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Norwegian teens to skateboard through Europe

Juan Franco
Juan Franco - [email protected]
Norwegian teens to skateboard through Europe
From left: Mathias Aleksander Hansen, Fredrik Ringen, Johannes Veine Wiig, Tobias Skammelsrud Madsen. Photo: Filippa Torjusen / NRK

Their adventure includes pitstops in the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, Germany and France.

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Skating through Europe sounds like a daunting task, but four Norwegian teenagers have set for themselves that very challenge. They plan to skateboard between 700 and 800 kilometres in about 17 days.

Meet 18-year-olds Johannes Veine Wiig, Fredrik Ringen, Tobias Skammelsrud Madsen and 17-year-old Mathias Aleksander Hansen. Together they have decided that this summer would be different than the “same old family vacation”. They plan to quench their thirst for adventure by riding their longboards across Europe.

“I guess we decided to do this because we were a bit restless, we will skate on average 50 kilometres a day with the possibility of more during some days,” Skammelsrud told The Local.

This actually won't be the first time members of this skating squad, who first shared their summer plans with NRK Østfold, have made extended trips on their longboards.

“Johannes and Fredrik did a similar trip last year where they skated from Skagen to Copenhagen in Denmark to raise money for the Norwegian Cancer Society. After that trip they wanted to do another one, and of course I wanted to join, and so did Mathias so then we started planning the route,” said Skammelsrud.

The four friends' path will begin in Amsterdam, after which they plan to head south through Belgium until they hit Brussels. Following that they will wiz over to Luxembourg and stop by the southwestern corner of Germany in the town of Leuk. Finally they will skate into the border city of Metz in France and take a train to Paris where they plan to fly back home to Norway.

“We have already ordered the plane tickets so we more or less have to be in Paris by August 17th," Skammelsrud said.

The four friends are planning to visit five European countries in 17 days. Photo: Tobias Skammelsrud
The four friends are planning to visit five European countries in 17 days. Photo: Tobias Skammelsrud.

Understandably, the four friends are hoping to make their trip as affordable as possible – visiting five countries in two weeks is not cheap after all.

“We will be camping in tents instead of living in hotels. We will also try to get the cheapest possible food that also gives us the most energy,” Skammelsrud said.

Their biggest worry however is not that their longboards might break, but that their shoes might not hold up.

“While pushing and breaking with the sole of the shoe they quickly get worn down. Extra shoes may cost a lot!” said Skammelsrud.

The teenagers say they plan to document their adventure of a lifetime by releasing a video of their trip after they get back to Norway. In the meantime you can follow the hash tag #SKATEBENELUX on social media to keep up with their journey.

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