Rollerblades

[Winsor_Pilates]

I recommend you don't spend $400 dollars for your first pair that are just for skating. That's really expensive.

You can get tons of really good rollarblades for between $100 and $200. Check out Sportchek.

Or if you really wanna be a smart shopper; I just bought new rollerblades from Canadian tire for $60 and I love them. There's no need to break the bank.

My advice is to make sure you don't get hockey rollerblades because they're not good for roads and don't have a break, which you'll need for outdoor blading.

-Make sure they have abec-5 or 7 bearings
-Make sure they have polyeuruthayne (sp?) wheels, not the plastic like ones. (usually the good ones are clear, or clear with paint on them, not solid coloured)
-Make sure the boot is breathable with some sort of venting

hope that helps. I am by no meens an expert, but I was looking for some new blades recently and this criteria helped me.

[hockeygrl44]

The blades I have are Ultra Wheels Hybrid. I love them. They are fairly light, but so comfortable, even for long skates. I believe they were in the early $200 range, but they were frequently on sale. I also have an older pair of the hockey blades and I agree with Winsor on his points. They are horrible for the roads. His advice on the wheels is dead on. I have some of the clear wheels and they are great. You don't find yourself being "stuck" on the pavement. I haven't had any problems getting rocks stuck in between the wheels on this pair either, so I haven't had any of those embarrassing flying through the air and winding up with road rash moments. Check out Sport Mart or Sport Chek. I went to Sport Mart a few times and tried on and rode around on a bunch of them before I chose my ones.

[Buff]

Comfort is a big issue. I love skating but I wouldn't do it b/c I hated my old skates. They weren't comfortable and it took forever to get them buckled up properly. I just bought a pair of hockey blades. They were so much more comfortable and lightweight than my old ski-boot style blades.

They don't have the break and I am a bit worried about that though. I have 2 weeks left to return them if I am not happy.

Aside from the lack of break, what else makes the hockey blades poor for skating on the paths and roads?

[hockeygrl44]

I don't have much of a basis with the newer Hockey Blades, mine were from awhile back. I'm sure they have a changed a lot since then. But based on my ones, they never really "molded" so they were never comfortable. No padding or anything really in them, so you're feet would be so sore after being in them for awhile. But like I said I'm sure the newer ones have changed. I prefer my regular ones over the hockey ones any day.

[FireFly]

I hate the hard ski-boot style, I find it makes them uncomfortable. I'm thinking of going to SportSwap to get some, and just replace the inner soles. This is a helpful thread as it's been years since I had a pair.

[Azure]

Get the lace up style too. They last much longer, and are way more comfortable. I paid around 130 for mine, a pair of Nikes that have been good to me.

[Tower]

Originally Posted by fotze

Thanks for the advice. I just want some decent ones or I know I will not use them. I want lighweight and if possible, relatively easy to get on and off, plus smooth skatin' of course.

Go to deerfoot outlet!

Sportscheck sale - got my rollarblades on a sweet deal - $120.00 pair for $39.00. I'm looking forward to rollerblade again. It's been 7ish years.

[Winsor_Pilates]

Originally Posted by Buff

Aside from the lack of break, what else makes the hockey blades poor for skating on the paths and roads?

I'm pretty sure the wheels on them are designed for a very smooth surface, like you get on indoor rinks. So they don't last as long or roll as smooth on a rougher surface like city streets, sidewalks or paths.

They also have a looser design that makes them more agile/easier to turn etc.., but not as comfortable or stable for a long straight blade such as down memorial drive.

[Buff]

I'm gonna give them a good try, if I can live w/o the break, then I'll keep them. It isn't like I can't get proper wheels if these ones wear out too quickly.

[V]

I've never rollerbladed, but I've considered buying a pair this summer, mainly because I want to work on my endurance and skating at the same time. Is the technique between ice skating and rollerblading similar, in the sense of moving in a straight line?

[Tower]

Originally Posted by Dominicwasalreadytaken

I've never rollerbladed, but I've considered buying a pair this summer, mainly because I want to work on my endurance and skating at the same time. Is the technique between ice skating and rollerblading similar, in the sense of moving in a straight line?

Depends how good you are lol

[soulchoice]

Originally Posted by Dominicwasalreadytaken

I've never rollerbladed, but I've considered buying a pair this summer, mainly because I want to work on my endurance and skating at the same time. Is the technique between ice skating and rollerblading similar, in the sense of moving in a straight line?

Rollerblading is definitely a different skating style than ice skating. You will find that in order to get a great powerful stride while rollerblading, it will be more of a side to side push off. A wider style of skating when trying to gain momentum.

Whereas with ice skating, you have the ability to dig into the ice and puss, thus a straight line stride is used.

[HelloHockeyFans]

I have a pair of Missions... and I'm very happy with them.

[Nufy]

What size are you looking for ??

My size 9's are still for sale.

I Literally only used them about three times and decided that it wasn't for me.

If you live in the SE you could come try em and have a spin down my back alley. I think I am only asking $50 for em as well and I know they are in great shape.

Just an option if your interested.

[StoneCole]

take the brake off.

Then take the inlines back to the store, and trade them in for some ice hockey equipment. You're a *****.

[Calgary Flames]

You need strength in your groinal area, But I stop by dragging the front wheel on my left blade behind me. Or I just do a hard turn to slow me down. I don't recommend Pathways to rollerblade though. I stick to streets. I'm lucky enough to have a mile of nicely paved road that get pretty much no traffic to blade on. I go up and down it twice a day full speed. It's great excercise.

Also, watch out for gravel if you're going slow it just snags your foot from under you if you don't have the momentum. I wasn't paying attention to the ground and hit a patch when I was gliding slow and ended up with a nice scrape on my left knee. Thankfully I blade with a hockey stick so it held me up enough to prevent more damage..

Also, keep the dog at home... I always laugh when I see people blading with their dogs. Because I can totally see myself running it over or tripping over the leash and ragdolling. haha

[Calgary Flames]

Originally Posted by StoneCole

take the brake off.

Then take the inlines back to the store, and trade them in for some ice hockey equipment. You're a *****.

Yeah, that's nice.

[Hakan]

Ditch the fruit boots and just get a bike.

[Buff]

Originally Posted by fotze

Now HOW THE HELL DO YOU STOP? That brake thing just seems so uncomfortable and if you are going down any incline takes about 200 feet to stop. Not particularily useful. Wouldn't it be better to have some sort of rubber thing on the inside of your foot you could drag? Also going down an incline while trying to walk the dog on a leash is not a good idea.

The "rubber" thing on the inside of your foot that you can drag is called your wheels. Yes, it wears the wheels down, and yes, it doesn't have the greatest stopping power, but it works.

Walking the dog while rollerblading was never a good idea to begin with.

Captain obvious statement: The more you skate, the better you'll get.

[Calgary Flames]

Originally Posted by fotze

I think he's talking about the ice time a mutual acquaintance has at the worst time ever. Friday at 11:00 pm or something. That's my bed time.

11pm on a Friday? C'mon fotze. You *****