June BMX Team Update
by: Sarah | Friday, June 29, 2007
Want to know what the BMX team has been up to lately? You’re in luck, because Nina Buitrago sent in this quick Team Update…
Stacey Mulligan has done it—she graduated from the University of Pittsburgh!! It was by far one of the largest graduation ceremonies I’ve ever attended. Congrats, Stacey!
I went to Cycle Craft, a bike shop in New Jersey, for a SweetskinZ Tires Mini Ramp Jam, and even got to sign a poster for DAVE MIRRA!! Craziness.
A week later, I got a phone call and now I’m riding for the DK Bicycle Pro Team. I have been traveling all over country with their stunt team doing shows at elementary and middle schools and kids’ festivals. It’s so much fun and the kids are so excited to have us there; one kid even had us all chew gum and spit it into a bag for a souvenir…gross!!!
The traveling continued as I went to the etnies “Grounded” video premiere, where a majority of the team was in action along with most of the state of California. I am speechless; everyone really threw down for this and it just goes to show that Manzoori is the man! I can’t wait to see the bonus when it is released on DVD. I even hear there’s a “Hey Ladies” section. Should be pretty sweet!
That’s about it for now! Until next time…
Team Road Trip: Day 2
by: Sarah | Friday, December 9, 2005
- The etnies RV and team van
This is the second in a series of journals that the etniesgirl.com editor has written while on a road trip and photo shoot with the etnies Girl team. Check out more photos from the trip in the Team Road Trip Photo Gallery.
Tuesday, Dec. 6, 2005
My grandmother used to say to me, “Sarah, life is an adventure. No matter what happens along the way, you have to make the best of situations and, most of all, you have to have fun.” She usually said this to me when we were on a trip, she was driving, I was navigating (badly—but hey, I was just a kid!) and we were lost, which was often. I thought of my grandmother and her cool perspective on life several times throughout the second day of the etnies Girl road trip and photo shoot.
We started our day with an 8 a.m. call time—meaning we were supposed to be ready, with our bags packed and stowed away in the RV and van, and on the road by then. That didn’t happen, but we did leave El Capitan Canyon—which was lovely in the daylight, by the way—before 9, so I would consider that a minor victory. Like I mentioned in yesterday’s journal, it’s difficult to mobilize a group of 19. From El Capitan Canyon, we drove north about 25 miles to the town of Solvang.
Solvang, if you haven’t heard of it or didn’t see it in the movie, “Sideways,” is a replica of a Danish village. It’s charming and quaint—almost aggressively so. It’s like Denmark meets Disneyland. Everywhere you turn, there’s a windmill or a bakery, and everything seems to have “Denmark,” “Solvang” or “Nordic” in its name. We found parking for the RV (which will be a huge consideration throughout the trip) and walked to the Solvang Restaurant for breakfast.
The restaurant advertised everywhere—on its sign, in the menu and in postcards by the cash register—that its specialty is Aebleskiver. I had no idea what that was when I first sat down to eat, but after reading the informative history of Aebleskiver in the menu that described it as a sort of round Danish pancake, I decided that I had to give it a try. Three of them arrived, smothered in raspberry jam and sprinkled with powdered sugar, along with a Danish sausage. The Aebleskiver was delicious—cakey and slightly dense and eggy with a spice I couldn’t quite put my finger on—but I have no desire to know what the pale Danish sausage was comprised of. I’m a little worried it might have been veal, which I swore off at the age of eight when my mother finally answered my questions about what, exactly, I was eating on our veal parmesan dinner nights. I really hope I didn’t eat a poor baby cow for breakfast.
It was after breakfast that I first thought of my grandmother and her motto, “Life is an adventure.” I volunteered to drive the 12 person passenger etnies team van, since poor Grace had been driving it since she left etnies in Orange County. That’s not to say I wasn’t a little nervous about navigating the beast—but since Grace had been doing it with a smile, and she’s all of about five-foot-nothing, I figured I’d just suck it up and give it a try.
The drive to San Louis Obispo, our first photo location, was gorgeous, and it wasn’t so scary to drive the van. We got there around 1 p.m. and were going to shoot around the train station, but it quickly became clear that wasn’t going to work out. It just wasn’t the right setting for the shoot. So, like my grandmother’s motto, we made the best of the situation. We decided to drive up the coast to our next destination and that if we saw a good location along the way, we’d stop there.
It didn’t take long for us to find a place to shoot. After driving for about 30 minutes, we pulled over to the side of the road. Not long after we pulled up, a yellow truck with a seal marked “County of San Louis Obispo, Calif.” pulled up next to us. Grace and I looked at each other and simultaneously said, “Oh, no.” We thought for sure they were going to shut down our impromptu photo shoot, especially when one of the two older guys in the truck asked, “What are you doing here today?” We all breathed a collective sigh of relief when it turned out that Rich, one of the men, has a son who’s a big fan of etnies and our riders. He wanted Elissa’s autograph for his son; he didn’t want to shut down our shoot. He got his photo taken with Elissa, she signed a poster and gave him some stickers, and two workers from the county of San Louis Obispo, Calif., drove off with smiles on their faces.
