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Slow Impact 2026 Field Report by Justin Hill
Slow Impact 2026
A Robust Ecosystem of Ideas featuring Skateboarders
Written and Interviews by Justin Hill
They say that if you go looking for happiness, you ain't going to find it...but if you give up the chase, and are patient and wait, then happiness will find you. Unfortunately, I'm not sure that type of long-game patience works with the faxcist reality we currently live in and, frankly, kicking back and waiting for joy sounds like something our government, and algorithms, would love for us to do while they plunder our spirit for profit. So, I say chase happiness, hunt opportunities of joy. Learn to garden, take two-step lessons, read more fiction, write more fiction, journal in the morning, learn nollie big spins, exercise, engage in community, hug your neighbor and wish’em well, find reasons to smile and share the reasons. Disobediently and always. I’m not suggesting ignoring the monsoon of malignant shit going on right now, I’m saying go get your happiness before the government, and algorithms, start demanding you accept their version of it.
Intent on soaking in some of that innovative, fascism-resilient joy, I recently ventured across west Texas and over New Mexico mountains for the second year in a row to hang out in the Arizona desert with skateboarders from across 22 different states, Indigenous communities, Canada, Mexico, Australia and England. Let me tell you – skateboarders y’all! A bunch of jazz feet, big brains, ginormous hearts and solutions. You ever met any? I’ve never seen so many smiles in my life. Even when they’re bleeding.
Curious as to what was making such a large collection of people grin ear to ear for an entire weekend, I stopped an array of the faces I saw during the 4 days of events to ask them some questions and get the overall pulse of the festival. Here’s what the homies had to say...
Anthony Gaudioso and Rose Stoebner (Wisconsin) / Skate Camp Midwest
How many Slow Impacts have you attended?
A: This is my first one.
R: Me too, this is my first time out to Slow Impact
What stands out most from your experience at Slow Impact?
A: I feel really reassured. Being so rooted in the Midwest, there’s a lot of unique challenges, and a lot of benefits that come from us facing them together, so it’s really inspiring and motivating to be bringing a lot of Slow Impact’s collaborative intellectual camaraderie back home, where we aren’t exactly as connected. There’s a lot of isolation up there.
Are y’all a skate camp with actual woodland camping involved?
R: Yes, the camp is located off the beautiful St Croix River in between Minnesota and Wisconsin out in the woods. We have cabins, a kitchen, a dining hall, as well as a skatepark. The kids get out in nature and out of their comfort zones, they learn wilderness skills like building a fire and canoeing, plus we have nature walks, art, music and all kinds of different activities. So, there’s a focus on skateboarding and the kids spend most of their time skating our park in the woods, but there’s also a lot of focus on nature. The camp is a great way to bring young skaters out of the city and into a space where they can learn, expand, encourage and emotionally develop. The easiest thing is teaching the skateboarding, but we also want to be teaching the emotional skills involved too, because many of these kids are dealing with things outside of camp or have things weighing on them, and teaching them emotional skills allows them to open up and process things better.
Jordan Galiano, Paige Tott and Evan Dittig (New Jersey) / Shred.co
Is this y’all’s first Slow Impact?
J: This is my third of the four. We all saw photos and heard so many great things from the first Slow Impact that we had to make it out here.
P: This is my second Slow Impact. I went to last year’s too.
E: I’ve been to three out of the four. Missed out on the first year.
Is there a Paper Sessions presentation or Slow Impact event from the last four years that sticks out to you?
J: The photographer Matt Price. His presentation from the first year I came was impactful for me. I’m a photographer and videographer and work in production, and at the time I was struggling with working a production job that I wasn’t stoked on – it was underpaying me and working me to death. And after hearing his panel, it helped me find some prospective and inspired me, so the day I got back from Slow Impact that year I put my notice in at that production gig and started doing more freelance work. It’s been dicey at times, but ultimately things worked out.
P: The skate-like-a-girl events are always fun. I really liked Betsy’s presentation this year, the one on archiving. My local skatepark closed down a couple years ago, and I recently noticed just how many photos I had from that park. It was a great park with a lot of fond memories attached, so it’d be nice to keep its history alive by archiving the media we have.
E: Honestly, all the events and Paper Sessions throughout the years have been very informative and super inspiring. I’m really looking forward to hearing Antwuan Dixon speak this year. Every year they continue to crush it with the guests and panels, it’s always interesting to me to hear other people’s experiences.
