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Rec.skate Frequently-Asked Questions: General Info (1/11)

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Tony Chen

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Feb 1, 1995, 7:07:34 PM2/1/95

Posted-By: auto-faq 3.1.1.2
Archive-name: rec-skate-faq/part1

Rec.skate Frequently Asked Questions: Part 1
_________________________________________________________________

[IMAGE] *

[NOTE: If you are reading a copy of this FAQ on paper, on CD-ROM, or other
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You should not be paying more than what it cost to copy this file.

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_________________________________________________________________

To IRC users:

If you want to chat in real-time with fellow skaters, join the
#inline channel on IRC (Internet Relay Chat). If you don't know
how to access IRC, contact your local system administrator.

_________________________________________________________________

Frequently Asked Questions for Rec.skate

(last changed Dec 8, 1994)

TABLE OF CONTENTS:
* Q: Who is this newsgroup for?
* Q: Why don't we split rec.skate into separate group for ice,
quads, and in-lines?
* Q: What is the difference between in-line skating and
"rollerblading"?
* Q: What are the origins of in-line skates?
* Q: I'm interested in getting a pair of in-lines for outdoor
skating. I want to get decent stuff, but I'd rather not spend a
lot of money. What do I need to get?
* Q: Are buckles better than laces?
* Q: I want to get good in-lines, but I can only afford $150.
* Q: How do I stop on in-lines?
* Q: I've learned how to slow down. how do I go faster?
* Q: How do I learn to skate backwards?
* Q: What sort of maintenance do I have to do on my in-lines?
* Q: What other information is out there to help me with in-line
skating?
* Q: How can I post to rec.skate if I don't have usenet access?
* Q: What can I do to help my road rash (ouch)?

* The In-line Stopping Techniques File

(Compiled and authored by Tony Chen, Phil Earnhardt, and George
Robbins.)

Q: Who is this newsgroup for?

A: The charter for rec.skate is for all kinds of skating: traditional
roller skating, in-line skating (although often called
"rollerblading", Rollerblade is the trademarked name of a particular
brand of in-line skates) figure skating, speed skating, and
participants in hockey. Skating-related discussions not held in
rec.skate include pro and college hockey (held in rec.sport.hockey)
and skateboarding (held in alt.skate-board). Cross-country skating
skiing may be discussed either here or in rec.skiing.

Within the various disciplines of skating discussed here, most
anything goes: discussions about equipment, maintenance, technique,
competetions, access to skating areas, etc. are all welcome.

At this point, the majority of the discussion in rec.skate (and
virtually all of this FAQ) is about in-line skating due to the
currently fast growth of the in-line sport. If you want to discuss
something else, feel free to discuss it.

Q: Why don't we split rec.skate into separate group for ice, quads,
and in-lines?

A: Rec.skate is still a fairly low-traffic group. We normally get less
than 30 posts a day (the Harding-Kerrigan incident is the primary
exception).

Additionally, it's not at all obvious how to split the group. One way
is to split into ice, quad and in-lines. But many skaters skate on
more than one kind of skate. Another way would be to split into speed,
hockey, and figure/dance. But again, many skaters participate in all
kinds of skating.

Rec.skate tends to go through a seasonal cycle. Usually in the winter,
while ice-skating articles are common, in-line related articles drop
dramatically. If we had separate newsgroups, we'd end up with two or
more groups, all of which would be "dead" at different times of the
year.

Q: What is the difference between in-line skating and "rollerblading"?

A: In-line skating is the official term for the sport commonly called
"rollerblading" or simply "blading". The commonly misused term of
"rollerblading" is due to the company called Rollerblade, which
although wasn't the first to produce in-lines, but managed to
popularize in-lines faster and farther than anyone previously (in the
States anyway). Most likely this was due to the increased fitness
awareness, coupled with a growing need for more cross-training
methods.

Rollerblade was the only company in the in-line market for a while,
which has lead to the term of "rollerblade" to stand for all in-lines,
even if made by different companies. This is similar to the use of
"kleenex", "coke", "Q-tip", "xerox", and other products.

Q: What are the origins of in-line skates?

A: (Merged paraphrased text from Wheel Excitement, The Complete
Blader, and Blazing Bladers)

The first in-line model was developed in the early 1700s by a Dutchman
who wanted to simulate ice skating in the summer by nailing wooden
spools to strips of wood and attaching them to his shoes.

The next version appeared in 1760 when a London instrument maker,
Joseph Merlin, decided to make an entrance to a masquerade party by
skating in on metal-wheeled boots while playing a violin. He ended up
skating into a huge mirror at the end of the ballroom, not having
learned to stop or steer.

In 1823, Robert John Tyers of London designed a skate called a
"rolito" by placing five wheels in a row on the bottom of a shoe. The
rolito was not take seriously at the time.

In 1863, an American, James Plimpton, found a way to make a workable
skate. He came up with a four-wheel skate with two pairs of wheels
side by side, and so the modern four-wheel roller skate was created.
Roller skates allowed turns, and also forwards and backwards skating.
The invention of ball bearing wheels in 1884 helped the sport even
more.

Tyers' design did not go entirely unnoticed however. In the
Netherlands, after the canals had melted, "skeelers" (5's) were used
as a means of dry-land cross training, competition and transportation
for over two decades.

Finally, in 1980 when two brothers from Minneapolis were rummaging
through a pile of equipment at a sporting goods store, they found an
old in-line skate. Scott and Brennan Olson were ice hockey players and
so they realized the cross-training potential of the in-line skate.

They redesigned the skate, using a hockey boot, polyurethane wheels
and adding a rubber heel brake, and found they could skate as they did
on ice. Soon after, they began selling skates out of their home and
eventually Rollerblade Inc. was born.

(end paraphrased text)

There were also some Soviet in-lines from around the same time. These
in-lines were being developed for Speed Skating dryland training.
Besides having inferior wheel material, they only had a single bearing
cartridge in each wheel.

The first mass-produced Rollerblade skates had two-part metal runners.
The smaller skates had more overlap between the two metal parts; the
large skates had less. The "bushings" were 4 plain vanilla washers per
wheel; they were cumbersome to assemble/remove and mechanically
flawed: dirt/sand would get between the inner washer and the bearing.
Also, there was just a washer's worth of clearance between the rail
and the wheel: it was very easy to trash a wheel by rubbing it against
a rail. The holes along the side of the runners were oval; the rock of
the skate was determined by how much you slid the bolt up or down when
you tightened it. Finally, the brakes were old roller skate toe stops
-- they were not very efficient.

The first massively successful Rollerblade skate was the Lightning. It
had a robust fiberglass runner for each size of skate. The bushings
fit into oval holes in the runners -- rock was set by whether you put
the bushing in up or down. The linkage between the wheel and runner
was far more mechanically efficient and there was no way to rub wheels
on the runners. Wheel removal/insertion was far easier. And
Rollerblade's brake, while far smaller than the old "toe stop" brake,
was much more efficient and lasted longer.

Needless to say, the Lightning was mondo faster.

Q: I'm interested in getting a pair of in-lines for outdoor skating. I
want to get decent stuff, but I'd rather not spend a lot of money.
What do I need to get?

A: First off, your budget should include protection: knee pads, wrist
guards, and a helmet. Elbow pads are optional. These "pads" should
have a hard plastic shell -- they should slide on the asphalt when you
fall. Good brands of protection are the Rollerblade TRS or the Dr.
Bone Savers (DBS) set of accesories. For helmets, any well-fitting
ANSI/Snell approved bicycle helmet should be fine.

The in-line industry is a lot like the bicycle industry -- specialty
shops generally sell and support more expensive functional skate
brands and department stores generally sell inexpensive lines that
will never work well. Also, there's usually a much greater chance of
getting spare parts and service from a specialty shop than a
department store.

Rollerblade is the best-known brand of in-line skate; they make a
whole family of different in-line skates. Any skate in Rollerblade's
line at or above the Lightning skate should work well and last a long
time. Other reputable manufacturers are Ultra Wheels, Riedell, and
Bauer. The higher-end skates in the California Pro line are functional
and relatively inexpensive. Performance Bike is introducing a line of
skates at a low price; quality of these skates is unknown at this
point.

You may wish to rent a model of skates before buying. Some shops will
discount part of the rental from purchase price if you buy skates
later.

Fit of skates should be comfortable but snug. Unlike hiking or running
shoes, it's OK for your toes to be loosely in contact with the front
of the boot.

Unless you have a background of speed skating, beginning skaters
should avoid the 5-wheel skates. The problem with isn't the inherent
speed of the skates, but since manueverability and flexibility are
sacrificed for the sake of racing performance, so turns and other
maneuvers require more commitment. The 5-wheelers are great fun, but
master the fundamentals on a shorter wheelbase first.

Q: Are buckles better than laces?

A: If you're looking to buy skates nowadays, you'll notice a wide
variety of support systems: laces only, laces with one buckle, one
buckle (rear-entry skates so far offered only by Ultra-Wheels models),
two buckles (old SwitcHits, Bauer women's model, Roces London), three
buckles (all other skates).

Hockey skates are laces only (Bauer). 5-wheelers come in laces only
(serious racing skates) and laces with one buckle (long-distance
commuting skates such as the Rollerblade RacerBlade, and citizen
racing skates).

The issue of buckles vs. laces is still a fairly often debated
subject, and the bottom line is whatever works for you. Anyway, here
are some good and bad points of each support system (recreational
skates only).

BUCKLES:
+ PROs
1. Faster to put on.
2. More durable.
3. Adjustable on the fly.
4. Allows for vented shells.
5. Maintain their hold, no loosening.
6. Possible to adjust support in separate areas.

+ CONs
1. More expensive (in general).
2. Can cause too much pressure on parts of the foot.

LACES:
+ PROs
1. Cheaper (in general)
2. Much less prone to point-loading pressure on specific
spots, pressure is distributed evenly.

+ CONs
1. Slower to lace up than to buckle up.
2. Prone to breakage.
3. Cannot easily adjust tension without stopping and
re-doing the whole thing.
4. Laces don't allow for much venting in the shells.
5. They eventually loosen while you skate.
6. Not very easy to adjust support in sparate areas.

LACES & BUCKLES:
+ PROs
1. Support adjustment is easy (if you normally only adjust
the ankle).

+ CONs
1. Laces don't allow for much venting in the shells.

+ NEITHER
1. Mid-range pricing.

Buckles may seem like they've got a lot of good points going for them,
and they do. However, the two bad points can be big ones. Cost is the
most obvious factor. If you can't afford buckle skates, you'll likely
have to settle for laces only, and/or add your own. The other factor
is fit. If the skates don't fit you quite right, the buckles can cause
over-pressure on certain parts of your feet. Fit is one of more
important aspects of choosing a skate, and while liners of most skates
eliminate this point- loading problem to a good extent, it may not be
enough for some people.

So what can you do if you've got lace-only skates and want to have the
convenience of buckles but can't afford to buy a new pair? You might
consider adding buckles. Either adding one buckle at the ankle or
doing away with laces altogether and adding two or three buckles. Many
ski shops will be willing to do this for you. Or you can add your own.

To fit buckles:

From: holr...@student.tc.umn.edu (James A Holroyd-1)

Need:
1) Buckles: can be obtained at ski shops, snowboarding shops, or from
an old pair of ski boots. I got mine from a snowboard shop, sold as
an extra buckle kit for snowboard binding ankle straps.

** NOTE **
Make *sure* the mounting surfaces of the buckle are only slightly
curved. Too much curvature in this area (the bit that touches the
boot) will pull your boot out of shape and be very uncomfortable.

2) Drill with various bits.
3) Mounting hardware for buckles: you can rivet them, or use T-bolts.
I used T-bolts with loctite on the threads, and they stay on well.

Step 1.
Put your skates on and figure out where you want to put the buckles.
I would recommend leaving the eyelets for the laces accessible. This way,
you can still lace up your skates, then tighten the cuffs with your buckles
The laces sit behind the strap, and don't loosen up as much as if you leave
them tied off below the cuff. Remember to place the buckles far enough
apart so you can tighten them, but not so far that you can't get the tongue
into the ratchet.

*** IMPORTANT ***
The buckle levers go on the *outside* of the skate :) This is very
embarrassing when you get it wrong (I did, first time), as every time your
skates get close together, they either catch on each other or unlatch the
lever, or some combination of the two. Not pretty.

Step 2.
Mark where you will have to drill holes to mount the buckles.

Step 3.
Take the liners out of the boots and drill the holes. Start with
a small, sharp bit (that boot plastic is *tough*, it could take a while)
and work up to the size that accomodates the mounting hardware you're using.

Step 4.
Mount the buckles. If you are using the snowboard buckles, the
mounting hardware that came with them should work. Just make sure that
nothing sharp is sticking into your liner, as it could chew up the liner
and/or your ankle. Don't forget the loctite (although it's really not
critical until you've got the placement right, or until you're 10 miles
from home :) )

This method works great with my lightnings. I got a pair of skates that,
IMHO, are as good as those costing a lot more. However, I would not try
this trick with any of the skates with flimsier liners. The Zetra's are
pretty uncomfy after a while, as the edges of the cuff do tend to dig in.
I ended up putting extra foam padding (ensolite) around the ankle area
before I sold them to a friend. He took it out, and apparently has no
comfort problems. Your mileage may vary.

Buckle add-on kits are now being sold in skate shops specifically for
in-lines. They run about $20 or so per pair of buckles. Ask your local
skate shop or call up one of the mail-order shops in the FAQ.

Q: I want to get good in-lines, but I can only afford $150.

A: At this price point, you'll have to be pretty resourceful. First,
note that the in-line "season" begins somewhere around the end of
March. You'll probably find some good bargains in stores in the
Jan-Mar time frame. Like many sports, the in-line market is
style-oriented: you may find last year's style at a huge discount.

Even at this price level, you should avoid "department store" skates
(unless you want to buy skates that you won't use). You're far better
off buying a pair of used Rollerblade Lightning skates. If you don't
see anyone selling your size, consider putting an ad advertising that
you want to buy skates. The going rate for used Lightnings in good
condition is around $80-100. If wheels and bearings are shot, cut that
to about $40 -- you'll need the other $50-60 or so to get new wheels
and bearings.

Use the other $50 to buy protection. Don't skimp on protection! A knee
is a terrible thing to waste. Used protection in good condition is
fine.

For a lot more on buying skates, see the Guide to Buying In-line
Skates at the Rec.skate Table of Contents.

Q: How do I stop on in-lines? (see also, the stopping file following
this section, for more details)

A: Good question. You've taken the most important step -- realizing
that there is a need to be able to slow down. The rest is just
practice.

There are several general techniques for stopping while remaining on
your skates: generating friction by dragging your brake pad,
generating friction by sliding your wheels laterally against the
ground, jumping onto grass and killing your speed by running out, and
pushing against a slower-moving or stationary object with your hands.
There's also falling, which is a valid last-ditch technique that's a
good to learn.

Here's the section on using the brake:

I finally learned how to brake well when someone described this image:
your brake foot has just slipped on a banana peel. Whoops! Your brake
foot will be about a foot in front of your body. The leg will have a
slight bend. The rear wheel and the brake will be in contact with the
ground.

At first, your non-brake foot will be bearing almost all your weight.
That leg will be directly under your body, and the knee will be bent.
The amount of bend in your knee will determine how much braking force
you can apply.

Your feet should be very close to your centerline. This should help
keep you going straight forward when braking (pretty important!).

There should be a slight forward bend in the waist. It may also help
to keep the hands at waist height or so. This keeps your center of
gravity lower. Try to keep your hands (and your whole upper body)
loose; clenched fists do not make the brakes work any better! Relax.

After you've tried a dozen or so stops, add one more refinement: drive
your back knee into the back of the front knee while braking. This
creates a triangle with your lower legs and the pavement between your
skates. As all the Buckminster Fuller fans out there know, triangles
provide structural stability. This triangle should enhance your
braking power and ability to run smooth, straight, and true while
stopping.

As you master braking, begin to shift more of your weight to your
front foot. The Masters of Speed Control can actually decelerate while
standing only on their front foot. Good trick, that.

A: First off, keep learning how to slow down! Learn new techniques;
refine the ones you already know. Until you master slowing down, your
mind will limit how fast it will let you go on skates.

Watch good skaters. Notice that they rarely have both skates on the
ground at the same time. This independent leg action is something
you'll master over time; you can practice by seeing now long you can
glide on a single skate. When you can glide on a single skate for more
than 30 seconds (both left and right legs!), you're well on the way.

Notice that almost all of the side-to-side motion is happening below
the waist. Eliminate any twisting motion in your shoulders -- keep
your shoulders square to your direction of travel. If you want to move
your arms, move them forward and back -- crossing patterns may have
you twist your shoulders. Relax the muscles in your lower back to
allow your upper body to remain quiet.

Watch your stride. Are you pushing more to the side or to the back?
Shift your stride to be pushing almost exclusively to the side.

Where do you set your skate down at the start of your stride? Shoulder
width? Start setting your skate down on the centerline of your body.
After you're comfortable with that, start setting your skate further
in beyond your centerline.

Do you flick your toe at the end of your stride? If so, stop. Instead,
flick your heel -- drive your heel out at the end of the stroke. This
will feel very strange for the first 10,000 or so times.

Relax. Then relax some more. Discover levels with levels of
relaxation. Travel fast while moving your skates slowly -- your body
is swimming through air. Consider beginning to practice T'ai Chi
Ch'aun postures daily. Relax some more.

Q: How do I learn to skate backwards?

From: ph...@csv.warwick.ac.uk (Bungle)
Subject: Re: Yinl" Backward Skating - help!
Date: 9 Sep 1994 00:12:35 +0100

The easiest way to start, is _slowly_. Build up in stages.

Moving in this ----------------> direction

Stage one:
A simple roll backwards on flat ground, letting skates go apart, then
back to the middle. Don't try and lift feet of the ground at any time.

___..___ ___..___
Right foot ---'''' ````---..---'''' ````---..

Left foot ---....___ ___....---'`---....___ ___....---'`
`' `'

Stage two:
Keep one foot steady (if you are better at right-handed cross-overs, this
should probably be you left foot) and do more exaggerated shorter movements
with the other foot. Push the foot out quite hard (with toe pointing
inwards slightly) while putting most weight on the other foot. I find
it easier to use the front wheels on my pushing foot. When pulling the
foot back in, do not try to lift it, just pull it in slowly. Don't try
to create motion from the inward pull. Motion should be from the out-push
only.

,--... ,--... ,--...
Right foot ,' ```--...,' ```--...,' ```--...

left foot -----------------------------------------------

Stage three:
Swap feet over.

Stage four:
Push with alternate feet.

,--... ,--...
Right foot ,' ```--...............,' ```--.............

Left foot ''''''````````. ___--'''''''''```````. ___--
`--''' `--'''

Stage five:
Move feet at the same time

,--... ,--... ,--...
Right foot ,' ```--...,' ```--...,' ```--...,

Left foot ___--''`. ___--''`. ___--''`. ___
' `--''' `--''' `--'''

Stage six:
This is where you start trying hills, corners, crossovers, stairs,
or whatever else takes you fancy.

From: g...@crunch.commodore.com (George Robbins)

There are several different ideas on the best way to
get started with backwards skating, which means you tend to get a lot
of responses, but no agreement.

1) Start by pushing off a wall or fence, or turning from forward to
backward while rolling. Just coast until you feel secure with
the general idea. A helmet isn't a bad idea, by the way!

2) Get your posture/balance right - your body should be upright, with your
knees bent - if you lean forward while skating, this will seem like
leaning backwards. If you lean forward you'll find yourself dancing
on your toe wheels and then your nose.

3) Get your feet at a normal track width - not neccessarily clicking heels,
but less than should width. Many folk spread out when the feel insecure,
but you can't "stroke" from that position.

4) At this point you can fool around a little - you can turn by leaning
or keep yourself moving with a "sculling" motion - moving both feet
out-in-out-in as if tracing coke-bottle curves.

5) Next, you need to get comfortable with rolling on one foot, so that you
can be pushing with the other. Just pick up one foot - half an inch
is fine - and roll on the other. This will require that you get the
rolling foot centered under your weight! (see 2 above). Practice some
one-foot gliding and turns.

6) Finally, you are ready to stroke - just push one leg out and to the
side while you roll on the other, then at the end of the stroke, pick
up that skate and set it back alongside the other. Alternate feet,
and as you get the hang of it, you'll find that you can maintain
and build speed.

7) Expect it to take a while for you to get comfortable, just try a
little backwards action each time you go out to skate. You also
want to get in the habit of looking over your shoulder to see where
you're going, looking only at where you've been leads to surprises.

8) There an alternate menthod of learning to stroke, which goes from
sculling with both feet to sculling with one at a time and then
getting a more powerful push with that foot. This may lead more
naturally to the Hockey wide-track "C-cut" backward stride, where
you roll/slide the foot back instead of picking it up, but that's
more for quick maneuvering, not speed/distance skating.

Q: What sort of maintenance do I have to do on my in-lines?

(See also: part 2 of the FAQ)

A: Things that need maintaining are the wheels, bearings, and brakes.

Rotate wheels every 50-100 miles. To rotate a set of wheels, remove
the frontmost wheel, stash it away, move all the other wheels up one
position, and place the front wheel in the rearmost position. Flip
each wheel as you're rotating it, swapping the inside and outside
edges.

With each wheel off the skate, clean around the bearings. Spin the
wheel to see if the bearings are in good shape. If bearings are bad,
replace them.

Replace the brake pad when it's worn out (there's a "wear-line" on the
new brake pads if you don't intuit this).

Practice preventative maintenance: avoid sand, dirt, and water as much
as possible. These guys are what cause bearing failure. If you want
bearings to last, vacuum in/around your runners with an upholstery
accessory after every day. If you do want to skate in
sand/dirt/water/mud, get a set of sealed bearings.

Rotate your wheels often. It can be done in about 30 minutes tops.

Buy a Rollerblade "Y" tool to remove bearings from spacers, or buy one
of the aftermarket bearing spacer kits. These make bearing removal
much easier.

Q: What other information is out there to help me with in-line
skating?

A:
InLine Subscriptions Dept.
P.O. Box 527
Mt. Morris, IL 61054
or call customer service at 1-800-877-5281

Speedskating Times
2910 NE 11 Ave
Pompano Beach, FL 33064
(305) 782-5928

Daily Bread
280 Highland Rd.
Laguna Beach, CA 92651
(714) 497-2636

Box Magazine
818 Lincoln Blvd.
Slab 103
Venice, CA 90291

There are several videos that are marginally good at training. One of
these is the Rollerblade/Ski Magazine Skate to Ski video. Your local
Rollerblade dealer should have training videos available for viewing
in the store and/or rental.

Reading list: (mini-reviews by George Robbins)

_Blazing Bladers_ by Bill Gutman
A Tom Doherty Associates Book, 1992.
Cover price: $6.99 ($7.99 CAN)
ISBN 0-812-51939-6

One of the two easier to find books, this provides a reaonsable
overview of the sport, but suffers somewhat from "generic how-to"
publishing. The author tends to recite what "experts" have told him
without much conviction and some of the photographs don't fit well
with the text. Still has a good section on "street tricks".

The Complete Blader by Joel Rappelfeld
St. Martin's Press, NY, New York, 1992.
Cover price: $8.95
ISBN 0-312-06936-7

This book is nearly as good as _Inline Skating_, but is more oriented
towards fitness/health aspects. There seems to be as much space
allocated to stretching and conditioning as skating. One useful
section describes construction and use of a slide-board for off season
training.

The Complete Guide and Resource to In-line Skating
by Stephen Christopher Joyner
Betterway Books, Cincinnati OH - 1993
Trade Paperback, 176 pages, $12.95
ISBN 1-55870-289-X

As a resource guide, this is a useful book, the appendices list
Magazines, Manufacturers, Retailers, Organizations, Roller Hockey
Leagues, IISA certified instructors and also a rather eclectic
bibliography. The rest of the text is OK and has a few interesting
features, but either of the first two in-line books (The Complete
Blader and Inline Skating) mentioned above would be more useful,
especially for the beginning skater. Some Specific irritations are
only the briefest mention of roller hockey where I would exepect at
least an information presentation of rules, equipment and game play,
and a strong anti-quad bias including a history of skating which leaps
from Plimpton's error (a steerable truck quad skate) to Scott Olson's
Rollerblade as if no-one enjoyed skating in the interiem.

Inline Skating by Mark Powell & John Svenson
Human Kinetics Publising, 1993
Trade Paperback, 134 PP, $12.95
ISBN 0-87322-399-3

Of the recent rash of in-line skating "how to" books, this is probably
best and most balanced one. It has good coverage of equipment and
basic skating skills, mention of dance and fun skating, and doesn't
suffer from any fitness obsession.

Laura Stamm's Power Skating by Laura Stamm
Leisure Press, 1989
Cover price: $17.95
ISBN 0-88011-331-6

Wheel Excitement by Neil Feineman with Team Rollerblade(R)
Hearst Books, New York, NY 1991.
Cover price: $9.00
ISBN 0-688-10814-8

At one point, this was the only book on in-line skating and it still
serves as a decent introduction to the sport. Lots of pictures of
California kids having a good time. The actual text is a little thin
and any of the above books are better if you can find them in your
area.

Q: How can I post to rec.skate if I don't have usenet access?

A: There are a few mailing lists out there that will post messages
sent to them. The only one I can recall is: rec-...@cs.utexas.edu.

Q: What can I do to help my road rash (ouch)?

A: (from many users)

From: ah...@boi.hp.com (Andy Hill)

Not a cure, but lots of Neosporin will help keep the rash from getting
infected (a big problem with large-area road rash). Makes the scabs
look really nasty, 'tho - be prepared for some really grossed-out
looks if you don't gauze it over.

From: g...@cbmvax.cbm.commodore.com (George Robbins)

There is no "cure".

The traditional treatment is to wash the area, let it scab over and
wait for it to heal. If there is a lot of imbedded dirt, glass or
gravel you want to see a doctor for extra pain and cleansing.

The underground remedy (for small spots) is to use "Bag Balm", a
vetrinary product for soothing cows udders, found at your local farm
supply outlet. It provides a waterproof covering for the wound, which
apparently prevents the formation of a thick, inflexible scab.
Actually Vaseline does pretty much the same thing, with people asking
you what breed of cows you prefer.

In either case, the overall healing time is simlar, however the latter
may cause less interference with skating, scarring and hassles with
scabs cracking or being torn off.

Another possibility is to use a "Newskin" type product, the one I've
seen comes in a bottle, you put it one, the alcohol (sting!)
evaporates, leaving a thin, flexible membrane, which seems to work on
the same idea as above, but it's dry on the outside, not gooky.

Please treat such wounds with respect, infection, scarring or
prolonged healing periods are always a possibility, especially with
larger area's of damaged skin or contamination.

From: ma...@unidata.ucar.edu (Matt Hicks)

Well, I checked out what everyone else suggested and I didn't see this
one exactly, so here goes. I have a friend who is a (semi?) pro speed
skater and has taken some nasty spills at high speed. Last year he
ripped up his right thigh/buttock when he hit a wet spot in a turn--it
was uuugly. Anyway, he used either neosporin or a burn creme (road
rash is 90% burn anyway) and he covered the wound completely with
plastic wrap held on with medical tape. There was nothing special
about the wrap--just Saran Wrap or the equivalent. I've had a lot of
rash from bicycle racing and I've never seen anything heal as quickly
or as well as this lump of hamburger did. He never got a scab going;
the wound just got smaller and smaller until it was gone. The main
thing you need to do with this treatment is clean the wound really
well--I'm guessing he probably cleaned it thoroughly twice a day
(morning and evening). The next time I get scraped up I'm going to try
this treatment myself--if nothing else it will keep the wound from
oozing through my clothes--yuck!

From: gt3...@prism.gatech.edu (Steven Malcolm Nichols)

Finally, on the subject of road rash. I've heard people advocate both
covering the area to try to keep a scab from forming and airing it. I
have tried both and don't really have a preference. I believe that the
most important thing you can do is keep it clean (i.e. wash/clean it a
couple of times a day) and of course, keep it from getting infected.
3M makes a product called second skin, I think the original
application was for burn victims. Second skin is something like 96%
water & 4% miracle plastic that acts as a skin. A couple of people
mentioned Neosporin; I was told by a paramedic that Neosporin in large
quantities can be toxic -- he couldn't really be quantitative about
what this means, but just be aware. I have found antecdotally (and
maybe I even read this somewhere) that sunlight seems to encourage
pink shiny scar tissue (dang! I'll never be a swimsuit model now!), so
you might want to let the rash heal up before you go tanning at the
beach.

From: prat...@david.wheaton.edu (Adam Pratt)

I do not have any quick fixes for road rash, though I have had a lot!
I mean a lot! Nine days ago I launched off a 4 and a half foot ledge
from one parking lot to another. There is about 12-15 feet of mulch
and bushes slanting between the parking lot I jumped from and the
parking lot below I was jumping into. It was an awesome jump, but at
the bottom, I did not quite make the pavement. My skates hit soft
mulch at the botom, dug in an inch, and my 10+ mph threw by body on
the pavement. Most of the weight hit my wrist guards and the front of
my helmet. If I did not have wrist guards on, I would have shattered
by hands, wrists, and forearms. It was intense! I could not hold all
my weight aand slid out on my right elbow and right hip (OUCH on the
hip!)

Anyway, I just wanted to share my awesome spill with you friends. It
was one of the most intense spills I have seen. Now back to the road
rash part...

I already had a scar on my right hip from a previous spill. Now I have
a bigger one. The way to get rid of it is to COAT it with vitamin E
oil. Do not wait for it to heal, then use it. Scrub it hard, ointment
like crazy, let it scab, and then DON'T pick! As soon as it is starts
to get hard, keep vitamin E oil on it constantly!

I have had two major surgeries on each shin and the cut me alle the
way up and down. I did not use Vitamin E the first time and the scars
were nasty. I used it the second time and you can barely see them! I
really believe this stuff helps! You can buy it at GNC and other
health food stores.

From:

After my first crash, where the Fire Department guys had to clean me
up, I started to cary first aid supplies (each crach statistic is a
statistic in favor of baning inline skating). I have the following in
my bag:

Large bandaids (2 in.) Gauze pads (for covering wounds and for
cleaning wounds) Anticeptic wipes Neosporin ointment

I even found use for these at the ice rink this past winter, when I
cut my self on my blades. Yes, I have goten road rash from the ice
rink although, I think it was where the elastic underwear band abraded
my skin.

From: ai...@lvld.hp.com (Jim Aites)

: Anticeptic wipes : Neosporin ointment

DERMABLAST - a spray-on topical anesthetic. (smaller container
required)

How about something for the 'shockies'? I hate seeing black-n-white
(with stars)! I know, "sit down and put your head between your knees",
but I was thinking of something more along the line of Asperin, a shot
of scotch, or some other good analgesic. ;)

_________________________________________________________________

The In-line Stopping Techniques File

(written February 1992)
(lasted changed Jan 24, 1994)

[ This file is Copyright 1994 by Anthony D. Chen. It may be freely
redistributed in its entirety provided that this copyright notice is
not removed.

License is hereby granted to republish on electronic or other media
for which no fees are charged (except for the media used), so long as
the text of this copyright notice and license are attached intact to
any and all republished portion or portions.

It may not be sold for profit or incorporated in commercial documents
without the written permission of the copyright holder.

Permission is expressly granted for this document to be made
available for file transfer from installations offering unrestricted
anonymous file transfer on the Internet.

This file is provided as is without any express or implied warranty.
Nothing in this file represents the views of Florida State
University.]

This document is written for rec.skate, one of the thousands of
newsgroups under USENET, the international electronic news network
which reaches millions of readers. You will see "8-)" in use
throughout the text and if you look at it with your head tilted to the
left the intent should be obvious 8-)

NOTE: This list is arranged in order of increasing difficulty as per
my experience. Your experiences WILL undoubtedly vary from mine. This
list does not purport to be the definitive list of stopping
techniques, but it does strive to be as complete and descriptive as
possible.

It is not expected that everyone will learn, or even want to learn,
all the methods discussed in this file. It is simply a catalog of
techniques to choose from. Some techniques require more flexibility,
some require more finesse, and some require more guts 8-)

Good luck, and skate smart.

-Tony Chen, adc...@garnet.acns.fsu.edu
(4643 High Grove Road, Tallahassee, FL 32308)

_________________________________________________________________

List of stops:

BEGINNER LEVEL
* runouts
* wall stop
* windbraking
* the brake-pad
* V-stop/snowplow

INTERMEDIATE LEVEL
* advanced runouts
* (regular) spinout/lunge stop
* spread eagle spinout
* crossover stop
* slaloming/parallel turns

ADVANCED LEVEL
* T-stop (includes a picture tutorial)
* toe drag
* backwards T-stop
* Stepping stops
+ backward stepping stop
+ forward stepping stop
* reverse stop (forwards snow-plow)
* backwards heel drag
* toe-drag spinouts
* heel-drag spinouts
* curb ramming
* power stop/power slide (includes a picture tutorial)
* chop-stop
* New York stop
* "Wile E. Coyote" stops

Combination stops

Related topics:
* falling
* collisions with stationary objects

_________________________________________________________________

While the basic repretoire of stopping techniques includes the
brake-pad, the T-stop, spinouts, and the power stop, this file is
meant to go one step beyond merely teaching the basics. The basics are
crucial, but once skaters progress beyond them, they often need some
guidance for further learning. One cannot expect each skater to
discovery techniques on their own, hence this file.
_________________________________________________________________

BEGINNER LEVEL

The following set of stopping methods, most beginner skaters should be
able to handle. They keep both feet on the ground throughout the stop,
and don't require as much independent leg action as more advanced
stops.

* RUNOUTS:
Assuming the path you're skating on has grass or packed dirt
(or some other hard-to-roll-on surface), you can just skate off
the path and reduce your speed by running onto the grass
(hop-hop-hop-hop-hop). In the worst case scenario, you can
tumble and hopefully you won't take any damage.

* WALL STOP:
This stop is simply to skate towards a wall (or any reasonably
stationary object, really) and use your arms to absorb the
impact. At low speeds, this should be quite safe (make sure you
turn your head to the side so as not to smash your face). You
may or may not bang your skates, depending on your speed and
how you hit. The key is to use your arms as cushioning springs
(like doing a standing push-up.) One way to practice this is to
stand a few feet from a wall (with your skates on). Now fall on
your hands against the wall, and you should be able to bounce a
little, while still avoiding banging your head. The faster your
approach, the less bounce will result.

A variation on the wall stop is the billiard ball stop. Instead
of stopping against an object, use a fellow skater to push off
and transfer your momentum to them. To be safe, warn the
receiving person about your approach. It works well on flat
surfaces and at low to moderate speeds. It's not recommended at
high speeds and especially on people you don't know 8-)

See the collision section for more extreme cases.

* WIND-BRAKING:
Wind-braking is more for speed-control than to stop (although
on windy days, this can stop you). Just stand up, spread your
arms out and catch the air like a sail. You'll probably need to
lean forwards slightly, to counter the force of the wind.

* THE BRAKE-PAD:
The brake-pad is subject to much debate amongst skaters. Many
people with ice skating and rollerskating backgrounds find the
brake in the way, in the wrong place, or simply ineffective.
However, those of you taking the little time to learn to use
the it proficiently, the brake-pad becomes a very versatile
piece of equipment because:

1. you can use it to stop, even at very high speeds;
2. it allows you to keep both skates on the ground while
stopping (good for keeping your balance);
3. you can maintain a narrow profile (good for high traffic
areas where cars or bicycles might be passing you);
4. you can still steer yourself;
5. the sound of braking can often alert others to your presence;
6. the brake-pad is the most cost-effective technique there is
so far for in-lines.

To learn how to use the brake-pad, first coast with both skates
shoulder-width apart. As you coast, scissor your feet back and
forth a few times to get used to the weight shift. To apply the
brake then, scissor your skate so your braking skate is out
front. Lift the toe of your brake skate and press with the heel
too. Your body weight is centered and even slightly on your
back skate when you're just learning it. The key is a straight
back and bent knees.

If you have trouble balancing or find your braking ankle a
little weak, you can try the following trick: form a triangle
with your legs (from the knee down to your skates) and the
ground. This means putting your back knee either right behind
or next to, the brake-foot knee to form that triangle.

Eventually you'll want to stop at high speeds. Basically, the
more pressure you use on the brake pad the faster you stop.
Maximum stopping power is achieved by putting your entire body
weight onto the brake by lifting your back foot, and leaning
onto the brake. This takes some practice but is very effective.
It is possible to stop within 15-20 ft even when going over 20
mph. Practically speaking, you may still want to keep the other
skate on the ground for balance.

Note that the amount of leverage, and therefore the amount of
stopping power you have, is dependent on how worn your brake
is. A half-worn brake will provide better leverage than either
a new brake or a worn-out brake. Some people sand or saw off
part of new brakes to avoid the annoying breaking-in period.

One important point to keep in mind when using the brake-pad:
You can still steer while braking. Just keep the brake-pad on
the ground and pivot on your heel wheel slightly to go the
direction you want. This is very useful while going down a very
narrow and curvy path or while trying to avoid curbs,
pedestrians, parked cars, trees, and the like.

A brake-pad generally runs from $3 to $6 depending on what type
you buy. Compare this with wheels which are $5.50 or more each
and the freebie stops: runouts, wind-braking, billiard ball
stop (freebies since you're not wearing anything down). Wheels
are expensive, and the freebie stops are infrequently
available, if at all, for the large majority of skating
situations. The brake can be your standard stop, provided that
you learn it well. (see "Wile E. Coyote" stops for a rather
interesting variation)

* V-STOP/SNOWPLOW:
For a low-speed rolling stop, point your heels inward (for
backwards) or your toes together (for forwards) and let your
skates bang into each other. This might throw you in the
direction you're going (depending on your speed), so take care
to be prepared to lean forward or backwards to compensate.

You can do a more exaggerated snowplow by spreading your legs
out past shoulder-width and pointing your skates inward or
outwards as before (and you won't bang your skates together.)
Here, use leg strength to press your inner edges against the
ground, and you'll slow down appreciably. This can work even at
very high speeds.

_________________________________________________________________

INTERMEDIATE LEVEL

* ADVANCED RUNOUTS:
Skating off pavement onto grass. You can weave from pavement to
grass and back to pavement to control your speed, especially
when going downhill. To stop completely just stay on the grass.

As you hit the grass, knees are kept bent, and one foot is
ahead of the other. Nearly all weight is distributed on the
foot that will hit the grass first, and you keep that leg real
stiff, as if plowing a path for the trailing leg to follow.
Very little weight is on the trailing leg. Muscles in the
trailing leg are relaxed. The only function of the trailing leg
is stability and balance. The leading leg does most of the
work.

Beginners are often intimidated by this procedure, but it is
really a very simple physical feat. The hard part, if any, is
simply understanding mentally what it is you are trying to do,
as I explained.

This is a lot of fun, too. I like to hit the grass full speed,
and then skate as far down a slope as possible before the grass
stops me.

One important requirement is that the ground should be dry. Wet
dirt or grass will clog your wheels and your skates will also
sink into mud (yuck).

* (REGULAR) SPINOUTS/LUNGE STOP:
This is where you skate into a spin to transfer your linear
momentum into angular momentum. To do this, you sort of
stop-n-hold one skate at an angle to act as the pivot foot and
the other traces a circle around it (and you). It may help to
think of having each skate trace concentric circles, with the
pivot skate tracing the much smaller inner one. The pivot skate
will be turning on its outside edge, while the outer skate will
be on its inside edge.

* SPREAD EAGLE SPINOUTS:
A spinout with your skates in a bent spread eagle position
(i.e., heels pointed towards each other, skates at slightly
less than 180 degrees). There is no pivot foot here, instead
both your skates trace the arc.

There are inside and outside spread eagles, where you skate on
both inside or both outside edges. The above paragraph
describes the inside spread eagle.

A sustained outside spread eagle is more of an artistic skating
move than a practical stop, although I use it occasionally to
stop on flat surfaces.

NOTE that all types of spinouts require a fair amount of room.
Your forward motion is quite suddenly changed to angular motion
so I'd recommend this mainly for low traffic areas where you
won't have people running into you from behind when you do the
spinout.

* CROSSOVER STOP:
This stop works both forwards and backwards at higher speeds. I
call this the crossover stop because your feet are held in the
position of a spread-out crossover. In this stop, you're going
to be arcing to one side. The harder and sharper you turn, the
faster you stop. If you tend to trip on your skates, spread
your skates farther apart (forwards-backwards).

The braking pressure comes from the turn. The harder you press
with the outer edge of your back skate, the faster you stop. So
if you're turning left, your right skate is in front, the left
skate is almost right behind it (so that all your wheels are in
line). Press on the outer edge of your left skate (your back
skate) and on the inner edge of your right skate.

There is also the inverted crossover stop where your feet
positions are reversed: so you turn left with your left foot
forward and right foot back (and vice versa for right turns).
Watch ice hockey players just after play has stopped. More
often than not, the circle around in the inverted crossover
position.

Both crossover stops are good for high speed stops but make
sure you have plenty of open space.

* SLALOMING/PARALLEL TURNS:
For skiers, this maps over very nicely. This is more of a speed
control technique rather than a stop, but it's very useful to
know. Explaining slalom turns can take an entire book in
itself, so I will merely suggest that you find a skier or a ski
book to show you how.

One way to practice this is to find a nice gentle slope with
plenty of space at the bottom, set up cones in a line, and
weave through the cones.

_________________________________________________________________

ADVANCED LEVEL

This next set of stops require good independent leg control. These
advanced stops will require you to be skating only one foot for some
portion of the technique.

* T-STOP:
This stop uses your wheels as a source of friction. To do the
T-stop, place one skate behind you, nearly perpendicular to
your direction of travel. Bend a little in both knees to drag
your wheels. You should think more of dragging the heel than
the toe. Apply the braking pressure to your heel. If you drag
the toe too much, you will end up spinning around. Keep your
weight mainly on your skating (front) foot. As you learn to
stop at higher speeds you will apply more downward pressure to
the back skate (but your weight is still on the front skate).

If you have a World Wide Web (WWW) browser, Check out Scott's
picture tutorial on T-stops.

NOTE: One particular phenomenon to avoid in the T-stop, or any
wheel-dragging stop (such as the toe drag) is the "flats". If
you T- stop or toe drag such that the wheels do not roll as
your drag, you will end up with a flattened wheel which will
not roll smoothly at all. In effect, ruining your wheel(s).

* TOE DRAG:
Similar to the T-stop except you drag only the toe wheel
instead of all four or five wheels. Unlike the T-stop it's not
critical to keep the skate perpendicular to your line of
travel. In fact, you're free to drag the wheel anywhere in a
180+ degree arc behind you. Also, your toe can be pointed into
the ground at pretty much any angle. (If you have old wheels,
the toe position is a good place to put them if you want to
avoid shredding your good wheels.)

The toe drag is better than the T-stop in that you wear down
only one wheel, and more importantly, you are also allowed much
better control over steering, since you can still stop
effectively even if the drag wheel rolls too much. The toe drag
can stop you even when at cruising speeds, although at
significantly longer breaking distance than the brake-pad or
the T-stop since you are dragging only one wheel.

* BACKWARDS T-STOP:
This is a T-stop when you're rolling backwards. There are two
ways to perform this stop. The first way is to stop by dragging
the outside edge of your skate (i.e., toe pointed outward). The
harder way is to point your toe inward, much like a reverse New
York stop (see New York stop).

STEPPING STOPS

These three stepping stops are essentially advanced low-speed stops
("advanced" since they require good independent control over each
skate). They could also be called "pushing" stops, since most of the
braking action is done by pushing a skate against your motion. Many
advanced skaters will do this intuitively, but I will detail them here
for completeness.

* BACKWARD STEPPING STOP:
This is like while wearing shoes, and someone pushes you from the
front. One foot automatically steps back to keep you from falling
backwards. On skates then, while rolling backwards, you simply put one
skate behind you, 90 degrees to the other skate, and hold it there so
that your body doesn't roll any further. This is basically a very low-
speed power stop, and so without the sliding and scraping action of
the wheels (see the Power Stop).

The faster you are moving, the closer you are to doing a true power
stop. This may be a good method to learn the power stop, gradually
building up speed.

* FORWARD STEPPING STOP:
A low-speed stop very similar to the backwards stepping stop except
you're rolling forwards, of course. This time you plant your skate 90
degrees out in front of or right next to the rolling skate. Your front
heel will be pointing inwards (it's probably easier for most people to
keep the toe pointed outward here). This is especially useful at
curbs, like just before you accidentally roll into an intersection, in
crowded indoor places, or if you just want to get a little closer to
people you're talking with.

This stop should halt you immediately. Once you plant your foot, your
body should stop moving forward. You may find it easier if you bend
slightly at the waist and knee to give your skate a better angle to
grab.

You can also use this stop in a sort of shuffling fashion: stop, roll
a little, stop, roll a little, etc., until you get to precisely where
you want to be.

* REVERSE STOP (FORWARDS SNOW-PLOW):
While rolling, point one skate (only) inward, lift and set it back
down. Roll on it and push off slightly at the heel. Now lift the other
skate, and do the same.

Essentially you are skating backwards even though moving forwards.
Keep doing it and you will eventually start skating backwards. This
can be done even at high speeds.

* BACKWARDS HEEL DRAG:
This is for rolling backwards. Similar to the toe drag except you drag
your heel wheel. If you find your drag skate rolling sideways, apply
more pressure to your heel wheel.

Now that you can do toe-drags, heel-drags and spinouts...

* TOE-DRAG SPINOUTS:
This is a one-footed spinout with an accompanying toe-drag on the
other foot. The toe drag will be in the inside of the spinout. So for
a right-foot toe-drag spinout, you will be carving a right turn. It
takes a bit more balance and strength and will shred your toe wheel a
lot. The more pressure on the toe, and the sharper/harder you carve
your turn, the faster you stop.

At maximum effectiveness, it can stop you very quickly. The skating
foot will be nearly doing a power slide (see Power Stop) and the
dragging foot will be doing a very hard toe-drag. Done correctly at
low to medium speeds, it takes up at most a sidewalk's width. At
downhill speeds, expect to take up most of a car lane.

NOTE that hitting a crack or rock during this stop really bites since
you've got most of your weight on one skating foot. Look for any
debris or holes ahead of you and be prepared.

* HEEL-DRAG SPINOUTS:
For this spinout, just plant one of your heel wheels on the ground out
in front of you and spin around it. The only tricky part is that the
pivot heel wheel may roll a little, so keep some downward pressure on
it. It probably helps to keep your pivot leg straight and slightly
locked to help stabilize the pivot.

A variation on heel-drag spinouts is to use your brake-pad as the
pivot.

This stop looks pretty neat when going backwards, although you should
be careful to protect your knees if you have to abort. To perform this
backwards, start a heel-drag stop (you're skating backwards), carve
the skating foot behind and to the inside, and you should spin around
the heel wheel/brake.

* CURB RAMMING:
You approach the curb at around 90 degrees (i.e., straight on) and
lift your toes enough to clear the curb. This should jam your wheels
and runners into the curb. You should be prepared to compensate for
the sudden change in your motion.

An alternative curb ramming stop is to do a spinout near the curb and
ram the back of your skate into the curb.

Both these techniques cause quite a bit of shock to your skates
(especially at high speeds) so if you really love your skates you may
not want to do this stop too often 8-)

* POWER STOP/POWER SLIDE:
This is one of the most effective stops, and also one of the hardest.
To do this stop, you should be able to skate forwards and backwards
well, and also be able to flip front-to-back quickly.

There appear different approaches to learning the power stop. The end
result should be the same, or nearly so, but both are detailed below.
It is left to the reader to decide which one is easier to follow.

One way:

You can piece the power stop together by combining two things:
1. flip front to backward.
2. place one foot behind you and push the entire row of wheels at a
very sharp angle into the ground.

You can practice this by skating backwards, gliding, and then with
nearly all your weight on one foot, bring the other foot behind you,
perpendicular to your direction of travel (see the Backward Stepping
stop).