As Angela and Patrick started shooting the girls, I decided to do some exploring. I hopped over a barbed wire fence posted with a No Trespassing sign (breakin’ the law, breakin’ the law) and made my way down a well-worn path through the grass to a beautiful beach. (It’s nearly impossible to keep people away from a good beach.) Two seals came near the shore, peeking their heads out of the water to check out what was going on, and later sunning themselves on a rock. I enjoyed the lovely day before heading back to the RV to do some writing. We stayed at that location for the rest of the afternoon, finishing the day by watching the sun sink into the ocean. Then we hopped back into the RV and van to drive to our next destination.
Later,
Sarah, etniesgirl.com editor
Team Road Trip: Day 1
by: Sarah | Thursday, December 8, 2005
- etnies Girl motocross riders Sarah Whitmore and Tarah Gieger (left to right) chilling in the etnies RV.
This is the first in a series of journals that the etniesgirl.com editor has written while on a road trip and photo shoot with the etnies Girl team. Check out more photos from the trip in the Team Road Trip Photo Gallery.
Monday, Dec. 5, 2005
Let’s just say that I’m not a morning person. So I was pretty proud of myself when I got to The 101 Coffee Shop in Hollywood—the L.A. meeting location for the etnies Girl team road trip and photo shoot—not only not late, but early enough to have breakfast. I’m never on time, so this was a real accomplishment. The call time for the L.A. crew was 9:30 a.m. (OK, so maybe I shouldn’t be that proud of myself), and the Orange County crew was supposed to meet at etnies at 7:30 a.m. so they could drive up to L.A. and meet us by 10. That didn’t happen. In fact, I sat at the 101 and wrote some articles for the site and checked e-mails (Did I mention that I LOVE Wi-Fi?) until 11, when Elissa Steamer, photographers Angela and Patrick, Angela’s assistant, Ben, and Jon, one of the filmers, showed up and ordered breakfast.
So at 11 a.m. we hadn’t left L.A., and we were already hopelessly behind on our schedule—which is completely normal. I’ve never yet attended a photo shoot that has been on time. While the L.A. crew finished eating breakfast, the O.C. crew showed up in the etnies RV. The group was comprised of Lauren Perkins, Alexis Waite, Leanne Pelosi, Sarah Whitmore, Tarah Gieger, Nick, the RV driver, Herb, the etnies art director, Grace, who’s in charge of the whole operation, Michelle, the stylist, and her assistant, BrisAnne, Tanika, the makeup and hair person, and Lisa, the other filmer. Why, may you ask, would I give you a full list of our group? To illustrate that organizing a group of 19 people is like herding cats—which is to say, a logistical nightmare. I can safely predict that we’ll be behind schedule for the entire trip. At around noon we finally gathered everyone up, loaded the etnies team van and RV with bags and gear, and we were off.
After a very pretty, very uneventful drive, we arrived in Ventura, our first location, around 1 p.m. Mary Osborne, who lives in the area, met up with us there. While Michelle, Tanika and BrisAnne helped the girls get ready for their photos, I scouted out a nearby bowling alley. To my complete surprise and utter joy, it had its own free Wi-Fi. Halleluiah! I settled in to post a couple of articles to the etnies Girl site and Elissa, Patrick and Jon got in some bowling.
For the next several hours, Angela and Patrick took photos of the girls in various outfits and groupings, and Jon and Lisa filmed them. Grace and I picked up lunch for the entire crew, and we watched Alexis and Leanne’s snowboarding movie, “As IF!”, until about 4:30, when we departed for Santa Barbara and the place we were staying that night, El Capitan Canyon.
El Capitan Canyon is beautiful, but when Tarah first saw it she remarked that it looked like the start of a horror movie—and she had a point. It’s essentially camping for people who don’t camp; it has adorable, fully heated cabins with indoor plumbing, but it’s in the woods and when we arrived it was completely pitch-black other than the light from the sliver of a crescent moon and the stars. We found our cabins, unloaded our bags, piled on some more clothes and wandered outside to the fire pit.
Time for a cookout! We were all starving at this point, so Nick, the gentleman that he is, got the fire going and we cooked burgers, veggie burgers and hotdogs over the fire. Then, to top off the perfect cookout dinner, we had a lovely dessert of S’mores. I was having flashbacks to Girl Scout camp. Elissa summed the day up best when she announced, “This day was the shit! Bowling, burgers and beer—it was the best.” Alright, that’s all for tonight! We have to get up early for a full day of photo shoots tomorrow.
Find out where we’re headed next by reading Team Road Trip: Day 2, and keep checking the Team Road Trip Photo Gallery, which I’ll be updating throughout the trip, for more behind-the-scenes photos. To see the real photos, look for etnies Girl ads in Teen Vogue, ELLEgirl and Seventeen magazines beginning in February 2006.
Later,
Sarah, etniesgirl.com editor
Lucy Adams’ Manchester Girlie Skate Camp Journal
by: Sarah | Thursday, November 10, 2005
- Happy Girlie Campers!
etnies Girl UK skate team rider Lucy Adams sent this dispatch from the Girlie Skate Camp in Manchester, UK, where she was teaching girls how to skate. Check out more photos from the 2005 Girlie Skate Camps series in the Photo Gallery.
SUNDAY, JULY 31, 2005
Day one! The camp and day started with an early morning session at the Mancunian Way Park. We planned to go to Warrington all day today, but all the girls seemed to be so hyped to skate so we went down to the park where we met and had a private session courtesy of John, the park manager. It was kind of a free skate at first just to see how the girls skated; we just all introduced ourselves and had fun.
