Team USA's Jordyn Barratt on what it was like when she heard that the 2020 Olympics were being postponed.
Molly-Anne rolls into New Jersey and is met by Zoe and Matilda cheering her on!
We are super excited to announce that Molly-Anne completed her 800+ mile skate down the Eastern Seaboard! She has so many stories to tell - from being attacked by a Great Dane on day one, to horrible road conditions off and on, meeting some amazing and supportive people on the road and MORE!
GN4LW Team rider Zoe Herishen and her friend Matilda were in New Jersey to greet Molly-Anne as she rolled into her last stop of the trip. And they even got her to skate the local skatepark with them - so cool!
We are trying to line Molly-Anne up with a great podcast so she can tell you her story in her own words, because this is a story everyone should hear! We will keep you posted!!
Big congrats to Molly-Anne - skateboarding 800+ miles alone is a huge feat!!
Many thanks to Tracey Herishen for filming and editing this awesome video for us.
In case you missed the Smithsonian Museum of American History's virtual live opening of the new exhibit, GIRLHOOD (it's complicated) you can catch it all right here!
'70s skateboarders Cindy Whitehead and Judi Oyama both have pieces of their skate history on display in this exhibit and the prototype of the Dusters x Girl is NOT a 4 Letter Word board is featured as well.
Watch out for this display and special messages from Judi & Cindy at the 43:30 mark.
Make sure you RSVP and tune in on Thursday, October 8th at 7 PM EST / 4 PM PST to the Smithsonian Museum's National Museum of American History virtual opening event of "Girlhood (It's Complicated)!
Along with sports icons Bille Jean King and Allyson Felix, '70s skateboarders Cindy Whitehead and Judi Oyama will have messages for girls today and you'll be able to see some of their 70's skate items that are featured in this amazing exhibit!
The event is FREE and you can register HERE
Check out Team USA's Jordan Santana, one of the few girls doing 540's in skateboarding, on Whistle Sports!
Name: Elle Warne
Status: AM
Home: Salt Lake City, Utah
Age: 12 years old
Favorite Skate Spot: Alberton, Montana Skatepark. My local park is Vans in Salt Lake City. I also skate at Woodward Park City (my school is right next door to Woodward)
Favorite Trick: Frontside airs (Airs in general.)
Favorite Music: I really like Billie Eilish
Favorite Food: Cheese Ravioli
Sponsors: Girl is NOT a 4 Letter Word, Bones Wheels, Ace Trucks, 187 Killer Pads
Contest Results:
1st place - Go Skate Day Mini Ramp (open)
1st Place - West Valley City Park (open)
1st Place - South Jordan Bowl (Girls)
2nd place - Labor Day Bowl Park City (open)
Elle has skated in both the Venice Skatepark Ladies Jam and Exposure's Skate Event since 2017.
She also skated at Poseiden Ladies Day 2019 at The Berrics
Passions:
Elle also believes in helping more girls to get out and skate! In 2020 she hosted her own Salt Lake City All Girl Skate Jam and had a huge turnout.
Follow Elle on:
Instagram @elle_warne and on her YouTube Channel
In case you missed this LIVE - check out Dew Tour Episode 11 because its GOOD! S
Special host Vanessa Torres
takes the reins as she covers the current state of affairs in
skateboarding, career highlights, and much more. And you get to hear from Alexis Sablone, Candy Jacobs as well as Bryce Wettstein - sweet!!
Check out GN4LW team rider Quinne in this new Target commercial - she skates that purple ramp like a boss!
The new Snapchat show is called “Frogtown” and it's about an all girl skate crew. The series, directed by Catherine Hardwicke, (she directed Twighlight & Thirteen) is about a badass skater living in her car and she lands a second family when she falls in with an all-girl crew at the Frogtown skatepark in East Los Angeles.
I know you're thinking right now, "wait, we have BETTY on HBO..." and you are right and let's not forget that Quibi didn't do so well for snack-able content - but keep this in mind, Snapchat introduced scripted programs and docuseries in 2018 and unscripted shows in 2016 so they know what they're doing.
And you know what else?
Who says there can't be two shows featuring female skaters? It happens with shows with male leads and similar content all the time. We say, the more women skateboarding and seen, the better!
We can't wait to watch FROGTOWN and we will keep you up to date on the launch date and which female skaters it features (no news yet on that)!
Photo and video via Dickies
Nice to see Allysha Le in this new Dickies spot along with dancer + choreographer Derek Ma
The message of these video spots is; United by Inspiration, United by Dickies. Though we are all apart, we are united by one common language, inspiration. #UnitedbyDickies
About Allysha Le: Allysha Le is a pro skater and the inaugural female on the Dickies Skate team. She been a contest champion for over ten years. Her dyed hair and insane roster of tricks are all part of her signature style.