You should start out doing this while traveling slowly. Your wheels
should scrape a little. If they catch, you need to hold your braking
skate at a sharper angle. Once you get this down, you can practice
flipping front-to-back, coast a little, and then stop. Eventually, the
combination becomes one smooth move: just get the braking leg extended
as soon as you flip.

You can use any flip (mohawk, 3-turn, toe-pivot, etc.) for this stop.
This stop is good for hockey, and a good stop when going backwards
(especially at higher speeds). A power-stop using a jump turn is
called a chop stop (see following section).

The other way:

The second method involves one continuous motion instead of two: Skate
forward on an outside edge, while extending the free leg to the side.
All weight is on the skating leg. The free leg is dragged along the
ground. Now sharpen the turn on the outside edge of the skating leg
(with its knee greatly bent), and swing the free leg in front. This
continuous transition causes the skating leg to turn, so it's now
skating in reverse.

The key is to have all the weight on the skating leg. If you place any
weight on the free leg, you will go into a spin and lose control.

Some prefer this method because you do not need to go into a complete
power slide to stop. At any point in the continuous motion, you can
abort if something is going wrong. Only at higher speeds is it
necessary to completely turn the skating foot. There is less risk of
catching the free leg on an uneven surface because it is already
extended and dragging before you swing around.

If you have a WWW browser, check out Scott's power-sliding picture
tutorial.

* CHOP-STOP:
For skating forward or backward at low to moderate speeds. This is
much like the hockey stops done on ice except, since you can't shave
asphalt, you need to jump and turn both skates and hips perpendicular
to the direction of travel. Land with the skates at an angle (like in
the power stop) and push your wheels against the ground. To maintain
balance you can keep one skate mainly beneath you, while the other
goes out forward to stop you.

Most of the shredding will be done on the lead skate, where the inside
of your lead leg should make a sharp angle against the ground.

Basically what this is, is a power stop using a jump turn.

The jump isn't so much for air time as for lifting your skates off the
ground so you can reposition them sideways. The lower the jump you can
get away with, the less off balance you should be when you land.
However, if you don't jump high enough you may not be able to place
your lead skate at a sufficient angle. Caution should be used even
more so in this stop than in others.

The particulars of the jump aren't crucial. You can lead with one foot
followed by the other, and land in that order; or jump and land with
both feet at once. Pick whatever style you're most comfortable with.

* NEW YORK STOP:
Harder than even the power stop, the New York stop is mainly a power
stop but you don't turn your gliding foot! It doesn't appear that just
anyone can perform this stop, since it seems to require quite a bit of
knee flexibility. L = the track left by the left skate, R = ditto by
the right skate

------ direction of travel --- >

L---------------------- |
This stop requires your knee to be twisted inward (not a natural
position, by far), so if you can't do it, I wouldn't say it's a big loss
since it seems to have above average potential to cause injury if
done wrong.

* "WILE E. COYOTE" STOP:

This stop requires brakes on both skates and is very reminiscent of
cartoon charaters, Wile E. Coyote in particular 8-), when they stop
on their heels after going very, very, VERY fast (meep meep! 8-).

* COMBINATION/SEQUENCE STOPS:

Once you've got some stops perfected, the next thing you might want to
try is a sequence or combination of several stops. These are
definitely more fun and a bit more showy. These are some of the
random combination stops that I do. You can easily make up your own.
(Sequences are denoted with "->" and combos with "+")

S-stop
Crossover stop -> turn opposite direction -> toe-drag spinout.
So for example, you can crossover stop to the left, ride your
left skate and do a toe drag (right toe pivot) while turning to
the right to complete the S-pattern.

Double crossover stop
crossover stop -> inverted crossover stop (or vice versa). This
also traces out an S-pattern.

Braking T-stop
T-stop with non-brake foot + brake with brake-pad

Braking toe-drag
Brake with brake-pad + toe-drag on other skate The braking
toe-drag and the braking T-stop are the two of the most
effective ways to stop that I know of when cruising.

Braking spread-eagle
Spread-eagle (follow w/ spinout optional) with braking skate in
front + braking with brake-pad

Braking glide stop
glide -> reverse feet positions -> brake-pad The effect is that
of shuffling your feet quickly and stopping. (Glide: a heel-toe
glide, one skate out, and one skate back; use only the back toe
and front heel wheels. The back skate should be the one with
the brake since the assembly gets in the way on the front
skate)

__________________________________________________________________________

Tony Chen

unread,

Feb 1, 1995, 7:07:40 PM2/1/95

Posted-By: auto-faq 3.1.1.2
Archive-name: rec-skate-faq/part2

Rec.skate Frequently Asked Questions: Part 2
_________________________________________________________________

[IMAGE] *

TABLE OF CONTENTS
* Inline Wheels
* The Bearing Maintenance File

_________________________________________________________________

Inline Wheels

(written May 17, 1992)
(last changed Nov 12, 1994)

TECHNICAL INFO

Inline wheels are made of polyurethane. Although wheels are classified
on three criteria: diameter, durometer (hardness), and rebound, you
will usually see only the diameter and durometer marked on the wheels
(e.g.,76mm 78A, or 70mm 82A, etc.).

[IMAGE]

DIAMETER

The diameter of the wheel means simply how tall the wheel is. The
usual diameters are 80mm, 77mm, 76mm, 72.5mm, 72mm, and 70mm. More
recently, 82mm wheels have been introduced. Also new are short stunt
wheels, 52mm in diameter, with a high durometer to allow for rail
slides and other tricks.

Generally, racing skates will fit up to 82mm wheels, high-end skates
up to 77mm, and the rest of the models up to 72.5mm. Although these
are the designed ranges, skates can take slightly taller wheels than
what they're supposed to. For instance, the Bauer XF/3's, with the
front and heel wheel spacers moved in (for a shortened wheelbase), can
use 76mm wheels for all four positions. Extension modification (i.e.,
scraping down) of skates are need for wheels much larger than the
intended size.

Although still subject to some technical debate, in general, taller
wheels will let you go faster (i.e., 76mm are faster than 70mm) but
there is a point where taller wheels will only make you go slower with
added weight (harder to start rolling) and less manueverability.

Shorter wheels are cheaper, but in general don't last as long since
they have less material to wear down overall.

70mm 72mm 76mm 80mm
Average speed____________________________________________Fast
Quick Turns______________________________________Slower Turns

DUROMETER (HARDNESS)

Durometer is a relative hardness measure frequently used for rubber
and plastic products. There are several scales, with the "A" scale
(hence the 78A, etc.) used for wheels. The number is the rating from
0-100, with 0 being no resistance and 100 being very hard plastic.

Inline wheels generally run from 74A to 93A, with 78A, 82A, and 85A
being the most common. For outdoors, the softer the wheel, the better
the shock absorption on bumps, cracks, pebbles and other vibrations.
The trade-off is that softer wheels last a shorter time. Harder
wheels, since they have less drag, are preferred on indoor surfaces
which are usually very smooth.

Hockey players may prefer harder wheels because it allows them to
slide somewhat.

74A 78A 82A 85A
Average Wear_________________________________Longest Wear
High Grip____________________________________Average Grip
High Rebound______________________________Average Rebound
Low Body Weight__________________________High Body Weight
Smooth Ride_____________________________________Hard Ride

REBOUND

This is how much the wheel will return the energy when your wheels are
compressed. So a higher rebound, will provide more response on each
stroke. There doesn't seem to be a rebound scale (is there?) as there
is for durometer.

PROFILE

The profile of a wheel is defined by the cross-section of the wheel,
and it affects how much of the wheel is in contact with the ground.
This is a wheel's "footprint." The larger the footprint, the greater
the traction and stability. Many made-for-hockey wheels tend to have a
wide footprint for those sharp turns. Racing wheels on the other hand,
tend to be more narrow and thinner.

Concave Wide Round Race (normal)
Best Cornering___________________________________Less Stable
Slow____________________________________________________Fast
Longest wear____________________________________Average Wear

HUBS

The hubs are very important to the overall performance of the wheel.
The hubs are essentially two parts: the bearing core (the part that
holds the bearing) and the spokes (the part that connects to the wheel
material. Not all wheels are spoked, but most good third-party wheels
have them for cooling and weight reduction.

Note that, the larger the hub and core, the lighter the wheel, but
also the less wheel material that can be put on the wheel. You're
trading durablity for weight in essence.

If the bearing core is slightly too large (as it often is for shoddy
wheels), it will not hold the bearings tightly enough. This can allow
the wheel to become "cocked" so that it rubs against the frame. Only
one wheel needs to be out of alignment to mess things up.

Misalignment is a serious problem, not only because it causes drag,
but because it heats up the wheel. This will soon cause it to seperate
from the hub and expand, and eventually destroy the wheel.

I have noticed this on several sets of Kryptonics Turbo-cores. The
first sign is that the wheels creak as you switch your weight on the
skate. If you remove the wheel from the frame, you can see an arc
clear of dirt and dust where the wheel was rubbing.

If you notice this, put your hands on your wheels after a long fast
skate and see if any of them are much warmer than the others. If so,
they are probably rubbing.

This can happen a lot easier on frames like the Mogema and the
Darkstar that have very close tolerences and the side of the frame is
close to the side of the wheel. I'm not sure if is as big as a problem
(or a problem at all) for recreational skates like the Aeroblade. The
creaking is bothersome in any event.

Closed Core Tri Spoke Core Racing Core
High Wheel Weight_________________________________Low Wheel Weight
Longest Wear__________________________________________Average Wear

AXLE KITS

Another important aspect of your wheels is the axles. There are
several axle replacement/upgradd kits (such as the Hyper Hop-up Kit
and the Blading Edge Kit) designed to let your wheels roll much faster
than your stock axles will allow. These kits are usually made of
aluminium or steel. What they consist of is two axle bolts per wheel,
each screwing into the threaded spacer in the wheel (the part that is
sandwiched between the bearings). This prevents overtightening, which
is common with regular axle systems, and will allow your
wheels/bearings to spin freely. When putting your wheels back, make
sure the wheels are just snug enough so they don't move around.
Anything more just increases the friction on your bearings.

[IMAGE]

MAINTENANCE

Wheels of any durometer will wear out, given enough mileage. There's
only so much polyurethane on your wheels, while there's thousands of
miles of asphalt out there. Much less wearage occurs for indoor
skating, however.

In general, your wheels are due for maintenance when your skates are
much slower and not rolling as smoothly as when new. The inside edges
will wear more quickly, which you will eventually notice:

[IMAGE]

For you folks without the benefit of a graphics-ready computer:

new wheel worn wheel

There are two things you can do to get the most from your wheels:
rotate and flip. Rotating your wheels means to switch the positions of
the wheels. Different positions (like the heel or toe wheels) receive
varying amounts of wear. By rotating the wheels, you can even out the
wear on each wheel.

Flipping your wheels means to turn each wheel so that the worn edge
now faces the outside. This lets you wear down the other edge of the
wheels.

There are several patterns for wheel rotation. The one you use isn't
crucial, since there's no "magic" rotation formula that works for all
situations. The main point is to maintain an even wear on your wheels.
Often times you may find yourself swapping wheels at random until you
get a good wearage distribution on your skates.

Some common rotation patterns:

The front wheel is "1" and the back wheel is either "4" or "5".

For 3-wheel skates: 3->2, 2->1, 1->3

For 4-wheel skates: 42, 31 OR 4->3 3->2 2->1 1->4

For 5-wheel skates: 5->3, 4->2, 3->1, 2->5, 1->4
OR 5->3, 4->5, 3->2, 2->4

Whiled you're rotating and flipping your wheels, you might as well
wipe off your skates, rails, wheels and bearings with a damp cloth.
Some people wipe down their skates everytime they go out, even if they
don't do any rotation, but I recommend you do it at least everytime
you rotate your wheels. This keeps the amount of dirt on your skates
and wheels to a minimum, which helps keeps grit out of your bearings.

ROCKERING YOUR SKATES

Having skates non-rockered means the axles and wheels are all at the
same height. This is the way the skates come when you buy then
(usually). What many skates allow you to do is to change the height of
some or all of the axles, to provide a different "blade" to skate on.
Rockered skates then, have the middle two wheels lower relative to the
front and heel wheels. This is accomplished by having oval spacers
with an offset axle-hole; each spacer can have an up or down position.

Racing skates are also adjustable, but only in the horizontal
direction, allowing for a longer or shorter wheelbase.

Although subject to some disagreement, many skaters find rockering
provides much more maneuverability due to the curved "blade" of the
wheels. Whether you rocker or not is really up to you. Many hockey
players prefer to have their skates rockered for sharper turns on the
court, while racers keep their blades flat for more stability at high
speeds (rockers at high speed will produce speed wobble). Artisitic
skaters may also prefer rockered, while extreme skaters may opt to
keep them flat.

Depending on your skates, there are various rockering configurations
possible. If your skates can adjust the height of only the middle two
wheels, you can have your skates flat or rockered:

Flat : ==frame==

1 2 3 4

Rockered: ==frame==
1 4
2 3

If your skates can adjust the height of all four wheels then you have
the positions of

short even rocker: ==frame== (wheels closer to boot, for more
control)
1 4
2 3

tall even rocker: ==frame== (taller, for sharper turns)

1 4
2 3

front-lift rocker: ==frame== (a little more stable than regular
rocker)
1
2 3 4

front-lift, : ==frame== (tilts skates forward)
rear-down, rocker 1
2 3
4

Wheels generally run from $4.25 to $8.00, depending on the quality and
size of the wheel. Some inline wheel manufacturers: Kryptonics, Hyper,
Labeda, FR, UFO, Wear and Tear, Cyko, Ultimate, Labeda, Cozmo, Grizzly
Gear, Kuzak, Rolleredge, Brakerwheel. .

_________________________________________________________________

The Bearing Maintenance File

(written May 2, 1992)
(last changed Jan 6, 1995)
Compiled and edited by Tony Chen

CONTENTS:
* General Info
* Sealed or Shielded?
* Bearing ratings
* How to maintain your bearings
+ 1st method : If you don't mind taking off the seals.
+ 2nd method : If you don't want to pry off the seals.

GENERAL INFO

Inline skates all use 608 bearings. The "608" means that the bearings
are from the 600 series, with a 8mm inner diameter (the width of the
hole, i.e., internal bore). The "6" appears to be for the 6mm
difference between the inner and outer radii (from the outside edge to
the edge of the hole).

608 bearings are also the standard size for skateboard bearings. Quad
skates use either type 608 (8mm internal bore) or type 627 (7mm
internal bore). The 608's for quads are the outdoor bearings. If your
bearings have letters following the "608" (like "S", "Z", or even "ZZ"
or "SS") it is the manufacturer's way of denoting sealed or perhaps
double shielded bearings. An "RS" label means shielded but that the
shields are removeable (i.e., serviceable bearings). To make sure what
they mean you should probably check with the manufacturer, since it
can vary from company to company.

A little cross-reference on part numbers for bearings, the 7MM ones
are for quality indoor skates, the 8MM ones are used for in-lines,
other indoor skates and skateboards.

Double Shielded:
NTN Fafnir MRC ND SKF HCH YW
7MM 627-ZZ 37KDD 37FF 77037 R7-2Z 627Z 60027
8MM 608-ZZ 38KDD 38FF 77038 R8-2Z

Double Sealed (neoprene rubber):
NTN Fafnir MRC ND SKF
7MM 627-LL 37PP 37ZZ 99037 R7-2RS
8MM 608-LL 38PP 38ZZ 99038 R8-2RS

Single shielded/sealed bearings usually delete one of the doubled
prefix/suffix characters. (Thanks go to George for the above chart).

Bearings for in-lines generally come grease filled. Some bearings like
GMNs are sold either greased or oiled (but usually greased).

Some bearing manufacturers are: NMB (very common as a stock ABEC-1
bearing in production skates), Powell Swiss "Bones", GMNs, Fafnirs,
Black-Hole, Twincam, M&A Smith Stealth, (Super) Sonic, Terminator,
Hyper (Boss & RPM), FKD, NHBB, GMBH, Yak, DF, Grizzly, and many
others.

SEALED OR SHIELDED?

There are basically two types of bearings: shielded vs sealed. Very
likely you will have shielded bearings, which all stock skates come
with (as far as I know). Shields make it hard for dirt and grime to
get in, but they certainly aren't dust or watertight. For superior
protection against the elemnts, you need sealed bearings.

There are three kinds of shielded bearings: 1) two shields (metal), 2)
one metal shield & one pop-out cap for maintanence, 3) two pop-out
caps. If you have types 2 or 3, you'll have an easier time re-lubing
your bearings (see below)

Sealed bearings have a teflon or rubber lip seal that actually touches
the race and come packed with a fairly heavy grease. These are quite
impervious to dust or water. Rollerblade sells sealed bearings under
the name Max Trainers. You may find other brands as well. The
advantage is that they should last a long time without any maintenance
at all. The trade-off is that these bearings generally cost more and
you also encounter a much higher rolling resistance. Slower bearings
are not necessarily bad, since many people like the added resistance
for a better workout.

BEARING RATINGS

Bearings are rated on the ABEC (the Annular Bearing Engineering
Council) scale. There are many brands of bearings out on the market
now, although you should know that some are just bearings from the
same factory, just labeled differently. Some brands are NMB, Powell
Swiss (commonly called Bones bearings), GMN, Fafnirs, Black-Hole,
YAKs, Twin-cam, M&A Smith Stealth, (Super) Sonic, Terminator, Hyper
(Boss & RPM), FKD, NHBB, GMBH, DF, Grizzly.

ABEC-1 is considered the lowest precision with ABEC-5's being the
highest. You may still find cheaper skates with bearings not even
rated on the ABEC scale (primarily on "toy" in-lines and real
low-end/kids skates).

Buying bearings rated any higher than ABEC-5 will probably not do any
good since they aren't be meant for use in in-lines. The higher
precision will be lost to contaminating dust and dirt anyway. (If it's
speed you want, cutting down wind-resistance and improving your
technique is a better way.)

Really precise bearings are only used in high speed (read: rotational)
applications, as in machinery. The next higher grade up from in-line
bearings are in machines which are rotating at speeds of at least
10,000 rpm which is around 80+ mph. You probably won't want to go that
fast on your skates 8-) At 50,000 rpm you would be traveling 400+ mph.
So which happens first? the wheels melting, or the skin ripping off
the skater? Gives new meaning to shredding 8-)

WHEN TO CLEAN AND RE-LUBRICATE YOUR BEARINGS

Exposure to dirt and water are the main reason that your bearings
slow down. Bad bearings will be ones which don't let your wheels spin
for a respectable amount of time (the definition of "respectable"
depends on on your type of bearings). If you hear or feel the
vibrations of metal rubbing on metal, chances are your bearings are in
need of some maintenance.

If some of the balls or bearing surfaces have become roughened,
there's basically nothing you can do. They won't get any better, but
they may last a long time anyway. You can always replace your bearings
a few at a time.

Take care of your bearings by cleaning and preping them as needed.
Assuming normal usage, they should last through several sets of
wheels, depending on how much skating you do.

REPLACING YOUR BEARINGS

You probably want to replace some of your bearings if (1) any of them
them have somehow stopped spinning well, despite all the cleaning you
do or (2) you want to change to different types of bearings (racing or
sealed or whatever).

HOW TO TAKE CARE OF YOUR BEARINGS

1st Method: Taking the shields off
1. Remove your wheels from the skates, and push the bearings out with
a spare bushing (the plastic/metal part that goes between the
bearings) or one of the several types of bearing tools available
on the market.

2. Now there's three types of situations you'll be in:
+ If you have shielded bearings with pop-out caps (Powell Swiss
or Black Hole brands), simply pry/pop out the plastic cap on
each bearing.
+ If you have other serviceable bearings like Twin-cams or YAKs
you need to pop out the snap rings before you take off the
shields (use a small screwdriver to snap out the snap rings).
+ For non-serviceable bearings like NMBs, GMNs (Germans), or
sealed bearings, FIRST make this decision: do you want to
take the shields off?

Some people tell you to never pry off a shield/seal, some say it's
okay. It's really up to you. In general, if you think you will be
doing a lot of maintainence on your bearings, you are much better
off taking the shields off. Whatever you do, the new lubrication
always helps.

NOTE: if you have sealed bearings you might not want to pop the
covers since you could ruin the seal integrity a little, which is
what you're paying extra for in the first place. Still, I have some
people say they put their bearings back together with no harm, so it
is possible.

If you decide no then skip down to the section marked 2nd Method.

If you decide yes then carefully puncture or pry off the shield
(or seal) on one side. Use a very small screwdriver, and pry along
the edge of the shield until you can get under it and pop it off.
If this is difficult, you can always push the screwdriver into the
shield (or tap it through (lightly!) with a hammer or heavier
tool). You don't need a whole lot of force since the shields
aren't all that thick or hard.

When removing the covers of entire sets of bearings at once, be
careful to only take off one cover per bearing. Otherwise you'll
be left with a shieldless/sealless bearing (which won't last long
against outdoor conditions).

Once you have the cover off, you should be able to see the ball
bearings inside, held in place by a retainer. You won't need the
old metal covers anymore. In Bones bearings the cap is ALSO the
brace, so you won't see a brace. Bones users should obviously keep
the plastic cap when reassembling their bearings.

NOTE: You don't want to take the ball bearings out since they
aren't meant to be removed and replaced.

3. Soak the bearings in paint thinner, kerosene, Simple Green, or any
other handy solvent. The choice of solvent isn't crucial so long
as you can get all the dirt and old grease cleaned out. However,
to be good citizens on this here green earth, I'd suggest using
one of the biodegradeable cleaners.

jHandy tip: if you're using Simple Green, use it in the
concentrated form, and also heat it up. This will speed up your
cleaning time significantly. Another very good environmentally
sound cleaner is the citrus based desgreaser called Finish Line.
It has a KB value of 110 vs mineral spirits (35) and xylene (95).

Avoid low-flash point solvents like gasoline, xylene, lacquer
thinner, etc. which are dangerously flammable. Also wear
latex/chem lab gloves if possible. Solvents are no fun to ingest
or absorb through your skin. An alternative is to use a pair of
tongs or tweezers to handle your bearings.

How long you soak depends on how dirty and dried out your bearings
have gotten. Previously maintained bearings won't need to soak
very long. Bearings that have gone dry and have lots of grit in
them may need to soak overnight, or even several days.

If necessary use a brush or swirl your bearings around in your
container to make sure everything breaks loose. Small coffee cans,
peanut jars, or even those little black film canisters, all make
decent containers. Dave Woodall (woo...@adrs1.dseg.ti.com) has
his own way of swirling. He uses a battery operated drink mixer
and spins his bearings to cleanliness. He says it works really
fast, so if you like, try it out 8-)

You don't really need large amounts of solvent. Just enough to
immerse your bearings. You also don't need to refill with clean
solvent with each bearing unless the solvent you were using has
gotten really dirty. The essential thing is that the dirt and
grease is broken up. Step 4 will remove most of the gunk.

WD-40 is generally not recommended as a solvent since it leaves a
sticky, dust attracting film on the bearings. Note, however, that
some people swear by WD-40. It has become somewhat of a
heavily-debated topic.

Ultrasonic cleaners are ideal for cleaning bearings. If you have
access to one, you can clean your bearings en mass and avoid
getting your hands dirty. An interesting supplement is described
below: Simple Green. Just soak the parts in pure Simple Green and
rinse with water. Thoroughly dry everything off and lubricate
immediately, since Simple Green can leave a water-attracting film
This can make the oil-free metal start to rust almost instantly!
Parts come out much cleaner and much faster than with other
solvents. You should stay cleaner and there are no nasty fumes to
inhale. Simple Green should be available in most grocery or
hardware stores.

4. Now rinse out your bearings with hot, soapy water to make sure you
clear out all the solvent. You now have some clean bearings.

Clean, unlubricated bearings appear to have the lowest amount of
unloaded friction, but don't expect them to last very long if you
skate on them. After a fairly short time, the surface of the balls
will start to flake and roughen and they won't spin very well.

5. Use a hair dryer or just air/sun dry to make sure that all traces
of water are gone. Using a hair dryer or basking in the sun also
preps the bearing nicely by heating the metal somewhat.

6. Now lubricate with your favorite lubricant. Lubricant choice
always seem to be somewhat preferential in my experience. Lots of
people find one lube that works for them and they just stick with
it. It's hard to try out multiple lubricants and get a thoroughly
accurate comparison throughout all types of skating conditions. 1)
people don't always have the extra money to do so, 2) to change
lubes you need to clean and relube (unless you have an extra set
of bearings) and 3) there's still no real good way to measure how
well a lube helps speed up or slow down your skating. A no-load
"finger-flick" spin test doesn't really cut it since it doesn't
entirely translate into the equivalent rolling resistance with
your weight on it.

Ideally, you'd have an indoor incline and/or flat surface,
multiple sets of identical bearings for each lube, and you'd see
which one gave you the most glide. Of course, this still doesn't
take into account how fast the lube dries or bleeds from the
bearings, or how easily it collects or repels dust/grime/water,
and on and on.

In the end, it doesn't make a huge difference unless you're into
serious racing. Your main choice will be choosing betwen oil,
cream/grease, telfon based lubes, (bicycle) wax/paraffin, and
whatever else is out there. Most people end up using grease or
oil. Oiled bearings have slightly less resistance, but need to be
maintained more often (as often as once a week). It is very
helpful to have a little hypodermic style oiler with a long needle
to let you put the oil right where you want it.

Grease works well because after a while most of it gets shoved out
of contact with the balls and only a little bit smears onto the
workings. However, newly greased (or heavy oil) bearings, will
take a while to expel any extra grease and move the rest out of
the way.

For oiling, light oil, like sewing machine oil, or 5W-20 motor oil
is a good choice. Household oils (3-in-one, etc) may gum up after
a while. Some people recommend that you use a 50-50 mixture of
lighter fluid and baby oil to lubricate your bearings. This mix
should result in not having to clean them out as often, only
lubricate more often.

In any case, most mail-order shops sell their own brand of
lubricant, as do many of the bearing manufacturers (e.g., Bones
and BlackHole).

Let the bearings sit for an hour, and wipe them off.

7. 7. Put one bearing back into the wheel, with the open face towards
the inside of the wheel. Insert the bushing and then put on the
second bearing (with the open face towards the inside again). It
is pretty hard for contaminants to get into the bearings from the
inside.

2nd Method: Keeping the shields on

First do Step 1 (from 1st Method).

If your bearings are permanently sealed (or you don't want to remove
the seals) you can still soak in solvent (see step 3) for several
hours or as long as you feel necessary. Enough solvent should soak
through to remove some of the grease.

Then you can lubricate the seams and/or press some in with your
fingers. Enough oil should seep through to lubricate your bearings
(see step 6).

_________________________________________________________________

*This image is Copyrighted 1994 (c) by Anthony D. Chen. Permission is
granted to use this logo in World Wide Web HTML files so long as this
copyright notice is included as either an HTML comment alongside the
invokation (IMG SRC or HREF or otherwise) of the logo, or in the
visible text.

The image may not be sold for profit, nor incorporated in commercial
documents or merchandise without prior written permission of the
copyright holder.

_________________________________________________________________

Tony Chen

unread,

Feb 1, 1995, 7:07:54 PM2/1/95

Posted-By: auto-faq 3.1.1.2
Archive-name: rec-skate-faq/part3

Rec.skate Frequently Asked Questions: Part 3
_________________________________________________________________

[IMAGE] *

REC.SKATE FAQ - PART 3: (ROLLER)HOCKEY

(last changed Feb 5, 1994)

Contents:
- general hockey FAQ
- info on sticks

===============================================================================
=

Inline Hockey FAQ File
----------------------

Original preface to the Hockey FAQ, by Thomas Darling:

This file reflects the observations of our small group's
trial-and-error approach to organizing and playing hockey on
inline skates, as well as advice from other rec.skate and
rec.sport.hockey readers. We've done a lot of experimenting
with gear, play, etc. and it is hoped that our experiences
will be helpful to others getting involved in this fun and
fast-paced sport.

Thomas no longer had time to maintain this portion fo the FAQ, so I've
incorporated some (long-overdue) additions from my own experience with
my local hockey club and from others who have sent e-mail to me. Sorry
about the delay folks 8-)

Feel free to send in any comments, ideas, or suggestions.

-Tony Chen
adc...@garnet.acns.fsu.edu

===============================================================================
=

Topics:
------
o Gear
- Sticks
- Pucks
- Padding
- Helmets
- Eye Protection
- Goalie gear

o Skates
- Which type to get
- Rockering
- Wheels

o Techniques
- STICK TURNS/STOPS
- GOALIE

o Surfaces

o Rules

o Practice Techniques
- Hockeyball

o Credits

======
GEAR
======

STICKS (See also, Nancy's article below, titled "Selection of Hockey Sticks")
------

Many of our players use standard street hockey sticks, with wooden shafts
and plastic blades. These seem to survive the surface with minimal wear.
However, those more experienced players (former ice hockey players all)
prefer wooden ice hockey sticks, with taped blades, for superior puck
control. These obviously wear down a lot faster than on ice, being scraped
across concrete and leant on for power turns. Once the blade is taped, a
razor is used to trim off the bottom 1cm or so to prevent fraying.

Perhaps the benefits of wooden ice hockey sticks are predominantly
psychological, based on the familiarity factor. But to those of us who
use them, they "feel" better and therefore give us better results.

If you decide to use a plastic-bladed street hockey stick, you should
make sure to get one long enough for you to use when on your skates;
most street hockey sticks are designed to be used on foot. There are many
schools of thought on determining stick length, which like anything else,
eventually comes down to matters of personal preference and style of play.
But as a rule of thumb for beginners, try to get a stick that comes up to
somewhere between your chin and nose. You can always cut it later if you
wish.

Todd offers these additional suggestions:

"I work closely with some friends [who] own a Hockey store out here in
the San Jose/San Francisco area; we have used several different types of
sticks on the street surfaces. One of the best sticks to use on any
street surface is the KOHO 2200 Ultimate, with a poly-tech blade on the
end of a wooden hockey stick. It does not wear thin as quick as a mylec
stick... Easton makes an aluminum street hockey stick...it is a good
stick, but not better than regular hockey aluminum versions... The last
stick to try is the Bauer Street Hockey stick: all wood with a poly-tech
blade on the end, just for street hockey use."

"Mylec blades, you can go through 1-2 a month if playing 3-4 times a week.
I've gone that route too."

And this from Michael Quinn :"For a stick, I
used an old ice hockey stick with a plastic replacement
blade. Incidentally, I was up in Boston last week and saw a neat looking
rubber brake that screws onto the shaft of a hockey stick near the blade.
I didn't get a chance to try one out though. They sell them at Sports
Etc. on Massachusetts Avenue in Arlington."

Comments from anyone who has tried this stick-mounted brake would be
appreciated.

PUCKS
-----

Sun Hockey makes a nifty three-wheeled puck called the "Hot Puck." The
puck is hard rubber, and the "wheels" are three teflon balls that protrude
through the top and bottom.
Advantages: It appears to be regulation size and weight, and it
feels great against the stick. It's an extremely cool
design.
Disadvantage: It doesn't work. Even on the most ideal surface
(we tried it on a tennis court-type deck), it bounces,
flips, and ends up rolling on its edge more than on
the "wheels." I really wish they'd come up with a
better functioning design, because the feel and idea
are sound.

Since the Sun puck doesn't happen, we use Mylec street hockey balls. They
come in three different colours, coded for different temperatures. The
orange one works best so far; minimal bounce, but a bit light. Be
aware that the temperature type of the puck is important; we've heard
of a warm-weather ball that shattered when used in cold weather.

Also be aware that there are cheaper balls out there, and some of them
suuuuuuck. We've even encountered one that was unevenly weighted and
textured. Not good. Since the Mylec balls are only a couple of dollars,
there's no reason not to get the real thing.

Nobody's completely happy with this compromise, but it's the best option
we've seen so far for outside play.

As for inside play, Marc adds:

"When we play outside, we usually use an orange Mylec, but it bounces too
much for inside play so there we use a Viceroy, which also weighs about
twice as much. They are made in Canada, and I don't know where you might
get them other than a good well stocked hockey shop. We all tend to use
the Viceroy in tournaments."

From: David Aronson

Pucks:
In the roller hockey league that I am in. We use a plastic
Cosmo puck that is filled with a substance that is similar to little
while beads with a kind of thick petroleum jelly. They work great
indoors and outside. I have used them on wood, tennis courts, and
somewhat smooth blacktop with good results. The advantage is the weight
of the puck keeps it from getting up on edge.

From: myself

Our club uses the Jofa speed pucks exclusively. We play on an indoor roller-
rink, so the surface is very smooth, and design of the Jofa pucks makes it a
very nice puck. Stay AWAY from the pucks with plastic "bearings" inside them.

They don't work outside, they don't work inside. The Jofa pucks are spoked
with the weight on the edge and have 7 or 8 screw-in pegs on each face which
lets it glide fairly fast.

From: rick...@ucs.orst.edu (Jeremiah "Phlegm" Rickert) Message-Id:

Pucks: For indoor play, by far the best puck is the Jofa puck made for Roller
Hockey International. It has "bumps" that are screwed into the edge of the
disc that can be changed depending what surface you are on. It flies like an
Ice-hockey puck, it slides like an ice-hockey puck, if feels like an
ice-hockey puck. It resembles a wheel, it has "Spokes" in the middle that are
made of light aluminum, and the disk is made our of hard rubber that doesn't
bounce. It is ideal for roller hockey. It costs about $12 but it is worth it
in every way.

Oh, and I forgot to mention, that the becuase the majority of the weight of
the Jofa puck is on the edge, it rarely rolls ever...even on asphalt, if you
insert the pegs for asphalt, it slides just fine.

I am on a college roller-hockey team, I have played for about 5 years, so I
speak from experience.

Goalie Equipment: If you are using a puck, using baseball catchers mitts
work well only if you remove some of the padding. If you are using a ball,
you almost have to use a real hockey-catch glove, or a baseball fielder's
glove, the ball pops out of the catcher's mitt because it doesn't have enough
weight to carry it into the pocket.

Along the lines of pads. I prefer ice hockey pads. I am a goalie, I have
tried everything. Ice hockey pads, are ideal for using any kind of puck.
They are all right for using a ball, but you can't feel the ball all of the
time, so sometimes you don't know if you made the save or not. If you only
use a ball, the mylec or the cooper streets pads are fine, they are plastic
and make a huge hollow thwuuuping sound when the ball hits them. Playing in
skates is fine too. Leg Kicks are quicker, you can move from side to side
quicker, you can move forwards and backwards, without taking a stride, it's
then easier to cut down angles and move because you don't have to move your
legs much.

PADDING
-------

Checking is a bit less frequent in the inline game, which is good, because
the summer heat makes heavy padding out of the question. Hardshell knee
pads are a necessity, because everyone occasionally collides with the boards
or the ground. Elbow pads are also highly recommended.

Those nifty wristguards are probably a good idea for skating and training,
but for all practical purposes it is impossible to hold a hockey stick with
them. This is OK, because you can use the stick to break your fall in many
circumstances, and you can't build up huge speeds in a small rink anyway.

Opinions vary on hand protection. Some players prefer ice hockey gloves.
They provide superb protection against sticks, decent padding for when you
get crunched, and enough finger coverage to make hand passes safe. On the
other hand, they tend to be very hot. Many of us opt instead for
weightlifting gloves, the fingerless mesh kind with leather palms. These
allow your hands to stay cool, yet prevent the loss of skin when you're
knocked sprawling. They allow good stick control. Just don't go grabbing
the puck with 'em, lest your fingers be rolled over/chopped off.

(Note: Weightlifting gloves are difficult to dramatically throw down. So
if you get into a violent confrontation, you may incur a few bruises while
trying frantically to peel them off. If you play this way, be careful.)

Another option is to use a cheap pair of Nylon hockey gloves. They're
still a bit warm, but considerably lighter than leather gloves and you're
less apt to be concerned about beating them up.

From: mfo...@alliant.backbone.uoknor.edu (Marc Foster)
Date: Sun, 29 Nov 1992 16:02:44 GMT

On a related note, I also got a chance that night to try out the new Mylec
goalie leg pads. While they provide much better protection to the inside
of your thigh (how many of you have donut-shapped bruises there???), I thought
they were very bulky and hard to move around in. Dropping to your knees or
lieing on your side - then getting back up, seemed very difficult. I think
the reason may have to do with the hard corners of the pads, the protect, but
prevent mobility.

From: David Aronson

Padding:
I would highly suggest the following padding for any game,
HELMET, cup, shin pads, gloves, and elbow pads. The most inportant is
the helmet which should be a real hockey helmet. Make sure that the
helmet has been approved for hockey,( some Jofa's have a sticker
disclaiming them from any contact sport). I would suggest CCM or
Cooper. Both are about $50 new, less used. A cup is very cheap, but
very nice to have in games. A pair of shin pads will cost from $20 to
$$$. Franklin makes a pair of pads that are a hard shell knee pad with
a foam rubber shin extension for about $20(don't quote me on the price).
Easton makes a pair of hard shells pads with seperate hard shells over
foam on the knees and shins for about $35(The also have built-in
straps). All over shin pads cost require seperate velcro straps
securing them to your legs. If you are going to be skating outside make
sure not to use leather pads. A pair of hockey gloves cost from $25 to
$200. They protect your hands and wrists from sticks and the ground, I
suggest a pair of cheap hockey gloves. As far as elbow pads any will
do, I use a cheap pair of foam rubber pads. Wear a HELMET!!! You do
not need to crack your head on the ground.
For checking games you rry, we'll get to this section in the future)

GOALIE GEAR
-----------

A good mask is essential, regardless of puck type. Either a cage-type ice
hockey mask or an inexpensive Mylec mask will do. An ice hockey stick is
highly recommended, since they tend to be larger than their street hockey
counterparts. Any variety of blocker will suffice. If you're playing with
a ball of some kind rather than a puck, we've found that using a baseball
glove for a catcher will give good results.

In regards to leg pads, the cheapest Mylec ones appear to work the best.
Since they're made of hard plastic, a goalie can slide on his knees in
them, which improves effectiveness.

Marc [use...@constellation.ecn.uoknor.edu], a Texas hockey veteran, adds:
"When I goalie I usually wear a cage helmet (since I wear glasses), elbow
pads, a blocker on the right hand and a catcher's mitt in the left, a
catcher's chest protector on my chest and belly (with my Dead Wings jersey
over that), a cup and the Mylec leg pads, along with the skates. I
usually wear a t-shirt under the chest pad, also. I've suited up like
that twice a week all summer down here and have lost about 10 pounds.
Most other goalies in the Metroplex use either a large softball mitt or a
regular goalie's mitt, but I had the catcher's mitt to begin with and
find that I am used to it and can't use a regular glove very well."

========
SKATES
========

Which brand/model of skate largely depends on playing style and the ever-
important ice-hockey familiarity factor. As an ice-hockey player, I
use Bauer XS/5's with the brake removed. They're all laces, no buckles,
and are nice and light. They've got good bearings (hence decent speed)
and strong frames.

The most popular skate among our skaters is the Rollerblade Zetra 303.
It's a little heavy and clunky, but has an extremely durable boot, which is
good if you like to plant yourself in front of the goalie and get your
ankles whacked at a lot.

I also might recommend the Gretzky Ultra Wings. They're all buckles and
kind of heavy, but durable enough to stand up to hockey abuse.

The bottom line, really, is that you can make do with what you've got. One
of our best players uses el cheapo skates (Phantoms?), yet still manages to
come up with the breakaways and finesse plays.

From: myself

Yup, I agree with the above paragraph. Speed and finesse seem quite removed
from the quality of the skates. We have lots of okay players that have the
nifty Bauer ZT skates, but our best player has on the old Lightning 608's, with

wheels worn down to the hub.

Essentially, if you do lots of other types of skating, you can always use them
for hockey. I use my Aeroblades for hockey, and while they're not taking the
pounding quite as well as other skates would, they're holding up okay (so far).
Generally, I wouldn't recommend Aeros or any heavily vented skate for hockey.
With the number of collisions and rammings and taking slap shots point-blank,
you'd be better off with Lightning 608/TRSs or Bauer hockey skates.

ROCKERING
---------

None of us rocker our frames. I know that every book in the world says
that you should rocker them for hockey, but the difference in turning
ability (especially at high speeds) is negligible. All that appeared to
be seriously affected were speed, traction and stability, none for the
better.

WHEELS
------

So far, we haven't experimented greatly with different wheels. I've used both
hard and soft, and liked the hard ones better, since they last longer and feel
better on grinding stops and turns. Rollerblade makes a "Hockey Wheel" with
better perimeter width (to reflect the need for stopping/turning over
straightaway speed), but since they're hubless and generally cheap-looking,
nobody has picked any up yet. Any comments on these wheels would be welcome.

We've heard that "Turbo Core" type wheels (with spokes instead of solid
hubs) don't stand up to the stresses of hockey well. Those skaters I know
who use such wheels have reported no problems, but the net.consensus on
this is that "spoke" breakage does happen, so it bears repeating here.

From: David Aronson

Wheels:
I use hyper super-lites which are 72.5mm and 78a, they are fast
with good traction. I have used "Hockey-wheels" before and they seemed
to slip out from under me, but I have friends who sware by them. Just
make sure you have good bearing and axle-systems and the wheels won't
make a huge difference. I use axle systems on my skates that are made
from aircraft aluminum. You can't over-tighten the axles so all you do
is crank them down and you're ready(purchased through in-line sports)
$20.

From: myself

Opinion seem to vary a lot on which type of wheels to get. Some say the
special hockey wheels, with wider cross-sections and lower profiles give lots
of added stability. Most of rec.skaters say, heck with that, and use
Superlites or Redlines for speed. In the end, you should choose something
you're comfortable with. Don't go out and blow $50 on a set of wheels just
for hockey, unless you really want to. Our best and fastest skaters use real
crap wheels and only so-so skates. A whole lot of it is the technique, legs
and feet, believe me 8-)

============
TECHNIQUES
============

STICK TURNS/STOPS
-----------------

Many of us ice-hockey players are aggravated by the limited turning and
stopping ability of inline skates. A typical drag stop (rear foot 90
degrees against leading foot) works in most circumstances. But another
good technique is the stick stop.

In this stop, the skater begins a tight turn towards his stick side. For
this example, we'll use a right-handed skater. Right foot forward, he
makes a tight turn, putting his stick blade down (to the right) in the
process. He leans against the stick, grinding his left foot outwards,
until coming to a stop. With practice, one can even hang onto the puck
while executing this stop.

Sometimes, when going very fast, I find that I must crouch low to keep
pressure on the outer foot -- often to such a degree that the boot, instead
of the wheels, makes contact with the ground. This gets good results, but
is not recommended for less durable boots.

The same technique is used in the stick turn. The skater uses the same
combination of tight turn and stick friction, but instead of using the
stick as a mere brake, uses it as a pivot point to make a tighter turn and
continue on in a new direction.

GOALIE TECHNIQUES
-----------------

The best bet for goalies, in many cases, is simply not to wear skates. A
sneakered goalie has side-to-side mobility and backwards control that are
difficult to match on skates of any kind. As long as the goalie doesn't leave
the crease for extended periods (i.e. Ron Hextall lead-the-rush-up-ice
maneuvres), this makes for fair and fun gameplay.

As previously mentioned, hard plastic Mylec street hockey leg pads are
recommended. A good goalie can fearlessly slide about in them, making for
a more ice-like game.

==========
SURFACES
==========

Generally speaking, you're stuck with whatever your area offers. For
economical reasons, we've been playing on street-hockey decks, which have
asphalt or cement surfaces and decent boards all around. One such surface
is quite good; very smooth cement approaching tennis court quality. It's a
decent drive for most of us, but worth it; we've played on a rougher
surface and it's exhausting.

There are also commercial venues available in our area. One huge indoor
facility has a perfect surface, good nets, an electronic scoreboard, you
name it. It's also $70/hour, but with enough people playing a real game,
this can be cost-effective. I imagine similar facilities exist in most
major metropolitan areas.

=======
RULES
=======

Our goal is to be as ice hockey-like as possible. In the reduced size of
most street-hockey decks, 4 skaters per side is probably the realistic
maximum. And we'd like to someday have enough players for full 60-minute
change-on-the-fly games, but for the time being it looks like three 10
minute periods with no line changes and frequent timeouts.

When we can, we aspire to NHL rules. With 10-minute periods, half-length
penalties are probably best (1 minute or 2.5 minutes). Enforcement of
offsides and icing are a matter of taste; they make for less fluid gameplay
and are a distraction for single refs without benefit of linesmen. I'd be
interested in hearing how other players deal with this.

Best of luck to anyone getting started in the game; may you find all the
players you need and a prime surface. If you live in the Philadelphia/
South Jersey area, we invite you to join us! Interested parties can Email
me directly, or reach me on the Cellar BBS (the number is in my .sig).
We play Sundays, are still organizing for fall, and would welcome any new
participants.

From: myself

We play in an indoor rink, so we have blue lines and the creases marked
permanently, plus we have regulation goals and a good-sized rink (sorry,
don't have exact measurements). We usually play 4-on-4, and go to 5-on-5
when there's a larger than normal group that shows up. We play with
offsides, but no icing.

We self-referee, with a little help from the benches 8-) We don't play
with time limits, but we do line changes en masse (Usually we have at least
2-3 lines for offense, and 2-3 lines on defense) so everyone gets a fair
shake.

=====================
PRACTICE TECHNIQUES
=====================
Can't round up 8+ skaters and 2 goalies for a game? Here's a basic game
you can play with as few as 4 people that's fun and great practice for
basic hockey skills.

' "Hockeyball"
'
' Gear: Inline skates, sticks, pads, ball, chalk.
'
' Play Surface: Ideally, you'll want an area with clearly-defined edges.
' A low-traffic street, school driveway, or the like is ideal, since
' passes can be bounced off the curbs. With chalk, mark off end lines
' 150-200' apart (depending on skaters' respiratory health and number
' of players), as well as a faceoff mark at centre ice:
'
' curb -> ========================================================
' | |
' end line -> | x |
' | |
' ========================================================
'
' The rules are simple. To score a goal, a skater must cross his
' opponent's goal line WHILE IN CONTROL OF THE PUCK/BALL. If the
' ball goes over a team's end line with no one in control, that team
' takes the ball back into play from behind the line (the puck must
' then precede them over the line coming back into play).
'
' If the ball goes out of play, a faceoff will take place at the point
' of exit.
'
' After every score, begin again with a centre-ice faceoff.
'
' Play to a predetermined point (first to 7, for instance). No time
' limits.

Besides being a total blast (the Canadian equivalent of urban half-court
pickup basketball), this game is good practice for a variety of skills
including skating, passing, puck control, checking (the way we play it,
anyway -- this is optional) and basic strategy (crossing over and the
like).

If you want a different challenge, or to handicap a side, try playing
against a team with one or more players on sneakers instead of skates.
You'll be able to outrun them in long hauls, but they can kill you with
sudden stops/direction changes/accelleration/etc.

=========
CREDITS
=========

Thanks for the following for their field testing and other assistance in
the preparation of this file:

Anton "Slapshot" Shepps (LW), Dan Reed (LW), Chris "Nate" Collins (G),
Earl Scheib (D, no relation), Rachel MacGregor (D), Steve "Doc" Roth (D),
Rob "Franchise" Tedesco (RW), N.Y. State Assemblyman Allan K. Race (C,
Democrat), Heather "Hanover" Pfister (LW), Robert Jennings (G), and
"Pittsburgh" Bob Safier (C).

^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^\\\^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~
Thomas A. Darling \\\ Fact HQ Studio * record production * dance re-mixing
dar...@cellar.org \\\ music for film * The Cellar BBS:215/654-9184 * FACT
v~v~v~v~v~v~v~v~v~v~\\\~v~v~v~v~v~v~v~v~v~v~v~v~v~v~v~v~v~v~v~v~v~v~v~v~v~

From: fam...@sde.mdso.vf.ge.com (Famous Jonathan)
Subject: Hockey equipment
Date: 14 Sep 93 13:04:40 GMT

Gloves:
I have small hands, so what I use are a pair of the
largest junior size Cooper ice-hockey gloves. The palms tend
to wear through really quickly, but hand protection is good
and they are easy to slide on.
Other people I know have also worn lacrosse gloves to
play. They don't usually cost as much as ice hockey gloves, but
for street play they provide good protection farther up the wrist
and arm.

