Skateboarding
Sotong Skateboards: Feroze Rahman's Lowdown
Feroze Rahman is one of the founders of Sotong Skateboards. Find out more about their philosophy.
Feroze Rahman at Marina Bay Sands
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Feroze & Farris Rahman founded Sotong Skateboards - a true Singaporean skate brand. The first range of decks was a success followed by a limited edition of shirts. Now the two brothers are working on a new boards, which will be released later this year. We meet Feroze Rahman and asked him about his plans, his brand and the skate scene in Singapore.
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Hey Feroze, can you tell us what you are up to lately?
Hey I’m actually right now recovering from the worst injury of my skateboard career so far. I screwed up my ankle ligaments and cartilage while dislocating my shoulder at the same time when filming my Vans part last December. My shoulder’s fine now but my ankle is still 1-2 months away from full recovery. So I’m pretty much in the gym most days doing loads of physiotherapy and just keeping fit in hopes that I’ll be able to return to the scene a.s.a.p.
Besides that, I’ve been keeping myself busy with school, doing stuff I procrastinated at and also doing some behind the scenes work for the skate community.
Feroze and Farris run Sotong Skateboards together
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You are running Sotong Skateboards. What has happened so far and what are the plans?
Yup, it’s run by me and my brother Farris. So far, we’ve managed to sell out our first series of boards, did some events for the skaters and also got Sotong Skateboards exposure and recognition overseas. As for our plans, we’re actually in the process of releasing our second board series in a couple months time. Besides that, we’re looking to expand our skate team and hopefully to do a Sotong skate tour sometime this year.
How did you come up with the idea to create a Singaporean skate brand?
The idea came up when our father asked us about our plans after skateboarding. He told us that we should create our own brand so that even after our bodies fail, we can still be active and do something for the skateboarding scene. He said, “You should make something more out of skateboarding while you still can."
It’s always good to have a plan B. It’s also pretty awesome knowing you’re riding for something you own.
So what is the philosophy of Sotong in one sentence?
Our philosophy is that skateboarding isn’t just all about fun, it’s also about how far you can push yourself and make your skating different from others. So: “Start local, aim global”.
Which is why we’re always looking at the bigger picture instead of just Singapore. Some people might think we’re too competitive but the thing is our goals are just different from theirs.
The Singapore skate scene is fairly small and most people know each other, right?
Yup, compared to other countries, we’re still pretty much a small community, but the good thing is that skateboarding here is gaining popularity and is rapidly growing. However it’s not about the quantity, it’s more about the quality. Everyone mostly knows who’s who.
Where do you see the future of Singapore in skateboarding? Maybe a proper park in town like an East Coast Park at Somerset?
I personally believe the upcoming skateboarders here have all the advantages and qualities to go far. The Xtreme SkatePark @ East Coast is probably the best skatepark in the region, and kids now should be thankful they have that to start with compared to what we had years ago.
It just comes down on how far they want to go and how determined they are to achieve their goals. As a skater myself, I would be more than happy if there was to be another world class park built in town.
Which international riders would you love to see coming to Singapore to skate with the local guys?
There’s a lot to choose from but it would be great to have and skate with pro skaters I’ve met and made friends with before, such as Ryan Decenzo, Manny Santiago and my personal favorite skater, Luan de Oliveria.
Maybe some vert riders too like Tony Hawk and PLG to promote vert and bowl skating here since we have 2 great bowls at ECP which is only mainly used by Farris. He needs some bowl skate friends here. Having them here would be a great boost to the scene for sure.
Thanks a lot for the interview. Any last words?
No probs. I just would like to say thanks to everyone who has supported and helped me throughout my skate career from the start till now. Keep skating and I’ll see you guys back on the board when I recover soon ;)
