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100 Kickflips in the Nike SB Force 58 with CCS Rider Mason Silva
November 09, 2021 - CCS Pro Mason Silva met up with CCS to wear test the latest from Nike SB: The Force 58.
Nora Vasconcellos Interview
Aside from being one of the raddest skateboarders out right now, Nora Vasconcellos is just a 100% epic human being all the time. Between self-induced dance parties, karaoke sing-a-longs, and countless Instagram stories with her cat Loo, Nora has a personality that matches her insane talent on a shred sled. We’re proud to say that Nora is riding for the CCS skate team and we’re also proud to be able to help out with her CCS catalog debut!
We sat down with Nora and had a little chat so you could get to know her as well as we do.
Yo Nora! What was skating like for you when you first started? Who were your favorite skaters? What companies did you love? What got you stoked to dive into all this?Yo! It’s funny because I was interested in skateboarding as a really little kid but didn’t start until I was about 11-12. Around that time I was really into skating bowls and mini ramps. My dad would take me to Skaters Edge in Taunton MA to skate. They had a little bit of everything to skate. I always gravitated to the bowl in the back. My first skate vid was Bag of Suck, Louie and Jason Adams parts really inspired me. I didn’t really have any friends that skated so I would make my parents watch it with me haha. I needed to share it with someone.
Who was your first sponsor?My first sponsor was Levitate; the local surf and skate shop. Would go in there and hang out with Bob, the owner, and just talk surfing and skateboards. Tragically he passed away in 2006 but Levitate is still around thanks to Dan and Jess Hassett. They have created a rad community on the South Shore of Massachusetts, running an annual music fest and even getting an amazing grindline park built next door.
How did you get hooked up with the Welcome crew? Have you been in the mix since the very beginning?When I moved to Orange County I was skating the Vans park a lot and met Jason and Daniel there. The second time running into them, Jason offered me a job at Welcome which was just run out of his house at the time. Daniel and I were the first employees and just a couple months later I was riding the boards. It has been the greatest to be able to be part of Welcome since the beginning and to have such strong ties with the boys and the brand.
What’s your life like now living in California and skating full time?It’s pretty unreal honestly. I look back a year ago and trip thinking of how many rad things have happened. I get to travel so much now that I really appreciate where I am living more.
You live in an epic skate house in Oceanside yeah? What’s that like to live in a big ass house with all your homies? Yes! I’m living with my friends Nicole (Hause) and CB (Cara-Beth Burnside) and 7 cats. Ha all the cats sound hectic but its rad. We have a nice house and garage where friends can chill. It’s CB’s house and she really hooks it up for us, I feel so lucky to be so close to the beach and walking distance from parks like Prince.
Adidas seems to have you on a plane every other day. How many new countries have you been too in the last year?Haha, it’s wild. I really like it and I couldn’t be more thankful to be part of the crew. Since getting on, I’ve been to Copenhagen, Sweden, Australia, China, Korea, and Japan… I’m actually in Tokyo right now :) I would have gone to more places, as well, but I had some issues with my health in the spring and summer. Traveling is such a humbling experience.
What’s your favorite trip you’ve been on? That’s a really hard one. Going to Australia was my first big trip with the team so that one sticks out to me. We went to Melbourne, Sydney, and then the Goldcoast. Such an insanely beautiful country with so much to skate.
Who do you hang with on Adidas trips? Do you have a tour buddy you always end up kicking it with?Hmm, that’s a hard one, I feel like I get along well with everyone. All the dudes are super cool and do a great job putting up with me and my antics so that’s really cool. I get to hang with Jack (Fardell) the most when we aren’t on tour, so he’s really like my big brother. We both skate the Park Series, so it’s awesome to have each other around when that event is going on.
What’s it like to travel and skate with Daewon? Any good stories about him? Does he really eat as many donuts as everyone says?Haha Daewon is the best! We were literally talking about him and donuts last night! He can eat sooo much it’s insane. He such an animal too when he skates, he and Dennis blow my mind. I also love seeing people come up to Daewon in airports or at demos. He’s so great interacting with his “fans”. I feel weird saying that, but it’s really amazing how much attention he gets wherever we go and he’s always super pleasant and cool to people.
Who’s been the most mind blowing pro skater you’ve ever met? Like anyone that you were super fanning out on?Oh, Gonz for sure. It’s more just his presence, it’s really something. It’s addictive to be around someone who is enjoying themselves that much and being so spontaneous. I really relate to that.
Do you ever get hit up by young girls who look to you as a role model? How does that make you feel?Yea, it’s really wild and it makes me feel really good. Its amazing seeing the impact you can have on someone, especially when I meet someone for the first time who tells me I helped get them into skateboarding. The world is really so small and I get stoked to know I inspired someone to have fun on their skateboard.
