Photos by CJ Harker. Interview by Broke Bois.
fs 50-50
Let’s start off with some basic info, where are you from? How old are you?
I’m 26 years old from Brielle, New Jersey. Located at the Jersey Shore, minus the GTL and hair gel. I’ve been skating for four years and surfing my entire life. I moved to Philly last year, and I’ve been skating FDR a ton and I work at a school in West Chester.
What made you start surfing at such a young age?
My dad started pushing my sisters and I into waves when we were still in diapers. He grew up surfing at the Manasquan Inlet and that’s where we all learned. He surfed professionally, traveled the world, and recently was inducted into the NJ Surfing Hall of Fame. Yeah, my dad is OG. So is my mom. She doesn’t surf, she just chills on the beach, paints, and practices drum rolls for her jazz band.
What was it like growing up with a professional surfer as a dad?
It just meant that surfing was an inevitable part of life. It was really easy to fall in love with it at a young age. My dad gifted me my first winter wetsuit in February on my eight birthday and then we went surfing that cold afternoon. Northeast surfers who surf through the winter are tough as nails. I always felt comfortable in the water. The ‘fear of the unknown’ that freaks so many people out in the ocean, eventually made me feel at peace and in a way more connected. From trying to keep up with my dad at a young age, I learned how to confront those feelings of fear.Which is a mentality that I think helps with skating. We went surfing in Puerto Rico when I was a kid, stopped in a general store, and I saw a postcard with my dad’s surfing photo on it. I always felt proud of my dad as a surfer, he was a pro rad dad.
boneless
What are the few things that you love about skating that are different than surfing?
Skaters are different than surfers. I have some solid homies who surf, but I’ve met so many rad people through skating. I like that skating is more of a social thing, because if you’re chilling when you’re out skating, there’s room for conversation and goofing around. Surfers are set to a more serious pace when in the water, and it’s not until you’re on the beach that social norms come back into play. I don’t want to talk to anyone when I’m focused in the ocean. Sort of like when I’m focused skating. Also the ocean is so dynamic, which is all of the fun and challenge. But I like the consistency that skating provides. The ramp, the wall, the concrete never changes like the wave does.
Word on the street is you just won FDR’s first ever women’s competition. How does it feel to be the first woman to win an event at FDR?
It’s an amazing feeling for sure. The energy that day was insane and the turnout was epic. It was a well deserved day for everyone, but especially the ladies. It was my first skate competition and I didn’t really know what to expect. Everyone was in such high spirits it made the competition way too much fun. Everyone was getting after it heavy from the first heat to the finals. The energy was there and we were all feeding off it. It was a wild ride of a day. Big thank you to Gloria, Ryps, and the squads who contributed to put on this phenomenal event, and a huge shout out to all the competitors!
layback 5-0
Do you feel like women have a big enough platform to help each other learn and progress?
Definitely. We live in a super unique time where connection and building relationships with each other is essential so that the world doesn’t blow up soon. When we use things like social media platforms to squad up, help out and support one another, that’s where true knowledge and progress is born. I see a lot of girls doing this with each other and it’s so rad. Before I moved to Philly, my girls and I would use Instagram as a way to get girls of all ages to come skate the park. We work for a surf school called Pink Pineapple where the owner Becky uses the ‘girls teaching girls/babes on waves’ business model, so our turnout was sick. Young girls started coming to the park all the time. When I go home and visit NJ I get to see the lasting impact on our community and how many young female rippers are on the horizon or just having fun.
When learning to skate, did you find yourself skating by yourself or with a group of friends?
When I started skating four years ago, it was always a solo mission. I would feel a little weird at times because I’m a very social person. One day when skating alone, I bumped into some old friends I hadn’t seen in a long time, Steve and Fitz. Those are my dudes. From that day forward we made a group chat and when I wanted to skate, I’d send them a quick text. All you need is a couple good friends. They taught me a lot, and I could feel my progression happening every time we’d skate. That’s my squad at heart. Down the line I met friends and fellow co-workers like Allie, Amelia, and Rachel. That femal energy made a huge difference. The homies in Philly are quality folks too. Shout out Brokebois!
Where do you pull inspiration from on days that you are feeling uninspired?
I like going on walks from time to time, especially right now with all the flowers blooming. Reading and writing, too. I try to journal a lot. I like reading back on my old journals for some reason. I like reading fiction, I’m a big Stephen King fan. I listen to music and paint with water colors. Painting with water colors is oddly soothing. Even if your paintings look as shitty as mine.
fs smith
