Have you heard of Malmo? The land of the s’s: sunny, sweet, sick skate spots in Sweden. If you haven’t been, we recommend you get ‘on board’ and push your way there pronto! Not only known for its vibrant skate scene, Malmo has a particularly strong presence of a specific kind of skater… the female variety! This past weekend saw skate orientated folk from all over the world descend on Scandinavia for Ultrabowl IV, to witness transition skating at it’s best. It was the optimum weekend to be in town, with the comp attracting skaters great and small, to watch and compete, skate and socialize, sweat and sunbathe. Plus this year the all-girl street comp ‘Get Set Go’ promised some world class action and the Brits were there to get involved! With 28 girls from 9 countries aged from 12 to 33, the uniting force of skate brought an amazing group together for two days of competition and social skating in the progressive girl skate scenario known as Sweden. Running alongside Ultrabowl, ‘Get Set Go’ is an annual respected event on the girls calendar, with humble beginnings back in 2009 when it started out as a mini ramp comp. These days it attracts girls from 9 countries who had made the journey over for this year’s event. The Brits were no exception to the enticing skate-opportunity with Lucy Adams, Becky Jacques, Stef Nurding and Lois Pendlebury all eager for some concrete playtime in the Swedish sun.
On arrival in Malmo, girls are cruising the streets on their boards, you don’t need a map to find your way to the Stapelbäddsparken (the park), just follow behind or join their crew. The park was buzzing with those making use of the last of the evening glow or likely those that had been there all day. It was ‘Get Set Go’ time on Saturday morning, as the comp kicked off and there were no shortage of takers for the course. The heats were packed, with Norwegians, Yanks, Swedes, Danes and Brits being amongst the nationalities that had made the trip. The first day was the heats, with a good few hours and a good bit of skate to spectate. Swedish crew ‘West Coast Skate’ had brought the colour with some nicely tie-dyed tees made especially for the comp and backward caps especially for the style. Eyes were on Norwegian, Tonje Pedersen, who had quietly been ripping up the course all morning and Austrian Volcom sponsored Julia Brückler. All the way from the US, Christina Ebeling was an exciting addition to the line-up and the course. With a strong entourage of Brits in town, Lucy, Lois and Stef were egged on by an encouraging and loud bunch of male supporters. It obviously worked and all three of them made it to the semi’s the next day. It was going to be another sunny skate spectacle for day 2, but first up an Ollie comp and a ‘world record breaking’ (in our opinion) pop over at least 10 decks by the girls.
The next day, the sun was out and slowly bed was replaced by board as the park began to fill. By midday it was back on! Lucy Adams, who had been ripping round the empty bowl before the sleepy skaters turned up, was ready to bring her A-game. You could see it in her eyes… She made the finals in style and then brought a newly added trick to her skate CV, landing a texas plant (which she has literally got down that morning). A NBD for her and no better time to pull it out the bag! She killed it all over the course, landing all she took on and impressing the judges and crowd. ‘Lewis’ Pendlebury brought the fun for her heat with a playful skate spectacle that made you smile, as she weaved the course full of creativeness and energy. ‘I’ve never had so much fun at a contest’ she exclaimed! It sorted her a place in the final and she was back in action later in the day ripping up the course and, errr, off the course to take 6th place… Stef Nurding had happily made the semi’s too, in her bright coloured leggings of luck and her skills on the day earned her a respectable 10th place overall. The Brits were a force to be reckoned with and an inspirational bunch to watch! But it was Austrian, Julia that stole the top spot. Technically showing off with a kickflip backside 50 and crooked grinds. Stoked smiles all around: ‘my first crooked grind ever in a contest!’ she exclaimed after her finals heat, followed by an array of high fives from girls watching and competing in the comp. People that skate are happier and girls that skate are united! With the competition over and the energy high: ‘I had fun no matter what, but I do need to pay for my ticket home…’ says Christina…
It was third place to Lucy, second to Christina and top spot to Julia. Good job by all girls involved and Skate Malmo for putting it on!
The comp was over, but the skate was set to continue over at Ultrabowl. ‘Where do you go if you want to learn to skate?’ shouts the commentator before we head over to watch the gnarly bowl riders (learner ears prick up) ‘the girls skate night, every Monday’. Instead of sitting feeling insecure about your skills after witnessing such rad girl skaters ripping the street course with ease, skating becomes accessible again. Time to get on your board, get in the park and skate with everyone. Sweden’s got it going on and its’ secret is? It’s not a secret. Thanks for sharing Malmo!
Event vid and full results / Find out more about skating Malmo
Words and Pictures: Neon Stash
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