Printed pants are official convention wear
By Mollee Francisco
Odds are good that John McCain will take the stage at the Republican National Convention next week wearing a traditional suit and tie.
But Victoria resident Bob Truax wouldn’t be that shocked to see the presumptive Republican presidential nominee donning a pair of patriotic Zubaz.
“I’ve seen a lot more unlikely people wearing them,” said Truax, who along with friend Dan Stock, founded the knit pant company known for its wild prints some 20 years ago.
Now, a year after quietly reintroducing Zubaz to the world, the zebra striped pant is back. To prove it, the pant has even earned a place at the Republican National Convention as official convention wear.
“We’ll be selling red ones, blue ones and red, white and blue ones,” said Truax.
The patriotic pants are not just for Republicans though, Truax assured.
“They’re a bi-partisan pant,” he clarified, adding that neither he nor Stock were sure which way they would vote in the presidential election yet.
If McCain does end up sporting a pair of Zubaz, he would not be the first politician to do so. Bloomington Mayor Gene Winstead showed off his stripes at a fashion show highlighting convention gear earlier this year. Former Minnesota Senator David Durenberger was a fan during their peak in the late 1980s/early 1990s. And, just to prove their political versatility, they can count current California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger (R), former Minnesota Governor Jesse Ventura (I) and even President Bill Clinton (D) as known Zubaz wearers.
“I’ve got pictures of Clinton jogging in them,” said Truax.
Truax said they were approached to be official convention gear as a well known Minnesota product.
“They were looking for things that scream Minnesota,” he said, adding that projections show they could sell thousands of the pants in conjunction with the convention. They’ll be sold at the Minneapolis Convention Center, the Xcel Center, the Minneapolis-St. Paul Airport and Love From Minnesota stores throughout the convention.
But will convention goers wear them? Well Truax wouldn’t put it past them.
“When this thing was in Texas, people were wearing 10-gallon hats,” he pointed out. “They get goofy at these things.”
As for the future of Zubaz, Truax said they are happy with how things have gone in the last year.
“It’s actually been really good,” he said. “We’re considering stepping it up.”
Truax said they’re currently working on adding embellishments to the pants to personalize them for schools and athletic teams as well as rolling out some other patterns.
“In our heyday we did 60 to 80 different prints,” he said. “We have archives of things we can resurrect.”