Afterwards, we went to watch the Warrington Jam, where we saw some awesome skating. Some of the girls had a little skate there but as it was very crowded, it was like skating through the traffic to get a line!
MONDAY, AUG. 1, 2005
We started off with a private session under the bridge again, which was perfect for getting some good skating in. All the girls were really motivated after seeing the Skate Jam at Warrington and it really showed today! Katie, Rachel, Remmi and Emma could already drop in so they became part of the more advanced group, which would work more on tricks and stunts during the week. Those girls who were only just beginning on a skateboard would be learning more of the basics such as stance, pushing and getting used to the ramps.
Dinner was enjoyed by all along the “Curry Mile,” a famous strip in Manchester filled with the finest Indian cuisine.
TUESDAY, AUG. 2, 2005
Again we started at Mancunian Way. The girls Ben was instructing were beginning to make kickturns on the banks and many were riding to fakie on the transitions! Most in my group were well into ollieing and were stoked on learning frontside kickturns and backside kickturns on the big quarter pipe.
After an ace session, we headed up to Platt Fields Park. Since the weather was good today and the girls were enjoying skating so much, we got started with skating straight away. The girls loved it, as it was somewhere new to practice those skills that they had been learning at the previous park.
With a helping hand from the local supermarket, a lunch break was in order. Reenergized, the girls had another hour or so of fine skating. Lucy, Allie, Mira, Nichola, Sam and Katrin all were battling it out to pump the mini ramp. Legs became tired and faces and shoulders were becoming increasingly red from the sun, so skating was over for the day!
The rest of the afternoon was spent chilling out in town; some shopped and others just stuck to window shopping.
WEDNESDAY, AUG. 3, 2005
Early start at Warrington! Ben and I arrived a bit early to sweep the puddles as unfortunately it had been raining the night before; but with some sunshine and a bit of wind, the park dried up in no time. Everyone enjoyed skating the park in its less chaotic state. The girls were trying to make linked turns using the bowled corners and others were dropping in on all sorts. Rachel was the first to drop the big quarter and that deserved much respect! Another notable incident was when Outi from Finland slammed on her head. Much respect to her also for not only taking such a slam, but being a soldier and still smiling.
The skate was followed by some lunch courtesy of Morrison’s supermarket and then we went on a trip to A4. This is the UK distributor of etnies, and a big thanks to Anne and everyone at A4 for accommodating us.
THURSDAY, AUG. 4, 2005
The day began with our private session at Mancy Way. Bones were aching today after all the skating that had been going down, but all the girls were psyched to master the drop-ins. Emma made a rad frontside boardslide on the rail. After quite a short skate we decided to head over to Stockport and skate Bones Skate Park. Lunch was eaten at the station and everyone boarded for a short train journey to Stockport. Everyone had an excellent session at Bones, and more than half of the group got to drop in even if it was with one helping hand. Others enjoyed pumping on the ramp. Mira and Nichola even reached the coping!
After what turned out to be a long day’s skate, everyone went back to chill out at the hotel and get some more well-deserved food and drinks. Emma and I felt that we had more skating left in us and went on a little mission of our own. This turned out to be a three hour trip to skate for 45 minutes, but it was all worth it as the skate park was super cool!
FRIDAY, AUG. 5, 2005
Final day of the Girlie Skate Camp in Manchester! After such a cool day yesterday, we decided to cruise back over to Bones—a decision that was also swung due to the rainy weather. Everyone wanted to drop in again and the small ramps made it a dream come true! By the end of the session everyone had dropped in, some with one hand of help from Ben or me.
After Bones, we headed back to the city to catch the éS Game of Skate. It was fun to see it and bet on who would win. After that, we all went back to the hotel to get dressed up for the final evening. We all enjoyed the dinner together and reflections were made on the great week we all had. After dinner we all hit a cool club at which Ben was DJing—a great night to end a great week!
I would like to say a big thanks to Girlie Camps for giving me the opportunity to be there, to all the girls who took part and made it such a fun week, to Ben for being a great instructing partner and to etnies Girl for helping to make this happen!
Peace,
Lucy Adams
Alexis Waite’s Winter X Games ‘05 Team Journal
by: Sarah | Monday, May 30, 2005
- Alexis (far right) on the podium at the Roxy Chicken Jam Europe.
etnies Girl snowboarder Alexis Waite broke her face during practice at the 2005 Winter X Games and, in the process, conquered her fear. Read on for her inspirational story.
With every snowboard season comes new and demanding challenges. This year was no exception for me. The season started out amazingly well: early snow in Utah, backcountry snowmobile trips filming for Misschief Films with friends and lots of pushing my limits. I had this newfound drive and focus to RIDE all the time. It was awesome! Into January it just kept getting better, and I was getting anxious for the X Games just to hurry up and come. I was really excited for them because I was riding so well and I kept having this recurring dream where I was standing on that podium. It was weird—I don't normally dream about snowboard contests.
“I realized that when I touched my face I couldn't feel a thing.”
