http://www.dazeddigital.com/life-culture/article/38248/1/women-only-biker-gang-vc-londons-girls-night-house-of-vans
OH MY DAZZZZZED - BY EMMA HOPE ALLWOOD
BABES & BRUSIES BY GIRLS ARE AWESOME - CARLITA THE GYPSY
Loving this new series of articles called Babes & Bruises by Girls Are Awesome telling stories of some amazing ladies & how they earned their war wounds.
IMAGE FROM WWW.GIRLSAREAWESOME.COM
Introducing our new series of stories, where girls who ride tell us about epically bailing and show us their bloody kneecaps. No pain, no gain, right?
- GIRLS ARE AWESOME
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Girls who ride know that failing is part of the game. After all, no pain, no gain, right? So welcome to “Babes & Bruises”: a series where we ask riders to show us their brag-worthy bruises, tell us how they went down and explain how they kept pushing afterwards, bloody kneecaps be damned.
Meet 23-year-old, London-based shredder Carla Calero, aka Carlita the Gypsy. Although she claims to suck at riding ramps, she’s been a staple of the UK skate scene for quite a few years and has been covered by mags like Coven and Girls Skate UK. Like many other skaters, she’s had to deal with a pretty inconvenient injury—so we got the lowdown on what happened and how to keep the stoke alive when you’re forced into a temporary break-up with your skateboard.
IMAGE FROM WWW.GIRLSAREAWESOME.COM
GIRLS ARE AWESOME: Hi, Carla. How did you get into skating and how often do you hit the streets?
I just wanted to learn; I always found skateboarding such an interesting thing. It’s a way to express yourself. I usually skate like twice per week, probably six hours in total. It depends on the weather, obviously.
Do you prefer street skate or ramps?
I’d rather skate street; I’m terrible at ramp. I feel more comfy hitting a rail or a bank, but I can also have fun on a ramp, even though I suck.
Tell us about your injury. What went down?
I’ve been in the game for five years and last year I tore my ACL [Anterior Cruciate Ligament] and meniscus.
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VC X HOUSE OF VANS GIRLS NIGHT - SATURDAY 2nd DECEMBER!
SUPER STOKED to announce our next big VC event in collab with House of Vans London!
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Presenting the VC X HOUSE OF VANS GIRLS NIGHT
Saturday 2nd December // 5pm- 10pm
House of Vans London - 228-232 Station Approach Rd,
London SE1 8SW
On Saturday December 2nd we’re hooking up with the legendary House of Vans London to present a night showcasing, celebrating & supporting awesome women taking the road less travelled to share their stories & inspire others to get involved.
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We’ve got a massive line up from our next edition of LIVE TEAM TALKS & discussions with inspiring women from skate legend LUCY ADAMS to pioneers of the open road like, the first English women to ride around the world solo in the early 1980’s, ELSPETH BEARD, ALL FEMALE COLLECTIVES - from motorcycles, basketball collectives, velodrome riders, skate crews to roller skating collectives for you to talk to & get involved with, an ALL FEMALE MARKET PLACE with everything from female run brands to female illustrators LIVE PAINTING & monogramming your boards helmets & Vans, GALLERY SHOW by female adventure photographers, FILM SCREENINGS from female adventure film directors, LIVE MUSIC, demos, WORKSHOPS from screen printing to , GIVEAWAYS , SKATE COMPS & loads more!
All by girls for girls.
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Well be dropping more info on who's coming down & who's involved in the night on here & on our instagram in the run up but r more info & to sign up to the House of Vans Facebook events page for updates click HERE!
BECOME A PART OF A NEW GROUNDBREAKING SURVEY FINDING OUT THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN WOMENS MENTAL HEALTH & ADVENTURE SPORTS
"I ride to clear my head" is something that you hear many women talk about in terms of riding no matter whether that be a skateboard, bicycle or motorcycle. No matter which facet of outdoors & adventure you are involved in, the common place factor between many of us seems to be the positive effect that time spent in the places you love doing the things you love has on your mind & wellbeing. It’s this very relationship between womens mental health & the outdoors that has led the people behind Women In Adventure and Shextreme to conduct a groundbreaking survey into the relationship between womens mental health & adventure & the outdoors & you can be a part of it.
The first survey of its kind to be conducted, with the help of as many women experiencing outdoor & adventure sports as possible, the team aim to be able to put the findings to good use to empower women & raise awareness on mental health issues but also to communicate their findings with brands, businesses, initiatives & news outlets to create a better understanding.
