July 2011 Skateboarding Events – Stay in the Know!

Skateboarding events in the US and around the world are lined up for July. Skateboarders should look forward to these exciting events to learn from the professional skateboarders showcasing their skills, tricks and flexibility with the skateboard.

First we have the Van’s Wrapped Tour in the US. The tour started in 24th June and will end in 14th August. Not only will this tour include different action sports like skateboarding but it will also have music bands playing fabulous and rocking songs. Check out when the concert will reach your state or the state nearest to you!

Next we have the Volume Summer Skate Series in Minnesota. This is a series of sixteen skateboarding competition held all over Minnesota. The competition began on 12TH June and will end of 8th August. So there are still competitions remaining in which you can participate. The best part about this competition is that it caters to all levels of skateboarding, from beginners to intermediate to expert. Check out the dates of the remaining competition!

If you live in California, the state where skateboarding was born then you can’t miss the California State Games. Some people describe it as a “mini-Olympics” that includes skateboarding! The skateboarding events will start on 10th July and will end the next day. If you are planning to register for the game, do so immediately.

The last event in US is also in California at Patterson Skate Park on 16th July. This is last competition in the series known as Central Valley AM JAM.

The next event we have is actually taking place in Mystic State Park in Prague, Czech. This is considered to be the most exciting skateboarding competition in Europe. It is known as Mystic Sk8 Cup. Registration will take place on 14TH July. The prize money is $30,000! So whoever wins will be one lucky skateboarder!

Skateboarding competition is also part of the festival in Shepton Mallet, England. It will start from 9th July. It is a three day events which includes concerts and different sports competition.

If you are a big skateboarding fan and love skateboarding then you should definitely participate or visit these events to see the best and to have good fun!

Cheers,

On this day… June 21st Every Year it’s GSD

Most skateboarders wait for one day eagerly every year; June 21st “Go Skateboarding Day.” The name for this interesting and joyous holiday for us skateboarders originated from the unwelcoming “No Skateboarding” signs. These signs were more than often also read as “Go Skateboarding” especially by the old local skateboarders. It is part of human nature to do what one is told not to.

Go Skateboarding Day was first celebrated on June 21st, 2003. The International Association of Skateboard Companies (IASC) conceived the holiday to make skateboarding easily accessible for everyone around the globe. This is accomplished by holding various skateboarding events in most of the major cities all over the world.

Since its initial events, Go Skateboarding Day (GSD) has been fortunate enough to receive Special Recognition from the Congress of the United States. This honor was bestowed on Go Skateboarding Day for special promotion of the art and sport of skateboarding. This holiday is a cause of celebration by millions of skateboarders in Puerto Rico and the world. Steve Rodriguez, the owner and founder of 5boro skateboards currently runs the New York City chapter of Go Skateboarding Day.

The NYC chapter alone has thousands of enthusiastic skateboarders participating each year. It is because of this amazing response that GSD NYC is considered to be the largest single gathering of skateboarders in America and perhaps one of the largest in the world. With so many people out skateboarding on June 21st, it is now rightfully considered as an official holiday. Events are held all around the world with skateboarding and skateboarders at their centre.

Now, if we look at Go Skateboarding Day from another angle, we can see the love of a sport being commercialized. Skateboarding is about having fun, hanging out with friends, and doing some groovy tricks. Many skateboarders are thinking that Go Skateboarding Day is just a way for companies to sell more skateboard gear and make money. This is the reason that these Skateboarders are against the holiday.

On the other hand, some skateboarders go skateboarding for the heck of it, for the love of it. However, the point all skateboarders agree on is that you don’t need one day to go skateboarding. If you enjoy skateboarding, skateboard any day and every day; it does not matter whether you are up for the holiday or against it. Make the most of it anyway you can think of.

Get up and Surf for the Cause

Are you from an organization? Do you run an NGO? These are two of the questions that Surf For The Cause founders, John and Ledis Coronna, are often asked. But a simple answer from their end explains it all, “We just wanna change the world one wave at a time.” Surf For The Cause’s mission is to connect surfers, travelers, and people living in other coastal communities all over the world. Surf For The Cause facilitates these relationships in every way they can for the greater good.

Surf For The Cause happily serves the poor in these communities especially surfers. Surfers, from whatever category they may be, can relate to each other because of the one thing that draws them all; the waves.

Surf For The Cause team is doing everything in their power to bring change in the lives of people who need it. For instance encouraging emotional uplifts, bringing inspiration, restoring joy to those who need it most and much more. All this is combined with traveling the globe, helping people along the way, and searching for the single perfect wave. If you want to be an ambassador of goodwill and love without any hassle, Surf For The Cause is the place to be.

If you want to dream, dream big; Dream of making the world a better place, one wave at a time. Surf For The Cause, is the result of such a dream. Surf For The Cause teaches you that every small, community-centered project with the right love and thoughtfulness makes a huge difference.

