Friday, September 15

Dudes! Party! Surfers and skaters kick off the three-day Surf Expo [2] in Orlando, Florida. Primers on merchandising and e-commerce are spiked with a mini vert-ramp demo, the Wake 'n' Bake Rail Jam, and board-sport fashion shows. Malcolm Gladwell will not be keynoting this one.

Saturday, September 16

At the London Design Festival [3], young designers gin up cures for modern "ailments" such as iPod addiction and celebrity obsession. The promise: a "revealing commentary on the 21st-century human condition." Uh-huh. Can they fix our BlackBerry thumb?

Monday, September 18

Satellite-radio cage match: Oprah Winfrey, XM [4]'s new heavy, takes on Sirius front man Howard Stern. Our money (and $55 million of XM's) is on O--but don't count out Howard's strippers.

Wednesday, September 20

The CW Television Network [5] launches today. Can this mash-up of the WB and UPN, which together racked up almost $2 billion in losses over 11 years, somehow achieve relevance, if not viability? Veronica Mars fans are on the case.