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Nats Rivera Pirod is a young skater from Sonora who has impressed many with her skills on the skateboard. She talked about this in an interview with NORO
Natalia Rivera Pirod is a 10-year-old girl from Hermosillo who started skating when she was just 8 years old. In these two years, she has professionalized her practice and now is one of the youngest exponents in the region, impressing viewers with her skills and techniques on the skateboard.
Nats, as she likes to be called, first learned about this sport thanks to the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, where the Brazilian skater Rayssa Leal, a 12-year-old teenager who became known for skating dressed as a fairy, became world-famous. So, taking the example of the young Brazilian skater and other women who skateboarded, Nats now practices skateboarding every day.
“I was drawn to skateboarding during the pandemic. Not being able to go out and having to be locked up made me discover skateboarding, something that allowed me to be outside while disconnected from devices, while being myself and skating and feeling free,” she mentioned.
Nats’ beginnings in skateboarding
The first time Nats got on a skateboard, she did it on a cruiser that she bought with her savings. She confessed that even though she didn’t quite understand it yet, she discovered that skateboarding was something she wanted to do all the time.
Nats feels inspired by the friends she has made during her skateboard afternoons because they all help each other along the way and give each other advice that helps them improve day by day.
“My parents thought it was cool that I was doing this because at that time I was doing dance and gymnastics, I was doing a lot of things, and they thought maybe it was just a passing thing, but here I am,” she added.
She confessed that she would like to see more girls in skateboarding spots, so that they can discover how amazing the skateboarding community is and practice new tricks together. She invites everyone who wants to start skateboarding to have confidence in themselves, so that they can later discover how amazing it feels to skateboard.
“The first trick I learned was a very basic one, the ‘dropping’, which is dropping into a ramp. I was able to do it in the first two weeks of skateboarding. And one that I really liked was the ‘rock to fakie’. I landed it the first time I tried it. I said, ‘What if I just try it like I saw it in a video?’ and I did it and nailed it, I was in shock, and I still do it a lot,” she proudly recounted.
Girls just want to have fun
“I feel like when I skate I’m free, that I’m releasing all the bad things.” When I skate, I only have ‘keep your head in the game’ in my mind. I feel like I’m flying on a cloud. “When I skate, I want to reach infinity and beyond, I want to be one of the best, feel confident in myself, and I would like to participate in the 2028 Olympics,” she affirmed.
Recently, Nats took third place in the Hot Wheels Super Chargers competition, in addition to receiving recognition from the Consulate of Mexico in Tucson for her skateboarding career. These accolades fuel her interest in continuing to improve and win more awards that will allow her to fulfill her dreams.
She mentioned that one of her goals in the future is to have a cafe with a skate area where people can spend pleasant afternoons while watching others skate. And of course, to keep skateboarding to inspire more people.
“I really like living in the ‘noro’” “All the people have a really good vibe, and when I think of the ‘noro’, I think of cool people who will help you with anything,” she concluded.
