Sandtiger showing a small sample of his 2,077 pairs of Crocs he owns at Elizabeth Park in Hartford, Connecticut. Photo: Aaron Flaum/Hartford Courant/TNS
Doogie Lish Sandtiger, 32, is known as the “Croc hunter” but it’s not as risky as it sounds because he’s in pursuit of the trendy, rubber-like shoes.
Sandtiger owns 2,077 pairs of Crocs – though that number can increase any day – in an array of colours, styles, designs and limited edition collectibles, some from around the globe.
He estimates the collection to be worth US$370,000 (RM1.63mil) and it was even featured on rapper 2 Chainz’s show, Most Expensivest Collections as part of an episode on “Cool geeks”. Sandtiger has spent as much as US$2,600 (RM11,485) on one pair.
“I find them all,” Sandtiger said. “I try to wear every single pair. Obviously that’s impossible with me having only two feet.”
When he first saw Crocs in high school he thought they were “ugly”.
Sandtiger isn’t alone in seeking out special Crocs beyond the plain ones found in everyday stores. It’s the magnitude that sets him apart from other Croc collectors.
He said people often ask which is his favourite pair, but he said it’s “really impossible to choose”.
“Picking a favourite would be like picking a favourite child,” he said.
Among one of the most quirky in the collection is a Kentucky Fried Chicken limited edition, with colour on the base with the classic KFC red and white stripes and topped with fake chicken pieces that actually smell like chicken. The box came with a warning not to eat them.
Another pair features Cinnamon Toast Crunch cereal that looks and smells good enough to get a craving going.
To Sandtiger, Crocs are often works of art, part of the decor in his West Hartford home in Connecticut, the United States, on shelves, bookcases and walls. He even has a “Croc cave” or room dedicated for exhibit and imagines one day opening a Crocseum.
“Some of them are so beautiful to me, they’re strictly decor and art pieces,” Sandtiger said.
Crocs as a social force
Sandtiger wears several pairs of Crocs every day and in that finds not only comfy feet, but also great social/psychological lightning rod.
He said they are “like a vessel or connection piece” in sparking interaction.
“Anywhere I go, someone might be having a bad day and they’ll look at my Crocs and say, ‘They’re so cool',” he said. “It takes the monotony out of life.”
The Crocs ability to spark a smile and open channels is helpful in his job at the children’s psychiatric hospital where he works as a child services worker.
“If there’s awkward tension it helps bridge the gap,” Sandtiger said of the Crocs at work. “It gets people to laugh and talk.”
Sandtiger has a bachelor’s degree in social work and is earning a master’s degree and is employed by the Department of Children and Families.
He hated Crocs at first
Crocs came out about 20 years ago and Sandtiger remembers “hating” them at first.
“I thought, ‘Why would anybody wear them? They’re so silly looking.”
But then, for practical and somewhat poignant reasons he converted. Sandtiger said he was raised in the foster care system, going from house to house, and he said learning some of the basics in life “slipped through the cracks”, including how to tie shoes.
He got along as a youngster by wearing Velcro clasp sneakers, but that didn’t cut it in high school, so he improvised by stuffing his laces in his shoes.
The laces were always falling out.
“By 16, I thought, ‘I can’t keep doing this', but I was too embarrassed to reach out,” Sandtiger said.
Then one day he saw a woman wearing Crocs and noticed they had no shoelaces.
He thought, “They may be ugly, but maybe it will be an acquired taste like coffee.”
His perception quickly changed.
“I got my first pair and I fell in love – they were comfortable,” he said. “I started wearing them everywhere (in basic black). They were just cool.”
Sandtiger had a lot going on in his life at that time and as a strategy to help keep himself happy, started making a list of “stuff” that motivated him – a bucket list of tangible goals.
One of those goals was to acquire 366 pairs of Crocs, one for each day of the year, including leap years.
“I thought I was going to stop there,” he said. “Once I hit that goal, awesome pairs started to come up.”
Looking to set a world record
One of his goals now is to set a Guinness World record for biggest Croc collection. It’s an open title as no one holds it, but he was told by officials at Guinness that the higher the number is to begin with, the better, so he’s considering entering when he reaches 3,000 pairs.
“This is why I’m like a Croc hunter. To me this is a second full-time job,” he said.
Officials at Croc headquarters could not be reached for comment.
Sandtiger switches out his Crocs for daily activities, wearing different ones for the grocery store, walking the dogs, going to the gym, taking a walk with friends, to work.
“I don’t discriminate against Crocs. I love colour, I love sparkly, I love pink too,” he said. “If I can’t wear Crocs, I ain’t going.”
There exist in the world limited edition Crocs, some designed by famous artists, themed collaborations with other brands such as Hello Kitty, Minecraft, some carrying celebrity names – such as a pair of Jimmy Kimmel pizza Crocs.
There are also endless jibbitz, or charms with which to decorate Crocs, so Sandtiger, who holds a master’s degree of fine art from Southern Connecticut State University, has many original creations, including numerous holiday pairs for Easter, Christmas, Hanukkah and Thanksgiving.
He considers each pair a “blank canvas”.
They aren’t just the classic clog like people think. They come as high heels, platforms, loafers, dress shoes, boots, sneakers, wedges, rain shoes boots and in different straps.
He’s gotten a lot of tips on enhancing the search for Crocs online from a guy he knew at Wethersfield High School and has reconnected with, Alex Marrero, now a Hartford firefighter.
Marrero, a “sneaker head” who has about 170 pairs of sneakers, said Sandtiger is, “definitely the king of Crocs”. The Croc culture is considered a subgroup of the broader sneaker culture.
“He’s an awesome dude and he’s very passionate about all and everything he does,” Marrero said. “I’ve always known he’s addicted to Crocs."
Sandtiger recently hit a note of fame when his story was told on 2 Chainz’s show.
Sandtiger’s collection and back story was told by 2 Chainz in a warm and engaging way on episode four of season four.
The rapper and his daughter, Heaven, are Croc fans and were intrigued. After being shown the KFC pair, 2 Chainz remarked, “a dog is going to eat your foot up”.
Sandtiger said, of being on the show that tapes in New York: “It was a lifetime experience that I’ll never forget.
“As the episode wrapped, 2 Chainz said, referring to the foster care/shoe tying story: “Your passion coming up from an environment you had no control over and actually changing something that was considered a weakness and making it into a super power...You were before your time when you did this.”
The rapper had one more question: "Can you tie shoes yet?”
Sandtiger replied: "I’m going to leave that as a hidden secret.” – Hartford Courant/Tribune News Service
