Category: Profile
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Shaunda Shane

Filling a void in the representation of black female skaters in skateboarding history is critical, and it helps when you’ve got Clyde Singleton, Tony Hawk, journalists, newspapers and public librarians collaborating! The search for Shaunda Shane of Fayetteville is seriously the most heart-warming story. It all began when The Black Archives published a batch of…
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Keren Richter

Keren Richter is a big name today as an interior designer and artist, creating luxurious spaces with her company White Arrow in Brooklyn, but she also has a fascinating history that’s rooted in skateboarding and zine-making. According to her company bio, Keren “was born in Vienna and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area. At…
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Monica Polistchuk

Monica Polistchuk is a legendary Brazilian skater from São Bernardo do Campo, who began skating in the early 1980s. Her website Oopskate.com is a treasure trove of skateboard history, featuring the likes of Renata Paschini, Karen Jonz, Christie Aleixo, Melissa Brogni, Déborah Badel, Yndiara Asp, and Tati Marques. Monica was motivated to create the site…
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Lisa Whitaker

Lisa Whitaker carved out space and opportunities for girls, women and non-binary skaters at a time when they were practically non-existent. She is a skater, filmer/photographer, creative producer, webmaster, mom, and as the owner of Meow skateboards, she continues to support the community today. Lisa was one of very few individuals documenting women’s skateboarding in…
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Irene Ching

In a recent visit to New York, I was encouraged by skateboarder C’naan Omer (Hamburger), who won Vancouver’s Slam City Jam women’s street in 2000, to reach out to Irene Ching. Irene is a vert roller-skater with a long legacy going back to the 1970s, and I trusted C’naan’s recommendation. In this archival project, I…
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Claire Glavin

Claire Glavin (St. James) was originally in my mystery section, but thanks to her friend Judith Cohen we connected and had a conversation on April 11, 2024. I was grateful for the introduction because in the June 1978 issue of the National Skateboard Review, in the Women’s Special Feature Claire’s name was misspelled and labeled…
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Perri Morgan

It’s obvious that Perri Morgan was a badass based on the fact that she is acknowledged for being a photographer behind a collection of photos of Fugazi performing in 1997 at Fort Reno park. Perri is from Washington, DC and became a sponsored street skater for the Washington skateshop East Board Co. and 5BORO NYC…
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Teresa Gamboa

Teresa Gamboa (nicknamed Tee or T-Styx) of Redondo Beach, CA is best known for being a surfboard glasser (applying fibreglass and resin to a surfboard and adding “lams” or laminates during the glassing process to distinguish the design) at E.T. Surfboards at 904 Aviation Blvd, Hermosa Beach. And while she was a solid surfer, Teresa…
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Dutch Female Skaters

The Netherlands has a long history of skateboarding dating back to the 1960s when Mr. Beenhakker, the owner of the Eerste Sprangse Metaalwaren Industrie (ESMI) roller-skate factory in Deurne, expanded into skateboards. The owner is interviewed in a fantastic vintage film on the NCRV Teen Magazine from November 5, 1965. The film includes a group…
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Paris 1978

In honour of the launch of the 2024 Paris Olympics, I bring you clips from a delightful video called Buble Skate from 1978 by Alain Igorra and Lionel Durand. The scene is La Trocadéro or “Troca” which was a popular meet-up spot across from the Eiffel tower. The film also includes a contest called the…