So there I was at end of January, riding the X Games slopestyle course and figuring out the speeds for the jumps. It was practice day and the course was complicated. The "$$$ Booter," the last and biggest jump in the course, had a crazy last minute kick on the takeoff. It was scary, but it was the finale jump right into the crowd and the judges, so it had to be done well. I wanted to get my contest run dialed in practice so, despite my inner voice telling me to be careful of this jump, I went for a backside 540, the trick I had planned for the contest. I am sure you have figured out by now that it didn't work out so well and—“Ta da!”—you guessed correctly. That kick kicked me into a completely inverted 450 and my first point of contact to the landing was my face on this 65-foot icy knuckle of the jump.
With a spinning head and throbbing face, I frantically checked to see how many teeth I had left (luckily all of them) and for blood, before using all of my willpower to pull myself up and ride to the bottom of the slope. I was out of it, but luckily ESPN’s medical staff ran to me and escorted me to first aid. I was so dizzy that I couldn't walk myself. They put me on a stretcher and my head stopped spinning so much, but then I realized that when I touched my face I couldn't feel a thing.
- Acupuncture helped bring the feeling back into Alexis’ face.
Normally, when you smack yourself the initial pain starts to subside within five minutes or so. But with this nasty, swollen shut black eye, the pain and pressure kept getting stronger as I lay on the stretcher, answering questions between sessions of dry heaving because I was so incredibly nauseous. Luckily, my friend Gretchen (Bleiler) was there, so I had a familiar face with me. Unfortunately, she too had suffered a head injury, but it was OK—she ended up winning the halfpipe two days later. Within 30 minutes of my accident, Leanne (Pelosi) and Erin (Comstock) rushed in to check on me, after hearing what had happened. By this time, I was feeling awful and I kept asking Leanne how she was so tough because she has this amazing ability always to hit her face and get black eyes but be fine. The question that kept spinning around in my fuzzy brain—"How hurt am I?!"— was finally answered when I tried to blow my running nose and I let out a scream of pure and unexpected terror. The pressure of blowing my nose felt like a knife coming through my head, and I knew I was messed up when the snot didn't come out of my nose but out of my eye socket! This was soooooo gross, and at that moment I heard the ski patrollers radioing in for an ambulance to take me to the hospital.
Finally, at the hospital, I had some oxygen tubes and the pressure in my face was becoming more bearable. You have to remember that I was in Aspen, Colo., and at about 8,000 feet, it’s really high and the air is thin. After x-rays were taken and my mom and dad had finally found me, I learned that there was a reason why my black eye hurt so bad—it was broken! I fractured both the orbital bone in my eye socket and my cheekbone, and was told I needed surgery. I then let myself cry, not from the pain because the worst was already over, but just from the frustration. I couldn't ride in the contest for sure and I needed surgery—AAAAAHHHHHH!
So yep, there I was, in Aspen, Colo., watching my friends compete in perfect conditions at the 2005 Winter X Games without me, as I waited for surgery. I was supposed to get a plate put in my eye socket and have the tissues that were falling into my sinuses pulled out. It sounded nasty. I also could barely eat or drink because all the nerve damage I had inflicted on myself. The whole right side of my face felt as if it has been injected with Novocain (even my teeth and gums). I couldn't tell if my nose was running or if I had food all over; there was no sensation at all and the doctors said there was a strong possibility that it would be permanent. Yikes! It was fun to cheer everybody on and see the X Games from a new perspective (as a spectator), but honestly it sucked! My parents and brothers all came out and they didn't even get to see me compete, which would have been their first time. I was sad.
I went home to Seattle after the event to recover and do a million follow up appointments. The good thing is that I ended up not needing surgery after all because I was naturally healing amazingly well. (I take lots of vitamins.) My next step was acupuncture and within three visits of having 20 plus needles sticking out of my face, the feeling was starting to come back. It was amazing! I forgot to mention that I also broke my wrist in this crash, but the facial injury pain overpowered the wrist pain. I found out it was broken three days later, but it was pretty minor.
I was back on my snowboard three weeks later, and straight back into the Gravity Games. I think I came in about seventh in slopestyle. I then did the U.S. Open in March, where I ended up getting best trick in the rail contest. In April, I competed in the Roxy Chicken Jam Europe in St. Moritz, Switzerland, and made podium (third in slopestyle), about which I am very pleased.
So in snowboarding seasons, like in life, there are always ups, downs, complications and triumphs, but all that matters is that you take something away from it all. I lost some feeling but I definitely found some courage, which is more important in the end. I also find that when you take bad falls and live through it, you realize that it wasn't so bad after all. It's kind of weird, but I am less afraid now that I have experienced a pretty big fear of mine: breaking my face. So I guess my dream didn't come true—I wasn't on the podium at the X Games—but I was on other podiums after that. Coming back after a tough injury makes me feel even better about those achievements. All in all, this season has been the best of my life and I wouldn't change anything!
By the way, don't forget to pick up a copy this fall of the all-girl snowboard film we have been working on all year, Misschief! Oh yeah, and if you run into me someday and my nose is dripping or I have food on my face, I probably don't know and I would really appreciate being informed—THANKS!
