VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — The Jackalope Festival is still a couple of weeks away, but one skateboarder is already here for it. He might be early, but his 3,000-mile cross-country journey was done entirely by board!
Chad Caruso started his journey from California on March 24 with the goal of getting to Virginia Beach in time for the Jackalope Festival, which starts on June 2.
During his trip, Caruso posted social media videos of the different places he skateboarded through, as well as the people he met along the way. He has also posted vlogs of his trip on his YouTube channel.
Caruso traveled through the southwestern states before making his way through Texas and ultimately, the southeastern United States. His Instagram post on Wednesday showed him skateboarding through Emporia, Virginia, less than 100 miles from his destination.
He arrived at his destination of Neptune Park on Friday afternoon, where a large crowd cheered and greeted him.
“Unreal, honestly, I wasn’t expecting this many people!” Caruso said on his arrival.
Caruso has used his cross-country trip to raise money for addiction awareness among youth. His GoFundMe campaign has nearly hit his goal of $45,000, a portion of which will support Natural High, a drug prevention nonprofit organization.
With his journey now over, Caruso has become a Guinness World Record holder for the fastest crossing of America on a manually powered skateboard for a male.
“It’s been an unforgettable journey and Chad has truly become a living legend by fearlessly embracing this colossal challenge,” Micah Desforges, a producer with Jackalope Festival, wrote in a news release. “We applaud his unyielding determination and are beyond proud to have him as an ambassador for this year’s Jackalope festival in Virginia Beach.”
To see Caruso’s journey, visit his pages on Instagram and YouTube.
Congratulations to Chad Caruso for completing this massive 3,000 mile skateboarding journey and especially for raising $45,000 for Natural High, a drug prevention nonprofit organization. – Doug Works, BRA Executive Director
We, at Board Retailers Association, absolutely see the value in increased goodwill, customer loyalty, and customer experience by encouraging BRA Retail Members to align with and collaborate with at least two non-profit Community Partners every year. Our current list of BRA Community Partners in no particular order include @4Ocean, @boardsforbros, @theskateparkproject, @surfersforautism, @skateparkrespect, @surfskatescience, @grindforlife, @surfingheritage, @exposureskate, @lookbacklibrary, @createaskate, @skateshopday and @surfshopday. If you would like to be introduced to the awesome people behind any of these outstanding organizations, email [email protected] and include “BRA Community Partner intro” in the subject line.
If you are not yet a BRA Retail Member, you can easily opt in to either Regular (no cost) or Distinguished ($100/yr.) Membership via this super simple join form