Surf For The Cause is all about securing the authenticity of the effort and the sincerity you put in your effort to bring change. It is not about mass effectiveness but making things better at a local level. It is this approach of Surf For The Cause team because of which one finds goodness at the heart, even if not on a big scale. Through this local effect we can eventually go global as well.

One such example of local effort can be seen in the village of Sutiava, lying outside the city of Leon. John and Ledis Coronna have greatly changed the entire setup of the small community, since they started working there in 2004. The Sutiava village is a community of displaced people, abandoned by the Nicaraguan government following persistent calamities.

Nicaragua is one of the poorest countries in the world, but thanks to the work being done in Sutiava by Surf For The Cause, due to which many things have changed for the better. Surf For The Cause will continue doing remarkable work in Nicaragua as well as the world and they have our complete support all the way.

Surfers for Autism

If something good comes from doing something you love then there is no reason for it not to be done. Surfers for Autism do just that by teaching children suffering from autism to surf. The mission of Surfers for autism awareness is to help unlock the potential of people suffering from disabilities. At the same time Surfers for Autism educate about autism and related issues. This helps in removing the stigma surrounding developmental disabilities. Surfers for Autism encourage volunteerism in order to create public awareness concerning autism.

It was in December 2007 that a member of a local surf group in South Florida introduced the idea of Surfers for Autism to his fellow surfers. He and his family had been through tough times related to autism. As soon as it was suggested that children suffering from autism should be introduced to surfing, the idea flourished and preparations started being made. Fundraising efforts helped Surfers for Autism in widening the communities in which such events are required, and in funding research and advocacy of autism.

The first triumphant event of Surfers for Autism took place on April 5, 2008.The Surf for autism was held on the north side of the Deerfield Beach Pier and $10,000 was raised for autism associated charities by 40 autistic surfers. There was no stopping to raising funds after that. Since then several events have been conducted by Surfers for Autism with as many as 200 surfers registering for a single event and around $20,000 being raised.

The events organized by Surfers for Autism are absolutely free of any cost for children suffering from autism. Each event has qualified surf instructors present who carefully guide the kids onto the waves. The main purpose of Surfers for Autism is not only to raise funds but to make the people suffering from autism happy and giving them the courage to overcome their disabilities.

Surfers for Autism also make sure there are many fun activities like kayaking, paddle boarding, live music etc. All this is done to make the whole experience turn out great. It is a great opportunity for people to learn and especially for autistic children to impress their peers and family alike, by their talents. After a day filled with awesome activities a catered lunch is provided to satisfy growling appetites.

The volunteers and the Surfers for Autism family consist of very friendly people dedicated to making a difference. Several families have seen progressive changes in their children thanks to Surfers for Autism. The team of Surfers for Autism is proud in making the children happy and will continue doing so as long as possible.

Skateboarding – it’s not just a Trend

If you are trying to find some adventure and have a bit of a laugh at the same time, skateboarding may just be the perfect option for you. Skateboarding is the act of riding and performing tricks using a skateboard. Skateboarding is just a sport to some, an adventure to others but to the people that actually love the sport, it is a lifestyle.

Skateboarding has turned into one of the most popular activities of the youth these days. It has advanced from being just a rebellious hobby back in the old days to being a full scale sport that it is now. According to a recent study, there are more than twenty million skateboarders around the globe and more than eighty percent of these skateboarders are teenagers. Some of these skateboarders skate as a hobby and some (especially students) take skating as a simple means of transportation. It is quick, easy, portable and fairly inexpensive means of transportation with lots of fun.

To make sure you are having a safe ride, you will need proper gear. That means along with the obvious “skateboard” you will also need a skateboarding helmet, arm / knee pads and skateboarding shoes. If you don’t know what to get, shop at our online store – Rincon Surf & Skate and ask for our advice. Don’t buy anything on the spur of the moment, take your time with each item, make a list and find all your gear right here. Be very careful when purchasing your shoes as your shoes are just as or if not more important than your skateboard. Skateboarding shoes are specifically designed to grip the skateboard while also allowing you good street grip when pushing off. If you are just starting out, you may find that these shoes make the learning process much easier since they reduce slipping and sliding.

When people see someone skating, they think it’s easy to do, but its not. Skating may not be an immensely difficult task but it does take time to perfect. To learn it, you need to be patient, relaxed, hardworking and practice as much as you can. Learn the basics first and then start working on the tricks. People trying to go beyond their capabilities are the ones who get injured in the process. Skaters who develop skills to do tricks with skateboards can also expect to get sponsorship or become a pro skater and get paid from the company. You have to be really good at skating to get to that stage. Keep working and who knows, one day you might be running your own crew of skateboarders. Just dream and go after it!