Stick:
Those plastic Mylec replacement blades are trash. Don't
bother. I liked the Mylec street hockey stick with the black blade -
the stick was cheap and it worked well. I liked the shorter stick
for maneuverability and ball control, but it was tough to get a
good shot from it.
Someone had posted against a Koho Street Revolution, but I've
been using one for a while. The shaft does flex, but the blade wears
well on cement and lasts well.

Puck:
Mylec ball seems to be the best, as everyone else here seems
to agree. So why does the IRHL use one of those crappy rolling pucks
that never seem to work?
Another puck we used was a roll of black tape with a small core.
After a good break-in period, it slides well and has the fell of a
regular puck. But it is heavy and probably requires real pads -
especially for the goalie.
I saw in the stores a new puck that had 6 knobs protruding from
a disc to be used for roller-hockey. I forget who makes it or what
it was called, but if anyone has used one, what did you think?

From: mfo...@alliant.backbone.uoknor.edu (Marc Foster)
Subject: FAQ Update: Goalie gear
Date: 3 Sep 1993 16:45:54 GMT

In article adc...@garnet.acns.fsu.edu (Tony Chen)
writes:

>REC.SKATE FAQ - PART 3: (ROLLER)HOCKEY (draft)

>______________
>Goalie Gear // A good mask is essential, regardless of puck type. Either
>___________// a cage-type ice hockey mask or an inexpensive Mylec mask
>will do. An ice hockey stick is highly recommended, since they tend to be
>larger than their street hockey counterparts. Any variety of blocker will
>suffice. If you're playing with a ball of some kind rather than a puck,
>we've found that using a baseball glove for a catcher will give good
>results.
>
>In regards to leg pads, the cheapest Mylec ones appear to work the best.
>Since they're made of hard plastic, a goalie can slide on his knees in
>them, which improves effectiveness.
>
>Marc [use...@constellation.ecn.uoknor.edu], a Texas hockey veteran, adds:
>"When I goalie I usually wear a cage helmet (since I wear glasses), elbow
>pads, a blocker on the right hand and a catcher's mitt in the left, a
>catcher's chest protector on my chest and belly (with my Dead Wings jersey
>over that), a cup and the Mylec leg pads, along with the skates. I
>usually wear a t-shirt under the chest pad, also. I've suited up like
>that twice a week all summer down here and have lost about 10 pounds.
>Most other goalies in the Metroplex use either a large softball mitt or a
>regular goalie's mitt, but I had the catcher's mitt to begin with and
>find that I am used to it and can't use a regular glove very well."

I thought I'd update my equipment list, as what I said a year ago is really
out of date (at least for me). I picked up a sponsorship down in the Metroplex
and was able to splurge on the good stuff:

The new Mylec catalog has a new blocker and goal glove in it. The blocker
(#570) is larger than the older Mylec model and can be bent up high along
the arm like real ice hockey blockers. The glove (#580) is built like an
ice-hockey glove and is much larger than the "shortstop mitt with a wrist
protector" glove they've sold in the past. After getting the glove broken
in, it snags balls just as well as pucks.

I nearly lost my teeth this summer wearing the Mylec cage mask (got kicked),
so I got a Jofa Goalie Combo helmet. Jofa takes their regular helmet, puts
a larger cage on it, and adds a throat protector. After getting popped a lot
(usually in warm-ups, when my teammates unload really hard shots on me), my
throat apprecitates this aquisition.

As for leg protection, I have found that adding a quality pair of ice hockey
pants to the Mylec leg pads does wonders for the inside thigh area. I have
a pair of Cooper pants, thought CCM and others are just as good. I also
dropped a size on those mylec leg pads, since the pants cover the upper front
thigh area now. Doing this increased my mobility a lot. I do wear some
knee pads _under_ the leg pads. The Mylec pads tend to leave the inside knee
area bare when you freeze the ball in a butterfly drop (watch Patrick Roy),
and if you play long enough, a permanent... and painfull bruise develops.

As for the chest and arms, I went with a Cooper BP9 chest protector and SA55
arm pads. However, I only wear the armpads indoors, since it's usually just
too hot to wear both pads playing outside (lost a lot more weight this summer).
Since my league up here at school is indoors, I'm padded to the max.

My stick is a Christian "Curtis Curve" goal stick. The stick handle is
S-curved at the grip for better balance. I also added a ton of weight at the
end of the handle so the center of gravity is right on your stick hand.
Works wonders.

And please, boys and girls, don't forget your cup (well, maybe not girls, I
never did ask Machelle Harris if she wears one).

>____________________
>Goalie Techniques // The best bet for goalies, in many cases, is simply
>_________________// not to wear skates. A sneakered goalie has
>side-to-side mobility and backwards control that are difficult to match on
>skates of any kind. As long as the goalie doesn't leave the crease for
>extended periods (i.e. Ron Hextall lead-the-rush-up-ice maneuvres), this
>makes for fair and fun gameplay.

Well, I have to wear skates, but I still come out of the crease a lot. I
have found that most novice to intermediate ability players can't deke very
well, hang onto the ball, and make a quality shot. So when I have a 1-on-1
or a shootout situation, I CHARGE the forward. It cuts down the shot angle,
and also intimidates the hell out of lesser players not usel, this ended up bei
ng a lot longer post than I anticipated. The bottom
line is... if yer gonna be a goalie, ya gotta get the pads. I saw a lot of
folks this summer playing more or less naked in the crease, and it just doesn't
work. 85 MPH+ slapshots aren't intimidating when you're fully loaded, and
all that gear really doesn't slow you down like you'd think.

Cheers,
Marc Foster

===========================================================================

From: pil...@ariel.lerc.nasa.gov (Nancy Piltch)
Subject: Selection of hockey sticks
Message-ID:
Date: 3 Dec 91 21:46:00 GMT

Sometime in the past Phil asked if anyone could write a guide to
selecting hockey sticks, which has apparently been met with
resounding silence. I think I can help, at least for those just
entering the sport. Bear in mind, though, that while I've played a
good deal of intramural and pick-up hockey, I've never had any
formal coaching, so I'm sure there are others more knowledgeable.
This will be especially true of the subtle differences among sticks
that will matter to expert players.

Please feel free to correct my misstatements, clarify what is unclear,
and add what I've left out.

The main criteria in selection of hockey sticks are "handedness",
lie, length, and curvature. All of these are largely a matter of
personal preference.

1. "Handedness": A hockey player will decide whether s/he prefers holding
the stick to the left side or the right. There appears to be no
strong correlation to the person's handedness. A new player should try
it both ways, and find the one that feels most natural. Sticks are
labeled either L or R, but since French-speaking Canada generates large
numbers of hockey players, the stick may be labeled G (gauche) or
D (droit). Some sticks carry both letters, i.e. L/G. A few sticks are
neutral and can be used either way.

2. Lie: This refers to the angle the stick makes with the blade. A higher
lie is closer to upright than a lower lie. While there are lots of
exceptions, a player who prefers to skate more upright will prefer a
higher lie, and a player who prefers to skate more bent over will take
a lower lie. Taller players also generally use higher lies. Again, a
new player should test several different lies to see what feels
comfortable. The most common lies are 5, 6, and 7. This is the rest
of the labeling on a hockey stick: a 6R means a lie of 6 in a right
handed stick. Exaggerating the drawings:

. .
. .
. .
____ ____

5 7

3. Length: I've been told that a stick should come up to about the
player's chin while wearing skates, but I find this uncomfortable.
I think it's more realistic to have it come to about the armpit or
a little below; again, this is preference.

4. Curvature: A more curved blade allows the puck to be flipped more
effectively for better shooting, but at the price of poorer passing
and receiving. A beginner should start with a gently curved
stick. A neutral stick, which I referred to above in the section on
handedness, has no curvature.

The blade of a stick should be taped. This helps prolong the life of
the blade and improves puck-handling capability. It's always black
tape, never white. The conventional wisdom is that a goalie can't
see the puck as well against a black blade, but my feeling is that
a good goalie will see the puck. My personal opinion is that it is
black because of tradition.

The wear pattern on the tape can show whether a skater has selected
the proper lie. If the wear is toward the heel/toe of the blade the
skater should try a lower/higher lie.

A lot of players also tape the top of the blade for better grip.

Sticks also differ in weight; again this is personal preference.

Nancy Piltch pil...@ariel.lerc.nasa.gov
NASA Lewis Research Center, Cleveland Ohio 44135

From: Thomas....@cs.cmu.edu
Subject: Sticks and Pucks (was Re: Selection of hockey sticks)
Message-ID:
Date: 4 Dec 91 18:17:48 GMT

Some other stuff to augment the stick info:

I often tape my sticks with white tape! I think the tape matter is more
whether you use the friction tape (normally black) or the general
cloth tape used for taping around socks, skate tops, and equipment, which
is usually white, but comes in all colors. I prefer the smoother white
tape to the friction tape on my blade. There are a fair amount of players
on our team that like this too. It is really a matter of preference.

I had never heard that the black tape makes it hard for the goalie to
see the puck coming off of your stick, but this makes a lot of sense! I
should start buying the cloth tape in black just for my stick blades!

I use black friction tape to tape the top end of my stick, for a good
grip. This deposits black gunk on your gloves, but the grip is good.
Players will often wrap a ball of tape called a "butt-end" to the very
top of the stick to
stop it from slipping out of your hands. Another trick is to roll up a
long
piece of tape lengthwise into a long string, and wrap it around the top
handle of the stick (kind of like a barber shop pole) prior to taping up
the stick top. This gives you a spiral stripe grip underneith the flat
tape, that also helps you hold onto your stick better.

For roller hockey, I use the plastic Mylec blades (cost about $2.50)
attached to shaft from an ice hockey stick that had a broken blade. I
just saw off the broken wooden blade, and attach the plastic replacement.
Mylec (and others) sell plastic bladed sticks with wooden shafts.

The stick manufacturer "Montreal" makes a stick that is supposedly for
street and ice hockey. It is basically has a hard graphite housing
around the whole blade and lower part of the shaft of the stick. These
are expensive, and I've never seen anyone use one for ice hockey, but a
lot of the street hockey players like them because they stay stiff like
wooden blades, not flex a lot like the plastic ones.

Some other sticks that are availble for ice and street hockey are
aluminum shafts. I use an aluminum stick shaft for ice hockey now. The
blades are wooden with a glue on the top end. One heats the end of the
metal shaft and the glue end of the blade with a powerful hair dryer and
then you slide the glued end into the shaft. When it cools, the metal
contracts and the combination of this with the glue holds the blade in
place. When the blade breaks, you heat it up again to remove it, and
put on a new one. The blades themselves cost a little less than a whole
new stick, and the shaft is a one time charge. They have also come out
with these for street hockey, using blades similar to the Montreal
sticks described above.

Some players like the aluminum shafts because they are light, and can
come in more flexible or more stiff grades. This allows a player to
have a stick with the feel s/he likes and also have at least the shaft
portion of the stick be consistent, since only the blade is replaced.
Even two of the same brand and model stick can be different in weight
and flex, since the wood may be from 2 different trees, etc.

Whew, my original intention was not for this to be so long winded, Nancy
covered most of the stick stuff (very well too!) in her post, but since
I'm on a roll..........

Pucks and Balls:

In ice hockey, one uses a hard black rubber puck, 3" in diameter, and
(I think) 3/4" in thickness. The puck is usually frozen before a game
so it's temperature matches that of the ice, and it can slide better.

1) very hard plastic pucks -- These can be use for street or floor
hockey, but usually aren't as they are really hard and hurt a lot if you
get hit with one and have little protection (usually the case with
street hockey). This is
all we had when I was little, and looking back, I can't believe we used
to use these things all the time! On hard surfaces, these skip up etc.
when new, but as soon as the edges get chewed up a bit and round out,
they slide pretty well, even on asphalt.

2) soft hollow plastic pucks -- These are only good for really smooth
surfaces.. We use these on gym floors. They don't even work very well
on tennis courts, which is where we usually play roller hockey. They are
great for floor hockey in a gym though.

3) softer plastic pucks with rollers -- These were an attempt to make a
lighter puck that would slide better on rougher outdoor surfaces. They
aren't great, but are better than (2) above outdoors. They often end up
rolling on their edges, or coming apart at the seams if someone takes a
hard shot! All in all, not great.

Hockey balls:

Hockey balls are usually used for street hockey and DEK hockey (a game
played in rinks built with a special plastic surface by Mylec). The
balls are hollow flexible plastic, and work well on all types of surfaces.
They come in different hardnesses for different weather conditions,
surfaces etc. (softer for winter and less abrasive surfaces, harder for
summer and more abrasive surfaces). They require slightly different
skills than using a puck though.

=END OF PART 3=================================================================

_________________________________________________________________

-Tony Chen (adc...@garnet.acns.fsu.edu)

*This image is Copyrighted 1994 (c) by Anthony D. Chen. Permission is
granted to use this logo in World Wide Web HTML files so long as this
copyright notice is included as either an HTML comment alongside the
invokation (IMG SRC or HREF or otherwise) of the logo, or in the
visible text.

The image may not be sold for profit, nor incorporated in commercial
documents or merchandise without prior written permission of the
copyright holder.

_________________________________________________________________

Tony Chen

unread,

Feb 1, 1995, 7:08:07 PM2/1/95

Posted-By: auto-faq 3.1.1.2
Archive-name: rec-skate-faq/part4

Rec.skate Frequently Asked Questions: Part 4
_________________________________________________________________

[IMAGE] *

REC.SKATE FAQ - PART 4: WHAT AND WHERE TO BUY

Table Contents

* List of skate-related manufacturers
* list of in-line mail-order places
* Guide to Buying Inline Skates
* After-market Add-ons
* poles
* ski buckle modification

_________________________________________________________________

LIST OF IN-LINE MAIL-ORDER PLACES

(plus some regular shops)

(last changed Jan 4, 1995)

The following list is here thanks to Joe Clark (joec...@scilink.org).
Most of the manufacturers do not sell skates direct over the phone.
They will most likely point you to a sales rep to talk to in your
area.

Manufacturers:

BAUER

Canstar Sports USA Inc.
50 Jonergin Drive
Swanton, VT 05488
800 750 1713 in VT
800 362 3146
800 451 5120
802 868 2711
802 868 4713 fax

Canstar Sports Group, Inc.
6500 Millcreek Drive
Mississauga, ON L5N 2W6
905 821 4600
905 821 1860 fax

Canstar Sports AG
Talgut-Zentrum 19
CH-3060 Ittigen
Switzerland/Suisse/Schweiz
+41 585886/585887
+41 31 586375 fax (this number is suspicious, but I'm reporting it
verbatim)

ROCES

Exel Marketing, Inc.
1 Second Street
Peabody, MA 01960
800 343 5200
508 532 2226
508 532 3728 fax

Exel Marketing, Ltd.
56 Churchill Drive
Barrie, ON L4M 6E7
705 739 7690
705 739 7684 fax

[also the following]
9 rue Plateau
Pointe Claire, QC H9R 5W1
514 694 1077
514 694 3284 fax

Roces srl
Via G. Ferraris 36
31044 Montebelluna
Italia
+39 423 609974 r.a. (r.a. means automatic searching of a free line
(when there are multiple lines with the same number)
+39 423 303193 fax

ROLLERBLADE

Rollerblade, Inc.
5101 Shady Oak Road
Minnetonka, MN 55343
800 232 ROLL
800 68 BLADE (?)
612 930 7000
612 930 7030 fax

Benetton Sportsystem Inc.

3520 Alphonse-Gariepy
Lachine, QC H8T 3M2
800 661 ROLL
514 631 6331
514 631 1005

ULTRA-WHEELS

First Team Sports, Inc.
2274 Woodale Drive
Mounds View, MN 55112-4900
800 458 2250
612 780 4454
612 780 8908 fax

OXYGEN

Atomic for Sport (Atomic Ski USA)
9 Columbia Drive
Amherst, NH 03031
800 258 5020
603 880 6143
603 880 6099 fax

Atomic Ski Canada
Somewhere in Mississauga, ON
905 569 2300
(U.S. 800 number works in Canada)

CCM

Maska U.S. Inc.
Box 381
Pierson Industrial Park
Bradford, VT 05033
phone numbers unknown

Sport Maska Inc.
7405 Trans-Canada Highway, Suite 300
St.-Laurent, QC H4T 1Z2
514 331 5150
514 331 7061

K2
K2 Corp. - (800)345-2754

ROLLER HOCKEY INTERNATIONAL

[Day-to-day office]
5182 Katella Ave., Suite 106
Los Alamitos, CA 90720
310 430 2423
310 431 2928 fax

[Executive office]
13070 Fawn Hill Drive
Grass Valley, CA 95945
916 274 0923
916 274 1115 fax

NATIONAL INLINE HOCKEY ASSOCIATION (an amateur governing and
organizing body)
800 358 NIHA
305 358 8988
305 358 0046 fax

WORLD ROLLER HOCKEY LEAGUE

6358 N. College Avenue
Indianapolis, IN 46220
317 283 2900

INTERNATIONAL IN-LINE SKATING ASSOCIATION

(this could be an incorrect address-- as of January 1994, I had heard
they were moving to Atlanta)
5101 Shady Oak Road
Minnetonka, MN 55343
800 for iisa

KRYPTONICS

Kryptonics, Inc.
5660 Central Avenue
Boulder, CO 80301
800 766 9146, orders only
303 665 5353
303 665 1318 fax

HYPER WHEELS

15241 Transistor Lane
Huntington Beach, CA 92649
714 373 3300
713 373 2525 fax

N&Co. (Benetton Sportsystem/Rollerblade apparel organ)

Princeton Pike Corporate Centre, Building 3
997 Lennox Drive
Lawrenceville, NH 08648
800 688 2288
609 896 3800
609 896 3244 fax

KARHU

Karhu Canada Inc
1200 55th Avenue
Lachine, QC H8T 3J8
514 636 5858
514 636 5751 fax

Karhu USA Inc.
Box 4249
55 Green Mountain Drive
South Burlington, VT 05406
802 864 4519
802 864 6774 fax

STREET LINE (accessories)

Charlie Parcells
313 331 7371
Char...@Delphi.com

BORDER PATROL (portable rollerhockey rink perimeter)

In-Line Sport Systems, Inc.
821 Marquette Ave., Suite 2300
Minneapolis, MN 55402
800 809 RINK
612 342 2337
612 338 2302 fax

A VERY GOOD HOCKEY-GEAR STORE

Just Hockey Pro Shops
900 Don Mills Road
Don Mills, ON M3C 1V6
416 445 3300
416 445 3500 team sales
416 445 4564 fax

_________________________________________________________________

GENERAL MAIL ORDER SHOPS

Performance Bicycle: 1-800-727-2433
Riedell: 612-388-8616

D-WING: 1-800-44D-WING

Great Skate Hockey Supply: 1-800-828-7496

Grind Zone Skates
1-800-322-3851
P.O. Box 524
Albertville, AL 35950

Hard-line
1-310-306-5376

Inline USA
1-800-685-6806

In-line Skate Accessories (ISA)
1800 Commerce St.
Boulder, CO 80301
1-800-766-5851

Inline Sports (contact: Tom Myers)
19998 Homestead Rd.
Cupertino, CA 95014
(408) 252-5233

Millenium
1-800-M-INLINE

Ocean Hockey Supply
1-800-631-2159

Rainbow Sport Shop
4836 N. Clark Street
Chicago, IL 60640
1-312-275-5500

Roll With It
920 Manhattan Ave
Manhattan Beach, CA 90266
310-434-0063 (out of date?)

Skate City Supply Inc.
PO Box 379
Ceder Crest NM 87008
505-294-6699

Skates on Haight (800) 554-1235 / Skates Off Haight (415) 244-9800
P.O. Box 170010
San Francisco, CA 94117-0010

South Windsor Arena
585 John Fitch Blvd.
South Windsor, CT 06074
1-800-hockey1

Superior Inline
10510 France Ave. So. #203
Bloomington, Mn. 55431
(612) 888-3482

Team Paradise
1-714-969-3427
tmpar...@aol.com

Grind plates:

CDS Detroit - 1-313-331-7371

Bearings manufacturers:

Blackhole - 1-800-327-9393
Powell Swiss "Bones" - 1-805-964-1330
Boss - 1-714-890-7236
Grizzly Gear - 1-612-535-2035

Wheels:
FR Progressors - 1-212-691-1237 (grinding wheels)

Pads:
Boneless - 1-801-627-3292
Pro-tec - (Rector?) 1-714-722-8411

Videos:
Anywhere Sports - 1-310-825-5464 (NISS '94 video)
Videogroove - 1-800-960-8486

Ramp plans:
Ramptech Design and Construction
7015 Westmoreland Road
Falls Church, VA 22042
703-573-RAMP
703-560-VERT fax

Professional skaters:
Team Adventures - 1-408-646-5378 (inline stunt team and can be hired)

__________________________________________________________________________

Boston area:

From da...@osf.org Mon Jan 10 17:38:29 1994
Subject: Eric Flame's Motion Sports

Eric Flame's Motion Sports, located on Newbury Street across from Tower Records
,
specializes in in-line skates. They currently sell Rollerblade, Bauer,
Roces, and Ultra-wheels. I think they are dropping Ultra-wheels and picking
up Oxygen.

Eric's shop is staffed by some of Boston's best skaters.

Damon@nomaD

---

From: mldi...@bbn.com (Michael Dickens)

City Sports (many locations): Carries the whole line of RollerBlade,
nothing else. You can buy a 10% discount for $10 (ask them), which can
save you $20 or $30 (depending on what you REALLY want to buy).

Zwicker's: Somewhere North of Boston, near route 3 and 128. Best prices
but not easy to get to. Carries RollerBlade and others; but is being
limited by RollerBlade's new policy (requiring dealers to limit
themselves to ONLY RollerBlade products or not sell the whole line).

Bob Smith's: Near Downtown Crossing, Boston. Average prices, but
the staff Skates & is reasonably knowledgeable.

Lechmere: CambridgeSide Galleria, Cambridge. Carries the bottom line
models; average prices; staff is unhelpful and unknowledgeable.

NOTE: For what you buy, you will get NO warranty (except the usual
Manufacturer's warranty). Mail order is probably going to be as cheap
if not cheaper than the best price you can find around town, and with
the same warranty. IMHO a good way to buy skates is to go to City
Sports and try on all the models you might want to try; possibly rent
(for $10 or $15) the skates to make sure the model and size are correct.

Then call around to the In-Line 800-number Mail Order places (see FAQ 4)
to get the best price (including shipping & time), and compare this with
the price and delay you'd pay in you local area. Go with the one that
suits you better.

Murray Sandler's on Concord Ave in Belmont 484-5100 has inlines, quads, and ice
Ice House in Wellesley 237-6707 has quads and ice as fas as I know.
Beacon Hill skates, 482-7400 has inlines quads and ice. Ask for Chris.

California:

Hudson Bay Inline (800) 447-0400
5405 College Avenue
Oakland, CA 94618

Courtesy Sports
4856 El Camino Real,
Los Altos, CA 94022
415-968-7970
Orders 1-800-729-1771
FAX 415-968-4609

Ohio:

Northland Ice Center in Cincinnati Ohio (513) 563 - 0008.

---

More speed-skating oriented:

Skate Pro in S.F. (415) 752-8776
Built for Speed (315) 492-6620
SMR Sports (708) 387-0283

Competition Skates (205) 854-9617
c/o John Skelton
501 Springville Cr.
Birmingham AL 35215

Trailways Skate Rental (813) 461-9736
c/o Tom Sehlhorst
611 Palm Bluff
Clearwater FL 33515

Montrose Skate (713) 528-6102
c/o John McKay
1406 Stanford
Houston TX 77019

Shop Skate Escape (404) 892-1292
c/o Janice Phillips
1086 Piedmont Ave
Atlanta GA 30309

__________________________________________________________________________

Guide to Buying In-line Skates *

(last changed Jan. 28, 1995)

What This Guide Is

This guide to buying in-line skates is to provide an organized method for skate
shopping. It is intended for those readers with little or no knowledge of in-
line skates. This guide is not review-oriented and any specific skate manufact
urers and models shown or mentioned is only for use in examples. (See part 5 o
f the FAQ for skate reviews.)

As with all things bought and sold, read the fine print before buying. Make su
re you can return the merchandise if it is found to be broken or otherwise defe
ctive after you purchase it.

Warning: this guide may be offensive to salespeople who pretend they know what
's going on when they sell skates in stores. Tough noogies.

If you really want to thank me for writing this article, do me a favor and wear
your helmet. Wear your helmet, your knee pads, and skate under control. Lear
n to brake. Be courteous to pedestrians, bikers and other skaters. If you've a
lready done all that, then send me your old worn out wheels. I use 'em to prop
up my desktop.

-Tony Chen

adc...@garnet.acns.fsu.edu

700 N. Woodward Ave., Apt C7-3, Tallahassee, FL 32304

(904) 224-0230

redistributed in its entirety provided that this copyright notice
is not removed.

It may not be sold for profit or incorporated in commercial documents
without the written permission of the copyright holder.

Permission is expressly granted for this document to be made available
for file transfer from installations offering unrestricted anonymous
file transfer on the Internet.

This file is provided as is without any express or implied warranty.
Nothing in this file represents the views of Florida State University.]

*This image is Copyrighted 1994 (c) by Anthony D. Chen. Permission

is granted to use this logo in World Wide Web HTML files so long as
this copyright notice is included as either an HTML comment alongside
the invokation (IMG SRC or HREF or otherwise) of the logo, or in the
visible text.

The image may not be sold for profit, nor incorporated in commercial
documents or merchandise without prior written permission of the
copyright holder.

__________________________________________________________________________

Table of Contents:

1. Before you go to the store
+ Deciding on your skating needs
o What type of skating will I want to do?
o What's most important to me?
+ Deciding on your price range
o The crummy skate threshold
o Remember you'll also need safety gear
o Mail order versus local stores
o Some mail-order shops
+ Learn the terminology
o Wheel terms
# Diameter
# Maximum wheel size
# Durometer
# Rockering
o Bearings and ABEC ratings
o Braking systems
2. At the store
+ Ignore the sales hype
+ Trying on skates
+ Things to look for
o Liner fit
o Closure systems
o Shell design
o Wheels and other stuff
3. After you buy
+ Testing out your skates

__________________________________________________________________________

Before You Go To The Store

Okay, so you've heard about "rollerblades", you've seen the ads, you've watched
rollerhockey on TV, you see skaters on the streets and on the sidewalks, and
now you want a piece of the action too. Where do I go? What kind of skate
should I buy? How much will it cost me? What's the best skate out there?

While this guide doesn't pretend to be the expert on all skating matters, hopef
ully it'll help shed some light on how to go about choosing a proper skate.

Shopping for in-line skates is much like shopping for a car. Your best bet is
to go armed with information and to know what each skate feature means for you
and your skating. Don't listen to the hype. Use your brain. About 99.5% of t
he salespeople in stores I've come across know less than I do about the skates
they're selling. Many times I've posed as an uninformed shopper and asked the
standard questions. And almost always the answers are rehashed phrases from ma
nufacturers' brochures. They throw out buzzwords like "durometer", "ABEC", and
"ABT" to sound like they actually know something. Don't be thrown off. Just
show them a printout of this guide, and tell them Tony said they're full of bal
oney. (Bologna, for you nitpickers).

DECIDE ON YOUR NEEDS

IF YOU GO INTO THE STORE WITHOUT A CLEAR GOAL IN MIND, YOU COULD EASILY END
UP GETTING SOMETHING YOU DON'T WANT. SALESPEOPLE LOVE IT WHEN YOU DO THIS.
SO BEFORE YOU PUT A SINGLE BIG TOE INSIDE THE STORE DOOR, ANSWER THESE
QUESTIONS FIRST:

1. What type of skating will I want to do?

You can do all sorts of things on skates...figure skating, hockey,
ramps, stair riding, hills (both up and down), speed skating,
commuting to work or classes, and on and on. The thing to decide
here is mainly between three types of skates: multi-purpose,
hockey, or speed.

Multi-purpose skates

Most of you will most likely be looking at multi-purpose skates.
These are sometimes broken down into other categories like
"cross-training/fitness" and "recreational". Translation: "costs
more" and "costs less", respectively.

Multi-purpose skates probably encompass 90-95% of the general
skate market (my guestimate, not a hard fact so don't quote me).
These skates are usually made of plastic with a foam liner inside.
Some have all laces, some all buckles, and some have combinations
of both. A typical example is the Rollerblade Macroblades Equipes:

[IMAGE]

Hockey skates

Skates made for hockey are made of stitched leather, like those
you see ice hockey players wear. Most do not come with a foam
liner. They'll be great on the rink, but won't stand up as well to
abrasion on outdoor surfaces. Hockey skates always use laces, with
some models having an additional velcro strap. For example, the
Bauer H6-comps:

[IMAGE]

Speed skates and 5-wheelers

Speed skates are also made of leather and come with a long
wheelbase to accommodate 5 wheels. Usually speed skates won't be
an option in most sports stores, unless it's a shop specializing
in skates (in which case, ignore my previous remark about
salespeople and baloney). Speed skates are cut low at the ankles,
and all have laces, some with one buckle at the ankle.

There is also a hybrid category, and these are the "recreational"
speed/racing skates. These are 5-wheelers with plastic boots. Some
are cut lower or higher depending on their intended usage. For
example, the Roces Paris (CDG) skates:

[IMAGE]

Technically, it's not the extra wheel that makes these skates go
faster, it's the extra length in the wheelbase. The longer
wheelbase also makes the skates more stable at higher speeds. The
trade-off (there's always a trade-off) is that they're much less
maneuverable than 3 or 4 wheel skates.

2. What's most important to me? (price, fit, speed, etc.)

Okay, now that you've chosen the type of skate to buy, the next
thing to do is to decide what's most important to you in a skate.
Let me quote the all-purpose law of consumer goods:

"Good, Fast, Cheap. Pick two."

For skates, "good" means mostly "comfortable and durable".
Basically you have to choose what's the LEAST important to you.
For most people that I've counseled in skate shopping, the price
usually turns out to be the least important ("What?? Is he crazy?
I only have $X to spend!" you say? Read on.)

In general, the more money you put up front, the less it'll cost
you in the long run. But on ONE condition! This is assuming you
will be using your skates, and continue to skate for years to
come. If you're going to buy them and throw them in the closet,
then go directly to Toys-R-Us or K-mart and buy the $35 skates
with bright neon green and purple colors. Do not pass GO, and do
not collect $200.

Okay, since you're still reading this, you haven't gone off to
Toys-R-Us, so I'll assume you're committed, or at least committed
to being committed, to skating. So how does paying more up front
save you more in the long run? If you buy cheapo skates, your
skating experience will suck. Plain and simple. If you buy bad
skates, then after a couple weeks of aches and pain, you'll say
"See, Tony I told you so. Good thing I didn't spend more money."
Wrong. Don't confuse cause and effect. Like most things in life,
GIGO -- garbage in, garbage out. You get out of it, what you put
into it.

To put it another way, the better skate that you buy, the better
it fits. The better they fit, the less pain you endure. The less
pain you endure, the less blisters you'll get on your feet. The
less blisters you have, the less blood that oozes from them. I
said it'd cost you less, and it will...in terms of pain, sweat,
tears, blood, time, and bandage money. On the other hand, if you
enjoy the skating, you'll want to go out and skate even more. In
turn, this means you'll get more for your money. Make sense?

DECIDE YOUR PRICE RANGE
The CST

Now, in the previous section I made it seem like you should go out
and spend your life savings on the best skate you can find. Only
if you want to. As with most things, diminishing returns, takes
effect. $150 skates are definitely 5 times better than $30 skates.
But are $300 skates twice as good as $150 skates? Well, it
depends. The bottom line is to stay above what I call the Crummy
Skate Threshold, or CST for short (ABT, PBS, PCMCIA, PCI, CST,
ATM, RISC...skate and computer acronym are one big happy family,
eh?). In my experience, the CST is at around $100-120. Skates
retailing under $100-120 usually aren't worth their money. You'd
be a whole lot better off putting that money towards a good pair
of $150-220 skates. You may find good skates on clearance sales
and whatnot, but as a general rule, I stand by the CST.

Safety Gear

Make sure you factor in $40-$80 for protective gear, when trying
to estimate your total cost. I would highly, highly, HIGHLY
recommend (I'd make it mandatory if I had the power) wrist guards
($15-17) and knee pads ($17-20) for beginners. A helmet and elbow
pads are also highly recommended. A bike helmet works just fine,
if you already have one (if you have a really old helmet though,
toss it and shell out $40 for a nice new one). Once you're
bleeding at the hands and knees, it'll be too late to wish that
you had spent that puny extra $40 up front. Sounds like the bloody
blister scenario? That's right.

Mail Order vs. Local Stores

If all this sounds like you have to spend your life savings again,
let me quote what Mr. Spock said to Scotty in the Galileo 7
episode of the old Star Trek series, when their shuttle crashed on
a planet and Scotty exclaims that all is lost because most of
their fuel was lost in the landing:
"Mr. Scott, there are always alternatives."

Turns out, through Star Trek magic, that Scotty could convert
their phasers' energy to shuttle fuel. Amazing. Wish they would
show us how to convert bullets to gasoline.

In your case, the alternative is to go mail-order. Mail-order can
save you a substantial amount of money without sacrificing
quality. However, the trade-off is (there's that t-word again)
that you can't try before you buy. You may have to ship the skates
back once or more, if things aren't quite right or what you
expected. And of course, you have to wait for UPS or snail-mail
(USPS) or whoever, to ship it to your door.

Having said that however, let me just say that my own experiences
with ordering skates and other accessories through the mail have
been very satisfactory. And on the plus side, almost all the
salespeople at the mail-order shops know what they're talking
about.

For a list of mail-order shops, look at part 4 of the FAQ

LEARN THE TERMINOLOGY

All right, now we're on a roll, so to speak. You know what sort of skate you'r
e looking for, you know your target price range, and you're ready to jump into
that store and start trying on skates. Before you do though, go through the fo
llowing terms and get an idea of what each means. Once you're beyond trying on
skates for comfort and fit, you'll want to compare the other features to see w
hat's best for you.

Wheel terms:

(For more in-depth wheel information, see part 2 of the FAQ.)

Diameter:
If you'll recall from grade school math, the diameter is the
length across the widest part of a circle. Twice the length of the
radius, if you prefer. For wheels, this is measured in millimeters
(mm). Most wheels come in 72 and 76mm on production skates (other
sizes are available through mail-order). The shorter the wheel,
the more stable and maneuverable your skates will be. However,
they'll also be slower. Taller wheels will let you go faster, but
are less maneuverable.

Maximum wheel size:
Although maximum wheel size won't seem like a big deal when you're
just beginning, it will be important once you become a proficient
skater. Low-end skates generally come stocked with 72mm wheels,
while the higher-end skates come with 76mm wheels. This is no
accident. Most skaters want speed, and taller wheels are faster,
all other things being equal.

Not all skates can take larger wheels though. Most every 76mm
skate will take up to 80 or 82mm (plenty large for most people).
72mm skates are another story. Depending on the runner and chassis
design, some can take only up to 72.5mm wheels, while others can
squeeze on 76mm ones. Some people actually shave or grind down
parts of their skates so that they can fit larger wheels. In any
case, if you can afford it, I'd suggest going with skates that can
take at least 76mm wheels. You can always switch to smaller wheels
if you want.

Durometer:
Durometer has to do with the DURAbility of wheels. In real terms,
it means how hard the wheel material is. The industry (plastic
industry I guess) "A" scale is used, with 0 being softest, and 100
being hardest. (It's rumored that Rush Limbaugh's skull is rated
above 500A, but like I said, it's just a rumor.) Most wheels are
78A or 82A. 78A is considered on the soft side. They don't last
quite as long as 82A's, but since they're softer, they absorb
bumps better giving a smoother ride. That's the primary trade-off
when you go about selecting wheel hardness. For most stock skates,
you won't have a choice, since they almost all come in 78A. If you
want or need harder wheels, buy a harder set when your original
wheels wear out.

Rockering:
Rockering sounds like something grandma does while knitting
sweaters, doesn't it? Well, for skates, it means that you can
adjust the heights of the axles (and therefore the wheels also),
to approximate an ice-skate blade, which are usually curved
upwards at the front and back (hockey skates anyway). The
curvature allows for more maneuverability, but at the cost of
stability at higher speeds. Trade-off once again? You bet.

[IMAGE]

Bearings and ABEC ratings:

The two bearings inside each wheel are where the turning action takes place. B
earings come in various ratings, based on the ABEC scale. This acronym is pron
ounced "ay-beck". ABEC stands for the Annular Bearing Engineering Council (don
't ask me what that means). Basically, the higher the ABEC number the more pre
cise the bearing has been made. The ratings you'll come across are ABEC-1, ABE
C-3, and ABEC-5. Generally, the more precise the bearings, the faster they'll
spin, given the same conditions.

(For more in-depth bearing information, see part 2 of the FAQ.)

Braking systems:

Before 1994 the only thing you had to worry about with brakes was learning to u
se them. Now, you have to decipher the SSHA, or silly sales hype acronyms. Ro
llerblade has the ABT and Oxygen skates has the PBS (isn't that a TV station?).
Hopefully no other manufacturer will jump on the braking system bandwagon wit
hout considering what it'll do to the market. What we really need is an indust
ry-standard for brakes. Right now, every single manufacturer has their own bra
ke design. None are compatible (without modifications) with any other manufact
urer's skates. Even Rollerblades ABT and non-ABT brakes are incompatible.

In any case, Rollerblade's ABT is essentially a brake on a long screw, running
up the back of your skates. You can adjust the height of your brake by turning
the screw. It also means the brake can be activated if you tilt your toe up.

The PBS doesn't allow you to adjust the brake height, but instead it works like
most conventional brakes, with the added effect of pressing the brake pad agai
nst the rear wheel when you brake.

The bottom line though, is that these system are neither bad nor good. On the
plus side, they help beginners brake easier and allows a good degree of adujstm
ents (on the ABT anyway). On the down side, ABT brakes have been very hard to
find, last I heard. Don't even want to think about Oxygen brakes. Also, for r
eal power-braking, these systems are superfluous (SAT's anyone?). (See part 1 o
f the FAQ for braking techniques.) Learning to brake effectively under variou
s conditions still takes practice, not three-letter acronyms.

One last thing to mention. Not all brakes are equal. Bauer and Roces brakes a
re notorious for poor durability. Rollerblade brakes last very well. Anecdote
time: back in 1991 or 1992, my buddy Dave got some Bauer skates from the rest
of us for his birthday. Boy, was he happy. That is, until he found out that
Bauer brakes last about as long as a snowflake in the Sahara Desert (during the
daytime anyway). He went through one brake in about 2 hours. Good thing for
him, the rest of us were about ready to order some wheels and he went along for
5 brakes. So we get our stuff in a few days and it turns out the catalog mean
t 5 SETS of brakes, meaning 10 brakes in all. Good thing too. He needed every
one of them!

__________________________________________________________________________

AT THE STORE

Ignore the hype

All righty. Now you know what you're looking for, you know all the nifty jargo
n that go along with skates, and you're ready to head to the stores and see wha
t they have. Before you go though, bring two things (well, three if you want t
o be picky): athletic socks and a ruler with cm/mm markings (a ruler? you'll
understand why later on.)

Wear the socks that you'll be wearing to skate, when you try on skates. Double
-layered anti-blister socks are always good. Make sure they're not too short.
You want the socks to cover at least 4-5 inches or more above your ankle bone.
(Some people do actually skate barefooted, but I won't judge anyone on this p
oint. Seems to cause more chaffing though, without socks. Personally, I think
my skates smell enough with me wearing socks, but hey make your own call on th
is one.)

Okay, now you're in the store. Remember our strategy? That's right, "Ignore th
e sales hype." If you've prepared ahead of time as I've told you to, that shou
ld be a piece of cake. Ice cream cake. Chocolate-mint ice cream cake even (I'v
e always been partial to chocolate-mint).

Trying on skates

Okay, here's one part that the salesdroids are good for and good at. Pick out
a skate that is exactly at your target price (there might be several models) an
d ask to try one on (or all of them if you want to be really thorough; or heck,
if you just want to make the salesdroids work for their money). You might fin
d that your skate size will not be exactly your shoe size. Usually skates run
a tad large (meaning you'll have a smaller skate size than shoe size), and besi
des, you want a snug fit -- as snug as possible without hurting.

Try on skates a half-size larger and a half-size smaller than your normal shoe
size to see the difference. Some manufacturers are better than other at provid
ing skates for different shaped and sized feet. Rollerblade skates, for exampl
e, aren't really built that well for wide feet. Bauer and Roces tend to be bet
ter in this regard.

After you've got the skates on, wiggle your toes. You'll want to kind of press
your ankles back against the heel of the skate, while you wiggle. If your toe
s are crammed against the front of the skates, they're too tight. If you're fo
ot can jiggle around inside the skates while you hold your foot up (like a clap
per in a bell), then they're too large.

Okay, the skates are on and snug, so now stand up (slowly!) and put your weight
on each foot and see how it feels. Wiggle your toes some more if you want. R
emember that most people have asymmetrical feet. If one foot feels less comfor
table than the other, you might ask to try on a skate of a different size for t
hat foot. Most stores probably won't let you buy skates sized different for bo
th feet, but you can at least try to minimize the discomfort for both feet comb
ined.

Walk around in the store for a couple minutes (hopefully it's carpeted) and let
the liners conform to your feet a little bit. Re-tighten the skates and make
sure they're still snug.

Now, the comparisons. Ask to try on two other skates, one in the price bracket
below your target skate and one above. This is so you'll see exactly how diff
erent quality liners and boots feel.

For those of you buying for kids (or if you ARE a kid, physically, not mentally
), you'll know that kids' feet grow faster than the U.S. government's budget de
ficit. In this case, you might want to look for skates that will take multiple
liner sizes, so that you can just buy larger liners instead of having to buy a
n entirely new skate each time. I haven't personally investigated this but if
you interrogate the salesfolks, maybe they can offer some help on this.

THINGS TO LOOK FOR

The liners are most important!

Your first criteria should be the liner quality and fit. If your skates aren't
comfy, the rest of the gadgets won't mean diddly. You get better liners in mo
re expensive skates, naturally.

Closure systems

Now once you've found good fitting skates, decide on whether you want laces, bu
ckles, or both. If you want convenience, an all-buckle setup is for you. Buck
les are nice in that you can adjust them while you're skating, and they're very
fast to put on and to take off. Buckles also don't break nearly as much as la
ces do. The one trade-off is that buckles don't quite as good an all-around ti
ghtness as laces do. For most people, that trade-off is a very worthwhile one,
but everyone has their own preferences.

Beware of bad buckle design, however. Even the K-mart skates have 3 buckles. P
art of the buckle quality will be in the quality of the shell (the plastic boot
). If the shell is flimsy or poorly made, your buckles won't align very well.
There are also various types of buckles. Some will feel more solid than other
s. Try on different types and see the difference.

Many skates compromise and have both laces and an ankle buckle for added suppor
t. These types of skates usually work pretty well.

Shell design

You'll find many types of shell types these days. The most notable difference
will be vents. Some have them, some don't. The Rollerblade Aeroblade was the
first to sport such features, and they work quite well in cooling your feet and
also make the skate lighter What's the trade-off, you ask? (I've taught you
well, haven't I?) You trade cooling and weight-reduction for strength and dura
bility of the shell.

Normally, this isn't an issue. But for you thrasher types, who like to pound o
n your skates, vents make the skates a little less sturdy than their non-vented
brethren. The classic Rollerblade Lightnings are about the most indestructibl
e skates around. They're non-vented. This isn't to say vented skates aren't s
turdy, but it's that they're LESS sturdy, relative to non-vented skates.

Wheels and other stuff

Having compared liners, buckles/laces, and shells, now you can start paying att
ention to the more subtle features, like rockering ability, replacement parts a
vailability, and maximum wheel size that the runners can fit.

Rockering is nice if you skate in a wide variety of situations. For hockey or
slaloming through cones, many people like to rocker their skates for that added
maneuverability. Then when they switch to hills or long-distance skating, the
y can put the wheels flat again.

Although this is another one of those plan-ahead type things (like max wheel si
ze), it can turn out to be a big one. Finding replacements, namely for brakes
and sometimes axles or spacers, is not always trivial. Rollerblade, being in t
he market first, has it's distribution set up fairly widely so you can pretty m
uch find RB brakes at any store that also sells RB skates. With other brands,
you won't generally be so lucky. In fact, the only other brakes that I've ever
even seen sold in stores is Bauer's. Even with Rollerblade, there are sometim
es brake shortages. I now keep a stockpile of half a dozen brakes (Rollerblade
's old pre-ABT Aeroblades, if you must know) so I don't have to worry about it
and I can carry a spare brake in my fanny pack.

So I should only buy a Rollerblade or Bauer skate then, you say? Nah. Mail-or
der to the rescue again. You can pretty much find any brand brake through cata
logs. However, note that brakes tend to be around the same price, if not more,
through some catalogs, and once you factor in shipping and handling, you'll mo
st likely want to order brakes along with other equipment to defray the extra c
ost, as well as order more brakes at a time (4 or more should be plenty). And r
emember what I said about brakes and braking systems previously.

Brakes are a good thing by the way. They only cost $4 or so, while wheels will
cost you anywhere from $3 to $7 PER WHEEL. Sure, you got fancy-pants skaters
out there doing their macho T-stops and power-slides, but at 8 times $3-$7 doll
ars...that's anywhere from $24 to $56 folks! Okay, so you only do T-stops with
one skate, that's still $12 to $28, and you want to save your wheels for rolli
ng on anyway, right?. Economics alone should convince you to at least learn to
use the brake properly. All those other stops are good to know, but build you
r skills foundation from the bottom up. Learn to brake.

Maximum wheel size, as I said before, will be important as you get better at sk
ating. For the most part, unless you're stuck with really small skates (i.e.,
your feet are really small), then try and get a skate that will take at least u
p to 76mm wheels. Don't trust the spec sheets though. The officially stated m
ax wheel sizes are sometimes just the "recommended" size, when in fact, if you
actually tried larger wheels they'd fit.

Easy way to tell the max wheel size: bring along a tape measure or ruler (one
with centimeter and millimeter markings, unless you're a total whiz at converti
ng English units to cgs in your head). If you want to see if a skate will take
76mm wheels, jam your ruler in there, with the 38mm mark at the axle center.
If the 0mm mark doesn't rub against the frame, you're halfway there.

You also want to measure the distance between axles. Can't have the wheels rub
bing against each other, can we? Make sure the distance is 76mm plus a couple
mm (so approximately 78mm or more). If that holds, then you know the skates sh
ould take 76mm wheels.

The wheels and bearings, you can leave as the last detail to consider, since th
ey'll wear out and you can pick your ideal wheels and bearings after that. Of c
ourse, if in your mind two skates are pretty much equal in all other aspects, g
o for the one with better wheels and bearings.

Bearings usually last longer than wheels, especially with proper care, so consi
der the bearings above the wheel quality. ABEC-1's are standard on all skates
(except maybe kid's skates), and ABEC-3's are very common amongst the high-end
skates. Some even sport ABEC-5's, so check up on it.

AFTER YOU BUY

OKAY, SO YOU FINALLY DID IT. YOU TRIED ON ALL SORTS OF SKATES, YOU SAW HOW
THE VARIOUS MODELS DIFFERED, YOU CHOSE YOUR SKATE, PICKED A NICE
COLOR-SCHEME, PULLED OUT YOUR PLASTIC AND MADE THE SALESPEOPLE HAPPY. TIME
TO GO OUT AND SKATE DOWN MT. EVEREST, RIGHT? TIME TO HIT THE ROAD AND SKATE
THE ATHENS-TO-ATLANTA RACE, RIGHT? NOT SO FAST.

