How long do your boots & blades last?

[aussieskater]

Obviously everyone's different (different discipline, level, power etc), but I'm curious - how long on average do/have your boots & blades lasted?  Maybe you could also post your boot & blade details, and those of your variables (discipline, level, time on ice etc etc) as you're comfortable doing?

I'll start the ball rolling.  I do dance (fighting to get European & 14step ready to test), and adult synchro.  I skate maybe 3-4 times a week, about 1-1.5 hours each time.

I'm in Jackson synchro boots with MK Pro blades.  The skates are 3 years old and going well.  I hope to get another 2 years out of them, but that might be pushing it!  My last pair (Competitors with stock blades) lasted 5 years, but I was a beginner when I got them.

[CaraSkates]

I do freestyle, moves and dance. I skate 5 days a week, usually for 1.5hrs. I am working on Silver dances, junior MIF and beginning doubles.

I skate in Riedell 2010LS boots with Gold Seal blades. Both the boot and blade are 1.5 years old. I expect to get another full year out of the boots and many more out of the blade. My last boot (same boot) lasted 2.5yrs and I still wear them for coaching LTS in. My last blade (MK Pros) lasted years...7? I had them on at least three different pairs of boots. They are also used for coaching LTS although the rocker is pretty flat by now.

[SynchKat]

I do dance and adult synchro.  I do synchro 1.5 hours a week in the winter, 2 adult group classes 1 hour each and then probably at least another hour or 2 by myself so 5 to 6 hours a week might go up a couple of hours if I can convince my husband I should compete this year.  I just passed my last Diamond Dance.

I have Wilson/Coronation Ace Dance Blades and Wifa Dance boots right now that are a year old.  I hope to get 2 more years out of them but might only get 1 more.  I had Jackson Competitors last and they broke down in 2 years.  I eeked 3 years out of them.  I transferred the blades from them to my Wifas.  I don't get my blades sharpened often so they last me a long time.  I will probably transfer them to the next pair of boots I get.

[sarahspins]

I do moves and free, and teach LTS.  I've passed silver MITF and am getting ready to test gold in a couple of months, I could test through silver free but I haven't exactly made it a priority.  During the school year I skate at least 2 hours 3 times a week, plus an hour on Saturday, so I'd say roughly 7-8 hours, plus 2.5-3 hours teaching LTS.

I got 2 1/2 years out of my old boots (Jackson Elite Plus), and about 5 years out of the blades that I 'retired' last year, about 6 months before I replaced my boots.  I did get new blades when I got my new boots (which are Jackson Elite Supreme), which means now I have an extra pair of paramounts that was only used for about 6 months.  Those will go on my next pair of boots, which I expect to need to purchase in about a year, maybe 18 months.

My old boots weren't exactly completely trashed when I replaced them, but they were going downhill fast.  It's hard to say how much longer I could have gotten out of them, because I wasn't about to push it to find out.  I could afford to replace them, so I did.  I tried wearing them to teach LTS but the lack of support was unnerving compared to my new ones, so I just wear my "normal" skates to teach and I'm more comfortable that way.

I should add that I've always been harder on boots than average - as a teenager I completely brown down a pair of SP Teri Super Deluxe's in about 7 months.

[aussieskater]

I do dance and adult synchro.

(I strongly suspect your adult synchro is somewhat more advanced than ours, since you've just completed your Diamond test!!)

[davincisop]

My first pair of brand new boots/blade lasted me 12 years. BUT I wasn't skating all those years. I probably had 5 years on the ice with them. They were Reidells and I'm still trying to sell them.

My current boots, Jackson elite supreme at lowest strength available (I think 69) has lasted 2.5 years and now they are breaking down. Too loose all over now and I have to really tie them tight for them to feel secure. At that point my feet are now going numb and cramping. I'm looking into a new pair of Jackson's by early next year.

[Query]

My current boots - nominally Klingbeil "soft" ice dance boots, are about a dozen years old, and way past when they needed to be replaced, after a few thousand hours on the ice. I keep them out of a combination of economy and stubbornness - it's a challenge to see how long can I force them to last.

But I'm only a low level ice dancer, rarely try anything beyond half rotation jumps, work very hard at making boots fit (poor fit makes boots break down fast), and do crazy things to keep them fitting.

I tried a pair of cheap Risport [sp?] single layer boots, probably around $150, that I bought used - they looked hardly used and were heat mold-able. They broke down in a few weeks. Even though I am not high level, I had a coach who insisted that I use deep enough edges that the push-under brush the side of the boot on the ice, and I guess that is too much bend for cheap boots, though I tried my best to make them work.

I tried an old already-soft-as-gloves super-thin pair of boots that I bought VERY cheap, because I'd seen some very good Russian skaters skate in boots that soft. I stretched them to fit, but they lasted less than an hour, though I repeatedly wrapped them in duct tape. I must have done something wrong.

Clearly, fit isn't the only thing that dictates lifetime. The level of the boot matters too, and what you do with them.

