Advice on first skates

[lulucy]

Hello, I'm looking for advice on buying my first skates!

I'm not really sure of what kind of information you need to help me, but some general info about me: I have no previous experience with ice skating (well as a child I went skating with my school a few times, but I mostly face planted on the ice haha), I'm 18, around 170cm, 55kg give or take. I have no idea what kind of boot I should be looking for. A friend recommended me the Jackson competitor with an Aspire XP blade. She doesn't have much experience though, so I'd like others opinions as well. I can't go over $300 since I don't really know whether or not I'll actually enjoy it.

I also have an off-topic question; how long does it 'normally' take for people to become decent at figure skating? Obviously everyone progresses at different paces, but I mean generally. The class I'm planning on taking is only once a week, but I'm not in school anymore nor do i have a job, so I have a lot of free time on my hand.

Thanks in advance, (and sorry for my English)!

[Ethereal Ice]

Hi there and welcome!  I am sure other more experienced people have great advice they are ready to give, I can give you some perspective as a fellow beginner.

First,  the type of skate.  For brand new adults wanting Jacksons, if the person is average size, I like the Jackson Elle or the Freestyle. They are more middle of the road as far as boot stiffness goes. Generally,  the higher the level boot the more stiff and supportive it is. The bigger the jumps, the more support you need.  The competitor is a pretty high level boot and may be difficult to break in. The exception to this can be if you are a heavier skater,  you may need a stiffer boot to help support you weight.

Most people like to  try on a couple of different boot brands to see if they prefer one over another.  If you feel good in Jackson's,  go for it, but try to get your foot measured by a professional so you end up with not only the right length but the right width. Regarding price,  the Elle comes with a blade and will keep you in budget,  if you go with higher level boot and put blades on them you will well exceed  $300.

So, everyone wants to know how fast they will progress,  how fast they "should " progress.  The answer is,  it depends.  On many things,  ice time being a major thing.  I have been skating a year,  but I could have skated an hour a month or ten hours a week in that year. You can see what a difference those two scenarios would be. The other factors are, your age and any health concerns,  natural ability, previous experience,  kind of lessons you take and how often you take them.

The good news is that there is no "should " as far as progress goes. It is good to set goals, but make them realistic and enjoy the process, enjoy your accomplishments.  To give you an example of my own progress, I am 42, I skated at age 5 and 6 and not much after that until January of this year. I have issues with my back that limit my ice time. I slowly worked up to about two hours at a time and that is as much as I can do in a day. I currently skate 6 hours a week. I have a very supportive husband who skates with me, and have made many skate friends who are also helpful. My husband and I would like to do ice dancing eventually and we have done some of the basics already.

I have a private coach but have only had two lessons, and they were working on my basic elements, my rink uses the ISI system for most beginners who want to test levels. I have done several group lessons with other adults, they have focused on power, edgework, position, strength rather than certain levels of skating because there are all kinds of skaters in the group. I don't want to say I am self taught, but I am very motivated to practice by myself or with friends and let my coach make sure I stay on track. I am nearly ready to test for my Beta ISI, I am perfecting my back crossovers before I do that. ..I am hoping to test in January.

So, that is me. If I were younger with less physical problems I might have made more progress, or maybe not, I have not been very competitive historically.  Good luck in your quest,  doing searches of this forum on topics you have questions about can be really helpful too.

[tstop4me]

To: lulucy

Are you in the US?  If not, where?  That affects the relative price of boots and blades from different manufacturers.

[ChristyRN]

First,  the type of skate.  For brand new adults wanting Jacksons, if the person is average size, I like the Jackson Elle or the Freestyle. They are more middle of the road as far as boot stiffness goes. Generally,  the higher the level boot the more stiff and supportive it is. The bigger the jumps, the more support you need.  The competitor is a pretty high level boot and may be difficult to break in. The exception to this can be if you are a heavier skater,  you may need a stiffer boot to help support you weight.

As a long time user, the Competitor is one step above the Freestyle. I'd only been skating a year when I moved up to it. Then again, I was well over 200 pounds when I started. 

[Ethereal Ice]

As a long time user, the Competitor is one step above the Freestyle. I'd only been skating a year when I moved up to it. Then again, I was well over 200 pounds when I started. 

