COLLECTORS: 41 & COUNTING

Shelley Yates is a Photography Teacher from Rochester in Kent, she helps to keep our Instagram feed ticking over and is a massive help at our GSUK events.

Skating and collecting boards for well over a decade, we caught up with the 24yr old to take a sneak peak at her collection…

So, How long have you been collecting for?

I’ve been collecting skateboards since I first started skating 11 years ago. My first board for my wall was a pink Bam Element board.

What made you start?

I started taking it seriously when my mum asked what I wanted for my 18th birthday and I jokingly said 18 skateboards… and she bought me 18 skateboards!

Do you collect anything else?

I collect skate stickers too.

What are your favourite pieces?

My favourite pieces are my “Lovenskate- real girls skate curbs board”, my red Zarosh death board as it has pink glitter on and my mint green Tony T anti-hero board.

Is there a theme?

All the boards are 8″ plus with the occasional smaller size due to design. My favourite brands are Anti-Hero (10 boards ), Death(8) and Creature. The majority of my collection are made up of these brands.

What makes you decide on a board you’re gonna skate over one you’ll hang on your wall?

This decision making is very hard as a lot of the boards I have skated on in the past I wish I had kept now. Lately I’ve been buying duplicates to skate on one and collect the other! I only skate Anti Hero, Death or Lovenskate so all other brands I collect straight away and I buy doubles of the others.

What are you going to do when you run out of space?

Find more space! My dad said I could have them on my ceiling but then my collection grew so they went on all my walls, and now if I moved out I will only move where I can take them!

If climate change is real (and obvs it is), your house was destined to be 200 ft under water, and only one of your boards would fit in the rescue raft… which would you take?!

I’d make my own rescue raft out of my skateboards. I would cover them in plastic to protect them and I wouldn’t leave any behind! You wouldn’t leave a child behind!