Testing out your skates

Before you go out and go skate-crazy, unpack all the stuff that you bought in a
nice orderly fashion. Put everything on slowly and snugly, and walk around yo
ur house in it. On carpet preferably. Make sure everything fits like it's sup
posed to and feels comfortable. Now take your gear off and visually inspect yo
ur skates. Make sure there's nothing loose that isn't supposed to be. Make su
re everything moves that's supposed to. If not, you can go right back to your
store and exchange them.

Let's say everything looks good so far, and you finally go outside to try them
out. Since you're a beginner, I'd highly recommend that you go with an advance
d skater (or at least someone who has skated more than you have). The ideal pl
ace is a flat, empty parking lot with no through-traffic, smooth pavement, and
grass surrounding the edges.

Okay, now you're ready to join the millions of the other people who have learne
d to enjoy skating! For more information on technique, check part 1 of the FAQ
.

__________________________________________________________________________

[ This file is Copyright 1994 by Anthony D. Chen. It may be freely
redistributed in its entirety provided that this copyright notice
is not removed.

It may not be sold for profit or incorporated in commercial documents
without the written permission of the copyright holder.

Permission is expressly granted for this document to be made available
for file transfer from installations offering unrestricted anonymous
file transfer on the Internet.

This file is provided as is without any express or implied warranty.
Nothing in this file represents the views of Florida State University.]

__________________________________________________________________________

The image may not be sold for profit, nor incorporated in commercial
documents or merchandise without prior written permission of the
copyright holder.

===============================================================================
=

After-market Products for In-Line Skates
----------------------------------------
Copyright (C) 1991 Philip A. Earnhardt

Permission is granted to copy and distribute verbatim copies this document,
provided that copies are distributed freely or with a nominal charge for the
copying medium. This copyright notice must remain attached to the document.

This document will be updated in the future; comments are welcome. Please
send comments to: Phil Earnhardt, PO Box 7174, Boulder, CO 80306-7174.
Electronic mail can be sent to p...@netwise.com

OUTLINE

Introduction -- why to buy
Safety
Parts wear out
Retrofit indoor compatibility
Better performance -- NOT necessarily faster

Drive Train
Bearings
Wheels
Spacers
Brake Kits
Brake Pads

Support
Orthotics
Removable/Permanent Ankle Support
Laces and Boot Liners

Non-skate Products
Protection
Hockey Sticks
Poles
Packs and Water Bottle Carriers
Night Lighting
Tools for Maintenance

Introduction -- why to buy
Safety

Many of the in-line After-market products will increase your safety. There's
the traditional protection: helmets, knee pads, wrist guards, elbow pads.
Adding a second brake to your other skate may help improve your safety -- it
may be dangerous to wear out your only brake completely at certain points.
Getting reflectors and night lights can make dawn/dusk/night riding safer.
Carrying spare parts, tools, and other supplies with you in a pack adds a
safety margin to those long-distance trips.

Parts wear out

If you keep using your in-lines, parts will start wearing out. Depending on
use, brakes can wear out rapidly. Wheels and bearings will start showing signs
of wear and tear. Eventually, laces and boot liners may need replacing.

Retrofit indoor compatibility

The newest in-line skates are "indoor compatible" -- they should cause no
damage to the floors of Skating Rinks. Kits are available to make some
existing skates rink-ready. Non-marking brakes are also becoming available.

Better performance -- NOT necessarily faster

New wheels can give you better cornering, shock absorption, and more speed.
New bearings can make your skates faster, too. On the other hand, some new
bearings will be slower, but they will work maintenance-free for a long time.
Retrofitting old skates with ankle support may make them more comfortable for
long distances.

Drive Train
Bearings

There is one size of bearing that's used in all in-lines: the 608 bearing.
This same bearing is used by skateboarders and in many industrial
applications; they should not be difficult to find. Traditional
in-line/skateboard bearings lines are GMN, NMB, Peer, Powell "Bones". These
are all shielded bearings -- they resist contamination, but are not sealed
against it. All of these bearings are around an "A" grade bearing -- good
speed. Of the bunch, the Powells are the most precise, they may deserve an
"AA" grade. The Powells are the easiest to maintain, since they are shielded
on only one side. They are also more expensive.

Powell manufacturers a bearing lubricant, Speed Cream. It's an emulsion with
an oil component and a grease-like component. Speed Cream gives good speed and
lasts for a long time; one small bottle will easily last for a season.
[Comments? Any oil-only recommendations? Any other grease recommendations?]

[Does someone have the information about the industrial bearing grades?]

Industrial bearings are generally more precise than the stuff used on skates.
They are also much more expensive and may not be suited for an outdoor
environment. Completely unshielded bearings are also available; they should
only be used in very clean environments.

There are also sealed bearings available: GMN, NMB and other bearings with
seals and a fairly heavy grease. These are slow bearings -- wheels will not
spin a complete revolution with sealed bearings in place. On the other hand,
they appear to be waterproof and dirt-proof. Rollerblade sells sealed bearings
under the Max Trainer name [who is Max?]. They are more expensive in the
Powell bearings, but should enjoy a long, maintenance-free life.

Wheels

As near as I can determine, there are 2 mainline manufacturers of wheels:
Hyper and Kryptonics. These manufacturers will create custom runs of wheels
for in-line manufacturers, but they're still made by one of these guys. Jenex,
a company making roller ski products, makes a specialty wheel; see the bottom
of this section for details.

Many of the original equipment in-line wheels are inferior: they use
lower-grade wheel material and/or inferior hub design. Specifically, I don't
like the Rollerblade 608 wheels, which are also distributed as an after-market
wheel. Since these wheels are often more expensive than other recreational
replacement wheels, they should be easy to avoid.

Generally, skate runners have enough clearance for a certain maximum diameter
of wheel. Some racing skates (e.g., Zandstra Skeelers) will take wheels up to
80mm. Rollerblade's Racerblade and Aeroblade will take wheels up to 77mm --
it's expected that non-Rollerblade models will soon appear in this size. Most
everything else will take wheels up to a 72.5mm diameter.

Wheels are available in a variety of hardnesses; these are described by a
100-point "A" scale where 100 is the hardest wheel. In general, the fastest
speeds will be attained on a smooth track with the hardest wheels.
Unfortunately, most surfaces are not smooth enough for hard wheels; the softer
wheels will give a much smoother ride on rougher surfaces. A reasonable
hardness tradeoff is around a 78A wheel; some may prefer an 82A wheel. Some
skaters will use slightly harder wheels on the front and back of the skate
with softer wheels in the middle.

Currently, Kryptonics markets 3 lines of wheels: recreational, hockey, and
racing. The recreational wheels are 70mm in diameter; 78A, 82A, and 85A
hardness are available. These are good all-around recreational wheels; they
are also the cheapest in the Kryptonics line.

The hockey wheels are available only in 70mm 82A. Besides being good hockey
wheels, they have good cornering because there's a large surface in contact
with the surface. These are the widest wheels that are available for in-lines.

The racing, or Turbo Core, wheels are available in 3 sizes: 72.5mm, 77mm, and
80mm. They're available in 3 hardnesses 74A, 78A, and 82A. (Note: availability
of the 72.5mm wheels is currently very limited; the first runs were only
distributed in an 78A hardness). These are great wheels for most anything --
the hub design minimizes mass, but gives a good connection between the outer
wheel and the bearing. These are the wheels that most racers used in 1991.
They are a bit more expensive.

Hyper makes "normal" and "ultralight" wheels. As near as I can tell, there's
never a reason to go with the "normal" wheels; the "ultralight" guys are
plenty strong. Hyper wheels are available in 72mm, 76mm, and 80mm. The 80mm
wheels are available in 75A, 78A, and 82A. The 72mm and 76mm wheels are
available in 78A, 82A, 85A, and 93A. Unless under another label (e.g., Bauer
wheels are made by Hyper), these wheels are fairly difficult to find; some
mail-order shops carry them. The one obvious advantage over the Krypto skates
would be to use the hard 93A wheels on banked speed-skating tracks (of which
there are 2 in the whole USA! Sigh.).

Jenex, Inc., a company that makes roller ski products, is selling in-line
wheels intended for cross-country ski training. The wheels are 70mm 82A nylon
reinforced with glass fibers. The company has been successful with this wheel
chemistry on roller skis; it should work well for in-lines.

Included with each wheel is a pair of "dual contact type" seals "the most
effective seals available" (from their glossy). These sound like the Max
Trainer bearings available from Rollerblade. A pair of 2 wheels with bearings
has a MSRP of $28.95. This is a bit steep, but not completely outrageous if
they significantly outlast normal wheels and bearings.

Jenex recommends using only 2 of these wheels on each skate, leaving normal
wheels in the inner positions. For folks who like to maximize their workout
(i.e. outrageously slow skates), put a set of 4 on each skate.

The number for Jenex is (603) 672-2600. (Amherst, NH, USA).

Spacers

Most skates have a solid axle -- typically, a bolt -- running through the
center of the wheel. The axle should have a tight fit with the wheel's spacer
-- the small plastic tube that's sandwiched between the two bearings.

Several companies are manufacturing integrated axle/spacer systems. The
spacers are machined aluminum shaped like a plastic spacer on the outside.
Inside, they are threaded; the kits include pairs of bolts that screw into
each side of the kits. Some of the kits include replacement parts to the
Rollerblade oval spacers.

The spacer kits appear to make wheels spin a bit better; this may be because
the metal spacer cannot be compressed, eliminating a pre-load on the bearings.
[Alternate theories are welcomed.] The kits generally have much smaller bolt
heads; such heads should make the skates much more acceptable to indoor rink
operators. [Question: are bolts on the Blading Edge kit somehow mounted flush
to the runners? (i.e. no possibility of the bolt heads damaging rink
surfaces).]

Spacer kits are available from some mail-order shops and some skating
retailers. These kits cost anywhere from $20 to $40.

Brake Kits

Virtually all in-line skates come with at least one brake. Some come with two.
All Rollerblade skates and some other brands sell a brake kit. These allow you
to mount a brake on the other skate.

A second brake gives an added margin of safety -- if the first brake fails
(e.g., wears out, etc.), the second is available. Aesthetically, a second
brake makes braking a symmetrical activity. If you're adept at using a single
brake, you will have an interesting experience teaching yourself how to
effectively use the "other" brake.

Brake Pads

For Rollerblade skates, there are 3 types of brake pads available: standard,
TRS, and polyurethane. Standard brakes tend to be fairly screechy and wear out
the fastest. TRS brakes, which come in gray, last much longer and don't
screech as much. They're more expensive than standard brakes. Polyurethane
brakes, which come in bright blue and pink, last about as long as TRS brakes.
They don't screech at all. They're also non-marking. This may be a feature if
you use your skates at rinks; it may be a non-feature if you're into macho
brake marks. Poly brakes are about the same price as TRS brakes.

Rollerblade brakes sell anywhere from $3-$5 each.

[I don't know anything about non-rollerblade brake pads.]

Support
Orthotics

Generally, orthotics are used to neutralize any sideways lean in your feet.
When in a neutral stance, boots should be nvertical. For most people their
feet are slightly angled inwards or outwards.

For edging sports like skiing, it's vital that a neutral position yields a
flat ski; a proper orthotic can make a huge difference. Since in-lines lack
distinct edges, their value is a bit less on skates. On the other hand, a
ski-boot orthotic may well serve double-duty in your in-line skates.

Ski shops and some footwear shops sell orthotics; good ones will cost anywhere
from $50 - $150. These are a serious investment, but the payback for better
improvement may be large.

Removable/Permanent Ankle Support

Newer in-line skates (e.g. Rollerblade TRS Lightning, Bauer XT-7, etc.) have a
ski-like buckle at the ankle. Such support usually gives recreational skaters
added support and control.

Rollerblade markets a pair of nylon straps with velcro connectors; give good
support, but they are a bit expensive. Equally effective are nylon straps with
holes and a simple buckle design. If you really want buckles, there's a brand
of ratcheting toe straps available from Performance bike. Other types of
bicycle toe straps may work too, provided they're long enough.

Many of these straps will fit in-between the two lace guides on the top of the
boot. Remember to put the fastening device for the strap on the outside of the
boot. This will minimize the possibility of hitting the other boot.

Some companies are selling After-market ratchet kits for lace-only skates. The
advantage over the removable straps is that they won't be lost. Unfortunately,
these work poorly. First, the pawl must be put on the inside of the boot --
there's no boot shell in front. This increases the chance of hitting the other
boot while skating. The ratchet lever must also be farther forward, increasing
the chance that it will spontaneously open while skating. Without radical boot
surgery, an add-on ratchet kit will perform poorly.

Laces and Boot Liners

I've had good experience with thicker laces -- they allow you to crank tighter
and seem to more resistant to failure. The Crazy Legs brand works very well
and is available in a variety of bright colors.

Eventually, the springy material in boot liners will become permanently
compressed. Rollerblade sells boot liners for their skates; other
manufacturers probably do, too. [Any info??]

Non-skate Products
Protection

There are three pieces of "primary" protection: helmets, wrist guards, and
knee pads. Head injuries are relatively rare, but their consequences are often
extreme. An ANSI- or snell-approved bike helmet will give proper projection.
Make sure to have the straps properly adjusted and have the helmet "flat" on
the head -- most of your forehead should be covered by the helmet.

Wrist guards will keep the wrist from bending too far backwards during a fall.
The Rollerblade TRS guards are excellent wrist guards. There are many other
brands of wrist guards available from the Skateboard manufacturers -- Dr. Bone
Savers (or DBS), Rector, etc.

Knee pads will allow your knee to slide if it hits the ground during a fall;
they can also distribute the force of impact somewhat. Again, the Rollerblade
TRS and DBS knee pads are very good -- they have a large, smooth, riveted
surface. Avoid the waffle-shaped Rollerblade Bladerunner knee pads -- they
will fail after a few dozen falls.

There are several types of "secondary" protection: elbow pads, gloves, a thick
pair of pants, a rear-view mirror.

Hockey Sticks

(see the Hockey FAQ)

Poles

Using skating skiing poles can add an upper-body workout to your skate
sessions. Double-poling without skating can make your profile quite narrow, a
possible safety enhancement on narrow sections of road. On the other hand,
poles only work well on asphalt surfaces -- the tips will skid on concrete
trails. Also, poles greatly increase your length and are poorly-understood by
other path users. I recommend their usage only on low-volume paved
trails/roads.

Since in-line skates increase your height more than x-c skis, a slightly
longer pole may be needed. Also, remove the pole's basket and replace it with
a ferrule specially made for road use -- both Swix and Excel make these for
their poles.

Sharp tips and good form are crucial. If the wrist is bent backwards on each
stroke, it's possible to aggravate the hand ligaments running through the
Carpal Tunnel. Some of the new ski pole handles -- particularly the Swix "T"
handle -- can help minimize this danger.

Packs and Water Bottle Carriers

Around 1985, Ultimate Direction began marketing the first waist belt water
bottle carriers. These are available in a variety of sizes -- from a tiny
8-ounce bottle carrier to a 2500 cubic inch backpack. Several of the packs'
bottle carriers can be zipped completely shut, which helps to keep fluids hot
or cold longer. UD's water bottles are waterproof when closed.

At 1500 cubic inches, UD's Voyager pack is an excellent pack for the
commuting/long-distance skater. The suspension of the pack keeps the load low
and minimizes interferance with the skating stroke. A clever layout of the
shoulder straps prevents chafing under the arms when using poles. Skates can
be lashed to the bottom of the pack when you get where you're going. Finally,
this pack is useful for all types of other activities -- day hikes, downhill
skiing, x-c skiing, biking, etc.

There are many other brands of fanny packs with water bottle carriers. Many
of these brands have reasonable quality; almost all cost less than the UD
fanny packs. For a fanny pack, the Mountainsmith day packs have a large
capacity, but they lack a water bottle holster.

Night Lighting

Two companies make first-class helmet headlights for night skating: Night Sun
and Night Rider. These two-bulb systems both have halogen lights with a
variety of wattages (5-30) available. They qualify as "see lights" -- they
output enough light to allow you to see with no other lighting source.
Typical bulb selection is for a high and low beam.

The Night Sun system uses a custom battery that's manufactured in a standard
bicycle watter bottle case; this works well with the water bottle carriers
described above. The Night Rider system's battery has a molded shell that fits
against the back. It comes with a custom fanny pack that holds the battery.
Both systems are around $200.

A much lower-cost option is the Underwater Kinetics mini-Q40 flashlight. This
light uses 4 AA batteries in a 2x2 configuration and a very efficient xenon
bulb; it almost qualifies as a "see" light. It fits comfortably in the hand or
can be mounted on a wrist with a nylon strap. This light sells for about $20
at SCUBA shops. Consider carrying a backup set of batteries with you.

For tail lights, the clip-on version of the Vistalight works fairly well. It
has 4 LEDs that flash several times a second; the light will work for several
hundred hours (!) on a pair of AA batteries. There's also a Sanyo leg-strap
light with a low-efficiency incandescent bulb and a single non-flashing LED to
the rear. This light can be turned into a high-efficiency tail light by
removing (or just unscrewing) the bulb. A solid LED strapped to a leg
probably gives a better sense of distance than flashing LEDs clipped to the
waist. Both the Vistalight and the Sanyo light are available from Performance
Bike Shops.

Bike stores sell a variety of reflective vests, triangles, and self-adhesive
reflector kits. Reflective patches can be added to helmets, and skates, and
poles.

Tools for Maintenance

For skates with one or two hex bolts per axle, a socket wrench can make wheel
maintenance easier; shops generally use battery-powered tools for speed.

Running a vacuum cleaner around the wheels after each use can remove dirt
before it gets into the bearings.

For skating poles, a DMT diamond whetstone will keep the ferrules nice and
sharp.

----------------------------------------------------------------

Phil Earnhardt p...@netwise.com
Netwise, Inc. Boulder, CO (303) 442-8280

===============================================================================
=

POLES
-----

From: p...@netwise.com (Phil Earnhardt)
Message-ID:
Date: 6 Feb 92 21:14:02 GMT

There are two main issues with using poles. First, if you're using poles on
"bike trails," I recommend against their use if there is any appreciable
amount of other traffic. Pedestrians, cyclists, and other skaters don't
understand the motion of poles and won't know how to safely interact with you.
High traffic also limits a full-commit-asymmetrical-pole-plant style -- the
*real* fun stuff to be doing with poles.

If you're on a "bike lane" or are mixing it up with regular automobile
traffic, I had no problem with the use of poles.

The second issue is a technical one -- you can't effectively use ski pole tips
on concrete surfaces. They work great on asphalt, but poorly on harder stuff.
They skid off the surface unless you're using an unnatural amount of force on
the tips. This excessive force is poor technique and can lead to injury. From
someone who skated real close to having CTS, I recommend avoiding hard
surfaces.

I used poles for years in Boston. After I moved to Boulder, I use them rarely.
In Boulder, the major trails are all concrete. Also, the human density on
those trails is prohibitively high. I use my poles when I'm not skating
locally.

Poles are fairly durable. The only time I lost one was when I did a pole plant
into a storm drain. Aluminum ones are OK; composite poles will transmit a bit
less of the road vibration back to you. I really like the Swix "T" handles --
I have a pair of the Swix Skatelite Aluminum poles for on-snow (and occasional
in-line) skating.

Never ever attempt to use the poles for slowing down -- either you will fail,
or bad things will happen when you succeed.

If you need some instruction on pole technique, pick up Lee Borowsky's booklet
_The Simple Secrets of Skating_. 'Tis an excellent book on x-c skate skiing.

Benefits? Besides the obvious upper-body conditioning stuff, you also get much
more variety in your skating. You can mix up all sorts of poling patterns with
your normal skate strokes. If you want to go into gorilla mode, you can glide
with your skates, pushing yourself solely with your poles. This is a good
technique if you encounter some terrain that requires you to have a narrow
profile. As noted earlier, going full-out with asymmetrical pole plants is a
sport unto itself.

From: babi...@bnr.ca (Michael Babineau)
Subject: Re: Rollerblade Ski Poles?
Message-ID:
Date: 25 Apr 92 02:48:11 GMT

In article ,
co...@elec.canterbury.ac.nz (DAve.) writes:
|> Does anyone who uses the Rollerblade Ski Pole like things have any comments
|> to make regarding:

1) I assume that you are referring to XC Ski Skating practice.
Rollerblades provide a good simulation of XC Ski Skating however
you'll find that you go somewhat faster with less effort than you
will on snow. To ensure you get a good workout, find someplace
with lots of nice paved hills.

2) When skating with poles on the local recreation paths I normally
don't pole when overtaking or meeting pedestrians or cyclists,
the sight of poles going up and down seems to strike fear in
the hearts of many.

3) Like XC-ski skating you shouldn't find that your arms are sore
at the end of the day. If they are you are relying on your poles too
much ... remember that all the power is in your legs.
Also be carefull of how hard you pole, otherwise you'll find that
your elbows get sore, you don't get the same sort of cushoning
effect that you do on snow.

You will find that you do get a better workout with poles because
of the arm action.

4) Personally, I don't use the Rollerblade poles. I just take the tips
off of my regular Skating poles by softening up the glue under hot
running water, then I glue on carbide tips (should be available
in your local XC-Ski shop) using a glue gun. The carbide tips give a
good grip on pavement and won't get dull like normal steel tips.
Polling can be tricky on concrete.

_________________________________________________________________

BUCKLES

From: f...@fusbal.zk3.dec.com (Daniel Fay)
Subject: Buckles for MacroBlades...finally
Date: Wed, 15 Apr 1992 14:11:27 GMT

I have been finally able to find buckles to replace my velcro
straps.... they are the same as the ones on the TRS. They are
available from Skate City Supply Inc., PO Box 379, Ceder Crest NM
87008...505-294-6699 No catalog...but they seem to carry everything
and anything.

It is about $19 for a pair...and they even send all the rivets and
washers. The guy on the phone said they import the buckles into the
country, and most everone else gets the buckles from them. For the
MacroBlades all you have to do is pop the rivets out on the current
buckles and use the same holes for the new buckles and rivets. On the
other side you have to drill a hole in the plastic for the other
rivet. Pretty simple...as long as you have a rivet gun.

Also, Skate City said they were going to be moving away from carrying
Rollerblades and move to Roces (the company that manufactures RB's
stuff). One of the main reasons was that they are cheaper and come
with Hyper wheels instead of the 608's.

=END OF PART
4==================================================================
_________________________________________________________________

-Tony Chen (adc...@cs.fsu.edu)

TOC #1 #2 #3 #4 #5 #6 #7 #8 #9 #10 #11 PICS From
mailer.acns.fsu.edu!gatech!howland.reston.ans.net!EU.net!sun4nl!hackti
c!huphtur Thu Jan 5 06:26:30 1995 Path:
mailer.acns.fsu.edu!gatech!howland.reston.ans.net!EU.net!sun4nl!hackti
c!huphtur From: hup...@xs4all.nl (huphtur) Newsgroups: rec.skate
Subject: EMail address of Daily Bread and $enate!!! Date: 5 Jan 1995
06:53:18 GMT Organization: Hack-Tic, Networking for the masses Lines:
17 Message-ID: NNTP-Posting-Host: xs1.xs4all.nl X-Posted-By:
hup...@xs1.xs4all.nl Hey, just in case you guys didn't know here are
the Email Addresses of Daily Bread and $enate Super Co. DB:
DAILYB...@DELPHI.COM $: $ENA...@AOL.COM That will be all, don't
reply to this article, I never read this newsgroup... Salute, Apple
hup...@xs4all.nl

Tony Chen

unread,

Feb 1, 1995, 7:08:12 PM2/1/95

Posted-By: auto-faq 3.1.1.2
Archive-name: rec-skate-faq/part5

Rec.skate Frequently Asked Questions File: Part 5
_________________________________________________________________

REC.SKATE FAQ - PART 5: IN-LINE SKATE AND PRODUCT REVIEWS

(last changed Feb 1, 1995)

NOTE: Some of these "reviews" are simply articles pulled from alt.skate
(now defunct) and rec.skate, some even dating from May 1991. While these
articles include many facts and first-hand experience, much of the text
here is necessarily opinion. Also realize that the in-line market is
changing rapidly, so prices and specifications are likely to be out of
date.

The newer standardized review format (a copy is attached at the end of
this file) will be used for most of the new reviews from now on.

_________________________________________________________________

-Tony Chen, adc...@garnet.acns.fsu.edu
_________________________________________________________________

[IMAGE] *

Table of contents

* Hop Up kits
+ Hyper Hop-up kit (1)
+ Hyper Hop-up kit (2)
+ Lazzy Legs X-treme Pro Hop-up kit
+ Lazzy Legs Speed Demons Hop-up kit
+ Cyko HurricanZ hop-up kit
+ J&J Titan aluminium rocker inserts
* Bearings
+ GMN ABEC-3 bearings
+ YAK ABEC-3 bearings
+ Black Hole Rocks bearings
+ Powell Swiss "Bones" ABEC-1 bearings
* Wheels
+ Cyko HurricanZ 72mm 82Awheels
+ Kryptonics VR series wheel
+ Kryptonics PowerPlay hockey wheel
+ Kryptonics Rampage wheel
+ FR Progressors
* Miscellaneous products
+ CDS boot grind plates (2 reviews)
+ Lazzy Legs grind plate
+ Lazzy Legs heel straps (2 reviews)
+ Rollerblade Powerstrap
+ Jofa Speed Puck
+ Paragon Bearing Guards
+ The Grip cable braking system
* Protective gear
+ Bell Image helmet
+ Rollerblade protective pads (knee, elbow, wrist)
+ Rector Fat Boys kneepads
+ Bones Bone Guardz (wrist guards)
* Skates
+ Rollerblade Lightning TRS
+ Roller Derby BX-5000
+ Bauer XS-5's
+ Bauer H3's
+ CCM RH555 Tacks
+ Rollerblade Racerblades
+ Rollerblade Coolblades
+ Rollerblade Macroblade EQs
+ Rollerblade Aeroblade ABT
+ UltrawWheels Zephyr/Neon
+ K2 Extreme Workout skates
* Shops
+ Don Thomas Sporthaus (Detroit, MI)
+ The Skate Shop: (Youngstown, OH)
+ Millennium In-Line (mail-order)
+ Team Paradise (mail-order)
+ Hudson Bay Inline (mail-order)
+ Inline USA (mail-order)

K2 skate(s)

Performance skates

Ultra Wheels

Metroblades

Rollerblade Aeroblade (pre ABT model)

Racing skates

Bauer Xr10's
_________________________________________________________________

HOP UP KITS

From: William Bradley (wbra...@thor.ece.uc.edu)
Date: Tue, 3 May 1994 13:23:53 -0400

NOTE: you'll need to calculate the purchase date from the mail date (May 3)

1) Review by: William Bradley (wbra...@thor.ece.uc.edu)
2) Product type: Accessory (hop-up kit)
3) Brandname: Hyper
4) Model name/number: "Hyper Hop-Up Kit"
5) Purchase price: $20
6) From local store or mail order: Local sports chain
7) Purchase date:
8) How long have you used it: 1 year +
9) Pros: o Aluminum spacers *do* have internal hex hole for axle removal
o Includes two slightly longer axles to account for
brake mounting (Rollerblade, for example)
o Each axle has a loctite patch for safety
o Kit also includes washers, if you need them
10) Cons: o Aluminum spacers...supposedly these deform easier
during extreme skating (I wouldn't know)
o Loctite...no star washers, if that's your bag...
11) Additional comments: I've had no problems with these
12) My personal rating: 9

1. Review by: Jim Kiraly (kir...@cse.utoledo.edu)
2. Product type: Axle Kit
3. Brandname: Hyper
4. Model name/number: Hyper Hop up kit.
5. Purchase price: $25
6. From local store or mail order: ISA (Mail order)
7. Date purchased: June 13, 1994
8. How long have you used it: Since June 13, 1994
9. Pros:
- Comes with:
8 Red aluminun threaded spacers w/ hex lock.
16 Regular length, small headed axel bolts.
16 Washers
2 Brake wheel length small headed axel bolts.
2 Hex tools.
10. Cons: None to report.
11. Additional comments: I would recommend these over the Lazzy
Legs Speed Demons.
12. My personal rating: 9

1. Review by: Scott Weintraub (sco...@wam.umd.edu)
2. Product type: hop-up kit (accessory)
3. Brandname: Lazzy Legs
4. Model name/number: X-treme Pro
5. Purchase price: $25.90 for 8 wheels.
6. From local store or mail order: mail-order, don't recall where though.
7. Date purchased: 3/94
8. How long have you used it: 5 months.
9. Pros: Made of steel. Most hop-up kits are made of aluminum. Steel
is a lot more durable.
10. Cons: Steel is a little heavier than aluminum but the weight
difference isn't even noticable so I wouldn't worry about it.
11. Additional comments: If you're looking to upgrade your skates, a
hop-up kit is probably the best place to start. You will certainly
see a speed increase, it will cost you a little over twenty bucks,
and it's a one-time cost. Once you install it, you won't have to
worry about it again. The Lazzy Legs X-treme Pro is the Cadillac of
hop-up kits.
12. My personal rating: 10

1. Review by: Jim Kiraly (kir...@cse.utoledo.edu)
2. Product type: Axle Kit
3. Brandname: Lazzy Legs
4. Model name/number: Speed Demons
5. Purchase price: $21
6. From local store or mail order: Play it again sports. (Local store)
7. Date purchased: May 24, 1994
8. How long have you used it: 1-1/2 Months
9. Pros: Comes with:
8 Aluminum threaded bearing spaces with hex locks.
16 Normal length small headed axel bolts
2 Brake wheel lenght small headed axel bolts.
1 Hex tool
10. Cons: Easy to strip the threaded spacers. The axel bolts would actually
loosen up and fall out during normal skating sessions.
11. Additional comments: I was not impressed with these. All three sets that
myself and friends
have owned have had the bolt loosening problem.
12. My personal rating: 3

----------

1) Review by: ay...@yfn.ysu.edu (Martin Sripan)
2) Product type: Accessory-Axle Hop Up Kit
3) Company: Cyko
4) Model name/number: HurricanZ
5) Purchase price: $20.00
6) From: Millennium In-line
7) Length of use: 4 months; 1993, Discontinued
8) Size: 8 Wheel set
9) Pros:*Aluminum-speedy
*Threaded
*Hex lock
*Comes with instructions-really no need
10) Cons:*No frame spacers
*Aluminum-bad for extreme
*Threads are lost after time
*Bolts too big-huge profile
*Bolts slide like CDS Detroit Grind Plates, but in this case, it is
a disadvantage-gives new meaning to power slide
*Bolts get scuffed and flattened easily
*No tools provided, though a Torx T25 helps, as I prefer handled hex
wrenches over hex keys
*Brake bolts aren't big enough for my brake
11) Additional comments: The guy who sold me these practically forced me into
these over the Blading Edge-should've bought the Hyper, it sounds/looks
good
12) My personal rating: 3-better than plastic, seems like any other, but
Roces, Hyper, Mogema, Sure Grip, and other race frames are better

-----

1. Review by: Scott Weintraub (sco...@wam.umd.edu)
2. Product type: aluminum rockers (accessory)
3. Brandname: J&J Titan
4. Model name/number: Aluminum Rockers
5. Purchase price: $20 for all 8 wheels (16 rockers)
6. From local store or mail order: some mail-order house.
7. Date purchased: 6/94
8. How long have you used it: 2 months.
9. Pros: Aluminum rockers won't crack or warp like plastic ones will.
They may increase your speed a little, especially if you
have plastic ones that are already broken or warped because
they touch the bearing more preciley and won't rub up against
it.
10. Cons: $20 is a little expensive for 16 little pieces of aluminum but
they're pretty much the only place that I could find that
makes these things.
11. Additional comments: I'm not sure what skates these things fit. I'm
pretty sure they're made for the Rollerblade line. I know Roces makes
their own aluminum rockers, specifically for their skates. I would
recommend consulting your dealer to make sure that they'll fit on your
skates.
12. My personal rating: 9

_________________________________________________________________

BEARINGS

1. Review by: Scott Weintraub (sco...@wam.umd.edu)
2. Product type: bearing
3. Brandname: GMN
4. Model name/number: ABEC-3, greased, tin-shielded
5. Purchase price: $1.25/bearing
6. From local store or mail order: Some mail-order place.
7. Date purchased: 6/94
8. How long have you used it: 2 months
9. Pros: Very inexpensive.
10. Cons: Shields aren't removable so you have to pry them open to clean
them.
They pretty much felt like my old ABEC-1s to me.
11. Additional comments: I bought these because they were inexpensive
but I'm sorry I did. They didn't do much for me. If I could go
back, I would have probably spent a little extra money on a better
set of bearings. If you're looking for a cheap set of bearings
to replace a set of ABEC-1s and aren't really looking for a speed
improvement then these will suit you fine.
12. My personal rating: 4

---------

1) Review by: William Bradley (wbra...@thor.ece.uc.edu)
2) Product type: Bearing
3) Brandname: YAK
4) Model name/number: YAK ABEC-3
5) Purchase price: $2 per (normally) $1 per (on sale)
6) From local store or mail order: Inline USA
7) Purchase date:
8) How long have you used it: 3 months

9) Pros: o Removable Shields
o Very nice bearing, no wobble, blah blah blah
10) Cons: o Greased (you might be able to order oiled sets)
o Having to listen to "DA YAKMAN" rant about them :-)
11) Additional comments:
Some people gripe that these aren't much better than ABEC-1s.
I noticed a marked difference, though.
12) My personal rating: 7

----------

1. Review by: Rob Remus (rwr...@rs6000.cmp.ilstu.edu)
2. Product type: Bearings
3. Brandname: Black Hole
4. Model name/number: Rocks
5. Purchase price: $21.95 for 16
6. From local store or mail order: Wildcountry in Normal, IL. (No joke, the
name of the town is Normal.)
7. Date purchased: Sometime in April '94
8. How long have you used it: About 3 months
9. Pros: (list good features) The bearings are faster (better) than the ones
that came in my Macro EQ's. That however is the only thing about them
that is better.
10. Cons: The bearings get dirty VERY quickly. The bearings came lubed with
grease and within one day of skating they were dirty enough to start
making noise. I then replaced the grease with oil, which made them even
worse.
11. Additional comments: Spend a little more money and get some good
bearings.
12. My personal rating: 5

----------

1. Review by: Tony Chen (adc...@garnet.acns.fsu.edu)
2. Product type: bearings
3. Brandname: Powell Swiss "Bones" bearings
4. Model name/number: ABEC-1's
5. Purchase price: $2/bearing
6. From local store or mail order: Skates Off Haight (mail-order)
7. Date purchased: Fall 1991
8. How long have you used it: 3 years (review dated: Nov 12, 1994)
9. Pros: For a long time the Bones bearings were rumored to be ABEC-5
quality, but in the end the company said they were only
ABEC-1's. Doesn't matter. These bearings spin like crazy. They
are one-sided bearings, with only a plastic snap-cage to
secure the ball bearings. The ones I ordered were in sets of
8 and came with a small plastic pouch of Bones speed cream.

In an extreme case of laziness and negligence, up until
last week I had only relubed 2 out of the 16 since I first
bought them 3 years ago. My main laziness stemmed from the
fact that they still spun like crazy, and still sounded clean.
I have since cleaned and relubed all of them, out of guilt 8-)
but they're all in amazing shape still.

I even had 2 of them sitting around for a long time (about 1
year) because I've been trying out other bearings. These
bearings got pretty crusty, either with a tad bit of rust,
or really gunked up residue from lubes and dirt, or combo of
all of the above. Anyway, as a lark, I tossed 'em to be
cleaned with the other bearings (Bones and others) that I was
relubing. Lo and behold. Sparkling clean, super-spinning
bearings again. They spin better than my Yak ABEC-3's which
are fairly new, lemme tell you.

I bought the Yaks for my Bont racing setup, but now I think
I'm switching to all Bones (plus 4 Yaks, since I only have 16
Bones at the moment.).

In terms of maintanence, the Bones are very easy to clean and
handle because they have only two parts: the bearing and the
snap-cage. With most of the two-sided bearings (like Yaks,
TwinCams, etc.) you have to pry off the C-ring on each side
and you end up with 2 rings, 2 shields, and the bearing.

Also, when you take the snap-ring off, the balls inside aren't
constrained by a brace of any kind, so you can really clean
out the whole inside pretty well. This also means you can
apply your lube easily as well, since the balls are in full
view.

Putting the snap-cage usually takes longer than putting a
C-ring and shield back on (on the other bearings), but it's
still pretty simple for the most part.

In any case, I have noticed ABEC-5 rated Bones for sale in
some mail-order places now. 1 or 5, I don't think you can
go wrong with Bones bearings.

10. Cons: Nada. They're more expensive than most bearings, but you
definitely get more than what you pay for.
11. Additional comments: (See Pros section)
12. My personal rating: 10 (compared to NMBs, Yak/TwinCam ABEC-3s)

_________________________________________________________________

WHEELS

1) Review by: ay...@yfn.ysu.edu (Martin Sripan)
2) Product type: Accessory-Wheels
3) Company: Cyko
4) Model name: HurricanZ
Model year: 1993; Discontinued
5) Purchase price: $20. for 8-$2.5 each (on MI-L sale), usually $40. for 8
6) From: Millennium In-Line
7) Length of use: 2 days-sold them-not hard to review them though.
8) Size, Hardness, Radius: 72mm, 82A-Flat 22
9) Pros:*Reinforced fan-blade core makes it fast and light-hard wheel-
nice wear, nice cooling
*Black color is nice, no prints or other obstructive stuff
10) Cons:*Real bad on hard surfaces and on any extreme skates
*Dull wheel-no laminated gloss surface (tread, sidewall)
11) Additional comments: In my opinion, it's just like any other wheel
but it's fast and cool.
12) My personal rating: 5-Not good, not bad

-------

1. Review by: Jim Kiraly (kir...@cse.utoledo.edu)
2. Product type: Wheels
3. Brandname: Kryptonics
4. Model name/number: VR Series 72mm/78A Narrow radius, tri spoke core.
5. Purchase price: ~$40
6. From local store or mail order: Play it Again Sports (Local store)
7. Date purchased: June 28, 1994
8. How long have you used it: Since June 28, 1994
9. Pros: Nice wheel, with decent wear. Hub fits the bearings tightly.
10. Cons: Not made for quick turns.
11. Additional comments: I don't have a lot to say about these wheels,
because the narrow radius isn't very useful for the kind of skating I do.
12. My personal rating: 8

-----

1. Review by: Jim Kiraly (kir...@cse.utoledo.edu)
2. Product type: Wheel
3. Brandname: Kryptonics
4. Model name/number: PowerPlay 72mm/82A w/ Krypto hockey radius, tri spoke co
re.
5. Purchase price: Came stock with skates (CCM RH555 Tacks).
6. From local store or mail order: Tam-O-Shanter, Sylvania Ohio (Local Store)
7. Date purchased: July 31, 1994
8. How long have you used it: Since July 31, 1994
9. Pros: Nice even wear, even with heavy usage. Great stability at high speed
s.
Can really hold tight turns, I have yet to have them slip out on me
while turning.
10. Cons: None to report
11. Additional comments: My favorite wheel by far.
12. My personal rating: 9-1/2

1. Review by: Jim Kiraly (kir...@cse.utoledo.edu)
2. Product type: Wheels
3. Brandname: Kryptonics
4. Model name/number: 72mm/82A Rampage Full Radius, tri spoke core.
5. Purchase price: $32 for 8
6. From local store or mail order: ISA (Mail order)
7. Date purchased: June 13, 1994
8. How long have you used it: Since June 13, 1994
9. Pros: Nice wide radius, nice for turning and such. Good even wear (with
proper rotation).
10. Cons: Hubs do not have a nice tight fit around the bearings, which causes
the wheels to wobble from time to time.
11. Additional comments: These are good wheels, I am not sure if the bearing
problem above is a problem with just my set or found with all Rampages.
12. My personal rating: 8.5

-----

1. Review by: Scott Weintraub (sco...@wam.umd.edu)
2. Product type: wheel
3. Brandname: FR Progressors
4. Model name/number: 60mm/88A
5. Purchase price: $7/wheel
6. From local store or mail order: mail-order (don't recall where)
7. Date purchased: 7/94
8. How long have you used it: one month.
9. Pros: Nice size/hardness for street skating.
Solid core.
10. Cons: Difficult to find.
I expected them to be a little flatter on the bottom (a la
Hyper Midgets) but they were shaped a lot like your generic
wheel, only smaller.
11. Additional comments: For 88A, they seem to be a little soft. It
seems that Hyper's version of an 88A wheel is harder. And for a
little tidbit: I've heard that FR stands for "Fuck Rollerblade".
12. My personal rating: 8

_________________________________________________________________

MISCELLANEOUS

1) Review by: ay...@yfn.ysu.edu (Martin Sripan)
2) Product type: Accessory-Boot grind plates
3) Company: CDS Detroit
4) Model name/number: Boot grind plates, Size: 4 plates, 1x3 inches
5) Purchase price: $9.99 or so for a set of 4, bought 1 set
6) From: Millennium In-Line, sold many places
7) Purchase date:
8) Length of use: 2 weeks, then got kinda sick of it, and one plate fell off
-just starting to use them the right way now
9) Pros:*Great if you can get it to work-helps with power stops, other boot
grinding maneuvers
*Very versatile-use for other stuff
10) Cons:*Hard to attach velcro lanyards, for me at least
11) Additional comments: Works better on CLEAN surfaces; unscathed ones
recommended. All CDS products are probably good when used correctly,
but I didn't really need the boot plates-my boot was screwed from the
start. It works best on boots of the leather type probably.
12) My personal rating: 3 if you don't apply correctly, 10 if you do

1. Review by: Scott Weintraub (sco...@wam.umd.edu)
2. Product type: Grind plate (accessory)
3. Brandname: CDS Detroit
4. Model name/number: Street Line Frame Grind Plates
5. Purchase price: $5.99 for two.
6. From local store or mail order: some mail-order house.
7. Date purchased: 6/94
8. How long have you used it: 10 minutes.
9. Pros: They're made of plastic and plastic slides a lot better than
steel does because there's a lot less friction.
Inexpensive.
10. Cons: When I power-slide, I slide on the grind plate because it
sticks out so much and since it's so smooth, I keep on
sliding. Sometimes, I'll even do a split.
When I cut sharp turns, I will sometimes hit the grind plate
on the ground and since it's so smooth, my legs just slip out.
11. Additional comments: They are a good idea. They'll protect your
frame and they'll slide better than any metal grind plate could ever
dream. But I just couldn't sacrifice maneuverability and power-slides
for it.
12. My personal rating: 5

-----

1. Review by: Scott Weintraub (sco...@wam.umd.edu)
2. Product type: Grind plate (accessory)
3. Brandname: Lazzy Legs
4. Model name/number: Steel Bridge Grind Plate
5. Purchase price: about $20
6. From local store or mail order: random mail-order house.
7. Date purchased: 6/94
8. How long have you used it: 2 months.
9. Pros: It's made of steel so it's strong.
It's thick so it will last a while.
10. Cons: The largest wheel size you will be able to fit on a skate with
a bridge grind plate is around 65mm.
11. Additional comments: If you put a steel grind plate on your skate,
it will slide nicely on metal but grinding a curb is a little more
difficult because there's a lot of friction. There are many different
ways you can outfit your skate for grinding. With this plate, you can
skate with all small wheels or you can skate anti-rocker. I still
haven't discovered the perfect grinding combo.
12. My personal rating: 8

-----

1) Review by: ay...@yfn.ysu.edu (Martin Sripan)
2) Product type: Accessory-Heel tighteners
3) Company: Lazzy Legs
4) Model name/number: Heel tighteners
5) Purchase price: 12.99
6) From: Performance Bicycle-they don't sell it anymore, but many MO shops
have them
7) Length of use: a month, until I came to my senses and thought "Why did
I buy this?" Started using it again.
8) Size: standard, 2 to a set
9) Pros:*Great for: reducing road vibration at high speeds
*Reducing heel lift due to weak instep area
*Tightening boot fit
*Protecting side of boot from crash-not intended use though
10) Cons:*Mainly useless on unflexible boots such as plastics
11) Additional comments: It seems to be more intended for racing, to prevent
heel lift, but for some reason I look in Inline
magazine issues, and many extreme skaters are wearing
it.
12) My personal rating:8-nothing else to compare to.

1. Review by: Scott Weintraub (sco...@wam.umd.edu)
2. Product type: arch and ankle tighteners (accessory)
3. Brandname: Lazzy Legs
4. Model name/number: Arch and Ankle Tighteners
5. Purchase price: $20 (can be had for less)
6. From local store or mail order: Blades in Manhattan.
7. Date purchased: 6/94
8. How long have you used it: 2 months.
9. Pros: They really give you a lot more support.
Nice price.
Durable.
10. Cons: None.
11. Additional comments: These aren't really meant to tighten your boot
more around your foot. They're meant to hold your foot in place.
The arch tighteners can be used as a replacement for laces but I
would recommend leaving your laces on.
12. My personal rating: 10

-----

1. Review by: Scott Weintraub (sco...@wam.umd.edu)
2. Product type: Heel tightener (accessory)
3. Brandname: Rollerblade, Inc.
4. Model name/number: Power-strap
5. Purchase price: $8
6. From local store or mail order: Herman's Sporting Goods
7. Date purchased: 12/93
8. How long have you used it: 8 months.
9. Pros: Give you a lot of support.
Inexpensive.
Very durable.
10. Cons: None.
11. Additional comments: They come with a little patch of velcro that
you are supposed to attach to the heel of your skate. When you put
them on, a piece of velcro on the heel strap sticks to that to help
it stay secure, under your heel. I just thought that was a nifty
idea so I mentioned it. I used a hot glue gun to keep that little
patch on. The Lazzy Legs heel straps look a little thicker and they
look like they might be a little more secure so you might want to
check those out before purchasing these. But, on the other hand,
for $8, you can't really go wrong.
12. My personal rating: 8

-----
1. Review by: Jim Kiraly (kir...@cse.utoleod.edu)
2. Product type: Hockey Puck
3. Brandname: Jofa
4. Model name/number: Jofa ISD Speed Puck
5. Purchase price: $10.95
6. From local store or mail order: Tam-O-Shanter, Sylvania Ohio (Local Store)
7. Date purchased: August 7, 1994
8. How long have you used it: Since August 7, 1994
9. Pros: Puck comes installed with 12 (6 per side) nylon runners for textured
surfaces. Also includes 12 runners for smooth surfaces. I have only
tried the puck on parking lot type surfaces, were it works really
well. Feels like puck, handles like a puck, etc...
10. Cons: It doesn't get on the edge too often, but when it does, it doesn't
like to lay back down. The runners are not easy to remove.
11. Additional comments: The puck is wieghted around the edges and is spoked
in the center, it is completely made of rubber with the exception of the
runners. This is the puck used by the RHI.
12. My personal rating: 9

-----

1. Review by: (adc...@garnet.acns.fsu.edu)
2. Product type: wheel/bearing accessory (bearing guards)
3. Brandname: Paragon
4. Model name/number: bearing guards
5. Purchase price: $4.99 for 20 guards
6. From local store or mail order: Paragon Products, Inc.
690 Industrial Circle S., Shakopee, MN 55379 (612) 496-0091
7. Date purchased: March 25, 1994
8. How long have you used it: (used it only for one month)
9. Pros: They DO keep the grit out and off of your bearings, and
they're plenty cheap.
10. Cons: The price for keeping the grit out is that you increase
rolling resistance by a very substantial factor.
11. Additional comments: The guards do their job well, but the way the
work requires that they rub slightly against
the wheel hub. This makes for very, very
slow skating, compared to w/out them.
12. My personal rating: 8, if you don't mind the large rolling friction
caused. A rating of 1 if you do! 8-)

-----
From: ma...@unidata.ucar.edu (Matt Hicks)
Date: 12 May 94 16:20:40 GMT

Thomas A. Creedon writes:
>Does any inline skater out there have any experience with or information
>about a hand held hydrolic braking device for inline skates? I beleive
>the device is called The Grip. I saw it demonstrated on that "Why
>Didn't I Think Of That" invention TV show with Wil Shriner as the host.
>It was my understanding that it was just about ready to go to market.
>I'd be interested in the price, purchase source and any other
>information you may have.

