Interview
What year were you born? 1991
Where did you grow up? Born and raised in Auckland, New Zealand which is where I lived for the first 25 years of my life. And yes, it really is as pretty as they say š
Tell me your skate story ā when you started skating, different phases what influences, memories of spots/ramps when your a kid, teen, young adult or adult. I always wanted to skate as a kid. My mum says I grew up with an adventurous spirit. When blading blew up in the 90ās my whole family had a set of skates and we would often skate the beach boardwalk at Mission Bay. Mum also recalls me going down the driveway at our family home, but I remember the size of that thing and I donāt think I would have survived. I also had a stab at skateboarding in my early teens. My dad was teaching my brother and I remember learning how to roll down a hill near our house but struggling with the board beating me on the way down. I was always fascinated by skateparks but never really tried to get into it as none of the obvious routes spoke to me. I was then introduced to roller derby in 2011 by a friend (Leah soon to be TutanKarnage). We watched the movie āWhip Itā and I remember saying something about how much fun that would be and how bummed I was it didnāt really existā¦ low and behold, it did. We went and watch a home season game by Pirate City Rollers and soon after signed up for freshman. I was a pretty eager skater and we often ventured out to carparks at night to practise laps and stops. Needless to say I was hooked. Fastforward to 2012 and I had my first bouting season with the Pirates. I played for the Blackheart Bruisers as a home team and was rostered to the All Scars after a few games. After my first season of derby I was introduced to park skating by a skater who had just moved to Auckland from NewCastle (Aus). We were on a skating tour on the city and she requested we make our way to a skatepark. I remember the complete rush I got from watching her jump on the miniramp and pump her way to the top. I was in complete awe. Iād never seen anything more badass. I learned how to pump that day and requested another session the next day, and the nextā¦ we quickly formed a little local girl gang of derby skaters taking their skates to the transition. I remember thinking about how many skaters out there would have no idea you could take your quads on ramps. I wanted to share our journey and the journey of others, thats how Chicks in Bowls was formed. I didnāt grow up on skates, but I wish I had, so now Iām a ‘grown up’ letting my inner child live out her dreams of skating transition.
What have you been up to lately? Juggling! Not the circus act, its a little more metaphorical š I currently work part time for a Startup company writing social media plans. And then I spread the rest of my time between ramps and roller derby. Chicks in Bowls keeps me plenty busy as weāre constantly trying to innovated products and think of fun ways to engage and give back to the community. I donāt get to park skate as much as Iād like to, mostly due to Melbourneās shitty weather. And then of course thereās derby. VRDL train 4 times a week so that chews up any spare moment. I also try and find some time to do other hobbies to keep me sane. Swing dancing has been my main vice and theres a good crew of All Stars that have joined now!
And what are your top 3…
Foods: Cheese, Mushrooms and a perfectly cooked lamb chop from NZ
Bands / Artists: Outkast, Kitty Daisy and Lewis and Electric Light Orchestra
Activities: Skating duh!!! Swing Dancing and patting dogs.
People: Spongebob Squarepants, the Spice Girls and the dad from Malcom in the Middle
Memories: Family holidays wakeboarding in Tarawera (NZ), my first US tour with the CIB Skate Team and Squirrel hunting in Colorado. I guess winning Champs was also pretty memorable š
Dreams or goals: My goal is to spread the stoke of skating worldwide. On a personal note I would love to skate the world! So far Iāve skated in 16 counties and 22 US states.
Books: Scar Tissue by Anthony Kiedis, The Long Hard Road Out Of Hell by Marilyn Manson, and the Harry Potter Series
Movies: Moulin Rogue, Dirty Dancing and Bubble Boy
Places you have traveled to: Poland, Dubai and Abu Dhabi (UAE)… and Japan.
Places you want to travel to: Iām busting to return to Thailand as I havenāt been since I was young. Iām also way overdue for a trip to Argentina and Mexico.
