Slick's Skate Store Team Rider Interview: Si Coburn

Hello Hello,

Stephen (@Whataspoon) here. Last week I went live on the @Slicks_Skates Instagram to ask our team rider Si Coburn some questions. I asked him about his past, present and future with skating and all the answers were super interesting as you will see. Si has been skating for close to 26 years, so he has a fair amount of experience on the wheels. He has also spent a lot of that time sponsored and going on skating trips with world class professionals from all over.

 

Here's some highlights from the full video:

How did your Slick’s journey begin?

“So, right. It would have started off first of all with coming down to London to skate with everyone, doing like the Sunday strolls and the Friday night skates and just kindof, being open to that scene. I first came down for like a Christmas skate, and it would have been just before the pandemic. And this is the first time I’d like seen this whole crowd of skaters and everything, like actually saw the London scene. Just being like OMG this is like something else, this is amazing. So I kinda instantly fell in love with that sort of scene and what was going on with that. And then I took a few more trips to London and I think at that point I hadn’t even been to Slick’s. Um, I was aware of it. That was when I think Nicola was on the team, Jack.. I believe it may have just been those two, the only inliners at the time. Then Slick’s they put out that competition didn’t they, to find team riders and everyone had to submit like a minute video something on instagram. And then everyone from the shop sorta decided who was going to be on the team. I did one of those, really hoping something might come out from that, like I said before, I kinda fell involve with that scene in London. It would have been amazing to be a part of that scene through Slick’s. And then luckily from that, I guess they liked my video and they sort of approached me, we got talking and then yeah, it went from there and then everything since has just been the best thing to happen really.”

How did the Rollerblade sponsorship happen?

“From what I remember, I was skating rollerblade anyway, I was skating the New Jacks at the time. I remember putting up like a few videos on instagram and this was sort of before the whole instagram thing kind of kicked off. I was just tagging them as you do you know normally when you skate a brand you just tag that brand anyway and I didn’t think anything of it. I think I kind of thought I was coming to the end of my like, not skating career, but like I don’t know. I felt like I was at the older end of it, sort of thing. So I didn’t think, you know, I never expected anything to come from it. Then I remember being at work and I randomly just has a voice message from Danny Aldridge and, I kinda know Danny anyway from like competitions in the past like NASS and stuff but I didn’t know him, know him at the time. Yeah he send me that message just saying, we like what you are doing and it would be cool to try and get you some like free products at some point bla de bla but these things can take a long while. So I was like okay cool, obviously absolutely buzzing from that, like what the hell, this is amazing, you know Rollerblade. I was thinking maybe it was just going to be like a pair of skates or something like that and then for a few months or so I didn’t really hear much. I pushed Danny and he sort of just said, look these things take a while, just bare with me, he was just trying to work on it. I think it was just after Winterclash, just before Covid hit or it might have been the year before. Ah yeah, it was the year before, ah yes so we were at Winterclash and then he basically just sent me a message after that just telling me yeah it’s all good and they are happy to send you some stuff bla de bla. I got a massive package sent through of stuff that I wasn’t expecting and then I kinda just said to him like what’s the deal here like. What are we calling this? And he was like, just call it like UK Ambassador for Rollerblade and it just kindof went from there.”

Si then goes on to talk about his involvement with the Extreme Sports Channel and a little background into his previous sponsors through out his time on the wheels. As an Aggressive skater Si has been well recognised in the scene and has been on teams like Remz and also received a pro wheel with UK based wheel company Lade. All of these achievements have came from not only Si’s talent as a skater but through the way that he brings himself to these opportunities. If you have ever met Si you will know that he is a fun guy to be around for sure. Always making sure that others are feeling involved and setting a good example as someone who skates due to the sheer love he has for the sport and it’s people.

What’s your favourite skating memory?

“I’ve gotta say, it’s probably… (Si pondering) … this would have been 2002 and 8 of us went out to California for like 5 weeks or something. And this is the time where you watched all your favourite pros, you’d watch all the videos, so you knew where all the spots.. you didn’t know exactly where they were but like you knew every spot that was like in California from watching the videos, so when we went on that trip, it was just like a skate video tour. You would go to every different high school and think aw this guy did this on that. And this is that spot. This is that rail. I think that’s probably my best memories of just that trip. There was 8 of us and it was kinda just like our first holiday we had all been on without like your parents n stuff but yeah that it was just mad, it was crazy.”

“I don’t know if you remember Frasier’s true top porn in the Razors video? It’s still one of the best tricks ever done and it’s just like witnessing that was just insane. Yeah like in the video I’m like literally at the top of the stairs watching”

We talk for over an hour over on instagram about which skates Si chooses to skate, his music taste, why he skates and he gives us an insight to how much skating styles have changed over the years. If there is one thing that Si has, it’s definitely experience. He has lived through it all when it comes to rollerblading so it is great to be able to hear about all the adventures.

The whole video is available to watch on our Instagram @Slicks_Skates

You’ll find it on our IGTV under the Live Chats.

We are looking to do the same with our other team riders so make sure to follow us on Instagram so you don’t miss the next one.

All photos are taken by Sam Cooper / @Samcooperphoto

The photos were not taken specifically for this article and may not appear in the same quality that Sam has intended them to look.

- Stephen