My fellow Gen Xer, Kat François started skating about a year ago. We first met when she joined one of my roller skating courses, and I can honestly say that we've maintained a strong connection ever since. As someone who's watched Kat make strides in her skating journey over this time, it's clear that she's someone who walks and skates her own path. I've seen her take on the many challenges that learning to skate across a variety of disciplines poses, and courageously carve her own way. She's fully immersed herself in UK skate culture — at home and abroad!
Perhaps her background as a performing artist along with a long-standing relationship with physical fitness spanning decades has been a key factor? Somehow, I feel that these are yet more consequences of Kat's creativity, drive and tenacity. But hey, read on and decide for yourself.
"So many, good, good people, good sisters. All ages, but I'll say the majority of these are around 40 plus, people that I just never would have met otherwise. That's been the most surprising and rewarding thing, the new friendships, and the depth of those friendships."
~Kat François
7 Questions
Q.1 Did you start skating as a kid?
"No, at all. Not at all. I never skated as a kid. Listen, man. I'm one of seven, we didn't have shit. I think what I probably had was baked bean cans that we smashed and pretended that they were roller skates! Where I lived, I had a big adventure playground. Everyone was more into BMXing, skateboarding and that kind of thing. But, yeah, I used to bike and all that. And they had, like, a BMX ramp. But, no, I never skated. Yeah, roller skating seemed to bypass us."
"We was watching the skating during lockdown and all of that, because my partners a DJ, he likes music. So, we were going for the music. We used to just put the skating music on in the background and it would just be playing. We really got into it.
➡️ Watch Video: Kat's Roller Skating Journey [snippets]
Q.3 How did your street skating come about?
"I wanted to street skate. So I was just out there. I was quite scared at first, because I'm self-employed. I can't afford to break myself up. But, I have this fear fascination in me. If I'm scared of something, I'll do it. I'm a bit of a nut like that.
I'm a gym bunny, and I run, do you know what I mean? I do something every single day. So, I think my level of physical fitness, I'm really starting to see the benefits. I didn't really appreciate what I was doing until now, really. So, the physical fitness was always there. I've run marathons you know, 28 half-marathons, around 6 full marathons, but street skating, it's a different level of fitness. So, you know, even my body has changed, and this is someone who exercises regularly, because as I said, it's a different level of fitness. It's a different level of stamina.
But I was just a bit fearless. Like, I'm still a bit of a nut, like that. Sometimes I put my skates on in some areas, and I'll be like, Kat, take them off! I don't know, like, for some reason, I don't really have this kind of fear. It could be because I ride a little Vespa motorbike that I'm not so frightened.I don't know, there's just a freedom with that streets skating, like when the music is going, and we're all down the street, and I can't even believe some of the stuff I do ...riding next to a bus, zipping in and out of traffic. But you don't really get a chance to think, because you're just in the moment. There's certain common sense road things that I'm doing now that I wasn't doing. The awareness comes with experience.
Q.4 How did you integrate into the skate community?
"I think it took me a while. But I turned up to stuff, whether I knew people or not, if that makes sense. Like, I remember turning up to Bonana and Empowr's street skates, and not really knowing people. I just went.
There's a confidence that comes with being older, that you're just like, 'just go', you know, when you're younger, you might be a bit paranoid, but I don't have that anymore. I'm like, yeah, I can't wait. I can't wait for nobody. Everyone's time is different. So I'm like, you just get up and go.
So, you know, even as someone who's confident, it's still like not easy to walk into spaces that I don't know, where no one knows you. But I just said to myself, just go on and do it. So, you know, it's my second year in now, I feel like I've grown up with certain skills.
I'm trying to build those fundamentals, because I know that they're going to serve me well in the long term. I do feel this is a moment of massive growth for me. I've know a lot of people who are at my stage, we're not kind of wobbly anymore, we're not advanced, we're in the middle.
It's trying to lock down those basics."
Q.5 Is their anything you didn't expect at the start your skating journey?
"So I didn't take into account in the beginning that actually even as grow-up's, we build our own community. So you go on a journey together.
It's wicked to see people like you who've been skating over the last year or two, and to see their levels now, from dropping on any little bump to people jumping up and down. All ages, but I'll say the majority of these are around 40 plus. A big group of sisters, around 40+. It gave me confidence to see that, I never thought this thing would take over my life like this.
