RollerBlade Tips for Beginners

[Query]

As you all know, inline skating is a great alternative exercise that somewhat resembles ice skating, and may get you around faster than walking and jogging. It may be particularly attractive in places where car parking is limited.

It might be a good idea to carry a pack to carry the change between skates and shoes, and if you go into a store, you may have to carry proof of purchase of the pack and skates, so they don't think you stole them from the store.

(I think of inlines as a compact alternative to manual or electric scooters. The problem with scooters, is that they are harder to bring into a store or other building, are often hard to lock to a bike rack, and may be stolen if you don't lock them.)

RollerBlade, a maker of inline skates, has a bunch of videos on Youtube that teach beginning (off-ice) skating technique. E.g.,

  Tips For Beginners 1 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uir3ZAxlUnw
  Tips For Beginners 2 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=veha896BkDk
  Urban Skating: Tips For Beginners https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8YvgBMW40qM

E.g., while they teach how to use brakes on the back of some inline skates (one foot forward, one foot back, toe up on back foot to bring brake pad in contact with the surface), they also teach T-stops. These look easier than what a skate shop owner taught me - jumping into a hockey stop. They also teach a set of beginner turns, dealing with bumps, curbs, and debris, etc.

That said, please play it safe. Watch out for traffic, wear protective gear (unlike the people in the video!), and so on. While unprotected falls are possible on concrete and asphalt, they are a harder to master than on the ice. And, unless you skate with the Zamboni, most ice rinks don't force you to skate with heavy motor vehicles, which are common on city streets.

Some people skate in "heel skates" that strap into the back of normal shoes. Does anyone know if they are as difficult to balance and stop as they look?

[dlbritton]

As you all know, inline skating is a great alternative exercise that somewhat resembles ice skating, and may get you around faster than walking and jogging. It may be particularly attractive in places where car parking is limited.

It might be a good idea to carry a pack to carry the change between skates and shoes, and if you go into a store, you may have to carry proof of purchase of the pack and skates, so they don't think you stole them from the store.

(I think of inlines as a compact alternative to manual or electric scooters. The problem with scooters, is that they are harder to bring into a store or other building, are often hard to lock to a bike rack, and may be stolen if you don't lock them.)

RollerBlade, a maker of inline skates, has a bunch of videos on Youtube that teach beginning (off-ice) skating technique. E.g.,

  Tips For Beginners 1 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uir3ZAxlUnw
  Tips For Beginners 2 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=veha896BkDk
  Urban Skating: Tips For Beginners https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8YvgBMW40qM

That said, please play it safe. Watch out for traffic, wear protective gear (unlike the people in the video!), and so on. While unprotected falls are possible on concrete and asphalt, they are a harder to master than on the ice. And, unless you skate with the Zamboni, most ice rinks don't force you to skate with heavy motor vehicles, which are common on city streets.

There is a set of videos by Rollerblade geared to cross training for skiing but it does break down Rollerblade skills into 23 lessons with another 15 videos discussing various aspects of inline skating and skiing.
This is the program I took at a Professional Ski Instructors Association sanctioned event at Round Top resort near Harrisburg PA last fall.

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLG0epWKWDn1Yz6S39KjI1-xbtO8yIKnhO

[Bill_S]

It's too bad that our city prohibits them on sidewalks. Also many of our downtown streets are brick, and you just don't want to skate on that surface.

And the HILLS.

Aside from the bike path down by the river, it's just not a practical means of transportation in my city.

[Query]

DL, that looks like a great set of videos. I partly kept skating as a comparatively inexpensive way to condition myself for XC skiing. Alas, I stopped skiing, because I didn't have to drive as far to skate as to ski.

Bill, you don't know how lucky you are to have real hills! Where I live is mostly reclaimed swamp. I do a lot of walking, but when I tried to to hike with a group up a gorge in upstate New York, that I used hike as a kid, I discovered just how out of shape I'd become. Hills are completely different than flat walking. So I've only tried skates on mild hills, though I know some people take the somewhat more serious stuff.

And Bill, there are all terrain skates with big wheels, that I bet would handle brick - except I think you would still feel every bump. They also sell "suspension" systems for skates - maybe that would help?

Look at this all terrain skating video: https://www.powerslide.com/inline/off-road/
But it doesn't qualify as a "tips for beginners" video.

Rollerblade's tip videos mention brick skating: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hu_JfbMulEg
But they imply it requires more care than a nice smooth surface, so maybe you are right to avoid it.

But the truth is, I just had in mind an alternative to walking, giving more exercise, and getting places more quickly. I live and shop in an area where parking is sometimes difficult, which sometimes has traffic jams and other times has crazy drivers. Inlines should be fine for that.

[Bill_S]

Hills...the hill from my home to the flat part of campus is steep enough that I put my car into neutral after I pull onto it, and I reach 60 mph before I reach the bottom. I sometimes see bicycles speeding down the hill, but not often. I wouldn't risk it on skates.

I think that a bicycle sounds like something you should consider for alternative transportation. It would exercise the leg muscles nicely. Inlines certainly mimic the exercise of ice skating more fully, but there are a lot of compromises when used as transportation.

[Leif]

Now that lockdown has started all UK rinks are closed.  So ... out come the inlines ...

This short video shows how quickly a good (brilliant) skater can learn to use inlines:

https://youtu.be/elWXvKBlkVs

I echo views above, I wouldn't skate on roads, too dangerous. And local pavements (boardwalks) are narrow. I skate on quiet country lanes. If anyone else is rinkless, give it a go. It's beautiful on a sunny day. A decent ice skater will learn quickly. You can even do 3 turns and jumps on them. I was doing forward crossovers at the first try. I haven't had the courage to try 3 turns, though I've done ~10 hours. Inlines lack precision, and the ground is not smooth and level, plus you can't stop on a dime. That said, it is fun, and I was enjoying seeing how smoothly and fast I could do forwards crossovers today, then doing less well backwards. I managed lots of drills: two foot slalom, inside edges, crossrolls and power stops. Incidentally I wear knee, elbow and backside pads as well as gloves, you'd be mad not to wear protection.

[Leif]

Query: Nordic skates! Ideal for forest trails, but no good for figure skating ...

[lapoubelle]

Some people skate in "heel skates" that strap into the back of normal shoes. Does anyone know if they are as difficult to balance and stop as they look?

I haven't tried these out personally, but I do know people who have used these, so I'm going to try.

With these double heel skates, flat-sole shoes like vans are recommended, which means you're already going to be balancing differently as ice skates typically have a heel which put your weight more forward. You also don't have any front wheels to balance on like with quads or inlines, which makes them less similar to ice skates. Stopping isn't difficult, but that's because you aren't really doing anything beyond gliding on these. Think of it like a skateboard. You'll often see people push off the balls of their feet, ride on their wheels like with heelys, and then push with one foot occasionally once they start to lose steam - just like dropping on a skateboard, riding, and pushing when you need more speed. When they want to stop, they just move their toes down. I've also noticed, because of how they have to constantly flex their toes upwards, it's harder for them to bend their knees and get low. You don't fall as much because you can just put your toe down and walk, but then, you're not really rolling.

Does this mean you can't practice figure skating skills on these strap-on wheels? I can't say, because I haven't tried it and I haven't seen anybody else try. But I'm pretty sure that's because these would most likely feel almost nothing like ice skating.

The most popular strap-on wheels I've found also produce sparks when you roll, which... obviously, if you're trying to find something to do at home to make up for lost time on ice, this is a great way to burn your house down.