Any serious rollor-bladers here??

steve-in-kville

steve-in-kville

Joined
Dec 25, 2001
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1,139
I wan to transition from running/walking to rollor blades this spring. I ice skated in the past. What brands of blades should I be looking at? Any advice for a newbie??

TIA!!
 
I bet you'll have a blast Steve!!!!
I've had the itch for roller blades for years but never did anything about it. As big as i am I think it would be too hard to learn to skate on the roads around here and it would be sooo painful to go boom, lol! I've often watched folks roller blading and I can't remember seeing anyone that wasn't smiling ear to ear! Besides being fun it would be good exercise!! I hope you find a good place to skate and maybe some skating partners too!
 
I used to do quite a bit of blading. I worked for a shipping company at night, and a sporting goods store during the day, so I picked up a pair on sale and started keeping them in my truck. On my way home from the shipping job, I would stop by a bike trail near my apartment. It was usually pretty early in the morning, and sometimes still pretty dark, but there was no one around to see me struggling to learn. :eek::o;) It is great exercise and a lot of fun. Unfortunately, I've been out of it for too long to have any brand or feature recommendations for you. I do strongly recommend that you get all the gear, at least to start with. I mean wrist, knee and elbow guards and a helmet. I would almost rank them in that order of importance as well. Blading works a different set of muscles than walking or running, but if you ice skated before, you know what I mean. Be ready for "buns of steel." :D
 
Thanks for the replies!! I don't want some POS that walmart sells. I want some good quality blades. I wear the sh!t out of my stuff.
 
Its been a long time sence I've put on a pair of skates, skating is a great way to build your cardiovascular health but I did a lot more skating than most. Aggressive skating was part of my daily life for about 3 years and while I had great cardio health and extra strong legs the injuries combined with getting older made me stop. For recreational skating get yourself some wrist guards and knee pads and when u do fall you'll be able to get back up and keep going. Brands of skates have probably changed a bit sence I last had a look but K2 and rollerblade were some good ones. K2 is still out there and makes a real nice skate, they have a soft boot and a flat heel the flat heel takes a little time to get use to because it feels like your falling backwards but its worth it for how comfortable the skate is.
 
Bauers, Roces, K2, Salomon, are the brands Ive had experience with in the past. Im more into the heavier type of boot design but for street use Im sure Nike also have a good selection that you could pick up from sporting goods stores.

Prices are dependant on the ABEC quality of the bearings and the type of wheels but all the boots these days allow for after market alterations.
 
All the brands that have been mentioned here are quite nice skate. I actually have a pair of K2's, that I have had for like 6 or so years and there are still solid as the day I got em.
 
There are other factors you should consider also...
What type of terrain you need them for?
Do you want something with a brake on it? (your personal skill is what matters here as you can easily stop without one)
Do you want someting you can skate "aggresive" with?
Do you need a skate that can will be easier to skate up inclines?

Theres a bunch off different options, do a little shopping around and try some on if you have a local skate shop.
 
I've been very pleased with my pair of Rollerblade brand inline skates. I paid around $180 for them two years ago and feel it was money well spent. I don't recall the model right now, but I don't think that specific one is available anymore anyway. But they are well made and have provided a lot of good quality blading for me.
 
I used to do quite a bit of in-line skating. I haven't done it for a year or so and should probably get back into it. K2's were my choice. My favorites had the aluminum rails and the ability to "rocker" for short runs with more turns or roller hockey type skating.

I probably spent more than I should have when I was really into it. I've got one pair left. K2's that were a bit tight in the heel but I paid a stupid amount for 'em so I can't bring myself to part with 'em. :o:p
 
Nothing says you can buy a pair of rollerblades with a lower ABEC rating and clean out the lube for faster bearings. Same goes with after market bearings, although I believe bearings are much cheaper now than when I started rollerblading.
 
ziptrickhead said:
Nothing says you can buy a pair of rollerblades with a lower ABEC rating and clean out the lube for faster bearings. Same goes with after market bearings, although I believe bearings are much cheaper now than when I started rollerblading.
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If you clean the grease out of the bearings they don't work the same and will not last as long.
 
Rupestris said:
I used to do quite a bit of in-line skating. I haven't done it for a year or so and should probably get back into it. K2's were my choice.

I probably spent more than I should have when I was really into it. I've got one pair left.

I paid a stupid amount for 'em so I can't bring myself to part with 'em. :o:p
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You took the words right out of my mouth:p

Although the arrival of this thread has got me wantin to start skating more again. Maybe when the weather picks up.

BTW Rupestris, what model of skates do you have if you dont mind sharing. I have a limited edition run of the K2 125CC in red,grey, and black.

Looks like you can still get the 125's, and the price has gone down on em also.
 
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DazedAndConfused said:
BTW Rupestris, what model of skates do you have if you dont mind sharing. I have a limited edition run of the K2 125CC in red,grey, and black.
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Mine are the older K2 Escape. Also red/black/gray w/polished alum. rails. They're on there second set of wheels and Abec 5 bearings. MSRP at the time was $399 :eek:.
I got a deal on 'em as leftovers. They're probably 2001 production but still in great shape.
 
I was really disappointed to hear that Salomon stopped making inlines skates, since I was due for a new pair this summer :(

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BUT, every cloud has a silver lining and I got these babies yesterday :D [Cross-training boots that allow you to skate 3 out of 4 seasons]
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I do quite a bit of rollerblading:
http://vimeo.com/5412083
http://vimeo.com/5452714

And I can tell you that you'll probably be fine as long as you stick to the bigger brands:

Rollerblade, K2, Roces, Salomon, Technica.

If you're planning to go into stuntskating. Then I can recommend a lot more but it's not for a lot of people.

As for bearings being the price raising factor, that's not true. There's a lot of different factors when looking at skates that determine the price. Just like in knives there's material costs as well.

For instance carbon fibre skates cost a lot more but are really good. Whereas plastic skates can be just as comfortable but weigh a lot more.

Also: NEVER buy your first skates over the internet.

The most important thing in blades is comfort. Things like bearings, wheels, frames etc are all interchangable nowadays and therefore not as important. Comfort is the deciding factor.


Having said that I recommend K2 skates. They're the most comfortable I've ever tried and believe me....I've had a lot of brands.
 
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