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“Instinctively we know being outside is good for our soul, it makes us feel alive” says Women In Adventure. “However, there is a lack of accessible information showing how and to what extent it impacts our lives. Aside from proving there is a positive association between the outdoors and mental wellbeing, we would like this project to empower women and raise awareness of an often under-discussed topic.” - Women in Adventure
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We think its an incredible initiative with the results being put to brilliant use to highlight & address womens mental health & the ways we deal with mental health issues. If you have a spare few minutes its well worth the time. All information you give will be kept anonymous but if you choose your input can be added to the advice & inspiration page of their website (well worth a look to find some inspiring words from fellow women experiencing the outdoors from their own perspective).
FEMALE MOTORCYCLE RACER RIPS A NEW TRAIL BY KRISTIN MARGUERITE DOIGE FOR GOOD SPORTS
P // www.blog.motorcycle.com
Inspiring interview with female flat track legend Shana Texter by Kristin Marguerite Doige for GOOD SPORTS.
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With a blond ponytail whipping out of her helmet, standing at five feet tall, weighing just 95 pounds, Shayna Texter is the all-American, fresh-faced female rider leading the pack in American Flat Track, a highly competitive, male-dominated motorcycle racing sport.
She’s one of just two professional female riders currently competing in the sport — and she’s thriving. Texter posted five wins in 2017 and finished the American Flat Track Singles championship series in third place. In 2011, she became the first female to win a main event in AFT history with her singles win at Knoxville Raceway and followed up that landmark win with another seven during the next three years. Recently, she trained with Jay Leno.
She is the latest generation from a family of Flat Track racers, and competes alongside her successful brother, Cory Texter, who is also a professional in the series and races in the AFT Twins class. They are one of the few brother-sister duos to compete in the highest level of motorsports.
One of her greatest personal setbacks was the passing of her father in 2010, who was also a professional flat track racer and served as her inspiration to get involved with the sport.
But Texter’s determination is in her blood. A fierce and respected competitor on the race track, she’s a kind, thoughtful soul in her free time — enjoying country music, fishing, and time with family and friends. She’s also a devoted advocate interested in inspiring the next generation of girls. Here’s what she had to say when GOOD caught up with her:
Is being petite an advantage in your sport? Did it affect which sports you played/participated in as a child?
My size never affected which sports I played as a child. Beside motorcycles, my second love growing up was soccer. I played soccer for more than 10 years on a travel team and for my school before calling it quits in 10th grade to focus primarily on flat track. Being petite has its advantages and disadvantages in flat track racing. The tracks with high speeds and a draft, my smaller body allows me tuck more down the straightaway and cut through the wind better. However, the smaller tracks where you really have to muscle the bike around and use your body to get the bike turned is more of a struggle for me. I also struggle a lot more with rear-end grip on slippery racetracks, because I do not have the weight and the body size like some of my competitors do to get my body up over the rear wheel.
How does the sport balance athleticism with safety? How do you view it personally?
The American Flat Track series tries to put safety at the top. At every round, riders have to wear a full leather suit, leather gloves, boots, a DOT-approved helmet, and back protector. The tracks that have walls also have air bag fencing that is deployed in front of the walls in the high impact sections of the racetrack. American Flat Track also has multiple observers to check on the racetrack at all times throughout the day for safety, and we have lights and certain flags to notify us riders while on the track.
VC X VANS
Hey Bae! Stoked to hang with the lovely VANS fam recently & shoot with the talented Viviana Gomez- Morales for their new campaign!
Read MoreVC TEAM TALKS X LEAH TOKELOVE
We hung out with trailblazing pro flat track racer Leah Tokelove to talk about how she got into flat track
Read MoreCAMP VC BY RACHEL BILLINGS FOR BUILT MAGAZINE
Massive congrats to the lovely Rachel Billings for her amazing cover of the new Built Magazine shot at CAMP VC in August. Go buy it to check out her amazing 11 page article on the event & what went down!
P// RACHEL BILLINGS
CAMP VC 2017 BY THE COSTA SISTERS
The amazing Costa Sisters have absolutely smashed it again with this video from CAMP VC 2017..... This is exactly what the weekend was about.. Rad ladies riding, dirt burning, shredding, old friends & new ones , and one hell of a party! Argh! We can't wait to show you what ever got lined up for next year at CAMP VC!
