09/17/17

Back To School Girls Only Skate Jam

On September 10, 2017, Skate Girls Tribe organized a skateboarding contest at Lake Fairfax Skatepark in Virginia. Many girl shredders from the DMV area signed up for the contest. Prizes were provided by Vans and sPACYcLOUd and included snapbacks, sneakers, shades, stickers, wallets, bandannas, and string bags.

Skate Girls Tribe

With its central mission to inspire women in action sports, Skate Girls Tribe is honored to bring Girls Only skateboard jam and the creative culture of skateboarding to DMV.
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Winners of the contests:

Flow:
1st Mia Charles
2nd Pia Saclauso
3rd Sidney Ramos

Bowl Contest:
1st Alexis Williams,
2nd Mia Charles
3rd Pia Saclauso

Game of Skate:
1st Mia Charles
2nd Sidney Ramos
3rd Alexis Williams

Skate Girls Tribe

We are proud and inspired by all girls shredders who participated at the event. Thanks for making the Back To School Girls Only Skate Jam awesome!

Skate Girls Tribe

S/O to Castle IX, a media and music production team, for hosting the event. They helped with judging the contests and kept our ladies energized with fresh tunes.
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Thanks to Vans for providing awesome prizes.

Vans

Thanks to sPACYcLOUd for sponsoring and organizing the event and providing prizes.

sPACYcLOUd

 

08/31/17

Fantástico: Skate Girls Tribe Travels To Cuba ~ by Tati Kolina

Skate Girls Tribe took to the streets of Havana earlier this month, and it was truly a life changing experience. Before the trip, though, so many people warned us about contracting the Zika Virus, being arrested for simply being Americans, that we would not be able to get visas, not find food, and, most importantly, that we would not be welcomed by the Cuban skate community. In other words, we had no idea what to expect, but thankfully our trip surpassed all expectations.

CubaSkate0817-5

We stayed in the Havana, and were immediately immersed in their culture of art, music, poetry, dancing, architecture and historical monuments. It really felt like being in a 1960s movie, that we had gone back in time with the deep thrum of old Cadillac, Chevys, Dodges, Buicks, Fords and other cars that were brand new when John F. Kennedy was the President of the United States. We also saw Russian cars imported between  the Cuban Revolution in 1959 and the fall of the Soviet Union in early ‘90s. There were Vases, Jigulis, and Ladas which was a reminder of USA-Soviet Union presence in Cuba and the tensions were still felt in the air.

Cuban Cars

We arrived on Aug. 15, a couple of days before our skating contests and had time to stroll through Old Havana. We were directed to the Prado, that iconic pedestrian boulevard connecting Havana Harbor to the Parque Central and the Capitol building, a local skateboarder hang out. Cuban girls were very excited to meet us and our pro skateboarder Natalie Krishna Das.

Skateboarding in Cuba

After all of the warnings and advice from friends in the U.S., we were greeted with love and open-mindedness.  We had no translator and communicated with our eyes, body movement and hand gestures. But truly, we spoke the same language, that of passionate skaters who never take no for an answer. It was an amazing feeling to be welcomed by these Cuban girls into their skate scene.

Skateboarding in Cuba

At 11 a.m., on August 19, we held a longboard freestyle, a ramp jam and a skateboarding street contests.  The event was attended by a dozen of Cuban girls at the Cuba Skate Park in Havana, but there were also lots of boys. When we started the contest, boys tried to skate where we were, and made negative comments. In that respect, it felt just like home. And just like home, it didn’t stop us. 

Longboarding Contest

Eventually boys calmed down, sat down and watched us. Natalie did a demo and everyone watched with admiration. At the end each participating girl received a prize.

Natalie Krishna Das

We went to the Prado on the next day and were immediately greeted by a group of skaters. They were excited to see us and eager to learn new tricks. We did a skate clinic and taught everyone new tricks, a few of which were mastered by girls almost immediately. Once again we did not have a translator, but through their eyes we saw only one thought: “Please teach us more. We want to learn.”

CubaSkate0817-10

Since there are not skate shops and shipping services to Cuba are non existent, male skateboarders get skate gear from various U.S.- based skate organizations. That means that the girl skaters in Cuba receive hand-me-down boards from their brothers. Their skate gear is very old, many times broken and with tearaway wheels.  Some girls skateboarded in their sandals, and the next time we go, with support of Vans, we plan to take  tons of new shoes, and hopefully new wheels and anything else we can carry.

On our last day, we decided to give our boards to local girls who lived the next block from our airbnb whom we watched everyday from our balcony. They were playing on the street and, one day, two of them were sharing a pair of rollerblades, one was riding a left shoe and the other right shoe simultaneusly. There was no question: these girls have the right spirit and deserved our boards.

