Southbound from Oakland to SoCal with Anna Shea

By Gregg Witt / S1 Helmet Co.

Load up the car, find some spots south of LA, and make a weekend of it. A few weeks back Anna Shea and her dad Jesse drove south from Oakland last weekend: San Juan Capistrano Saturday afternoon, the B-Team ramp that night, Poods Sunday morning, then back home. 

Anna is 11, and she skates everything in front of her with zero hesitation. See for yourself.

We sat down with Anna between shooting and asked her a few questions. She's pretty matter-of-fact about how she approaches skating. Not a lot of mystique to it, which is probably why it's working.

What's the last trick you tried where you weren't sure you were ready but went for it anyway?
Mute to Melon Varial off a hip.

When you're about to try something you haven't done many times yet, what tells you it's actually time to go for it?
I like to start small and build confidence, then go big. Or sometimes I just start big and figure things out in the air. More air gives me more time to process what I'm doing. But that's only if I already know how to bail the trick. Figuring out the bail is usually the first step for anything I try.

Progression is happening fast for kids your age in parks and vert. What keeps you coming back, even on days when it feels off?
I love the feeling of being in the air. And I love learning and landing something new. If I'm not feeling it, I'll skate something else my friends are skating. Anything to skate with other people, especially other kids.

You ride for S1 and you're skating bigger terrain. Does it change what you'll try in a session when you feel set up versus when you don't?
Yeah, I like to feel in the zone. If I'm not, I'll ask my dad to take me home, or I'll just cruise a mini bowl with no knee pads and keep it mellow. Most of the time, what gets me in the zone is skating with other kids, or even just seeing someone at the park hyping me up while I'm hyping them up. I also like taking rest days so my body feels ready instead of tired the next time I skate.

When something starts to work, how do you know whether to keep pushing it or move on?
I try to land a trick five times in a row. Then I know I really got it. But if I land it one out of five, I know I need to keep it in my sights and come back to it another day.

"We're all about skateboarding as a way to explore the world, be creative, find passions, and have fun. S1 protects Anna, gives her confidence, and keeps her going. We love the people, the small-batch certification that's a cut safer than the rest, but mostly it's the brand and the people behind it that make us stoked to be part of the S1 family. I know they have Anna’s back.”   — Jesse, Anna's father

Anna Shea rides for S1 Helmets, Blood Wizard, Spitfire Wheels, adidas Skateboarding, Thunder Trucks, MOB Grip, and Girl Is NOT A 4 Letter Word.