While skateboarding culture thrived in the ‘90s (see Jonah Hill’s directorial debut, Mid90s, for more info), it’s coming back—and it’s more inclusive than ever before. At the time skating was typically perceived as a boys’ activity, and girls watched from the sidelines. Ignorant remarks and an overwhelmingly male-dominated space often discouraged new girls from skating.

This year’s Skate Kitchen features an all-girl skater crew. It's based on an IRL diverse group of girls based in NYC who call themselves Skate Kitchen. This representation encourages girls to skate, and it inspired me to take pictures of the girls with whom I skate: Erin (@riceyu) and Kinzie (@netflixandfood).

Erin: I like to skate with a group of friends! It’s a lot more fun, and you can push each other to do more and try new things. I prefer park skating ‘cause of meeting new people and the park obstacles are great, but I haven’t street-skated a lot so I couldn’t say! Another comment: just enjoy skating! Everyone is [at] a different point [in] skating. You may know a trick that another person doesn’t know, so be open to all levels.

Kinzie: I usually skate with friends because their energy really helps you to do better. Like, you wanna push yourself to do a trick your friend knows that you don’t. [There’s] an underlying competition that’s fun. I’ve been skating for years but recently starting working on different skills that I’ve never wanted to push before, and it’s always nice to have friends to help guide you through a trick. When I’m going long distance or I’m in neighborhoods I usually take my longboard, but when I’m in a park I usually bring my skateboard to mess around.

Why do I love skating? Honestly because of the thrill of it. The feeling you get after you get something down after weeks of working on it. The rush after going down a hill is [such a] simple pleasure. Skating, for me, is a great distraction from the real world; you get to really focus on something and watch yourself progress.