Paige Tott-50/50: Photo by Jordan Galiano
Have you had any UFO sightings or other paranormal sightings while attending Slow Impact?
E: Last year, I split my head open at the wedge, and I was definitely seeing some interdimensional creatures rolling around in my brain. Other than that, nothing too spooky, just a couple rattlesnakes but no UFOs.
J: No, but there’s the Superstition Mountains just east of Phoenix. They’re supposedly a homebase or some kind of landing spot for UFOs where there’s been extraterrestrial sightings. I don’t know though, it could just be folklore.
P: I hope we do. I’d love to see a UFO while we’re here.
Leo Costa (Arizona via north Jersey)
How many Slow Impacts have you attended?
I’ve been to two.
Are you from Arizona?
No, I’ve lived in Tempe for four years now, but I’m originally from north Jersey. That’s how I know a bunch of these dudes. He’s from Jersey, my friends over there are from Jersey, Jordan’s from Jersey, so I was for sure pulling up this year. Here, look, read this hat. . . . NJ skateshop baby! Haha!
Have you seen any extraterrestrials or UFOs since you moved to Arizona?
I have not, but I’ve been looking out for’em. We have the Phoenix Lights. That shit’s pretty wild.
Do you have a favorite Paper Sessions panel or Slow Impact event?
I don’t know if I have a favorite. Fifth and Hardy is always bumpin’.
You ever been to Perry skatepark?
That place is fire. What about you, where are you from?
Originally, I’m from West Virgina, but I’ve lived in Austin, Texas for over 20 years. I always claim West Virginian over Texan though, even after two decades and a valid Texas driver’s license, haha. This ain’t no Texas accent, it’s an Appalachian’s accent, forever.
Jacques Talbot (Ontario, Canada)
How many Slow Impacts have you attended?
J: Slow Impact 2026 was my first attendance. I had ideas to go last year, but I couldn't make it.
What did you say your profession was? You work in a rare books collection!?
J: I work in the field of Conservation, and the preservation of cultural heritage specifically. I'm a Senior Conservation Technician working in the library of a Canadian University.
What does a rare books archive smell like?
J: At the university where I work the archives are separate from the rare book collection. I'd say the archives are relatively odorless. There's a faint smell of paper perhaps. The rare book vaults and cases do have a scent, which is a mix of paper, wood, and leather, which makes sense as these are the materials in which a lot of the collection are bound.
What’s something unique about Slow Impact that stands out to you?
J: Slow Impact is definitely making an impression. It seems like there's representation from every tier of skateboarding, from professionals, to podcasters, to magazine and media editors, filmers, photographers, academics, writers, but there's no separation between speakers, industry reps, and regular attendees. It's all flattened out, which makes for an enriching and unique experience. That sense of all being in the same place for a shared appreciation of the same thing makes the event feel like one long hangout in the best way. There's also the perfect mix of planning and spontaneity, which makes for things to look forward to, but also lots of surprises and memorable moments. I can't give enough thanks to Ryan, Mo, Kyle and all the attendees for creating such a unique and what feels like a special event in Tempe.
Noah Halpern-McManus (Massachusetts) / Skate Jawn
How many Slow Impacts have you attended?
N: I came to Slow Impact last year to get an escape from the winter and see what it was all about. Happily made the trip out again this year, so two so far. Hopefully it's an annual thing!
Is there a notable Paper Sessions presentation or Slow Impact event from the last 2 years that sticks out for you?
N: I'd say the Taj Hanson presentation on reimagining public spaces from last year was pretty epic and inspiring. Antwuan speaking so candidly with Spencer this year was a major highlight as well.
Have you ever seen any aliens, UFOs or other unexplained phenomena during your visits to Slow Impact?
N: Marco is most definitely an unexplained phenomenon. He might be from another planet honestly.
Maddie Matson (Maryland)- 5-0 photo by Connor Siedow
How many Slow Impacts have you attended?
M: Four.
K: This is my third.
What is something unique about Slow Impact that has stood out to you each year?
M: I think the community building and the importance of having a network of like-minded folks who share similar ideals and perspectives has stood out for me, because sometimes that can be hard to find when you’re not all coming together from across the country to one central location, and connections like that are important, at Slow Impact but especially at home too.