Yeah Christy, I have started off in Riedell Silver Stars which are also a higher level boot but I am plus sized and felt I needed the support. I think I threw the Freestyle into my post as an example of an upper/mid level boot that would probably be OK for an adult to start in, I know it is only one level below the Competitor but I have heard people saying the Competitor is more difficult to break in...? I personally think the Elle is a nice starter boot for smaller or average size adult skaters, especially for the price.  Both the Freestyle and Competitor need to have blades added and that would go over a $300 US dollar limit while the Elle at our pro shop sells for less than $250 with blade.

On the other end of the spectrum, I have a friend that has been skating a little over two years and our Coach has warned her that her boots are not safe for what she is starting to practice like beginning jumps.  She is in one of the lower end Jackson boots and they are shot...  she is a very aggressive skater though, not even close to overweight.  I think even if she had started with the Elle she would still need new boots now. She is frustrated about having to get new boots, but to hear her tell how she selected the boots she has, there is no way she would have shelled out the money for an upper level boot at that point in time. I was very lucky to find my boots on Ebay, never worn,  for very cheap, they are an older model but have been wonderful. 

Like my friend, it sounds like the OP would be looking at upgrading her boots in 2-4 years due to her budget right now. That is, unless she gets lucky and finds  "used" boots like I did,  and that can be really tricky.

[Query]

If you are a complete beginner, you may want to stay with rentals for maybe 10 - 30 skating hours, to learn if you want to stay with this sport, and because those flat centers and hard-to-reach blades are initially easier to learn on. Easier to balance, and harder to trip over your toe picks.

After that, I would say, find a pair that are snugly comfortable to you. Fit matters more than almost anything else. And everyone's foot shapes are different, so what you will like depends on you. (Snug means that there is NO motion inside the boot, except the portion of the foot above the ankle needs to rock forwards and back as you point and flex your ankle. You will also need to learn to tie your laces so tight that you can't jam a finger underneath any part of them, maybe tighter - which somewhat affects that snugness. But snug does not mean it should hurt, or that your toes should be squeezed together, or touch the front of the boot. Nor should your feet go numb.)

And for most new people, you want something between $125 and $200, MAYBE $300 tops, including blades. The really cheap boots and blades mostly aren't stiff enough to last you long, or provide you enough support. And the really cheap blades have the wrong shape - the centers of the blades are too flat, and the toe picks are too hard to reach. Eventually, you will probably want $700 - $1400 skate boot pairs, and $300 - $600 blade pairs, but those boots will be too stiff and uncomfortable at first, and those blades too hard to use at first. If that sounds expensive, wait til you see what ice time and coaches and driving costs add.

You are better off choosing blades that are mounted with screws than rivets, because the mounting position is easier to adjust. I love plush squishy liners, but that is hard to find in reasonably cheap boots.

BTW, you can adjust boots and blades a lot, but you shouldn't have to at first if you can avoid it - at first.

Used boots are fine, if they fit, meet these criteria, and aren't broken down.

How long it takes to learn depends on many things, and is inconstant. It also depends on what you want to do. As an adult learner, you need to be realistic. Ideally, it should be a sport that lasts most of the rest of your life, and you should keep learning things through-out.

[beginner skater]

Jacksons are suited to normal/ slightly on the wider side feet. If you have narrow feet, you will probably need a different brand.

When I started skating as an adult beginner, I asked my coach, and one of his suggestions was Jackson Mystique. After discussion with him, I went one level up, to the Jackson Artistes. Both these skates are less stiff than the Elles, freestyles and competitors. I found I needed to break them in by wearing them for several hours at home, just to get them comfortable. I am about your height, and a bit heavier. I dont think I would have wanted stiffer skates. They are designed for more advanced skaters, and heavier people often use them. But you're neither of those

Also bear in mind that if the boots come packaged with blades, the stiffer boots will have advanced blades and usually bigger toe picks. I had several falls getting used to the toe pick compared to the rental skates, some of which were quite painful. I have the Mark IV blades which are not as advanced as the Aspires, but they are a good quality beginner blade.

I chose the Artistes over the Mystiques because I thought they would last longer than the Mystiques, without being too advanced. I am expecting to be able to use them up to single jumps. I bought them expecting to upgrade them in 2-4 years, which is quite usual for people learning to skate. Theyre still going strong after 2 1/2 years. I am in the UK so our skating levels are different, but I am around ISI gamma and delta.

A friend of mine had a free upgrade to freestyles, and altho she had been skating for several months, couldnt get on with them and sold them on ebay. Too stiff boots can hold your skating back