About Derek Ma Derek Ma is perhaps the most famous dancer and choreographer in China and is the founder of Hello Dance Studio in Chengdu. He exploded onto the scene after winning China’s World Of Dance competition and is the go-to choreographer for pop stars and movies there.
all images by Imitation of Christ
We are all about designers and fashion brands hiring and featuring females who really skate, instead of the poser models of the past.
Designer Tara Subkoff’s Imitation of Christ fashion line presented simultaneous shows in Los Angeles and New York this past Monday and featured many female skaters you may know or follow on Instagram.
We also love all the female skateboarders IOC also used in their photo and video shoot - which took place in Los Angeles, CA. back in August - masks and social distancing included!
And if you see something in the photos or video that you just have to have, The Real Real is selling the collection on-line, with part of the proceeds going to Greta Thunberg’s nonprofit Fridays for Future.
Skaters included: __izzie_ @mangobaby.com @nellymorvillee @buttchugg @brookhoury @notcheetos @dalialundquist @hannah.tallman
Imitation of Christ - Spring/Summer 2020 from AST.NYC on Vimeo.
You've heard how much all of us here at Girl is NOT a 4 Letter Word love the new Tony Hawk Pro Skater 1 and 2 game (rated T for teen by the ESRB) and we are stoked that the youngest member of Team USA Skateboarding, Minna Stess, has now weighed in on what she loves about the new game as well.
While the rest of us were having a relaxing Labor Day weekend (and playing Tony Hawk Pro Skater 1 and 2), Minna was busy training for upcoming Olympic Qualifiers all weekend.
Minna is also a part of the new XSET gaming team, so when she finally had a few days off from park training she immediately revved up her PS4 and here is what a pro female skateboarder and gamer has to say about playing Tony Hawk Pro Skater 1 and 2.
"I played as Bob Burnquist, Lizzie Armanto, Aori Nishimura, and Leo Baker. I like playing as Bob because I like his special trick the rocket air. I found the game super fun because I can do many tricks that I can’t in real life. Overall I really liked the game, it is super fun to play as skaters I look up to in skateboarding."
Catch us on Instagram and let us know how much you like the new game!
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| Molly-Anne |
Why would anyone want to try and skateboard 800+ miles during COVID, or for that matter any other time? Alone, just you and your longboard and a backpack on the road for days and days. Hoping to make it to the next designated stop you created for yourself so you can have a bed to sleep in and perhaps a shower before doing it all again the next day. It's grueling, and not for the faint of heart. But after speaking with Molly-Anne off and on for the past couple of months, we could begin to understand why this was important to her and the time is NOW.
We're going to let her tell you in her own words WHY, and then we are going to be here to help follow her journey and share her thoughts, trials, and tribulations along the way.
I'm Molly-Anne and this is why I am taking on the challenge of skateboarding the Eastern Seaboard - alone.
I got sober not knowing that fear would still compel the person I
thought could change fate all along. I wonder if life is exactly as it was.
I identify with problems and answers because sober feels nothing more than learning to walk for two whole years.
I miss her some days. The untamed, unkempt one with a
penchant for doing precisely the opposite of what was assumed. The funny one. The one who people loved and she never even knew it.
Who ran to things because they were new and untouched and precious. That saw her power in the world and begged for more.
Some days I want her back — without the ashen face and sunken eyes. I want her bravery because I don’t feel brave anymore. I will stand up tall and ride the coast from
Maine to New Jersey. Because skating will forever challenge the way in which we see the world. Reclaiming an imagination that still lives in the woods and on roads with blackened sidewalk ledges. In snack shacks on the beach. In towns we escaped to when we had nothing.
I will skate to tell my story. Because changing the world is just about showing up. By refuting our folly with dignity. By refusing silence when the world tries to chain us to its false ideals. And if in defeat, we stay true to ourselves, maybe we’ll have been the change we’ve wanted all along.
Molly-Anne has had some help getting this trip started from the good people at Riptide Sports. Tracey and Brad have sent her all the longboard bushings, pivot cups and misc gear she may wear out along the way. Pretty nice!
You can check out the route that Molly is committing to skate below, and for more details and to follow her on the ride check out this LINK as well.
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| Tony Hawk Pro Skater 1 and 2 |
From the moment we heard that the new Tony Hawk Pro Skater 1 and 2 features more female skaters than previous editions, as well as non-binary and trans skaters to choose from, we knew we had to play. The game has always been a favorite of female skateboarders and non-skaters alike, but now it's even more exciting when you can see someone just like you and select them as your skater.
The Girl is NOT a 4 Letter Word team had a blast this Labor Day weekend trying out the new Tony Hawk Pro Skater 1 and 2 Game, (This game is rated T for teen by the ESRB) and when your crew ranges from teenagers to late '30s, everyone has a different opinion on what makes this new game so good!
If we are being totally honest, after the girls started texting Saturday AM saying how fun it was, I went out and got a PS4 from Target (the game can be played on PS4, XBOX, and PC) and started playing too - now I'm hooked!
