Girls Skateboarding in West Virginia

To complete the collage of #girlscanskate USA I tagged girls to find out what state they were skateboarding in, skate shops to see if they knew any skater girls, and yes boys who were skating in the states I was looking for.

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For the most part everyone was friendly & helpful. Except the guy in West Virginia who assured me the only girls at skate parks are girlfriends.  

That’s why it’s especially fabulous that I found hippiechick_soul who’s skateboarding in West Virginia via a skater boy – rastastar420!

One thing I’ve learned from skateboarding is there will be haters – from the people who say girls can’t skate to the people who tell you you’re not a good enough skater.

Everyone is entitled to their opinion – and yes I get it hurts when they tell you – just remember it’s their hate, fear, insecurity, stupidity, whatever.  Never let others tell you who you are or what you can do.

You get to choose who to surround yourself with – so choose wisely because other people’s attitudes can get on you!

I Like Hand Holding in Skateboarding

I’ve said it before and I really mean it – I like hand holding in skateboarding.

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So of course I like this picture from musiccitylongboarders.

Music City Long Boarders is a Nashville Long Boarding Collective on a mission to jump start the skate community in Nashville.

I think the jump has begun and I’m excited to see how their journey continues.

People can talk all day about there not being enough skaters in their area or girl skaters or bla bla bla – share your stories of how you share skateboarding because that’s how the world gets more skateboarders.

Become the Free Spirit

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Haileyjcarter captioned this photo You might as well enjoy life to the fullest and release any tension holding you back from joy.  Become the free spirit that is captured in you.

She’s right & she’s right if you’re in Virginia like her or anyone else in the world.  Listen to the voice in your head that tells you you are free and should enjoy the outdoors – the world is a beautiful place.

Hoehn Honda in Carlsbad Supporting Skateboarding

The Hoehn name is popular in San Diego – they sell all kinds of cars.  I think my favorite at this moment is Honda.  True I’m often driving around in a CRV but I also love how Hoehn Honda supports skateboarding.

Hoehn Honda LOGO

Hoehn Honda has been a proud sponsor of Aura Skate Park and now Clash at Clairemont 10 so I chatted with John Poulos, Sales Manager at Hoehn Honda to find out more.

SF: Why support skateboarding?

JP: Hoehn Honda has been in Carlsbad since 1975. We are grateful that we have been able to give back to the community that has given us so much. We are a company that wants to serve its community in more ways than selling and servicing Hondas. We have participated in and sponsored many charities, cultural events, and youth sports teams.

Over the years Hoehn has had the opportunity to service and sell to members of the Skateboarding community. Unbeknownst to us was how much Carlsbad was at the center of Skateboarding. It has become more mainstream and Carlsbad is home to many world famous skate parks.

Not until just recently has Hoehn ever had the opportunity to get involved. We now sponsor a local indoor skate park, Aura, and we are very excited to be a part of the Clash at Clairemont. We are dedicated to our community and the interests of those who live where we live and work. Skateboarding is another avenue for us to give back.

I love that answer. I think it’s important to be involved where you are. Know what your community is about and grow with it.

ymca cover

Would my dad have made me go to skateboard camp if it wasn’t close to my house?  Would I have skated if I hadn’t made the cover?

Probably not – when people talked to me about the picture above – they acted like I could skate so I started believing and trying.  That’s why I think this blog is important more girls skate/act empowered/support each other when they see other girls doing that.

I’m thankful there are lots of skateparks near my house.  It gave me the opportunity to learn skateboarding and because of skateboarding I get all kinds of opportunities.

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Really excited about Clash at Clairemont 10 – coming up quick Saturday June 25th. It’s my first year volunteering – I picked a good one. In addition to the previously owned Dew Tour vert ramp

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– the YMCA Clairemont skate park will be home to the first Skatercross course.

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Video of some Skatercross testing

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another video of testing – it’s so ready to make it’s debut June 25th at Clash at Clairemont – YMCA 3401 Clairemont Drive SD, CA 92117

And the entire Clash event supporting the YMCA and Grind for Life wouldn’t be possible with out generous sponsors like Hoehn Honda and all the people who come to the event. So thanks and see you all soon.

clash 10 year logo

 

GRO Celebrating 10 Years

GRO – Girls Riders Organization had a birthday!