Alexis
Mary Osborne’s Costa Rica Team Journal
by: Sarah | Saturday, April 30, 2005
The past month has been crazy with lots of fun travels. It all started off in Cabo, Mexico, with the Paskowitz Surf Camp, where I taught the top CEOs, investors, and pilots for Mesa Airlines how to surf. Then I was home for two days before I was off again to the Big Apple for the etnies launch party. I love NYC! I then flew back home for a day, repacked, and jetted to Tamarindo, Costa Rica, for six days to hang with the crew from my surfboard sponsor, Robert August. Here is an excerpt from an evening in my travel journal.
APRIL 14, 2005
“Completely out of breath, dripping with sweat and dying of thirst, I finally made it.”
I finally arrived after two long flights into Tamarindo, Costa Rica. I have only been here once before, so finding the Casa de Augusto was pretty interesting. I knew the house was located at the top of the hill, and almost everyone in the town new of either Wingnut, Sam August, or the legendary Robert August himself. Unfortunately, I need to work on my Spanish because I had trouble explaining how to get to the house to the cab driver. So I had the cab driver drop me off at the North end of Tamarindo, and I started walking. It was about 95 degrees out with humidity that made me drip sweat nonstop, but the best part about it was trying to drag my carry on size luggage with wheels down the cobblestones and dusty roads. Every two steps, it tipped over.
- Mary with (left to right) Wingnut, Robert August, a friend and Sam August
About 15 minutes later, I could see the house located on the hillside. I threw my heavy bag on top of my backpack and started hiking up the hill. Completely out of breath, dripping with sweat and dying of thirst, I finally made it. The house is exactly how I remembered it. There are empty beds waiting for surfers to crash on, surfboards of every shape and size stacked to the ceiling and paintings of local surf spots throughout the house. Due to my crazy schedule, I’m meeting the gang on the tail end of their trip. Most of the crew has already been here for two weeks or so for the annual Robert August Surf & Turf.
- Wingnut wears short shorts
This evening, the gang decided to cook up a tasty dinner. Classic surf tales were traded back and forth throughout the meal from longtime surfers like Robert August, Wingnut, Mark Martinson and Sammy August. It was a night I’ll never forget. There I was, eating dinner and laughing my head off while listening to the most classic surf stories told by a wide variety of surfers spanning several generations. I should have had a tape recorder. Surfing has no age limit whatsoever. It’s amazing to think about—whether you are older, younger, male or female, someone always has a great story to tell that another surfer can relate to. It’s pure fun, and it makes dinners (and trips) like this one unforgettable.
Mary
Sarah Whitmore’s First Team Journal
by: Sarah | Thursday, March 31, 2005
etnies Girl moto team rider Sarah Whitmore has been in Georgia since the end of December, getting ready for the upcoming May Nationals. She wrote her first team journal about her training and about her recent trip to Texas to race at Lake Whitney.
Two days after Christmas I loaded up my pickup and made the 22 hour journey from northern Michigan to southern Georgia. I left at 6 a.m. and arrived here at 4 a.m. the next day, driving straight through all by myself. I guess you could say I was trying to get away from the snow as fast as possible. Except for a couple of trips to California and Florida for races and media coverage, I have been right here in Cairo, Ga., riding and training every day.
The facility I’m staying at is set up like a campground, so my parents leave their motor home down here all winter for me to stay in. They have a supercross and a motocross track, though I mostly just ride motocross. They also have a track just for pit bikes, and I think that track gets almost as much use as the others. Besides a couple of mothers who stay here, I’m the only girl. Sure, it may sound fun at first being the only female with tons of hot motocross boys, but it gets old fast and my phone bill racks up from calling all of my girlfriends every night.
Before I tell you about my trip to Texas, I guess I should mention that for most of last year I had the Epstein-Bar virus, which is a form of mono. After passing out on the podium last year and then doing the same thing for the next couple of months, I called it a season and took six months off. So these past two months here at GPF (Georgia Practice Facility) have been my only preparation for this upcoming season. So my trip to Texas was merely a test to see if I was ready or not.
At Lake Whitney, my first moto of the women’s 99cc, 125cc and up class started off great. I had a good start, but while passing for second my bike seized. There I was pushing my bike down the hill and off the track, and along with it went my hopes of doing well that week. The rest of the week was spent trying to get the bugs worked out. I went a disappointing 5-4 in the pro class for fifth over all, and placed third in the second moto of my 99cc, 125cc and up race.
Sunday, after my last moto, we loaded up my motor home and headed 90 miles north to Oak Hill. I had never ridden this track before, but after walking it I decided I liked it much better. By the end of practice, and after two crashes (the first of five for the whole week), I finally had the track down and was ready to race. My first moto, I crashed right off the start and had to work my way up, and was doing a good job of it. I caught all the way up to third place and was gaining on second when I crashed again. After my women’s moto, I raced against the guys in the 125 amateur class just for practice. There I learned some new lines and my lap times improved tremendously. If I could get a good start, I would have a good shot at a moto win. Unfortunately, when it came down to it I rode terribly and got third. I put way too much pressure on myself to do well and I’m just not quite where I need to be yet. But the way I look at it is that I have two more months to get there. I learned a lot about what my weak points are on the track and now I’m back in Georgia working on them. So they better watch out in May.
