Hotshot Teen Skater Shiloh Catori Credits Growing Up in Sarasota’s Skate Scene for Much of Her Success
Image: Trevor Brown Photography
Shiloh Catori, 16, is living the dream—the dream of being a sponsored professional skateboarder who represents skate mega-brand Vans. Vans. As in: the iconic checkerboard slides. As in: the Vans Warped Tour. As in: We are in awe.
Catori was first inspired to pick up a board by watching her older brother, who liked to compete for fun around Sarasota. “As soon as I got on a board, I fell in love with it. When you’re on the board, you feel like you’re free,” she says. “I’m a pretty clumsy person, but when I’m on the board I feel in control. Everything feels so much more in focus.”
Catori landed her Vans sponsorship at age 12 and has earned so many accolades at so many national competitions that she’s lost track of them all. “Most recently, I’m proud of placing third in SLS APEX and placing first in PHXAM,” she says.
Despite her success, Catori is quiet, thoughtful and composed. “I feel like skateboarding keeps you humble,” she says. “If you get a little too confident on the board it will throw you off. I never really think of myself as that great. We all think of each other as equals. I feel like no one in skateboarding really pays attention to who is better. Even in contests, whoever wins, well, the person in last place is still someone’s favorite skater. Skating is such an equal community. Everyone has the potential to win. It’s all about who has the better day.”
That may be true, but Catori is a lot of people’s favorite skater. With more than 79,000 followers on Instagram and features in popular skate videos, Catori often meets fans at events. “It’s such a weird feeling to have someone who is a fan of you,” she says. “You’re just kind of living your life and not even realizing someone is watching you. It’s a really cool feeling. I try to get to know new fans and be as encouraging and nice as possible. If I’m their favorite skater, I want them to keep skating and be the best that they can so that they can become what they see in me.”
Last year, Catori officially outgrew the Southwest Florida skating community and moved to Los Angeles to continue her training. But with her family still here, she commutes back and forth. She says the decision to move was scary, but she tackles life with an adventurous mindset. “When you’re really scared or nervous, you have to stay composed,” she says. “You kind of just go into a mental state of focus and you have to just shove the voice in your head way down and just go. It’s usually not as bad as you thought. I mean, sometimes it is, but you always just have to go for it.”
