wheels. The dedication Yann has to his brand is apparent the moment you walk into his house. His living room is a fully fledged workshop where he designs and manufactures one of the most innovative products in downhill skateboarding today.

Yann moved to Montreal from France in 2002 to study geological engineering. After years of hard work he landed a job designing and building hydro electric dams in northern Quebec. Though he was certainly successful, and had made his parents proud, he would eventually give up this job, favoring taking a huge risk on pursuing Harfang. It all began with a trip to compete in the European IGSA world cup tour. Yannā€™s inventive mind spotted an urgency to develop a product that was begging to be refined. Downhill skateboard races are rain-or-shine events.

Traction becomes the number one obstacle in the case of rain. Rain wheels, at the time, were not being professionally made. Only those who took it upon themselves to groove lines in their own wheels had the technical advantage. People would use box cutters, hack saws, or pocket knives to score the necessary grooves to gain traction in the rain. A light went off in Yannā€™s mind, and he returned home to the drawing board.

He wanted to go beyond what was currently being done. Yann began to research car tire treads and compared the physics in order to create a tread that was specific for downhill skateboarding. Keeping lines that kept traction, and removing lines from the pattern that were particular to slowing down.

He immediately bought a CNC machine. After 6 months of trial and error, and a rebuilt custom made CNC, he finally created something that went beyond his expectations. Yann soon jumped in with both feet; giving up not only square footage at home to a committed workshop, but also leaving his engineering job.

Harfang-Snowskate-DeckTrue innovators and visionaries have a different outlook on the world around them. This personality trait became apparent to me when I asked him what he thinks of all the kooky brands that are popping up right now. So many are trying to ride the wave; producing and reinventing downhill skateboard products. I was expecting an answer that would involve some pointing and laughing. Yann appreciates every contribution that is brought to the table. He told me: ā€œInnovators should always be welcomed. For sure some products donā€™t always answer a real need, but there is always something to take and learn from what somebody else has done. Even the kooky products have something behind it. Look at Shark Wheels; I donā€™t necessarily believe in the product, but from this we have learned about the possibilities of mold making. So, from a manufacturing perspective, even they have taken a step forward.ā€

This attitude and constant attention to the product, instead of opinion, is something to admire; it reveals the true nature of an innovator.

At this point Yann has successfully developed four separate tread patters for particular weather conditions. Currently you can make personal orders with him, and heā€™ll cut his tread pattern into wheels from most major brands. Harfang is about to release the rain-shedding patterns on their own wheels. These will be available in your local skate shop very soon.

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