Sarah Whitmore
Meet Elissa and Lauren in Vancouver!
by: Sarah | Friday, March 18, 2005
Elissa Steamer and Lauren Perkins will be in Canada this weekend, attending “SkateOver, Not a Makeover 2,” an all-girls skate clinic that will be taking place this Sunday from 3:30 to 6:30 p.m. at the RDS Skatepark in Vancouver, British Columbia. They will be helping girls learn how to skate and do new tricks, as well as signing autographs and doing some skating of their own for all the attendees. Call (604) 271-7275 for more details.
In other skate team news, Elissa just got home from Florida where she went to hang out with her family for a bit and also to enter the Tampa Pro, a contest held annually at the Skatepark of Tampa. The Tampa Pro is a contest for guys, but Elissa has been friends with the park owners for so long that they let her enter…which made sense, because she ended up qualifying for the semi-finals! Thirty skaters were taken from the qualifiers to the semis, and Elissa placed 30th. In the semi-finals, she ended up placing 27th, which is her best showing yet at this particular contest. Nice one, Elissa!
Seeing that Elissa beat three guys in the semi-finals at the Tampa Pro, which is just in addition to all of her other amazing accomplishments (check out her bio if you’re not familiar with them), we think it’s pretty obvious that Elissa is the best female skater in the world. If you think so too, please take a moment to vote for her for Check It Out Magazine’s “Best Female Skater of 2004.” You don't have much time, so hurry up and vote today!
As for Lauren, she has been home in Huntington Beach, enjoying a break from her usually hectic travel schedule, and skating a bunch since the weather has finally been nice in Southern California.
Stay tuned for next week’s report, as we’ll have an update on this weekend’s trip to Canada, as well as info on other upcoming events.
Jodie Nelson’s Winter 2005 Team Journal
by: Sarah | Saturday, February 19, 2005
Jodie Nelson has had a crazy 2005 already, and it’s only February! She kept this journal and took these photos on her trips to Senegal, the Sundance Film Festival and the Winter X Games, and when she filmed for the TV show “Summerland” in L.A.
Senegal
This year started out pretty hectic for me. Shortly after Christmas, I left for a place called Senegal, West Africa, on a nearly three week trip for Surfer Magazine. I was the only girl on a trip of all boys, which can be really rough considering we were also in a Third World country.
The first night when we pulled up to where we were staying, I was tripping out. We pulled to the side of the road to wait for the other car, and we were in the ghetto for sure. I yelled up to Art Brewer (our photographer) and said, “Hey, Art, this isn’t lookin’ too good, bud.” See, Art and I had been sent on a really bad trip for Surfer Magazine about a year and a half prior to this trip. We went to a place called Vanuatu, which is near the islands of Fiji, and none of us got our luggage. For seven days, we were in the same clothes with no surf gear or even swimsuits. We ended up pulling the plug and aborting the trip without even going in the water once. So I had a little apprehension going into this next trip with Art to Senegal.
We drove down a really narrow dirt road with run down half-built cinderblock structures on both sides. We got to an opening and there was a three story, fairly decent building and that was us. We unloaded the cars and got settled. The next morning I was woken by the loudest yelling over the loud speakers. See, Senegal is a Muslim country, so they do these really loud calls to prayer five times a day, and sometimes five times at night. I didn’t know what was going on, but I was scared! With traveling anywhere, you start out apprehensive and then you become part of it toward the end. Like, when I first got there I was scared to walk around by myself, but then after a couple of days that’s all I did.
I’ll get to the part you are all interested in, and that’s the waves. The water was not as warm as I had hoped it was going to be. Full suits were the call. We did a lot of searching for waves, and throughout the trip we discovered some waves that no one had ever surfed before. The swell never got big enough for us fully to explore some of the better spots, but we made due with what we had. It was definitely a tough trip. The morale was very low because of the lack of waves and the state of where we were staying. It was just a lot to take in, and it was very dirty and a lot of us got sick from the food. So it was hard at times to keep my head up and focus.
My New Year’s Eve was very interesting; I spent it in the city of Dakar. Art, our host, Boubacar, and I went into the city to see the fireworks. The rest of our crew passed, and they made the right decision. I have never been so terrified in my life; people and kids were shooting off fireworks into crowds. Art got a hole burned in his shirt, I got one on my pant leg, and there was a building on fire and everyone was going about their business like nothing was happening. It was just utter chaos, and I wanted out of there. It was so crowded... dangerously crowded. But I can say that I was in Dakar for New Years 2005 and you can’t!
Really, though, there is so much to write about this trip, but I will leave you with this: It was a hard trip, but I’m so thankful that I got to experience the Senegalese culture and people. Though they are poor—with an average annual income of 300 U.S. dollars—they are some of the most kind, genuine and hardworking people I’ve ever been around. They are so happy and beautiful! I took many pictures to share with you, but all I have to say is that you are lucky that these pictures are not scratch and sniff because I also smelled some of the worst smells I’ve ever smelled while I was in Senegal. Keep your eyes out for more on this story in Surfer Magazine.
Sundance Film Festival
When I got home from Senegal, I was happy to be home, let me tell you. (I couldn’t wait to eat food when I got home!) I was only home for about five days before I had to leave again. While I was in Senegal, I was asked to host a TV show for FUEL at the Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah. So on Jan. 22, I flew to Utah and hung out at Sundance. It was a little bit of a culture shock after being in Africa, but I adjusted. I always have trouble when I go to a place like Africa, or any Third World country, and then come home and see how good we have it here and how much people waste and spend on themselves. Sometimes I get really bothered by it all.
