Why social media helps more girls become badass skaters
Okay, so it is about to get real for me here…Being female and getting into skateboarding was a little intimidating at first. I didn’t have any friends who were into it, and I also didn’t know how to develop my skills skating solo. Regardless, when I turned 18, I got a skateboard for my birthday and drove to the skatepark for the very first time. There was rarely another girl in the park when I went, but the guys that I met and started skating with were super nice and encouraging. It wasn’t until I was 20, that I started seeing and meeting like-minded girls at parks near me in Pittsburgh. And if it weren’t for social media bringing us together in an Instagram group chat, I would not have met most of the bad ass girls that have inspired me to keep ripping today!
When someone doesn’t see a lot of people like them doing a sport, it can be super discouraging for them to follow that path. And it was like that for more until I found more friends to skate with. Even if I went to the park by myself, I didn’t feel like I had someone there to push me to the next level. I honestly at one point had a (and sometimes still do have a) really hard time with skating consistently just because I didn’t have my pals to skate with once I moved back up to Maine. It can be a huge challenge not having friends to push you to be your best, but through social media, I have discovered a way to stay inspired. There is such a booming voice of female skaters on Instagram and other platforms right now and I love it. It is so awesome that even though at my local parks I don’t have other females to skate with, I can still see other girl’s progressions and it honestly gets me so stoked!
The more girls that show what they love doing over social media, the more inspiration it brings to others to follow something they love. I know that I am not that great at skateboarding but I am finally progressing and having so much fun. And I am happy to post my progression because I know if it shows just one other girl that they too can get into the sport, it’s worth it! It has taken a while to get over the fear of going to a park by myself, but I’ve realized that going alone means that I can have more of an opportunity to make new friends. What a lot of girls (including myself) don’t realize is that skate parks are for everyone and you will most likely be welcomed by everyone regardless of your gender.
Need some cool female skaters on your feed? Here are some of my favorite female skate Instas:
@stefaninurdingxx
@leticiabufoni
@lizziearmanto
