It''s a great weekend to get out and skate with other girls and help those less fortunate - if you are in the Los Angeles/Orange County area you have two great events to choose from!

LA Girls Skate Sesh is having a get together at Compton Skatepark, complete with pizza, a game of SKATE, best trick contests, and raffle prizes. It all starts at 10 AM and if you bring 2 canned food items you'll score some stickers and a raffle ticket. So join some like minded girls and have a fun couple hours of skating together. These Skate sessions are always fun!

Makaha is having it's annual Bowl Jam at Vans Skate Park in Orange and they will be having girls divisions for best trick in street, mini ramp and bowl!  They are also asking you to bring canned forod for the Westside Food Bank drive that they are doing. It should be an awesome day with tons of well known riders competing.

We love that The Girl Scouts are doing ads and commercials featuring female skateboarders, and that the first piece we saw was on Relz, from The Pink Helmet Posse.  We can't wait to see the rest! Way to go Relz!

Street Angel Artwork is the property of Jim Rugg

We have been a fan of Street Angel for awhile now, especially since Jesse started wearing our Girl is NOT a 4 Letter Word clothes to skate and fight crime, so we were REALLY excited to get a box of rad goodies from artist Jim Rugg that was filled with Street Angel books, comics, and more.

In case you missed our previous post -  Jesse “Street Angel” Sanchez is a homeless skater girl and the deadliest ninja  alive. She's a kung fu master on a skateboard, and a homeless orphan failing 8th grade. She’s 12 or 13 years old. No one knows for sure because no one knows when her birthday is, including her.   In Wilkesborough, Angel City’s worst ghetto, Jesse Sanchez fights ninjas, drugs, nepotism, and pre-algebra as — STREET ANGEL!


The book is a fun and great read - especially if you have a skater girl in your life and need a last minute Christmas gift!  Our copy arrived this week and we couldn't put it down.

To get your copy of the Street Angel book you can order from any of these three online listings:

Amazon.com 

 

http://jimrugg.bigcartel.com/

 

http://adhousebooks.com/books/streetangel.html

 

You can also check out Street Angel on the web, Street Angel comics are posted online twice a week  which is an easy and FREE way to check out Jesse's adventures  http://streetangelcomic.com/

If you are a Street Angel newbie - use this link to start the comic series from the very beginning    http://streetangelcomic.com/comic/fist-fight-funnies-01/

For the latest Street Angel news and updates check out:

Twitter: @jimrugg​
Facebook: JimRuggArt
Instagram: jimruggart
Tumblr: jimrugg

We love Skateistan and all it does for girls skateboarding in Afghanistan, Cambodia, and South Africa, so we are happy to share this campaign with all of you. For only $5.00 - which is about the price of your morning Starbucks coffee - you can join their "Give Her Five" Campaign to help Skateistan raise $100,000 to continue the work they do for these girls.

Skateistan believes girls have an equal right to be safe, play sport, go to school, have confidence and become leaders. 50% of their students are girls. At their Skate Schools in Afghanistan, Cambodia and South Africa, girls are skateboarding and learning together in much-needed safe spaces.

From December 5th - December 31  Skateistan is asking the public to "Give Her Five" by donating $5 in a bid to raise $100,000 by December 31.

So donate $5.00 and put a card in your fav skater girls stocking, or gift this holiday, letting them know you donated in their name. Teach the gift of giving and help keep Skateistan running so girls can enjoy learning and skateboarding, in a safe environment.. 

Donate $5 at https://www.skateistan.org/donate.

Looks like Bowl-a-Rama in Australia is going to be bigger and better than ever for the girls this year! It all takes place February 18 and 19th - we will have updates here on USA times for webscast watching and more!

We're excited to see Team rider Poppy Starr Olsen compete along with Jordn Barratt, Amelia Brodka, Gracie Earl, Nicole Hause, Hunter Long, Allysha Le, Izy Mutu, and Sari Simpson.

More info at Bowl-a-Rama's site HERE

Esperance Skatepark Trip December 2016 from shredability on Vimeo.

Fun video on the Esperance Skatepark trip in Australia with team rider Poppy Starr Olsen and the boys, Jedd McKenzie, Zac Callahan, Tommy Tunnicliffe, Luke Ward and Renton Millar. Great to see a pro female skater included in this awesome trip - looks like Poppy got some great skating in and had tons of fun!

Help support downhill skateboarder Candy Dungan in her quest for a world championship this year, she can't get to where she wants to go all on her won - she needs a little help! Female skateboarders don't have the money behind them that most of the male skaters do, so any little bit helps girls like Candy in her quest to be the best!

