The NCSKATE Movement

[NCSKATE]

What up.
We are new to the forums, not to the skate world. NCSKATE is a club sport at NC State University in Raleigh that gets funding from the school to have public contests, go on trips out-of-state for contests and filming missions, and whatever the hell else we please. We started on a campus where you couldn't pop your board without the bacon creeping up, but now we have established safe spots (pretty much everywhere) on campus and a well-established skate scene among the students and non-student skaters. We're going on a trip to Vegas next spring, and we were invited to Kona in Jacksonville, FL last year for a contest there.
I encourage any skater that finds themselves in an institution somewhere to reach out to other skaters and start an initiative similar to ours. The concept of an institutionalized system sucks, but when you when you run 'em for what they're worth for your personal benefit, it is so sweet. The organization we started definitely made me happier as a skateboarder and help me progress with my skating. I know I can speak for others in the crew by saying they feel the same way.
If any of you guys (or girls) are in the Raleigh area, look us up (ncsk8.blogspot.com), and come out to one of our contests we have on campus (twice per semester). Let me know if you wanna contribute or if you need help starting a thing of your own.
There are companies out there that will support movements like this, and its always great to be a part of a growing scene.
Cheers.

[LooseTrux]

That's pretty fucking raw. Wish we had that when I was in college.

More should try this 4realz.

[skate_bored]

im also from NC and thought this was the coolest thing ever.  wish i would have tried something like this at UNCC.

[tkp]

skating should be legal and accepted / catered to at all colleges / school systems.

[interesante]

interesting. where are the "safe spots" on campus and what makes them safe? are they just for students?

[NCSKATE]

There is one spot that is accepted as belonging to the skaters. There is a nice brick ledge with angle iron and a good flat ground spot with flat bars and kickers that filter through as people give and steal... The rest of campus is pretty free to skate as well. If you have a student ID and know whats up with NCSKATE, you can basically do no wrong. For the general public, it is generally not a problem to skate if you're cool with the popo. Plus, NC State's campus is awesome for skating. Tum Yeto crews tour through here every year.
On another note, the club just put out a new edit - this is a few of us on a trip to Atlanta (plus some random footy, like the mini).
It's all throw away, but I think its still alright.

[FiftyScent]

thats pretty sick, skateboarding needs more clubs like these everywhere!

[NCSKATE]

We agree. If anyone on here is a part of or near a scene that could do something like this, we'd be down to help. I personally am trying to do something like that after I graduate. Help develop more skate communities, make more people happy, stoked.

[pugmaster]

Are you affiliated with Brian Weston?

[NCSKATE]

No, I don't think so. Is he based in Raleigh?

[ice nine]

Can anyone join or do you have tryouts?is there anything skate gear related provided for the members?

[NCSKATE]

There are no tryouts. You don't even have to be a skateboarder, really. If you're down for the cause, the club is down with you. As far as product goes, we don't have any tangible goods for members besides club t-shirts that we print every year. We do have sponsors that sponsor our contests, and Red Bull hooked us up w/ a bunch of free drinks for our trip to Kona last year. We're more interested in getting support for building an on-campus skatepark than we are for board sponsors for the team. We do have a board company that heavily supports us, but no free product yet...

[skate_bored]

on campus skate park would be so fucking amazing.

[BlackEye77]

NCSKATE is a club sport at NC State University in Raleigh

Good for you for having skating be more accessible at your school, but the highlighted part there made me puke in my mouth a little.

 

[NCSKATE]

I think it's kind of back and forth. I haven't been kicked out of a spot in a couple of years, and I've only had to play the "NCSKATE" card a handful of times. I think if you speak about NCSKATE and what its done for skateboarding, nothing negative will happen. And I find it maybe hard to believe that someone would be brought to jail without being hostile toward the officer. We've been working on the entire initiative for a little over 3 years now, and I'd have to say its pretty safe. Concerning the angle iron, it has been removed twice now, which we are not happy about, but we will continue to build the spot and fight whoever is taking it down. It might even be a third party, not the campus PD or DOT.
Also, one has to keep in mind that some officers just don't care about what has been instructed to them and will continue to be dicks to skateboarders. Its a process, but giving up lets them win. They wont win.

This is content of one of the contests we've had AT that flat ground spot and the ten-stair next to it. I think it goes to show that progress has been made.



Concerning the more recent post, we are just trying to sustain the culture we are helping among the students. By going through the university, we have a foothold and an easier way to reach out to skaters. Sometimes you gotta use the system... We get funded for road trips and shit, so I'd say its worth it.

[Eschaton]

It'd be nice to have a sanctioned area where we can skate at my school. We have some shit but people always steal or break it. I wouldn't want to be in a 'skate club' though.

[Gil]

Everyone is turning their nose up at the term "skate club."  But basically that one little phrase is what they used to accomplish a whole bunch of awesomeness.