I meant to post this a long time ago. The Grip has been around for about a
year. It was invented (and I believe it is manufactured) by a company here
in Boulder. My opinion: Don't bother. I tried these things out at a demo
last year. Yes, they do stop you. Are they quicker than heal brakes? Maybe,
slightly. Are they clunky, annoying, cumbersome, and generally inconvenient?
You betcha.

The brake works like this: You have a handle in each hand (kind of like
those Dymo label makers that use the adhesive tape). Each handle has a cable
running down the back of your leg, secured about half way down by a velcro
strap. The cable runs through a couple of guides mounted on your skate's
frame and running almost it's entire length (on the outside of your skate).
When you squeeze the handles (you pretty much have to use them both at the
same time) a couple of pieces of "automobile brake material" are pressed
into the inside of the hubs of their specially produced wheels. (Are you
starting to see how this setup could be a pain in the ass yet?)

The problems with this setup:

1. Your arms and legs move away from each other on each side. Having your
hand and foot connected by a cable sort of limits your stride length/arm
swing, unless...

2. You've got a lot of cable. Well you don't really (see problem 1) but it's
enough to be a hassle.

3. The hardware runs along the bottom of the frame. I pointed out to the guy
who was demoing (one of the company partners) that I kept scraping the
hardware against the ground when I tried to do crossovers. "Oh, that's
okay," he said, "That's why we made it out of metal, so it would stand up
to that." "But, you don't seem to understand," I replied, "when I'm
leaned over into a turn with my legs crossed, I want nice grippy polyure-
thane in contact with the ground, not hard, slippery metal." "Whatever,"
he said.

4. You still have to adopt the one-foot-forward braking position or you'll
get dumped on your head. Having the braking force originate at your
wheels leaves your feet stopped and the much greater mass of your body
still in motion.

5. You _have_ to use their wheels and those wheels have to go in the two
middle slots, so your rotation pattern is completely screwed.

6. ~$80; more in some outlets. And replacing 4 wheels is definitely going to
cost more than replacing one brake pad.

7-10. I'm sure someone can think of drawbacks to fill these slots; I
probably could if I spent a few more minutes.

Good points?

1. Keeps all your wheels on the ground.

2. Probably lasts longer than a brake pad.

3. Technoweenie bonus points.

This product was much hyped locally. I thought it had dubious merits before
I tried it, and found much more to dislike after trying it. My advice is to
stay away.

_________________________________________________________________

Protective Gear Reviews

1) Review by: William Bradley (wbra...@thor.ece.uc.edu)
2) Product type: Safety gear (helmet)
3) Brandname: Bell
4) Model name/number: Image
5) Purchase price: $80 (normally) $40 (on sale)
6) From local store or mail order: Bike Nashbar
7) Purchase date:
8) How long have you used it: 2 months
7) Pros: o Well-vented
o Light (sub-8 oz.)
o Easy to fit (adjustable pads/straps)
o Microshell (compromise between hardshell and foam)
8) Cons: (none, really)
9) Additional comments: **insert typical helmet rant here** :-)
10) My personal rating: 8

----------

1) Review by: William Bradley (wbra...@thor.ece.uc.edu)
2) Product type: Safety gear
3) Brandname: Rollerblade
4) Model name/number: Standard Pads (knee/elbow/wrist)
5) Purchase price: $15-$25 per set
6) From local store or mail order: Local sports store
7) Purchase date:
8) How long have you used it: 1 year +
9) Pros: o They work very well
o Wrist guards have velcro pocket near right thumb
10) Cons: o They're somewhat bulky, sometimes get in the way
o Velcro pocket won't hold car key
11) Additional comments: **insert typical pad rant here** :-)
12) My personal rating: 6

----------

1. Review by: Scott Weintraub (sco...@wam.umd.edu)
2. Product type: knee pads (safety gear)
3. Brandname: Rector
4. Model name/number: Fat Boys
5. Purchase price: about $50
6. From local store or mail order: Skates Off Haight (I think)
7. Date purchased: 4/94
8. How long have you used it: 4 months
9. Pros: Nice and big with about an inch of padding between the plate
and your knee. Your knees will survive any fall.
Instead of a tube, it has four thick straps. These straps work
as well (perhaps better) than any tube and you don't have to
take off your sneakers or skates to get them off.
Cheaper than Boneless Knee Pads.
When you fall, the plates are made to slide across the ground
instead of sticking. I found that some pads like the
standard ones that Rollerblade, Inc. makes stick to the
ground when you fall so all that momentum you have forces
you to roll on the ground. With these pads, when you hit
the ground, you just slide on your knees for a few feet
instead of rolling. Does that make sense?
Goes well with any wardrobe.
10. Cons: You may find that your knees don't bend as well as they might
with a smaller knee pad but as far as "extreme" pads go, these
are the least cumbersome. You'll get used to them very quickly.
11. Additional comments: None.
12. My personal rating: 10

--------

1) Review by: William Bradley (wbra...@thor.ece.uc.edu)
2) Product type: Safety gear (wrist guards)
3) Brandname: Bones (???)
4) Model name/number: Bone Guardz
5) Purchase price: $12
6) From local store or mail order: Local bike shop
7) Purchase date:
8) How long have you used it: 1 month +

9) Pros: o Comparable to most every wrist guard in existence
10) Cons: o Somewhat smaller than the rest, though
o No velcro pocket to not hold your car key :-)
11) Additional comments: Well, my wife likes them
12) My personal rating: 6

_________________________________________________________________

New skate reviews

1. Review by: Scott Weintraub (sco...@wam.umd.edu)
2. Product type: skate
3. Brandname: Rollerblade, Inc.
4. Model name/number: Lightning TRS
5. Purchase price: $180 (can be found for less: $150-$170)
6. From local store or mail order: Herman's Sporting Goods. They agreed
to match the price of any local skate shop. I don't believe they carry
this skate anymore though.
7. Date purchased: 11/93
8. How long have you used it: 9 months
9. Pros: Incredibly durable.
Most accesseries are made to fit it.
Priced nicely.
Great for almost any kind of skating: street, vert, hockey,
recreation/fitness, transportation, etc.
10. Cons: A little heavy, but not too heavy.
Fits well, but not as well as some of the other skates on the
market.
Kinda ugly.
A friend of mine owns a pair of '94s and I noticed that the
plastic between the wheels is a little thinner. Looks like
Rollerblade, Inc. cut back a little bit.
11. Additional comments: The Lightning TRS comes with rather low-grade
components (ABEC-1 bearings, plastic rockers, no hop-up kit) but
you're really paying for the durable boot and frame. The bearings,
axels, and rockers can all be easily upgraded. So, if you put a
little more money into them, they can potentially be one of the best
skates out there. If you want to get into street or vert skating,
this skate has pretty much become the industry standard (Although
two new skates, the Tarmac CE from Rollerblade and the Moscow Ramp
from Roces, might change that). If you want to get into hockey, this
is a fantastic, low-budget skate to look into. It sure can take a
beating.
12. My personal rating: For street/vert: 9
For hockey: 8
For recreation/fitness/transportation: 7

1) Review by: Ana & Rick Langlois [ ric...@ux1.cso.uiuc.edu ]
2) Product type: In-line Skates
3) Brandname: Roller Derby
4) Model name/number: BX 5000
5) Purchase price: $149.00 + tax, (U.S.)
6) From local store: MC Mages Sporting goods store.
(13 Chicago area locations).
7) Date purchased: March, 1994

8) How long have
you used them: 12 weeks.

9) Pros: Comfortable fit, quality construction and components.
Large brake, good styling, fast, GREAT price.

10) Cons: Boot shell not hinged. Some may not like the black
w/pink color scheme.

11) Additional comments: Very, very good skate for the price.

12) My personal rating
1 to 10 (10 = best): * 9 *

Product Description:
Shell: One piece, ventilated, 'BASF Elastollan' polyurethane.
Front entry, 3 buckles (screwed on; not riveted).
High gloss black finish w/flat black "scuff areas".
Removeable insole.

Liner: Foam interior (single or dual density?) w/ removable
insole. Ballistic nylon lower, vinyl cuff and bottom.

Frame: Bolt-on (2 bolts; 1 heel, 1 toe) 'DuPont Zytel' nylon resin
in two halves.

Wheels: 80mm 78a Team Labeda MDI Race Series.

Bearings: SKF brand, ABEC-3 (made in ITALY).

Axles/Spacers: 2 piece, steel axles (bolts) w/Allen heads on both ends.
Can not be over tightened. Steel spacer between bearings,
plastic bushings on the outside and through the bearings.
Wheel 2 & 3 rockerable via replaceable spacers (supplied).

(see diagram)

*BOOT*
\ ______ /
\ \____/ < Screw /
\ \_|__|_/ < "Washer" /
\_________|__|____________________________________________/

{ |__| }
{ } (other frame-)
{frame } rail & rockering
{ } spacer omitted)
__ { } __
| | { }[] ______ ______ [] | |
| | { }[]| | ___________ | |[] | |
| |___ []{----}[]-------|_ _|__ _ _ _ __|_ _|------|[]_ _| |
| ///////// []{ }[]| | | | | |[] |
| ___///////// []{ }[]| |_ _|__ _ _ _ __|_ _| |[]_ _ |
| | []{----}[]-------| |___________| |------|[] | |
| | []{ }[]|______| ^ |______|[] | |
|__| { }[] ^ ^ [] |__|
^ {____} ^ ^ ^ ^
Allen head ^ ^ Bearing Steel ^ Bearing ^ ^
Bolt ^ ^ ^ Spacer Through ^ Through
^ Frame ^ Bolt ^ Bolt
^ Plastic Plastic
Plastic Bushing Bushing
Rockering
Spacer

1) Review by: amy (ry...@ux1.cso.uiuc.edu)
2) Product type: Skates
3) Brandname: Bauer
4) Model name/number: XS5's. (street skates)
5) Purchase price: $129.99 first new pair
$ 30.00 second used pair
(before getting your hopes up.. everything
on these skates were shot except the boots
and laces)
6) From local store or mail order: Johnston's Sporting Goods
University Ave
downtown Champaign IL

Pelican Ski and Pool Shop
Route 22
East Brunswick NJ
7) Date purchased: July 1993, July 1994
8) How long have you used it: Just over a year (except snow)
9) Pros: made in small sizes** in the 1993 line
decent wheels (hypers 72mm 78A dur.)
rockerability (3 wheel model.. front and back move
horizontally, middle goes up and down)
brake foot is swappable for lefties and righties
comes with 72 mm wheel, can hold upto 76 mm
with the rockers adjusted
10) Cons: 1994 line doesn't come in very small sizes
NMB bearings.. not exactly quick
slow skates.
all laces
new bauer brakes wear out easily

11) Additional comments: I added a top buckle for ~$25 dollars.
this was a tremendous improvement on the skate.
I also added a hopup kit, speed increase was
incredible
the smaller sizes (atleast < 4) have 3 wheels

*** I purchased a second pair of these skates because the chassis
of the first pair cracked by the front wheel. Although, the first skates
broke, I still feel confident in Bauer and bought an identical pair.
I am sending the first pair in to be looked at by Bauer. They said
they may be able to replace the broken chassis. If you are buying ANY
skates, please look carefully at the chassis before purchasing it.
Remember you need a stronger chassis for grinds, slides and jumps
than you do for casual skating. My rating for these skates hasn't changed
because of this problem.

12) My personal rating: 1 to 10 8 for regular skates
9 for small feeted persons

1. Review by: Jim Kiraly (kir...@cse.utoledu.edu)
2. Product type: Skate
3. Brandname: Bauer
4. Model name/number: H3 (Hockey 3)
5. Purchase price: $149.99
6. From local store or mail order: Play it Again Sports,
7. Date purchased: April 29, 1994
8. How long have you used it: 3-4 months
9. Pros:
- All laces, nice fitting boot, includes toe guards, rockerable chasis,
solid feeling while skating, nice beginner skates (was for me anyhow).
Stock equipment:
Narrow radius, vented core, 72mm/78A wheels.
ABEC-1 Bearings (China)
Aluminum Threaded Spaces
Big headed axel bolts.
Bauer Super-Light Chasis
10. Cons:
- The stock wheels are narrow radius, and cheap. The wheels started
to seperate from the hubs after 2 months of everyday usage. The
wear on the wheels was ok. The chasis is easily deformed by over
tightening of the axels, and the bearing spacers fit too tightly
into the bearings, to the point that they are hard (or in two cases
impossible) to seperate. The chasis only accepts 72mm wheels.

11. Additional comments:
- Other than the problems with the frame and the stock equipment I
really like this skate. I used these to learn how to skate in,
so thy have taken quite a bit of punishment from falling and such,
but have held up well. I would recommend these to someone looking
for an all-purpose mid-range skate. Look to upgrade the wheels
and axels sooner than later.

12. My personal rating: 7

1. Review by: Jim Kiraly (kir...@cse.utoledo.edu)
2. Product type: Skate
3. Brandname:CCM
4. Model name/number: RH555 Tacks
5. Purchase price: $260
6. From local store or mail order: Tam-O-Shanter, Sylvania Ohio (Local Store)
7. Date purchased: July 31, 1994
8. How long have you used it: Since July 31, 1994
9. Pros: Reebok Insta-Pump, provides a nice firm fit around the ankle.
All lace.
Stock Equipment:
Kryptonics Tri-Spoked core, 72mm/82A Powerplay Wheels
German GMN ABEC-3 bearings
Non-threaded aluminum spacers.
Small headed axel bolts.
Aluminum frame spacers.
Slightly rockered frame nylon/glass-reinforced frame.
The frame is easily removable for easy maintanence.
Frames will take 82mm wheels.

10. Cons: Axle holes in the frame will not allow for axel kits such as the
Hyper Hop Up Kit to be used. The frame is non-adjustable
(rockered/unrockered).

11. Additional comments: I like these a lot. I would recommend these skates
for anyone looking into rec/hockey skates.

12. My personal rating: 9.5

1) Review by: thi...@pioneer.arc.nasa.gov (William W. Thigpen - RC)
2) Product type: skate
3) Brandname: Rollerblade
4) Model name/number: Racerblade
5) Purchase price: Free
6) From local store or mail order: Rollerblade (Blade for Breath award)
7) Date purchased: Sometime around March of '93
8) How long have you used it: I skate between 50 and 200 miles/week year
round

9) Pros: There are a number of things I like about this skate, however,
I've only had the TRS's to compare them against. I like to commute on skates
(12.5 miles each way), so I need a skate that is comfortable and has good
speed to it. From the first time I put on the Racerblades, I was able to go
several hours in them. I upgraded the bearings to bones and upgraded the axle
system... before I used them the first time, so I can't speak to the off the
shelf quality of the running gear. For me, the brake is an important feature
and it seems like most five wheel skates don't have that as an option. I'm
still working on my form, so I'm not very competitive in races yet, however,
I did notice a significant differance on who I could keep up with on these
skates. They hold a good line on downhill portions with no wobble. Overall, I
like these skates and would recommend them.

10) Cons: They are a little heavy, you can't change the position of the
frame, and they are a little high on the ankle

11) Additional comments: I think that this is a good entry level race skate,
however, I am already ancy to upgrade to a different skate...I guess you
could say that 5000 miles is enough for any skate, however, my wife thinks
under two years is not long enough.

12) My personal rating: 9.5

-----------------

1. Review by: Marianne Sedacki (Mar...@aol.com)
2. Product type: Skate
3. Brandname: Rollerblade
4. Model name: CoolBlade
5. Purchase price: $249 + tax
6. Purchased from Sportmart in Orland Park, IL Rte 45 (LaGrange Rd)
7. Date purchased: 6-9-94
8. How long have I used it? Since June 9, 1994
9. Pros: 3 buckles--good fit. Vented boot--niice. 80A hardness on
the wheels that came with--perfect hardness for me. ABT brake easy
for beginners, didn't feel like I was going to fall down when
braking. I like the fit...after I broke them in, that is. The ABT
brake is good for beginner's, altho many fellow skaters complain
that the ABT is a money making gimmick--I've tried the regular brake
and I prefer the ABT. The vented boot is nice for those very warm
days, altho it isn't as wonderful as walking in sandals! :)
10. Cons: The ABT brake sometimes gets in the way doing backwards
cross-overs with the braking boot. The ABT brake can be cumbersome
when doing any maintenance on the wheels.
11. Additional comments: Overall I'm quite happy with my investment.
12. Personal rating: 8.5

--------------

1) Review by: baby...@medisg.Stanford.EDU (Timothy Chen)
2) Product type: InLine Skate
3) Brandname: RollerBlade
4) Model name/number: Macroblade Equipes
5) Purchase price: Something ridiculous like 220$ or something with
a lifetime warranty on everything above the wheels (basically if
straps/buckles break)

6) From local store or mail order: Nuvo Colors, San Mateo, CA

7) Date purchased: June 19th, 1994
8) How long have you used it: 'bout a year
9) Pros: Easy in, convenient carrying straps, easy out, high
ankle support

10) Cons: High ankle support prevents you from doing high jumps...
at least for me. There are also kind of heavy, and cannot
accelerate as quickly as other blades I've noticed.

11) Additional comments: Great Blades, love 'em.
12) My personal rating: 1 to 10 -> 9.

--------

1) Review by: Robert Schmunk (pc...@nasagiss.giss.nasa.gov)
2) Product type: Skate
3) Brandname: Rollerblade
4) Model name/number: 1994 Aeroblade w/ABT
5) Purchase price: $299 - 10% NYRSA discount + 8.25% NYC sales tax
6) From local store or mail order: Local, Blades Second Ave., New York, NY.
7) Date purchased: Dec 29, 1994
8) How long have you used it: 1 month, avg 3 times per week
9) Pros:
Compared to my 1993 Lightning TRSes, lighter in weight, vented,
and holds larger wheels. All of this means that the Aeros are a
*lot* faster, and even when I'm standing still, I almost feel
like dancing around.
The three-buckle system allows quicker entry and exit, handy
during shopping or other intermittent non-skate activity. I now
consider myself an advocate of buckles in the buckles-vs-laces
argument, provided one is not engaged in radical skating activity
which might destroy the buckles.
The pump used to inflate the liner for a snugger fit around the
heel seems fairly useful, although once I'm out on the road, I
don't particularly notice whether I "pumped up" or not.
Cons:
I removed the ABT brake before I took the skates out for the first
time, so I can't comment on how (non)useful it might be. However, just
trying the skates out in the store, the ABT mounting got in the way
when I tried some forward/sideways/backwards transitions. I skate
brakeless, but two friends of mine who also got Aeros in the past
month, have replaced the ABTs with the brakes from their older
Rollerblades. (Give Rollerblade credit for not re-designing this
capability out of the skate.) New skaters probably won't even
realize that there's a "problem".
The frames aren't as rigid as on my TRSes and seem to be putting a
little sideways pressure on the axle of the second wheel (from the
front) so that those the axles put up a small fight when you're
trying to remove them for wheel rotation.
After the second day of skating on the new skates, I had one bearing
start to lock up on me. I had skated for about five blocks on a
slightly moist street on that second day, but all the other bearings
were okay, so I can't quite decide if it was a bad bearing from the
get-go or just bad luck.
The Aeros are definitely narrower than my old TRSes, so that people
with wide feet may find them unwearable. (Macroblades seem to be
even narrower, but I understand that Bravoblades are a bit wider.)
I've had a little trouble around the bottom of the rear half of my
feet, but this seems to come and go depending on if I've been dinking
around with the liner.
After one month of mixed slalom and street skating (no stair bashing
or curb grinding), one of the stock (77mm/78A) wheels is showing
signs it will come apart *very* soon and I have ordered my first of
replacement wheels (80mm/82A).
Additional comments:
An excellent skate for slalom skating and for tooling about town,
especially group skate activities, in which I found they make a
noticeable difference in whether you're at the front or back of
the pack. Also a good exercise skate for those who have not moved
up to 5-wheel or long-frame 4-wheel skates.
There are a few features which suggest that they could not handle
serious abuse (note my comment above about the non-rigid frame),
but they can apparently sustain quite a bit, as I have one friend
who does occasional stair bashing and curb grinding in his 1992
or 1993 version of this model.
Be sure to test out the pump system thorughly when purchasing a
pair, as one friend who purchased a pair found that one local
store had several pairs with one or both pumps somehow screwed up.
My rating below would be a 9/10 if I hadn't had to replace a
bearing and my wheels so soon.

My personal rating: 8 / 10

--------

1) Review by: ay...@yfn.ysu.edu (Martin Sripan)
2) Product type: Skate
3) Company: UltraWheels (this specific model made by Atomic)
4) Model name: Zephyr/Neon, Size: 11-allows for at supposed most size 76mm wh
eels
5) Model year: 1993; Discontinued on UltraWheels' Line
6) Price: sale for $139.00-usually $189.00-now $139.00
7) Purchase date: July 1993
8) From: Herman's-out of business-Grind Zone has it 139
9) Approximate length of use: 1 year
10) Pros:*Wheels are okay for extreme, bearings were mixed-Rocks, GMN, etc.
good though.
*Frame inside like TRS I think-never saw TRS-but it has walls
seperating the wheels-better frame stability
*Monocoque boot and frame construction supposedly for better stabilit
y
*Liner is no big deal-like a shoe interior with no footbed
*Rear entry is nice & easy, but not special
10) Cons:*Hot rod style axles bent-needed a wrench and two hours to take out
*Plastic frame & bearing spacers sucked
*Frame is okay, but bends easy
*Probably a result of hard wheels-but much vibration
*Hard to get good fit-no instep strap or buckle, and...
*No way to tighten fit from top buckle down-only one buckle
*Brake sux, as do all other standard brakes
*Only way to rocker is to wear down front and back wheels :)
*Sometimes even if I didn't put the buckle on tight, I got blisters
and the tongue, not movable, put a dent in my skin and caused odd
bone growth in that area
*Forward flex is the only thing available, rest of boot is steel rigi
d
*Regardless, the boot scraps up real easy-probably PE or PU-
it's softer than my grind plates!
11) Additional comments: Buy the Lightning TRS instead-more likely than not,
it's better.
12) Personal rating: against other companies-1, for advanced-1, intermediate-
4, beginners/lazy careless people-10-(not to imply they're the same)

-----

1) Review By: Marty Gold (mg...@smtplink.mssm.edu)
2) Product Type: Skate
3) Brandname: K2
4) Model Name: Extreme Workout
5) Purchase Price: Approx. $300

6) Purchased From:
Emilio's Ski Shops
112-32 Queens Blvd.
Flushing, NY
(718)544-0404

7) Date Purchased: June 1994
8) Have used skate approx. 6 weeks/200+ miles

9) Description: mid-cuff 4 wheel skate convertible to 5 wheels with the
purchase of additional axle and wheel assembly.

Wheels: Hyper Wheels: Cross-Trainers X-360 [77.5MM],
Durometer 78-A
Bearings: Twincam ABEC-1, Serviceable Spacers: Aluminum
Frame: Glass composite

10) Pros:
1 - A reasonably priced entry-level racing skate with the addition of
the 5th wheel.
2 - Can be used with only 4 wheels which is helpful when getting used
to the longer frame (5th wheel can be added later).
3 - The sneaker-like construction (no liner, padding and boot are one
piece) provides added comfort especially when utilized as a
cross-training skate. Yet solid construction provides greater ankle
support than other racing skates.
4 - Combined laces and upper buckle closure allows greater adjustability.
5 - Heel brake can be worn on either left or right skate by moving bracket.
6 - Axle is the screw type which prevents over-tightening.

11) Cons:
1 - Skate is on the heavy side, especially with the addition of the
fifth wheel (wheel, axle, spacers and bearings.
2 - The heel brake and bracket are long and can be clumsy when
attempting cross-overs.
3 - The brake is extremely soft and requires frequent replacement. My
first replacement was necessary after approx. 5 weeks. When speaking
with K2 they informed me that the break was designed soft to provide
extra stopping power.
4 - The bearings were ABEC-1, for the price one would expect 3's
5 - The buckles/laces have a tendency to loosen up once in a while.
skating. (Laces are unwaxed-nylon and can be replaced with waxed to
hold better)
6 - The axles are removed via an allen/hex key (provided) but while
attempting to reposition the wheels to accommodate the fifth wheel the
key caused the screw-head to round out requiring a new axle.

12) Additional Comments: At the time of this writing, replacement parts
had not yet been shipped to local dealers due to backlog, but K2 was
very accommodating about mailing the replacement parts directly to me.

I would like to stress the comfort aspect of this skate. I have been
preparing for a long-distance marathon, skating on average of 20 miles
a day/6 days a week and have found the skates to be extremely
comfortable and provide strong ankle support. Although, I have been
considering the addition of ankle straps since road workouts are
stressful on the ankles (potholes, traffic, etc.).

13) My Personal Rating: 8

_________________________________________________________________

Inline shop reviews

From: ay...@yfn.ysu.edu (Martin Sripan)

Don Thomas Sporthaus: Detroit
* "Whatever makes you happy, we'll do". I'll go with that!
* Sell classy women's clothes and ski stuff.
* Carry many skates from Atomic, Roces & Rollerblade.
* Have a whole ton of models from last year at like 30% off.
* Help you a LOT-especially Tom Adams (I think that's his name)
* Real skaters too, most knowledgable.
* They sell many wheels, accessories, CDS, protective gear.
* Roces ATL CDG MOW R, Rollerblade Pro Bravo Cool and others.

The Skate Shop: Youngstown, OH
* Owned by a lady who has a son who skates (quad, inline, board).
* Sell little stuff
* The only in town
* They sell only UltraWheels, Cyko, Flyaway and other boarding stuff.

Millennium In-Line
* Has a *great* selection
* OK service-I call the guy practically every day, so he hates me.
* Messed up my shipping twice! (probably because I changed it
both times)
* Everytime I order (if they don't have something I'm looking for)
They're VERY quick to point me to a replacement-a product I know
nothing about-but obviously he knows what he's doing because
it always ends up I get a better product.
When I just ordered my stuff from them, I said:
"...I would like to have the CDS Detroit 57mm Grind Stones..."
and the guy said something like:
"I don't have those because they sell slow.
So that would be the 52mm you're getting" Of course, lucky me,
I didn't need to use the 57mm anyway.
* Have a long-distance tech support line-they should have a
secret exception for kids whose parents would get totally
phissed if they called long distance (me). Or they could get
on the Internet-seems everyone's doing it.
* They're usually missing something I want (could be coincidence)
* I saw ABEC-3 Bearings for 17.60 for 16-you saw me type this in,
with a warning that it could be a typo-turns out it was-they're 1.
* This was only in my experiences, YSituationMV greatly cause the
guy knows and doesn't really like me.
* One time I asked to speak to the owner, and since I had called
many times earlier, I knew his voice. Turns out I had been talking
to the same person every time. But, today I called twice (at least)
and it turns out that there are more people there that sound just
like him. Odd ain't it?

Team Paradise
* GREAT!!! No I wasn't paid to say this, I'm serious.
* 20.00 minimum-perfect excuse for buying something totally
senseless for my application.
* Changed my order several times, and...
* Called them many times, and...
* Verified my order twice, and...
* Added stuff to my order-they didn't get mad
* No crap
* No pushing
* Not too many missing products and typos
* Knowledgable
* Internet Connections (Great, so we can get good advice)

Hudson Bay Inline
* I'm pretty sure that they run on a "what's good" basis
:) I asked to buy Mearthane RollerEdge Starlight 77mm/84A wheels
but he said he wanted to hear if it was good first. Then he says:
"What did you hear?" So I told him something like:
"I just want to buy them, I'll tell you if they're good."
:) So...You should probably tell them whether or not certain
wheels are good so he can bulk order blems and you can order
them. Especially good when you want a wheel no one sells, like
DA Bump. He had 4 left, which I bought. Dang cheap too.
* Good service, I called them many times without them getting
mad and I even reserved my wheels for a day (turned out to
be useless, I ordered my wheels the same day).
* Great selection

Inline USA
* Internet Connections (Great, so we can get good advice)
* Great even though I haven't ordered from them yet.
* 1-800 tech support
* Carpet testing
* Skate assembly with free stuff
* Price beating
* Nice support and people will go out of their way to help you.
* Great selection of skates but not enough products (I think)
or not as many as MI-L, but that's ok.
* They seem to have gone to more race than extreme skating
* I called them 5 times and asked for a catalog/catalist-
I only recieved their 93 catalog, and for months it hasn't
come out. Please contact me if you're reading this Jack. :)

I think it's nice that Inline USA cut the crap out of their
catalogs, but I also miss it because I like to see what certain
products look like before I buy them-how are we supposed to
know if we like a product if we've NEVER SEEN IT? Someone or some
company should make a color catalog of products for inline skates-
or how about another FAQ section?-:)

Need non-mail-order addresses or phone #'s, e-mail me.
More to come as I order more and more (if I do).

--------
K2 skates
---------
From: le...@husc10.harvard.edu (Patrick Lee)
Subject: REVIEW- K2 Power Extremes
Date: 12 May 94 13:00:46 GMT

Seeing as nobody has posted a review of the new K2-Exotech skates
yet, I guess I will.

I just bought a pair of K2 Power Extremes, and they're pretty
good skates. For those of you who aren't familiar with them, they're the
new skates that use a sneaker-like boot with an external hinged cuff for
ankle support. As such, they're pretty comfortable and really breathable.

Anyway, some points that you wouldn't be able to tell from the
Inline buyer's guide issue...

The bearing spacers in the Power Extreme (and presumably the
Extreme Flight and the Extreme Z) are nylon, not steel as stated in the
buyer's guide. The Skate uses an axle system similar to the Roces type
in which the axle is threaded on the inside of one side and the bolt
screws into that, preventing over-tightening.

The rockering spacers are really neat, but have some potential
problems. They're hexagonal, giving one six positions for each wheel.
(much more flexible than the RB system). Now for the tricky part. On
one side, the spacer has a hexagonal hole, on the other side, a hold
slightly smaller than the axle. The axle itself has a hexagonal bit next
to the head that fits into the spacer and a slightly thinner bit a the
end, which fits into the other spacer. The net effect is that one only
needs one wrench to remove the wheels (kind of like the wave, but
without the annoying wavy bits). Unfortunately, I have no idea how you
could put a hop up kit on these skates. They don't seem like they'd need
it (except for aluminum spacers, which I installed) but doing so would
require getting another set of rockering spacers (in order to get a
complete set of either hex or circular holed spacers). In addition to
this, the spacers are pretty easy to mix up. One can substitute a hex
spacer for a circular one (but not vice-versa) if one doesn't look too
hard, in fact, this was the case on my skates out of the box, so I'd
advise that anyone buying a pair of these skates check the spacers to
make sure that they're correct.

On a better note, the skates come with servicable Twincam
Abec-3's, pretty decent hyper wheels, and possibly the nicest
wrench/bearing pusher I've ever seen come standard with a skate. The
brake pad is plenty big/effective, and uses the same size hex bolt (so
you only need to carry one tool). The skates will take up to 82 mm
wheels with no modifications (in size 9), rather surprising for skates
with RB Lightning style crossbars between the wheelwells on the frame.

As someone mentioned before, the skates are a bit tight in the
ankle for some people. In my case, I had to have the store expand the
ankle using a heat gun before they were comfortable. The combination of
laces (covered by a flap) and buckle/straps is very supportive, with much
much more fore/aft flex than any other skates I've owned.

Anyway, in general, a really nice pair of skates, though I
wouldn't really reccommend it for someone who's not comfortable with the
front/back flexibility. Otherwise, very comfortable/breathable, nice
standard bearings, flexible wheel options, and an interesting but
potentially annoying spacer system.

-Pat

From: tro...@aol.com (T Robert)
Date: 21 May 1994 15:07:04 -0400

In article (Z2Jomc...@cellar.org), dar...@cellar.org (Thomas
Darling) writes:

Tom, I bought a pair of K2 Extreme Power skates several weeks ago
and I am very happy with them. I'm new to inline skating but I
didn't want an entry level skate that I would have to upgrade to
enjoy. Theses skates are much more comfortable than ANY of th hard
shell skates I tried on and I shopped at 8 or 10 different stores and
tried on maybe twenty different pairs of good skates. The Power
Extreme is pretty high tech. The closure system combines laces over
the lower part of your foot ( not very quick but an excellent way to
"wrap" the soft lower boot around your foot to achieve a good fit)
with a velcro instep strap that covers this laced portion. Higher
up, where the boot becomes a hard plastic piece again there is a
ski-boot style buckle and another velcro strap above that at the
cuff. These skates take me a few minutes to put on but I have no
chafing, movement or DISCOMFORT. They come standard with ABEC3
bearings, an excellent rockering capability built in, Hyperwheel 78A
wheels in 76mm and a very convenient mounting/ dismounting tool. I
paid $239 plus tax here in Massachussetts and I think they're worth
it. I don't play hockey, I skate recreationally and for fitness.
People seem to be concerned about the soft portion of the boot but I
haven't had any incidence of scuffing or tearing yet...I haven't
fallen very much either. The toe end IS hard plastic and the brake
seems to be fine, it is big and easily replaced using the same tool
that mounts the wheels. The 78A wheels seem a little soft however, I
weigh 183 lbs and have been practicing T-stops so that may explain
the seemingly quick wear. I'm going to try switching to 80mm 80A or
82A wheels when I need to replace them. Just this afternoon I
started disassembling the wheels and bearings, cleaning the bearings
in acetone and relubing them with a fine grade machine oil. It's
time consuming! Anyway..if you can try on a pair of K2's I think
you'll end up buying them. Good luck, Tim

From: le...@husc7.harvard.edu (Patrick Lee)
Date: 21 May 94 22:00:22 GMT

dar...@cellar.org (Thomas Darling) writes:

>I'd avoid them. I tried out K2's "Rock Ice" model at a local ski shop. On
>the plus side, they were pretty comfortable. Unfortunately, they had little
>else going for them. They have a "gimmicky" upper with velcro and such that
>does not look like it could possibly stand up to the kind of abuse
>associated with outdoor skating. The frames are big, cheap-looking plastic
>affairs. The boot is thin and would probably shred pretty quickly.

Well, I've been skating for about 5 years now, and the K2 Power
Extremes are pretty much the best recreational skates I've had. (Before
that I had a pair of Macros, and then a some Aeros). The upper actually
isn't all that gimmicky. That big velcro-flap is there to keep the laces
from coming untied and getting jammed in your skates. The integral Power
strap helps keep your ankle anchored. As for the boot, it's well
protected in the places where it needs to be (the toe, the sides of the
toe, and the heel) where shredding tends to take place. The frames are
big, yes, but they're also one of the few recreational skates I've seen
that will take 82mm wheels with space to spare, in most sizes (80's were
pushing it on the Aeros, had to scrape some brake off before they'd
fit). As for the cheapness, it's probably just the textured plastic
that's throwing you off, they're the same material that most high end
rec. skates use for frames, glass/carbon reinforced nylon. Just because
they bothered to put some texture on it doesn't mean it's vinyl.

One final thing. As a skater, one of the _primary_ things I look for
in a skate is comfort. If it's a great technical skate, but it kills
your feet, forget it, it's not worth the pain. These skates are comfy
and probably the best ventillated I've seen.

-Pat

From: so...@cyclone.mitre.org (Stephen J. Okay)
Date: 23 May 1994 01:13:38 GMT

In article (Z2Jomc...@cellar.org) dar...@cellar.org (Thomas Darling) writes
:
>mk...@dmp.csiro.au (Michael Koop) writes:
>
>> Does anyone out there know anything about the range of K2 range of
>> in- line skates? They are about to be released here in Australia and
>> information about how good/bad they are is scarce. I have seen a couple of
>> pairs and they look pretty soft and comfy but how do they skate?
>
>I'd avoid them. I tried out K2's "Rock Ice" model at a local ski shop. On
>the plus side, they were pretty comfortable. Unfortunately, they had little
>else going for them. They have a "gimmicky" upper with velcro and such that
>does not look like it could possibly stand up to the kind of abuse
>associated with outdoor skating. The frames are big, cheap-looking plastic
>affairs. The boot is thin and would probably shred pretty quickly.

I tried on a pair about a month or so ago and found them to be pretty much
the opposite. For starters, they were the most comfortable skate I'd ever
tried on. They fit quite well around my foot and there were no gaps or
spaces I could feel in the fit.

As for the frame, I don't think they're all plastic. I believe they're
a carbon composite reinforced plastic frame. I just can't see K2 putting
out an all-plastic skate. Even RB uses fiberglass reinforcement on their
low end models. I could be wrong and you're entirely free to correct
me, but I don't think I am.

Despite this, I would have to agree with Tom on the durability issue.
These are a line of racing or cruising/distance skates.
These are *NOT* street/thrash skates. I would be more than a little
hesistant to take a pair of these out on my usual rounds, esp. given the
boot on them and that they are more than a little pricey($200 seems to be
the floor for a decent model).
If you are looking for a good race skate or cruising/path skate, these
are great!. I almost bought a pair but couldn't promise myself I'd stay
off stairs and walls and stuff.

From: jjr...@rogue.Princeton.EDU (Joshua James Roman)
Date: Sat, 21 May 1994 16:52:05 GMT

I, too, tried out the K2 skates at a local ski shop and talked to
the rep for a while. My observations...
1. The Power Extremes are comfortable, with plenty of forward lean-
too much if you are used to TRS type boots.
2. The Rock Ice is a solid boot, and very comfortable, but I wouldn't
trade my RB's for them.
3. The only solid paaart on the front/sides of the skate is the plastic
toe cup, which the rep swore was the same thickness as TRS.
Looking at the many srapes and scratches on my skates
made me realize that the K2's toe cup was woefully inadequate
to protect the soft 'exotech' shell from most toe drags or
slideouts. The stuff may be touch, but 'gorilla mesh' isn't
plastic!
4. K2 is having problems with some of their higher-end racing skates,
They are having problems with the factory in Taiwan.

5. Their convertible 4-5 wheel skate (cool concept!), was, in the rep's
words, 'An inexpensive introductory racing/workout skate'.
As it is a well put together and good looking skate, I expectantly
asked the price-- $329.99!!!!!!!!!! I almost choked!

From: g...@crunch.commodore.com (George Robbins)
Date: 23 May 94 17:34:13 GMT

In article (Z2Jomc...@cellar.org) dar...@cellar.org (Thomas Darling) writes
:
> mk...@dmp.csiro.au (Michael Koop) writes:
> associated with outdoor skating. The frames are big, cheap-looking plastic
> affairs. The boot is thin and would probably shred pretty quickly.
>
> I'd heard about the new K2 skates for a long time, and was really looking
> forward to them, but I found them highly disappointing.

I think you may be jumping to an overly broad conclusion. While the boot
design might not be well suited to the abuse of hockey or street tricks,
it might be quite adequate for more ordinary skating. You don't need any
more plastic than required to provide the needed footbed and ankle support
and don't want anymore weight tied to your foot than neccessary. If these
boots perform well and are as cool as the "ventilation" suggests they might
be a real improvement over the RB style klunkers.

I had some reservations about the rails too - they're just parallel slabs
of 1/4" thick fiber-glass reinforced plastic. While they're probably pretty
strong, the attachment to the boot looked pretty wimpy and they just screamed
for some kind of cross-bracing. One intersting feature was that the 5-wheel
frames were also drilled for an alternate wide-space 4-wheel arrangement if
you preferred that. I guess you could also get creative with super-rocker
or other odd wheel setups if you had a drill-press to insure that your
holes were square though all the rails.

I don't know if I would buy these, but I wouldn't rule them out. The local
ski shop had 3-different models of the ~12 shown in the brochure, but not
the high-end ones.

Performance
-----------
From: gva...@netcom.com (Jerrold Comm/GI)
Subject: Re: deciding between Performance brand in-lines

Douglas V Roberts (Doug) (dvro...@npmo.pc.ingr.com) wrote:
: Howdy All,

: I've decided to decide between the Performance brand of in-lines for my
: first pair of skates. They offer the Attack and the Vector-II models.
: I intend to use them primarily for recreation and exercise and have
: no particular desire to learn stair-bashing or other "fancy" stuff. The
: difference between the two boots appears to be that the Attacks have
: ABEC-3 bearing, a slightly higher boot, and 3 buckles. The Vector-II's
: have ABEC-1 bearings and one buckle + laces. Both boots appear to be
: well-ventilated. My question is: for my intended use, and being a first-
: time in-line skater, should I shell out the additional $30 for the Attack
: model?? Any and all opinions welcome (as long as they're constructive!!).

: Thanks!
: Doug

--
I chose Vector-II's because the lower buckles on the Attacks were
uncomfortable and the Attack boots were too high for my ice hockey-
accustomed calves. I am only one week into this sport, but offer these
comments:

1) Changing wheels is difficult. Instead of a through bolt with nut,
there is a threaded insert inside the bearing. Wheel bolts are inserted
from each side of the frame. When I tried to remove the bolts to
rock the wheels (like my ice hockey skates), the first bolt came out
easily, but the one on the other side just spun. I had to tighten
the one I just removed enough to allow the stuck one to come off, then
hope the original one would come out. ugh! I called the store (retail)
and they said "We never have that problem!" Anyone else?

2) The buckles seem a bit flimsy, but are attached with screws for
easy replacement.

3) I have nothing else to compare them to, but in the 3 hours I have
spent on them here in Phoenix where I am traveling, they have been
quite comfortable. I managed to learn how to use the brake, and they
seem to stop adequately even on some pretty steep roads here at
South Mountain.

4) I got some wobble on high speed descents. Could this be a
consequence of rockering them?

5) For $110, they seem like a pretty good way to get introduced to
this sport.

ULTRA-WHEELS
------------
From: kev...@pheenixe.win.net (Kevin C. Brown)
Date: Tue, 07 Sep 1993 23:37:38 GMT
Subject: Re: One-buckle UltraWheel skates -- Impressions ?

In article (1993Sep4.1...@cs.cornell.edu), Benjamin Werner (werner@cs.c
ornell.edu) writes:
>Has anybody tried out the UltraWheel skates with only one buckle and
>rear-entry ? What are you're impressions ? There is at least one model
>("Zephyr" I think) and the boot seems to be made in Austria.

I have the Zephyr's, I got them from Damark ( a mail order
catalog) for about $90.00. They are really cool looking.
When I skate by everyone looks down at my skates because
they are so different looking. They pretty comfortable but
you should try them on first if you can. They tend to be
slightly narrow in my opinion but I bought them a half
size larger than my shoe size 9.5. (they don't come in half
sizes. The chart on the box says that men should pick
their shoe size. If you are a 9.5 like me than you go to
the next full size. When I wore the skates for the first
time I wore socks that were too thick and I tightened the
buckle to tight and lost some skin on my lower shin just
an inch above were the foot starts. There is also a rivet
on the inside of the shell that can give you a nasty blister
if your inside ankle rubs on it. But otherwise they are OK
skates for the price I paid. I think they retail for about
189.00. My two buddies who also have this skate have no
problem whatsoever.

-----

From: v077...@ubvms.cc.buffalo.edu COMPUTER BLUE
Subject: Re: One-buckle UltraWheel skates -- Impressions ?

In article (2...@pheenixe.win.net), kev...@pheenixe.win.net (Kevin C. Brown) wri
tes...
>>Has anybody tried out the UltraWheel skates with only one buckle and
>>rear-entry ? What are you're impressions ? There is at least one model
>>("Zephyr" I think) and the boot seems to be made in Austria.

I have serious reservations about rear-entry, one buckle boots.
IMO, they will only give good fit for a minority of people.
One buckle doesn't provide much adjustment (alone) and what
about the rest of your foot? Npt all people have the same width
or shape foot. Although /I have never tried on a rear-entry
boot, I can make some comments on other types.

All lace: Good fit for many different feet. Hard to compromise
between ankle tightness and lower boot tightness. Tend to loosen
after extended skates, may tend to break laces often.

Lace & Buckle (on upper cuff): My favortie type. goo d comfort,
Fits a wide variety of feet, and provides independent adjustment
of ankle tightness and boot snugness.

3 Buckle: No laces to break, fast on/off time. Independent
adjustment of ankle and lower boot. Downside:
uneven pressure due to only 2 buckles on lower boot. Has a
"pinching" effect.

My advice: try on many different types of nboots to see what you
find most comfortable. If you like the rear entry, then fine,
but just be sure to try out all your other options before
deciding.

-----

From: Thomas....@cs.cmu.edu
Date: 25 Nov 91 13:09:38 GMT
Organization: Carnegie Mellon, Pittsburgh, PA

I test drove my new Gretzky Wings this past Saturday in a hockey game.
They roll very smoothly and the boot is quite comfortable. The lower part
of the skate laces and the upper part has the ski boot style buckle. This
makes for a very snug ankle fit. I would recommend these buckle styles
for any skaters that really like a snug fit. One of the things I didn't
like about my last pair of skates was that it was hard to pull the laces
very tight with the plastic boots. I like my hockey (ice) skates very
tight and snug (like they're a part of my feet), and the buckle really
allows for that feel on the inline.

Since I'm still pretty much a greenhorn at inline skating, I've got a few
things to learn about stopping in a hockey game! Especially now with
skates with very fast bearings. I love the fact that I can corner much
better with the Wings than my older skates, and the speed and
smoothness is much closer to ice now too, but ya just can't hockey stop
in an inline like you do on ice (and I keep forgetting that!). Any other
inline hockey players have comments on stopping style?

I also removed the brake from my skate about midway through the game,
and it made turning around to skate backwards much easier. I kept
catching the brake sometimes when I'd turn around. I don't recommend
skating without a brake around town (hills and such) but on a flat surface
during a hockey game, not a bad idea. I also found that I could turn more
easily by pivoting on the front wheels instead of the whole skate. Might
be able to retain the brake if I perfect this technique more.

The liner in the Wings is also very comfortable. Pretty thick foam so
even when the skate is tight, you don't feel like it is digging into your
foot. I'm pretty happy with the skate so far.

Oh yeah, we were playing hockey on a tennis court. Great surface, pretty
smooth (although ours here at Carnegie Mellon have some major cracks
in them) so you roll nicely, and don't shred yourself when you fall, but
rough enough that you can really hug the surface on turns.

--Tom

P.S. The Wings are also on sale now at the Great Skate for $170. This
is a *GREAT* price. I paid $183 at Sabreland for mine, which is
the best "regular" price I found. I didn't get my Great Skate
sale catalog until a few days after I had already ordered them
from Sabreland. If anyone is interested in a fast, comfortable
skate, I'd recommend looking into these. Enjoy!

P.P.S. They also give you this really cheezy video of them making an
UltraWheels video with Gretzky. A real selling point! (HA)

-----

The Reviews section of the October issue of Outside has an excellent article
about in-lines. The writer reviews skates he likes from Ultra Wheels,
SwitcHit, Bauer, Riedell, and Rollerblade.

He also describes the nature of learning new things on skates: you often will
find that you learn new skills instantly -- or will find that you already know
how to do something, but won't discover it until The Moment of Trial. I won't
spoil the stories he tells, but I do think he embellished his Boulder Creek
Trail story a bit--I don't think I've ever hit 40MPH on the section of trail
mentioned on my Racers. Perhaps 30. That's fast enough. It is a fun little
section of trail, provided that few other users are around.

The writer strongly states that lateral support is mandatory. This is not
necessarily true. Good racers prefer to have their ankles free for more power
on the stroke. World-class skaters -- both quad and in-line -- will use
boots that are cut very low. However, substantial lateral support is very
useful for almost all non-racing types.

My other gripe, a small one, is that I view the RacerBlade as an excellent
commuting skate, not necessarily as only a beginner's racing skate. If you're
mainly interested in getting from Point A to B and already have some
experience, don't ignore the "Racer".

All in all, an excellent article. Some good ideas for folks who want to try
something other than Rollerblade skates. Check it out.

Phil Earnhardt p...@netwise.com
Netwise, Inc. Boulder, CO (303) 442-8280

From: ri...@gambln.enet.dec.com (Tim Rice)
Date: Fri, 17 Jan 1992 15:15:42 GMT

I owned a pair of the Micron hockey skates back around '80. I grew up on
Bauer skates (Black Panthers, 92's, etc.). When I got into my 20's my feet
were too wide for Bauer's anymore (to much trouble with in-grown toenails).
The Microns are the urethane (plastic) boot with an ICM blade. They were a
nice skate except that motion side to side was too restrictive. The boot
didn't pivot enough in that direction so I would "often" lose an edge and
wind up on my butt. This finally happened once during a game where I got
hurt, I went head first into the boards. The skates were retired just after
that.

