Archive for February, 2009
There are times when we want to enjoy skating outdoors and there are times when we want the social world of rink skating, or maybe we even want to get competive. But indoor wheels do not wear well outdoors and outdoor wheels do not perform well indoors. What to do?
Most beginners skates come with a fairly basic multi purpose wheel that will probably do the job for you as long as you don’t expect top of the line performance in either the indoor or the outdoor environment. If you only intend to skate the streets of town with your friends and take an occasional trip to the rink, the beginners inline or quad skates will work fine.
Tor those of us who demand more and are willing to pay a little more to have a high quality roller skate, we have an option. Let’s say you buy a good indoor speed skate that you love. Your next step is to invest in a set of outdoor wheels and a set of bearings to mount them on. Once you have bearings inserted in your new wheels you can swap indoor for outdoor roller skating in a matter of minutes. The best of both worlds.
I just set out to buy my first pair of skates and the choices are so great that I feel overwhelmed. I just want to get out with my friends and follow the sidewalk wherever it will take us. I don’t want to have to put a seecond mortgage on my cat to afford them either. What are my choices?
Fortunately our options are not overwhelming. Probably the most basic difference between an outdoor skate and an indoor skate are the wheels. Outdoor wheels are softer and have more rebound than an indoor wheel which is designed to go fast on a very smooth surface. An outdoor wheel will handle the uncertain surface normally found outdoors. Most beginners roller skates have wheels that are suitable for either indoor or outdoor skating.
Next question, do we want a quad skate or an inline skate? In today’s world most inline skates are meant for outdoor use, particularly fitness skates. Quad skates are the most popular choice for indoor rink skating. However. that doesn’t mean that a quad wouldn’t be a good choice, just look for one with outdoor wheels. Another option would be to have two sets of wheels for your skates, an indoor set and an outdoor set. That way you can have the best of both worlds. But that is a choice we’ll get into in one of our next blogs.
Back in the 1950s, roller skating was known primarily as a hobby or socializing activity. Nowadays, kids roller skate for sport and are active in what is known as X games or alternative sports. As a matter of fact, roller skate designers have revolutionized the general look and feel of the skates. Some designs for kids roller skates are more streamlined for use in competitions and races.
The otherwise laid back reputation of the roller skate has now turned edgy and cool. Tricks and stunts have been tried and perfected. Roller derbies have given way to roller parks complete with platforms and tunnels. Parks are brimming with roller skating enthusiasts, hell bent on perfecting their skills. Sports shops and hobby stores come out with advertising campaigns aimed towards kids and young adults, promoting roller skating as the newest, hippest alternative sports craze after skateboarding.