© 2026 ABC News

Johnson told ABC Norfolk station WVEC that her late stepfather's presence helped motivate her along the way.

\"He's, like, supported me through this whole thing -- it's actually crazy,\" she said.

\"PHOTO:
WVEC
PHOTO: Brooke Johnson became the first woman to skateboard across the U.S. when she arrived in Virginia Beach on Aug. 15, 2025.
>

Prior to his death, Johnson said the pair's hope was to skate across the finish line with Johnson pushing her stepfather in his wheelchair.

\"I was like, 'Roger it's a really big country.' And he was like, 'Well, you can do it,'\" Johnson said.

Johnson was wearing a heart-shaped necklace with Roger's ashes inside when she crossed the Red Bull finish line on Friday.

\"Roger left me purpose, and for that I thank him every single day,\" she said.

\"PHOTO:
ABC News
PHOTO: Brooke Johnson became the first woman to skateboard across the U.S. when she arrived in Virginia Beach on Aug. 15, 2025.
>

Johnson shared a recap of the journey on her Instagram page Saturday. The video montage was set to an old voicemail left by her stepfather, which she said \"was one of those messages that felt like he left it for the present moment.\"

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Brooke Johnson (@brookedoeseverything)

\"If there's one thing you take away from this trip, it's that you can truly do anything you put your mind to,\" she wrote in the caption.

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