Back in December, our trusty videographer Greg Navarro took a trip down South to Louisiana to meet up with Sal Barbier.
If you aren’t familiar with Sal, he’s a pioneer from the 80s and 90s who skated for H-Street and Plan B. He also started brands like Aesthetics and created the “Sal Flip” on transition, and oh yeah, had one of skateboarding’s most popular shoes.
The Etnies Sal 23 became one of the most recognized skate shoe silhouettes, arguably changing the course of pro-model skate shoes. Think of it as the original Janoski. But considering all this rich history, we knew very little about Sal outside of what the old guy at the skateshop has told us and his Wikipedia page.
That meant we had our work cut out for us in the Bayou, but fret not, we got the goods. Follow along as Sal takes us around his hometown, from his first handrail to the local hobby store and go-kart track.





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February 10, 2025 3:01 pm
More!
February 10, 2025 7:53 pm
I know y’all was in NOLA for a minute. Can’t wait for the next La piece.
February 11, 2025 8:04 pm
Legendary guy. Iconic companies. Beautiful designs. Thank you Salvador.
February 11, 2025 8:44 pm
Had the pleasure of meeting Sal at humidity during the launch of his shoe. He took the time to talk and sign my shoebox. Solid dude.