Tuesday, July 2

All Girl Skate Jam

By Elizabeth Runge
EXPN.com

Los Angeles, California: pink generously splayed about, a mass of screaming girls, and all of them with the common goal to dispel the myth that they're made of sugar and spice. No, it wasn't the premiere of the Powerpuff Girls Movie, it was the return of the All Girl Skate Jam. Just to clarify, technically it wasn't L.A., it was Venice Beach. And the pink wasn't as powdery as one might naturally assume, it was vibrant magenta - and that was just the color of Sasha LaRochelle's pony tail. The girls were actually screaming though, but not in the "Eeeew, you scream like a girl" sense of the term, it was of the "you go girl" variety. Really, it was a full-on chickfest at it's finest!

Kara Pizzamiglio boardslides her way to second place in the pro division.

The AGSJ kicked off another successful series of tour stops, this one in conjunction with The Core Tour. A smorgasbord of action sports, the clever minds behind The Core Tour, fused BMX Dirt Jumping, In-Line, Mountain Boarding and Skateboarding, set to the boom of some of the best DJ's, up-and-coming bands, and even a few bands you've heard of. The festival atmosphere drew spectators throughout the weekend and piqued the curiosity of all.

Founder of the All Girl Skate Jam, Patty Segovia's philosophy is "All girls, all abilities, all ages." At Sunday's event all of those categories were represented from seasoned professionals like CaraBeth Burnside and Jen O'Brien to groms, hopped up on a fresh dose of Dogtown and Z-Boys. Seven-year old Caity Elizabeth, demonstrated some super stylie hand drags and old school foot work that would have put a smile on Stacy Peralta's face. Caity's mom, Sunny, grabbed a board and joined her daughter for a session in the park, reinforcing the how unique the AGSJ really is.

Segovia said, "The AGSJ event has been my life for the last five years. I eat it, I sleep it, I breathe it. I've dedicated my whole life to promoting girls in skateboarding because I know what it's like to be a girl skater – there wasn't a forum for it. At the first event I did back in 1997, I walked around the crowd and the responses I heard were 'well I want to try it, or I'm just too scared and my brother says it's not for girls.' I felt that there were a lot of girls that had never stepped on a board that wanted to."

Winner Vanessa Torres was killing it.

Jen O'Brien, who took third amongst the pros, recalls the '97 event too. "Back then there were no girls contests. Girls weren't even thought of as skaters. When 120 girls showed up - everyone's mouth dropped. It was super rad and all the girls walked away so stoked."

Segovia believes the younger girls skating today are going to revolutionize the face of the sport. After watching the intermediates bust out some very impressive runs, she's undoubtedly right. Girls like Ciara D'agostino and Lynn-z Adams are already picking up sponsors, LeeLee skateboards of Venice Beach, among them. With these girls however, it wasn't their moves, their style, the huge air they threw on their ollies, that impressed. It was their sportsmanship.

Eva Dixon arrived so late, the judges skipped her first go. No time to practice and warm up, Eva got her game on despite a beater board and unfamiliarity with the course. As Kate DeBlasio of LeeLee skateboards in Venice recalls, "Jen pointed out a girl to me and said "Kate that girl really needs a new deck." It barely had any tail left, but Eva was just tearing it up with this deck that was just practically one big splinter! Before I could even go to my car to get a deck for her, Ciara and Lynn-z had offered Eva one of their decks. It was so rad to watch that all go down because the whole mission behind Leelee is about encouraging girls to skate and be free and independent and active. I'm really proud to have girls like Jen, Lynn-z and Ciara on the team."

Sasha La Rochelle,Lynn-z Adams, Vanessa Torres and Heidi Fitzgerald hang out after the competition.

Eva took the girls up on their offer, she layed their board on edge and used it to ollie over, choosing to ride her own. She didn't know it then but Eva illustrated the point that Patty has spent the past five years trying to make - "The whole reason we started the AGSJ was to get together, skate and have a good time. That is what this day is all about." Basically, it doesn't matter how or what you ride, Patty says "If you're passionate about something and you really love what you're doing, you're going to surface. You're going to make something good out of it."

Venice Beach Overall Standings
Groms
1. Anna Gault
2. Caity Elizabeth

2002 AGSJ Skate Street Women- Intermediate Division
1. Morgan Duey
2. Violet Kimble
3. Mini Knoop

2002 AGSJ Skate Street Women - Pro Division
1. Vanessa Torres
2. Kara Pizzamiglio
3. Jen O'Brien