Decided to try some slalom...

Annie · July 19th, 2008, 05:40 PM

Been skating 4 awhile now so i would say im at intermediate and i've started getting bored of just skating round the park! Thought i would try quads but i've gone off that idea cos i like skating outdoors not rinks so much! So i've been looking at the slalom sites and it looks like so much fun! I would love to do all those moves round some cones!
The only thing is that i can no way afford seba's or twisters (hubby wont let me have them- too expensive).
So i ordered hockey skates to get me started! Will that be okay?
Im also wondering if hockey skates are good for street skating too?

Davey_Speedstar · July 21st, 2008, 08:42 AM

The only reasonable advise I can offer is that you ditch the hopeless husband and get some decent skates!!!

SERIOUSLY THOUGH:
There is no reason why you can't use hockey skates. I wrote about the pros and cons in my blog a few months ago. The downside is that the footbed of hockey skates are not normally cushioned, so can be uncomfortable if you are street skating for any length of time.

What sort of skates do you have at the moment? Rec skates with the the wheels rockered can be used while you get used to the basics.

Inmosian · July 21st, 2008, 03:20 PM

I second Davey's comments, if you already have a comfortable pair of rec skates, just rocker the wheels and try out the basics for now, then invest in a good pair later.

Hockey skates are OK (I started doing slalom with them too but only lasted two months, I managed to deform the ankle part), they are very light and maneuverable but not enough ankle support. Also the lack of cushioning can be painful for slalom as your feet will be pressing against the boots often.

Annie · July 21st, 2008, 04:57 PM

hey guys!
I already have some fitness skates but they have a longish frame Not so good for maneuverability and i didn't really want to muck about putting a new frame and wheels on those. so thats why i decided to get some hockey skates. Thanks for all your advice! I'll let you all know how i get on with them!

bilboa · July 21st, 2008, 06:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Annie

hey guys!
I already have some fitness skates but they have a longish frame Not so good for maneuverability and i didn't really want to muck about putting a new frame and wheels on those. so thats why i decided to get some hockey skates. Thanks for all your advice! I'll let you all know how i get on with them!

Hi, maybe you already understood this, but rockering the front and back wheels doesn't involve changing the frame or wheels. It just means making the front and back wheels higher than the middle two. Many rec skates have axles that allow you to make any of the wheels higher than the other, so it's a very easy modification to make and will make your skates a bit more maneuverable, at the expense of traction and stability. I find I can do some basic quad jam skating moves on my rec inlines with them setup this way.

Annie · July 21st, 2008, 10:14 PM

oh okay....
I thought that even tho i rockered the wheels on my fitness skates it still wouldn't work as a slalom skate because of the long frame?

oh well.. I'll see how i go anyway!
Im learning so much from you pro's

denni · July 21st, 2008, 11:43 PM

hey annie! where are you from? if in the US you might want to check out http://www.freestyleskaters.org! This is the place you will find TONS of info/answers/pictures/videos/skaters!

some of my students have recreational skates. i do two things to them: (1) take the break off and (2) rocker the wheels. they are able to slalom with those skates. I usually recommend twisters for those who just want to start out slaloming. hockey skates are good but don't have liners. tho you could probably retro fit liners in there! (i started on hockey skates!) happy skating!

Davey_Speedstar · July 22nd, 2008, 09:16 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Annie

I already have some fitness skates but they have a longish frame Not so good for maneuverability

What sort of skates do you have. If we know what make & size they are, we might be able to off some more sostructive advice. (Knowing how long the frames are would help as well

)

Cowry · July 22nd, 2008, 10:59 AM

Well, this guy always slaloms in hockeyskates, as you can clearly see in the video

leetamm · August 20th, 2008, 06:12 PM

I think I'd like to get into slalom myself. I went out to the Riverwalk today at lunch and was just practicing slaloming side to side and then I found myself spotting stuff on the path to slalom around...leaves, spots, bugs, whatever

and trying to cut my turns as tightly as possible. It was a blast!

As you can see from my avatar I currently have hockey skates that I got from inlinwarehouse.com and they are very maneuverable. However, I went ahead and ordered some Twister IIs yesterday, just so I could compare them. It's great to have a place like inlinewarehouse to order from since you can send the skates back for free if they don't work out. There are no local skate shops around here.

I keep having this thought in the back of my head that I should open a shop myself.