What it’s all about – Skimboarding?

Skimboarding is an adventure sport that that can be classified as a form of surfing. Skimboarding is an old and one of the most hi-tech sports in the world. Earlier skimboarders used pieces of wood to skim the water. Nowadays, skimboarding has evolved immensely and skimboarders build their boards using technology adapted from aerospace. This helps skimboarders attain buoyancy and maximum lightness.

Skimboarders use their momentum to ‘skim’ out to breaking waves, which they then catch back into shore in a manner similar to surfing. Skimboarders (also known as skimmers) throw their skimboards on the shallow water near the shore and then run and jump onto the board. This allows them to slide across the water easily.

Skimboarding (also known as ‘surfing the sand’) is an excellent activity for traditional surf boarders who do not currently have good wave conditions. Also, skimboarding is a comparatively inexpensive sport. Some wax for the top slide of your skimboard and a pair of surf trunks, and you are good to go. Lastly, do not forget your sunscreen if you want your complexion to stay safe.

What it’s all about

A few people don’t think there is much difference between surfing and skimboarding because to them, both are done in open water with a board. This confusion is due to the fact that it’s too hard to define exactly what skimboarding is because there are so many variations to it. The best way to explain is to let other skimboarders demonstrate and express what skimboarding is all about. In any case, skimbaording is about having fun, hanging on the beach with your friends, getting a nice wrap or turning off the face and flying down the line.

Tricks

Once a skimboarder has an adequate control over his way of skimming, tricking comes next. Tricking in skimboarding is not only fun for the ones doing it, but is also very entertaining for the people watching it. Three of the most popular tricks are the Ollie, Pop shove-it and spin moves of both 180 and 360 degrees. The spin moves in skimboarding are different from the rest since they are ground spins. Before a skimboarder attempts to do such tricks it is necessary to warm up and stretch so that the body muscles do not cramp up later. It is very important that a person who is going to skim is able to run and have a good stamina. If you fall in the beginning it does not mean you cannot do it, just get up and give it another try.

Puerto Rico’s Hot Surf Spots

In layman’s terms, surfing is a water sport in which a person rides a breaking wave into the shore while using a board. It is an amazing sport to those addicted to thrill and adventure when all you need to have are quick senses and balance on the surfboard.

Puerto Rico is one of the top surfing destinations in the western Atlantic Ocean. Puerto Rico (also known as surfing heaven) is blessed with amazing surfing conditions around the year and can get pretty big and powerful. Whether you are an experienced surfer or just starting out, Puerto Rico will not let you down. The surf around here can be anything from 2 feet to 20 feet, and regardless of your skill level, you’ll find a wave to surf on.

Tourism is big in the area and you can easily find a place to stay, as a handful of hotels in surf areas cater directly to the board and flip-flops crowd. Check out Sand Castle Villa at Corcega Beach in the town of Rincon (contact owner at 914.260.3509) – affordable, stunning, relaxing and close to everything. And, if you didn’t bring your gear with you, no need to worry about it. There are places to rent boards at most of the major surf spots on the island. Whether you are traveling alone or with a group, you will find no shortage of activities and fun in the tourist areas.

There are many areas around the coastline of Puerto Rico that are suitable for surfing; but where you can show most of your skills? Some of the most famous beaches of Puerto Rico are:

Maria’s Beach:

A hub of surfing activity during the main tourist season, Maria’s Beach consistently offers thrilling waves. During the off-season, the beach calms down considerably, providing a serene site for sunbathing and relaxing.

Tres Palmas Beach:

Also known as “Steps Beach”, it is recommended for more seasoned surfers. During the summer, the water is calm and ideal for snorkeling, while winter brings the big waves that surfers crave. It features some of the most challenging breakers in Puerto Rico, with waves reaching up to 25 feet when the conditions are favorable.

Sandy Beach:

Nestled along the northern coastline of Rincon, this beach features a sandy bottom (hence its name). Mild waves make it a great spot for beginners. December through February is a particularly good time to drop by Sandy Beach if you want to windsurf, as this is when the winds are most consistent.

La Ocho Beach:

The best place to catch some waves in Puerto Rico’s capital city (San Juan) is at La Ocho, located between the Condado and the Old Town. There are many surf shops located near the beach that rent out boards at reasonable prices. Locals come here to catch some waves on their lunch breaks, and it is popular with tourists as well.

Rincon Beach:

Also known for it’s beautiful sunsets, Rincon Beach is one of the best if not the best, area for surfing in Puerto Rico, located on the west coast of the island. The beaches around Rincon are a magnets for beginner, experienced as well as pro surfers. So if you are planning on doing any serious surfing while on vacation in Puerto Rico; Rincon should be at the top of your list. Rincon’s geography means that more than sixty percent of its coastline is ideal for surfers.