Other than that the boot was great. It provided many advantages over a
leather boot. One I didn't see you mention was that it distributes the
shock from a puck much better than leather. Again this is speaking from
experience since I had some toes broken in this fashion.

After experimenting with different skates I'd buy leather because it is
still the best all around. The only real disadvantages to leather are the
break in and down aspects. They provide the most control. The next problem
is in finding a leather skate. I stay away from synthetics as much as
possible. I prefer GRAF skates. The break in period is very short. The
break down period is also short (downside). It is a very comfortable boot
and provides the most control I've found. They are rather expensive 200+
for a hockey skate, considering they won't last 3 years. An active high
school type player may only get one year out of them. For someone my age
they're perfect, I get 3 years out of a pair. It's about time for my third.

MACRO BLADES EQ/ES

From: g...@spl1.spl.loral.com (Gary W. Mahan)
Subject: MacroBlade Equipes Review

I recently bought a pair of Macroblade Equipes(the new model). I thought I wou
ld give a little review on them as I have not seen any yet.

My main reason for buying the Equipe was shoe size. I really wanted the AeroBl
ades (for weight savings) but the biggest size was a 12.5 and I have a size 13
foot. Several people in this group recommended that I try the Aeros. Well I d
id and they were way too narrow. The Equipe boot will accomodate wider feet mu
ch better. I ended up getting the Equipe in a 30.5 (biggest size available).

I have seen several postings comparing Aeros to Equipes. From what I have read
, most seem to think that Equipes are not rockerable like the Aeros. Well the
Equipes I have seem to have the same rockering combinations as the Aeros. Also
the Equipes have ratcheting buckles like the Aeros. The buckles on the Equipes
seemed a little better.

The largest wheel that will fit is supposedly a 77 mm as opposed to 80 for the
Aeros(Supposedly). The skates were equipped with 76mm 76A hyper wheels (Small h
ub). The bearings were ABEC1 made in singapore (same as on my lightning TRS's)
.

The Equipes have a cuff which allows some forward movement. However it is not
hinged like a Aero. This is still hard to get use to. I almost fell backward
several times because of this (although this may have been for other reasons (w
heel positioning)). I consider the ankle support to be excellent compared to m
y lightnings.

The Equipes also seem to have wheel positioning similar to the Aeros (i.e the f
ront whell is more forward). The front axle is lined up with the front of the
boot.

The liners are very comfortable although memory foam is not used. There are ho
les in the liners for ventilation but these do not extend all the way through t
he foam.

The skates are vented like Aero's although not as much.

The skates have tremendously increased my skating ability (as opposed to lightn
ing TRS's). I seem to be able to go much faster now. At high speeds I do not
seem to have the skates wobble as much (eventhough the wheelbase difference is
less than an inch). My gliding ability (1 foot) has also increased dramaticall
y, allowing more efficient strokes.

The price on the Macroblades was $279 (Aeros were $289).

METROBLADES
-----------

From: gt0...@prism.gatech.EDU (James Garvey)
Subject: Re: MetroBlades - review requested

In article (1993May11....@news.uiowa.edu)
thie...@icaen.uiowa.edu (Jeffrey Ray Thieleke) writes:
>
>I'm looking for people's opinions on MetroBlades - good and bad. Specifically
,
>I'm interested in performance and comfort.
>
I sent out a request for info on metroblades about 2 months ago and really
didn't get much of a response. My friend is getting ready to buy a pair in
New York City and he told me that the big problem is support around the
ankles. Rollerblade puts them in their "sport" category which is supposed to
be for "thrashing". I'm not sure how much trashing you want to do in a boot
like the Metroblade. Anyway, the general consensus was get a pair of sandals
or lightweight shoes and buy a pair of skates with buckles. Then buy a
fanny pack or something like that to carry your shoes while you skate. Get
yourself a ski boot strap (handle with a loop of nylon) and carry your skates
like ski boots. Most sports stores will give you a ski boot handle for free.

Here's a few of the replies regarding the Metroblade. (Tony, I'm not sure if
you'd want to include these or not, but here they are for your review).

(original post)
>I have a friend that is getting ready to buy a pair of inline skates and is
>considering buying Rollerblade Metroblades. This is the skate that has a
>built in boot inside of it that lets you "walk" out of the skate. He's
>not planning on doing a lot of heavy duty skating, just to and from work.
>I would say that stalling and rail sliding would definitely be out!
>
>His main concern is not having to carry around a pair of shoes when he
>skates. Does anyone know anything about these skates?

I own a pair and am very happy with them, commuting to and from university
and generally around town. _I_ might recommend them, but they're the only
skates I've used for extended amounts of time (i.e., non-rentals), so I
don't have much to compare them with. I've heard other skaters (on this
board, in person, and in Inline magazine) complain that they're not really
up to snuff... that Rollerblade made too many performance degradations to
get the design to work. The design _does_ work, though. The shoes are
comfortable both inside the skates (though it hurts for a few days getting
used to how tight it needs to be to minimize wobble) and outside them (I've
hiked in the shoes.. no problem. They look like they'll last quite a while
too). Getting into and out of the skates is fast and easy.
On the other hand, even folded up the skate shell is heavy and
unwieldy, perhaps not as much as whole blades, but they can't be stuffed in
a backpack unless the backpack's pretty empty (btw, Rollerblade is offering
a free backpack -- a $50 value! *snort* -- to purchasers of Metroblades. I
haven't gotten mine yet, but I suppose the pack could be designed to carry
the blade shell easily).
If your friend is planning to use the skates for organized
recreation (i.e. hockey or half-pipes), or even for getting a bit radical
during the commute, probably a one-piece skate and a light pair of shoes
would be a better idea. I'm happy with my pair, and wouldn't trade them in
for anything, but then I always wished I had a pair of key-roller-skates or
a fold-up-bike when I was younger. I like to be portable.

-eh

------------------------------------------------------------------
erik hilsdale e...@cs.columbia.edu

Word is that these are a clever idea, but the compromise is that you
may not get the best skate for the money you pay. It they guys is fixed
on it it's probably survivable. Is he an experienced skater, or just a
beginner trying to plan his fate?

The alternative would be a good 3-buckle skate that is very quick to
pop on/off and pair of really lightweight shoes he can carry in a fanny
pack or other tote. There are some lightweight (soft sole) cycle shoes
and some that are even lighter for swimmers or something like that.

George Robbins - now working for, work: to be avoided at all costs...

>The alternative would be a good 3-buckle skate that is very quick to
>pop on/off and pair of really lightweight shoes he can carry in a fanny
>pack or other tote. There are some lightweight (soft sole) cycle shoes
>and some that are even lighter for swimmers or something like that.

This has been my solution - I have a pair of Teva sandals that I wear
when I'm off the blades, and they work pretty well - I carry them
around in my fanny pack. I also have a loop of nylon cord with a
handle on it for carrying the skates when I'm wearing the sandals.
There's also an over-the-shoulder carry strap that you can get for
rollerblades, but I haven't tried it, so I don't know how well it
works...

_MelloN_
--
mel...@ncd.com uunet!lupine!mellon
Member of the League for Programming Freedom. To find out how software
patents may cost you your right to program, contact l...@uunet.uu.net

From: e...@cs.columbia.edu (Erik Hilsdale)
Subject: Re: RB Metroblades: good, bad, or ugly?

In article (91...@hydra.gatech.EDU) gt0...@prism.gatech.EDU (James Andrew Garv
ey) writes:
>I have a friend that is getting ready to buy a pair of inline skates and is
>considering buying Rollerblade Metroblades. This is the skate that has a
>built in boot inside of it that lets you "walk" out of the skate. He's
>not planning on doing a lot of heavy duty skating, just to and from work.
>I would say that stalling and rail sliding would definitely be out!
>
>His main concern is not having to carry around a pair of shoes when he
>skates. Does anyone know anything about these skates?

From: ALI0...@UNCCVM.UNCC.EDU (Dailene Wilson)
Subject: lots of info

I have things to say to Matthew, Bill, Stephen, Koop, and Chris...

Matthew: Yes the Roces have good standard features but their frames (the
part of the skate on which you should base your purchasing decisions) are
terrible. Their plastic frames leave much to desire compared with the
glass reinforced nylon frames the Rollerblade Lightnings (and up) give you.
I skated on the Paris skate and the steel (yes, steel) frame bent in at
a strong angle.I haven't seen any RollerBlade frames bend! They saw this
potential problem years ago when they redesigned the ZetraBlades! I would
rather feel comfortable and safe with a strong frame than worry about
the color of the buckes/liner/boot. Also, the liner of the Paris was
awful. It moved around and was no where near as comfortable as the liners
in my TRS or RacerBlades. Some people say that not everything makes a
difference when buying skates. Not true. The frame should be a one-piece
frame (for stability and rigidity), not to mention the bearings, wheels,
liner, boot, wheel kits. About the only thing that does not make a
difference is the color. You can change that and be creative at the same
time. I don't trust the Roces frames, but the rest of the skate seems
pretty good, especially for the price. But what a price to pay for plastic
frames!

Bill: The MetroBlades are very sturdy considering the flex factor at the
ankle. Whoever said that the sole of the shoe would wear out is probably
right. If you did get these, I would walk on the shoe as little as possible.
Good comfy skate nevertheless.

Stephen: To get buckles on lace up skates, go to your local ski shop.
Any ski shop that does repairs in skis and boots should be able to rivot
some buckles onto your skates..

Koop: The IISA has worked with several cities to reverse the bans on
in-line skating and they should be able to help you out too. Call them
at 1-800-FOR-IISA. Good luck!

Chris: Right on with your comment on the best all around 4-wheel skate
on the market- the Lightning TRS! While you can make some modifications
on this skate, it still provides you with a very strong frame and the
durability to outlast even the craziest skater out there (that's what Chris
Edwards wears!). If you want some more ventilation, drill some holes in
the boot and go crazy! Avoid the seams though, just in case. You can
probably cut holes in the liner where you drilled the holes to give you
the "Aeroblade" effect.
I have tried the Rollerderby Shadow (my 1st pair, I know, really bad), the
MacroBlades, the TRS, the AeroBlades, the CoolBlades, the Macro ES and EQ,
the Racerblades (toughest 5-wheel on the market!), the Bauer XR10 (liner
wore out before anything else and cannot be replaced- bad move on Bauer's
part), Roces Paris (bad), Roces Atlanta (bad!), and the Problade. The
best ones in this group are the TRS, the RacerBlade, and the ProBlade
(leather). You have to not only consider ones options available on the
skates, but to remember that everyone has different feet and one skate
that fits terribly for one person may be the answer to another person.
My main point is look at the hardware after you found a skate that fits
your foot well. If the hardware is poor, go to another skate or you'll
be sorry later.

--Dailene Wilson ali0...@unccvm.uncc.edu RollerBlade!!
--UNCCharlotte Skate Safe, Skate Smart

AEROBLADE REVIEWS
-----------------

From: bi...@cs.uiuc.edu (Todd Biske)
Subject: Re: AeroBlades vs. Roces Barcelona model

shan...@leland.Stanford.EDU (Simon Handley) writes:

>Does anyone know what the difference is between Aeroblades and the
>Roces "Barcelona" model?

The Barcelona and the Aeros are actually quite a bit different. Roces used
to manufacture all RollerBlade boots, but this is no longer the case.
RollerBlade boots are now made my Nordica. Anyways, here goes:

Similarities:
Both boots are vented
Both have Memory Foam liners
Both use a three buckle system on the boots
Both come with 76mm 78A wheels

Differences:
Aeroblade boot is vented much better. The vents are larger and more
numerous.
The Aeroblade boot is made from BladeLite (tm) while the Barcelona
uses the same material as the CoolBlade (polyurethane?) which
results in a 15% heavier boot.
Aeros have a graduated brake, can also accept older style RollerBlade
brakes.
Barcelona uses a custom Roces brake, not commonly available for people
in the cornfields of the midwest like myself.
Barcelona tends to run $30-$40 cheaper than the Aeros.

I just purchased a pair of Aeros from Courtesy Sports in Los Altos (before I
drove back to Illinois for school) and did a lot of research on the Roces vs.
RollerBlade debate, and I think I bought the better skate. That's an
opinion however. My final decision was made when I tried on BOTH skates at
Courtesy. Then my mind was made up.

-----

By the way, I love my new Aeros. Much better glide than the Lightnings I had
been using (rental loaners).

Something I thought was extra neat, although I haven't taken advantage of it
yet, is that the rockering SLOTS are offset. This allows a flat blade, a
shallow rocker, a deep rocker, and combinations.

What do I mean? This is the flat blade setup.

--- ---
| | --- --- | |
|x| |x| |x| |x|
--- | | | | ---
--- ---

I don't know, maybe this is an old idea, and the Aeros aren't first, but I
*love* this kind of design detail!

-----

I have a pair of Aeroblades. Here are my comments:

On the plus side:

* Boots very lightweight as mentioned.
* Ventilation good.
* Allows you to bend forward a lot. (And not side to side, fortunately.)
* Boot positions shin tilted forward more than some other skates --
encourages you to bend knees more -- a good position for skating
* Big wheels (76mm)
* ratchet buckles are pretty good
* lightweight but strong frames (runners)

End-on view of frames (very schematic):
Aero Other
_______ _______
\# #/ | |
\ / | |
| | | |

Cons:

* The buckles don't "remember" your previous setting when you remove them
like the Macroblade ones do. But you can always mark it with a felt tip
pen I suppose.

* The brake is like that on the lightnings and macroblade, but it is made
of "a new composite material" that SQUEALS LIKE HELL WHEN YOU BRAKE.
Scares the daylights out of unsuspecting pedestrians. Rollerblade told me
this would stop when the brake pad was broken in, but it hasn't. I just
bought a lightning replacement pad -- I hope this cures the problem.

* I've had some trouble with the fit to my feet. These seem to be narrower
than my old rollerblades. They should really offer both D and E widths
like Bauer does. It may also be that three buckles and a very thin boot
can't support the whole foot all that well.

* The place where the tongue overlaps with the rest of the liner digs two
ridges into my foot. Also the footbed (insole) they come with is fairly
uncomfortable and non-anatomically-shaped.

* They seem to have missed some places that need ventilation. the areas under
the tongue and and the front and back of my ankles still get quite sweaty.

* On some skates the two parts of some of the buckles do not line up quite
parallel -- this could lead to premature wear or slipping.

* Some were shipped with wobbly wheels (non-true) -- but your Rollerblade
dealer should replace them for you if you bring them back in. Also
the wheels are not centered with respect to the bearings, and they
have a cheap-looking part on where I guess they were cut out of their
mold during manufacturing. Makes me want Hyper Wheels.

* Wheels aren't as light as the newer wheels from Hyper and Kryptonics.

* I've decided I like softer wheels, to handle those bumps more gracefully.
Aeros are 78A so maybe my old Zetra 608s had 74A? But I don't know of any
inlines that come with softer than 78A nowadays. Maybe I'll splurge on
some new wheels.

* Front wheel is further forward than on other skates. This is okay for
the experienced skater but I don't recommend it for a beginner because
this can make the skate unstable if you put your weight forward onto it.
This may make the skate faster for racing, but it also makes more leverage
that tends to lift your heel inside the boot, so proper fit becomes even
more important. I think they should have moved all four wheels back a
little (maybe 1/4 inch), since having the back wheel back a little improves
stability.

* I don't like the color options -- can't they offer something more low key so
people outside of California aren't embarrassed to be seen in it? :-)

* NMB 608Z bearings (made in singapore). I have heard that these are not as
good as the GMN 608Z german bearings that at least used to come in the
Lightnings. Not that I've noticed any difference in performance myself.

* Back of the brake sticks out a little more than I think is necessary, which
can get in the way of crossovers if you're not careful.

* The frame spacer / bearing spacer / axle system is poorly designed. It does
not hold the wheel quite straight, and it seems to bind the bearings a little
when you tighten the bolts a lot, which you have to do to prevent the wheel
from slipping up and down a little during skating. Before tightening there
is too much play and the frame spacer does not properly meet the bearing --
one of them starts to slide off of the the other on one side. I don't know
why, but the one pair of Lightnings I looked at were better than the Aeros in

this respect, even though they *appear* to have the same parts for this.
Phil Earnhardt says Reidell has a superior spacer system. I used to have the
old metal-runner Zetra 608, which held the center of the bearing via metal
washers and spacers, and worked much better in that way. They should make
the inner diameter of the frame and bearing spacers smaller to match the
axle, and the frame spacers and the inner part of the bearing spacers (which
holds the two bearings apart) should be made of aluminum instead of plastic.

I hope somebody at Rollerblade reads this.

David B Rosen, Cognitive & Neural Systems Internet: ro...@cns.bu.edu

-----

David B. Rosen writes:
>I have a pair of Aeroblades. Here are my comments:
>
>* The brake is like that on the lightnings and macroblade, but it is
>made of "a new composite material" that SQUEALS LIKE HELL WHEN YOU
>BRAKE. Scares the daylights out of unsuspecting pedestrians.

It is pretty effective, though, at getting those dim-wits who don't
know what "on your left" means to move off the path... :-)

>* I've had some trouble with the fit to my feet. These seem to be
>narrower than my old rollerblades. They should really offer both D
>and E widths like Bauer does. It may also be that three buckles and a
>very thin boot can't support the whole foot all that well.

Same here. I've got relatively wide feet, and I'm just hoping that,
over time, my liners will compress a bit and my boots will stretch just
a bit to fit my feet better.

>* The place where the tongue overlaps with the rest of the liner digs
>two ridges into my foot. Also the footbed (insole) they come with is
>fairly uncomfortable and non-anatomically-shaped.

Of all things, my heels are uncomfortable in my Aeroblades. It feels
as though I'm putting far too much pressure on them. Has anyone else
experienced this?

>* I don't like the color options -- can't they offer something more
>low key so people outside of California aren't embarrassed to be seen
>in it? :-)

Ditto! I'm all for basic black...

-JC, j...@msc.edu

-----

The only suggestion I have is buy the best skates you can possibly
afford--and maybe even a pair that you can't REALLY afford, but by
scrimping somewhere else you can do it. Or, alternatively, buy
a cheaper pair of skates but outfit them with high performance
wheels and A-grade bearings before you even hit the pavement (that
is probably the best solution, if you haven't got a lot of money).

I bought a pair of Rollerblade Zetra 303s in May on a whim. They
cost $150, and I didn't want to "spend to much on something I might
not stick with." Well, I didn't know it at the time but those skates
were inhibiting me, and within 20-30 miles the el-cheapo C-grade
bearings had melted down and left me with an inoperative pair of
blades. Two months later I finally got around to calling the shop
where I got the skates to find out about getting them repaired under
warrantee. They said it would take 8-10 weeks while they shipped
them to Minnesota, determined if it was really a warantee repair,
and then shipped them back--and there was no guarantee they wouldn't
charge me for the repair if they thought it was "my own fault."

Well, in 8-10 weeks there will be snow on the ground up here,
so I was a little upset. I went out and bought a pair of AeroBlades
($300) in a fit of pique, and man I should have done that in the
first place! All I can say is, for twice the money you get three
times the blade. The fast wheels and bearings have a lot to do with
it, but the buckle (as opposed to lace) closure system is a dream.
A medium-priced alternative are the Lightnings, which have
buckle closures but not the fancy chassis.

I'll shut up and let someone who really knows what they're talking
about advise you, but I'll stick by the "best you can afford"
recommendation.

Andy, AN...@MAINE.MAINE.EDU

END AEROBLADE REVIEWS

RACING SKATES

Bauer XR10's
------------

From: jdgi...@ucdavis.edu (JDGilardi)
Subject: Re: 5 wheel foot/skate break-in
Date: Wed, 22 Jun 1994 17:17:11 GMT

In article (1994Jun22....@exu.ericsson.se), exu...@exu.ericsson.se
(Mark Steph) wrote:

> I bought a pair of Bauer XR/10's a little over a month ago and
> have been in severe pain ever since. I'm a (reasonably)
> experienced and (reasonably) fast skater on 4 wheels and was
> looking forward to an upgrade. Now, even after several weeks of
> skating almost every day, I still am not nearly as fast on the
> Bauers as I was on my 4 wheels.
>
> I also have terrible blisters (and have to tape my feet up
> everytime I skate). Skating on the Bauers is sort of a chore.
>
> At this point I'm trying to decide if:
> a) my feet still need a break-in to get used to the boot.
> b) the boot still needs a break-in.
> c) the size/style/whatever of the skate just doesn't fit
> me and I should hang them up/try something else.
>
> Any clues? Anyone want to make me an offer on slightly used
> XR/10's?

The unfortunate fact is that Bauer XR10's are about the most poorly
designed skate ever made, despite the flashy looks. One thing you might do
is call Bauer on their 800# and give them a rash of shit, but I doubt
they'll do a thing - they really don't stand behind their products well at
all. Basically, the boot offers no flexibility in the ankle, making it
impossible to lean forward or bend the knees. If you want to skate in an
upright position, they might be OK, but this is a racing skate. One thing
you might try is to not tie the laces through the top two eyelets. This'll
give you some forward flexibility, but will cut back on your lateral
support as well. You'll also have to work on voluntarily keeping your heel
down as the boot does a poor job of this as well. The lacing thing is
definitely a temporary measure, and I would suggest that if you cant take
them back to who you bought them from, to just buy new boots.

Do not attempt to break in your feet, you can do permanent damege to them
and plastic boots do no break in themselves! I managed to get out of the
XR-10 nightmare by getting lucky and having one break on me (heel bolt
pulled out). I sent them back and Bauer replaced them with a new pair
which I traded in for a different skate. The same thing could happen to
you.

From: ki...@orac.holonet.net (Kimon Papahadjopulos)
Subject: Re: Performance 5-wheelers

ca...@bunny.gte.com (Carl Castrogiovanni) writes:

>I'm considering Performance Bike Shop's 5 wheel high tops (alternative to
>Racerblades). Anyone have experience with these (and can share opinions)?

I happened to be in a Performance Bike shop the other day, and I must say
I was not impressed by either their high end bikes, or their high end
skates.

The 5 wheelers were a high top plastic boot with an I-5 frame.
Ick. I didn't check to the weight, but for that set up it had better
be pretty cheap. Reasons?

1. There is not much point in getting hightops with 5 wheels unless you have
some sort of ankle problem. It's sort of like getting a racing road bike
with mountain bike tires.

2. The I-V frame is a bargain basement frame (costs about $45 for the
frames alone, I think). Superior Skate Co. has made improvements since I
had a pair, but when I used them they bent very easily and were a royal
pain when it came to switching wheels.

> Any other high top 5 wheelers out there besides these two brands?

Take a look at the Baur 5-wheeler. It seems to be one of the better
cruiser skates.

Kimon

In article (13...@aggie.ucdavis.edu) bu...@jade.ucdavis.edu writes:
>Can anyone give me information on brands of 5-wheel skates, besides
>racerblades, that are available? I'd very much appreciate any info at
>all.
>
>M. P. Bunds, U. C. Davis

The good news is that there are models from many different manufacturers. I
have heard of models from Bauer, SwitcHit, Riedell, Rollerblade (Racerblade
plus the Pro Racer), Viking (A very good European ice speed-skating
manufacturer), Bont (Australian ice), etc. There also is a movement for
manufacturers to sell racing boots with a pair of threaded bolts to attach
either blades or runners for wheels. Yeah! Standardization!

The bad news is that I've never seen anything other than the Racer in retail
markets.You're going to have to either travel to someone who sells the skates
or do it via mail-order. Marty Hill of Built for Speed sells stuff out of his
house in Syracuse, NY. Dave of SMR sports ((708) 387-0283) does the same out
of Riverside, IL. SoH ((800) 554-1235) was planning to sell the SwitcHit
5-wheeler when it became available.

If at all possible, I'd go in person to one of these stores and make sure you
find someone knowledgable about the long skates. You might be leary of SoH,
since they appear to have a pretty cozy arrangement with SwitcHit.

Have you tried the Racer? It's a bit on the heavy end for a 5-wheeler, but is
very robust and probably a good skate to start out on racing. (Heck, any of
the faster 4-wheelers are fine, too!) Some Rollerblade demo vans have the
Racer available; you can try a pair there. Some very good racers are winning
races on the Racerblade.

One other piece of good news: Rod Murillo, a member of Team Krypto, is now
reading alt.skate. Welcome! He's far more qualified to talk about racing
than I am; he might have some suggestions for you.

Phil Earnhardt p...@netwise.com

-----

From: be...@alf.sybase.com
Date: 13 Nov 91 23:06:25 GMT

I got some new racing skates about 2 months ago. I love them!!! I tryed
on Zanstras and Racerblades. Looked into Bauer and leather boots (from
Built for Speed). After all my looking...I bought Ultras from Sventech
in Seattle (sold by Ultra).

Here are thoughts that might help others who are looking at racing skates.

Zanstras

There are three problems with Zanstras, from my point of view. Firstly,
the bearings "seem" really cheap. They aren't as smooth as I would like
and they make too much noise. Secondly, the boot is really
uncomfortable. A number of racers have complained that they bind the top
of their feet too much. In fact, some people cut out the sizes of their
boots. I found this true when I tryed them on. Finally, my size (6-6
1/2) only comes with four wheels....great why buy racing skates. The
good thing about Zanstras is that they are pretty light.

Racerblades

The Racerblades are really comfortable! It's like riding in pillows.
However, it's also like using a limo in a road race. They felt too
big and heavy (though I don't really remember their weight). Once I felt
the weight, I knocked them off the list...so I can't comment on the
bearings or wheels.

Bauer

As with the Zanstras, the Bauers don't have 5 wheels in my size.
However, the boot looked really comfortable. I knocked them out as soon
as I heard about the wheel limit.

Leather Boots

Sorry...I may be into skating....but I would like to try and stay out of
the poor house. I was looking at spending $700 to $800 for leather
boots. Maybe if I ever get close to beating Karen Edwards or the other
top women skaters, I'll think about it...but I think that will take more
than just new skates.

Ultras

The Ultras have a titanium frame. The lengths come in 13, 14 and 15
inches. The boots are very comfortable (I can usually keep them on for
three hours before they bother me). The boot fit is like the Racerblades
with a buckle and wide fit, but the shell is very light. The boot can be
molded to your foot with a dryer or hot water. In a rough estimate,
with 5 wheels they are about the same weight as my 4 wheel
Rollerblade 608s.

I guess what finally made the sale..was Bancroft hill in Berkeley. I can
jam down Bancroft without any shaking. The ride is very smooth. The
bearings are smooth and fast. By the by...they come with Hyper Wheeles.

The only problem is...no brake. So, I may not need it for racing....but
I would like one for working out. Berkeley drivers don't know what to do
with a skater.

I guess my advise is...try on everything (in your price range). Some
people swear by skates I rejected. What everyone is looking for in a
skate is different. I wanted good low weight racing skates.

Still plowing down hills....

betsy

By-the-by, does anyone know of something to put on road rash (second
skin or the likes)?

-----

From: Donn Baumgartner, do...@dell.dell.com

I can recommend the Xandstra Skeelers, which are available locally from
Riedel, without hesitation. I have used these skates on the OMRA circuit
for the last two years and am very pleased with them.

I have the Xandstra 6000 - but got it directly from Walter Xandstra a few
years ago when he came to the New York race. I use the Hyper 80mm wheels...
and prefer the harder (82A) wheels, but many racers prefer the 78A's and
even the 75A's. Personal preference... but the harder wheels hold up a
little longer.

There are many shops nationally that carry this (and many more) inline
skates... such as:

Competition Skates Trailways Skate Rental
c/o John Skelton c/o Tom Sehlhorst
501 Springville Cr. 611 Palm Bluff
Birmingham AL 35215 Clearwater FL 33515
(205) 854-9617 (813) 461-9736

Montrose Skate Shop Skate Escape
c/o John McKay c/o Janice Phillips
1406 Stanford 1086 Piedmont Ave
Houston TX 77019 Atlanta GA 30309
(713) 528-6102 (404) 892-1292

I've done phone/mail/direct business with every one of these shops... they
are all reputable. Competition Skates and Trailways Skate are both run by
active members of OMRA (Outdoor Marathon Rollerskating Association), and both
John and Tom are racing 'experts' (in some sense).

And a final comment... get a subscription to Speedskating Times... for $15/year
it's the best thing going. Dave Cooper, Eddy Matzger, and Marty Hill regularly
write articles in it.

-----

From: mpe...@wtcp.DaytonOH.NCR.COM (Michael Peters)
Message-ID: (11...@wtcp.DaytonOH.NCR.COM)
Date: 10 Mar 92 13:41:32 GMT

las writes:
>I'm planning to buy a pair of speed inline skates. Need advice as
>to which brand I should purchase. Would like a skate under $350.00.

For under $350.00, if it's a racing skate you want, I would check
out the Bont skate packages that Special Equipment C0. has to offer.
(Phone:508-266-1612) They have Bont Sharkie boots with Zandstra
frames, wheels and German bearings for $315. These are leather
boots with fiberglass counters that you heat and mold to your foot.
This is a much hotter setup for speed than buying a citizen racing
skate, that has gobs of padding inside, i.e. Racerblade or Bauer
XR-10, besides they're cheaper too. The last I heard the XR-10 may
go for $385 and the Rollerblade Pro-Blade $450. The Rollerblade
Racerblade is in your range, but it's a bit heavy, though if you
don't skate that much, you may like the additional support that the
Racerblade gives.

Mike....@wtcp.DaytonOH.NCR.COM ...!uunet!ncrcom!wtcp!mpeters

From: mi...@hgc.edu
Subject: re: Racing Boot/Frame questions
Date: Tue, 16 Nov 1993 12:39:21 GMT

In article (grammer.2...@lobby.ti.com) gra...@lobby.ti.com (Shawn Gramm
er) writes:
>I'm gonna get into racing and I have the following questions:
>
>1) What is the net opinion of the Bont Bluebottom/Powerline frame combination?
>2) What is a good price for each of these items?
>3) I was recently talking to a racer who had this combination, and she was
>showing me how her boot is angled slightly on the frame. That is, if her left

>frame is pointing straight up, her boot is pointing slightly off center to the

>left (relative to the frame). She said that it improved power. To me it
>would seem to decrease the power. What is the opinion of orienting the boot
>this way?

My son used the Bont Bluebottom for 1/2 a season of indoor racing, the boot
broke down before the end of the season. He bought it used, which could be
the problem. I've seen a lot of racers using the PowerLine and they like
it. You may want to check into the new suregrip frames....

On the offset.... she is an indoor racer right????? they will offset that
for the power ... they get a better edge on the corners... both my
son's and the vast majority of our team do this.... They skate for
the Waterbury Skate Club in CT.

From: (lo...@iris1.sb.fsu.edu) David Lowe
Subject: Re: Inlines: Aspiring racer wants 5-wheeler info
Date: 17 Nov 1993 18:48:58 GMT

I find your questions much the same as some of mine but I can tell
you what I have found out and believe in. First about the bearings issue.
I have found that a bearing contructed with a solid outer face as
hartfords tend to resist the buildup of dirt a dust much better than an
open face bearing like most fafners. I beleive that bones make a fairly
well selled bearing which is considered one of the best for durability
in the speed skating community. Hartfords are usually found in low end
or rentals and are durable but probably not a good competitive bearing.

For plates I have found that most skaters perfer the extend 5 wheel
plate which will accomodate wheels larger than a 76mm. Most people I
have talked with find little difference perforance wise between the
availible inline plates.

For boots I can only tell you what ive seen. I personally have found that
about half of the top skaters I know of skate on bonts. Most do not
get the blue bottom bonts because they seem more likely to crack
under pressure. Most are skating on the yellow bottom huster boot by bonts

I have the yellow hustler bont boot, labeda extreme edge plate, bones
bearings and a soft hockey wheel for training purposes. I have yet to
purchase wheels but am likely to get the green ones comprable to
cherry bombs.

From: lo...@iris1.sb.fsu.edu (David Lowe)
Subject: Re: Racing Boot/Frame questions
Date: 17 Nov 1993 19:18:36 GMT

>From: gra...@lobby.ti.com (Shawn Grammer)
>Subject: Racing Boot/Frame questions
>Date: Mon, 15 Nov 1993 19:00:28 GMT

>I'm gonna get into racing and I have the following questions:
>1) What is the net opinion of the Bont Bluebottom/Powerline frame combination?

Bont Bluebottoms have been known to crack due to stress over a peroid of time.
The Bont Hustler boot (yellow bottoms) seem to be stronger and less likely
to crack. They also usually cost less and come predrilled ( a big plus).

>2) What is a good price for each of these items?

Shop around you can usually get the best deal buy buy all your parts at once.
rember that if you purchase your skates non-local then don't expect your local
dealers to help you much if you have problems. Your best bet is to find
the best price then ask your local dealers to match it if you can.

>3) I was recently talking to a racer who had this combination, and she was
>showing me how her boot is angled slightly on the frame. That is, if her left
>frame is pointing straight up, her boot is pointing slightly off center to the
>left (relative to the frame). She said that it improved power. To me it
>would seem to decrease the power. What is the opinion of orienting the boot
>this way?

I think she is right on the money. By moving the right foot plate left of
center you but your center of gravity on the ball of the right. So when
you are stroking in a tight corner your can step easier and further with your
left foot before having to but it down. With the right plate in the center it
seems that the right skate trys to get out from under you before you can
step out with you left foot. Most everyone I skate with has their right plate
adjusted as your friend does :-)

David Lowe lo...@neuro.fsu.edu

From: ki...@orac.holonet.net (Kimon Papahadjopulos)
Subject: Re: Racing Boot/Frame questions
Date: Thu, 18 Nov 1993 03:59:39 GMT

gra...@lobby.ti.com (Shawn Grammer) writes:

>1) What is the net opinion of the Bont Bluebottom/Powerline frame combination?

Acceptible for competitive racing.

>2) What is a good price for each of these items?

Off the top of my head, $200-$250 for the frames, $300-$350 for the boots.

>3) I was recently talking to a racer who had this combination, and she was
>showing me how her boot is angled slightly on the frame. That is, if her left

>frame is pointing straight up, her boot is pointing slightly off center to the

>left (relative to the frame). She said that it improved power. To me it
>would seem to decrease the power. What is the opinion of orienting the boot
>this way?

Its personal preference. Some people like their frames inset. I personally
think inseting your frames unevenly is usually to compensate for bad form,
but there are some pretty good racers (Steve Carr for one) who do it.

Kimon

From: cer...@ait.com (Joseph P. Cernada)
Subject: Review: Performance Competition Skate

Well, I finally got tired of waiting for someone else to order these
skates so I figured I'd order them and see if they were worth keeping.

So, here's the long awaited review of the Performance Bicyling
5-wheel racing skate:

Low cut leather boot, glove leather in the ankle area, ankle stiffener, padded
tongue, laces. Seems like a typical Performance brand item: well
made, attention to function, but not cosmetically pretty.

76mm, 78A wheels (look like Hypers). Long wheelbase I-5 frame
(13.375" ?).

Too many parts to the Axles: bolt, nut, metal tube, small tubular
spacer, and two washers (go between the frame and the bearing).

GMN ABEC-3 bearings. I think they're oiled (either that or they're
using real low temp grease, since it seems to be dribbling out of the
bearings :).

I also got the brake since I do a lot of hills and don't like trashing
my wheels to stop. The brake frame seems fine, but the stopper itself
seems pretty lame. Made out of very soft rubber and looks like it
belongs on the bottom of a piece of furniture. Also, when taking long
strides/strokes, the side of the brake would scrape on the ground.

Weight: 2 7/8 lbs for a size 9. For comparison, my Ultrawheels
Gretzky Wings weigh 3 3/16 lbs with the same type of wheels. This is
for one skate, without the brake.

My Gretzkys are the only other skates I've ever used, so I don't have
a lot of reference points.

Took me a day to really get used to skating on these things. The
weight positioning is very different. I can put my weight much
further forward than with my 4-wheelers. Great traction on the turns.
That brake sticks waaaay out; have to be careful on the cross-overs.
The low boot is taking some getting used to. I have to consciously
think about keeping my ankles straight.

Turning is pretty slow. I did some cone slaloming (one foot, two
foot, and spread-eagle; 6 foot cone spacings) and maneuverability was
way down. Tried to do some short stairs, and mostly tripped my way
down.

--
--
Joseph P. Cernada AIT, Inc.
914/347-6860 50 Executive Blvd.
cer...@ait.com Elmsford, New York 10523

From: g...@spl1.spl.loral.com (Gary W. Mahan)
Subject: Perf. Comp Skate Review

I bought a pair of Performance Competition skates about three months ago
and would like to present a review of these:

I was in the market for a pair of speed skates. Prices ranged consideribly
from ~300 on up. As I was not completely sure if I would like speed
skates, I opted to target the lower price range. I also required a brake.

Last but not least I needed a size 13 (this is always a problem!) and
I wanted to try them on before purchasing.

So I went out and purchased a set of Performance Competition skates:

Price $299 for the skate (Seen on sale for $249)
$19 for the brake pad assembly

Wheels: Performance Brand (look EXACTLY like hyper 76mm 78A's to me).

Bearings: ABEC3 Nonservicable (unless you remove a shield).
They really used a light grease or oil on these as
they spun forever right out of the box.

Frame: I-5 (adjustable positioning) one of the lower priced frames
but to be expected in this price range.

Axle: 2-piece Aluminium spacers/axle retainers with one long bolt going
through the center. This system is comparable to the
axle kits/hopup kits available. No reduction in bearing
spin if the axles are too tight (I really tested this one!)

Boot: Leather, some ventilation, all laces, plastic inserts/liner in boot for
ankle support and lower foot support.

Brake: Metal assembly which bolts to frame. Repacement pads are
ONLY available through mail order and are ~$5 a piece.
Toe stops from Quad skates may also be used is one
so chooses (they bolt right on).
The original brake SEEMS to last forever.

Initial Problems: Wrench supplied was not correct size.
The bolt and nut supplied with the Brake assembly were
mismatched causing me to stip both. I went down to
the local hardware store and bought replacements (Cost $1).

My initial skating sessions with these skates were very painful. The boots
did not fit quite perfectly to my feet eventhough the seemed fine in the
store. A hair dryer was used to soften the plastic liner in the appropriate
places. This worked very well.

The lack of ankle support took a while to get used to (compared to my Macro
EQ's). Once my ankles strenghtened, this was not a problem. I initially
compensated for this ankle problem by adjusting the chassis to the outside
of the skate (so my skates would angle inward). This provided some added
stability. I have slowly moved the chassis inward as my ankles and
technique improved. Ankle support straps (Lazy Legs) could be used to help
with the ankle support.

The brake for this skate works quite well once it is broken it. It can be
really scary before it is broken it (as most brakes are). The Pad seems
to last a VERY long time compared to my RB pad on my macros. I think I don't
brake quite as much as I used to so this might be the reason. The overall
braking performance is not as good as my macros but still acceptable.
Because of the lack of ankle support and longer wheelbase, braking required
more ankle muscle than with my macros.

Overall, the transition to the skates was tough (for me) but well worth the
effort. These type skates REALLY force you to use good technique which has
trickled down to skating on my macros. The added flexibility at the ankle
is actually much more comfortable once you get used to it.

As a side note, the bearings never seem to get dirty on these skates. I
guess this is because the open frame chassis allow lots of air circulation.
The washer used between the wheel and the frame might also limit dirt
accumulation around the bearing.

From: adc...@grep.cs.fsu.edu (Anthony Chen)
Subject: INLINE: difference between frames? boots, wheels, etc.
Date: 18 Feb 1994 06:48:01 GMT

Okay, hope this post provides some break from the olympic traffic.
Should be enough questions here to generate a few in-line posts
hopefully 8-)

1) What's the main difference between all the tiered frames? Is there
any significant differences? I'm just curious, from looking at the
Raps Edgemaster, Mogemas, LaBeda Extreme Edge, and Powerline frames.
I know some of these vary in material, Al vs. Ti vs. Mg or whatever.
Is one preferrable to the others? There are various grades of
each material, I know that much.

I'm looking to get some low-end 5-wheelers, so probably I'll start
out with some cheapo I-5 frames, but eventually I may want to move
up to a better frame. Is the drilling/mounting incompatible if I
want to switch from a flat frame to a tiered one?

I'm not intending on doing competitive races (not yet anyway), mainly
long distance trips. In particular, I'd like to do the Athens-Atlanta
race/trip this upcoming October (anyone have a specific date?) so I
figure I better start getting ready right now 8-) I don't figure to be
real fast. I just wanna finish 8-)

2) Also, any opinions on the Airlite XL boots? These are molded
polyurethane boots, laces with a small cuff buckle. Low cut.

I was told the Riedell 201TS boot doesn't fit very well. The
401TS's fit very well apparently, but for much more money. Can
anyone confirm about the 201s? This is from the guys over at Inline
USA.

I'd get some Bont Sharkies or Hustlers except I was told they're not
as comfortable over fairly long distances? (Bluebottoms have a rep
for cracking under pressure, correct?)

3) One other thing, I notice Hyper Redlines come in large and small hub
versions. Is it a significant difference, the amount of cooling you
get from a bigger hub? I assume you get more wear out of the small
hub wheels, of course.

4) Also, how much diff between ABEC-3 and ABEC-5? I'm skating on ABEC-1
Bones which already seem darn fast. A good idea to jump to ABEC-5s
for the 5-wheelers? I do have some cushion money wise, so if I can gain
some significant performance I'm willing to pay for it.

5) One last thing, how do the varying axle types vary? I notice that
Mogema style axles are apparently different enough to warrant Airlite
frames to have a specific model for those type of axles. The racing
axles are similar to hop-up kits, no?

From: mpe...@wtcd.DaytonOH.NCR.COM (Michael Peters)
Subject: Re: INLINE: difference between frames? boots, wheels, etc.
Date: 21 Feb 94 17:49:32 GMT

In article (2k1ob1$h...@mailer.fsu.edu) adc...@nu.cs.fsu.edu writes:
> I was told the Riedell 201TS boot doesn't fit very well. The
> 401TS's fit very well apparently, but for much more money. Can
> anyone confirm about the 201s? This is from the guys over at Inline
> USA.

An acquantance of mine said that her 201's were very uncomfortable.

>3) One other thing, I notice Hyper Redlines come in large and small hub
> versions. Is it a significant difference, the amount of cooling you
> get from a bigger hub? I assume you get more wear out of the small
> hub wheels, of course.

Hyper's latest racing wheel is the 'Shock'. The top three finishers at
Athens-Atlanta were on Shocks. I just picked up some 80mm-81A Shocks
last Sunday, but I haven't had a chance to try them outside yet.

>4) Also, how much diff between ABEC-3 and ABEC-5? I'm skating on ABEC-1
> Bones which already seem darn fast. A good idea to jump to ABEC-5s
> for the 5-wheelers? I do have some cushion money wise, so if I can gain
> some significant performance I'm willing to pay for it.

Personally, I think ABEC 3's are the way to go. The ABEC-5's are pretty
expensive and after a little wear and dirt, that fine precision is gone.
At the speed that our wheels are spinning, I had heard that the 3's are
all that we really need.
>
>5) One last thing, how do the varying axle types vary? I notice that
> Mogema style axles are apparently different enough to warrant Airlite
> frames to have a specific model for those type of axles. The racing
> axles are similar to hop-up kits, no?

The Powerline axles are similar to the Mogema's (me thinks?). They are
aluminum with a slotted end that locks into a counter sunk hole on the
outside of the frame. An aluminum spacer slides over the axle between
the bearings. The aluminum axle sinks into the inside of the opposite
frame wall. They are held into place by a counter sunk allen head type
of screw. The axles are solid, other than the drilled and tapped end.

From: tr...@kla.com (Plant a tree today! ---;*] )
Subject: Re: INLINE: difference between frames? boots, wheels, etc.
Date: Tue, 22 Feb 1994 03:47:47 GMT

Anthony Chen (adc...@grep.cs.fsu.edu) wrote:
: I'm looking to get some low-end 5-wheelers, so probably I'll start
: out with some cheapo I-5 frames, but eventually I may want to move
: up to a better frame. Is the drilling/mounting incompatible if I
: want to switch from a flat frame to a tiered one?

If their prices haven't gone up much, try the suregrip airlites. When I
bought mine, they were only $30-40 more than the bendable I-5s.

: I was told the Riedell 201TS boot doesn't fit very well. The
: 401TS's fit very well apparently, but for much more money. Can
: anyone confirm about the 201s? This is from the guys over at Inline
: USA.
The fit depends on your foot type. The 201s are more forgiving if you
have a medium to wide foot. I have some good info for anyone trying to
break in a pair of 201s. I'd post, but I don't want to was bandwidth if
nobody is interested.
: I'd get some Bont Sharkies or Hustlers except I was told they're not
: as comfortable over fairly long distances? (Bluebottoms have a rep
: for cracking under pressure, correct?)
Heard the same.
: 4) Also, how much diff between ABEC-3 and ABEC-5? I'm skating on ABEC-1
: Bones which already seem darn fast. A good idea to jump to ABEC-5s
: for the 5-wheelers? I do have some cushion money wise, so if I can gain
: some significant performance I'm willing to pay for it.
You will realize more difference by packing your bones with some fancy
oil (everyone has their opinion on what works best). The difference
between ABEC-1s and ABEC-3 or 5s is measured in thousandths of an inch.
Unless you are planning do over 80 mph (has been done), you won't notice
the difference.

__________________________________________________________________________

In-line Product Review Sheet

Fill out each question as completely as possible. There's no rush to
turn these things in, so if you have to wait a couple days, couple
weeks, a month, whatever, then take your time. The goal here is to
provide as much information and informed opinions as possible. Thanks.

If you're reviewing a skate, please try and cover all features, like
wheels, bearings, braking systems, wheel-rockering systems, liners,
fasteners (laces, buckles, combo), chassis (the shell and runners),
plus any other neat/adjustable features.

1. Review by:
2. Product type: (skate, safety gear, wheel, bearing, clothing*,
accessory**)
3. Brandname:
4. Model name/number:
5. Purchase price:
6. From local store or mail order: (name the store too, with the
address and phone number if it's a local store, otherwise just
name the mail-order shop)
7. Date purchased:
8. How long have you used it:
9. Pros: (list good features)
10. Cons: (list not-so-good features and possible improvements it
could use)
11. Additional comments:
12. My personal rating: 1 to 10 (10 being the best)

*any sort of fanny/water packs go here; more luggage-sized stuff goes
in accessories.
**use accessories as the catch-all, when it's none of the previous
types
_________________________________________________________________

Tony Chen

unread,

Feb 1, 1995, 7:08:15 PM2/1/95

Posted-By: auto-faq 3.1.1.2
Archive-name: rec-skate-faq/part6

Rec.skate Frequently Asked Questions: Part 6
_________________________________________________________________

[IMAGE] *

REC.SKATE FAQ - PART 6: WHERE TO SKATE (INDOORS)

(last changed: Jan 3, 1995)

This portion of the FAQ covers places to skate indoors, both rinks and
extreme skate parks. This list was originally compiled by Albert Boulanger
and has since been sorted out and slightly revised by Amy Ryan. If you have
any additions or corrections to this document, please eig...@uiuc.edu

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Rinks:
* West Coast and Hawaii
+ California
+ Oregon
* Rocky Mountains
+ Colorado
* Northeast
+ Deleware
+ Massachusetts
+ New Jersey
+ Pennsylvania
+ Virginia
+ Washington DC
* Great Lakes
+ Illinois
+ Indiana
+ Michigan
* South
+ Florida
+ Texas
Extreme Skate Parks:
* Illinois
* Canada

Rinks

WEST COAST AND HAWAII

California

From: Randal L. Schwartz,
Someone asked about rinks... My fav was Aloha Skate Palace in South
San Jose (or something like that) on a Monday night. Great songs,
good crowd. Cal Skate in Milpitas was also good, and they had a wood
floor (not the silly blue stuff that is so prevalent now).
-----
From: reb...@cco.caltech.edu Mark L. Fussell

My favorite is Moonlight Rollerway in Glendale: it is close, has a large enough
rink, and has nice skaters/management.

