Sally Affleck (Felice) of Australia was a vert and ramp skater beginning out within the late Eighties, persistently holding her personal all through the Nineteen Nineties and past. In North America, you might need unknowingly seen her inside Thrasher within the February 1995 problem that contained a six-page collage of feminine skaters within the “Women Who Skate” article, chock stuffed with letters, rants and images. Sadly, the article failed to obviously spotlight the skaters’ names, however Sally was within the combine.
There’s a cool interview of Sally circa 1989 for “SK8N,” which was a day TV present in Australia, the place she shares that she began skating round age 10 and was having fun with the St Mary’s mini-ramp and backbone for the primary time.
Sally then appeared within the September/October 1989 problem of Skatin’ Life at age 13 with a quick bio, skating her beloved Santa Cruz Gregor Rankine Monster board, which was the primary correct professional board that she ever owned. Sally was an INXS fan, was based mostly out of Queenscliff, New South Wales and the images have been by Scott Needham and David Mock.
Extra just lately, Sally featured on the Horrible Completely happy Talks podcast on October 11, 2023, the place she shared a private account of “rising up within the northern seashores space of Sydney, the challenges she confronted as a toddler of divorce, discovering solace and group in skateboarding, what it was like being the one woman on the skatepark for the primary 4 years of her skating life, self-imposed strain to show herself to the boys, getting sponsored by Kewday distributors and Billabong, getting into skate comps, being one of many first skate coaches in Australia with Mick Mulhall, assembly her non-skater husband… and far rather more.”
Sally grew up in Allambie Heights, which was a brand new suburb surrounded by wild bush, so her childhood concerned a number of outside enjoyable in nature. Sally’s dad and mom break up up when she was 4 years previous, and round age 11 she moved when her mother purchased an house unit “actually proper throughout the highway from [the Manly] vert ramp, that was model new. That was fairly psychological. I used to be like slightly skate rat… I used to be instructing myself. I had no concept what I used to be doing. Normally bum-boarding, then I used to be up on my toes, tic-tacking. I knew nothing.” Sally was driving a knock-off “Reflex” skateboard, till it was stolen off of her entrance yard however shortly changed.
Regardless that she scored a cool location, with the skate ramp so shut, Sally’s house life was not preferrred. In her podcast interview, Sally exhibited such grace and knowledge by recognizing that issues weren’t straightforward for her mother, who had married at age 19, didn’t have strong position fashions rising up in England, and labored full-time to outlive. With the divorce got here struggles with alcohol and a few unhealthy selections choosing companions and having them transfer into the household house.
Sally discovered skateboarding as her outlet however understood that her sister, who’s estranged from the household was extra current to the home violence and arguments each day. Sally was adamant that she wouldn’t be eaten up with bitterness or maintain resentment. She additionally had some superior reminiscences of going fishing together with her dad, and body-surfing within the waves, wanting as much as him as an athlete, and being “his little shadow.”
Sally was conscious of 1 different girl named Sue who skated flatland freestyle, however there have been no women venturing onto the ramp, presumably for her first 4 years of skating. Sally gravitated to the vert ramp, however there have been just a few different sketchy obstacles within the neighborhood like 1 / 4 pipe surrounded by tough asphalt and a steel mini-ramp.
It was a pure development for Sally from pumping, kick-turns, grinds and roll-ins, after which the drop-in. One of many locals was particularly encouraging to Sally, and inspired her to step up and making an attempt dropping-in. Sally stated she appreciated the large brother vibes and being hassled to attempt new issues – “it was form of what I wanted.” However there was an excessive amount of strain that first try, so she returned the following day, early within the morning with out the crew round. Sally determined, “I’m doing it by myself grounds. And I knew I needed to do it. It was effectively overdue. And I did it and I used to be so stoked.” She would have been round 13 or 14 years previous – right here’s some classic footage of the Manly skatepark in 1988.
Sally additionally remembered seeing a child in Avalon Seashore soar a curb on their skateboard and being like, “How did he try this? What’s happening?” With out entry to movies, Sally was blown away however stored on difficult herself to enhance. Skateboarding made Sally resilient, but it surely wasn’t all the time a straightforward experience. “I used to be a tricky child. I used to be a tricky chick. I all the time needed to show myself to the boys… the one comparability I may make was in opposition to the boys, they usually didn’t need me there.” At this level within the podcast interview, I used to be shocked that the host responded defensively to Sally, as she transparently shared her story. He demanded that she show her level however giving examples, and I discovered his tone of voice to be condescending and impolite.