[icedancer]

I must be very very light on boots although I think I am a pretty strong skater.

I do dance, Moves and figures - my last pair of skates - SP Teri SuperTeri that I got in 1990 - lasted me 15 years.  In that time I had two blades - Wilson Dance (a Majestic with the backs cut off) which lasted about 8 years and then a pair of MK Dance. 

I have passed one Pre-Gold Dance and Bronze Moves - always working on Gold dances.

8 years ago I bought a new pair of Teri - Dance boot and they are nowhere near broken down.  I got them with a new pair of Super Dance 99 and have replaced those not because they were worn out but because I wanted to go back to the MK Dance - then I found another pair of MK dance on ebay that I wanted to try so I switched them out.

Those MK Dance blades are now pretty flat and I think I will put on the Super Dance 99 again.

I would love to try a different boot but can't justify it as these boots are nowhere near broken down.

Oh - I skate about 8 hours/week.  5'8" 155 pounds.

[TreSk8sAZ]

I have semi-custom Harlicks, equivalent to High Tester. I am on Intermediate Moves, Pre-Silver dances, and compete Adult Silver FS. Generally, my boots last between 3 and 4 years. I skate in them until they are completely trashed, though (as in, I'm duct taping the insides to keep them together). I think I'm relatively hard on boots as I'm tall and a bit heavy, but I can usually eke out what I need from them.

[taka]

I do dance and field moves. I've passed the UK NISA level 2 pattern dance (Dutch waltz and Canasta tango) to give you an idea of my level. I've just got my 3rd pair of skates in the 3 years I've been back on the ice. I'm very overweight which doesn't help boot lifespan though. Skate approx 4-5 hrs a week.

Pair 1 (Riedell 910LS + Coronation aces) wore for 14 months (though off ice for 2 months of that with a broken wrist) - I was doing free then too. They were trashed by a couple of months before I replaced them though.
Pair 2 (Riedell 2010LS + the same pair of cor aces). I had them for 18 months half of which I still was trying to do free too. A little over a year in, and it became very obvious there were problems with them. They were too big and breaking down in odd places (with vertical creases!) I also majorly struggled to get onto a RO edge at all. Sadly it took 4 months to get hold of new boots after a localish shop completely mucked me about. Ended up flying to the other end of the UK to order them from elsewhere.
Pair 3 (Riedell 2010LS 1.5 US sizes smaller and special ordered in an E width + new Cor dance blades as I needed a shorter blade length) Only got these in July so it is early days. What a difference!

No idea how long pair 3 will last! I'm slowly saving towards pair 4 already with the hope I don't actually need a new pair until at least early 2015!

[SynchKat]

Just wanted to comment, people have been mentioning weight being a factors in breaking down skates.  I can attest to that.  I had a beautiful pair of grey suede top grade Wifa skates which took me years skating as an adult to break in.  I skated up until I was 5or 6 months pregnant and tried to used them after pregnancy and they were way too soon soft.  The pair of Jackson come to think of it probably would have lasted longer had I lost the baby weight.  Although I was underbooted.

My point, if there is one, boots react differently to everyone. So I guess there is no right or wrong amount of time skates last. 

[Query]

One factor to be considered is that some of us had the boots rebuilt by the factory at one time or another, which greatly extends the lifetime. Also that some of us had to do aggressive things to compensate for misfit, or to force a break-in of overly stiff boots, which reduces the lifetime.

My 12 year old Klingbeil boots (I was massively over-booted) would probably never have broken down had I not done very aggressive things (chemically, thermally, mechanically) to break them in after 6 years or so, and had they been fit right, by a good fitter, in the first place.

I think that over-booting to get extreme lifetime is a bad idea for most of us. Better that the boots be able to bend and conform to the foot to the extant that they should.

A very expert fitter tells me that many of his highest level customers (triple jumps and above, including Olympians) frequently break down their boots in a couple years or so, despite the best fit he (and a podiatrist that he frequently collaborates with) can give them. Stiffer boots would delay that, but that would detract from their performance, which is what matters most to the very competitive skaters. A few of his very competitive customers only get 6 months, perhaps because they choose the lightest weight boots they can get away with.

Each skater needs to figure out what trade-off in boot lifetime / support / shape conformance pleases them best. One thing you can do is find the best fitter you can afford to travel to - the factory if you can afford that - and get boots that fit you perfectly. Then do what you can to make your own adjustments on top of what the fitter does. In the ideal, boots should be snugly comfortable, not too heavy for you, create no pain (though some very competitive athletes are willing to sacrifice that), yet provide all the support that you need.

3-5 years seems to be pretty typical for well-fit boots if you aren't under- or over booted, depending a little on whether you have them rebuilt mid-lifetime. (Less of course, for kids who outgrow their boots before they break down. And many ladies find that pregnancy, during and sometimes after, requires different boots.) But it really is partly a matter of choice.

Those of us who over-booted and have been unwilling to spend money to replace boots before we have to can make them lasted almost forever, but in principle that isn't always the best choice.