More magazine, April 2006

Sherri Cruz did this profile of me for the April 2006 edition of More magazine, geared toward women over 40. One thing's for sure, magazines really do know how to make you look younger (make up, lighting!).

Cushy skateboard

Spotted this vinyl, upholstered skateboard at the CA Boom modern home expo in Santa Monica last weekend. Perfect for barefoot skating!

The Perfect School Visit

Last week, I had the pleasure of doing an all-day author visit at George White Elementary School in Laguna Niguel, CA. I have done about 30 school visits in my career, and I must say this was one of the very best. The George White Knights really know how to treat an author!

First, they had a reserved parking spot waiting for me when I drove up. This is a very big help when you're lugging a half dozen skateboards and other props into a school!

Second, from the moment I walked into the front office, all the teachers and staff members knew who I was and why I was there. Big smiles all around. This really makes a visiting author feel welcome! Plus, I can tell the school did a great job in generating enthusiasm about my visit. Kudos!

Third, the students were not only primed and ready, they were super psyched! I have done presentations at schools where the students had never heard of me, or my book, until the moment I was being introduced. Such a pity! At George White, it was obvious that the kids had not only heard of me and read my book, some had actually memorized a few lines. Wow!

I could go on and on (a tasty lunch! enthusiastic helpers!) but the bottom line is, this school went out of their way to make the whole experience one the students won't soon forget. And I'll never forget the entire student body sitting out in the rain, chanting "Skateboard Mom! Skateboard Mom!" as I did my finale of skateboard tricks.

Thank you George White Knights! And special thanks to Jill Brick, Susan Riley, Susan Suhr, Mrs. Koci, and of course Principal Spelber for being brave enough to take a beginning skateboard lesson from Skateboard Mom!

Skate Moms in the News

Oddly enough, the International Society of Skateboarding Moms and I have been featured in approximately 200 media outlets including Good Morning America (we helped co-host Charlie Gibson skate down Times Square, penny loafers and all), CNN, The Early Show, ESPN2, the British Broadcasting Co., National Public Radio and more newspapers and magazines than I can remember. Here are a few if you're interested:


National Public Radio's "My Fellow Americans" series:
http://www.npr.org (type "Skateboard Mom" in search key to find story)

USA Today:
http://www.usatoday.com/life/lifestyle/2004-06-29-skateboard-mom_x.htm

USA Today sidebar:
http://www.usatoday.com/life/lifestyle/2004-06-29-skateboard-resources_x.htm

About.com (long)
http://skateboard.about.com/cs/proskaters/a/InterviewBarbOd.htm

A very cool multimedia article on skate mom Tara Ryan:
http://www.courierpostonline.com/multimedia/skatermom.htm