Once more, Sally confirmed grace and knowledge and was not postpone by the podcast host, who ought to’ve replied by merely saying, “I’m sorry to listen to that occurred to you,” relatively than insisting she defend her lived expertise. Sally said, “Let’s simply get this straight… It was a smaller minority, most likely a ten%, one in ten man that might be saying derogatory feedback about feminine components and jokes like that. I’m not going to be naming names as a result of a few of these guys are fairly well-known guys in that Manly 80s / 90s period however I’m positive they’re regretting what they did too. There was a little bit of misogyny happening, and I used to be of their territory… it was a boys’ zone. That’s the way it was although, completely different instances.”
Sally supplied up a particular state of affairs when boys would seize her skateboard, her beloved Santa Cruz and throw it beneath the ramp. “It was a giant deal as a result of like I stated, we didn’t come from cash. And this child grabbed it… I forgive him now however he was fairly effectively to do… he would have a board each two or three months. This was my board that wanted to final me till subsequent Christmas. I received it on my birthday, and a large chip occurred, and it was simply not cool… nobody was giving me any particular favours.”
It was unusual that the podcast host couldn’t appear to think about how hostile Australian boys within the Eighties may behave in the direction of a lady invading their area. I think Sally was being particularly sort and never sharing the extent of the “snide” feedback, which should have been hurtful because the lone eleven-year-old woman. Happily, nearly all of the fellows have been like brothers, even nicknaming her “Sister Sal,” and the tensions have been simply within the youth.
The podcast host then latched on to the concept that Sally should’ve taken up skateboarding as a result of she had one thing to show – he couldn’t perceive {that a} woman may merely fall in love with skateboarding as a result of it was enjoyable. Sally tried to elucidate how she was hooked on skateboarding, that she wasn’t making an attempt to show something to the fellows, simply problem herself. The issue was that the fellows pressured her into the place of getting to show herself. “I didn’t give a crap, however I knew I needed to. It was extra like making my household proud, particularly my dad.”
After which the subject of her look got here up, and the podcast host tried to subtly jab at a query round why she wore dishevelled garments. Once more, Sally took it in stride and defined that it was Nineteen Nineties! Everybody was into huge dishevelled shorts and shopping for outsized gear on the Military surplus retailer. Sally wished to be comfy, and it had nothing to do with feeling strain to put on garments like the fellows. “I wouldn’t be sporting a ¾ bikini high, that’s simply not me.”
Talking of the Nineteen Nineties, even when skateboarding went by means of a lull, Sally didn’t care and persevered by means of the traits. She famous that some skaters defected and took up inline rollerblading, however not Sally. The truth is, in 1994 Sally had a full-page unfold in problem #1 of Australian Skateboarding journal with a “F/S catastrophe slide over the Keirle Park pimple, Manly Australia.” Whoever wrote the commentary stated seeing her “was a shock to me as a result of she may actually experience and I had by no means met a real woman skateboarder till that time.” I’m positive it was meant to be complimentary, but it surely sounded just like the writer had solely met faux woman skate boarders earlier than then?
Sally would enter native contests as a result of all people did them – “it was how you bought higher and the way the sponsors discovered you have been round. So, I needed to skate in opposition to the fellows.” However skating in opposition to the fellows made her stand out, and Sally quickly grew to become sponsored with corporations approaching her, even monitoring her down by way of skateshops, relatively than the opposite approach spherical. It began with native store sponsors, receiving garments and skateboards now and again, after which advanced right into a month-to-month package deal with full skateboard set-ups. Sally can be sponsored by Kewday decks, Core expertise wheels, B&S clothes, És sneakers, and Billabong.
Billabong, whereas famend as a surf firm, wished a skateboarding workforce and recruited well-known Australian guys like Ben and Tas Pappas and American vert skater Bucky Lasek, amongst others. They have been additionally receptive to feminine skaters, and Sally was their apparent selection (Jessie Van Roechoudt of Canada would additionally skate for them within the early 2000s, amongst others). Sally remembered having a correct contract with incentives to do effectively at contests and seem in magazines. The workforce additionally went on tour collectively, and Sally famous that in Adelaide there was a World Cup qualifier contest the place the women received going at 9am and in the meantime, all her male teammates have been nonetheless handed out. Sally ended up successful it, though she by no means received to skate the course prematurely.