Katie Matson - Nosesliding a spot that looks more east coast than AZ photo by Jas Cuhadar
Do you have a Paper Sessions or Slow Impact event that’s memorable or sticks
out to you?
K: I really enjoyed John Dahlquist’s talk this year about his curriculum and the Bryggeriets school in Sweden that combines skateboarding with education. I feel like trying something like that is so unheard of here in the United States, and I can only
imagine how much it could enhance our education system for young people. If we had something like Byggeriets growing up!!?? That would have been insane!
M: Mine is from the first year when there was a panel of Indigenous people talking about the skateboard communities on their reservations, and how they use skateboarding as a way to help them live the life the want to live. I think folks who live in metropolitan areas can forget just how accessible skateboarding is to us, and how accessibility is such an obstacle in other places, especially on reservations.
You guys seen any UFOs or paranormal activity while you’ve been at Slow Impact?
K: Yes, but not at Slow Impact, and I’ll just leave it at that, haha.
M: No, but the first year I came I had this crazy out of body, or for lack of better words, spiritual experience. It was a hectic trip, I was staying like three miles from the panels, and I was skating back to my Airbnb one night, no street lights, by myself in the desert
and I had this weird out of body feeling, nothing paranormal but I just stopped skating and took like 30 seconds to chill there, no phone out, I was super sober, just me by myself, dark, quiet and chilling – it was a very strange feeling.
Mickey Milett (Illinois) / SkateMcHenry
How many Slow Impacts have you been to?
M: This year is my second one
What’s something unique about Slow Impact that stands out to you?
M: I feel like Slow Impact is an adult skate camp that is healing my inner child, while also helping me shape my identity into my 30s. Before attending Slow Impact last year, I hadn’t really skated more than once a year since college. I came last year after an old friend, Miles Canevello, convinced me to come down, and it’s been one of the best decisions I’ve ever made. When I got back home, I realized how much I missed being around skateboarders, so I was like, fuck it – started an Instagram account, named it after our small county up here, and made flyers for a skate meetup at the park, every Saturday morning in April. The first meetup was like 40 degrees out, kinda raining, I’m not really in tune with the local skate scene anymore and it’s 8 in the morning, so I’m thinking maybe one or two people are going to show up. Dude, a couple of people roll up, then old homies that I hadn’t seen in a decade, then some new skaters. It grew from like 10 people to 20 by the second session, and we kept it going and growing since then, every Saturday morning, all summer and fall. Some of those homies are with me this year!
Have you had any UFO sightings or other paranormal sightings while attending Slow Impact?
M: I don’t know dude, everyone is talking about how Marco keeps getting spotted all over the place all at the same time. Dude is fucking everywhere – I love it. Haha, I’m convinced Marco has been foolin’ us with his twin, or that he’s the middle child of triplets.
Romina Palmero (Florida) & Susan Lee-Chun / Tutifruti
How many Slow Impacts have you attended?
R: This will be my third consecutive Slow Impact.
Do you have a favorite Paper Session or event from the three you’ve attended?
R: I feel like I’m a little biased, because I want to say this event, the non-profit meetup. Tutifruti participated in this event last year, but this year, Ryan asked if we’d be down to host the non-profit meetup, or from the second Slow Impact, when I gave a Paper Session presentation, which was a really special moment for me. Oh! Max Neely-Cohen’s Paper Sessions presentation on skateboarding and dancing!! It was unbelievable. I think about that one all the time. Tutifruti this past year expanded past just skateboarding – we used to focus on skating and art, and now we’re doing movement and art, which includes things like yoga and snorkeling programs, plus we’ve been working on some soccer stuff because Isa and I love soccer so much. The Paper Sessions are my favorite things about Slow Impact.
Have you had any UFO sightings while at Slow Impact? Seen any crazy paranormal activity?
R: Not yet. But tonight’s the sunset hike, so maybe?! I’d love to see a UFO at Slow Impact!
Norma Ibarra (Mexico City, Mexico) / Closer Mag Photography Showcase
Is this your first Slow Impact?
N: Yes, this is my first one, but it’s only half of one, because I’m late. I missed the first day and a half, but better late than never. I’m really excited to be here.
How does it feel as a woman, immigrant and person of color to be featured in such an iconic photography show?
N: Everyone in the show are people and photographers I look up to, so to be included is an honor. I also think it’s important to have women and the nontraditional perspective – women, people of color, queer communities – I think it’s important to have those perspectives represented. I really appreciate the invite. It’s a big deal!