I had to come into a space and start from scratch where no one knew me, So it is a complete and utter level up. But I think it's good to be stripped back. It's the nakedness, it's the stripping down. I think that the older we get, the more we kind of like hold on to these images and beliefs we have in ourselves, which is a lot of bullshit like, I can't do this or I'm this and I don't do that. The labels we give ourselves. And then, we know that socialisation is a massive part of our mental health.
I would say the new friendships at this big old crusty age wasn't something I anticipated. By the time you get to, you know, 40s, 50s, you're locked in with the friends that you've got. So I didn't really see space for like, new friendships you know, and then my sister Lydia, Lady B, I met her on my first course. We started talking and then we just would come together and we ended up with me and her all over Hyde Park in the dust! People like yourself, so many, you know, good, good people, good sisters. Like, people that I just never would have met otherwise. So I think that's been the most surprising and rewarding thing, the new friendships. And the depth of those friendships.
You know, there's something about fighting for your life on the street that really builds strong bonds. And seeing each other, week in, week out, encouraging each other. Also, you know, family, my little brother Richie, Mari— getting family involved. You know, I'd get my mum skates if I could. I love the intergenerational thing about it. There's not many spaces where you get this intergenerational thing, where you can be in the same spaces. We need more of that.
Yeah, I think it's just been very rewarding. I can't think of anything that I would say is a negative thing. Only sometimes maybe when you get on the rink with some of the mad young ones, and the speed and all of that, and, you know, the shoving and all of that. I mean, but the thing is, as you get more confident, you can handle that so you know, you're not going to drop as much."
Q.6 What have you done in the past that you've brought into this process?
"I have run a lot of events in the past, so I'm coming in with events experience. You know, my partner is a DJ and does all my organising and event management.
I'm a performer, so I have that performance element. I'm actually just waiting for it all to come together for me. And, the more confident I get on my skates, I can feel it. You know, I come from a theatre / dance background. So, I think that there's a natural confidence and a natural showmanship that might not have been there. I love to dance. I'm just waiting for that confidence to click on the skates. It's coming slowly, but it's not quite there yet. But I know I'm going to be a problem when it comes — straight up saying that for a long time! Self-expression and movement for me is one of the ways that I've always communicated with the world.
It's funny, as someone who writes and speaks as well, but there's something about movement that speaks in a way that nothing else speaks to me."
Q.7 Can you tell me a bit about your roller skating projects?
"Boy, because skate equipment is expensive. I'm a hustler and a bustler. I don't like paying full price for shit. I'm not one of those who mind secondhand as long as it's decent, it look clean, look nice, smell fresh. Could come from being a family of seven. You make use of everything.
Skate stuff is expensive, sis and I just became very good at bargaining and hustling and sourcing equipment for myself. I just seem to have this little bit of a knack for it. So I was accumulating this equipment and then people were like, oh, where'd you get that? I sourced new, nearly new pre-loved skates, wheels, accessories, sometimes people come to me and ask, can you source that for me? And yeah, Skate Hustle began from there basically.
As a creative, your mind is open to anything, so as far as I'm concerned, there's no limits. I think I would like to see skating definitely grow in West London. We have a dearth of, skaters in West London. So me and my West London skatemates, we'd travel and go all over London. And, and we're like, we just need something local, you know? West London is really bad for cheap spaces. But, we did find a nice space in West London which has a beautiful floor, in a school. Skate West has it's sixth session coming up. We've been able to cover the cost, which is great. Yeah, it's been well attended. We encourage beginner skaters, it's a space where skaters can feel comfortable coming to.
There's a crew of us in West London. It'd be great to run workshops down West. Like, you don't always have to be at the forefront. You could be about pushing others. So that's the lesson I'm taking.
I'm also just starting to put the hula hoop and the skate together and see whether I can import that into my performances into my work."
➡️ Listen/share: Kat's Audio [via YouTube]
➡️ Follow: @kat_francois on instagram.
➡️ Previous interview: 7 Questions With Big Laverne
Kelly
Cranial Osteopath | Wellbeing Coach | Roller Skate Instructor
🗯️ What have you taken away from Kat's story? Are you at a similar stage in your journey? Share them in the comments below or, leave us a lil emoji response.