The humorous factor is that, when Sally was interviewed at age 19 for Slingshot journal in 1995, it didn’t sound like she was a giant fan of Ben Pappas (her future teammate) who apparently said that “Women shouldn’t skate, they simply damage themselves an excessive amount of. They need to simply watch.” Sally defined that he clearly hadn’t seen her skate, and she or he was conscious that he didn’t actually have any feminine associates – “Why voice your opinion on women, when you recognize nothing about them?” stated Sally. Sally let her images at Keirle Park do the speaking. “One among my all time favorite… It felt nice simply floating a lofty BS Ollie up there and ready to land laborious and quick!”
Hopefully, Sally’s cameo look within the 411 Video Journal “Australian Trip” from the 1997 Many Warp Tour offered her with some respect. Sally wrote, “I managed to get just a few methods in on that video. I keep in mind them asking me to movie and I received a bit digicam shy and didn’t know what to do and what methods to go for. I used to be fairly stoked to say the least to be featured in an American VM earlier than the times of Youtube, Instagram, and so forth.”
In her podcast interview, Sally gave a ought to out to skaters who impressed her like Jaime Reyes, Elissa Steamer, Cara-beth Burnside, and “as women began coming on-line I began changing into associates with just a few women.” There was a lady named Tara from Canberra and Alicia Saye from Wollongong. “Hilary Pearce in Melbourne and she or he ripped, she was superior – nice model… Afterward, Monica Shaw, Esther Godoy, Sally Clark, who was an excellent avenue skater. There was a bunch of us. That got here a bit later when all of the Gallaz avenue contests got here alongside.”
Sally would get to know a complete crew of feminine skaters (seventeen to be actual) in 1999 on the Hardcore Women Road Jam in Melbourne’s sailyards, which was reported on within the Australian Skateboarding journal, and in an article by Colleen Hughson referred to as “Hardcore Women Road Jam” for Chick journal. Sally positioned second in avenue, behind Sally Clark, receiving a cheque for $500, though skating transition was her most well-liked terrain. Sally would later remark, “Girls travelled from throughout Australia to be there. It has an incredible vibe on the day with Ladies Dj’s, graffiti artists and Skate boarders. Proud to have been there and took part!”
Sally would additionally compete on the Gallaz / Globe World Cup Road contest in Melbourne, however she couldn’t all the time dedicate the time to skateboarding just like the American sponsored professionals she was up in opposition to. Sally was juggling work and college, which by no means got here straightforward to her. Sally ultimately grew to become a Hearth Safety Engineer, constructing hearth security techniques for buildings, and beginning a household. Sally is grateful for the soundness that she has now in life with a pleasant house, pets, children, and a strong companion.
She’s even given again to the group as one of many first accredited Australian skateboarding coaches and simply loves bonding with the youngsters and witnessing their development. Sally has puzzled what she might need completed if she had had a mentor, “possibly I may’ve progressed extra shortly” and recover from contest nervousness – simply somebody to say, “You bought this” would have helped.
Every so often, Sally nonetheless skates a close-by ramp and bowl, however misplaced her aggressive nerve attributable to vestibular migraines that may set off auras and vertigo. Plus, she additionally had a significant concussion as a child, ripping round her cul de sac, which has made her a giant advocate for security gear.
General, Sally was grateful for skateboarding, for journey and assembly good folks together with the Bones Brigade, Tony Hawk, Mike Vallely, and Steve Caballero as a result of “folks within the skateboarding business are real folks.” As for being thought to be an advocate for girls in skateboarding, Sally stated:
“I’ve heard just a few different women say to me, ‘I keep in mind you again within the day. I do not forget that journal article.’ And I didn’t actually understand what I used to be doing. I didn’t understand I used to be this one who was a mentor or no matter you need to name it, that the women have been wanting as much as. It was what they wanted to see. I didn’t know that – I’m solely realizing extra recently.” Whereas Sally was simply skating for the love of it, she did have an effect and it’s superior that she’s now listening to about all the feminine skaters round Australia who she impressed to provide skateboarding a go.
Pictures: Scott Needham, David Mock, Dave Adair, Mapstone, Tim Ford