Roller skates vs. roller blades

[Bruce]

Anyone used both quite a bit? Are roller blades any easier than skates? My whole family roller blades, which I didn\'t have much interest in doing, but I saw some old fashioned skates on sale cheap so I got them. I am crashing a *lot* more than my wife on her roller blades. Is it worth the expense of getting the blade version or is it going to be worse?

Bruce

[Cloud9]

TEST

[Enticing]

I gotta have 8 wheels. Blades just make my ankles wobble something fierce. Although the last time I tried even skates, I took a big impact on my left knee, and ever since then, there\'s this neat little floaty thing I can push around in my kneecap. Stupid Human Tricks. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smirk.gif

[Andy]

It\'s easier to stand and br(e)ak(e) /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif on skates in the beginning, moving around is easier on blades. They have both advantages and disadvantages. It might be easier to start with blades in case you\'ve been skiing or ice skating before. They need a lot more practice to brake without using your butt on the ground or nose on a wall. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smirk.gif
I\'d go for blades, because the flow is much more natural and they are a lot faster.

@Enticing

Sounds like the blades didn\'t fit well, it\'s important to test some of them to find one pair that really fits your foot.

[Bruce]

My kid does a kind of \"snow plow\" thing with his blades to slow down, which didn\'t work for me at all with the skates. There is a rubber bumper thing on my skates which I tried to use going down hills, but I kept building speed anyway and finally sat down to keep from crashing into a bicylce. So, what to do when you hit a down hill is my major problem.

Bruce

[Bruce]

I used to ice skate a lot when I was a kid and even played hocky for a while. It was a piece of cake stopping as I remember. You just make a very sharp turning move and you scrape to a halt. I have a strong feeling that is not going to work with roller blades. How the heck to you stop suddenly or even just keep from gaining too much speed going down hill?

bruce

[Andy]

In case you are on skates the best thing to do is turn around and use the stopper. Just place one foot before the other and raise your foot with your toes (front wheels) down. Don\'t forget to bow your knees, you might fall over otherwise. That\'s a major problem on blades, the best way to break is to do the \"snow plow\" kinda thing or turn a complete circle with your body bent over. You\'d use gravity to your benefit, well, the effect of gravity might show it\'s not so benefical side fast too /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif. This won\'t work that easily while racing downhill, make sure you\'ve enough space to one side (this is crucial in the beginning). Then turn the leg on the side with the most space outward in a cyclic motion, this foot should be in a 45° angle pointing to the side you\'d wish to go (where most space is). Bend the knee on this leg and drag the other leg in the same direction forming a circle and move the other foot further till both are at the full 90° together in the end. The leg you\'ve moved first should be infront and the other should be located behind the body. This has to be one smooth move, breaking an ankle is really easy this way.
This might be not enough in case you had a nice speed, in case you still have too much speed there are two choices .. do the circle break I mentioned above (practice this one on a flat surface till you do it naturally). The second is easier, but I think it might be a little dangerous for an inexperienced blader. Turn the foot that\'s behind your body to the outside and reposition your body facing downhill again, repeat the steps you did to one side immediately to the other side and push both legs a little outward in the end. Hope that wasn\'t too confusing ....

[Briela]

Bruce,

Does your family\'s inline skates have ABT brakes? It doesn\'t sound like it from your brief description. ABT (active brake technology) is what I\'d describe as \"training brakes\" for blades...it\'s a cuff activiated system where slight pressure on the boot cuff activates the braking system. Just by sliding your breaking foot slightly ahead of the other, you can activate the brake (no plowing necessary) and it gives you considerable control over the amount of breaking you apply. Rollerblade (the company) patented the technology, so I\'m not sure if it\'s available through other manufacturers. You might want to check it out if you haven\'t already.

[Bruce]

We got the cheapest skates we could get, because we\'re just starting out, so I don\'t think we have the ABT. I will look into it though. I am yet to buy blades. It might be worth the extra cost. I used to be a good skier. Maybe I can master the snow plow thing. My 7 year old kid seems to have it down. He is light as a twig though and that might be an issue. I\'m like a runaway 18 wheeler when I come to a hill.

Bruce

[Andy]

Why don\'t you move to a flat area without hills ? That\'s a nice workaround, isn\'t it ? /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif

Don\'t buy cheap blades for yourself, you might spare a dime on the blades for your kids, because they aren\'t as heavy as an adult, but don\'t risk ruining your ankles. You need boots that fit well to stabilize them and it\'s easier to control your feet with those. Adults that never went blading before tend to have problems to control their bodies and move smoothly but your blades should do what your body does at least ;P.

[Watcher]

I always found blades were easier as a kid. Tried both, just had this thing for going really really fast.