5X – NOT YOUR USUAL – SKATE VIDEO FOR A RAINY DAY
As spring started down here in Holland, skateboarders have started to crawl out of car parks, indoor skate facilities, and endless games of skate 3, into the great sunny outside world. Nevertheless, spring wouldn't be spring if it weren't for a few rainy days just at the moment when you were on the verge of landing that one new trick you've been waiting for all winter. Now there are two things you can do. 1: Sit around sobbing, fall back into that winter depression, and acknowledge that it's never going to get sunny again. 2: Check out some skate videos to get inspired, keep motivated, and to hold on to the thought of summer on its way.
I'm sure you know your way around youtube to find the newest parts of the coolest skaters around, so that's why I dug a little deeper, to introduce you to another kind of skateboard video. These videos showcase skateboarders, communities and spots you probably don't see often. Have a good one watchin' and get inspired!
Athens
For those who don't know, Athens is the main capital of Greece, a beautiful country in the south-east of Europe. Besides being a tourist hotspots for its ancient history, it is also becoming more and more known for the vibrant skateboarding community and legendary skatespots.
This short documentary is made in Athens with Free Movement Skateboarding, who have been teaching skateboarding workshops there, for almost two years. In the summer of 2018 WSTW's Amber joined them to set up our Women's Program. The sessions of Free Movement attract all kinds of nationalities, in the end including a mix of children with a refugee background and greek locals. Watch the documentary filmed by Bristol-based filmmakers Joe Auborn and Tom Stafford-Hughes and get a feel of what it's like overthere! If you're interested in joining FreeMovement and WSTW, check out our page on volunteering.
Free Movement Skateboarding from Joe Auborn on Vimeo.
Palestine
Another relatively unknown cool location for skateboarding is Palestine, combine Palestinian villages, hill bombing for days and a few unexpected skateparks with enthusiastic locals and sunny weather.
Wa-Alaikum-Salaam by Nick Vieweg
Would you be in for some falafel, hills and nice weather? Contact our friends at Skatepal! They run a volunteer program from March till October
Another video showcasing the Palestinian skateboarding vibes is "Dharbet-Shams" made by SkatePal ambassador Ryan Lay.
Nepal
Ooh Nepal, land of the Himalaya, and eh... Nevermind, I don't know a lot of things about Nepal, but what I do know is that even though they're not well known for it, they have a vibrant underground skate community. There are girls and boys shredding parks, hills and streets - breaking with cultural expectations and gender-based limitations. Nepal is a country where problems such as poverty, human trafficking and drug-abuse are present on a daily base. Skateboarding and the creative community around it helps people to stay off the streets and develop themselves in a positive way. To see more about Nepal and skateboarding you can watch this short documentary 'S.K.A.T.E' of - New Zealand based skate platform - Refurb 's trip.
That's it for now, four videos showcasing communities and places that aren't regularly featured in the mainstream skateboarding media, I hope you learned something new!