Tam Glad exclusive sit down with Ladies Shred, an epic summer camp and women’s skate community born in Marin
Spending time in Tam Junction for any length you’ll probably start to notice a certain pulse of activity. Packed traffic weekdays and chaos on the weekends, everyone is trying to get somewhere usually to find an exciting destination full of adventure. On one particular day during summer 2022 I was sitting inside the cafe at Good Earth staring out at the bustling parking lot. I happened to notice a passenger van stacked with surfboards entering the parking lot in the afternoon. On the side was painted letters many of which I couldn’t make out from a distance. But, i was able to see a group of kids jumping out laughing and throwing high fives. Clearly this was another example of life in Tam Junction as another group of stoked kids enjoyed another summer surf session. As the weeks went on I continued to notice this vehicle coming into the parking lot until one day I was close enough to read the painted lettering. It said “Ladies Shred”.
It was quite intriguing as I started to put it all together. Seemingly under the radar at least to me was an epic summer camp for girls. Of course I continued down my usual rabbit hole and consulted google for more information. It turns out Ladies Shred is one of the most epic camps in the Bay Area. Built to harness the excitement of Marin, campers spend their week split between three activities. Those three include surfing, skateboarding and creative art. What a combo! Founded by Lil, a Marin local she created an epic girls camp in the heart of her home.
Ok so oddly enough in parallel to my discovery of Ladies Shred camp I came across yet another event happening right in Tam Junction. I jokingly refer to this event as a secretive meetup but I came to find it was called ladies skate night. On Wednesday nights at the Proof Lab skate ramp, Ladies Shred hosts a Wednesday night skate session for Bay Area women skaters. It just so happened that one night after having dinner at Hook Fish with the family I could hear the faint sounds of trucks hitting the copping inside Proof Lab. My curiosity led me inside where music and skating were rolling. It blew me away to see this supportive group of female skaters cheering each other on as they dropped in one by one. Furthermore, my daughter could see that there is a thriving girls skate community she could one day be a part of.
After asking around for the organizer I was told it was organized by Ladies Shred! Thinking to myself I have to know who is behind this. I reached out via Instagram and fortunately, Lill responded. Over the coming months, we traded messages but it wasn’t until this February we were able to meet up.
I met Lil almost serendipitously back at the cafe in Good Earth. It was destiny as we sat down over a latte and chai tea. For about an hour we discussed everything from her upbringing to women’s empowerment. Lil is a pillar of wisdom and service right here in our community. She’s put her passion to work and created community resources for our kids and shares her passions with them every summer and every Wednesday night.
I had so many questions for her about her life and background. This is her story told by Lil and I love every authentic word. Here’s what she said:
Well, I guess I'd like to start off with my name. I'm Lilja (Lily-uh) but better known as Lil. I was born in SF and moved over to Marin in 2nd grade, growing up in Larkspur. I did all the usual sports as a kid, you know... soccer, basketball, softball, and gymnastics. I had a secret desire to learn to skateboard.. but at the time I didn't have the access to learn. I did a lot of butt-boarding (haha). I spent a lot of time in the ocean, mainly swimming and using my boogie board. I had a few negative experiences that swayed me from learning surfing and probably the fact that my momma wanted me to be a surfer chick so bad that I had to defy that.
Once I got to high school I quit all those sports and dedicated myself to cheerleading. I was on the high school team and the competition team. It taught me dedication and confidence. This happened to come full circle last year when I was hired as the JV Cheer Coach for Redwood High School and the coach for Corte Madera Rec's cheer program!
I made a deal with my mom once I got my license and car that I would get a "real" job, to gain experience and help pay for my expenses. So, I did what any teenager would do and went straight to the surf shop. I handed them a bleak resume and waited for a call. After two weeks of waiting, I didn't hear back so I decided to be persistent and go back in. The manager at the time had told me he misplaced my resume and then asked if I could start the next day. Pretty quickly I was transferred from the Station to the Surf Shop. I had so much to learn. After one night, dropping by the old Thursday skate night, I had a revelation. I needed to learn to skate and surf. Skating quickly became an obsession, and surfing followed shortly after. I fell in love with all of it; surfing, skating, Proof Lab. I feel like Proof Lab became my personality. It truly molded my young life.
I volunteered for Big Dog Surf Camp in the Summers of 2012-2014 on my days off from the shop. My best friend had also started working for the camp so it was pretty much some of the most fun times of my young life. I really couldn't get enough.
Over the past ten years, I've worked for and with many surf and skate programs all around the Bay Area, I also did a short stint at Live Water Surf Shop (where my managing skills were put to the test).
With all that being said... I still felt like an outsider at times in the 'boys club,' and more and more the importance of a space for girls felt necessary to me. I had originally wanted to create a space for women my age, but all that shifted when I actually started the skate night. Young girls began showing up to Ladies Skate Night (2013), which used to be every Friday Night 6-9 pm, now it is every Wednesday 6-9 pm. I would go straight to the ramp after work and give free "lessons" (I don't consider them to be lessons really, I mainly explained how to do some things.. and then proceeded to be their biggest cheerleader) to any girls that wanted to learn.
It truly blossomed in (2014 &15) with a crew of regulars, at some sessions we had 20 girls taking turns skating the ramp. LSN turned me into a coach and honestly I would have never guessed that this would be my path. At the time I just saw it as a fun thing I did on the side, just goes to show, when you follow your passion anything can happen.
Ladies Shred has morphed many times in the 10 years that I've been playing with it. It has been my passion-project-baby since that first Friday night and now it's something that I'm deeply proud of. It began with only skate or only surf camps (2015) with about 3-6 students; a safe, nurturing, fun, slow-paced entry into board sports.
As I change, so does Ladies Shred. I love to incorporate pieces of yoga, visualization, how to not take ourselves too seriously, building confidence, learning etiquette, and safety (ie falling and board dodging). For the past three years, I have transitioned my camps into exploring: skate, surfing, and art. Combining these three activities keeps things exciting and fresh. We alternate full skate and full surf days, ending the week with creating 'Ladies Shred' or 'Together We Shred' camp shirts (learning how to use paint pens, chalk pens, and tie-dye, we even decorate our 'Big Red' van), it's a great way to wrap up the week and chill!
I've pushed myself to do as much solo travel as I can to gain new perspectives and take some time out of the notorious Marin 'bubble.' No matter where my adventures have taken me I always felt called back to empowering girls through surfing, skating, and creativity.
What I have witnessed as a direct result of holding space for 'just' us girls is this: My kids feel safe to be themselves, older kids become leaders to the youngins, youngins reteach the older kids to be silly and have fun, a small group of eclectic ages is radical, we become a team the moment we all gather in the van, confidence and pride in abilities soar, the flow of conversations about things we struggle with, learning how to navigate being a girl (or identifying) in the water or at the skatepark takes support. The create day allows us to express ourselves and laugh together!
If this all sounds pretty amazing to you, then please feel free to check out the website www.ladiesshred.com and you can always reach me via email LiL@ladiesshred.com or Instagram @ladiesshred. You can always catch me at Proof Lab on Wednesday Nights 6-9 pm with my amazing co-host Katy. We've got a really cool Spring Break Surf Only camp coming up April 10th - 13th. Starting June 12th our Summer Camp will be in full swing with weekly sessions all Summer long we max out at 12 students a week. You can sign up on the website.
I pride Ladies Shred on inclusivity, I want to keep it accessible. Don't hesitate to reach out for support. This space is all about community and coming together. I wouldn't be where I am today without the support of my beautiful friends, family, and community.
Let's Shred!
Love,
Lil