Here are the reviews from each of our team riders who played Tony Hawk Pro Skater 1 and 2 this weekend!
Catch us on Instagram and let us know how much you like the new game!
Here is what our team riders had to say...
Downhill longboarder, Amanda, is 29 years old and was first out of the gate, she could not wait to play this game. She ended up playing for five solid hours on Friday night - we woke up early on Saturday morning to this text from her:
Kat, who is in her late 30's has seriously rad vert ramps in her backyard (and yes, Lizzie has skated there!) and skates every day along with her husband Roger, so for her to take time away from skating this weekend and spend lots of time playing this new game says it all!
Emma is 18 years old, street skates, and is starting college at UC Santa Cruz this fall. When not skateboarding or studying, she likes to play video games in her spare time and knows what gets her pumped to skate!
"I love Tony Hawk Pro Skater 1 and 2! My favorite skater to use is Elissa Steamer!
My two favorite tricks to do in the game are kick-flips because they are my favorite trick when I am actually skating, and front smiths because I wish I could do them in real life, so getting to do a front smith in the game feels surreal!" ~ Emma Houle
These female skaters all agree that Tony Hawk Pro Skater 1 and 2 is the game to get!
Please note that all GN4LW team riders were provided with complimentary access to the deluxe version of Tony Hawk Pro Skater 1 and 2 - the reviews are the honest opinions of each team riders experience in playing the game.
We love this new series from Red Bull and it features two big-wave female surfers and their journey to Jaws!
Surfing massive Jaws is already nerve-racking — imagine doing it in front of a worldwide audience of millions. That's where we pick up with Emi Erickson, one of Hawaii's best-known, young big wave surfers, and Izzi Gomez, an up-and-comer still searching to find her footing in the mountains of Jaws.
No Small Feat is an all-female big-wave series in which we embed with Erickson and Gomez in the days leading up to the 2019 Jaws Big Wave Championship. It's a raw and revealing look behind the scenes of one of the planet's most dangerous — and often thankless — extreme sports.
In case you missed this on Instagram, or just want to see the full video of Sky Brown jumping the Mega Ramp at Elliot Sloan's - here it is.
Via Elliot Sloan:
"I can't even begin to explain how stoked I am for Sky & Ocean. Sky was the first girl to jump the mega at my place and she made it look easy. Not only did she clear the gap but she did the full line. She blew us all away and I can't wait to see what's next for her. Yea Sky!!!"
Filmed by Chris Gregson & Drew Hastings.
Edit by Drew Hastings
Sky joins other accomplished girls in skateboarding that came before her and paved the way. In 2004, Lyn-Z Adams Hawkins-Pastrana became the first female skater to jump the DC Mega Ramp in Temecula, and she continued that tradition during her performances in Nitro Circus.
Check out all the tricks she does while in the air across the gap!
And at the age of eight-years-old, Minna Stess dropped into the Woodward Mega Ramp - no gap jump - but still so impressive at eight-years-old to drop into that beast!
It's here - the launch trailer for Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1 and 2!
The game releases on September 4th and we can't wait because this year the game features female skateboarders and non-binary skateboarders: Leo Baker, Leticia Bufoni, Aori Nishimura, Lizzie Armanto, and Elissa Steamer.
Get ready for a fun Labor Day Weekend!!
Great to see Adidas x Unity team up!
Adidas Skateboarding and Unity join forces to deliver a collaborative release for the Fall/Winter 2020 season ahead. Formed in 2017 by Jeffrey Cheung and Gabriel Ramirez with the goal of creating a safe space in skateboarding for LGBTQ+ people, Unity has become a global expression of acceptance and positivity.
Emanating the Unity crew’s message of “Don’t Be Afraid of Who You Are”, the gender-neutral apparel and footwear lineup celebrates the queer and trans community in skateboarding and the power of DIY. Through vibrant detailing and a diverse product offering, the collection is a bold declaration grounded in individuality and inclusion. Made with a message of solidarity, the collaboration aims to spark creativity and change.
Cheung’s expressive illustrations transform Adidas apparel staples and two skateboarding footwear silhouettes into a creative platform of the Unity spirit. Incorporating pastel hues and premium materials, the collection is a multi-seasonal offering of shorts, shirts, a hoodie, track jacket, and custom footwear that includes the Unity Continental Vulc and recently introduced Coronado.
The Adidas Skateboarding x Unity collection releases this Friday, August 28th via adidas.com/skateboarding and select skate retailers.
We absolutely love what Quell Skateboarding is all about - meet-ups, a magazine, podcasts, and more, so we were thrilled that they asked our founder, OG pro skateboarder Cindy Whitehead, to be a guest on their Quell Party podcast.
And even better was that the episode with Cindy launched on Women's Equality Day!
Check out GN4LW team rider Minna Stess in this new NO DAYS OFF video! Great to see how Minna is training and keeping healthy as we move forward to the Olympics in 2021.
Minna is on team USA for Women's Park Skateboarding.
Go Minna!!