What skate do you recommend for new adult skaters?

[Kaylyn519]

I am new to figure skating, having only ever skated recreationally. I am 120lbs, 5'3 and 20 years old and I'm a bit stuck on which skate is the best to buy for beginners. I'd like a boot that could last for a bit before needing to upgrade them. I can do all of the basics but no jumps yet. I've been looking into Jacksons.

[Loops]

Welcome to the sport!  If you search these forums, you'll find a lot of threads containing answers to this question.  Skate buying is an adventure, and sadly it's not simple.  Everyone is different, so theres no one-size-fits-all answer.

What's most important is fit.  All the brands are great, and use different lasts, so they'll fit different shaped feet.  So the most important thing is to try them on.  Sizing is also different- you want these to be like a hug on your feet- secure, but not too tight.  Too much room and you won't be able to control your skates, elongating your learning curve. There is a temptation to purchase skates that are too long, to get the right width.  You really do need to work with a fitter.

Ask around at your rink and your coach- where do they get their skates.  Who is the best fitter in the area? You may need to visit several if no one carries a wide selection of brands.  If you're outside a major metropolitan area, be prepared to drive.  I live in France, and time skate purchases for trips to the US, because I haven't found a good fitter over here, so use the same person who did my fitting (and sharpening) when I was a kid.  It's THAT worth it.

Jacksons are great if you have heels that are narrow relative to the balls of your feet.  Riedells (and Risports) are great if you have feet that are more linear.  Edeas claim they fit everyone, but only (maybe) if your fitter knows how to mold them to your feet.

Your fitter will also help you figure out which model/stiffness is right for you.  It's based on your technique, weight, and level.


I wish there was a simple answer for you!  Good luck on your journey.

[nicklaszlo]

The advice to use a reputable fitter is correct.

I think Loops has confused Jackson and Risport.  Risport is the one with narrow heels (which is why I use them).

The US distributor for Edea's expert said I would need custom boots if I bought from them.  So no they don't fit everyone.

If you want a boot that lasts, expect to pay quite a bit.

[Loops]

Nah Nicklaszlo- I've worn Riedell, Jackson and Risports.  Jacksons have a narrower heel relative to the ball of the foot, and advertise heavily on it.  According to my feet, Risports aren't as slimline as Riedells, but they're still more straight than Jacksons. I can't wear off the shelf Riedells, I can very uncomfortably wear Risports (I can make them work by getting the front stretched and using creative lacing), and Jacksons are the best off the shelf fit for me (I still need split widths though).

At the end of the day though, this goes to my point about each brand really being a different fit, and the only way to know which brand is going to work best is to get your feet inside them.

[nicklaszlo]

I have had two pairs of Jacksons and three pairs of Risports.  The Risports have quite dramatically narrower heels with about the same forefoot.  I purchased the Risports after multiple sources told me they have narrower heels. 

The Risport models I have are high end boots which have bulges on them that grip the heel from the sides.

[Query]

It might be worth telling us approximately what city you live in, and people here might be able to recommend a good fitter.

Many skating rinks and many (most) of the best fitters are closed now due to the pandemic. If you can't find a really good fitter now, perhaps it is worth waiting until you can find someone good. Like Loops said, fit is paramount.

It sounds like you are looking for an intermediate level boot, and intermediate level blades. Once you have selected the brand, you can go to the maker's website and look for boots or blades they consider to be in that category. High end boots can be relatively heavy, and  may also be uncomfortable for you - they may literally never break in. Lower end boots - especially once made out of nothing but a single layer of leather - sometimes wear out in a month or two, even if they fit well. I've had both experiences. "Beginner blades" and high end freestyle blades also sometimes cause problems for intermediate level skaters.

Some low-intermediate level boots come with pre-mounted blades. But if they don't happen to be mounted so as to balance your particular feet, they are often hard to move. Your good fitter should also help you pick the blade type and size, and mount them for you.

It might be worthwhile to pick a "heat-moldable" type of boot - may be more expensive, but a lot of people say they get better results by heat molding. If your fitter doesn't have the oven to do heat molding, it is unlikely they are any good. But Edea is a special case. They can be heat molded, but not in ovens. Only an expert who has been specially trained to heat mold Edea boots is likely to do a good job, and their rep once told me that they cannot be molded to fit people like me with toes that are substantially wider than their heels.

If you cannot find a good fitter in a store that you are willing to drive to, there are some other options. (Like Loops, people often drive or fly for many hours or more - I wish I had.) E.g., you can contact the boot maker and ask if they have any traveling fitters coming to your approximate area, in the near future. That is, if they are doing that during the pandemic.

A small number of coaches are good at helping people pick and modify boots to fit you well - but for some reason, most aren't. Aside from asking multiple other customers, it is hard to know which applies.

Despite Loops advice that you should try the boot on before buying, it is not at all unusual for people with unusual foot sizes to find there is nothing in their size, even in the best stores. Ladies are more likely to find fitting boots than guys, but even some ladies can't find anything.

Also, you could try bringing some cheap ($1 - $2) insoles to your fitting, along with some cloth athletic tape (also called coach tape). If a given boot is just a little too large, you may be able to add the insole (which you could cut to the width of your feet) to make it snug, and use the tape to make minor shape adjustments to that insole. If it is a little bit loose on any part of the sides, you can cut the insole extra wide, and wrap it around the sides of your feet.

But if you need to make a big adjustment, you don't want to go too far with such modifications, unless you are willing to work a lot harder at boot modification that most people are willing, because there are a lot of other factors to consider. For example, if the place along the length where the bottom of the boot bends upwards doesn't match the place in the ball of your foot where it bends upwards easily, that could be very painful, and over time you can injure your foot.

Also, it is possible your fitter will be offended by the idea you would make your own modifications. If he or she is really good, they can make professional quality modifications, and that is likely to be worth it.

I personally don't think it is a great idea for non-experts to try to order mail order boots and blades without the help of a professional fitter, if there is any choice at all. Even if you somehow manage to get a good fit, it helps a lot to get a good fitter to make final adjustments. Some people here have mail ordered, and lucked out, but a lot of discussion threads in this forum are by people who tried that, worked really hard to modify the boots to work, and eventually gave up and ended up going to a good fitter to get another pair.

Good luck!

P.S. I have a web site on modifying boots yourself - but it is much better to get something that fits in the first place.

P.P.S. Given that trying on boots is a very, very good idea - do you really want to try on boots other people have touched during a pandemic?

[tstop4me]

I have had two pairs of Jacksons and three pairs of Risports.  The Risports have quite dramatically narrower heels with about the same forefoot.  I purchased the Risports after multiple sources told me they have narrower heels. 

The Risport models I have are high end boots which have bulges on them that grip the heel from the sides.

With respect to Jacksons (I have Elite from late 2014), the last (foot mold) depends on the model and the vintage.  I have narrow heels; used to wear Riedells; have a much better fit with Jacksons.  Those formed on the "Elite last" are stock split width, with the heel width one size less than the ball width (e.g., C ball/B heel).  Previously only their high-end models used this last, but Jackson has been reformulating their boots in a somewhat chaotic fashion over the last several years, and has been converting more models to this last.  I believe that the latest boots sold separately are now all formed on the Elite last, as well as the Freestyle and Elle kits.  I say "believe" because Jackson used to explicitly state which model was formed on the Elite last; but they keep screwing around with their website, and such information is now hard to ferret out on their latest website (sometimes on a webpage, sometimes in a video, sometimes in a tech brochure, sometimes you need to contact them).