Fabiola Da Silva is a rollerblading legend that you can follow every day on Instagram for inspiration and a look into her continued life on skates. This summer she traveled from Brazil to Sandusky, Ohio to join All Wheel Sports for their demo shows at the world-famous Cedar Point amusement park. Drawing over 3,000,000 visitors per year, this year’s attendees had a chance to see two former X-Games gold medalists do their thing on the bright green AWS ramp setup. As part of a multi-sport performance geared at modern audiences, the Cedar Point shows represent an under-reported and under-appreciated element of important blade/public outreach. Along those lines we were curious how Fabiola was doing with the shows, so we caught up with her to bring you this update on the one-and-only Bladie Queen.
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Fabiola, you should be working out Brazil! What in the world are you doing at Cedar Point in Sandusky, Ohio?!
Well well well, I was just there (in Brazil) working with skating, introducing rollerblading to kids, teaching, skating myself, and working out. You guys probably saw since you know me so well, haha — working out is my second passion.
Now I’m here in Ohio doing some shows at Cedar Point with All Wheel Sports! Jaren got me involved in the shows, thanks to J, Jill, Mike Castillo, Jaren Grob and all the All Wheels Sports crew for having me out here! It’s been a great summer so far, and very fun skating and performing with these amazing athletes.
Okay okay, we were just kidding — we know you’re there with All Wheel Sports. But tell us, how did that really all come together? You were pretty far away when their season started I think…
Hahahaha, okay. Jaren Grob has been doing these shows for years, but he sent me a message asking me if I was interested in joining him out here at Cedar Point. I was in Brazil and had already planned to come out the USA this summer, so it was just perfect timing. Everything worked out so perfectly. Thanks, Jaren! Yeahhhhh! I love the shows, the amazing people, the athletes — the whole thing is just fantastic. I feel very blessed to do what I love with awesome people.
How have the shows been going? What have crowd reactions been like?
I’ve been here for one month, and on my first day, when I got to watch the show, I was very impressed and amazed by all the people involved. The show is very well put together. And we are the crowd ‘s favorite! We get such a good response, and people are very pleased with the show. It’s fun for sure and very interactive.
Have you done a lot of demo stuff like this before? And if so, has it been awhile?
I’ve been doing shows for years. Even in Brazil I do a lot interacting with the kids and skating demos, but this one is all choreographed so it took a while, but hey — I got it all figured out!
I just go out there every day to spread some love and do what I love. Nothing to complain about, only to be thankful every day for the opportunities that have come my way.
How important are shows like this to helping the public better understand inline skating?
It’s amazing how in the USA people have shows like this because I really think it helps the growth of the sport, and it spreads skating out there to show what extreme sports are all about. Also, it’s really cool that we can interact with the crowd. They have the chance to see us up close and learn a little bit about each of us.
Speaking of which, what have you been up to in Brazil? We see you on Instagram working out, teaching kids to blade, and stuff like that. But can you tell us more?
That’s actually what I do in Brazil! I have a school and I teach kids how to skate. I also do demos and clinics at schools. I have a great crew down there that helps me spread rollerblading and a message about how to live a healthier lifestyle.
As a lot of people know, working out is my second passion — I love it. Learning how to eat properly and work out in the right ways really helped me with skating and my overall wellness. I feel way better, stronger and conditioned now than I did in my 20’s.
How about with your perspective on blading right now — you paying much attention to what’s going on out there? Who are your favorite bladers currently out there in the streets or parks laying it down?
I love rollerblading and I have been skating for 24 years so I see a lot of young skaters. To be honest some of them I just know from videos and IG, but hands down in my eyes Chris Haffey is so out there on his own and is always pushing rollerblading to the next level. Dave Lang, Jaren Grob, Roman Abrate, man there’s so many I love to watch that I could name way more. And the ladies! Ayumi Kawasaki, Coco Sanchez, Mellisa Brown, China, sorry! There are too many great, inspiring skaters and I can name way more that make rollerblading so good. I wanna thank all the skaters that are out there pushing and making rollerblading look amazing and alive.
Here’s a bigger one for you: back when you were coming up and getting to the top, you were part of a movement to let you skate against the dudes. In today’s action sports world, there’s more acceptance of female athletes and more participants in general, but you were such a pioneering force that the rules not only didn’t apply, you had to smash them! Can you go back in time and explain to us how that worked? Would you have done that again if given the chance, or would you have kept the genders separated? And any thoughts on why one method might be better or worse than the other?
Man, even for me that was very surprising and inspiring at the same time. I have always skated with guys my whole life since there weren’t many girl vert skaters. At first I got nervous, but at the same time I thought it was a great idea to push us women to get better every day. Honestly, I never saw it as an obstacle for me, but for sure a challenge, so I could push myself even more. I know some women didn’t agree with that, and it might have discouraged some of them from competing, but on the other hand the ones that really believed took us to another level in all ways.
I really think women are capable of skating just as good as a guy. Our sport is so free in a way that if you wanna do something big you have to skate hard, practice a lot, and have dedication, repetition, love and passion — those are the keys to succeed and make your dreams come true.
Where others saw obstacles I saw opportunity, and adjusted to made it work no matter how long it took me to do it.
Sorry we got all serious for second! But sheesh, when you get a chance to ask the bestest Bladie in the world about something like that, you take it!
Thanks a lot! It’s always for the love and I feel so happy to be 37 years old and still be able to live the dream! 🙂
Okay, back to the fun stuff. When does the AWS gig end, and when do you head home?
Well the AWS goes until Sep 5th, and then I’m gonna stay in the USA, so yeah — I’m moving back to the States after these shows. The only reason I was in Brazil for the past 10 months was because my mother had heart surgery and I was helping take care of her. Family is really import to me. 🙂
Do you plan to do another show with AWS in the future?
Well yeahhhhh, I hope so! I hope to have the opportunity to come back next year.
Any words of wisdom or advice to anyone that wants to succeed not just on blades, but in life?
Do everything in your life with a lot of love, faith, passion, and persistence. Just believe in yourself!Don’t let anyone or bad things bring you down. Be strong and keep going, don’t ever stop until you get there. Always remember one thing: GOD is in control of all things and nothing, nothing happens without his permission. Stay strong and spread love, always.
How about your set up? What are you riding on?
My set up now is…
Skates: Valo V13 gray
Frames: Aragons
Wheels: Cozmo Wheels (antirocker)
Bearings: Bones Swiss
Any set-up tips to share with your fans?
As long as you are comfortable with your skates, it’s a good set up. And I also make sure I have a good set of fast bearings and wheels to makes everything easier and faster!
I wanna to say thank you to all my fans for the love and for all the daily motivation. Thanks to all skaters in the world for keeping our sport out there. Do what you love and have fun!!! 
Well we’ll let you get back to it. Thanks for taking the time, Fab!
I grew up watching you skate, you did some of the most bad a** stuff I ever saw. You keep Chris Edward on his toes. I go to cedar point every year you were the last person I expected to see. I skated for team atomik and it was awesome to see our spot still killing it.