While many know about 420, the cannabis holiday celebrated on April 20th, many are still unaware of the second cannabis holiday, devoted to cannabis hash oil and dabbing, celebrated on July 10th, in other words, 710. While I uncovered the creators of 710 back in 2015, rumors have persisted that it could have much deeper roots in the cannabis community. For the 15th anniversary of 710, I am hoping to put those rumors to rest.
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A Brief History Lesson on 710
I knew about the origins of 420 and the Waldos, I had written about the Waldos, and I knew there had to be a Waldos of 710 and I was going to find them. After a lot of research and sleuthing around online, I tracked them down to an online chat room in 2010. This wasn’t just any chat room though, some of the biggest players in early dab culture were gathered in one place. After many dabs and conversations they had the idea to create a new cannabis holiday and some new cannabis slang, something that, like 420, has come to be known around the world — 710.
Like 420, the creation of 710 was a collaborative effort of a group of friends, but within that group, there seems to be pretty strong consensus that Task was the main force behind the creation of 710. For those who don’t know him, Task is the founder of Highly Educated (founded on 7/10), the inventor of the carb cap and enail, and a skilled rapper with an entire album dedicated to 710. That album, called The Movement, is so named in reference to the “movement” of the time to smoke from 420 to 710 and has songs with names like 7:10 and Boil the Oil.
In his groundbreaking interview, Task shared with me how 710 was created and he shared the love rather than claim all the credit for himself. “I was there, but so was Chad Soren of Health Stone Glass, OG and Uthinksoo from Bee Hive Oil, Cole Ainsworth and Buddhacheeze, and Baby Kush (Paul Garcia), we all did it together.
“I was the one who suggested 710 because it clicked in my head that it spelled oil upside down,” said Task.
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Despite being the one to suggest 710, Task was clear.
“I don’t want to try to own it, it belongs to the community now.”
He was also realistic that this current use of 710 is clearly not the first time people realized it spelled oil upside down, it was just the first time it was used with hash oil.
Or was it? Could there actually be a much deeper historical connection to the cannabis community?
Grateful Dead, Grateful Dabs?
After The Leaf Online published my 2015 article about Taskrok’s creation of 710 in 2010, I heard several alternative theories. Some of them, such as the Motul oil company originating 710 because of their Motul 710 oil, did not seem remotely plausible (obviously they are talking about motor oil, not hash oil).
Other theories, like 710 becoming associated with hash oil because of the Grateful Dead, seemed much more plausible. It was a group of kids known as the Waldos who coined the term “420” to refer to all cannabis consumption, and through their connection to the Grateful Dead, 420 was spread to the world, so it wasn’t that far-fetched that these 1970’s trend-setters also created 710. It made even more sense because the Grateful Dead lived at 710 Ashbury Street, just up the hill from Haight. Serious Deadheads might recognize the 710 Ashbury house from the Dead and Company’s recent 18-show residency at the Las Vegas Sphere.
A Slim Chance to Prove The Rumor
The only way to know for sure if 710 had a connection to the Grateful Dead and the house at 710 Ashbury would be to speak to people who were there.
Andrew Bernstein, also known as “California Slim,” grew up in the Bay Area and met Jerry Garcia before his Grateful Dead days, when he was teaching Slim how to play the banjo. As Jerry Garcia became the charismatic and talented singer and musician we all know today, Slim was there in the background doing stage lighting at shows and operating the music venue Homer’s Warehouse. In addition to his connection to the Grateful Dead, Slim was also Willie Nelson’s pot dealer and spent many years on tour with Willie. He also frequented both the 710 Ashbury house and Bill Kreutzmann and Phil Lesh’s house in Diamond Heights.
“My association with the Grateful Dead was really at arm’s length,” said Slim. “I grew up with them and was there at the beginning but I got busy early on with our light show, Homer’s, and the production company.”
Despite being “arm’s length,” Slim spent enough time at 710 Ashbury to be “turned off to some of the stuff going on at 710,” such as heavy opium use and Pigpen drinking so much it soon killed him, adding “the music changed when Pigpen died.”
“I was more at Bill and Phil’s house up in Diamond Heights,” said Slim, “That was where I first got turned on to oil in 1966 or 1967, which was coming out of the 710 house.”
There’s one story in his book where they all got so high on hash oil that instead of getting high before going to a festival they never left the house. Despite the fact that oil was “not in abundance but always around,” Slim “can’t remember anyone using 710 in that way.” As he recalls it was “called hash oil back then.”
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The Waldos Weigh in On 710
In addition to speaking to California Slim, I spoke to three of the Waldos about the birth of a second cannabis holiday and if they ever heard anyone at the 710 Ashbury house talking about 710 in reference to hash oil.
As the guys who created 420, if anyone at the 710 Ashbury house created a numerical code to refer to oil, the Waldos themselves were likely candidates.
“I never heard anyone using 710 in the Haight Ashbury or anywhere else until a few years ago,” said Waldo Dave.
“I heard of 710 when we did a limited cannabis deal with Chemistry in Oakland,” said Waldo Larry echoing Dave, adding “I will always be biased to using 420.”
Waldo Steve added, “We don’t know the origins of 710 or the faces, names, personalities or story behind it.”
“We don’t really have any opinions on 710,” said Waldo Dave, “We’re happy they came up with their own version of 420. Every generation should have something that brings them together and fortunately 420 has crossed ALL cultural and age barriers to a worldwide collective in celebration of cannabis.”
“420 covers all aspects of cannabis,” said Waldo Steve, “We always thought of 420 as a joke, and we are happy that everybody has shared the joke, and the good times it has evoked.” For Waldo Steve, “420 has a heart and soul, it was born in a brotherhood, and continues along with lasting friendships.”
At this point, with three of the Waldos and California Slim confirming that no one at the 710 Ashbury house used 710 to refer to hash oil, it would appear that Task and the other folks in that Tinychat are still the undisputed creators of 710.
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One Last Dab
So, in the end, the Grateful Dead house being located at 710 Ashbury is just a coincidence and it is not why we use 710 to refer to hash oil.
As it turns out, San Francisco’s infamously ugly Vaillancourt Fountain weighs 710 tons, so look out for my investigation of that rumor next year.
*This article was submitted by a guest contributor. The author is solely responsible for the content.