In the bowls and street skating ledges and rails of U.S. skate parks, women and girls exude pride over their increasingly impressive skateboarding skills and say even the guys who have long dominated the sport are taking notice.
At the 12th annual Exposure Skate competition this month in the California beach town of Encinitas, girls under 10 and in their teens were shredding — that's skateboard lingo for aggressive and skilled skating.
"They are really getting good," said Cona Suganami, 16, a Californian who has been skateboarding for five years.