SINGAPORE: When Mr Erwan “Youri” Supian was released from prison in 2008, he didn’t know then that he had just served his final stint behind bars after 18 years of being in and out of jail.
“It was the first time I saw a skatepark. I saw my friend skating and I made fun of him. Then he challenged me: ‘If you dare, you come and skate.’ I took up the challenge and skated, and I still remember I faceplanted inside the bowl,” he recalled. “I love speed. Once I go downhill, everything shuts down. Maybe you guys find it funny, but when I go downhill, everything is slow-mo,” he explained, while preparing for the next round.
“I didn’t know whether it was difficult because I’m older, but I told myself not to make those kinds of excuses, otherwise it will permanently be an excuse for everything. It was quite difficult to get the basics, like being able to push off, roll along, not fall off … It took a few months,” he said.
With continuous practice, Mr Tan eventually made it to the top three in his category of those aged above 50 in several overseas competitions. Back in Singapore, he would also skate to his office in Suntec City from his home in Pasir Ris via the park connectors to clock in training hours.One would think a newbie would stick to “easy” terrain, but 62-year-old Danny Chong wove through Orchard Road’s crowds on a weekday afternoon in November, just eight months after picking up the sport in March.
“After only one week of skateboarding, I wanted to try long distance. We were then staying overnight at the Civil Service Club at Changi. So we skated to and fro Changi Bay Point. The total distance we covered was 13km. I remember that date: 9th of March,” he said.Ms Wan Su Sin, 54, and her daughter Rey at the tracks at the Sports Hub. For other middle-aged skateboarders, picking up the board was an homage to their inner rebel.
“My daughter was like, ‘Mummy you’re so steady, you can do it!’ So okay, after quite a few times, I said I’ll try with a coach. Then from there I learned the basics from scratch,” she said. “If you don’t do it, you won't know when you can’t do it anymore. Since young I can’t do it, so I do now lor,” she said, about hairstyling and skateboarding alike.
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