TWO young entrepreneurs from Calne are hoping a new skating contest could be the springboard their company needs.

Ellis Welch, of Isis Street, and Tyler Shurmer, of Silver Street, are both just 16 but are in the process of turning their love of skateboards, scooters and longboards into a career.

The pals are still in full-time education – they study music technology at Wilt-shire College.

But they have started Skate Scoot Wiltshire, which is currently a team of friends, with the hope it will turn into a full-time venture.

Ellis said: “I started a Youtube channel a while ago and put up a few skating and scooter videos.

“I left it for a while but then got drawn back to it and thought I could turn it into a business.

“I started making more extreme sports videos and then asked Tyler to join me.

“We call ourselves a team at the moment but eventually we would like to turn it into a retail company, selling skate brands.”

To kick-start their work, the friends are running a competition on July 28, to coincide with Calne Motorcycle Meet.

Ellis said: “They ran a competition last year but it wasn’t quite what everyone wanted – I won it so it can’t have been that good!

“We will have longboarding, skating, scootering and BMX-ing.

“There will be categories for different age groups so everyone will have a chance of winning.

“We have permission from the town council and have invited lots of people from Calne and the surrounding areas.

“We’re just getting the pricing sorted and getting some posters made up.”

The boys, who used to attend John Bentley School, said they hope to help change people’s perceptions of skaters.

Ellis said: “I think skaters do get a bad reputation in Calne, people do give you looks.

“And we aren’t taken seriously as entrepreneurs because we are young.

“But the competition is an opportunity to show the town council and people in Calne just how much talent there is in this area and that we really do deserve to be taken seriously.”

For more information about the competition visit www.skatescootwilts.co.uk