You just spent a year as a photography nomad!! Was there anywhere that took you by surprise, like a locale where your experience ended up being the total opposite of what you had expected?
N: Every time I travel, I don’t have a lot of expectations, that way you don’t get disappointed. It’s best to go with an open mind and excited about a new experience, so I try not to have too many expectations, but I’d like to mention my trip to Bolivia – I’ve really been wanting to meet ImillaSkate, there a group of Indigenous girls from Bolivia. It was such a beautiful experience, they felt like family, being there experiencing the culture, the food, the skateboarding, it was a dream and felt like a blessing. Skateboarding has brought me to so many amazing places and allowed me to meet incredible people from all over the world. It has always been my dream to travel with my camera and skateboard, and it feels like I’m living that dream, so I’m very grateful.
Did you have any UFO or chupacabra sightings on your trip to Slow Impact?
N: Unfortunately, no. There was one time in the Sonoran Desert though – we thought we saw one, but when I got home my mom told us it was a satellite, but that’s the closest I’ve come to seeing a UFO.
From Left to Right: Hunter Meyers, Conor Mullen and Josh Kaffer (Wyoming)
How many Slow Impacts have you attended?
J: This is my first.
H: It’s my first as well.
C: This is my second. I presented on a project year before last at Slow Impact in the Paper Sessions.
What made y’all want to come to Slow Impact this year?
J: I grew up in small towns, where there’s not really an opening into the skateboard industry, so skating for me has always been this solo, meditative form of art, but more recently I’ve been super jazzed about having more skateparks around, and skatepark
advocacy, which has made me realize the power I have in my life and in my community. I feel like Slow Impact is a more approachable way to kind of see and mingle with industry folks, but also a great way to see all the other things that other towns are doing.
H: These guys sent me the information for Slow Impact, and yeah, it wasn’t too hard of a decision – skateboarding, Arizona, in the middle of the winter, fuck yeah let’s get out of Wyoming for a bit. I’ve really just been soaking it up. It’s a super cool event.
C: There’s an amazing cross section of people at Slow Impact, and I’m excited to learn more about their work and have an exchange of ideas with everyone.
You guys have been staying at the same Motel as me – how’s the sketchy factor been for y’all? I gotta say, I kind of love it.
H: I mean there was the prostitute from the other night and that guy who was asking for a cigarette, and there was the lady and my lighter. You said you had some run ins this year, right? I wouldn’t call any of it sketchy though. It’s all cool, it wasn’t like they were the type of people at that hour of night that made me scared or feel like I was at risk or anything. They were all cool.
J: I think the strangest thing at the Motel is the mechanical man! The one in the lobby who checks you in from an oversized, half-broken video box.
Marco (Arizona)
Do you have an official Slow Impact title? I’ve heard unofficial Mayor of Tempe, or Tempe’s premier curb Creator?
Haha, no. I’m the cheap labor, haha! As for my curbs, I don’t talk about my curbs because my curbs speak for themselves. The thing is, I’m 49, right, I went to skate camp with a bunch of these dudes, and I’ve skated this scene for decades, so I know everybody because I’ve seen everyone around here grow up, and that’s why everyone knows me.
Do you have a unique or memorable moment from the last four Slow Impacts?
Every day is a unique moment. Slow Impact for me is every day. It’s like every day is fun, every day is lookin’ for curbs, every day is skating – out in the streets when the weather is nice, and when it’s too hot, we skate the shady spots and parking garages. I’m a desert person, this is my climate, I can be out in the sun all day – I just put on a sun hat.
Have you ever had any UFO sightings or seen any extraterrestrial activity at Slow Impact?
No, but Arizona has the lights. The AZ lights. You ever heard of them? Chris! Tell this fool about the AZ lights! It was like a set of spacecrafts in the sky or something. The AZ lights or maybe the Phoenix lights. You should google it.
Several of the Slow Impact attendees I’ve talked to have claimed to have seen you at different Slow Impact locations but at the exact same time!? What’s going on there – are you able to astral project? Do you have twin brother you’re not telling us about?
