It’s not often that you get to see a star in the making, but if you stop by Poods Skatepark Bowl in Encinitas Community Park almost any weekday afternoon around 4 p.m. you’ll see a young boy doing some pretty amazing moves. He’s Kian Reef Fernandez, he’s 6 years old, and he’s on his way to becoming a skateboard pro.
Kian started skating at age 4 and was in his first California Amateur Skateboard League (CASL) competition this February, in Huntington Beach. The youngest in his division—all 7 or under, but some almost 8—he placed third. Then in March, in Palm Springs, he came in second, and won for Best Trick. At the end of April, in Fontana, he’s aiming to win first place.
A first-grader at Cardiff Elementary, Kian is not your average kid. He’s also good at snowboarding and surfing, speaks three languages, and enjoys writing and birdwatching too. And he’s not from your average family. His dad, Juan Fernandez, is an environmental consultant born in Venezuela and raised in Miami who started surfing and skating at about 8 years old. He met his wife, Shiszuka, a Scripps Hospital nurse born in Japan, at Scripps Pier in La Jolla, where they both liked to surf. The whole family—including 4-year-old Jax, who has just begun skating—is trilingual, with healthy ideas about how to do well and have fun.
A cool thing about skateboarding, clearly in evidence at Poods, is the spirit of camaraderie. There’s a broad range of ages and abilities, but everyone waits his or her turn, applauds other skaters’ good moves, and is ready to give a hand when needed. Often, local pros show up to work out, and on a recent Tuesday afternoon, we were lucky enough to see some of the best in action.
“The Roots are here today,” someone murmured, and Kian’s dad was as excited as anyone could be.
“That’s Steve Caballero,” he said, nodding toward one of two older men who had just settled in at the far side of the Bowl. “Kian wears Caballero kneepads and elbow-pads, and the other guy is Mike McGill: he made Kian’s board. They’re Tony Hawk-caliber skaters and they’re part of the group who made skateboarding what it is today!”
He took Kian over to meet the two men, who posed for a photo with him and said: “Go ahead, buddy!” It was a thrill to see Kian show his stuff and be applauded by the pros; they’re all buddies here.
Caballero and McGill began taking their turns in the Bowl, and other hotshot skaters kept arriving, among them two women. One was Jordyn Barrett, part of the U.S.A. skateboarding team in the Tokyo 2020 summer Olympics—the first time skateboarding was included; she’s currently training for Paris 2024. And Kian has started taking classes at California Training Facility in Vista, where many Olympic hopefuls train.
It was a great day at Poods, which was named for Ian “Poods” Barry, an Encinitan who loved and taught skateboarding and died way too young in 2012. But every day can be a great day here, for skaters and onlookers alike. You learn a lot by just watching: about falling—sometimes hard, even with pads and helmets—and then getting back on your feet and onto your board; about appreciating what others do well and letting them know it; about taking your sport seriously and having fun with it too.
It’s spring now, a fine time to head for the skatepark to see Kian working on his moves and maybe trying out a new trick. Someday you’ll be able to say you met him when he was just starting out, so don’t be too shy to say “Hi!” to The Skateboard Kid.
See Kian in action at:
This story originally appeared in Encinitas Advocate .
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