Candy Dungan, 2016 2nd place North American IDF finisher, invites you to join her in the chase for 2017 Women's World Championship! 

Candy Dungan is a competitive downhill skateboarder from Denver, CO. In 2016, Candy raced the North American professional downhill skateboarding circuit (IDF) for the first time and placed 2nd overall in the Women's category and 33rd overall in the Open category. In 2017, Candy wants to race for the World Championship - but she can't do it on her own.

Join Candy in her journey chasing the World Cup, both in Womens and Open, by either purchasing a reward package or contributing to the campaign by January 4, 2017.

Rewards are available from $6 to $2,500 and include some of Candy's favorite items, memorabilia, as well as some opportunities to become part of Candy's circle.

This is an all-or-nothing campaign, meaning that Candy must reach her $8,000 goal by January 4, 2017 in order to receive funding to race for the 2017 World Championship.

Supporting Candy means supporting female skateboarding and media. It means supporting female empowerment, passion, and determination. Supporting Candy is supporting the dream of gender equality, and spreads the message that "yes, we can," because every woman counts. 

You can donate as little as $3.00 or as much as you want, and pick a reward, right HERE

What a great way to show your daughters during the holidays, what it's like to help another girl pursue her dreams.  xx

Check out this short new video showcasing Bella Kenworthy from The Pink Helmet Posse. Some great surf and skate footage of Bella from this past year. At only nine years old, this girl has some serious skills! Yeah Bella!

We are stoked to welcome 10 yr old east coast ripper Zoe Herishen to the Girl is NOT a 4 Letter Word team!  We have been watching this young girl progress for quite sometime, and love that she not only is a killer skateboarder, but that she also gets involved in planning skate events like the Chico de Mayo skate day she threw to help benefit GRO (Girls Riders Organization).

Zoe has been featured in photographer Christin Rose's photo project, #ShePlaysWeWin and in the rad campaign for Natalie Westling x Vans for Opening Ceremony.  Zoe just spent two weeks in California this summer where she competed at Exposure Skate, and then hit parks all over Southern California skating bowls with her West Coast friends.

Check out her team bio at the top of the site, to see what else this young ripper has been up to lately!

We are stoked to have you on the team Zoe!

Don't forget to register for the 4th annual Makaha Bowl Jam. This year it's being held at Vans Skatepark in Orange and there are WOMEN'S DIVISIONS!

You can register to skate street,  combi bowl or mini ramp  and the entrance fee is 3 cans of food to help support the Westside Food Bank!

It's based on "best trick" so you don't even have to have a full run ready - just throw down your best trick and show everyone what you've got!

Register NOW  at Makahabowljam.org

GIRL SKATE INDIA TOUR FULL MOVIE from Girl Skate India on Vimeo.

We've been following GIRL SKATE INDIA on their Instagram page for awhile now and are excited to see that their full video is now out!

12 female skateboarders, from 9 different countries embark on a skateboarding journey through India. This film captures the essence of the emerging skateboarding scene in India, and the perspectives and encounters through the eyes of female skateboarders from all over the world.  In a bus they travel with a filmer, photographer and skate yoga instructor to teach, do demos, build, and empower Indian girls to take part.

Please check out, and follow these rad girls on:

Website: girlskateindia.com/
Facebook: facebook.com/girlskateindia/
Instagram:  @Girlskateindia

Filmed and edited by Virginia Fernandes

Girls Mini Ramp Champions

Girls Bowl Champions

Girls Street Champions

Girls Street Champions - continued

 All images via CASL

CASL had its season championships this weekend at Woodward West and here are the results for the Girls divisions. Congrats to all the girls for a great year of skateboarding and thanks to CASL for encouraging more girls to skate!


 Girls Mini Ramp Champions 2016:

1st place    Jordice French 
2nd place   Ella Myer
3rd place   Quinne Daniels

Girls Street Champions 2016:

1st place     Skyler Chadwick
2nd place   Ella Myer
3rd place    Briel Weingartner

Girls Bowl Champions 2016:

1st place    Ella Mter
2nd place   Quinne Daniels

Huge congrats to our good friend, photographer Christin Rose, for this piece that Free People did on her rad movement #ShePlaysWeWin.

We are stoked that Christin included our team riders Kyra Williams (surfing), Emma Houle (skateboarding) and our good friends Quinne Dainels & Nora Manger (skateboarding) in this video as well!

