2018 - A Year In Review.
Women's skateboarding is growing at a faster rate than anyone probably anticipated, and 2018 was a stellar year all the way around - it started off strong and ended with even more great news for women in the sport. The best thing to happen this year was Vans stepping up to offer the women equal prize money at all the stops on the VPS Tour, that in turn encouraged other comps to follow suit. But read on, to see a ton of other great things that happened this year as well!
Happy New Year!! xo GN4LW
JANUARY
Lizzie Armanto gets her own signature wheel from Bones!
We had an awesome "Girl Power" and "It's Not About Pretty" Book launch party at The Odell's in Silverlake and we put up another female skateboarding billboard on Sunset Blvd. in celebration.
GN4LW team rider, Minna Stess, is featured in the new Lego Commercials.
Transworld announces its readers choice awards categories and now there is a specific category for female skaters - making history!!
Nina Moran from The Skate Kitchen Crew gives an inspiring TEDx talk.
Leticia Bufoni gets her own pro model board and it launches with 3 different graphics!
FEBRUARY
Dusters x GN4LW launches the new "Girl Power" cruiser.
Nora Vasconcellos gets her own pro wheel with OJ.
AU Bowl-riding Championships has GN4LW team rider Poppy Starr Olsen taking 1st place!
Lacey Baker designs a new Nike Bruin Hi sneaker and it sells out fast!
70's / 80's skaters, Judi Oyama, and Pattie Hoffman are inducted into The Skateboarding Hall of Fame.
Lacey Baker gets her own pro wheel with Spitfire.
Vans announces more stops for the women on the VPS tour this year and equal prize money!
Margielyn Didal graces the cover of Blunt Magazine.
Lizzie Armanto is on the pages of SHAPE Magazine about getting fit.
Au's Sabre Norris, comes seemingly out of nowhere, to win Australia's Bowl-a-Rama comp!
The book, "Skateboarding is Not a Fashion", come out and we get to see 70's fashion in skate, from not only the guys, but some of our fav female rippers like Judi Oyama.
MARCH
GN4LW Team rider Zoe Benedetto scores an article in Stuart Magazine about the next generation!
Downhiller Calleigh Little speaks out to Buzz Feed about her solo cross country skate journey.
Lacey Baker is featured in the New York Times discussing why she'd like to see more girls skateboarding.
GN4LW Ambassador, Elise Crigar, is featured in the video "Women on Wheels".
Old Navy runs a commercial featuring female skateboarders and BM riders... in dresses.
Female skate emoji's finally drop - but it's a 3rd party app so it doesn't work on Instagram - Boo!
GN4LW team rider, Poppy Olsen, wins the women's division of Bowzilla Gold Coast - and the biggest news was the comp had equal prize money!
NHS x Thrasher put together an all-female skate video titled "Please Don't Grab My Boob", the title was weird, but the skating was great.
Vans Girls Combi announced that the women's prize purse would match the men's this year - $65,000 - that was HUGE news!!
Vans puts on a girls skate night in major cities from coast to coast - it's called GET ON BOARD and features a photography show, skate clinics, free Vans shoes and more.
Nora Vasconcellos makes women's skate history - you can now put together a complete "Nora" board - Nora Welcome Skateboards deck, Nora Krux trucks, and Nora OJ Wheels and Nora Mob Griptape!
APRIL
The Venice Ladies Jam is back again with Heidi Lemmon and crew at the helm - girls took over Venice Skatepark all day competing and having fun!
Nicole Hause is on Thrasher's "Firing Line".
Ikea came out with a few skateboard products and the shoe/skate rack was the one to hack and make your own!
Downhill racer, Emily "The Prosecutor" Pross, made history by winning the OPEN class in International Downhill Federation Racing at a race in the Philippines!
We released the #GirlPower skate video promo that Lifetime TV did for us and it was a big hit!
Nora Vasconcellos was part of the Adidas "Das Days" interview on The Nine Club - and she was hsyterical!
Skater/artist, Gabrielle Brownfield designs a wheel for Speedlab's "Artist Series".
GN4LW team rider, seven-year-old Briel Weingartner, is featured on the site Pop Sugar and her video goes viral.
The King of Concrete contest took place in AU and GN4LW team rider Grace Cochrane took 1st!
2nd Shanae Collins, 3rd Charlotte Heath
Zara Percy is featured in the new Dusters video promoting our new "Girl Power" board.
The 420 Games take place at Venice Skatepark and Jordyn Barratt claims victory for the women's division. Hanna Zanzi 2nd, Julz Lynn 3rd.
MAY
The SLS women's comp in London had these three ladies on the podium; 1st Jenn Soto, 2nd Lacey Baker, 3rd Mariah Duran.
Samarria Brevard's new pro model from Enjoi, "Uprise" launches and gets some major attention.
X-Games Norway women's street comp has these podium results; 1st Leticia Bufoni, 2nd Lacey Baker, 3rd Pamela Rosa.
The new Dusters x GN4LW "Girl Power" video launches to celebrate the Girl Power board release.
Amelia Brodka gets her own pro model wheel with Speed Lab.
Vogue India profiles our book, "It's Not About Pretty" and discusses the girls skate scene in India.
GN4LW team rider, Poppy Starr Olsen, takes the win at the VPS Continental Championships Oceana which secures her place at the VPS finals in China. Sabre Norris lands second and Charlotte Heath 3rd.
Florida's Grace Marhoefer graces the cover of Coping Block Magazine!