A huge thanks to Costa Sisters & The incredible Pearl Harts for the tune
Sign up to our mailing list to be the first to hear about info & when tickets go onsale for CAMP VC 2018 (remember there is an amazing goodie bag for the first 50 tickets holders) by clicking HERE
LIVIA LANCELOT - THE FIRST EVER WOMENS WORLD CHAMPION IN THE HISTORY OF MOTOX - INTERVIEW BY PAULA VIIDU FOR GIRLS ARE AWESOME
THIS 🙌
In 2008, French motocross rider Livia Lancelot won the FIM Women’s Motocross World Championshipand became the first ever women’s world champion in the history of motocross. This victory came right in the middle of a shifting conversation within the world of action sports: rather than talking about the best champions, people were increasingly talking about why more women weren’t becoming the best champions. Gender imbalance and action sports have traditionally gone hand in hand, and motocross is no exception. However, things are tangibly improving on that front: since the Powder Puff National in 1974 – the first big female motocross race in the U.S. – we’ve seen an influx of competitions pop up specifically giving props to female athletes. There’s the WMX championship series, the X Games, the Endurocross series, just to name a few; and in the 2000s, women’s motocross became an official part of the AMA Pro National series, one of the world’s most prestigious motocross championships. And it’s not just about organisations moving to include women, too. Traditional motocross audiences want to see more women excelling in the sport, as exemplified by Vicki Golden: despite being the first woman in the Freestyle Motocross competition at LA’s X Games 2013 and despite competing against prominent male riders, she earned a bronze medal based off of real-time voting from people tuning into the competition on Twitter.
IMAGE: KAWASAKI.SK
The impact of including women in motocross culture has been so tangible that women are increasingly participating in the sport even in countries like Iran, where women are banned from riding motorcycles in public. On the wave of this momentum, Girls are Awesome caught up with Livia about what it’s like being the only girl at the start line and what the women’s scene in motocross is like today.
IMAGE: LIVIALANCELOT.COM
VC LONDON X THE SAN MIGUEL RICH LIST 2017
A massive thanks to San Miguel for asking us to be a part of their 2017 San Miguel Rich List this year alongside some incredible people who value experience over possessions & pursue a different kind of wealth in life 🙌 .
Also a massive thanks to Jody Daunton for the amazing London memory. Pure magic to ride over London Bridge at sunrise with no one else around 🙌
LEVIS X VC FOR THE STYLIST MAGAZINE
Great to get a ride in before the CAMP VC madness started in Wales with the lovely people of LEVIS & STYLIST MAGAZINE ❤️
READ THE FULL ARTICLE HERE : http://pages.stylist.co.uk/fashion/breaking-up-the-boys-club/
CAMP VC BY THE COSTA SISTERS
Missing CAMP VC as much as we are ??? ..... Well maybe this'll help to get you through till next year. The amazing Costa Sisters have come through with some incredible shots ahead of their official CAMP VC video coming soon.
Ahhh take us back to that sunny hillside with beers, bikes & birds ;) .... Oh well you'll just have wait to see what we've got planned for next year :)
'RAISE BRAVE GIRLS, ENCOURAGE ADVENTURE ' - CAROLINE PAUL
If you do one thing today watch this.
Read MoreGREENFIELD LADIES DIRT CAMP WITH THE DTRA & VCC BY TOM BING
Last July VCC & VC LONDON were honoured to team up with the DTRA & Greenfield Dirt track in Lincolnshire to host the third ladies Dirt Camp weekender.
The aim of this amazing event is to introduce & encourage more women into different motorsports & in particular dirt track racing & man is it one good weekend. With flat track & motocross lessons open to all ages & levels of rider from total beginners to experienced riders , these guys give up their free time to help further the womens motorsports community, give people more confidence to get burning on the track........ & they also have some pretty inventive ways to light a bonfire (!)
After we all made some new friends, shared some new skills & came away with huge smiles on our faces, dirt in our hair, a few bruises (and one bust lip) the amazing Tom Bing has come though with this rad video of the weekend to show everyone what Dirt Camp is all about & to spread the word.
A big thanks to Anthony, Anna (& all the DTRA crew) , George Pickering, Leah Tokelove & all the Greenfield family for putting on these incredible opportunities to grow the womens motorsport community in the UK. And a massive thank you to Tom Bing & Sally for the amazing video..... When can we do it all over again please???
' The People here respect you, respect where you're coming from & respect the reasons you have for actually wanting to be here '
@vickycee
GREENFIELD DIRT TRACK
ALL VIDEO & STILLS BY TOM BING ( @tombingphoto )
CAMP VC BY RACHEL BILLINGS
Dreamy hill tops, evening sunsets with dirtbikes buzzing in the background, new bikes, vintage bikes, custom bikes, skateboards, moshpits, crowdsurfing, friends old & new and smiles.... lots of smiles. That was Camp VC 2017 & luckily Rachel Billings was there to perfectly capture it.
See you all next year! Watch out for details coming soon.