CubaSkate0817-3

We went to Cuba to inspire, encourage and connect with local girls, to tell them what they are doing is good and to keep believing in themselves. We came back with a great sense of accomplishment, and a deep desire to return. 

Cuba

Big S/O to sPACYcLOUd for sponsoring our trip to Cuba. This project was also made possible with help of Amberly Arlene Ellis, the director of the 2017 documentary film Hermanas en Ruedas (Sisters on Wheels), which closely looks into the lives of female Cuban skaters.

Thank you to all individuals and companies who made our mission in Cuba possible:

08/22/17

The RFK Stadium Skatepark was a Work of Art! – by Pia Saclauso

On Sunday, August 20th, Skate Girls Tribe was stoked to be a part of the RFK Stadium Block Party located in Washington, DC! Events DC has teamed up with a national visual artist, Naturel, who renovated the whole skatepark. The block party was to celebrate his project completion and included skateboarding, various family-friendly activities, live music, and a ton of giveaways! 
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The freshly renovated park was one jaw-dropping masterpiece! Skaters were totally hyped to be shredding Naturel’s piece of art that is collectively ours as a community!

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A ton of visitors came out to experience the grand opening. It was rad to see skaters grind on rails, do kickflips off ramps, and ollie off stairsets! It was a colorful experience which truly captures the vibe and the culture of DC!

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Skating RFK park changes the way people see art – it is not just meant to be looked at, but also to be experienced. Photo 20-08-2017, 10 34 50 PM
Skate Girls Tribe and sPACYcLOUd were honored to be part of it.

Skate Girls Tribe

08/7/17

“Breaking Down Walls” Was a Success! ~by Pia Saclauso

On August 5th, sPACYcLOUd hosted a fundraiser to raise money for Skate Girls Tribe’s trip to Cuba.  It was definitely a success – thanks to everyone who showed their love and support for the team! The contributors included family and friends but also local businesses such as Get Hemp Butter, Mellow Mushrooms, La Tasca, Cuba Cuba, Smash!, Bourbon, LSTN, Tenley Pop Dance Studio, Hemp Kettle Tea, and Embassy Suites.  Team sPACYcLOUd was stoke!

The event kicked off with the ragga jungle mixes from DJ Gogo Craig and DJ Blaze One from Tribalistix. They sure know how to get the party started!

Visitors were already making their silent auction bids as they jammed to the music.

The event also included “Hermanas en Ruedas” documentary screening by Amberly Alene Ellis.  The film depicts struggles of female skaters in Cuba, their personal stories on how they discovered the sport and unique challenges facing women skaters as their numbers grow.

The film helped us to connect to women in Cuba on many different levels. In DC or Havana, we see similarities in our struggles. Skateboarding inspires us to take action and make positive changes in the daily lives and keep our passion alive. It also helps to break down walls and barriers and allow us to understand one another.

As the auction came to an end, participants were hyped about receiving their items and everyone was impatient for the final outcome. The results? Everyone was a winner! We made new friends, got inspired by female shredders in Cuba, raised money for our trip, learned about Cuba, danced, and grooved. Every person benefited in their own way from sharing love and support for Skate Girls Tribe and sPACYcLOUd! 

Team Elephant is thankful!

Big “Thank You” to Local 16 for hosting our event! It would not have happened without them.

 

 

01/21/16

Skate Girls Tribe Snowboard Adventure

Snowboarding at Hunter Mountain, NY

Thank you to everyone who joined us for SGT Snowboard Adventure.
Snowboarding at Hunter Mountain, NY

We were blessed with good amount of snow, natural and machine-made.

Snowboarding at Hunter Mountain, NYWe had a great crew as always.

Snowboarding at Hunter Mountain, NY

It was a great bonding experience.
Snowboarding at Hunter Mountain, NY

This is Zoren. He is from NY. He is a very talented artist, snowboarder, skateboarder, and many other things. Zoren is only 13 but already has his own company called Style Pyle. Please follow him at Style Pile on FB and @stylepyle on IG. Snowboarding at Hunter Mountain, NY

We had couple of outings including a pizza night.

Snowboarding at Hunter Mountain, NY

Our snowboard instructor, Holly, was awesome! She was helpful and we learned a lot. Thank you Holly!

PS Holly has the greatest vibe and we love her!!!Snowboarding at Hunter Mountain, NY

There were different levels of expertise in snowboarding.

Snowboarding at Hunter Mountain, NY

Everyone was polite, patient, and respectful. Snowboarding at Hunter Mountain, NY

The Hunter Mountain resort had several slopes open and we had many options to pick from.
Snowboarding at Hunter Mountain, NY

Our instructor, Holly, is helping Anna.

Snowboarding at Hunter Mountain, NY

Thank you to everyone who joined us.

We are looking forward to our next adventure.