Rob Stuart and Randy Carnell, two Hampton Roads kids about to make a name for themselves, stood in front of a cement wall covered in purple and blue graffiti, atop a large pile of discarded 2x4s.

They bowed out their skinny skater chests. They held their highly-stylized boards with a daddy’s pride. They looked out into the distance.

“I’ve never modeled before,” joked Randy, 23, a fresh-faced guy who claims to not be sure if he was born in Chesapeake or Norfolk. “I don’t know where to look.”

“Let’s focus on that window,” said his more serious partner Rob, 21, a graduate of Catholic High in Virginia Beach.

They both stared earnestly at their next-door neighbor’s upstairs window. They probably should have been cracking up at the absurdity of it all. Instead they mugged like they were being shot for the cover of GQ.

**

And it’s because of that I’m-going-to-pretend-I-belong-here-until-I-actually-do attitude that makes me believe xvd Longboards, the skate company Rob and Randy own and operate together, is ultimately going to be successful.

To begin with, a good skater needs real conviction, and clearly that’s what these two have. As skaters they know that the only way to conquer a half-pipe is by dropping in. You can’t be embarrassed to fall if you’re going to skate.

Ron holding xvd's first ever board and the newer, flashier, perfected model.

But more importantly, of course, they’ve built a high-end product. Their decks are made of Baltic birch and bamboo that they buy down the street from their 44th St. factory and showroom. What makes their product special, though, is that they’re completely customizable: the shape, the graphics, the flexibility, which they calibrate based on the rider’s weight. For the gripping on the surface of the board they use Virginia Beach sand–talk about local and sustainable.

“It’s grippier than grip tape,” Rob added.

As much as I liked their boards, which look and feel awesome to my non-skating senses, and as professionally as they’d built out their space, none of that is what impressed me the most. What really got me was their accounting (no joke). They were flipping through their books, looking for a design. Since they’re young, and since skate culture has tended to have an over-riding stance of f-you-I-won’t-do-what-you-tell-me, I wouldn’t have been surprised if they kept their invoices in an old Vans shoebox hidden under an oily old couch. Instead they had a fastidiously-kept three-ring binder, with everything laid out all nice and neat.

“Look for the one with the paperclip,” Rob said.

Randy found it a second later: A pencil drawing of three gorilla heads that had since been sealed onto a board using exopy resin.

“Same stuff they use for all the yachts,” Rob said.

**

A detail of the graphics on an xvd board.

Like a lot of cool things–PCs and Nirvana among them–xvd Longboards started in a garage. Rob had bought a Sector 9 from 17th Street Surf Shop, and he just wasn’t satisfied.

“I wanted something custom,” he said. “I went to the Internet, and I couldn’t find anything.”

Only 19 at the time, he headed to his garage and went to work.

“We built them and rode them until we broke them,” he said. “And then we tried to figure out what was wrong with them.”

Rob sold his first board online on his 20th birthday. Soon after, their start-up reached a fork in the road.

“It was either stop doing it,” Rob said, “or take a huge leap.”

The parents helped, with the mind that a solid business venture would give them a practical education alongside their studies. They also found an investor in Chris Saufley, a friend of Rob’s family.

“They were very interested in building the best skateboard out there,” said Saufley, 40, active in the Navy. “I started doing a little research, and found that their process is unlike any other company’s.”

Saufley invested because he believes in the product, but also because he wanted to be a part of an investment he could actually touch with his hands.

“I think there’s a hundred percent chance they’re going to be successful,” he said.

xvd Longboards' storefront, located at 852 W 44th St. near ODU Village.

After the capital investment, Rob and Randy found their space on 44th St., a spot many AltDaily readers will recognize as the former home of Elm & Oak They chose the spot, in part, because they’re both mechanical engineering majors at ODU. They actually met in class.

“One day we went to a Mexican restaurant to feed off each other’s knowledge,” Randy said. The rest is quickly becoming if not history.

“They’re premium,” said Shane Driskill, manager and skate buyer at WRV in Virginia Beach, who carries the boards. “It’s probably the best locally-made longboards I’ve ever seen. Light years ahead of everyone else.”

Shane said he was cynical when the guys from xvd first called him.

“When they came in I just sort of rolled my eyes,” he said. “But as soon as the board hit the floor, I knew what I was looking at.”

Rob and Randy talked about how they’re friendly with the local police, a smart–and probably necessary–move in a city with a short history of supporting alternative youth culture. I asked them when they expect to break even.

“By the end of the summer we should be fine,” Rob said.

I hope so. Keep doing the damn thing, fellas.

Fully-loaded boards sell for between $120 and $280. Check their site for more info.