Approximate hours (I am removing the half hours, so 8 may actually be 7:30):
Wed,Fri: 3-5 -- This is a "kid" session, but is not at all crowded,
so ideal for "fancy skating".

Sat,Sun: ?1-3,3-5 -- Crowded "kid" sessions

Fri,Sat: 8-10,10-12 -- Crowded Adult/Teenage sessions, Modern music
Thu: 8-10 -- ?? A less crowded Adult/Teenage session,
possibly more Adults

Wed: 8-10 -- Dance session, Organ Music (open to everyone,
but has a lot of dance-pairs, and about
20 minutes of organised dances).

Tue: 8-10 -- Never been: think it is adult with ?? jitterbug,
disco, modern music ??

Sun: 8-10 -- Gay night, open to anyone (who doesn't mind the
couples, and a couple dances you might not want to join). I've never been, but
I know straight people who do go.

--
West Covina's hours should be similar to Glendale, although I know the rinks in
the area rotate some of the special adult sessions with each other. West Covina
has more people, and a big center area for spot Rexxing.
--
San Gabriel may also be similar to Glendale, but I wouldn't recommend it
because of the small floor, and no one that I have met ever suggested it.
--
I'll send you the exact addresses/phone numbers later.
Friends from skating have recommended North Hollywood, Reseda, and several othe
r
places, but I don't know anything beyond that. If you go to one of the adult
sessions at Glendale there will be several people to ask.

-----
Subject: Any good rink roller skaing in greater (Northern) LA?
Thanks for your input. Here is the info I had for LA (that is not on
your list -- spelling questionable):

Reseda: Sherman Square Roller Rink.
18430 Sherman Way. 818 345-6902
(Thursday 8:30-1:30)

Grand Terrace: Calif Skate
22080 Indust(?) 824-8114

San Bernadino: Stardust RR
2167 N Lugo 883-1103

Torrance: Shamrock
1851 Mullin Ave 328-7150

Riverside: Calif Skate
12710 Magnolia Ave 354-7060

Montclair: Holiday RR
9191 Central Ave 626-0501/982-9150

Saugus: Skate in Place
21616 Golden Triangle Rd 255-8453

Bakersfield:

Rollerama
1004 34th (805) 327-7859

Skateland
415 Ming Av 831-5537

Starlight
30 Kentucky 322-5661

Rollertown
2200 Wibble Rd 833-2525

-----
From: "Rebecca Y. Shen"
Subject: Re: Any good rink roller skaing in greater (Northern) LA?

The following are the addresses:
Glendale -- Moonlight Rollerway, 5110 San Fernando Rd.
818.241-3630
San Gabriel -- Fiesta Roller Rink, 136 S. San Gabriel Bl.

818.287-6669
West Covina -- Skate Junction, 901 W. Service Ave.
818.960-4402

also names from the White Pages (so possibly not rinks):
Cerritos -- Skate Depot, 11113 E-183rd
310.924-0911
Whittier -- Skateland, 12520 E. Whittier Blvd.
310.693-9618

Also, I saw in an ad the Moonlight claims both Tuesday and
Wednesday are Organ Music, so I may have been wrong about Tuesday
nights, or the ad may be out of date.
-----
From: g...@shilah.Eng.Sun.COM (george atkins)
Subject: Re: Any good rink roller skaing in greater (Northern) LA?

In the Bay Area (San Francisco, not Hudson) there are a handful of skating
rinks, though not as many as one would think, probably because the weather is
mild year-round.

The closest rink to San Fracisco is the Rolladium in San Mateo, about a twenty
minute drive south from the City. Right off of Hwy 101 and real convenient to
the airport (in case you can't wait and want to skate right off the plane.)
It has a wood floor and a very nice sound system. Friendly regulars, but not
very crowded for some reason. They've played funky music the times I've been
there, but I've only been on Tuesday nights. (415) 342-2711

In Milpitas there is Cal Skate at I-680 and Hwy 237. I've never been there but

I hear Wednesday and Sunday nights are wild. I hear they play a lot of hip hop
,
have a polyurethane floor and a host of excellent skating regulars to pick
things up from (big dance scene in the middle.) Milpitas is about 35 miles
south of Oakland in the East Bay, but very convenient to San Jose. (510) 946-
1366

Next up there is Golden Skate in San Ramon. I was there for adult night. The
floor is nice and they played some nice music, but too much heavy metal for
my tastes (makes everybody skate real fast and fall down a lot.) It's a good
45 minute drive from the City. Way out in the 'burbs. (510) 820-2525

I've heard nice things about the Aloha Roller Palace in San Jose at 397 Blossom
Hill Rd. off of Hwy 101. I've never been there but I've heard that it's a real
skate scene, especially on Friday nights. The place is said to be large. Not
sure what the floor is made of, but if you're going to San Jose give them a
call and you can tell me! (408) 226-1156 (message line) or 226-1155

But the ultimate skating experience in the Bay Area in my opinion is Golden
Gate Park on Sundays. the park is closed to traffic on that day (certain agent
s
are trying to close it on Saturdays, too.) The weather is great (actually
better in the winter than the summer it seems) And there are *tons* of skaters

cruising up and down the roads, in-line and quad, as well as skate boards,
bicycles, horses (well, okay, only the police.) There's a wild dance scene at
6th Ave from noonish until dark. (Bay Area skaters - am I right?) There are tw
o
places I know of that rent skates that are walking distance to the park; Skates

on Haight and Magic Skate at Fulton and 6th. Be there or be square!

Oregon

From: mer...@techbook.com (Randal Schwartz)
Subject: Re: Hillsboro (Oregon) Roller Rink destroys music format

In article carl%udw...@tymix.tymnet.com
writMes:
|Since I haven't been into a rink for a few months, I can't comment on the
|music they might be playing... but our local rink has a sunday night adult
|skate and the stuff they were playing is pretty much 70s/80s stuff with a
|few oldies and current pop (top-40) thrown in.

that'd be cool, probably. I keep thinking that "adult" music is stuff
from the 60's. I forget I'm getting older. :-)

|Hmmm... I spend a week in Oregon a year or two ago when BiiN was trying to
|make a product offering and I tried one or two of the rinks there... and I
|forget, but I don't think I made it to the Hillsboro rink because they had
|a "soul" night the night I was ready to go... but, I thought I went down
|to the Oaks (in the Oaks Amusement Park) and they had this enormous pipe
|organ... I can't imagine them playing things you can't dance to... although
|maybe pipe organ music may be a bit much if that is ALL they play. I don't
|remember, but it wasn't that crowded and I was able to practice my spins
|even though they didn't allow me to practice any jumps.
|
|Are they still open? Is that a viable rink? :-)

BiiN! Hey, I was a contractor there during its entire existance (well,
at least until they killed all the contractors in one fell swoop).

Hillsboro still has a "soul" session on Wednesday nights. I haven't
gone back to see if they've ruined that one too.

Oaks is still there. It'd better be. It's the oldest and largest rink
in the Pacific Northwest (since 1920-something, I think). They still
play the old pipe organ (the pipes hang over the center of the rink) on
some sessions, but Friday and Saturday nights are top-40 from records
(and maybe CDs). I attend a "private" session there on Sunday nights which
is mostly rap-ified soul (and some good stuff too :-). It's run by a private
group (the "Rose City Rhythm Rollers") and it's for members only, so we
can pretty much play what we want (well, OK, what the DJ wants :-).

But one nearly-good session a week isn't enough to keep me tuned up or
in shape. Sigh. Down from 10 hours a week to 2.2 hours. Not good.

-----

ROCKY MOUNTAINS

Colorado

From: abou...@bbn.com (Albert Boulanger)
Subject: Re: Speed (Now Denver area rinks)
Date: 20 Apr 92 10:52:44

In article pear...@isis.cs.du.edu
(Philip A. Earnhardt) writes:

You should hook up with a speed program. There are speed roller skating
programs at the rink in Longmont, CO, and a couple of rinks in Colorado
Springs. I'd guess there's at least one in Denver; ask around.

Can you post the names of the rinks you know of in the area? (For
potential roller skating visitors to the front range?)
There is a rink off of Coal Mine Rd in South Denver that I have
visited. It is called Starport as I recall. Other names that I have
for the Denver area:

Skate City -- Aurora 344-3321
Arapahoe 770-2223
Littleton 795-6109
Meadowood 690-1444
Rollerama 288-0502
Starport S Denver 972-4433
US on Wheels ???
Roller City ???

Travel, will skate,
Albert Boulanger
aboul...@bbn.com
From: Charlie Brett

There are 2 US on Wheels and Roller City rinks.
US on Wheels -- Denver (303) 423-0616
US on Wheels -- Westminster (303) 457-0220

Roller City North -- Thornton (303) 428-5061
Roller City West -- Denver (303) 237-5622

Also, in Northern Colorado there are:

Roller Land -- Ft. Collins (303) 482-0497
Particle Board with plastic floor.
Has 2 posts in the center of the floor.

Skate Castle -- Loveland (303) 667-7388
Small asphalt with plastic floor.

Warnoco West -- Greeley (303) 330-5265
Hardwood with clear plastic floor.
Large floor with mitered corners.
Adult night on Sunday (8-10:30)

Warnoco North -- Greeley (303) 353-5265
One of (if not the) oldest rinks in Colorado.
Large hardwood floor with bent corners.
Clear plastic coating.
Only open Friday and Saturday evenings.

In Colorado Springs:

Skate City -- (719) 597-6066
Large asphalt with plastic floor.
Adult night Sundays (soul night)

Skate City Austin Bluffs -- (719) 591-1016
(used to be Torchlight)
Large particle board with plastic floor.

Bosanova -- (719) 634-1222
Older hardwood with clear plastic.
Mitered corners.

It's almost impossible to find an adult night in Colorado. The rinks
that do have them, all seem to have them on Sunday. Most rinks are only
skating 2 or 3 night a week now.

Charlie Brett - Ft. Collins, CO

NORTHEAST

Deleware

Ok, since this seems to include all types of skating (at least with
wheels!) I will make myself know as a rollerskater. My regular indoor
rink is Christiana here in Newark Delaware. Several champion figure
skaters have come from here. I never really paid attention to that fact
until I was skating at a rink in Ohio. A woman asked me where I was
from. After I told here that I usually skate at a rink in Delaware, she
said, "Oh yeah. I have heard of Christiana. [name I don't remember] came
from there."

g...@cbmvax.cbm.commodore.com (George Robbins)

Newark/Christiana/Ogletown DE

Christiana Skating Center (was Spinning Wheels)
South side Rt 273 just past I-95 intersection
366-0426

Tue 6:30 PM - 9:00 PM Family Skate
Thu 9:00 PM - 11:00 PM Adult-16 Skate
Fri 7:00 PM - 9:30 PM
9:00 PM - 11:30 PM
Sat 8:00 PM - 11:30 PM
Sun 8:00 PM - 11:00 PM Adult-16 Skate - Top 40 DJ

In-lines allowed, but speed skates are the most popular.
Hardwood - ? - Oval

This is a mid-size rink, in good condition, but with a carpeted
peripheral area.

The ~16 Age limit for the "Adult" skates makes for a largely teen-aged
crowd with an assortement older folk. Still, it is enough to make this
perhaps one of the better top-40/dance sessions in the area.

Skating is generally moderate, fast and faster, mixed with a enough
beginners to serve as sacrificial targets. Rules relagate backwards
skating, spins and freestyle to the center of the rink, but enforcement
varies depending on the skate guard, whether the manager is watching an
whether it's a pet rink rat or whoever.

I go to the Sunday night session fairly often, it can be fun as long as
you're up for the pace, but many new skaters or drop-ins give up in
disgust before getting acclimated.

This is also on of the rinks where competitions are held, and has
yielded some winners, but apparently the club/lesson/competition
activity is quite separate from the public sesions.

====
Elsmere/Wilmington DE

Elsmere Skating Center
Rt. 2 Elsmere
Under the railroad overpass

Wed 8:00 PM - 10:30 PM Organ Night
Fri 7:00 PM - 9:30 PM
9:30 PM - 11:30 PM
Sat 8:00 PM - 12:00 PM DJ G-Man
Sun 8:00 PM - 12:00 PM Adult-18 Night - DJ G-Man

Hardwood - ? - Oval?

I've only stopped by here off hours, but this appears to be a nice full
size rink. Has a bit of a reputation for being a "rough" place, but
this may be the suburban view of a rink serving both urban and
blue-collar neighborhoods.

====

Massachusetts

From: "Robert E. Brown"
Subject: Re: Roll-Land

I go to sessions that play "artistic" skating dance music. In my neck of the
woods:

Riverdale Rollerworld in Warwick, RI 401-821-2595
Sunday and Tuesday, 7:30 to 10

Silver City Skateland, Taunton, MA 508-824-4866
Sunday 7:30 to 10

Highland Heights Rink in Tauton, MA 508-824-9363
Sunday 7:30 to 9:30, Thursday 7 to 9

The last of these is a small rink in a suburban neighborhood run by an elderly
couple who built the rink 40 years ago. The floor is great and the rink is
almost always empty . . . because of . . .

Silver City, probably the best competitive rink near me. I've not been to
their dance session.

Riverdale has a nice, but always dirty, floor -- the boards on the ends of
the rink are curved. The rink has a small competitive club. It has
popular rock and roll sessions, populated with local kids. I practice here,
since it's closest.

One of the earliest rinks in the country is also in RI -- since the Newport
rich of old seemed to enjoy rolling around in their mansions after dinner.
I believe this rink is near the Providence airport, but haven't found it
yet.

From: "Robert E. Brown"
Subject: Re: Roll-Land

One of the earliest rinks in the country is also in RI -- since the Newport
rich of old seemed to enjoy rolling around in their mansions after dinner.
I believe this rink is near the Providence airport, but haven't found it
yet.

We found this rink (Hillsboro Country Club) during a non-session period. They h
a
ve
sessions during the week starting at 7pm. It is located on US1 (2100
Post RD) in Warwick RI. Phone number is 401 737-9828
To: kana...@media-lab.media.mit.edu
Subject: skating indoors boston

I noticed today you posted something in rec.skate about finding a good
place to skate with good music. Do you know of any places in the Bostong
that have good music *and* would allow me to bring my in-lines? I
looked up Roller Skating in the Yellow Pages and found two places,
but I don't know anything about either of them. Might you?

Nothing compared to NYC. The best is probably the Sunday night session
at Roller Kindgdom in Tyngsboro MA (7:30-11). They allow in-lines that
don't tear up the rink floor as far as I know. Besides Sunday night,
there is a Wednesday night session at Roller Kindgdom in *Hudson* MA
from 7:30-11 and Monday night session at the rink in Beverly (I forget
its name). There are two Thursday night sessions: Tyngsboro MA
(7:30-11) {I go to this} and Roller World in Saugus from 8:30-11. Call
the rinks up.

Phone numbers:

Tyngsboro 508 649-2440(rec)/649-3439
Hudson 508 652-3440
Saugus 617 231-1111
Beverly 508 927-4242

There are rinks south of Boston (in Tauton for example) that I have
never been to although I have saved some email on them.

New Jersey

bi...@franklin.com (bill)
Subject: Roller skating rinks (was: Any good rink roller skaing in greater (Nor
t
hern) LA?)
Summary: what I like near south/central NJ

In article aboul...@bbn.com writes:
: (Any good rinks in U.K. or Australia?) I have checked out rinks in
: Denver, Silicon Valley, San Diego, LA, Ft. Lauderdale area,

There are still good rinks in Ft. Lauderdale? That's my home turf
and the rink I started at, Gold Coast, has, I'm told, been
converted to a Salvation Army store or somesuch. Sad; it used to
be the oldest rink in the state. When I left about two years ago,
there wasn't much else in the area.

: I will take the time out to compile a list if people
: supply me information.

I'm primarily a dance skater, so my evaluations are from that
standpoint. Here are the rinks I've visited since I moved up here.

In Burlington county, New Jersey, there is the Holiday Skating
rink in Delanco, just off 130. It has a very large floor, in
pretty good shape, though not as well maintained as it used to
be. They have a competent, if uninspired, live organist on
Tuesday, Thursday, and Sunday evenings. Tuesday is a crowded
session; the other two are fairly peaceful. I hear the organist
also does a late night session Friday (Saturday?) of just R&Rish
music but I've never been to that session.

Down in Gloucester county, there are two rinks. Skater's Choice,
in Hurffville (I think), on 47 near 55, has a decent Wednesday
night organ session. Dave Paden (sp?) plays and he's good. The
rink floor is average size and fairly well maintained. The rink
has a reasonable crowd but one can skate through it.

Speaking of Dave Paden, he also plays at the Cornwells rink. This
is just a bit east of Philadelphia on 13. This is on Tuesdays and
Thursdays. These sessions are not awfully crowded and the folk
are a bit older than in the other sessions I've mentioned. The
floor is average size but not quite as good as the one at
Skater's Choice. (This info is about a year old.)

Back to Gloucester county is the rink I skate out of, the
Deptford rink, just off 47 near 295. Besides having some good
pros, its main claim to fame is NO SMOKING, none at all in the
building. Since most of the other rinks tend to be smokeholes and
I'm allergic to it, I really like that. Unfortunately, it has a
small floor that has definitely seen better days. And the one
organ session they have, on Thursdays, is tapes and very poorly
attended. The tapes aren't very good, either. Sigh. (This is
likely to change; the management is letting some of the club
skaters run the session. With any luck, they'll do better. But if
you are interested in this session, you really should call the
rink instead of just going.)
g...@cbmvax.cbm.commodore.com (George Robbins)
Delanco/Cinaminson/Trenton NJ

Holiday Skating Center
Rt 130 at Creek Rd
Near Holiday Lake/Ice Cream Stand

Tues 8:00 - 11:00 Adult-16/Organ Night
Wed 6:30 - 9:30 DJ (Family?)
Fri 7:30 - 11:00 DJ
Sat 7:30 - 11:00 DJ
11:00 - 2:00 (AM) Rock Organ (once/month - call!)
Sun 7:30 - 10:30 Organ Night

Inlines permitted/for rent, but none seen on adult night.
Hardwood - 200'x90' - Oval w/wood surround practice area

This is perhaps the largest rink in the Area. It's a bit longer and
much wider than usual and still has a large skatable seating area at
one end and wide seating/practice lane down one side.

The Tuesday session features live organ music and is fairly well attended
by a mix of all ages. There are mid-session and after session artistic
dance skates.

Pennsylvania

bi...@franklin.com (bill)
Finally, there is the Rollerama rink in Levittown, Pennsylvania,
on 413 between 95 and 1. This had, a year ago anyway, a Sunday
evening session. This rink is also fairly small and the floor
could be in better shape, though it is better than Deptford's.
That session is also just tapes.
-----
During the summer I perform outside at a park near the waterfront in
Philadelphia (Penn's Landing). There is a group that gets together from
around the Philly area to Jam on Sunday afternoons, and many of the
Holidays. If you are ever in Philly on a sunday come on down and see us.
The "stage" is between Society Hill towers and the waterfront. Next to
the Vietnam Memorial.
-----
g...@cbmvax.cbm.commodore.com (George Robbins)
Caln/Thorndale/Downingtown PA

Caln Roller Rink
~1 mile west of Downingtown on business Rt. 30
Behind "Carpet Warehouse" on north side of road.
215-269-6229

Mon 10:30 AM - 12:30 PM Adult Escape - Lessons
Tues 7:15 PM - 8:00 PM Adult Beginner/Dance Lessons
8:00 PM - 11:00 PM Adult-18 Skate (slower) - Live Organ Music
Wed 6:30 PM - 9:30 PM Discount Nite
Thur 7:00 PM - 8:00 PM Advanced Dance Lessons
8:00 PM - 11:00 PM Adult-18 Skate (faster) - Live Organ Music
Fri 7:30 PM - 11:00 PM Open - Top 40 DJ Joe Lamont
Sat 7:30 PM - 11:00 PM Open - Top 40 DJ Wobbly

Hardwood - 170'x72' Rectanglar
In-lines prohibited...

This is a full size wood rink, kept in good condition. Peripheral
areas are wood 3/4's of the way around the rink, with a couple wide
areas suitable for practice when not crowded.

Adult skates have traditional skating music by live organist Nick
Viscuso, who is good, but the skate/music schedule seems rigid with
only occasional seasonal variations. Open skates are generally crowded
with school age kids, little adult presence.

I'm kind of predjudiced, since this is my home rink, but it seems to be
one of the better managed and has relatively extended hours. The staff
is fairly strict, but tend to relax once they recognize you. No firm
rules against backwards skating, but jumps are discouraged.

The biggest problem is the lack of any Adult session other than the
traditional organ music stuff...

====

Villanova/Bryn Mawr/Radnor PA

Villanova Skate Arena (was Radnor Rolls)
Rt. 30 and 320 just west of Villanova
Behind small shopping center northwest corner of 320 intersection
215-527-9293(tape)/527-9294(info)

Monday 9:30 AM - 12:00 N Adult Artistic & Dance
Tues 7:00 PM - 7:30 PM Adult Classes
Tues 7:00 PM - 10:00 PM Adult-18 Skate - Music Unknown
Fri 4:30 PM - 6:30 PM After School Skate
7:00 PM - 11:00 PM Open - Top 40 DJ
Sat 7:00 PM - 11:00 PM Open - Top 40 DJ

In-lines allowed and for rent, popular with the kids.
Hardwood - ? - rough surface

This is a mid-size rink, which suffers from a warped surface. The
worst spots are inside of the normal traffic oval, but still make for
an interesting feel as you pass over the bumps and gullies. The
peripheral area has a grungy carpet though there is a tiny, dirty
(20'x20'?) practice floor behind the DJ booth.

I've only been here during an open skates, so there were the usual
problems with erratic kids and beginners mixing with faster teens and
a few adults. Enforcement seemed lax and there were some kids doing
flips and live body/barrel jumps.

Good points are that the staff is new and friendly, and there are
informal (all ages) roller hockey games after the Saturday session.

====

Warrington PA (between Doylestown & Horsham)

Warrington Roller Skating Rink
Rt. 611 at Warrington
East side of 611

Hardwood - ? - Rectangular

I stopped in here during off hours, seems to be a long, narrow rink,
quaint but in pretty nice condition. Weekend hours only.

====

Lansdale/Hatfield PA

Spin-A-Round Skating Center
Rt 309 north of County Line Rd (Line Lexington)
on hillside overlooking east side Rt. 309

Wed 6:45 PM - 7:30 PM Beginner Dance Lessons
7:30 PM - 10:00 PM Organ Music
Fri 7:30 PM - 10:00 PM Top 40
Sat 7:30 PM - 10:00 PM Top 40
9:30 PM - 12:00 PM Top 40
Sun 6:00 PM - 8:30 PM Family Night - Organ Music

In-line skates prohibited.
Hardwood - ? - Octagonal?

This is a full size rink, but was need of resurfacing. A wood gangway
surounds the entire rink and snack bar, but isn't really wide enough
for practice.

I've only been here on an open Saturday night when it was snowing, so I
don't know much about the usual crowds. There aren't any adult nights,
so there's generally a mix of all ages, though the Wednesday night
session feautures "organ music" and may be more elderly. The Saturday
split session does result the the departure of many of the youngest
skaters at the end of the early session.

Apparently they have a rule limiting backwards skating "inside the red
line" or during backwards skates, but this wasn't being enforced when I
was there due to the small crowd.

====

Aston/Brookhaven PA

CN Skate Palace
Concord Rd. and Rt. 452
just south of the Concord Rd./Rt 452 5-points intersection
215-494-4442(tape)/494-4443

Wed 6:30 PM - 9:00 PM Family Night
Fri 7:30 PM - 10:30 PM Open Session
Sat 7:30 PM - 10:30 PM Rock & Roll

In-line skates permitted.
Hardwood - 160'x60' rectangular

This is a fairly small/narrow rink in a converted suburban movie
theater. Perhaps as compensation, the floor is in excellent condition
and they even have a wheel-cleaner widget to scrub off the usual
suburban wheel crud.

An intersting feature is that since the floor is built up over a
sloping theatre floor, it's fully suspended making for a nice feel.
Unfortunatly, this doesn't quite make up for the relatively narrow
~60 foot width and kid-goo too often covering the otherwise well
maintained surface.

I've skated here mostly during "family" sessions, which are the usual
zoo-like affairs. There was a Tuesday night adult-rock session for a
while, but attendance wasn't consistant and it was canceled.

This rink is largely kid/family community oriented, but my skating
instructor calls it home and they have an atistic/dance club with
exclusive use for some time on Sunday morning and Wednesday night.

====

Northeast Philadelphia PA

Palace Roller Skating Center
11750 Roosevelt Blvd.
East Side, near N. Phila Aiport
215-698-8000

(incomplete!)
Tue 10:00AM - 12:30 Adult-18 Morning Session
Wed 6:30 - 9:00 Family
9:30 - 11:00 Adult-18
Thu ? - ?
Friday 7:30 - 11:00 10 & up - Rock
Sat 7:30 - 11:00 10 & up - Rock
11:30 - 1:30PM Adult-18

In-line skates permitted.
Hardwood - ~180'x80' Oval

This is a borderline urban rink - not downtown, but in the Northeast
section of the city. A fairly nice looking facility, but with more
security guards than skate guards. Also a nice skate shop, but it
closed early and I didn't get a chance to look closely.

I visited on a Friday night and the crowd was almost exclusively
teenaged. In addition to being fairly crowded and limited to forward
skating some shuffle/couples, some of the younger kids were doing
stupid things. I got taken down from behind once and pushed several
times - I don't mind crowds, but I prefer rolling freely to dodging
and braking.

There are some late-evening Adult sessions that are supposed to
be pretty good, so I'll have to drop in and see how they compare.

====

Shillington/Reading PA

Skateaway?
Rt 222, South of Shillington

Sun 7:30 PM - 10:30 PM Adult-Night (Live Organ)

Inlines permitted?
Hardwood - - Rectangular?

This is a medium sized rink near Reading. I've only been up there once
during the Sunday night Adult session, which was OK, with a live
organist playing fairly up-beat stuff.

===

Harrisburg PA

Hagy's Fountainbleau

Sun 8:00 PM - 11:00 PM (?) Adult-Night (Live Organ)

Hardwood - ? - Oval

This is another one I've only been to once, for their Annual "corn-roast",
since it's well over an hour from work, but I plan to get up there again
one of these days.

This is an older rink in a building that has a wonderful high ceiling.
In some ways it's kind of quaint, but it's full sized and the floor is
in good condition. Another interesting feature is a "step-up" seating
area all along one side of the rink.

The owner is apparently one of the founders of the RSROA and there is an
interesting museum aisle with pictures of old rinks, skaters and old
skates, wooden wheels and other curios.

The Sunday night session features live organ music, with at least two
different organists on different weeks.

====

Virginia

****************************************************************************
>From harbour%merva...@rapnet.sanders.lockheed.com Fri Apr 23 08:37:14 1993
These three rinks are in northern Virginia, all three within about a
half hour of Fairfax Virginia (which is about 10 minutes east of Dulles
Airport.)
******************************************************************************

Skate City -- Mathis Rd., Manassas Virginia. 703-361-0425

From Fairfax, take 28 south to Manassas. Take a right on Liberia
then left at the next traffic light on Mathis. The rink is the third
building on the left, behind a car dealership, and across the street
from a cinema.

The floor is wood, and in fair condition, and medium to small. Public
sessions are very crowded. Backwards skating was allowed during sessions.
Roller Blades are also allowed.

There are public sessions most nites from 7 to 10 and there are
some day time sessions, such as an adult skate on Thursday from 10 to noon.
As always, it's best to call before you go to be sure.

****************************************************************************

Skate City USA -- Sudley Rd. Manassas Virginia. 703-361-7465

This rink is probably managed by the same folks who own Skate City,
because their session schedule sounds very similar. I didn't actually get
to skate here, so I don't have explicit directions, or first hand information
about the rink. However, skaters are Skate City seemed to think the floor at
Skate City USA was bigger than Skate City.

Again, call for information.

****************************************************************************

Fronconia Roller Rink -- Alexandria Virginia 703-971-3334

Take exit 3 off 495 (Franconia/Van Dorn exit.) Bear right at the
the traffic light to about the third set of lights which should be
Franconia Rd. Take a left on Franconia, and go about a half to three quarters
of a mile. You will see a Crown Gas station on the left. The rink is behind
the gas station.

Sessions are nightly 7 to 10 pm, except where there is a private
party. I went in the middle of the week and the session not well attended,
(which was great for practice.) I was told by skaters there, however, that
the weekend sessions are very popular. I don't recall if they allow roller
blades, but they do require toe stops or dance plugs, and will ask to see
your skates when you pay your admission (I wasn't hasseled about my figure
skates, though.)

The floor is wood and is in pretty nice condition, medium to to small,
but about average size from what I've seen elsewhere around the country.

Washington DC

From: ni...@rs733.GSFC.NASA.Gov
Subject: Re: Good indoor roller skating in the DC area?

In article abou...@bbn.com (Albert
Boulanger) writes:

In my forays of rinks in the DC area, I have not found a really good
rink -- ideally for an area like Washington DC there would be a rink(s)
that has adult sessions with a "dance club" feel. Does any exist in the
DC/Baltimore area?

Uh...I haven't noticed any...I usually go to Columbia if I'm in an
indoor mood. They have an Adult night there that is more fun for me.
Plus they rent rollerblades ;-).

-----

GREAT LAKES

Illinois

Amy Ryan (eig...@uiuc.edu) writes:
Skateland of Savoy (a few miles from Champaign Urbana) 217.359.3335
Skateland is a traditional roller rink complete with disco ball and colored
lights. The rink is used primarily by quad skaters, but inline skates are
aloowed if they are "rink-friendly". $3-$5 per session

Indiana

From: GSch...@Indyvax.IUPUI.edu (Gary Schmitt)
Hello! Anyone wishing to skate during some bad winter weather is invited to
Indianapolis to skate at the RCA Dome. For those not familar with the
dome-type
skating thing, it's done indoors on the concourse (the circumferential
hallway behind the stands). This makes for a smooth, 1/3 mile circuit, with
just a few relatively mild expansion joints for excitement.

There are usually a fair number of beginers within the group of rec skaters
and there are always speed skaters training as well. The Indy Inliners have
club night on Wednesdays, 5-9 p.m., whenever the Dome is open on
Wednesdays. This season, most Wednesdays are skate dates, but call
(317)824-DOME beforehand. There are also many other skating dates on the
schedule, so call to check.

Michigan

From: Andrew D. Abbott|
Subject: Re: Good rink roller skating in Detroit?

In rec.skate article you
wrote:

> I will be traveling to Detroit and would like to know if there are
any good roller rink sessions in the general area.

On occasion there is in-line skating at the Pontiac Silverdome and at
the Joe Louis Arena. I'm not sure if these fit your idea of a good
roller rink (I've never skated there), but they may be interesting
places to skate. You may have to do some checking around, though, to
find out when the times are. Otherwise, Shores Skateland in
Mt.Clemens may have what your interested in.
I hope this has been just a bit helpful.

-----

From: Erica Nowicki

I was a speedskater on the circut in michigan for a few years, and am
an avid rink-hopper, and worked at 1 for 4 years. Here is a record of some of
my findings :

*note these are all PERSONAL opinions given as truthfully as possible.
@= rink that hold meets.

Skateland of Woodhaven, Woodhaven, MI (homebase): Usually a friendly crowd,
but the floor needs to be redone in my opinion the speeds tend to be
kept at a reasonable pace for sessions and the crowd under control.

Music.

Dixie Skateland, Monroe MI: They need a better floor and sound system and
their regular crowd is obnoxious.

@Skatin' Station, Canton, MI: This is the place that State Meets are usually
held along with a thanksgiving invitational that usually has a pretty
good representation from a good number of states. Their floor is
excellent along with their sound system, but I tend to find that their
sessions lacking.

Riverside Arena, Livonia, MI: This rink I recommend highly, they have an
excellent floor, and their sessions are awsome. I attend these
sessions quite frequently even though it is almost an hour from my
home.

All Skate, Jackson, MI: They have a decent floor, and their crowd is one of
the friendliest that I have seen in a long time, they also have a
decent sound system, they do have very strict rules though which may
turn alot of the better skaters off.

Rollerworld, Kalamazoo, MI: Well, this rink is in a shopping mall, they do
need a new floor, they have strict rules, and need a new sound system
but their crowd is nice for the most part.

I have gone to other rinks, but have only been once mainly for competition and
cannot give an accurate impression though that only.....
Have a nice day...

-----

SOUTH

Florida

From: abou...@bbn.com (Albert Boulanger)
Subject: Roller Skating vacation - Rinks in Florida (USA Rinks)

I went skating in several rinks/cities in Florida. Here is a breakdown
by day of adult skating session in Florida. One generalization that I
have made is: USA (United Skates of America) rinks are a cut above
the rest in general. They all seem to have a varied session schedule
to meet the tastes of a varied clientele. I have been to USA rinks in
Chicago, and Minneapolis. In addition the one in Tampa (which I
visited but did not skate at a session) has the same type of schedule.

================================================================
Adult Roller Skating (indoor) in Florida
================================================================

Sunday
****************

Semomoram Skateway Orlando, 407 834-9095, 834-9106 (manager)
8-11
Comments:OK, Speed (shuffle) oriented music. They did play some techno.

The Palace, Lantana (West Palm Beach), 407 967-0311
8-11:30
Comments: Never got to it.

Gold Coast, Ft Lauderdale, 305 523-6783
7:30-11
Comments: Dead session and they were going to cancel it. "Floating
floor" which is a floor built on wood beams so that it rebounds. These
floors are really nice!

Skate Mania, Ocala
7-10
Comments: Never got to it.

Galaxy Skateway, Palm Beach Gardens (West Palm Beach) 407 627-4554
7-10
Comments: Never got to it.

Skate Odyssey, Tampa 813 935-2000
??? (Never got hours)
Comments: Never got to it.

Monday
****************
Universal Entertainment, Orlando, 407 282-3140, 407 282-3141
8-11
Comments: OK, about the same as Semoram. Last time I was there, they
seem to have a bit better mix of music than just the "shuffle" beat
like many Florida rinks tend to lapse into.

Southland Roller Palace, Pinellas Park, 813 546 0018
9-12
Comments: So-So, mostly shuffle beat type stuff.

Hot Wheels, Miami, 305 595-3200
8-11:30
Comments: Did not go to this session, but the adult Thursday session
was the best I seen on my vacation.

Galaxy Skateway Hollywood, Davie, 305 435-3300, 432-5144
8-11
Comments: Went to this several years ago.
It was Ok -- mostly shuffle beat type stuff.

Wednesday
****************
USA, Tampa 813 876-6544, 813 876-5826
9-12
Comments: This session claims to be a Hot 100 Club mix -- I will try
to check this one out next time.

Thursday
****************

Hot Wheels, Miami, 305 595-3200
8-11:30
Comments: Best session I went to on this trip. Center is walled off from
the rest of the floor (but open for skating).

Galaxy Skateway Hollywood, Davie, 305 435-3300, 432-5144
8-11
Comments: See Monday night,

Galaxy Skateway, North Lauderdale, 305 721 0580
8-11
Comments: Never got to it.

Happy Days Skate & Putt, Davie, 305 452-2800
7-11
Comments: Never got to it.

Rainbow Roller Land, Largo, 813 585-5987, 813 586-6810
8-12?
Comments: Never got to it.

Roller Skating Center of Coral Springs, 305 755-0011
7:30-10:30
Comments: Never got to it.

Skate City, Daytona Beach, 904 788-4401
??? (8-10:30)
Comments: Several years ago they had an adult session on Thursday. The
manager said that they may be starting this session again in the summer.
-----

Texas

Date: Wed, 22 Apr 92 13:12:52 -0400
From: Susan Harbour
I just read your rink-request in rec.skate. I have been to Austin Tx.
a couple of times this year and I have been to two roller rinks there. I
believe there are three in the city, but I was only able to locate two
of them (two of them are called Skateworld, I was only able to locate one of
the Skateworlds. I *think* the other is either a practice rink or an ice rink,
but I only ever got to hear their answering machine, so I don't know for sure.)
The third rink (Playland) is probably not one that you want to go to (I know
I never want to go back.) It's a pink epoxy coated concrete floor, which *can*
be a real nice skating surface, but this one is used for Bingo about five
nites a week, and has these pot holes in the epoxy that go right into the
concrete....I was afraid I'd ruin my (then new) dance wheels. It's really
pretty seedy, and it's also ridiculously hard to find.
Skateworld (the one I found) sounds like what you are looking for.
The times I've been there they've played top 40 music, but I believe they have
*adult* nites and Christian nites. The floor is wood, (a little small I think)
but set up very much like the Skate 3 rink in Tyngsboro, (though the floor is a
natural wood color and a whole lot smoother than Tyngsboro.) The crowd is
generally not very big, and most of the times I've been there the floor has
also been reasonably clean (so you're not picking up a quarter inch of goop
on your wheels, making it feel like you're skating on a washboard.) Though
at least once that I was there I left after 40 minutes because it was so
cruddy. I've seen them have a "race" now and again between songs during
certain sessions, but I guess speed skating is more popular in Texas than
dance skating.
Anyway...directions....
Take I-35 north (north of the Airport which is north
of the 'downtown' area) take the Rundberg exit and go west on Rundberg
to Lamar Blvd. Take a right on Lamar (you should see an HG supermarket)
and go just past the HG parking lot, and take a left on Rutland Dr.
The rink will be on your right. (You can see it from the HG parking lot).
I can't find my list of sesssion times, so you'll have
to call them when you get there.
I didn't go scouting outside of the city much since my stays in
Austin are generally only two or three days, and I never get a whole lot
of exploration time. But, I thought I'd tell you what I know!
-----
From: sas...@mvs.sas.com, AS...@mvs.sas.com
Subject: Re: Roller Skating vacation: Miami FL, Austin TX, Sante Fe NM

The biggest (best) rink in Austin is Playland. They are installing a brand new

floor AS WE SPEAK (write). They will be letting everyone skate on it this
Friday night for the 1st time. I tried to call and found out all I can get is
a
recording until Friday when they reopen. I was going to ask when the adult
session is for you -- I'll let you know on Monday if you won't be on your
vacation yet. ??? There are only about 3 rinks in Austin and that's the best
one. It is about a block from 183 and Burnet Rd.
-----
From: Russell Turpin
Subject: Re: On using both feet (was: sorting it out)

I like PlayLand, which is on 183, just east of MoPac and just west
of Burnet Rd. (Coming north on MoPac, take 183 South (really east)
and then bear right on the access road. Turn right at the stop
sign and PlayLand is about a block down behind a car dealership.)

They have adult nights on Tuesdays and Sundays. Two of my coworkers
-- one of whom is pretty good -- and I skate there pretty regularly.
There is a good group of regulars.

-----
From: "Tamara Shaffer, x3222"
Subject: Re: Rinks in Austin

> I thought you all would like to know about each others opoinion's
> about Austin's rinks:

> ****************************************************************
> Date: Wed, 22 Apr 92 13:12:52 -0400
> From: Susan Harbour
> To: aboul...@BBN.COM
>
> Hi Albert,
> I just read your rink-request in rec.skate. I have been to Austin Tx.
> a couple of times this year and I have been to two roller rinks there. I
> believe there are three in the city, but I was only able to locate two
> of them (two of them are called Skateworld, I was only able to locate one of
> the Skateworlds. I *think* the other is either a practice rink or an ice
rink,M
> but I only ever got to hear their answering machine, so I don't know for
sure.M)

The other Skateworld is a working skating rink. It is small. It is
located in northwest Austin in Anderson Mill. This is north on 183
about 1-1/2 miles (?) south of 620 at Anderson Mill Rd.

> The third rink (Playland) is probably not one that you want to go to (I know
> I never want to go back.) It's a pink epoxy coated concrete floor, which
*can*M
> be a real nice skating surface, but this one is used for Bingo about five
> nites a week, and has these pot holes in the epoxy that go right into the
> concrete....I was afraid I'd ruin my (then new) dance wheels. It's really
> pretty seedy, and it's also ridiculously hard to find.

A *lot* of things in Austin are hard to find. There is a lot of
road work in the area of Playland. We live with it. Oh well. I can
appreciate what she is saying, but considering their work they are
doing, and that it will be brand spanking new while you are here, I
figured it would be the best one to check out. :)

> Skateworld (the one I found) sounds like what you are looking for.
> The times I've been there they've played top 40 music, but I believe they
haveM
> *adult* nites and Christian nites. The floor is wood, (a little small I
think)M
> but set up very much like the Skate 3 rink in Tyngsboro, (though the floor is

Ma
> natural wood color and a whole lot smoother than Tyngsboro.) The crowd is
> generally not very big, and most of the times I've been there the floor has
> also been reasonably clean (so you're not picking up a quarter inch of goop
> on your wheels, making it feel like you're skating on a washboard.) Though
> at least once that I was there I left after 40 minutes because it was so
> cruddy. I've seen them have a "race" now and again between songs during
> certain sessions, but I guess speed skating is more popular in Texas than
> dance skating.
> Anyway...directions....
> Take I-35 north (north of the Airport which is north
> of the 'downtown' area) take the Rundberg exit and go west on Rundberg
> to Lamar Blvd. Take a right on Lamar (you should see an HG supermarket)
> and go just past the HG parking lot, and take a left on Rutland Dr.
> The rink will be on your right. (You can see it from the HG parking lot).

Like I said, look for the HEB. I haven't been to this one, but I know
her directions work.

> *******************************************************************
> Posted-Date: Wed, 28 Mar 90 11:00:15 CST
> From: Russell Turpin
> Date: Wed, 28 Mar 90 11:00:15 CST
> X-Mailer: Mail User's Shell (6.5.6 6/30/89)
> To: aboul...@BBN.COM
> Subject: Re: On using both feet (was: sorting it out)
>
> I like PlayLand, which is on 183, just east of MoPac and just west
> of Burnet Rd. (Coming north on MoPac, take 183 South (really east)
> and then bear right on the access road. Turn right at the stop
> sign and PlayLand is about a block down behind a car dealership.)

The street is McCann and it's a Nissan dealership. Hope that helps!

> They have adult nights on Tuesdays and Sundays. Two of my coworkers
> -- one of whom is pretty good -- and I skate there pretty regularly.
> There is a good group of regulars.
>
> Russell

-----
From: Robert John Butera
Subject: Re: Good rinks in Texas

In Houston: Trade Winds Roller Rink

5006 W. 34th. Just East of highway 290 just north of
I-610.

Adult night is Thursdays, 7:30-10. Not as much dance music as I'd
like, though there is some every night. A lot of the crowd seems
to favor classic rock, but everything is played.

Extreme Skate Parks

ILLINOIS

Amy Ryan (eig...@uiuc.edu) writes:
Hoffman Estates (Chicago Area) SCRAP 708.884.0945
SCRAP is an extreme park with ramps, pipes, and things to grind on. They
have beginner and expert equipment, including a half pipe, spine ramp and
vert wall. Helmets are required. Inliners, skateboarders, and BMX bikers
all use the equipment at the same time. $5 per session Must have a membership
for the halfpipes. Membership is $20 a year and one day membeships for
out-of-towners are available.

Hours (they vary during vacation, so call ahead)
Tuesday - Friday 6:30-10:30pm
Saturday 2-6pm, 6:30-10:30pm
Sunday noon-4pm, 4:30-8:30pm

CANADA

For all you extreme inline skaters.....
RAMPAGE INDOOR SKATE PARK
Featuring three monstrous half-pipes, including the Frankenstein!
Also several ramps, jumps, grinding bars, and much more!!

Location: 4100 Chesswood Drive
North York, M3J 2B9
(416) 633-1334

Hours: Weekends 10 am - 6 pm
Tues-Fri 4:30 pm - 10 pm
Call for more information

===============================================================================
=
List of contributors:

abbo...@nextwork.rose-hulman.edu
abou...@bbn.com (Albert Boulanger)
Amy Ryan (eig...@uiuc.edu)
bi...@franklin.com (bill)
ca...@udwarf.tymnet.com (Carl Baltrunas & Cherie Marinelli 1.5)
Charlie Brett
Erica Nowicki
g...@shilah.Eng.Sun.COM (george atkins)
g...@cbmvax.cbm.commodore.com (George Robbins)
mer...@techbook.com (Randal Schwartz)
ni...@rs733.GSFC.NASA.Gov
Mark L. Fussell using
Robert E. Brown
Robert John Butera
Russell Turpin
sas...@mvs.sas.com, AS...@mvs.sas.com
Susan Harbour
Tamara Shaffer

=END OF PART 6=================================================================

_________________________________________________________________

Tony Chen

unread,

Feb 1, 1995, 7:08:21 PM2/1/95

Posted-By: auto-faq 3.1.1.2
Archive-name: rec-skate-faq/part7

Rec.skate Frequently Asked Questions: Part 7
_________________________________________________________________

[Outdoor Skate Logo, West] *

REC.SKATE FAQ - PART 7: WHERE TO SKATE (OUTDOORS)

SECTION 1: WESTERN NORTH AMERICA

(Last changed January 28, 1995)

Recent changes include:
* Added Norman, OK, info from mfo...@alliant.backbone.uoknor.edu
(12/13)
* Added Marin County, CA, info from new...@netcom.com (1/3)
* Added blades@uiuc to on-line FAQ list (1/4)
* Added Napa Valley, CA, info from p...@easynet.com (1/4)
* Added Marin County, CA, info from jham...@uclink.berkeley.edu
(1/16)
* Deleted pointer to now-unavailable New York City Rollerskating FAQ
(1/25)
* Added pointer to Duncan Clarke's UK skating info (2/1)

TABLE OF CONTENTS
* Pacific Coast
+ Hawaii
+ California
+ Washington
+ British Columbia
* Rocky Mountains
+ Arizona
+ Nevada
+ Utah
+ Idaho
+ Colorado
* Plains
+ Texas
+ Oklahoma
+ Missouri
+ Minnesota

Information about Where to Skate (Outdoors) in Eastern North America,
Europe and Australia appears in Part 8 of the rec.skate FAQ.

Known local in-line skate FAQs on the net are:
1. US/CO: Colorado Springs skating FAQ:
http://usa.net/chanlz/blade.html
2. US/IL: blades@uiuc Urbana-Champaign info:
http://www.cen.uiuc.edu/~ar9079/blades.html
3. US/NY: Paperless Guide to New York City, Cyberskate page:
http://www.mediabridge.com/nyc/sports/activities/rollerblade
4. US/PA: Meng-Weng Wong's Philly skate FAQ:
http://www.seas.upenn.edu/~mengwong/phl.skating.html

5. Neth: JHD 'Bonzo' Keukelaar's Netherlands skate FAQ:
http://morra.et.tudelft.nl/~bonzo/inline/inline.html
6. UK: Duncan Clarke's UK skate info:
http://www.csv.warwick.ac.uk/~phulm/skate.stuff/.

_________________________________________________________________

Pacific Coast

HAWAII

From:g...@cbmvax.commodore.com (George Robbins)

In the Honolulu area, the terrain in town is pretty flat, but you can
get into some serious hill-climbing instantly if you want to head
inland. Great view though, if you work your way up the hill right
behind Honolulu.

The roads in town are good, but it is a pretty dense urban area, more
like western business districts than NYC though. Expect to deal with
traffic and try to avoid getting stuck playing tag with the frequent
city buses - it's hard work to get past and stay ahead, miserable to
stay behind or play leapfrog.

In the outlying areas, you have a bit of a problem. The roads are
generally good, but there is usually only one road between any two
points, so traffic can get heavy.

Also, since the general geography is a volcanic mountain, with kind of
flat shoreline skirt, you will find that everytime you
circumferentially cross one of the many radial river/streambed
valleys, you go down a steep slope, over a bridge and back up. This is
especially true on the smaller roads, major ones may have a bit more
invested in grading and bridges.

Also, be prepared for hot and sunny weather. When skating you may
spend more time in the sun than the usually carefully rationed time on
the beach vs. indoor shopping and clubs. It is very easy to get
dehydrated or severely sunburned. Make sure you have light clothing
that gives full body, arm and leg coverage and a wind-proof
hat/sunshade of some sort.