You recently won the female world championship at the Vans Park Series in China. Did you ever think you’d be called a “World Champion” at skateboarding? What does that feel like? Haha. No, but I don’t mind it haha. It’s such a funny title… “world champ”. I definitely embrace it! Not very often you get that title, and I never thought I would.
Yo Nora! What was skating like for you when you first started? Who were your favorite skaters? What companies did you love? What got you stoked to dive into all this?Yo! It’s funny because I was interested in skateboarding as a really little kid but didn’t start until I was about 11-12. Around that time I was really into skating bowls and mini ramps. My dad would take me to Skaters Edge in Taunton MA to skate. They had a little bit of everything to skate. I always gravitated to the bowl in the back. My first skate vid was Bag of Suck, Louie and Jason Adams parts really inspired me. I didn’t really have any friends that skated so I would make my parents watch it with me haha. I needed to share it with someone.
Who was your first sponsor?My first sponsor was Levitate; the local surf and skate shop. Would go in there and hang out with Bob, the owner, and just talk surfing and skateboards. Tragically he passed away in 2006 but Levitate is still around thanks to Dan and Jess Hassett. They have created a rad community on the South Shore of Massachusetts, running an annual music fest and even getting an amazing grindline park built next door.
How did you get hooked up with the Welcome crew? Have you been in the mix since the very beginning?When I moved to Orange County I was skating the Vans park a lot and met Jason and Daniel there. The second time running into them, Jason offered me a job at Welcome which was just run out of his house at the time. Daniel and I were the first employees and just a couple months later I was riding the boards. It has been the greatest to be able to be part of Welcome since the beginning and to have such strong ties with the boys and the brand.
What’s your life like now living in California and skating full time?It’s pretty unreal honestly. I look back a year ago and trip thinking of how many rad things have happened. I get to travel so much now that I really appreciate where I am living more.
You live in an epic skate house in Oceanside yeah? What’s that like to live in a big ass house with all your homies? Yes! I’m living with my friends Nicole (Hause) and CB (Cara-Beth Burnside) and 7 cats. Ha all the cats sound hectic but its rad. We have a nice house and garage where friends can chill. It’s CB’s house and she really hooks it up for us, I feel so lucky to be so close to the beach and walking distance from parks like Prince.
Adidas seems to have you on a plane every other day. How many new countries have you been too in the last year?Haha, it’s wild. I really like it and I couldn’t be more thankful to be part of the crew. Since getting on, I’ve been to Copenhagen, Sweden, Australia, China, Korea, and Japan… I’m actually in Tokyo right now :) I would have gone to more places, as well, but I had some issues with my health in the spring and summer. Traveling is such a humbling experience.
What’s your favorite trip you’ve been on? That’s a really hard one. Going to Australia was my first big trip with the team so that one sticks out to me. We went to Melbourne, Sydney, and then the Goldcoast. Such an insanely beautiful country with so much to skate.
Who do you hang with on Adidas trips? Do you have a tour buddy you always end up kicking it with?Hmm, that’s a hard one, I feel like I get along well with everyone. All the dudes are super cool and do a great job putting up with me and my antics so that’s really cool. I get to hang with Jack (Fardell) the most when we aren’t on tour, so he’s really like my big brother. We both skate the Park Series, so it’s awesome to have each other around when that event is going on.
What’s it like to travel and skate with Daewon? Any good stories about him? Does he really eat as many donuts as everyone says?Haha Daewon is the best! We were literally talking about him and donuts last night! He can eat sooo much it’s insane. He such an animal too when he skates, he and Dennis blow my mind. I also love seeing people come up to Daewon in airports or at demos. He’s so great interacting with his “fans”. I feel weird saying that, but it’s really amazing how much attention he gets wherever we go and he’s always super pleasant and cool to people.
Who’s been the most mind blowing pro skater you’ve ever met? Like anyone that you were super fanning out on?Oh, Gonz for sure. It’s more just his presence, it’s really something. It’s addictive to be around someone who is enjoying themselves that much and being so spontaneous. I really relate to that.
Do you ever get hit up by young girls who look to you as a role model? How does that make you feel?Yea, it’s really wild and it makes me feel really good. Its amazing seeing the impact you can have on someone, especially when I meet someone for the first time who tells me I helped get them into skateboarding. The world is really so small and I get stoked to know I inspired someone to have fun on their skateboard.
You recently won the female world championship at the Vans Park Series in China. Did you ever think you’d be called a “World Champion” at skateboarding? What does that feel like? Haha. No, but I don’t mind it haha. It’s such a funny title… “world champ”. I definitely embrace it! Not very often you get that title, and I never thought I would.