U.S. Open reaches the masses

Walking through the 14-acre home to the U.S. Open and its surrounding festivities last week was pretty eye opening.

I was there on Friday afternoon and the crowds were huge, and they had plenty to do – from watching BMX riders and surfers to winning free stuff at different booths.

Many chose to spend money, however, in the 6,600-square-foot U.S. Open retail store on the beach, whose cash registers were ringing non-stop when I was there.

Hurley, Nike 6.0 and Converse also had large buildings called “brand experiences” where beach goers could learn and see more about each brand.

Hurley continues to promote its Phantom boardshort series, which was a major focal point in the Hurley area.

Of course there was a lot more to the whole week – tons of performances by well known bands such as Cobra Starship and Weezer, the huge Walk the Walk national championships – and all of it was integrated and webcast pretty seamlessly.

Hurley, Nike 6.0 and Converse found a way to represent each brand yet still mesh together in a uniform look on the sand. It was a pretty interesting study in what is possible for an undertaking like this.

Last year, some store owners told me they saw a big bump in Hurley sales after the Open. I wonder what will happen this year, after an even bigger and better broadcast and integrated event?

Here are a few photos of what I saw Friday, as well as some photos courtesy of Hurley.