Check out the interview with Christin HERE

Great video by V-Magazine featuring some of the rad girls from the GRO New York Skate Crew, Coleen Pelech, Ali Axelrod, Lizzi Reed, Cami Best, Jenny & Yaz. Awesome stuff girls!!

We are stoked to have our new Dusters California x Girl is NOT a 4 Letter Word "Gypsy Queen" longboard be featured on our favorite surf site, Liquid Salt! This board features art work by legendary dogtown skater and artist Wes Humpston - but jump over HERE to the  Liquid Salt site to read about all of its cool features!

You can buy it now at Zumiez on line.

Poppy with Her Majesty, Queen Rania of Jordan

Poppy Speaking at Halogen Australia's event

Poppy competing at King/Queens of Concrete Comp  / Photo Johnny Clash Harle

GN4LW Team rider and Pro skateboarder, Poppy Starr Olsen, has been having an amazing few weeks back home in Australia.

Sixteen year old Poppy spoke to an audience of over 3,000 people at Halogen's event in Sydney, AU  where she shared what it's like to be a top female pro skateboarder traveling the globe, as well as a jewelry maker and artist, and how she uses her art to help fund her travels.

Next up on her busy agenda was meeting Queen Rania of Jordan, where Poppy presented and spoke to Her Majesty about her experiences and business achievements, and how being the first graduate of the initiative Club Kid Preneur helped her achieve her goals.

Last but not least, Poppy was back on her board and competing at the King/Queens of Concrete competition in Sydney where she took 1st place in women's bowl. Congrats Poppy!

We're looking forward to seeing Poppy back out here in California in January for the Vans Girls Combi Contest!

The Dusters California x Girl is NOT a 4 Letter Word "It's Not About Pretty" cruiser  board is available at ZUMIEZ stores and online and they have FREE shipping today! You can get it HERE

Our new Dusters California x Girl is NOT a 4 Letter Word collab board featuring legendary Dogtown artist Wes Humpston's art work is also available at Zumiez stores as well as online, with FREE shipping today for Cyber Monday.

We are stoked that Zumiez has added this board as one of it's BEST GIFT items for the holiday season - and you can get it HERE

We are proud to say that both these boards give a portion of their proceeds back to Exposure Skate a 501c3 non-profit that helps girls in skateboarding.

We are also having a Cyber Monday special over at our Girl is NOT a 4 Letter Word online store - get 20% off your entire order when you use the code SHOP20 at check out. Save on all our new kids apparel, women's tees. bags, hats, beanies, buttons and more.

We have items ranging from $6.00 (the buttons make great stocking stuffers!) to hats and tee's all the way up to our one of a kind vintage denim vests at $75.00 if you want to splurge, and of course hats and tee's at various prices in between!

If you want to see more flannels or denim vests  in your size -  please shoot us an email at cindy@girlisnota4letterword.com and we will be happy to show you what's not on line yet so you can get it before anyone else!

If you want your order shipped out of the USA - please email us at cindy@girlisnota4letterword.com with your order request and full address and we can give you an exact shipping quote! 


We are proud to say that our GN4LW apparel line gives back to girls in skateboarding by donating to causes and Go Fund Me sites that skater girls create to help them fund trips to film or skate, supporting female based contests, and events, giving assistance to any girl in skateboarding that needs help, financially supporting our pro female skaters, and donating product to 501c3 non profits.

Girl is NOT a 4 Letter Word started in 2013 and is still operating as  a Not For Profit company. We hope to continue that mission as we move forward.  Thank you for all your support!

Shop all the new Girl is NOT a 4 Letter Word Apparel line HERE and don't forget to use code SHOP20 at checkout today for 20% off your entire order!

Thankful from Kelly Slater Wave Co on Vimeo.

Yeah, we know it's Monday and you may still be recovering from a turkey hangover, and hating the fact that it's Monday and you just had 4 full days of free time and now it's back to school or work. That's why we're sharing this video from Kelly Slater's wave pool with you this morning.

Watch Malia Manuel, Coco Ho, Sage Erickson and Lakey Peterson catch some epic rides on a perfect man made wave. So the next time someone tells you something is impossible, you can smile and remember this video. People told Kelly it couldn't be done and yet here we are - top female surfers smiling on every single wave.

Back to Monday. Get out there, have fun and kick some ass right into Tuesday. You got THIS.

Video: AP/Caters

India's largest skateboarding park isn't in a big city, it's in a small village in Madhya Pradesh. A sport which has long been identified with urban neighborhoods across the world, is being used in a village in central India as a trigger for social change.  The skatepark is 450 sqm big. It’s the first park in rural India and it’s the largest one in India.

