School Tour!

Last week, the OC Ramps team welcomed 7th and 8th grade students from Jeffrey Trail Middle School located in Irvine, California for a tour of our space and a sit down with the owner and CEO, Tyler Large. This was the second time the OC Ramps team hosted a group of middle school students within the city of Irvine. The students were accompanied by the City of Irvine's Community Services Program Specialist, Alvia Lee, and the middle school's counselor, Julianne Jong.

The students in attendance came to learn not only about skateboarding and what we do at OC Ramps, but what it means to step into and pursue entrepreneurship. This was the second visit OC Ramps has had with Irvine-based students with the help of Alvia. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, Alvia reached out for the first time and worked with Tyler to schedule a visit for another group of students to come and learn all about entrepreneurship.

Tyler shared with the students the background of how OC Ramps came to be which dates back to when Tyler was also a kid. He shared that OC Ramps started from something he enjoyed doing as a hobby when he was a kid and turned into a business which ships skate ramp kits out all over the world!

He discussed with the students what some of their hobbies included and discussed with them further on how they could turn these hobbies into businesses down the line or could be something enjoyable which they do on the side. The conversation came full circle and focused on all that can come from pursuing entrepreneurship. Tyler also emphasized the importance of school in all of this. He used examples such as what he has learned in classes such as algebra, geometry, language arts, and other subjects and related it back to how these have all become necessary in creating and running a business such as OC Ramps.

The students then took a tour of the warehouse and were able to see all of the different job tasks and roles which each individual held. Walking through each station, Tyler and the team showed the students the production process for materials, how packaging operates, the fun of the CNC machine, the differences in materials which we carry, and the overall importance of teamwork. The students discussed the similarities between how the CNC machine operates and the 3D printers which they are learning to use at school.

The group then moved forward to a team favorite - the skate ramps! Tyler showed the students the skate ramps which we have built at our facility and discussed the sizes and materials used to put these ramps together. He also shared that this is where many riders on our team come to shoot videos of themselves skating.

Once the warehouse tour wrapped up, Tyler answered all skate and entrepreneurship questions the students had left. Before they headed back to school, each student received a fingerboard, poster, and sticker pack. It was a fun and successful afternoon at the OC Ramps headquarters.

We cannot wait for the next school tour!