At the same time as Sundance was the X-Dance Film Festival, all the best action sports movies. After the films are shown, there are Q & A sessions with the filmmakers and some of the athletes from the films. Toward the end of the festival, there was also a big awards show where filmmakers were awarded for best editing, movie of the year and best cinematography. My job was to hang out and interview various filmmakers for a 90 minute special on the FUEL channel. As you will see from my photos, I got to hang with some cool people. But I will have you know that I never take pictures of myself with celebrities or stuff like that—I just don’t like doing it. But for you guys I did it! I even broke down and got a digital camera. (And I hate digital!) But, again, I did it for you guys so I can be a little quicker with my journal entries.
So let’s see, who did I get to hang with? Oh, yeah! Ross from “Friends” (but I didn’t get a photo), Pedro Sanchez from “Napoleon Dynamite” and Perry Ferrell from Jane’s Addiction, who was there as DJ Peretz. I also got to go to some sick shows like Snoop Dogg and Cake. It was very much a celebrity affair, with lots of free stuff. One of my co-hosts, Danger Aaron from that MTV show, “Jackass,” was going to all the houses and lounges that were for the celebs, and he was making out with all kinds of free stuff. I went down to the Premiere Magazine Film & Music Lounge to find none other than etnies Girl putting shoes on such celebs as Jenny McCarthy, Bijou Phillips, Shannon Elizabeth and Taryn Manning. Sundance was fun! We wrapped the awards party at 3 a.m., I went back to my place to pack quickly, and the airport shuttle was at my door at 4 a.m. to take me to the airport for my 6 a.m. flight to Aspen for the Winter X Games.
Winter X Games
I’ve done some stuff for the Summer X Games because they added surfing to the X Games (but guys only) and asked me to do some interviewing for the surf. They liked what I did, so they asked me to do Winter X. The only thing is that I was not as familiar with the events they had me cover. I did interviews for Boarder X men’s and women’s, Skier X women’s, and UltraCross, which has snowboarders and skiers teamed up together. Needless to say, I was completely out of my element, but it was fun. I have a lot of friends who do pipe and slopestyle, but I didn’t know any of these athletes. It was fun, though, and I pulled it off on live television. I didn’t know this going into it, but the first two hours that I was on TV I was on ABC’s “Wide World of Sports” LIVE! I’m glad that I didn’t know that, ‘cause I probably would have choked.
I have to fill you in on the other thing I did at Winter X. I played music and actually sang in front of people, which has to be one of my biggest fears. I have the worst stage fright ever. I had agreed to play three times in Aspen: twice for Fender and once at a Boarding for Breast Cancer benefit. The first two performances were good little practices in front of small crowds of people I didn’t know. It was a good warm-up. I could see the halfpipe on the mountain while I was on stage, so I tried just to stare at that while I was singing instead of looking at the people. I kept hearing about this show at the Belly Up for Boarding for Breast Cancer, and I kept hearing about how G. Love & Special Sauce was playing and how it was completely sold out. And that was where I was supposed to play my last night in Aspen—I was going to open for G. Love at the benefit! I really wasn’t sure how I was going to do it, but I tried to keep my game face on.
The afternoon of the show, we had a sound check on the stage with all the lights on. Granted, the place was empty, but you have to take into account that I don’t even sing in front of my mom or boyfriend, or anyone for that matter! This was going to be a huge growing experience. I made it through sound check, but when I came back later that night, the place was filled to the brim with people. I sat in the backstage area so I could focus and practice, but I felt as though I was going to throw up or pass out. I looked out into the crowd and it was packed. It was time. My good friend Sal Masekela had just finished introducing me and it was go time. I walked out there and took a seat on the stool, and people were screaming. There were girls right in front screaming my name and I’m thinking, “Who are these people? Do I know you??” It was scary; the lights were so bright, I could hardly even see the people standing at the front of the stage. I took lots of deep breaths and tried to think “happy place” and pretend none of those people were there.
I did make it through. It was cool because it was such a huge thing for me to do—just so far outside of my comfort zone—and I did it. That whole week was about being outside of my comfort zone, but now I feel like if I got through that I could do anything! It was fun also because a lot of my friends were there to support me, and my mom came out and so did my boyfriend. I don’t know if you guys ever see ESPN’s “SportsCenter,” but there’s only one woman on the show. Her name is Linda Cohn, and I really look up to her. She is really good at what she does and she’s not one of those bimbo girls (you know, the kind you usually see on TV). Anyhow, she was in Aspen doing “SportsCenter” live from the X Games, and we got to hang and talk. The night of my big performance she actually taped “SportsCenter” just so she wouldn’t miss my performance! It was so cool to have her there!
Summerland
So after that whirlwind, I got home and was home for one day before I had to go up to L.A. to film some surfing for a TV show that I do some stuff for called “Summerland.” By this point, I had the flu and I had to surf in a spring suit in 57 degree water. I had to double for a new girl on the show and tandem surf with one of the main guys on the show, the Aussie guy.
I hope you enjoyed the journal and the photos. Don’t make fun of the wig I had to wear for “Summerland”—I know it’s bad. I look like an ape woman.
Oh, and if you ever think something is hard or you can’t do it, just think of me singing in front of a sold out crowd when I can’t even sing in front of my own mother!!