Ulrike Reinhard - a German national - established the skate park in Janwar, Madhya Pradesh in February 2015, with the help of a few Indian and international skateboarding organizations.

The region to which the village belongs is notorious for being one of the most socially and economically backward areas of the country. Untouchability, gender inequality, illiteracy, and alcoholism are rampant here. The film documents how the skate park is gradually changing the social fabric of the village and addressing some of its most deep rooted issues.

These barefoot children are a part of a silent revolution which is taking place In the small town of UP. Archaic social barriers are being challenged by the Adivasi kids who learn to skate board alongside kids from higher casts. This town of Bundekhand not only has a prevalent caste and class divide but also palpable gender stereotyping.

Thanks to German activist, Ulrike Reinhard and her Castle Skatepark, skateboarding has been the one activity that has brought them altogether, and where they can see that social standing and gender no longer matter.

Image via Nyjah's instagram

And yesterday, on Thanksgiving, Pro skateboarder Nyjah Huston and his team, visited the skatepark to not only support the kids, but through his water charity, Let it Flow, Nyjah and his team will look at ways to solve the water problem at Janwaar, as they have in many parts of the world.

Here were the "rules" for meeting Nyjah yesterday:

How to meet Nyjah

– Reach Janwaar Castle on 24th morning
– Get your badge
– Don’t drink. Don’t smoke
- And always, Girls first!

Got to love that last one!

Jordan Beal is the girl who is always making sure she promotes other skater girls on her instagram, she's the one at the skatepark smiling and having fun, and working hard at making skateboarding inclusive to all. She is definitely a 100% skateboarder just like the rest of us, but she is also doing things that help keep the girls skateboarding community moving forward and being shown in a positive light. From her blog, Skating Fashionista, that covers events, fashion, interviews, and skateboarding, to her volunteer work with numerous events, Jordan is a force behind bringing in brands that might not otherwise have been interested in using skater girls to promote their products. Read on to see how Jordan, at only 15 years old, manages to do all this plus attend high school. Pretty impressive.



Who's Rad?      Jordan (JoJo) Beal

Age?      15

Home is?         Cardiff 92007

Home Park or Skate spot is?       Carmel Valley Skate Park

How Long Have You Been Skateboarding?       4 years

What do you enjoy most about skateboarding?

 You can be as creative as you want plus it’s the best way to get to the beach quick.

Tell us about your board set up – what brand of deck, wheels, trucks? 

Arbor deck, Spitfire Wheels, ALWAYS clear grip with stickers underneath and Independent Trucks.

Favorite music to skate to? 

 I don’t like listening to music when I skate it makes me nervous.

Friends - Minna Stess, Arianna Carmona & Jordan Santana

 




Girls who skate that inspire you?

Minna Stess and Arianna Carmona because they kill it & if they keep teaching me I will land something amazing soon ;)


Favorite place you've ever skated? 

Carmel Valley Skate Park & Clairemont Skate Park because nothing is better than skating with friends.

Jordan and the skatercross crew

Who are your favorite people to skate with? 

 I like to skate with people who are skating for fun not just talking about it being fun.

Which female skaters inspire you? 

I’m inspired by Micaela Ramirez, the founder of Poseiden Foundation. I’m getting ready to go blog at the 8th annual Ladies Day at the Berrics. Girls who open doors and then leave them open for other girls are stylish and inspirational.

Way back when, Micaela opened a door for me by introducing me to Don Brown. He’s my spirit animal.

My interview with Micaela http://skatingfashionista.com/2016/10/poseiden-foundation-getting-ready-for-8th-ladies-day-at-the-berrics/

Sponsors?

As a blogger I have many supporters. My blog is about keeping it stylish on & off the board. I believe more girls skateboard when they see stylish girls skateboarding and get encouragement. I appreciate all the organization that have and continue to help me encourage girls around the world to skateboard for fun.     Here’s the link to the blog http://skatingfashionista.com/

I absolutely love people & organizations that share the link or re-post my posts.

Three things you don't know about me:

1. I’m dyslexic.
2. I find Facebook complicated. Why can’t everything be easy like Instagram?
3. I’ve been “moving” to Canada since pre-school.

Tell us about some events or contests you have been involved in?

I enjoyed volunteering for Clash at Clairemont X. I’m still working on finishing up a short video on why it’s such a special event and how the park positively impacts the community.

