The Rise of the Woman Skateboarder! PART 1

Women shredded in 2018!

One topic that I have been quiet about in general over the past few years has been the rise of the woman in skateboarding! Ironically, I haven't had much to say on record as of yet and I am just now forcing myself to process why that is.

It is NOT becuase I haven't been swept of my feet inspired by so many of these women.

For example, Nora Vascocellos is single handedly the reason why the color lavender has become a regular feature in my daily comfort-first, office-casual wardrobe.

Fashion and style are easy connections through the image of bad-ass female skateboarding pros, but we are just getting started. Countless women are emerging as forces to be reckoned with on IG feeds across the cybersphere.

The reason I haven't written a blog yet in 2018 about women skateboarders is NOT because I haven't been moved by the social action that skaters like Lacey Baker symbolized in the ground breaking campaign with Colin Kaepernick for equality. The Dream Crazy video and movement is long what girl skaters and athletes have deserved but been denied.

Lacey's story aligns perfectly for this message. Having followed her career for a long tome, I know the pressure she was under to look a certain way. Lacey was by far deserving of top status based on her skills, yet other women were getting the opportunities. Lacey was being passed by because she wasn't the look that sold. The fact that Nike took actions to align with athletes who "believe in something" and using Lacey to represent it was reinforcement for me that the era of the woman (and queer) skateboarder was bright, beautiful and here to stay!

Finally...

While I am genuinely over joyed  for the rise of woman in skateboarding, I am admittedly a little sad that it didn't happen sooner! Selfishly, (acknowledged) a little too late for my experience. For over 20 years now I have been in a class of really rare members (I felt) as a woman skateboarder. I was really feeling it in 2012, while I was pregnant and then becoming a mother to my daughter. Even more rare was I about to be as a MOM skateboarder.

Much respect is due to the women out there today as the first generation of professionals able to make it 100% off of dedication to skateboarding. There are a small few doing very well, and there are others keeping the fire a live while they lead normal lives around the globe. Moms, nurses, accountants, marketing professionals, designers, artists, models and students... Skateboarding is an acceptable activity for any of these types of women. This may be the first years of that being a true and relatable story for most.

I won't let my bitterness over having been born too soon stop me from pausing to appreciate how amazing these times are! On the bright side, my baby girl gets to live in a world where IF she chooses skateboarding, history can provide her some welcoming folk lore... something that wasn't really available to generations of women skaters before.

I am going to feature women skateboarders over the next however many posts and focus on different aspects about them that move me. I hope you will follow along if this sort of thing interests you, and I would love to hear from anyone who wants to reach out!

Thanks for reading. Next post will be a feature on the woman skater also know as the G.O.A.T! Can you guess who I am talking about? Leave a comment if you think you know who the G.O.A.T is!

2nd Annual #SkateforMark Memorial Contest

I'm going to tell a story with this post so if your attention span allows, prepare to read and scroll a little bit more than you are accustomed to.

I am not exactly sure which session it was that I actually met Mark for the first time. To try to spark a memory I went back through some old Southskate.com clips and found this gem... (I wish the quality was better) :-(

APK DIY Game of Skate from Kristy Cannon on Vimeo.

This clip has a fun vibe and I remember this day clearly. We heard that some APK kids decided to hold their own DIY game of skate contest at Piedmont Middle School in Apopka, Florida so Randy and I came to film it. Every one pitched in some cash, and in the end it was Nick Bush who won the purse, just in time for Apopka's finest to show up and rain on our flip trick parade.

The skate scene in Orlando and Central Florida was special back in these days... I don't want to sound too much like an old timer, but honestly if you ask some of the kids (now adults) that were around in these days they will likely tell you the same. There were DIY events like this going down, there were full length videos coming out every few months, tons of kids had cameras and editing software was available and easy to use, all the shops had stacked teams, parks were open for business and holding regular events and KIDS WERE RIPPING!!!

Mark Stevens was one of the rippers for sure. But Mark was different from the others.

It's no secret that skateboard scenes, especially the best and most thriving ones, tend to be somewhat "cliquey". Our excellent Central Florida scene in the mid 00's was no different. I mean, you have a sub-cult consisting of mostly adolescent males so it is not surprising... am I right?

Mark was above the vibes and the cliques. It just wasn't possible for him to think that way or to treat anyone any way but warm and friendly. He was everyone's friend so everyone could say they had a good friend who ripped the spot or the park or anything. He just wanted everyone to have fun and skate and he always tried to do amazing things on his skateboard. Every time he stepped on it.

His heart was bigger than his tre flip and his smile was more powerful than his pop. He left an impression on my life that will never leave me. And I know for a fact that MANY people can say the same thing.

Thanks for making us all better skaters and people, Mark. Your legend will never die.

We love you.



Shout out to Jesse Owens and Just Chill Lifestyle for this edit of the 2018 #SkateforMark Memorial Contest.  I truly hope this event lives on and the skate scene continues to benefit from Mark's love and life impact. On this day, we all #SkateforMark