DANVILLE — Instead of a CD release, Van Wagner held a skateboard release party.
He introduced the crowd last week at an Elk Creek Cafe concert in Millheim to an "Ash to Ash" skateboard to draw attention to the plight of ash trees being killed by the invasive emerald ash borer beetle.
In a week, 20 of the 100 skateboards have been sold with a man from Hazleton requesting 10, said Wagner, of the Danville area, who teaches environmental science at Lewisburg Area High School. He is also a musician, songwriter and organizer of the Danville Heritage Festival.
About two years ago, he started calling manufacturers about the possibility of making a skateboard from ash. Most of them told him skateboards are made from maple. "The baseball player in me knows that ash is a lightweight wood and a hard wood," he said.
He has an ash skateboard that isn't numbered or signed. He will autograph, under his printed name on the board, when 100 have been sold.
The skateboards are maple on top and ash on the bottom.
Wyeth Martin, a 17-year-old junior at Lewisburg Area High School, has the skateboard numbered 1. Wyeth, a member of the Lewisburg Skate Club, said the board feels similar to most skateboards, but "you can feel them pop more when doing ollies and other tricks. They stand out at the skate park because of the different shape and the graphics. It's also so cool to be able to tell others that these boards are the first ever skateboards made from ash."
"I think these skateboards are a great way that people can take a step toward making a difference and helping the environment while still doing something that they love," he said.
Wagner said some people bought the skateboard decks to hang on their walls. The board depicts green ash leaves at the top and literal ashes in the shape of ash leaves at the bottom, said Wagner, who has skated on his board at the Danville skate park.
He worked on the design with the owner of Penns Wood skateboard manufacturer in Oil City. "To the best of my knowledge, it is the first custom skateboard to come out of Danville," he said.
The artwork draws attention to what is going on in our forests, he said.
The ash for the decks comes from salvaged ash lumber harvested before it was destroyed by the borer and brought by accident to this country in shipping containers, he said.
"This is the worst thing I have seen in my lifetime to hit forests. Ash trees on my property were wiped out in a few months," he said.
According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the borer, from Asia, has destroyed tens of millions of ash trees in 30 states in the country. It was first discovered in Michigan in 2002 and in western Pennsylvania in 2007.
Wagner has found a small ash tree near his home. He said the insects attack larger trees.
"I hope we can learn from this that we need to be more careful with our forests. Our forests are under constant threat from invasive non-native insects and disease," he said.
"If a skateboard gets people talking about trees, that's what I want," he said.
The skateboard is inspired by 1980s boards he used. "When I was talking to the skateboard factory, the man said he had just done a custom order for the band Metallica and that he could make me the exact shape he made for the band." he said. Wagner had in mind a board he once skated on called Zorlac Metallica.
Wagner said the Pennsylvania Hardwoods Council helped him connect with a manufacturer to provide ash for the skateboard mill.
The skateboard decks cost $40 and can be purchased at Ski Valley Bike, Board, Ski and Skate, on Mill Street.
Wagner will have some available at upcoming concerts, including Elk Creek Cafe May 30 and at 6 p.m. June 12 at the Iron Fork at Frosty Valley Resort.
They can be purchased from his website at vanwagnermusic.com. Shipping costs extra.
"It's not at all a money-maker. I may be able to break even," he said.
Next year, he may introduce a new skateboard from a different wood.