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They’ve been inspiring, educating and supporting girls through action sports because they believe all girls have the potential to become confident leaders and makers of positive change.

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GRO supports all girls – the caption for above picture

This is a 65 year old woman on her first day skateboarding @cocoabeachskatepark At the end of the session she sat down in the middle of the park and shook her head. When I asked her why, she said she could not believe that she had actually learned to skate and ride in a skatepark. I tell people about this woman all the time.

and below from the festivities

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More girls skateboard when they see girls skateboarding and get encouragement – thanks GRO for making #girlscanskate visible!

Knee Sliding in Utah

Diana share this picture with the caption “Teach a girl how to knee slide and she can do anything…plus it’s super fun!”

utah jpg

It’s true – skateboarding has prepared me for a lot.  Learning that falling isn’t failure is such a life lesson as are knowing how to fall and when to ask for help.  Not to mention how important it is to learn how to listen and be open when someone’s trying to help you.

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that’s where the girls are training – you can also look for them on the slopes as they are proud shredbetties!

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From Diana:  I love skateboarding because it’s sooo scary and when I skate I have look fear in the face..conquering fear and ripping around the skate park is the most amazing feeling ever.   The rush of being scared to death, sucking it up and doing it anyway is the biggest reward in life. Sometimes when I take a slam skateboarding after that I can do anything!

Skateboarding also keeps me riding sideways and in shape for snowboarding.

I have found that when you get a group of girls together who want to learn how to skate anything is possible. These little girls find confidence they never thought they had and on top of that get to learn about their bodies, sweat, take falls, get up and have fun too!

Indiana Skater Girls Who Started a Skater Girl Community

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When you start a project like this collage #girlscanskate USA you’re never sure where it will take you.  You can be faced with some rejection, however, it’s worth it for the friends you end up making.
Ashley shares these pictures and below her skate story.
There is no doubt in my mind that skater girls are strong in Indiana. Ashley and her friend Erica go out of their way to encourage other girls.  Ashley even started a Facebook page so girls know where the other girls will be skating.
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The mission of the Indy Broad Squad is to connect with other girls in the Indy scene…to create a sisterhood where girls can learn from each other, not compete with each other. There’s a handful of us, and we all have our own style, our own backgrounds, our own moxy, and the true love of skateboarding. We invite all girls to vibe off our mojo and join us as we grow with our passion and skill. 
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on instagram Ashley &  Erica
Ashley’s Story
I got into skateboarding when I was in middle school. I had always been kind of tomboyish and when my brother started skateboarding I immediately took interest in it too. When I stopped following my dork of a brother around and made my own friends, I ventured outside of the tennis court by my house to actual skateparks around indy.
I think it was my freshman or sophomore year of high school that I went into a park carrying my skateboard and the first thing some little shit head kid said to me was “do you  actually skateboard?” in the most sarcastic tone I had ever heard.
I honestly never understood why it was so hard for dudes to encourage girls to skate rather than doubt they even have the ability. The older I got the more I realized this had a lot to do with age, maturity and competitiveness of little boys. I also realized that outside of skateboarding (because I didn’t know other girls that skated), no matter how old a girl was she was still competitive with other girls. Whether it be with beauty, weight, status, or stability.
I have always loved skateboarding because I didn’t have to compete with anyone, I wasn’t on a team that lost or won. But above everything else, skateboarding would always be there for me. It wasn’t some dude who would dump me or some girl who would stab me in the back. Good or bad times, skateboarding would never leave me.
A few years ago I came to the conclusion that there had to be other females around this town that had the same passion about skateboarding that I did. So I created a ‘Girls Who Skate Indy’ Facebook group so that I could hopefully connect with them and then eventually they could also connect with each other. Every time I saw a girl at the park I didn’t know, I told her about it. Now we use the group to let everyone know where we will be skating and when so if any others want to join they can.
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If there was one place I could find girl friends who didn’t constantly think they were better than me, it was within skateboarding. And I definitely have.
 
Photo credit: Nick Traycoff
Park: Major Taylor Skatepark