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Laguna Beach, CA
When people think of skateboarding, they envision adolescents doing tricks on brightly painted boards but a few are aware of a new trend on the rise: The Skateboarding Moms.
Barbara Odanaka, a passionate of skateboarding since the age of 10, is leading a revolution since she founded the International Society of Skateboarding Moms. Through her website, www.skateboardmom.com, and media coverage, the society’s membership has grown to over 100 women coming from across the United States as well as Britain, Canada, Argentina, Australia, France and Denmark.
Odanaka, 41, is the mother of 7-year-old Jack who, ironically, has little interest in skateboarding. An ex-reporter for the Los Angeles Times, Barbara now writes books for children and one of them is titled:” Skateboard Mom”.
Barbara started to skate at the age of 10 at a time when the sport was popular amongst girls. She became good enough to participate in competitions but stopped to focus on cross-country running. At 34, she became depressed after prematurely giving birth to her son, Jack. She was advised to find something she loved to do and do it 10 minutes a day. She immediately chose skateboarding.
She now owns more than 20 skateboards and tries to go to the local park on a regular basis to meet the other skateboarding moms who live in and around Laguna Beach.
Other moms, like 41-year-old Sherri Cruz, have decided to take up skateboarding for the first time, after hearing about Barbara’s story
Frederic Neema
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