*Please introduce yourself to our readers!
Hi I’m Laura, I’m 28 and I’m from Plymouth in the South West of England. I’ve skated for four years but dreamed of skating for many more. I love skating far, but I’m also really into downhill and slalom. I run Skate Further along with a team of guys, and I’m sponsored by Seismic, Stoked, Long Treks on Skate Decks and I’m the light flex tester for G|Bomb. This summer, I skated the length of Scotland solo, from the top of Sheltand, down to the border with England – around 550 miles, but I sort of lost count as I was having too much fun!
I’ve done a ton of other stuff but I guess that’s what Google is for!
*How did you get into longboarding?
I got into skating when my friend Dave (from Boardfree) encouraged me to get a deck, after I showed an interest in his long distance journeys. I started skating my topmount board to work every day, and it was only a matter of time before I moved to a dropped deck, and skated a lot further! I eventually joined his team out in Australia, giving up a job in a dark TV studio to push into the sunlight and freedom!
*Apart from the obvious, i.e. covering crazy amounts of miles, what are your favourite things to do on 4 wheels?
Most of all, I love to skate with my friends from the Plymouth Longboarding and Skate Further gangs! I love that through skating I meet tons of new people, which gives me a chance to learn new things, and share a few stories of my own. The best things about skating together are the LAUGHS, the THRILLS and SPILLS! I think so long as I have a plank of wood and four wheels under my feet, I’d be happy anywhere :)
*Why LDP?
I never took part in anything that really forced me to question myself and celebrate life so much as long distance skateboarding. You are constantly breaking through mental walls, and that feeling of exhilaration when you realize you’ve still got it in you to carry on, it’s addictive. Much like a runner’s high! I couldn’t run a mile, but I’d skate one hundred of the badboys with a smile on my face!
People sometimes lay into distance, asking what the point is. I’ll say this: I celebrate the push, the first primal movement of skating – do you?
*What does skating mean to you?
Skating means freedom. Freedom to experience the world under your own steam, to direct gravity, to feel the forces of the cosmos flow through you as you power down a hill, pound up the next, and stand at the top screaming your head off with joy.
*Has your epic push changed you and if so, how?
I am much more centred and focused on my life now. Whilst my journey was very much day to day, the planning took a year. I am very organized now and put that skill to good use when I am given the opportunity to help plan and support events around the world. It also helps me prepare for lessons – I’m a schoolteacher in training now!
*How did you physically manage to skate this far and how did you prepare for trip through Scotland?
I don’t think my body is anything special! Yes I have some nice calf muscles, but I’m not superwoman or anything. It’s the strength of mind to slog on and get through pain that leaves you breathless. I guess that’s my secret weapon: smiling!
Like I said, prep for Scotland took a year. Even though I had been involved in trips that were sponsored, part of me for some reason was shy to ask companies – I didn’t think I get taken seriously, so I ended up spending a lot of money on kit. I am luckier now, with some great support from Seismic, Stoked Skateboards, Paul, Aaron and Adam at Long Treks on Skate Decks, and my friends Eric Lowell and Mark at G|Bomb.
*What's your plan for this season?
Set a few personal bests in distance, and have a blast in downhill! I’m working harder to become the best skater I can be, and I hope this is recognized by a few more sponsors…I’m really poor now after my Scotland trip!
*How do you see women in longboarding and how do you feel as a girl amidst all the boys in this traditionally male dominated sport?
I’ve never had anything but love from the guys. I can’t thank them enough for their support. They might poke fun at the fact I’m tiny, but I’ve learned everything about having a powerful push from people with legs a foot longer than mine, and I’m glad of it!
The girls are coming up this year in the UK – we’ve got tremendous talent out there in downhill with Kim Edwards, distance record holder Jo Coles, and your own gnarette, Christine Maier (Thanks Laura ;) )! I also hear there’s a rogue tribe of female distance skaters out in Aberystwyth, so watch out world!
*Why do you think it is that girls are such a minority within the sport?
Girls seem to have been sidelined traditionally as ‘betties’, but in the sport of longboarding, girls are out there, hooning it down hills and blasting out some amazing skills. I’m not sure that girls fully realize the impact they could have on their peers if they just picked up a board and rolled around on it with passion. It’s inspirational, so get to it, ladies! See you at the Hog Hill ladies workshop (We will put ut more details about this event soon, stay tuned)!
*How do you keep yourself busy when you're not rolling around on a plank of wood?
Try being a trainee secondary school teacher and running a million skate-related projects at the same time! That’ll keep you off the streets!
*Tell us a random fact about yourself!
I’m so small (5ft 2 inches) because I have a bone age that is a ways behind my actual age. About five years, I think! The rest of my family are tall, I’m stunted and proud!
*Last but not least - do you have any newbie advice or other words of wisdom to pass on to our readers?
Drink lots of nice water and watch copious amounts of You Tube longboarding videos. Hit up the bathroom on your way to the front door. Go downstairs after washing your hands. Put on your helmet, pick up your board, leave the house. Go skate. Smile!
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