The first skate class with Start Skate School
At Start Skate School, we pride ourselves on introducing students from around the globe to the exhilarating world of skateboarding. Recently, we had the pleasure of welcoming an Erasmus student, Denise from Italy, to the first skate class of her life. It was a moment filled with anticipation, excitement, and the promise of new skills and friendships. Join us as we share Denise's first steps on the board and celebrate the adventure that skateboarding brought into her life.
Where and when
Yesterday, 14th June 2024, I had the beautiful opportunity to meet a part of the team of Start Skate School, as they invited me to take part in a skate lesson. We met in Tinglat 2, a covered place perfect to skate and to skateboard, but also to dance! Indeed, there were many youths taking classes and another group of people breakdancing.
Wojciech and the first skateboarding lesson
As soon as I arrived, I met Wojciech: he told me about how he came to Valencia from Poland only with his car, and about how he created the amazing community of Start Skate.
He is a very good, kind and smiling person, and I perceived all his fortidude just from his eyes. He welcomed me very warmly in his team, and immediately started to make me feel like a part of it.
As it was the first skate class ever, they teached me some of the basics of skating to start learning. They were all so welcoming and friendly and they always tried to encourage me; I never felt awkward, only very lucky to have had the amazing opportunity to meet them.
A little family
There was always a calm, friendly and supportive atmosphere, and I really enjoyed learning to skate. The team seemed very united, like a little family, and I loved meeting each one of them, and learning where they came from.
They have a unique energy, and you can see that they try to make skateboarding as fun as possible, and make sure not to leave anyone behind.
Conclusion
I am really looking forward to getting to know all the community better after the success of first skate class and to bringing my own contribution, trying to help in the best way possible!
If you'd like to read about the best skate spots in Valencia, take a look at this post.
My Erasmus Adventure at Start Skate School - Leslie from the Netherlands
My name is Leslie and I’m a sport student from the Netherlands. This article is about my Erasmus adventure with StartSkate, how I came across with StartSkate and my experience in Valencia as a skateboarder and student.
Why Valencia?
After a period of being abroad in 2020 I always had the urge to go abroad again and this year I got the opportunity to do it. As a sport student I had to enroll for a minor, which is a specialization within my study. I choose the minor Sport Business Innovation and together with my girlfriend we chose to go to Valencia, Spain. We knew Valencia had a great atmosphere and sport infrastructure. As a sport
student that’s an interesting place to be in.
Meeting Start Skate
After I did some research I came across StartSkate and I contacted them. I knew I wanted to do something with skateboarding because it’s been my passion for over 15 years. After a couple months of filling out paperwork and being in contact with Wojtek, the owner of StartSkate, I flew to Valencia.
After a week of getting used to my ‘new home’, neighborhood and new city, I had the first meeting with Wojtek and the team. It felt natural. And with all being skateboarders, it clicked immediately. I felt integrated within the StartSkate team really quickly and I got involved with a
lot of skateboarding classes. I learned a lot of tips & tricks during the classes, in the sense of safety and diversity in exercises and games. Which can be very useful for the skateboarding classes that I teach in the Netherlands.
My assignment within Sport Business Innovation is to come up with something new and innovative for a company. In conversations with Wojtek we spoke about my project and what could be helpful and innovative for StartSkate. We came up with a plan to work on a teacher
manual and evaluation program to give every instructor of StartSkate the same basic level and vision.
By teaching classes and being outside, I got to experience the atmosphere of the city. Not just the atmosphere, but also the entire energy within sports and my personal preference in skateboarding.
The skateboarding scene in Valencia
The skateboarding atmosphere and the many skate spots are amazing and gets you to use and improve your creativity, technique and overall level of skateboarding. I improved my skills every week and felt like I needed to be in a different environment, different compared to my local
skatepark in the Netherlands. I had a couple of skate spots where I skated most frequently in my spare time. These can be seen in the pictures below.
Final words
I enjoyed being a part of the StartSkate team and I learned a lot which I’m taking with me back to the Netherlands. I learned how to be creative during classes with adapting in certain situations, working with instructors and what it takes to be an instructor. I also experienced what it’s like to work on marketing during my participation in the marketing team for Escuala de Verano (summer camp).
The fact that I got to learn inside an international environment as part of my Erasmus adventure helped me a lot professional wise and gave me a lot of intel on what it’s like to run a skateboard school. I hope we’ll keep working together in the future and have many more amazing projects.
If you'd like to be part of our team and have your own Erasmus experience with us, read this post and send us an email. Looking forward to hearing from you!
Read about Yasmin's Erasmus experience here.