JUNE
We published another book, this time for UK based photographer Charlotte Thomas. The book "Concrete Girls" chronicled the women's skate scene in the UK - it becomes the 2nd book under the Girl is NOT a 4 Letter Word publishing group.
The Volcom La Kantera Invitational in Spain sent invites out to the women this year! USA's Jordyn Barratt and Minna Stess flew over to be part of the contest and brought home 1st and 2nd! Madeleine Larcheron took home third.
Brighton Zeuner was not only up for an ESPY award but also a Nickelodean Kids Choice Award!
Lizzie Armanto gets a capsule shoe/apparel collection with her sponsor Vans!
We did a fun interview with our fave street artist/skateboarder, Lola "The Young Vandal".
Sabre Norris makes her USA debut and takes 1st at the park qualifiers in Boise for the upcoming X-Games.
The Mixt Studio x GN4LW tote bag collection launches and team rider Kyra Williams models for the ads!
Photographer Ken Hada starts a podcast with skateboarders called "I Had a Conversation..." and he features Lizzie Armanto and Julz Lynn right out of the gate!
The VPS Brazil comp brings out so many women! Results were; 1st Sakura Yosozumi, 2nd Yndiara Asp, 3rd Brighton Zeuner
JULY
Vans Continental Championships Huntington Beach had Dora Varella taking the win again this year and giving her the all expense paid trip and entry into the VPS Championships in China!
Brighton Zeuner edges out Sabre Norris to take the win at X-Games Minneapolis in park. Sakura Yosozumi comes in 3rd.
In women's Street at X-Games Minneapolis, Mariah Duran took the Gold, Aori Nishimura - Silver and Bronze went to Alexis Sablone
Dickies announces that it will start making girls appareal and the mini shredders are stoked!
Adidas launches the new Nora Vasconcellos skate shoe and its a hit!
GN4LW team rider, Minna Stess, takes 1st at the Mystic Cup in Prague!
GN4LW team rider Zoe Herishen is featured skating in the new J. Balvin & Lennox music video.
The Dew Tour Pro Park Finals in Long Beach, CA had a women's division this year (no more skating against the guys!) 1st Nicole Hause, 2nd Bryce Wettstein, 3rd Jordyn Barratt.
GN4LW team rider Zoe Benedetto takes home her first national title in Explorer Super Girls at the NSSA Surf Comp here in CA.
AUGUST
History is made - Lizzie Armanto is the first woman to make the Loop - Tony Hawk posts the video and it goes viral!
The movie everyone has been waiting for, The Skate Kitchen, is released in theaters nationwide.
INSTYLE Magazine features high fashion looks on local Venice skaters, Quinne Daniels, Vianez Morales, Dalia Lundquist, & Miquell Benson for their big September Issue!
Vans Park Series Huntington Beach podium results were; 1st Kisa Nakamura, 2nd Jordyn Barratt
3rd Brighton Zeuner
SEPTEMBER
Lacey Baker is in the new Nike Campaign and people are stoked!
Vans Park Series in Malmo, Sweden podium results were; 1st Jordyn Barratt, 2nd Kisa Nakamura
3rd Brighton Zeuner
The VPS Continental Championships results were; 1st Amelia Brodka, 2nd Lilly Stoephasius, 3rd Shani Bru - Amelia's win qualified her to compete at the VPS Championships in China.
GN4LW Ambassador, Quinne Daniels, is featured in a commercial for the Disney Princess VIVOFIT JR.2 Fitness Tracker from Disney and Garmin
OCTOBER
The women's World Championships for park took place in Nanjing, China and the podium was; 1st Sakura Yosozumi, 2nd Kisa Nakamura, 3rd Poppy Starr Olsen.
Brighton Zeuner took home her 2nd VPS Chamnpionship in Suzhou, China.
GN4LW Ambassador, Quinne Daniels, is featured in "That Kinder Magazine" bringing back 70's skate style and we love it!
Mariah Duran, Leticia Bufoni and Aori Nishimura all earned medals in the Women’s Skateboard Street competition at X-Games Sydney.
We gave away our third micro-grant to the all girls skate group in Salt Lake City led by Noelle Sanders, Salty Bitches.
Dusters x GN4LW in collaboration with artist Jim Rugg launched the cruiser board, Street Angel.
Mini shredder, Sky Brown stars on "Dancing with the Stars, Jr."
Pro skater Leticia Bufoni and model/skater Izzy Wild are featured in Paris based fashion label Zadig & Voltaire's new fragrance launch for "Girls Can Do Anything".
NOVEMBER
Nora Vasconcellos is up for Thrasher Magazines "Skater of the Year" - she is the only female skater on the list.
Margielyn Didal receives a pro model from her sponsor Eight Five Two Shop.
GN4LW ambassador, Elise Crigar, is featured on the highly acclaimed podcast, "Adventures in Design" and San Diego's "Voyage Magazine" all in one week!
Exposure Skate throws their annual contest that draws female skaters from around the world with a 2 day Pro & AM comp in Encinitas, CA.
DECEMBER
Pro street skater, Leticia Bufoni, is now the athletes representative for World Skate as we head into the Olympics in 2020!
HBO announces that they are creating a TV comedy series based on The Skate Kitchen crew.
Cebu pro street skater, Margielyn Didal, is named one of Time Magazines most influential teens of 2018!
Pro park skater, Arianna Carmona gets a pro model from Moonshine Skateboards.
Jessie Frietze-Armenta wins the ladies division of the OG Jam Series.
GN4LW team rider, Grace Cochrane, scores a well deserved scholarship from the Tasmanian Institute of Sport to help towards her goal of competing in the Olympics!