Women are on the rise

As the World Championships of Skimboarding wrapped up last weekend, the top four men split an $8,000 prize purse. The top women walked away with a free backpack, wallet and beanie.

Avid skimboarder and Laguna resident Pamela Simpson said these “awards” exemplify how women are treated in the sport.

“We [the ladies] are out there killing it just like the guys are,” she said. “We deserve to be rewarded just the same and have a pro division for women.”

Trigg Garner, general manager of Victoria Skimboards suspects that the absence of a women’s pro division is due to the low turnout of female competitors at events.

“The women have not organized themselves as the professional men have. Due to a low number in their category, the contest organizers do not see it as having professional caliber,” he said.

Only 10 contestants of the 135 entered in The Vic were women — and that was a better turnout than in years past.

Simpson said many women are intimidated by the sport because it’s male-dominated. That’s why she started SkimChick, a website that promotes skimboarding among women and is a place for female skimmers from all over the world to connect.

The site, which is currently under construction while Simpson and her business partner Richard Tibbetts are developing new ideas for SkimChick, hosts skimming videos, biographies, photos and stories for lady boarders to share.

Simpson hopes that as women begin to bond over the sport, more females will enter contests, which will revolutionize the skimboarding industry for women and lead to sponsorships, a pro division, and higher gains. Seven-time women’s champion Shonna Cobb, also a Laguna Beach native, said she is thankful for Simpson’s efforts.

“It’s pretty awesome what Pamela has put into making the women more recognized in this sport,” she said.

Cobb agrees that while at one time the women hadn’t earned the right to a pro division, times are changing and the women are progressing.

“For a long time there weren’t more than one or two women that could wrap on a wave and pull into a barrel. Fortunately, the women are really starting to show their skills, and I think it is only inevitable to have a pro division for the gals.

“It will be no time before people are asking to sponsor us, instead of us asking them,” she said.

Garner, who shares a true passion for skimming and devotes his career to promoting the sport, said that as more women begin to show interest in the sport, he’d like to see a pro division for women in the future.

“Right now, there are really only a few women that stand out in terms of their actual skimboarding and no role models pushing the involvement of women in the sport,” he said. “We [at Vic Skim] are always on the lookout for women that ride well and have potential. It is our goal to get these women on our boards, riding as much as possible, and helping to promote women in the sport.”

Simpson said she was ecstatic about the women’s performances at this year’s World Championships, and she can’t wait to see competitions like it.

“There was this incredible energy and camaraderie between women from all over the world. I think we’re earning more respect now.

“We need an outlet to shine,” Simpson said. “If you give us a challenge, we’ll conquer it.”