CAMP VC 2017 - THE AFTERMATH
So we're back in blighty now and woah what a weekend!!!!We were absolutely blown away by how much everyone loved the event!!!! And yes...... It will be coming back next year ladies :)
We just wanted to say a massive thanks to all who came, partied, learned to ride or taught someone else, went on ride out, skated the mini ramp, moshed in the pit or joined the impromptu conga line at Blondies disco bingo & were generally rad all weekend long . Good vibes all round.... Just the way its meant to be.
Also a huge thank you to our amazing sponsors & supporters who helped to make the weekend so incredible! HONDA , VANS , MONSTER ENERGY , DMD HELMETS , SAILOR JERRY , PISTONHEAD LAGER , RED WING SHOES , NEFARIOUS , THE DTRA , THE GRAND HOWL & BLONDIES BAR
CAMP VC X THE PEARL HARTS
We're absolutely stoked to be welcoming The amazing Pearl Harts to CAMP VC this year to play on Saturday night. Described as 'Queens of the Stoneage meets The Runanways' with a mix of old school riffs with some modern looping and samples a recent review called them:
“Tiny tiny girls that look like giants on stage… all you can think to do is ask them out for ice cream
and all they want to do is wreck your house and firebomb your car”
Think they might fit right in dont you? Get to know them & their music before you head to CAMP VC & get your moshing feet at the ready :)
- So how long have you guys been together as The Pearl Harts?
Kirsty: We started The Pearl Harts in 2014 in a shitty rehearsal room off Mare Street
- Describe Pearl Harts in 3 words:
Bad Ass Bitches
- What are your musical influences?
anything Rock and Roll!
- Best gig you've ever played?
We recently supported Skunk Anansie on their European tour and we got to play Brixton Academy which has been a childhood dream of ours... we had our family and friends there - it felt really good!
- Worst gig you've ever played?
We played at show last year where all the equipment was falling apart - the drums were falling over and the PA was some old amps as speakers and I was getting an electric shock every time I sang into the mic! Despite that we actually ended up playing a wicked set!
- If you could replace each other with any other musician who would it be ?
Can we just add Dave Grohl to the line up?
- What have you got lined up for us at Camp VC?
Strickly bangers
- So what made you wanna get involved with Camp VC ?
I met Gemma at a Pub in Deptford and we started talking bikes & we've been fan girls ever since!!
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Go follow The Pearl Harts on Instagram HERE & check out more of their music on spotify now!
CAMP VC X GRACE HAZEL YOGA
We're so excited to have House of vans yoga boss lady Grace Hazel onsite at this years CAMP VC teaching free yoga classes on Saturday morning & afternoon for all you yoga bunnies. She's an absolute ray of sunshine & were stoke to have her involved. Get to know Grace below & find out what she'll be bringing with her to CAMP VC this year.
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Name: Grace
Age: 28
Profession: Yoga Teacher – Energy Body Balancer & Thai Yoga Masseuse – Design Studio Co-coordinator
When did you start to teach yoga?
I started to teach yoga back in January 2014, so 3 years ago. Yoga literally changed my life. I discovered it 9 years ago and it’s transitioned and guided me through the highs, and most importantly stuff that’s been tough. I began teaching because it felt, and still does feel necessary to introduce others to the continuous healing it can offer to your life.
You leaned to ride this year with Mai! How did you find it?
YES! Maite was an awesome teacher. I’d ridden on the back of my dad’s motorbike when I was little, so it was a lot of fun to be in the drivers seat.
What have you got lined up for us onsite! (sessions, whats involved, what style of yoga etc)
I'll be teaching two 60 minute yoga classes in the morning. The style I teach varies, but it can predominantly be described as vinyasa flow. We'll start off soft with a meditation, then we'll slowly begin to move our bodies. Vinyasa flow is basically linking up various yoga poses with breath and transition so that the postures become a flowing sequence. It'll be totally accessible to all levels, so come along if you're completely new - if you're a well accustomed yogi!
What made you want to support the CAMP VC event?
I met the lovely Mai through the design studio we both work at. I liked her straight away. When she invited me to ride with her, I met Gemma who I also really vibed with. I love what VC does and how it promotes bringing a strong community of women together. Woman have got to choose to uplift each other. It's an honour to be teaching for CAMP VC.
CAMP VC X VCC TEAM TALKS
Big news for CAMP VC with VCC 's live team talks project !! We're super excited to announce that we'll be welcoming to the CAMP VC site the legendary Elspeth Beard .
As the first English woman to circumnavigate the world solo on a motorcycle in the early 1980s Elspeth is a true pioneer in every sense of the word. We had the pleasure of riding & hanging out with Elspeth recently ahead of the launch of her book "Lone Rider" & talked to her about her amazing journey. .
To listen to VCCs newly launched team talk with Elspeth ahead of the event click the video before
To watch more VCC team talks go to www.vcclondon.com/vcc-team-talks/