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Spring Longboard & Surfskate Festival 2025: 🌸 Wrap Up & Highlights

Wow. What a day.

The Soulful Skate Co. Spring Festival on 17 May 2025 transformed SPARKS Bristol and brought 157 of you together under one roof to roll, laugh, learn, connect, and celebrate the joy of movement.

Complete beginners and skaters of ages ranging from 6 to over 60 bought so much energy and the day reminded us just how powerful community is.


But beyond the good vibes, we also gathered some amazing data that helps us understand what matters most to you —and how we can grow from here. 💌 Want to tell us what you loved (or what we can do better)? Fill out the quick feedback form here.



Here’s a peek behind the scenes at what we learned 👇


📊 By the Numbers

  • 157 Total Tickets, 75 of which were adult skaters!

  • 40 non-skaters joined in to support, vibe, and get creative

  • 9 low-income tickets were supported thanks to generous Pay-It-Forward donors

  • Our skaters ranged in age from 6 to 60+ with a big concentration between 10–15 years old and again in the 30–40 range. This is not just a kids' scene!

  • 48.5% of skaters were women – proving that skateboarding is for everyone

  • Lots of people were relatively new to skating, which means our beginner classes and friendly atmosphere are doing what we hoped: making skating feel possible.

  • We SOLD OUT all skate workshop spots bar 3 throughout the day 🙃 That’s a sign you would all like to UPLEVEL and we’ll give you that opportunity!



🎉 What Went Down

You told us that you joined Soulful Skate Co. for fun, to improve skills and meet new people. That means that the vibes matter just as much as the tricks.


We had

  • The open skate zone was buzzing all day long and special moments for me were seeing people help each other learn new things and little girls staring in awe at older girls doing awesome things on their boards.


  • 9 structured skating workshops from dancing to surfskate and beginners' basics


  • A special lunchtime kids' class!


  • 7 non-skate workshops including yoga, mobility, griptape and graphics design, and massage


  • Live music courtesy of Alfy


  • A Creative Corner


  • Balance Boards


  • A pop-up by Vandem for board maintenance




💬 What People Said

“One of the best days of my life, surrounded by happy and kind people, doing happy and kind things.”
“You brought the community together for real!”
“Absolutely cracking day. Hopefully another one like it 🔥”
“Never dreamt I’d be here at this stage of life. Skateboarding is my first love.”
“Danielle, you’re a freaking legend!!”
“I cried with pride. One of the best things I’ve ever done”

🧠 What We Learned

  • Workshop boundaries could be clearer (we hear you!)

  • Skate graphics workshops need more structure and space (noted for next time)

  • People love a chance to create, connect and learn

  • And above all, kindness, vibes, and skate energy wins



🫶 Inclusion & Support

  • Several attendees shared they are neurodivergent or have additional needs (with Autism and ADHD being most mentioned).

  • We also issued 9 low-income tickets and had 7 kind people donate Pay-It-Forward tickets.

  • These stats help us improve how we support everyone to feel welcome and included at our events.




🌈 What’s Next

We've got masterclasses coming up for different disciplines and I'm launching a progression tree to stop everyone feeling like they always plateau (speaking from experience!). More details coming soon.


We'll have more family days, potentially a winter festival at SPARKS, a pump track tour 🚐 and so much more


We'll also have 6-week courses coming soon in:

  • Surfskate

  • Longboard Dance

  • Beginner Basics


Want to be the first to hear? Sign up to our newsletter or follow us on Instagram @soulfulskateco



📸 Photos and a recap reel are coming soon over on @soulfulskateco

In the meantime you can view photos by Ray (@narratedframes) here and Charlie (@easypeelers.photos) here


💌 Want to tell us what you loved (or what we can do better)? Fill out the quick feedback form here



To every skater, volunteer, teacher, DJ, parent, friend, partner, vendor, sponsor, and soul who showed up—you made this event what it was. And to SPARKS, Campus Skateboarding & Shredenhams, Arbor Ales, Lucy & Yak, Vandem and every brand that backed us: we see you, and we’re just getting started.


But most of all, we're just grateful. For the chats, the skating, the tiny moments of encouragement between strangers.



💛 Thank You from me, Danielle

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