• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • HOME
  • NEWS+OPINIONS
    • NEWS TO US
    • COLUMNS
      • APPARENT HORIZON
      • DEAR READER
      • Close
    • LONGFORM FEATURES
    • OPINIONS
    • EDITORIAL
    • Close
  • ARTS+ENTERTAINMENT
    • FILM
    • MUSIC
    • COMEDY
    • PERFORMING ARTS
    • VISUAL ARTS
    • Close
  • DINING+DRINKING
    • EATS
    • SIPS
    • BOSTON BETTER BEER BUREAU
    • Close
  • LIFESTYLE
    • CANNABIS
      • TALKING JOINTS MEMO
      • Close
    • WELLNESS
    • GTFO
    • Close
  • STUFF TO DO
  • TICKETS
  • ABOUT US
    • ABOUT
    • MASTHEAD
    • ADVERTISE
    • Close
  • BECOME A MEMBER

Dig Bos

The Dig - Greater Boston's Alternative News Source

Skating, Falling, and New Friendships With the Lonely Bones Skate Collective

Written by CHARLOTTE HOWARD Posted July 27, 2022 Filed Under: LIFESTYLE

“Skateboarding is extremely rewarding. … It’s self-improvement based”


Two Northeastern graduates felt lonely in their skating journey, so they decided to use Instagram stories and direct messages to create Boston’s first BIPOC, queer-led skating group: Lonely Bones Skate Collective. Claire Lee and Rayven Tate had their first meetup in August 2020, without a plan.

Nearly ninety people of all ages and genders and mostly with no skating experience showed up to the designated Roxbury basketball courts in August with hopes of finding a comfortable environment. Some skaters even drove in from Rhode Island and Connecticut.

“We had nothing special. We didn’t even have water,” co-founder Lee said. “People just brought their boards and hung out for four hours, it just ran itself.”

Lee said the moment people started showing up, that’s when they knew that this skate group was needed more than ever, especially on the east coast. Lots of people said they didn’t even know they needed this until it was available.

It all started when Lee posted videos of herself skating on her Instagram stories. Lee had lots of experience in snowboarding and surfing but never learned how to skate until her boyfriend and his friends taught her. She still felt left out though, especially as a queer woman of color.

“I got a little braver,” Lee said. “I was like fuck it and posted a video of myself skating on my Instagram story.”

Tate was the only one to respond. Tate grew up in a small suburb in Houston, Texas where skating wasn’t very welcoming. “I was so lost,” she said. She said she saw Lee’s post on her story and immediately messaged her.

Lee and Tate shared a frustration with the lack of groups for people who wanted to start skating in a predominantly straight white male-dominated activity. So they got working and started curating posts for the Lonely Bones Instagram.

Lonely Bones grew from there. Now, 6,523 people follow them. And then came the sponsors. Converse, Yerba Mate, and Grillo’s Pickles started reaching out. Lonely Bones was fast becoming more than Lee and Raven ever expected.

“If I could quit my full-time job and have Lonely Bones be my full time, I would,” Tate said.

Tate is a software engineer; Lee, an engineer working in biotech. These days, they’re basically balancing two full-time jobs.

“I live and breathe Lonely Bones,” Lee said. 

Caytlin Unhoch joined Lonely Bones in October 2020. She’d been skating since she was a kid, but finally bought her own skates this past summer. Unhoch said in this community, she’s felt comfortable not always knowing what she’s doing.

“They have made it incredibly welcoming to fall,” Unhoch said.

Falling is an essential part of the process. Lonely Bones held a recent event, Skate Swap with live music, local vendors, and a whole lot of free pickles at the Allston Pump Track near Harvard Stadium. People wound up teaching each other and eventually turned into a circle, where everyone could learn together.

Derek Iverson, who recently signed up for Lonely Bones, practiced falling and getting back up again for an hour straight at the event. He said it’s all part of the process.

“Skateboarding is extremely rewarding,” Iverson said. “It’s self-improvement based …  That’s what stuck with me.”

When Lee and Tate started Lonely Bones two years ago, it was a bold move, especially in the height of the pandemic. Unlike a lot of businesses and organizations in the time since, they have thrived and kept growing. Since most of their events were outside, the club provided a safe space and break from the chaos in the world. It was also a place where people could find community during a time when many felt more alone than ever before.

“Every scene in Boston, like art, style, fashion, skate, are a little hard to get into,” Lee said. “We [Lonely Bones] want to be that introduction for a lot of people.”


 

CHARLOTTE HOWARD
+ posts

Charlotte Howard is a journalism undergraduate student at Boston University. If she isn’t people-watching or listening to music, she spends her days overbooked and busy. She was a founder of The Pelham Examiner, the first independent student-run newspaper in the country and currently writes for the satire paper The Bunion, and Off the Cuff Fashion magazine. Facebook Status update: She’s gen-z but currently married to matcha.

    This author does not have any more posts.

Filed Under: LIFESTYLE Tagged With: fun, Life, Lifestyle, skateboarding, skating

WHAT’S NEW

State Wire: Mass Bill Would Tighten Restrictions On Facial Recognition Technology

State Wire: Mass Bill Would Tighten Restrictions On Facial Recognition Technology

Mass Higher Ed Advocates Urge More Investment In Students 

Mass Higher Ed Advocates Urge More Investment In Students 

Guest Opinion: Promoting Metal Detectors In BPS Perpetuates Dangerous Narrative

Guest Opinion: Promoting Metal Detectors In BPS Perpetuates Dangerous Narrative

State Wire: Mass Leads Nation In 'Green' Building Development

State Wire: Mass Leads Nation In ‘Green’ Building Development

State Wire: Mass Advocates Of Higher Ed Set Goals For Fair Share Revenue

State Wire: Mass Advocates Of Higher Ed Set Goals For Fair Share Revenue

Does Massachusetts Underestimate Its Greenhouse Gas Emissions?

Does Massachusetts Underestimate Its Greenhouse Gas Emissions?

Primary Sidebar

LOCAL EVENTS

AAN Wire


Most Popular

  • Think Massachusetts Cannabis Prices Are Low Now? Just Wait Six Months!
  • Why Are Cannabis Prices Really Crashing?
  • A New Beginning For Formerly Incarcerated Women
  • Jerrod Carmichael Has First Show After Coming Out—At the Wilbur In Boston
  • 20 Great Tracks To Come Out Of Greater Boston In 2022

Footer

Social Buttons

DigBoston facebook DigBoston Twitter DigBoston Instagram

Masthead

About

Advertise

Customer Service

About Us

DigBoston is a one-stop nexus for everything worth doing or knowing in the Boston area. It's an alt-weekly, it's a website, it's an email blast, it's a twitter account, it's that cool party that you were at last night ... hey, you're reading it, so it's gotta be good. For advertising inquiries: sales@digboston.com To reach editorial (and for inquiries about internship opportunities): editorial@digboston.com