Words & Photos by Kristie GilesTravis Redd's skimpy Little Bo Peep costume rendered Park City speechless last Saturday at 4FRNT's commemoration of Halloween and "Shanghai Six." The proceedings might be a little blurry for some, but it was absolutely not a forgettable evening. While the sun was on its way out, the 4FRNT guys hooked up a screen for the underage crowd on a brick wall outside Club Suede. I'm not going to lie…the turnout was weak. But that's understandable, I guess, given the standing-outside-in-the-cold factor. Kids dedicated enough to make an appearance, however, were stoked on the free premier and scored some nice posters at the signings.

Upstairs and through the doors, things started out equally slow. About half of the people there were in the movie, but that made it cool for those of us who weren't. "People had an opportunity to meet the riders from the film while they were dressed up in costumes that weren't really symbolic of who they are as a person…or how they're depicted in media," said Matt Sterbenz. "It gave a little bit of light to the softness of their approach, and people feel more welcomed by that." Sterbenz came as a pro golfer, with Luke Van Valin as his troll caddy. Stefan Thomas dressed Quail Man, and Austin Ramaley, as "a clown with a really freaky mask." Colby West was Darth Maul for the night. Steele Spence, Andrew Woods, and Jeremy Nobis were too cool for costumes; however, Woods tried to redeem himself by holding Sterbenz's golf club for the second half of the evening. Josh Berman was some kind of nicely-dressed nerd, complete with thick masking-taped glasses and a "kick me" sign. Stefan tried to kick him at least once, but missed.
And then there was Travis Redd. "This morning, there was no way I was going to wear this," he said of his sexy girlish attire, "but three shots of tequila later, I started considering it...and five shots of tequila later, well, here I am." Drink specials and live entertainment from The Body prevented boredom while we waited for the elusive crowd to show. Eventually, they gave up and started the movie...but not without a product toss first. Berman, in a streak of philanthropy, tried to make sure all the scantily-clad ladies who "looked cold" got some clothes. This was nice, because I think most men would have thrown them stickers. While Berman showcased his latest, people filtered in like water (as opposed to molasses). They enjoyed the movie thoroughly, and it turned out to be what Van Valin called "a sensational evening…definitely more than the occasional Utah Saturday night."
After the movie, a costume contest ensued. The judging was like at the Orage Masters…but we voted by screaming, so maybe not. Anyway, it was quite entertaining--Van Valin certainly milked the crowd for all it was worth. There were shifty male hula dancers and cute girls who'd found creative excuses to show some skin…but in the finals, it came down to a numbingly-close race between Spiderman and a sheep fucker. A brand new pair of Dynastar Big Troubles was at stake. The crowd might have been a little bit louder for Spidey, but the sheep fucker was clearly more original. Redd was stuck with the decision. After a few dramatic moments of deliberation, he declared authoritatively, "I Little Bo Peep! I hate sheep fucker!" and handed the skis to Spidey.
Sheep fucker fans thought injustice had been done, but they were more amused than outraged. And as it turned out, Spidey rides for Dynastar. Since he didn't need the new sticks, anyway, he gave them to the sheep fucker. But benevolence is expected from superheroes, right? Intoxicants flowed into the early morning hours to the beats of live reggae from DJ Rebel of Babylon Down. "It was a lot of fun," Berman concluded. "Everyone there had an awesome time." National sales manager Jake Fuller said the show was a great way to celebrate 4FRNT headquarters' move from Tahoe to Salt Lake. And as Sterbenz said, it was also a nice highlight to the new snow in the mountains and the season that's just around the corner.