You can do it! Anything is possible!
~jn
Lauren Perkins' Girlie Skate Camp Journal
by: Mike Matz | Friday, December 3, 2004
- Lauren Perkins, Luciana Ellington, Julia Bauer and Brooke Pedersen (left to right) take a breather while at Girlie Skate Camp. Photo courtesy of Susanne Kindt
etnies Girl skate team rider Lauren Perkins and our very first etnies Girl of the Month, etnies' own Brooke Pedersen, kept this journal while they were in Barcelona, Spain, for the last Girlie Skate Camps of the year. Get the other side of the story by reading Lucy Adams' Girlie Skate Camps Diary.
FRIDAY, OCT. 1, 2004
Today was the first day of camp. The etnies Girl crew (which consisted of us—Brooke and Lauren—Luciana Ellington from Check It Out Girls Magazine and Elissa Steamer) met up with the 20 excited campers in the morning and headed to Sitges Park. We took two metros and a train, but it was worth it once we saw the beautiful ocean in the background. As soon we got to the park, Elissa and Lauren couldn't wait to jump on their boards and skate as the campers watched. The campers were divided into two groups, beginner and intermediate skaters. The beginners got practice going down a slant and the intermediates learned how to kickturn and do stalls. After getting to know the campers and giving them some pro advice, Lauren, Elissa and Luciana (camera in tow) decided to break out and skate some ledges and benches they spotted on the way to the park since the park was mostly bowls, while Brooke stayed behind to chat it up with the Nikita crew and campers. So far, the best trick of the day has been Elissa ollieing a HUGE gap, as etnies Girl UK skate team rider Lucy Adams snapped away. Lauren would like to add that the day is still young and she has every intention of getting best dance move of the day later on. Just because she was born in '88 doesn't mean she doesn't know about the worm. Once they were done skating, Lauren, Elissa and Luciana decided to get on the train back to the city and meet up with the Girlie Camps crew later on. In the meantime, Brooke and Julia "Juwels" Bauer from Nikita were busy getting lost from the group and making fun new "friends" to help them get back to the city. At first, the new friend thought that he was just being nice, but an hour of having two American chicks less than two steps behind him got a little stalkeresque.
The good news is that at the end of the day, we all got back to our hotels in one piece. After some rest and dinner, all of us camp girls went to the MACBA (Museum of Contemporary Art), one of the most famous street spots in Barcelona. The spot had good vibes with kids skating and playing soccer barefoot while campers practiced ollies. I (Lauren) recognized a ledge I saw in a skate video before and decided to do a backside 50-50 off it. When Lauren told me (Brooke) and Luciana she wanted to do it, we looked up at the six foot drop and said, "Do it." All the skaters at the park (including some hot Spanish boys) were watching and after three tries, she landed it, but we weren't sure we got the shot so she had to do it once more. On our way back, we saw some cool graffiti and took some cute pics of the etnies Girls in front of it. People don't even go out until midnight in Spain, so we met up with Elissa and a local friend and hung out in the city until late. We went on a croissant mission and Lauren polished off three, some covered in chocolate (that one was nasty and ended up in el trasho). Finally, we headed back to the hotel to sleep.
SATURDAY, OCT. 2, 2004
LESS WRITING, MORE SKATING! (And looking for cute Euro boys who hopefully wear deodorant.)
SUNDAY, OCT. 3, 2004
Lauren and Brooke here again, reporting live from our hotel lobby in Barcelona. I (Lauren) love Barcelona and am working on an etnies Girl house here. Today we finally got to sleep in. (YES!) Once we woke up, Lucy and I (Brooke) had breakfast, then came back to the room to watch "Sex and the City" in the room, while Lauren sneaked out of the hotel on a mission to feed an addiction that she's developed since we've been here to Café con Leche, a Spanish coffee drink that's half espresso and half milk. It started out innocently enough with one a day, but has since grown into a full-fledged addiction and the last couple of days she can't pass a coffee shop without running in and pounding one or two at a time. It's really fun right after because she's very hyper and tries bizarre circus-like skateboard stunts, but when she crashes from the high: LOOKOUT.
In the afternoon, we hopped on a train went back to Sitges Park for the big Girlie Camp demo. We had no idea what to expect at the demo, but to our surprise there was a big crowd of kids waiting at the park to watch the pros skate. Since Jill Viggiani was a victim of the Nikita curse (they were all injured!), she was the MC for the event. To name a few, the kids got to watch Nikita riders Mimi Knoop, Tina Neff and Juwels Bauer and our crew, Elissa, Lauren and Lucy, rip up the bowl, ledge and rail. The kids were stoked and even mobbed Elissa for autographs when she left the park to do an interview. The girls skated for about a half hour, and then hung out for awhile to do magazine interviews. Once we were done, we walked to the beach and had the best meal we've had so far. The restaurant had a huge menu with everything from Japanese to Mexican food, so everyone got what they wanted. After we ate, we went to the train station and saw a bunch of girls from the camp. It was nice to talk to the girls on the way home about where they're from (all over the globe!) and what spots they liked the best at camp. Now we're headed up to our rooms to get ready for the Girlie Camps closing party!
Xoxo from your favorite dynamic etnies Girl duo,
Lauren & Brooke