|
Only have a minute? Listen instead |
Across the Rio Grande Valley, skateboarders are forming a unique community. Between tricks and competitions, they’re uncovering lifelong friendships, moments of mentorship, and a sense of belonging like nowhere else.
One local skate group is taking it to another level.
Fly Klown University will be at the South Padre Island Skatepark this Go Skateboarding Day, on Saturday, June 20, from 3 to 8 p.m. A few days later, they’ll be helping out with Sage Touch Inc’s Level Up Block party on June 27 at 318 W Jackson Ave in Harlingen, in honor of the 2026 graduating class.
Fly Klown University started out as a dream in 2007, explains founder Anthony “Anton Q” Cuellar, while he was in the Army on a 15 month deployment in Iraq. Amidst a never-ending heat and disconnecting feelings of isolation, he found solace on a half pipe he constructed by hand with discarded material. He mail-ordered a board and found himself shredding away his war blues.
All the while, he came up with a plan: Finish his contract, come home, use his GI Bill for school, and start a skate shop.
It took a few years, but he got it done.
In 2024, as Cuellar stepped into the role of fatherhood raising two young sons, the news began to disturb him, he says. He observed Valley youth putting themselves in harm’s way, from doing and selling drugs to drinking and driving and other dangerous activities. He couldn’t help thinking “What if they had something else to do?”
“It made it my mission to give the youth something productive to do,” he recounted.
Fly Klown University started with Cuellar passing out a few decks he designed. From there, with some help from his friends, they started collaborating with other skate crews on events and eventually began hosting their own. Since the beginning, he estimates he’s given away over 30 boards for free to Valley skaters and hosted eight competitions.
“We just started dominating skate competitions as a crew,” he said looking back at the beginning.
He believes the passion of the local youth is what makes the Valley’s skate culture unique. Bonded by camaraderie, they take on each challenge as they come, together. Sharing tips and teaching each other tricks, they know there’s a hand that will pick them up whenever they fall.
“It’s amazing to see,” said Cuellar. “They come to all of our events and we get to witness them progressing. I haven’t seen anything like it anywhere else I’ve skated.”
He thinks the Valley’s isolation from the rest of the world is what has influenced the special bond between skateboarders here. There’s nowhere else like the Valley — Cuellar calls it to the “Bermuda Triangle of Texas.”
“Together, here, we just build unity,” he said.
He calls skateboarding “the perfect meditation.” It builds on the philosophy of living in the present moment, while also offering an escape from the realities of the world, he says. Between each skateboarder and their board exists a personal joy — one Valley skaters embrace together.
Skateboarding brings out life’s warriors, says Cuellar. To be a skateboarder, you must not fear falling and you’ve always got to get back up. Everyday, the “Klowns” of Fly Klown University go out and put everything on the line, working through personal battles on the pavement and serving as role models for the outcasts of the younger generations.
“When we see each other falling, and getting back up, and pushing our limits and still taking the hits — it builds that respect for one another,” said Cuellar. “That builds a community together because we all go through it and push through the struggles.”
At every Fly Klown Event, two Klowns in particular are always lending a hand to the younger skaters, Alex “Thrashgoon” De La Garza and Austin Luna. With tips and pointers, they provide the new generation with pieces to the puzzle, advancing their skill sets, and giving them a sense of belonging.
“That’s what it’s all about,” said Cuellar. “Sharing these little tidbits of knowledge to help them get to the next level.”
When an older skater helps a younger skater work through a new trick, they learn more than just a new way to impress their friends. They see that someone else has been there before and pushed through the same obstacle, Cuellar says. It shows them that it can be done.
All this unfolds within sacred grounds for skateboarders – the skate park. A quality park can mean all the difference, says Cuellar. The better the park, the more of an opportunity skateboarders have to expand their abilities and live up to their full potential.
“If we were to look at examples like Nyjah Huston or Ben Margera, those guys grew up around amazing skateparks,” said Cuellar. “They were able to hone their craft, like a wet stone sharpens a sword.”
Outside the parks, society has some misconceptions about skateboarders, Cuellar observes. They’re not lazy, unintellectual, or criminals, he says, and the way hardworking Valley skaters have built so much from essentially nothing disproves those stereotypes.
Fly Klown University, for example, started with no backing — just the phone in Cuellar’s pocket and the change in his couch cushions.
“People are building everything from the ground up,” he said.
He explained that his crew’s name represents the idea of learning with the world as their academia. They believe in studying ancient philosophies, physics, discipline, persistence and patience — tools a skater must embody for every trick they learn.
He compares Fly Klown University to a “skateboarding sanctuary,” believing the sort of safe space they have built for the outcasts and black sheep of the Valley is essential for a skater to compete well and evolve while doing it.
“To train, learn and grow with a positive skateboarding community is what we at Fly Klown University are all about,” said Cuellar. “Bringing the community together, making sure we eat, shred, and chill. That’s our purpose, one step at a time.”