Hello Darlings! I'm Sherron...

...and definitely not one of the better skaters, but it doesn't keep me from hanging in and out with the group. Like many kids in the States, I skated in the rinks as a child and through the years at my own kids' birthday parties. My daughter, Jennifer (38) and son, Chris (26) were great on their skates, but in those later years I was pretty iffy and likely to fall. Not long after moving to Houston 20 years ago a group of us met HugoB at Peter's Wild Life and he mentioned the skaters. A spark was formed! I put on my 1st pair of in-lines 14 years ago at age 41, when I lived on Hazard. My son, Chris told me I must learn to brake before I went "out". So every day after work I'd skate in front of the house, just trying to stay up and learning to stop. Each day I was soooo nauseous from nerves, but I could feel an excitement building that thrilled me! I did learn to brake and skate on our street, but not necessarily the better ways and am still a work in progress....

I started skating from the Shiloh Club with Skate Trash several nights a week, other nights with all the skaters at some point, in the Art Car and Mardi Gras Parades in Houston and Galveston. I love dressing up and skating! I've been in and out of the scene because my husband's job has taken us out of the country for several years. My first experience skating abroad was in a French compound 10 miles outside Luanda, Angola. (Yes, we are in the oilfield and huge environmentalists!) My husband warned me before my arrival I wouldn't be able to skate in the compound because of the high speed bumps. Right - Houston's streets had me prepared. It was fun seeing the surprised faces of the French and Angolans to see me (to them) zooming around the compound. I'd bring candy and gum to hand out on my rounds :) Afterwards we moved to Macae, Brazil which is about 2 1/2hr drive from Rio de Janerio. When Mike went to meetings on occasion in Rio, I'd go along and spend the day skating the famous beaches :) My last day there a group of friends and I went "asa delta", hang gliding off the cliffs of Rio. Oh my gosh, W.I.L.D.! Two regrets: I got my NAUI certification (diving) about 8years ago and during the 2 years we lived in Brazil and even having our equipment there, never went diving! I did a lot, but I couldn't find time to take surfing classes either. Pro ~ we have many wonderful Brazilian friends and it's still possible! :)

Where ever I've lived my passion is "in going out and helping others". Growing up in MS, for my family it was just "the thing to do". So this spark started early and has become my flame in life. Here in the States some of my favorites have been working with Habitat For Humanity learning to roof, tape & float and tiling floor, Boys and Girls Country, HAWC (Houston Area Women's Center), Ronald McDonald House in Rio & here, soup kitchens, HMS (HoustonMargaritaSociety, which helps 4 Houston children’s' charities), FridayNightLight, a group from our church, Westminster Methodist who join with others every other month or so and see where is the greatest need. While we sort gathered/donated clothes and toiletries, we eat and make hamburgers to take down to the homeless. We've also made 250+ Health Care Kits for Haiti & made sure they got to the correct destination. The really cool thing for me is not only the good being done for those in need, but in those it brings together. Friends from all beliefs have come to help at the FridayNightLight gatherings; Christians, Jews, Muslim, believers of nothing or everything. It's what I call, "Building Bridges".

One of the most awesome opportunities for me was teaching English several days a week in an orphanage, Molemba in Luanda to 12-17 yr olds, with 2 French friends. A group of French ex-pat wives started this school in '91; taking 50 of the boys off the streets. The boys are taught how to grow their own food, harvest and sell it; then how to invest their profits. (We bought their goods, but had to give it away to Angolans because our systems couldn't handle the water used in irrigation.) One day I realized the school didn’t have a "school album / year book" nor did the kids have any pics of themselves and digital cameras were new (and huge). We had just been told we were being transferred to Brazil and I knew we'd be going home 1st, then back to pack before heading to Brazil. So we planned a school photo day near a beautiful hot pink flowering vine on the school yard fence, (made from old oilfield steel pipes). Poor little kids; many had only one shirt and no shoes and it was heart wrenching to see some didn't even know how to smile, but we had a fun time trying! In the States I made a school album with the photos of each and of us as a group, plus a copy of each child to keep of themselves. They may not remember names, but they won't forget the crazy American! It broke my heart to leave these kids, but I know every kind deed matters.

When my husband speaks of retiring and moving to Steamboat Springs CO, I feel a panic attack lurking. The thought of leaving the freedom of skating through the streets nights and the camaraderie of the skaters is an alarming thought... (as long as we keep a small place here).

Last but not least, I am a Realtor and I love helping others find their dream home. Hint, hint! (Try me, you'll like me ;)

I love LIFE and can't wait to go on this trip! WOO HOO! :) GOD ROCKS! And thank you, Steve for setting up everything.

Sherron :)

The Skating Route

Okay, so the group hasn't been exactly forthcoming with their biographies, so I guess I'll move on.  I'll post more if they ever arrive!

