>>PREVIEW
SEE JANE SKATE
Saturday, July 15
Village Square Leisure Centre
Anne Klazek, director and founder of Canada’s only all girls skateboard competition, See Jane Skate, is the kind of girl that inspires respect. She’s been involved in the Calgary skateboard scene for a number of years, working in skate shops and for City of Calgary mobile parks. Doing so has given her the opportunity to see first hand that though the desire and interest for girls to skate increases each year, it’s sometimes difficult to find a nurturing and accepting environment. Klazek has been organizing the competition for three years, and each year has the event grown from a few competitors and even fewer spectators to a full fledged all day event incorporating a Girls Breakin’ Battle.
"It’s gets bigger and better every year," says Klazek. "We get a couple more competitors each time and we get quite a few more spectators. Essentially part of the goal of the event is to showcase female talent in general in Calgary and because the hip hop scene and the skating scene kind of tied in, I thought it’d be cool to have some B-girls come out."
Klazek admits that initially she had no idea what the response would be but is happy to report that the support has been "fantastic." It’s this kind of all-inclusive aspect of what might be considered an exclusionary scene that makes the event worthy of the recognition. And, thanks to some amazing sponsors and a lot of hard work, Klazek is excited about this year’s competition. There’s competitors coming from as far away as Vancouver, Edmonton, and Lethbridge, and they’re all hungry for not only a comfortable and supportive environment to showcase their stuff, but also to gain some recognition.
"As far as I know there are no other events like this in Canada," says Klazek. "There’s a couple down in the States and of course there’s a lot of skate competitions that have the all girls portion of the competition, but in terms of an all girls skate jam, ours is the only one that’s continually running. The thing I noticed is that every time there was a skate competition, they put the girls right at the beginning so there never were any people to actually see it happening. It just wasn’t a focus."
It was an inspiration for Klazek to get something started, and in 2004, See Jane Skate was put together. According to Klazek, the response was overwhelming. Each year draws bigger crowds and more competitors, which just proves that an all-girls skate event is needed in the city. For Klazek, a large part of the competition isn’t necessarily seeing who’s the best skater, it’s building relationships and community.
"The girls that skate here create more of a network," says Klazek. "It’s a team building community. I think just the way that females are, they feel more comfortable when it’s all girls – in an arena with other girls. They challenge each other and they improve. With guys, I feel that skateboarding is a lot more individual and they’re always trying to better themselves, but with girls I think they often feel safety in numbers." |
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