Much love to Morgnar who trusted me with the Active Ride SnapChat to cover SkaterCross on press day (a pre-event to Clash X). Also thank you to the Element/Etnies crew who challenged me to add videos to a post. I can write all day – videos that’s scary stuff, but with encouragement all things are doable.

http://skatingfashionista.com/documentary/
http://skatingfashionista.com/2016/06/clash-at-clairemont-10-the-skatingfashionista-recap/
http://skatingfashionista.com/2016/04/earth-day-2016-with-etnies-element-active-ride/

Jodan at the Ivivva event

Tell us how you came up with the idea to create a fashion x skateboarding blog?

I wanted to tell the world there’s no uniform in skateboarding. Plus I wanted to say what makes skateboarding fun is not how good you are at it. You can be the best at something and miserable, so why can’t you be OK or even bad at something and happy.

To me skateboarding and fashion are both creative outlets. I will definitely share my opinions – olive green pants are a must this year – but I’m about accepting whatever someone wants to wear. There’s no wrong way to dress or skate.

http://skatingfashionista.com/2016/09/red-bull-curb-kings-september-10th/


You cover brands, events, photographers, skaters – what is your favorite part of doing the blog?

My favorite part of the blog is I meet all kinds of people and get to share their stories. My hope is the stories I share break myths that exist about skateboarding, fashion, and what girls can do.

You like to make sure skateboarding is inclusive and that anyone can try it and get involved – what has the response been like?

Most people are very supportive, however, there are some haters. I blog about the supporters.


You have been involved with Exposure for many years – what is your role in that event?

I love to help at Learn to Skate. I go where Neal Mims tells me, he’s been doing this long enough he knows how to match people up. Plus working any event with Neal is fun. He loves skateboarding and his positivity is contagious.

Prior to the event I help promote it. I have an events page on the blog http://skatingfashionista.com/upcoming-fun-events-for-skating-fashionistas/ so it’s up there and I write posts on girls who share they are coming and on what’s new like this year the fundraising pages & the Yoga Challenge.

Post event, I write a recap of the event through my eyes and those who shared with me. http://skatingfashionista.com/2016/11/exposure-skate-5th-year-11516/ One of the benefits of blogging is you can update any time so if someone’s reading this & has more memories to share just let me know.

What do you like most about being involved in Exposure?

What I like best about EXPOSURE is it’s a charity event. I don’t think anyone wants to talk about domestic violence, however, it’s a real problem and Carol’s house offers women and their families a way out of the abuse. The proceeds from EXPOSURE go to Carol’s House. I was honored to help present the check at this year’s event.

Both founders Amelia Brodka and Lesli Cohen support all girls that skate or want to learn to skate. It’s amazing that it’s free to attend & participate.



Can you share with us what Exposure Skate is/does?

EXPOSURE Skate empowers women through skateboarding. They provide a stage at their yearly event so the world can see #girlscanskate, girls have a chance to learn to skate, donate proceeds to survivors of domestic violence and now have a monthly event called Skate Rising.

What I find amazing is that Amelia made a documentary, Underexposed and didn’t stop there. Many people will tell you about a problem and hope you fix it or it goes away. Amelia & Lesli created EXPOSURE to address the problem.

Jordan teaching at Skate Rising

Can you tell us about the new event you are involved with – Skate Rising?

Skate Rising is part of EXPOSURE Skate. It’s lead by Calli Kelsay. It happens on the 2nd Saturday of every month at the Encinitas Community Park at 9am. It’s targeted to young girls 5-18 and teaches them about a need in the community, how they can help through a service project, and then we skate.

As a blogger, I have overcome my fear of asking for anything, so I invite people & companies to participate. I want to stress that it’s not just girls that can be inspirational in teaching girls to be of service and help them skate. Jimmy Cao, Bryan from SkateXS with his entire team, & Academy Skate Park were on board from the start and help the event happen. I’m looking forward to when GN4LW comes.

The program started in August and so far I’ve been able to write a recap post for each session. This is the link to the first one & you can search the blog for Skate Rising to find the others http://skatingfashionista.com/2016/08/skate-rising-81316/

What’s Next?

I started a series of posts on my homecoming dress. I’ll be skating at several parks and then finding it a new home for prom. The first post is up and an upcoming post on Project Princess, who collects dresses for those who otherwise wouldn’t have a prom dress will be up soon.

http://skatingfashionista.com/?s=homecoming

Make sure you follow Jordan at:

http://skatingfashionista.com/
https://www.instagram.com/skatingfashionista/
https://www.facebook.com/Skatingfashionista/

email skatingfashionista@yahoo.com  -  but I just heard e-mail is old