For now, here's a map of the route from Thionville, France to Wiesbaden, Germany.  That's 220 miles of skating over 9 days, with one day off (day 6) in the middle for a hike.  Now THAT'S a relaxing vacation! The numbers in circles are mile markers.  The numbers in squares are where we're staying each night: 1) Remich, 2) Trier, 3) Neumagen, 4) Traben-Trarbach, 5) Cochem, 6) Cochem, 7) Koblenz, 8) Oberwessel, 9) Wiesbaden.

Here's a regional map to orient yourself on the skate map.  Note Paris in the lower left and Frankfurt in the upper right.

Paul aka “Bode”

Hey All— My name is Paul and I am a native of Houston. I started skating the streets about 16 years ago. I met a girl at the old Emo’s bar. She talked about skating later that night. At the time I was really into skateboarding and had my board with me. So…I joined a handful of skaters that night. They skated into a bar…wow…this is cool.

The next day, I bought a pair of in-lines (first generation) and skated parking lots and sidewalks for the next two weeks. I heard about a skate group with the funny name of “In-Line Swine”. They met at a bar downtown called “Fuzzy’s”. Turned out it was a bar that mostly catered to Houston Police. Somehow, for some reason, this was also a skater hangout. The cops stayed on one side, the skaters on the other. In-Line Swine met every Tuesday and Thursday night. If it rained, we just sat and drank.

I started doing trips that were planned around skating. I did a Zephyr skate trip in Holland, skated the Philly Freedom skate 3 different times, did the San Francisco Friday night skate, skated the Northshore Inline Marathon twice, the Round Rock in-line Marathon many times, skated Washington DC, Dallas, and many other cities.

I got the skating nickname “Bode”(Bō’ dē) because I like to skate sideways—with one skate facing forward and one facing back. It’s so much more stable that way. I have heard it called “Side Surfing” and “Catalan” during the X-games. Back in the early 90s there was a line of skatewear t-shirts that featured a skeleton skating that way—called ‘Bode Designs’. I had a Bode shirt, but it died. So that’s where ‘Bode’ comes from!

This will be my 3rd time overseas. I have been to England, Scotland, Wales, Ireland, and Holland. So this trip will cover some new ground for me. Dana #1 and I will spend a few days in Spain before the trip. She spent a few years growing up there.

A Little Bit About Natalie

It was circa 1993, and I was living in New York City. It was the first warm sunny day of spring, and I set out to purchase my first pair of inline skates. I had researched skate shops, found one about 10 blocks from my apartment, and walked over. Ever prepared, I even brought a backpack so that I could carry my shoes while I skated home. I had no doubt I could skate home, because I had rented some inline skates once, with a group of friends, and we had skated the (smooth, flat, even-surfaced) rink in Central Park.


I purchased my skates, and proudly informed the sales clerk that no, I didn’t need the box, because I was going to skate home. I didn’t quite understand the cynical look he gave me as I teetered to the front of the store. And out into the sunshine I went. The streets were packed – cabin fever and a beautiful day brought everyone out, many folks with dogs and strollers. Well, the store was on a very slight incline – and suddenly my optimistic plan turned into a really bad movie scene. As I began rolling out of control down the sidewalk, people were literally jumping left and right to get out of my way!! I finally stopped by crashing into a glass store front (no, it didn’t break, but imagine what that must have looked like to the people inside the store) – only continuing the bad movie scene! I humbly sat down, took my skates off, and walked the rest of the way home. Yes, if I had a tail it would have been between my legs.


Well, I’m nothing if not persistent, so from that point I spent many weekends trying to master skating – but on a much less public, less dangerous path! I like to think that I am a better skater now. Eventually I became a ‘skate commuter’ in Manhattan – although my work was only about 2 miles from home, trust me, skating through NYC traffic is quite the adventure by itself!


I moved to Houston a few years later for a great job (still my current job), but after a few months hadn’t really made any friends outside of work. I was looking for something to do (other than become better acquainted with Houston TV channels), and saw a notice for one of the skate groups. Upon further research, I learned that Houston had a very active skate community, and lots of different groups. I decided I’d try them all. Inline Swine was my first, and it was a perfect fit for my personality. Social, fun, friendly, a stop for a drink, snack, or ice cream (those were my favorite stops). Although I’ve taken a few breaks over the years (I call it falling off the skate wagon), I’ve skated with the swine for 13 years now, and it has led to several adventures – including a skate/bike weekend in Austin to do the Road Rash Marathon, A2A with another skater, and a long weekend trip with 8 other Houston skaters (plus the son and roommate of one couple in our group) to Napa for the inline marathon out there, where we were also able to do the San Francisco Friday night skate. That weekend was an adventure that led to many funny stories and great memories. I’m looking forward to the new stories and memories from our trip to Europe this summer!!