That’s funny, but no. I think it’s because I like seeing all my friends, and some are at different spots throughout the day, bar or skate spot, so I’ll drink a beer at Casey’s, skate, leave to Cornish have a beer there, skate, and there’s so many skate spots all over Tempe that I don’t have to make a sesh at just one location, I can move around
Taj Hanson (Oregon) / This New Ledge with Taj Hanson and Ted Barrow
Is this your second Slow Impact?
T: Yeah, so last year and this year. Last year, we did the paper sessions presentation, which was essentially the genesis of what became my Adjacency Bias talk over the summer in Portland, which was about a new trajectory of how to rethink spaces for skateboarding.
Any interesting new skateparks coming to the pacific northwest we should be on
the lookout for?
T: There are some big ones, but they’re precisely the types I talked about at my first Slow Impact – your standard top-down driven, with the cities’ parks Bureau hiring these big companies that are essentially repeating the same designs over and over. Steel Bridge though, it’s a big one currently in concept design for Portland with a really diverse team, and I think there’s potential with that one, luckily, we have Preston Harper on the advisory committee, so he’s going to kind of act as an army of one. We have some interesting things happening in the margins too – I’ve been working with Nick Pelster on the Courts 2.0 and tapping into different typology of more flexible, skateable spaces. We just got our site development permit for that project, so that one’s on the horizon for sure.
In terms of community building and making social connections, what types of innovative roles could you see skateboarding and landscape architecture playing in rural settings?
T: That’s a good point, so much of what we talk about, skate wise, usually has this naturally hyper urban focus; city centers, plazas, urban terrain, plus a lot of the talks I’ve done are focused on cities that already have a shitload of skate parks. With rural scenarios, I think there’s the same amount of potential, if not more potential for community building and socially connecting. The fundamental notion and function of a plaza has different roles in a small town versus a big city, but the functionality of that plaza acting as a third space stays relatively the same, a public space for meetups, a place to go hang, a place to skate, a place you can invest in and take ownership of, and I think skateparks are something people will satellite around, and by tweaking the framework – what if these rural communities designed a skatepark as a third space for the community that’s very much rooted in their locality, their industries and their culture? Then it can become more of a unique destination for other people to travel to and get introduced to the local culture, and to also share the cultures of their towns, so I think there’s massive potential in rural settings.
Headliners and Slow Impact roomies, Taj Hanson and Antwuan Dixon
From Paper Sessions presenter to Slow Impact headliner – you got the curtains man! You nervous?
T: I wouldn’t say I feel pressure, I’m just looking forward to the chat. Slow Impact is such a beautiful thing, you know, so I feel extremely lucky. Generally, even with all the talks and panels I’ve been doing, this is not my comfort zone by any means, but I feel like it’s been a necessity, because using my role as a landscape architect I can help break down these ideas and explain them, therefore helping with advocacy and helping turn the tide on things a bit. Ryan hit me up after last year’s and linked me up with Ted Barrow, who I’ve always been fan of, so Ted and I worked out a This New Ledge presentation. I don’t know, after hearing a talk about skateboarding in Indigenous communities, skateboarding saving lives, and you hear about Antwuan’s trails, tribulations and wisdoms, I’ve been joking that it kind of feels meaningless to nerd out about architectural details, but to Lee Dubin’s point, it’s all relevant, it’s all part of an ecosystem of shared community growth together.
Pre Paper Sessions Mingling
The Bouldering Project lawn_by Jordan Galiano
Kyle Beachy - Anything At All Reading Series at Cowtown Skate Shop
Ryan Lay switch stance crowd surf Van Deck Parks show_by Jordan Galiano
Jake Brady, Leo Costa, Evan Dittig, Paige Tott, Fifth and Hardy brought to you by Modelo: photo by Jordan Galiano
Evan Dittig-Wallride: Photo by Jordan Galiano
TOA Journalist Justin Hill and Jason Waters at Perry Park_by Jordan Galiano
Slow Impact Attendees Bro Down at Mitchell Park
Jordan Galiano, Connor Siedow and Jas Cuhadar helped provide photos for this article
Thanks so much to Interviewees - Anthony Gaudioso and Rose Stoebner. Jordan Galiano, Paige Tott and Evan Dittig. Leo Costa. Jacques Talbot. Noah Halpern-McManus. Maddie Matson and Katie Matson. Mickey Milett. Romina Palmero. Norma Ibarra. Conor Mullen, Hunter Myers and Josh Kaffer. Marco. Taj Hanson.
Joshua Stewart
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Posted on April 07 2026
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