My Erasmus Experience at Start Skate School - Yasmin from Germany
Hi my name is Yasmin I am 20 years old and from Germany and I was doing a Erasmus project over 1 month in Valencia. I am currently training as a management assistant in marketing communications, and my Erasmus experience was meant to focus precisely on this area. Through this project, I hoped to expand my skills, especially since marketing varies from company to company. This diversity allows me to learn different strategies and approaches, which I can hopefully apply to my current job.
I had the chance to make this erasmus project at Start Skate School and it was THE best experience.
But let me start from the beginning.
Meeting the team
On my first day, I had no idea what to expect because I had hardly any information about Start Skate. But when I met Wojtek, my tutor and the founder of Start Skate, it immediately became clear to me what a cool atmosphere Start Skate has. He explained to me what we would be working on in the marketing department and discussed the values that Start Skate supports. I enjoyed listening because it was really interesting to learn about the organization.
The next day, I met Leslie and Edit, who are both members of the Start Skate Team and Leslie is a Erasmus student as well. We got together to brainstorm the marketing plan. I quickly realized how open, funny, and kind the people who work there are. You instantly feel like part of the team and don't have to be afraid to share your input. By the end of the day, we had a solid concept and ideas that we could develop further from home over the next few days.
I was then invited to join an adult skateboarding class. I was a little nervous, because I had never ridden a skateboard before, but I quickly realized that that was no problem at all.
It was so cool to experience the other side, as a student, and to really get to know what goes on behind the scenes at Start Skate. I got to learn some basics of skating and, of course, met the team, which consists of so many nice and open people—I can't say it enough. I learned that the main goal here is just to have fun, and everything is so non-competitive.
Assisting with skateboard classes
The next two Saturdays, I had the opportunity to assist with the international course, working with so many different and amazing kids. I learned how to best support children in skateboarding, and one very important thing to remember is to always check for stones on the ground, as even a small stone is a skateboarder’s worst enemy. :)
It was wonderful to see the kids approach skating without fear and with such openness to learning new things. Many of them are so young and already so skilled at skating, which was very impressive to me. Overall, I found it amazing how included I felt and how much responsibility I was given. I truly felt like a part of the team right from the start.
Social Media work
Over the weeks I was there, we all worked together to promote the Summer Camp as part of my Erasmus experience. We brainstormed and developed ideas, created Instagram captions, made posts, added Facebook groups to our daily program and communicated a lot with each other. Feedback was incredibly important to all of us, which is why we ended up with such a good campaign.
I have learned that brainstorming and feedback are crucial communication tools for expressing ideas in marketing. Feedback, in particular, is vital for effective teamwork. Additionally, I had the opportunity to explore my creativity, from coming up with Instagram captions to designing posters and posts. I had never been involved in these tasks before, but now I can say that I have learned how to do them and can apply this knowledge to my current job, bringing this expertise home with me.
Final words
I had a truly wonderful time at Start Skate and learned so many new things. The people, the courses, the kids, the atmosphere, the openness, and the fun—everything that Start Skate embodies—rubbed off on me. Even though I was only there for a month, during my Erasmus experience I felt like a part of this community, despite never having skated myself. ;)
If you'd like to be part of our team and have your own Erasmus experience with us, read this post and send us an email. Looking forward to hearing from you!
Read about Leslie's Erasmus experience here.
Erasmus Internship in Valencia with Start Skate
Skateboarding is a truly global, international, universal sport that fits into any culture, age or ethnic group, therefore it's the perfect place for your Erasmus Internship.
We are Start Skate, a skate school in Valencia focused on building community around the common passion.
What we do:
- skateboard classes in different languages,
- workshops,
- events,
- competitions,
- camps and trips,
- Social media: YouTube tutorials, IG, Reels, Tiktok etc.
- social projects.
Who are we looking for:
- Skate Instructors,
- Marketing and social media experts and/or interns,
- Videographers, photographers and editors,
- Spanish speakers,
- Passionate people - tell us about yourself and how you could contribute!
Together we can:
- Realize the ongoing Start Skate projects,
- Help with your own professional development,
- Create an honest, open and trusted workspace,
- Express and exchange opinions and really make a change in our skating community.
Join our community during your Erasmus Internship in Valencia with Start Skate. Enhance your skills, work in a multicultural environment and experience life in the beautiful, vibrant city of Valencia.
Why is Erasmus Internship in Valencia with Start Skate a good choice?
Valencia is crowned with the first place in the ranking of the 20 best cities to live in based on the Expat City Ranking 2022, by InterNations, the world's largest expatriate community.
Start Skate is an inclusive, international skate school. Develop with us in an open-minded community.
Improve your language skills during the international skate classes in english, spanish, and other languages.
Because the most important things are common passions,
share them with us during your Erasmus Internship in Valencia.
Contact us: hello@startskate.com
Whatsapp: +34 613 915 514