Curious Cat · October 10th, 2008, 02:35 AM

It will be interesting to see how the two pairs compair.

I saw a few guys off to the corner with some cones during my last skating lesson. Looks like fun and well worth dabbling in (note the newbie enthusiasm for skating!).

mmmm hockey skates (Mission DSX?)

Quote:

Originally Posted by Inmosian

Hockey skates are OK (I started doing slalom with them too but only lasted two months, I managed to deform the ankle part).

Eeek.

July 19th, 2008, 05:40 PM	#1
Annie Member Join Date: May 2008 Posts: 51	Decided to try some slalom... Been skating 4 awhile now so i would say im at intermediate and i've started getting bored of just skating round the park! Thought i would try quads but i've gone off that idea cos i like skating outdoors not rinks so much! So i've been looking at the slalom sites and it looks like so much fun! I would love to do all those moves round some cones! The only thing is that i can no way afford seba's or twisters (hubby wont let me have them- too expensive). So i ordered hockey skates to get me started! Will that be okay? Im also wondering if hockey skates are good for street skating too?

July 21st, 2008, 08:42 AM	#2
Davey_Speedstar Senior Member Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Kingston upon Hell - UK Posts: 359	The only reasonable advise I can offer is that you ditch the hopeless husband and get some decent skates!!! SERIOUSLY THOUGH: There is no reason why you can't use hockey skates. I wrote about the pros and cons in my blog a few months ago. The downside is that the footbed of hockey skates are not normally cushioned, so can be uncomfortable if you are street skating for any length of time. What sort of skates do you have at the moment? Rec skates with the the wheels rockered can be used while you get used to the basics. __________________ http://www.daveyspeedstar.com/ My Skates: http://img142.imageshack.us/img142/3507/mlna0026uu1.jpg

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July 21st, 2008, 03:20 PM	#3
Inmosian Member Join Date: Sep 2007 Posts: 33	I second Davey's comments, if you already have a comfortable pair of rec skates, just rocker the wheels and try out the basics for now, then invest in a good pair later. Hockey skates are OK (I started doing slalom with them too but only lasted two months, I managed to deform the ankle part), they are very light and maneuverable but not enough ankle support. Also the lack of cushioning can be painful for slalom as your feet will be pressing against the boots often.

July 21st, 2008, 04:57 PM	#4
Annie Member Join Date: May 2008 Posts: 51	hey guys! I already have some fitness skates but they have a longish frame Not so good for maneuverability and i didn't really want to muck about putting a new frame and wheels on those. so thats why i decided to get some hockey skates. Thanks for all your advice! I'll let you all know how i get on with them!

July 21st, 2008, 10:14 PM	#6
Annie Member Join Date: May 2008 Posts: 51	oh okay.... I thought that even tho i rockered the wheels on my fitness skates it still wouldn't work as a slalom skate because of the long frame? oh well.. I'll see how i go anyway! Im learning so much from you pro's

July 21st, 2008, 11:43 PM	#7
denni Denacious P Join Date: Mar 2007 Posts: 88	hey annie! where are you from? if in the US you might want to check out http://www.freestyleskaters.org! This is the place you will find TONS of info/answers/pictures/videos/skaters! some of my students have recreational skates. i do two things to them: (1) take the break off and (2) rocker the wheels. they are able to slalom with those skates. I usually recommend twisters for those who just want to start out slaloming. hockey skates are good but don't have liners. tho you could probably retro fit liners in there! (i started on hockey skates!) happy skating!

July 22nd, 2008, 10:59 AM	#9
Cowry Senior Member Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Groningen Posts: 165	Well, this guy always slaloms in hockeyskates, as you can clearly see in the video

August 20th, 2008, 06:12 PM	#10
leetamm Member Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Chattanooga, TN Posts: 30	I think I'd like to get into slalom myself. I went out to the Riverwalk today at lunch and was just practicing slaloming side to side and then I found myself spotting stuff on the path to slalom around...leaves, spots, bugs, whatever and trying to cut my turns as tightly as possible. It was a blast! As you can see from my avatar I currently have hockey skates that I got from inlinwarehouse.com and they are very maneuverable. However, I went ahead and ordered some Twister IIs yesterday, just so I could compare them. It's great to have a place like inlinewarehouse to order from since you can send the skates back for free if they don't work out. There are no local skate shops around here. I keep having this thought in the back of my head that I should open a shop myself.