Skaterade Jasmine & Mack

Synchronicity is an undeniable theme throughout the life of Kapulani Patterson AKA Hawaiian Blaze. Each step of their journey in skating, life, and art all feel meant to be. Stumbling upon roller derby through a peer in trauma recovery after being medically retired from the Air Force reshaped their life in enumerable and amazing ways. In nearly ten years of playing, Kapulani met their spouse, found community, and leaned into their power as a skater and human being. In recent years K...

Arri Santiago is an artist on and off skates, when she’s not lighting up the floor she’s creating imaginative characters and worlds as an artist and animator. She had no idea what was ahead when she rediscovered roller skating in 2020. She was introduced to rinks as a young kid (her dad was a rink ref back in the day), but it wasn’t until the pandemic hit that she would rediscover skating. She laced up a pair of her grandfather’s skates, which were 5 sizes too big, and she hasn’t looked ...

After facing personal trauma and the pandemic disruption of queer nightlife, A fortuitous stumble upon the skate rink at Riverbank Park in Harlem took Kenny McQueen on a journey. Roller skating started out as a way to move his body and became something that completely transformed his lifestyle. Kenny’s deep love for community and dance skating is palpable, and when he felt called to address issues around nonconsensual touch and bullying that he and his peers were experiencin...

Sometimes unlikely friendships make for the best pairings, and that’s certainly the case with Elise (bigb00tysk8rgrl) and Kooky (hurt_cobainn)! With a bit of an age gap, and being at different stages of life, they might not have met if not for the pandemic roller skating surge (and Elise sliding into Kooky’s DMs), but since their worlds collided they’ve become inseparable. In this conversation, they open up about what it’s been like to navigate friendship whilst sharing the hobby of agg...

This week’s conversation is a journey, a little metaphysical, a little brass tacks life advice, no doubt this week’s guest will send you! A resident of Long Beach California since 1999, Tracy Emiko Ugai created a mosaic by picking up pieces that work and discarding what doesn’t to build the colorful life she has today. Best known for her roller skating and wellness brand Basics of Happy, her impact as a visible Long Beach skate community member, and storied career in action sports marketing a...

It can be easy as a New Yorker to lose sight of the endless possibilities the city holds, but this week’s guest never misses a chance to take it all in. Frank Figueroa has covered countless miles on these city streets, in his well-loved roller skates, that are often a scrape away from combusting. Anywhere there is a community event with good music and dancing, you better believe he’s there and finding release almost certainly with his skates in tow. When the iconic rinks, Skate Key and Empire...