On a more serious note, a partner isn't a bad idea, especially if you
intend to travel independently outside the major tourist traps. Hawaii
isn't exactly paradise when it comes to crime and delinquency. This
has come up a number of times on rec.bicycling with respect to bicycle
touring, and it's not clear if there is a real problem or just a few
overworked tales.

From: tes...@uhunix.uhcc.Hawaii.Edu
Date: Tue Nov 30 04:05:22 1993

I don't know if your Hawaii contributor actually lives here, but he
didn't mention any specific places to rollerblade. While I actually
don't rollerblade myself, I do jog long distances so I encounter
skaters frequently.

Couple of important things, your contributor hit on already.
Residential areas on Oahu mostly radiate out from the mountain ranges.
You've got hills and valleys--means lots of steepness all around, and
not too much flat land for longer distances.

Second--Oahu is not conducive to non-auto traffic. While you see a
fair amount of bicycles and mopeds, you are at the mercy of the cars
when you're out on the road. Worse, there are painfully few bicycle
trails on the island--a lack of land and planning both. Worse, drivers
are not friendly toward cyclists and skaters. They will turn right
without blinking or looking, assuming that there's no traffic to their
right because they're in the right lane--or they will parallel park on
the road and the drivers will open their doors right onto the middle
lane. I have had some friends of mine French kiss some car door
interiors this way--ouch!

The safest and most popular spot to rollerblade on the entire island
is Ala Moana Beach Park and Magic Island. Magic Island is a little
area at one end of Ala Moana Beach Park that was filled in many years
ago by the Ilikai Hotel when they realized that their customers
couldn't see Diamond Head anymore because of all the development. Ala
Moana Beach Park itself is outside of Waikiki, across the street from
the large Ala Moana Shopping Center. You'll encounter all kinds--kids
learning, adults learning, kids whirling around adults learning,
adults doing laps around a loop, etc. Basically, these "loops" around
Magic Island are wide enough to accommodate joggers and skaters both.
Nice view of Diamond Head, too.

The other (and more closer site to Waikiki) would be Kapiolani Park,
at the Diamond Head of Waikiki by the Honolulu Zoo. They have a 2.5
mile jogging loop around it that you can use--except at parts it's
cracked and not too wide--so that's a caveat.

From: rab...@cris.com (Rabbett)

Should you come to Oahu, do yourself a favor and skate Kailua town on
the windward side... miles and miles of flat and low rise asphalt...
most of it in primo condition. Trade winds, blue skies, quiet
neighborhoods and a mere couple blocks from the beach. Also, further
into Kailua..is Lanikai...about 3.7 miles around, it is an oceanside
residential loop with staggering beauty and colorful homes and people.

From: mi...@sun.lclark.edu (Mike Muronaka)
Date: 11 Nov 1994 12:55:08 -0800

I haven't skated much there, but the following areas have potential:

General cruising - Residential Kailua/Lanikai is mostly flat and has
little traffic. There's supposedly something resembling a waterfront
outside of downtown Honolulu, but I never got there. Remember that
skating isn't allowed in Waikiki (who'd want to go there anyway?) If
anyone tells you Magic Island is a good place, they're either lying or
not very skilled skaters (nice scenery, too small).

Downhills - Since Oahu is mostly a giant mountain range, it's easy to
find a spot to test how well your brake works. Go to Tantalus for
curves. There's this one hill (sorry, can't remember specifically
where) where I had to throw my car in first going down and still rode
the brakes : ). Keep your eyes peeled.

Street - Schools. The University has loads of terrain toys. There's a
large concrete bowl (skate park?) in Honolulu, but everytime I've gone
by there, it's chained off. There's a quarter pipe at the Kailua
Intermediate playground. I've actually seen skateboarders on it, but
again, it's mostly chained off.

Be aware that Hawaii drivers for the most part don't understand the
concept of bicycles on the road, so inlining should be no exception.
Stay on the sidewalk in high traffic areas. I've been told that
inlining is also getting more popular (i.e. seen on people above the
age of 5 who aren't tourists), so you might not get as many stares as
I did : ).

_________________________________________________________________

CALIFORNIA

* Napa Valley
* San Francisco and Marin County
* East Bay
* South Bay and Peninsula
* San Luis Obispo
* Los Angeles
* Long Beach
* Orange County
* San Diego

Napa Valley From: p...@easynet.com (Peter W. Richards)
Date: Wed, 04 Jan 1995 23:30:43 -0600

I recommend the Silverado Trail (Site of David Miles of CORA's Roll
thru the Wine Country). You can cruise about 27 miles from Napa to
Calistoga and another 27 back if you're ambitious. (I did it once.
Don't ask what my socks looked like...) Moderately rolling with no
really scary hills. Quite adequate bikelane/shoulder most of the way
except for in some of the hills near the Calistoga end, and a funny
road surface/shoulder ridge even nearer Calistoga. Cool stuff for
distance enthusiasts....

San Francisco and Marin County

From: garv...@aol.com (Garvin 888)

When in San Francisco check out Golden Gate Park; on Sundays the
park's closed off to cars. Also, there's the Embarcadero area
(Fisherman's Wharf, pier 39, etc.) and the Marina district. If you're
a fairly skilled skater, you can try and tackle other areas in SF, but
there are plenty of hills. There's also a Friday night fun skate, held
every Friday at 8pm down by the Ferry building that's along the
Embarcadero. Open to all ages and abilities, although knowing how to
stop is a must! It's a 15 mile tour of the city.

From: g...@pulsar.commodore.com (George Robbins)
Date: Sat, 22 Oct 1994 18:30:18 GMT

eel...@uxmail.ust.hk (Curtis Ling) writes:

[...] I was reading the FAQ and saw that there was a "Friday night
fun skate... 15 mile tour of the city" starting at 8PM, at the Ferry
building along the embarcadero (wherever that is). I was wondering
if that would still be going on in November, if it was a regular
thing, and if not, if there were other such regular events.

If you look at SF, it sits on the end of thumb-shaped penninsula. The
Embarcadero is the water-front street through the old dock area, kind
of crescent shaped. The Ferries building is the old Ferry terminal, I
think it's mostly offices and a Restaurant now. I seem to recall it's
close to where Market St. would intersect the Embarcadero if there
wasn't a zone of confusion in between. Look for the Bay Bridge and you
won't be too far off. Anyone in the city should be able to point you
in the right direction.

Note that this is much closer to the main business district than the
to Fishermans Wharf/Pier 39/Presideo/Cannery tourist-trap "end" of the
Embarcadero. At that end there's a bit of a park and litle beach where
there's also supposed to be some skating activity during the day. The
Embarcadero is dead flat, and there are lots of not-too hilly routes
around the city - the really nasty hills are when you try to go up and
over the the penninsula instead of around the periphery. (kind of like
HK)

Take your skates in any case, skating or biking is a very good way to
see the city - it's big enough that walking everywhere is a real pain,
and cars aren't particularly convenient. Just carry some shoes in a
backpack so that you can take a bus/trolly bus/cable car, or if you
decide you want to go up or down one of the really steep streets.

From: lfl...@netcom.com (L. Floyd)
Date: Sun, 23 Oct 1994 19:20:36 GMT

[Re:] San Francisco Friday Night Skate (Midnight Rollers)

As far as I know, the Friday night skate goes on every Friday of the
year, weather permitting. George gave good directions to the start
point. Look for the Ferry Building clock tower at the east end of
Market Street. There are parking spaces in the extra-wide median on
the Embarcadero right there at the Ferry Building. To play it safe,
pay the $3.00 (self-pay box) - I got a "warning" many weeks ago.
People start to gather in the parking lot I just mentioned at around
8:00 pm or earlier. The skate starts at 8:30. There are plenty of
folks who do the skate. Last Friday the count was over 325 skaters:
young, old, women, men, kids, in-line, quad, racing, newbies. Wear
your helmet and bring along one of those blinky lights things so you
won't get smushed by a car or bus.

While you are in SF, you might want to check out the skating in
Golden Gate Park on Sundays. One of the main roads (John F. Kennedy
Drive) that goes through the park is closed off (well, most of it is
closed off) from noon until late in the afternoon. Runners, cyclists,
walkers, and skaters fill the stree. There is usually a group of
regulars who set up a boom box (powered by car batteries!) near 6th
Ave... some of the best skaters in town dance the day away there.

From: new...@netcom.com (Charles E Newman)
Date: Tue, 3 Jan 1995 04:04:58 GMT

[...], do not use your inlines anywhere in public in Larkspur, they
outlawed the use of skatboards, roller skates, and inline skates some
years ago. And the Tamalpais Union High school distrct banned them in
1986 on district property. If you want to skate, don't go to Marin,
period!!!!

From: jham...@uclink.berkeley.edu (Jennifer Lynn Hammond)
Date: 16 Jan 1995 23:19:39 GMT

There is a paved multi-use path in Tiburon that has incredible views.
It's only two miles long (one way), but you can add in some streets in
Tiburon; there are lots of skaters on weekends, and it seems skate-
friendly. [We were fooling around on a residential street one day, and
one of my friends fell just as a police car went by on the cross
street. The officer doubled back and came down our street, and we were
sure he was going to tell us to get off the road. But he just wanted
to make sure my friend was okay, and he drove away saying "enjoy!"]

The path is just off of Tiburon Blvd. We usually park in the lot for
Richardson Bay Park, because street parking in Tiburon can be scarce.
On the weekends it can get a bit crowded, and sometimes it's pretty
windy out there, so be prepared!

There's also a paved bike path in Sausalito, but the surface is a bit
too rough for my taste.... it's do-able, but not esp. enjoyable.

Other than that, I don't know of anywhere special in Marin. My
boyfriend and I live in Novato, and we just go out on the streets
here... there are some really nice routes.

East Bay

From: be...@alf.sybase.com (Betsy Burton)

In addition to the places I can tell you about, there is a book out
from Karim Cycley that talks about some other places.

1) My personal favorite for a nice long run, is the back streets to
Richmond. There are a number of streets starting near Gilman and
Albany. These streets go through Albany and El Cerrito. In addition,
Richmond Street goes out past the El Norte Bart Station. This route
has good small hills and allows for a good workout.

2) The Nimitz trail takes off at the top of inspiration point and goes
out about 4 miles. At the end of this path is a rather large hill,
which after struggling to the top, is great to fly down.

3) Tunnel road takes a bit of experience and some good breaking
skills. I just heard that someone biked up tunnel road the other
day..so it may be open after the fire.

4) Berkeley Marina is good for a quickie. A full lap is 2.5 miles. The
only draw-back is that the view gets a little boring after a few laps.
My last and most favorite is Bancroft Hill, next to the University.
Late at night it is a nice fast down hill.

From: ji...@hkn.Berkeley.EDU (Jim Young)

You might want to try skating around the Berkeley hills. I usually go
up Euclid or Spruce, skate across Grizzly Peak, and then down Tunnel
road. If you go early in the morning, you might see Eddy Matzger and
Sandy Snakenberg there.

From: HQPYR1:ki...@orac.holonet.net (Kimon Papahadjopoulos)

Experts only! Nasty hill climb, nasty descent.

Path or area location: Tunnel Road on the Berkeley/Oakland Border
Directions:

>From Berkeley: Take Ashby out of Berkeley, past the Clairmont Hotel
and towards highway 13 and 24. Turn left at the stoplight (As if going
towards highway 24, not 13). When you get to the top of the hill, make
a left and Park.

Orida side of 24: I believe you take the Tunnel Road Exit.

^
|
TheRoute...__ To 24
\ |
Tunnel Rd --> | |
|__|
| |
| |
Hiller --> | |
/ |
/ |
|
|
|
|

>From Berkeley ---S---- To 13 ->

* Parking information: On the the start of Tunnel itself
* Path length: ~6mi (I don't really know- cound be 7-8)
* Loop or non-loop: Loop: Up and Down.
* Average path width: Two lane street
* Minimum path width: Two lane street
* Average surface: Pretty good asphalt, some rough spots
* Worst surface: One very pitted rough spot for about 10 feet.
* Number of hills: Up hill all the way
* Severity of steepest hill: 8 on a scale of 1-10
* Average steepness: 7 on a scale of 1-10
* Obstacles: One very pitted spot near the bottom, cars, occasional
trucks
* Weekend pedestrian and bicycle traffic: Yes
* Weekday pedestrian and bicycle traffic: Yes
* Number of roads which cross the path: It is a road. It crosses
several roads, but no stop signs or lights.
* Number of stairways on the path: None
* Distance markings: No
* Any other pertinent information:

For experts only! If you cannot brake well at high speeds, don't try
this course. If you are unsure, drive it first.

The climb up is a great workout, and not too severe. There are also
great views of San Francisco and Oakland. Tunnel Road turns into
Skyline about half way up.

Watch for problems in the road going up so that you will be aware of
them when you come down. Take it easy coming down the first time.
There are several areas that require care!

There is a water fountain a little past the top (if you continue along
Skyline Blvd about 200 meters) at a ranger station.

This is in the burned area of Oakland, so there is construction going
on in places, some trucks coming up.

It takes between 15-30 min to get to the top, depending on ability.

There are other places you can explore when you get to the top, but
Tunnel is generally the most tame, and the safest bet to go back down.
Be careful and have fun!

South Bay and Peninsula

From: hir...@northstar.asd.sgi.com (Diana Hirsch)

I have two suggestions for skating trails in the Bay Area:

1. Sawyer Camp Trail - off 280 in San Mateo near 92. Blader heaven on
Sunday's, lessons every other Sunday. The trail is about 6 miles
one-way. The last mile is very steep but fun coming down. However,
they have radar out there and they will give you a ticket for
speeding, especially in the posted 5mph zones.

2. Campbell Par Course Trail - off Campbell Ave. near 17 and the
Pruneyard. The trail can be accessed in several places between
Hamilton and Campbell Aves. This trail is fun because it goes all the
way through Vasona Park into Los Gatos. The only caution is that there
are several wood bridges to cross. (Stay on your back wheels and use
short horizontal strokes, it's good for the adrenalin.)

From: cats...@aol.com (CatsMeow)
Date: 2 Jul 1994 08:50:06 -0400

Hellyer to Anderson Dam trail. 16 miles of paved trail that take you
to Morgan Hill near the Dam.

Los Gatos Creek trail. This starts on Willow Street, way at the west
end where it dead-ends and goes clear to Vasona Park. I think it's a
good 10 miles at least.

From: wal...@ready.eng.ready.com (Eugene Walden)

Another good place to go is Sawyer Camp Trail. It's only 6 miles long,
so I guess it doesn't qualify as really long, but there and back, you
get a good quiet 12 miles.

Take I-280 to Black Mtn Rd (just north of 92) and head west. Turn left
at the intersection and go another mile or so. It's on the right.

Follow the posted speed limits-- park rangers have radar and will give
citations for violators.

* Path or area location: Sawyer Camp Trail
* Directions: Take I-280 to the Black Mtn / Hayne Rd exit-- near
Half Moon Bay. Head west after you exit, until you reach the first
stop sign. There is a sign that points left to Sawyer Camp Trail.
Turn left. It is about 1-2 miles down after you turn.
* Parking information: Park on the side of the road about 1-2 miles
down. You'll see the entrance.
* Path length: 6 miles in one direction.
* Loop or non-loop: Non-loop.
* Average path width: Two lanes; each about sidewalk width.
* Minimum path width: Same throughout course.
* Average surface: Fairly smooth; no potholes; some cracks filled
with black goop.
* Worst surface: Some areas are cracked with the goop filling. The
goop can be kind of slippery, even when dry, so skate very
gingerly on this stuff.

When there has been rain, only attempt the first half of the
trail; the second half is shady, so it dries slower. The pavement
is very hard to skate on when wet.
* Number of hills: Several small hills, one huge hill on the last
mile of the course.
* Severity of steepest hill: If you are not very good at speed
control, do not skate the last mile. If you are good at speed
control, make sure to keep your speed down. The hill is windy, so
you risk running into peds and/or bikes if you fly too fast.
* Average steepness: Don't know what the grade is, but the big hill
is pretty darn steep.
* Obstacles: Pedestrians, bikes, skaters.
* Weekend pedestrian and bicycle traffic: Saturday and Sunday
afternoons see pretty heavy traffic. Most of the traffic, though,
keeps to the first mile or two of the trail. So, after you get
past that, the number of other path users drops significantly.
* Weekday pedestrian and bicycle traffic: Never gone during the
week-- don't know.
* Number of roads which cross the path: None.
* Number of stairways on the path: None.
* Distance markings: Every half mile.
* Any other pertinent information: There are usually two park
rangers who patrol the path. Thus, it is fairly safe. They also
have radar. The first and last half mile half posted speed limits
of 5 MPH. The rest has a speed limit of 15 MPH. They do ticket
violators, so you're wise to obey the speed limit.

Park is open dawn to dusk.

From: Jaw...@AppleLink.Apple.COM (Ron Drake)

The trail goes under the San Mateo Bridge all the way to the end of
Edgewater Boulevard in Foster City. As a matter of fact, the best part
of the trail is after the bridge. Makes eight miles, total. Traffic's
not too bad except for the occasional knot of cud-chewers and those
kids who bike out ahead of their parents and think nothing about
turning right in front of you to see if mom and dad are still visible.
If you start and finish at Edgewater, you can replenish your precious
bodily fluids at Chevy's with a couple of cold margaritas. From 101,
take Hillsdale Blvd. or H'way 92 to Edgewater. Turn right and follow
Edgewater to its end. Park. The trail begins at the end of the street
to the right.

The best street skating I've found so far is through western Menlo
Park near the Stanford campus to downtown. There are a number of
streets there that have bike lanes and not much vehicular traffic. The
streets are well- kept so that debris and surprise bumps are at a
minimum. The pavement varies in quality from excellent to garbage. The
area is bounded by Sand Hill Road, Valparaiso Road, El Camino and
Alameda de las Pulgas.

Those who go to Shoreline should be aware of the concert schedule.
It's always better to go when it's quiet. For those who want to get a
real workout, here's the prescription for doing 'laps' at Shoreline.
At the end of the stretch that parallels Moffett Field, there's that
series of double gates. Skate down the incline (Whoa!), out through
the cul-de-sac and make a right on Shoreline Boulevard.

From: dvol...@hpcc01.corp.hp.com (David Volansky)

at Stanford. Anybody have any details on this (when, where, etc...).
I believe this is put on by the skate shop Nuevo Colors...

The group meets at the Main Quad at about 7:15pm. The best place to
locate them is in the parking lot at the end of Palm/University Ave or
on the stairs near the lot - you can't miss them - the group usually
numbers in the 30s to 40s this time of year (more in summer, less in
the rain - yes, they go in the rain).

The group is very informal and doesn't really have a starting time or
leader. As it's getting darker, they're leaving earlier and earlier.

The ride usually goes until about 9 or 9:30 and includes some favorite
jumping spots on campus and a ride in the close-by neighborhood. Be
prepared for some hills - the smell of heal brake is really something
at the end of some of these runs. The route is the same each week, so
the darkness isn't too bad after a few weeks. In the beginning, just
stay behind someone who seems to know the route and be sure to listen
for the "stay to the right", "stay to the left", "watch out for the
big ditch" messages.

From apu...@us.oracle.com (Tony Purmal)

* Path or area location: Foster City, CA
* Directions: Get to Foster City by crossing 101 on Hillsdale Blvd
or Highway 92. The path circles the city next to the following
streets: Beach Park Blvd between Compass and the San Mateo Bridge,
East Third and J. Hart Clinton Drive from the bridge to and beyond
Mariner's Island Blvd. It follows Belmont Slough and Marina Lagoon
between Compass and Fashion Island Drive passing Townhouse, Condo
and Apartment complexes bordering those waterways.
* Parking information: Park along the streets mentioned above, or
park at a park along the path.
* Path length: About 10 miles
* Loop or non-loop: Can be done as a loop if you go between the path
endpoints. This can be done by taking Mariner's Island Blvd and
Fashion Island Blvd between East Third Ave and Marina slough. One
can also go along the wooden walkway (past Fashion Island Blvd) to
Shoal Drive and through Mariner's Island Park to get to Mariner's
Island Blvd to complete the loop.
* Average path width: 8 feet
* Minimum path width: 4 feet
* Average surface: semi-smooth asphalt
* Worst surfaces: Lots of raised cracks (linear and horizontal)
along bay on south side of bridge. Pitted rough surface on north
side of bridge where the path is close to the bay. Uneven pavement
in places along Belmont Slough. Wooden walkway between Fashion
Island and Shoal Drive (optional).
* Number of hills: Five or so very small hills.
* Severity of steepest hill: Very slight.
* Average steepness: Very slight.
* Obstacles: A wooden bridge along Marina Slough (very easy to
handle)
* Weekend pedestrian and bicycle traffic: Unknown
* Weekday pedestrian and bicycle traffic: Light and well behaved.
* Number of roads which cross the path: Between Fashion Island Blvd
and Mariner's Island Blvd, none. To complete the loop along
Mariner's Island Blvd and Fashion Island Blvd there are four
intersections and up to five side streets depending on which side
of the street you're on.
* Number of stairways on the path: None along the path, two if you
take the optional connection along the wooden walkway and other
roads to get to Mariner's Island Blvd to complete the loop.
* Distance markings: Beginning 1/4 mile south of the San Mateo
Bridge on the inside of the path there are markings every 1/4 mile
in faded yellow/orange paint through until Highway 92.
* Any other pertinent information: The path borders Belmont Slough
where one can see various wetland wildlife. There are also good
views of the east bay along Beach Park Blvd, and of San Francisco
north of the bridge.

The wind gets pretty strong at times, especially in the
afternoons, so be prepared. I prefer to skate into the wind on the
way out and with the wind on the way back.

From: apu...@us.oracle.com

Redwood Shores, CA (across 101 from Belmont, CA)

* Directions: Take Ralston Ave. east across 101, turns into Marine
World Parkway. Turn left onto Oracle Parkway at first light after
101 overpass.
* Parking information: Park at the parking lot at the first left
after getting onto Oracle Parkway, or continue around and park in
the area across from the Oracle Fitness Center.
* Path length: 1 mile
* Loop or non-loop: Loop
* Average path width: 7 feet
* Minimum path width: 4 feet
* Average surface: Smooth asphalt and sidewalk
* Worst surface: ...
* Number of hills: Three short inclines.
* Severity of steepest hill: Small angle
* Average steepness: Slight
* Obstacles: Occasional hoses when the maintanence people are
working.
* Weekend pedestrian and bicycle traffic: Light
* Weekday pedestrian and bicycle traffic: Light
* Number of roads which cross the path: The path crosses Oracle
Parkway twice where it meets Marine World Parkway. Cross from the
path on Oracle Parkway to the sidewalk on Marine World Parkway.
* Number of stairways on the path: None
* Distance markings: None
* Any other pertinent information: It gets very windy in Redwood
Shores, especially in the afternoons.

You can go from this path to the Foster City Bike and Walkway by
taking a right onto Island Parkway at the end of the path closest
to 101. Then follow the road over the bridge until it dead ends at
Concourse Drive and take a right. At the end of Concourse there is
a path leading to the Foster City path.

From the Oracle Fitness Center to the San Mateo Bridge on the
Foster City Path is five miles. (Take a right when you get to the
Foster City path)

From the Oracle Fitness Center to Hillsdale Blvd on the Foster
City Path is three miles. (Take a left when you get to the Foster
City path)

From: ji...@hkn.Berkeley.EDU (Jim Young)

On the peninsula, there are some nice, smooth trails at Crystal
Springs. I know some guys who skate from Mountain View to SF, so I
think some of the roads that parallel 280 are fairly nice.

Finally, in the south bay, I have a friend who skates on the Los Gatos
bike trail (it runs parallel to highway 17). It's sort of crowded with
joggers and runners, but it's better than skating in south bay
traffic.

From: t...@netcom.com (Tal Dayan)

This is Cunnigham park in San Jose. The park has a lake, and a trail
around it. The Perimeter trail (a loop) is 1.9 mile long but if you
use the trail just neat the water, it a little bit shorter. The park
has several parking lots which are virtually empty in this time of the
year (including weekends) which are good for figure skating. The one I
like the most is near the Marina (just below the Raging Water
entrance) which has new pavement and it slope make it ideal for slalom
(you might find the chalk marks I made this morning ;-> ). You can
feed the ducks (millions of them), fish (or at least try to), or have
Cock from the vending machine near the entrance to Raging Water. The
parking costs one $ but there is no body to pay for or a box to leave
the money so I consider it free (probably it is different at summer).

To get there, take 101 Tully exit east (one exit south to the point
were 101 and 280 met) and go on Tully all the way until you will see
the entrance on the left side (just after the airport).

From: sy...@synoptics.com (Shyh-Pei Yen)

Place: Shoreline Park in Mountain View
Direction: 101 exit Shoreline Blvd North. At the end of Shoreline Blvd
is the park entrance. Keep going until you get to the Boat House, you
can park there.
Fee: None.
Level: beginner and intermediate.
Description: There are plenty trials available in Shoreline Park where
you can skate. And there's one trail is super smooth which is really a
pleasure to skate on it. The parking lot is also very smooth. Best of
all, when you are tired, you can sit by the lake and watch people
windsurfing.
Drawback: The Park is getting crowded in the afternoon. Sometime, it's
hard to find a parking space by the lake.

San Luis Obispo

From: kiw...@zeus.calpoly.edu (Kinsley Wong)

[Try] Santa Rosa Parks, Perfumo Canyon Road, Palm Street Parking
Structure

Los Angeles

From: ad...@netcom.com (Edith Weil) The Rose Bowl--terrific for its
large and varied terrain, as well as sparce population most of the
time.

Griffith Park--the back end. It can have a lot of traffic going
through--especially on the weekends. If you start at the Crystal
Springs picnic area and work towards Burbank, the workout is well
paced, having inclines, straightaways, a few hills, and various
parking lots to stop and noodle around in. Also, rolling along under
the Eucalyptus trees is about as pleasant as anything--if you watch
out for the twigs and tree junk on the ground.

The Beach--an obvious choice, but about the nicest place to cruise
I've ever skated--with the exception of crowds. Now that summer's
here, the crowd situation will be problematic. I've gone from
Manhatten to Hermosa and back a couple-a-few times, as well as
starting in Santa Monica and working up towards Malibu. Both trips are
delightful.

A few weekends ago we went down to a park near the LA county
fairgrounds (I forget the name, but you can't miss it.) The lake is
circled by a concrete path going through the lawns and picnic areas
that lead down to the shore. We took a divergent path and ended up
going through a hilly area that wound up in a trailer park. Sort of
interesting day, not the best skating, but there's a hot-tub rental
place just outside the park if you want to relax afterwards. I'd go
there again just to do something different.

From: da...@htu.tu-graz.ac.at (David Skreiner)

RRAT...@vma.cc.nd.edu writes:

I Have skated along the strand, which is a 20+ mile long path along
the ocean. The run from Hermosa Beach past LAX (the airport) is real
nice.

I skated there on my very first pair of Zetras, must've been 1991.
It's damn good, the beach is totally deserted where the planes to LAX
pass overhead, there's a bicycle path that runs in curves over about
40 miles if I recall correctly (it may have become shorter in an
earthquake or something... :-)

From: ke...@drogges.tti.com (Kevin Carothers)
Date: Thu, 30 Jun 1994 21:43:35 GMT

I keep on praising the virtues of the Sepulveda Dam Recreation complex
all the time in this group --

It's fun, free, near the best skate shop in the San Fernando Valley,
and not boring -- a few chills & spills & hills, but extremely
navigatable on wheels... Approximately 16 miles of smooth 2-lane
concrete bike paths, and lots of parking. There are some cracks in the
sidewalk, some a result of the Northridge quake, but overall a good
experience. The only problem I have is that it is not very shady over
half of the trails. Oh Well.

Long Beach

A saga From: el...@fitz.TC.Cornell.EDU (Doug Elias)

i just got back last night from a business trip to Long Beach Ca.,
during which i was able to escape my captors a few times in order to
sample some of the beach-skating along the Strand. My Macro-EQ's
having so far been fed exclusively on a diet of Ithaca pothole-and-
gravel, this was a golden opportunity to find out how they'd perform
under something better than, shall we say "marginal", conditions.
Suffice it to say that i'll be reliving that experience in my dreams
for quite some time to come, thanks in large measure to a guy i met in
one of the beach shops dotted along the Strand.

i was stroking past this little shack with the sign "Alfredo's"
painted on it when i saw a rack of 'blading accessories, so i pulled
in to look them over (cagey folks, that's exactly why they have them
out there in plain view). While i was looking over the wheels and
pads, out rolls Dana Bergman, Alfredo's resident inline-expert and a
member of their skating team. He's wearing a pair of Reidell's (sorry,
never got the model, but it's got 3 buckles and 4 wheels, if that's
any help), and we get to talking about Macro's (he had a pair when
they first came out) and bearings (did you know that Macro's used to
come stock with German bearings, and only recently switched to
Singapore NMB's? Dana was shocked and saddened) and proper
care-and-feeding-of-same. i got a first-hand lesson in popping dust
covers off of "sealed bearings" -- i use that phrase advisedly,
because that's how Rollerblade describes them in their technical
material. i told Dana that and he just laughed: "Yeah, all they want
to do is sell you a new set when they get gritty, instead of telling
you how to clean them and loosing the sale." So he pulls out a
brand-new set of German ABEC-3's still in the wrapper, digs a little
optical screwdriver (the kind you use to tighten your temples, for all
you four-eyes like me) out of his kitbag, and twists off one of the
covers. "Ya gotta be careful with those Singapore bearings, though",
he cautioned, "the covers are on a lot tighter and you might jab the
blade through your hand, but they still pick up dirt and grit." He put
a little dab of a light grease (i didn't catch the name, but it comes
in this 6" long black cardboard cylinder) inside the bearing, rubs it
around, then adds a drop or two of this fairly high-priced oil that
comes in a nifty little pocket-clip applicator with a long needle-tip,
"Mogema In-Line Racing Oil"; when the original supply of oil is used
up, he re-fills it with Marvel Mystery Oil, which he claims is just as
good, if a little thinner, and much cheaper. If he had had to clean
them first, he would have used a tuna can full of acetone to loosen up
the junk and dissolve any grease/oil that remained, pounded them a few
times on a hard surface to knock the loosened stuff out, then set them
out for a minute or two to let the acetone evaporate, followed by the
re-greasing procedure i just described.

My bearing are still doing fine, so i didn't buy any of his, but he
had a supply of aluminum spacers in stock, and i snapped up a full
set, and bought one of his pocket-oilers off him -- damn, you might
say i was impressed with how much better i rolled with the new spacers
and a couple of drops of oil per bearing.

Since the day was kinda cloudy and business was slack they closed up
and Dana took me back up the Strand to the Long Beach Natatorium
(where they held the swimming events in the '88 Olympics), and gave me
an introduction to stair-riding -- if only it were as simple as he
made it look. He said that there were four main points, whether you're
riding them frontwards or backwards:

1. have one foot "in front" (relative to the stairs),
2. put most of your weight on the back foot (the one coming down
last), and use the front one for balance and control,
3. have your weight forward (relative to yourself, i.e, bend over at
the waist and shift your weight to follow your upper body), and
4. keep the wheels that are going down first on both skates UP, don't
let them go DOWN, or you'll follow them.

Dana claims that backwards stair-riding is much more natural an
activity than going down frontwards, given the way our knees bend, and
that it's basically just our inbred fear of moving in a direction
opposite to the way we're facing that makes it seem otherwise. And, as
we all learned on our bikes when our training wheels came off, you're
more stable at-speed than you are going slowly. i believe him, but i
haven't worked my way up to practicing it quite yet -- now that i have
a good example of what to shoot for, it's only a matter of time (and
the obligatory case-or-two of stair-rash -- for damn-sure i'm going to
be wearing a helmet when i start practicing these moves; so far i've
gotten away with wrist-, elbow- and knee-protectors, but then i've
made it a serious point to keep my skates on the ground, and the
ground continuous rather than step-function-like).

That much would have been a nice addition to my stay in southern
California, but the next afternoon Dana took me for a guided tour of
downtown Long Beach that was little short of fantastic. Parking ramps,
waist-high walls around parking lots, 50-yard long drops down a 40%
grade followed by a hairpin over a swatch of dirt and into a parking
lot...but the absolute best had to be the Long Beach Veterans
Building, with three sets of 3-4 stairs separated by about 20-30 feet
each going down, and then a set of S-curves following the handicap
ramp going back up, all this fitting inside a 30 x 80 foot rectangle:
Dana likened it to the Long Beach Gran Pri for formula-1, and gave me
a demo, taking the stairs in nonchalant jumps that looked like an
alpine downhiller catching air over a mogul, and then powering up the
ramp with fast, powerful crossovers while leaning far out over ("But
don't touch!") the hand-rails. He and his friends race this course
frequently, but i couldn't figure out where they had room to pass,
certainly not on the ramp: "Oh, I always pass on the stairs, they all
yell: 'Look out! Here comes Dana!', and I just come blasting down".

He had lots of little tips picked up over the years, stuff like:
* wear a Walkman so you can skate to music -- it helps take your
mind off your skates and lets your body start learning how to use
them without your head getting in the way;
* play little games with inanimate objects, like seeing how close
you can come to light-posts, or spinning around fire-plugs, or
stoking full-speed at a garbage-can and doing a jump-turn-around
at the last second,
* play tag and follow-the-leader with your friends,
* kick around a tennis-ball (the way he described it, it almost
sounded like one-man miniature-soccer), and, most important,
* Never sit down or stop moving, you get locked up and stiff -- to
rest, stay on your skates and do little things like practice
turn-arounds, or zig-zags, or crossovers, or skating inside as
small an area (a concrete rectangle on the sidewalk) as you can
stay within.

In case anyone in the LA area is interested, the Alfredo's folks are
giving serious thought to the construction of an inline park somewhere
in Long Beach, with a speed-oval surrounding an inner playground with
ramps, stairs, tubes, and a re-creation of the the Veterans Building
Formula-1 course. They're already solidly behind city efforts to
convert an unused volleyball court just across the street from the
beach into a fully-functional roller-hockey facility; this should be
done well before summer officially starts.

One last tip for the beer-loving 'blader who visits the Long Beach
Strand: be sure to stop into the Belmont Brewery, just an in-field fly
away from the Natatorium: really great service which, frankly,
wouldn't be worth mentioning if it weren't for the truly fantastic
brewed-on-premise beers (okay, okay -- the food is excellent, too, but
the beers are really exceptional).

Bottom-line: if you have an opportunity to take your skates to Long
Beach, look up Dana and coerce him to give you a Downtown Long Beach
Tour -- he's really good company, a damn-fine skater, and an
all-'round nice guy. And don't forget the Belmont Brewery!

From: khsy...@aol.com (KH SYMBIOS)
Date: 20 Aug 1994 03:27:07 -0400

Another Ultimate place to skate is in Long Beach. Go park your car in
shorline park then skate the park for good measure. North of it is a
large dock area for Catalina Boats, there are wide expanses of
concrete there between the commercial buildings..great for freestyle
or hockey practice. If you go south of the shoreline village you can
skate on smooth and wide sidewalks beside the marina...this path takes
you to the beach sidewalk path which goes about 5 miles south past the
Belmont Pier and to the Seal Beach Breakwater. I think this is the
ultimate for skating. Wide range of terrain and nice views too!

Orange County

From: "Irene M. GRAFF" (IMG...@uci.edu)
Date: Wed, 31 Aug 94 13:15:05 PST

I live in Orange County, CA which has some great places to skate.
First off is the (mostly flat) beach recreation path which stretches
in various forms from Newport Beach through Huntington to Sunset
Beach. The best part of the path is along Huntington State Beach, but
Newport Beach is more interesting (albeit a slower skate due to heavy
use). The distance between Huntington and Newport Piers is about 10
miles round-trip. The surface north of Huntington Beach Pier is quite
a bit rougher but worth it for the bluff-top views and hill work.

At the southern end of Huntington State Beach, you can hook up with
the very long Santa Ana River Trail (over 40 miles round trip). This
path has many roadway underpasses but they are fairly smooth. For
extreme skaters, I've seen a lot of activity on the floor of the river
which is very accessible since it was rebuilt (no, it's not really a
"river" at most points, merely a flood channel, which is dry most of
the year).

If you like river trails, there are some good ones in the city of
Irvine. Irvine is very bike/skate friendly, but the University of
California at Irvine has, unfortunately, banned skating on campus
completely.

San Diego

From: mpe...@wtcp.DaytonOH.NCR.COM (Michael Peters)

Last November I enjoyed skating at Mission Bay on the walk along the
beach and at Lake Mirimar (sp?). The lake has a loop going around the
lake with lots of turns (nice for crossovers) and its about 5 mi.
around. Lots of bikes and skaters. Not many cars drive on this road
because automobile traffic is not allowed to travel the entire loop. I
believe there are signs on I-15 just north of San Diego. It is located
right next to the city of Scripps Ranch. The lake is a good place for
a workout, but Mission Bay is nice for a leisurely skate.

From: vla...@jeeves.ucsd.edu (Veda Larson)
Date: 8 Oct 94 03:05:32 GMT

Down here in San Diego, my fave haunt is Miramar Lake/reservoir, at
I-5 and Mira Mesa Blvd. It's a 5-mile loop around a very pretty lake
-- a nice workout routine. Even though lots of people go there
(bikers, runners, walkers, fishers :), they're all spread out so it's
still very peaceful. Play It Again Sports nearby rents skates, so you
can take your newbie friends, too. The west end of the lake is a sort
of dam overlooking the city, and the coast off in the distance. It is
a mind- and body- cleansing experience to skate around the lake and
stop at the west end to stretch and watch the sunsets on the ocean
beyond the city.

The boardwalk in Mission Beach and the paths around Mission Bay are
fun, and there are lots of rental shops nearby, but they are quite a
bit too touristy for my taste, especially in the summer.

From: as...@snugbug.cts.com (S0ren Ashe)
Date: Sun, 23 Oct 1994 16:38:02 GMT

For beginners: the Jack Murphy Stadium parking lot is huge, flat in
places, good slopes elsewhere. Balboa Park west of Cabrillo Bridge,
South Mission Beach from the parking lot to north of Crystal Pier is
classic SoCal beach boardwalk (mind the airheads!) Mission Bay by the
Hilton hotel, Miramar Lake, etc. For hocky go to Olympic Skate in
Fashion Valley between Interstate 8 and Friars Road, they have a court
and manage team competition.

From: vla...@jeeves.ucsd.edu (Veda Larson)
Date: 26 Oct 94 12:26:14 GMT

Behind the food court & ice rink at UTC (University Towne Centre) mall
there is a nice smooth, winding, moderately descending path that's
just wide enough for me to control my speed by slaloming if I
concentrate. It has always been totally deserted and is flanked by
hills with overlooking houses. The experience is actually a lot like
downhill skiing!

Ye olde path ends at Towne Centre Drive across from the Renaissance
Towne Centre, behind which there are more charming paths and bridges
by a creek. Overall skating distance is not long, but this is a cute
route to try if you're looking for something new to explore.

[caveat: UTC security will stop you ~10-20% of the time. you can go
around the back of the parking lot, carry your skates through the
mall, or skate slowly and carefully so as not to scare anyone. ;]

_________________________________________________________________

WASHINGTON

Seattle

From: pc...@nasagiss.giss.nasa.gov (Robert B. Schmunk)
Date: Tue, 06 Sep 1994 14:22:13 -0500

Seattle is not really a skating town. The problem is likely due to the
fact that the hills of Seattle make it somewhat difficult to skate
from point A to point B unless you have strong calf muscles.
Additionally, many of the streets are paved in a somewhat rough tarmac
that tends to give your feet the old washboard massage and wears
brakes down pretty quickly. Thus, during a 10-day stay in Seattle I
saw only one skater other than myself who was on the streets of the
city.

Nevertheless, there are places in Seattle to skate, as the city
government has been kind enough to provide lots of bike/ped paths that
are physically separate from the streets. The three paths I sampled
all had very gentle terrain as they were located on/near the shores of
one of the bodies of water in/around Seattle. A side benefit of being
near the water is that some of these paths have truly splendid scenery
to look at while you're rolling along.

1. Green Lake: A couple people suggested to me that the 2.9-mile
trail around this lake NW of the Univ. of Washington might be the
place to skate in Seattle, but they're sadly disillusioned. The
basic problem is that this trail gets a lot of pedestrian traffic,
and the lane for bikes/skaters is never more than 3 ft wide. Thus,
for beginners this is not a good place because of the possibility
of colliding with a pedestrian, and the more advanced skaters will
be frustrated by the slow skaters/pedestrians blocking the trail
ahead.
2. Elliot Bay Trail: This trail starts just slightly north of Pier 70
and follows the shore of Puget Sound to just beyond the grain
terminal at Pier 86. After that it takes a big swerve inland to go
around the auto off-loading facility at Terminal 91, and then
comes back out to the Sound and terminates at Smith Cove. Besides
Pier 70, you can access the trail from a couple of streets just
north of Terminal 91. Between Piers 70 and 86, the pedestrian and
wheel (bike/skater) portions of the path are physically separated,
and peds will growl if you take the wrong path. This separateness
does make the trail somewhat more interesting to advanced skaters
looking for a place to work out, and the flat topography is
balanced by the wonderful view.
3. Waterfront: This may actually count as a southern extension of the
Elliot Bay trail, but a large gap between them suggests that it
might be otherwise. Anyway, the various tourist piers along the
shore immediately downhill from downtown are located along Alaskan
Way. On the city side of the road is a trolley track for the
tourists, and immediately adjacent to it is a bike/ped path that
stretches from about a half mile south of Pier 70 down to a point
about even with the Kingdome.
4. Burke-Gilman Trail: Of the places I skated in Seattle, this was by
far the best. I'm not quite sure where the western end of the
trail is located, but the easiest place to find it is where it
crosses Fremont Ave. right on the north side of the Fremont Bridge
over the Washington Canal. (At this point it's only a bike lane
marked on the road.) From here it heads eastward along the canal,
along the north side of Lake Union, and past Husky Stadium on the
UW campus. Beyond there it begins to wend its way a little inland,
but breaks back out to follow the NW edge of Lake Washington just
beyond Magnuson Park. This was about as far as I followed the
trail, but it is supposed to continue further north along the
lake, and then turn eastward to go through Bothell, and eventually
terminate after something like 30 miles near the Ste. Michelle
winery in Woodinville (sp?). This trail has many good views, a
little bit of topography, and what I considered a surprisingly low
level of traffic. It was also the only place in Seattle that I
ever saw a blader on five-wheel racing skates. The only real
problem with this trail is that although it crosses residential
streets somewhat frequently, it doesn't often get near a 7-11
where I could grab a Gatorade.
BTW, if you're in the downtown area, it's easy to get to the BG
trail by just following Dexter Ave. north. This road has bike
lanes on both sides and the slope of the hill provides a good but
not murderous workout.
5. UW campus: Although there aren't any official skating routes (that
I noticed) on campus, this is a pleasant place. There's lots of
topography, some flats (Red Square!) and streets which all seemed
to have been recently paved.
6. Other trails: There are several other official bike/ped paths in
Seattle, and skaters would be well-advised to purchase a street
map which has them marked. One trail I plan to try the next time
I'm in town runs along the west side of Lake Washington south of
Lake Union. It looks to be pretty long, and also offers access to
a bike/skating lane on the floating bridge to Mercer Island.

Summation: On a scale of 1 to 5, skating Seattle was about a 3.

From: litl...@seanet.com (Wendi Dunlap)
Date: 7 Sep 1994 11:12:39 -0700

pc...@nasagiss.giss.nasa.gov (Robert B. Schmunk) writes:

[...] during a 10-day stay in Seattle I saw only one skater other
than myself who was on the streets of the city.

Another reason might be that the Seattle Police have been known to
ticket people for street-skating. They call it "Playing in the
street."

I think they may have loosened up their attitude a bit in the last few
years, but I have known people who were ticketed.

From: mat...@sierra.com (Mathew Hendrickson WAS Seattle)
Date: 10 Oct 1994 22:52:07 GMT

Three places that I know of:
1. Burke-Gilman trail: It starts at Gasworks park (north end of Lake
Union), goes northeast through the south and east side of the UW
campus, then heads north to the north end of Lake Washington (Log
Boom park, about 12 miles from Gasworks park), where it connects
with:
2. Sammamish Slough trail: It starts at Marymore park and heads north
along the Sammamish Slough trail to the north end of Lake
Washington, where it connects with the Burke-Gilman trail. From
Marymore park to Gasworks park is about 25 miles.
3. Greenlake: This is not a place to get a workout; there are too
many people walking on the trail during daylight hours. It is only
for easy blading unless you plan to go at 3 am (some people do).

There are also various parking lots (the NOAA parking lot at Sand
Point is a good one).

From: fhan...@netcom.com (Frank Hansche)
Date: Tue, 18 Oct 1994 14:28:23 GMT

Jann E VanOver (je...@chinook.halcyon.com) wrote:

[...] there's a couple good trails in the South End, near the South
Center Shopping Mall. Just east of S. Center, along the west side of
the Green River, there's a nice trail. It has rather a lot of
walkers at lunch time (being near many office complexes) but is
nearly empty in the afternoon. Smooth pavement, relatively scenic.

And, about 1/4 mile west of there, under a powerline, is the
Interurban trail. Many many miles of nearly unused trail.

The Green River Trail starts in Tukwila, runs south to Kent and ends
at the Riverbend Golf Course. It's a good trail but parts of it are on
little used roads. So, you may have to share it with cars.

The Interurban Trail runs south through the Kent Valley to Pacific. I
have not yet skated it, but have seen many skaters on it. It is very
underused and looks to be a great place to skate.

The Soos Creek Trail is east of Kent and is great if you like hills. I
have biked this trail but not skated it. Go east up Smith to 256th and
continue east until 148th. Turn left until you see a small county
park. You can access the trail from there.

Spokane

See Coeur d'Alene, ID for information about the Centennial Bike Trail
which extends east from Riverside State Park.

_________________________________________________________________

BRITISH COLUMBIA

Vancouver

From: pc...@nasagiss.giss.nasa.gov (Robert B. Schmunk)
Date: Tue, 06 Sep 1994 14:29:39 -0500

During a recent trip to Seattle, I also had a chance to visit
Vancouver, BC. While I didn't have my skates with me that day, I did
spot what seemed to be the locals' favorite skate-path. The place I'm
referring to is the trail which follows the perimeter of Stanley Park,
just NW of downtown. Being right on the waterfront, it doesn't offer
much challenging topography, but it did seem smoothly paved and wide
enough that bike/ped/skate conflicts shouldn't be too much of a
problem. My visit was during a weekday, and during the daytime there
were a fair number of teenagers (particularly junior high school age)
out and about. In the early evening, I noticed several cars pull into
the parking lot and disgorge a young adult or two with a set of blades
over his/her shoulders. One potential problem with this path is the
high concentration of geese in the area, suggesting that one may have
to be careful about cleaning off wheels and bearings after a skate.

From: fmcq...@atlas.cs.upei.ca (Fiona McQuarrie)
Date: 6 Sep 1994 17:07:51 -0400

As a veteran of the Stanley Park Seawall path which Robert correctly
identifies as a prime inline skating area, I want to add to his
posting:
This path is indeed wide in most parts but in some places it is
extremely narrow, and as such users should be careful to follow the
clearly marked bike/pedestrian divisions. I'm not sure which side
inliners should go on, come to think of it (only having run on the
path, which is clearly a pedestrian function :), but I would say look
at others and follow what they are doing. Also there are some parts of
the path where users on bikes are asked to dismount and walk. This is
because the path is too narrow to have bikes bombing through crowds of
pedestrians....so inliners should be careful too.

_________________________________________________________________

Rocky Mountains

ARIZONA

Phoenix

From: shoo...@onramp.net (Shooshie)
Date: 15 Sep 1994 09:36:22 GMT

I travel a lot in my work as a music director/arranger, and I take my
Aeroblades with me wherever I go. I am in the Phoenix area a lot, so
when I discovered the trail on Hayden Blvd. in Scottsdale, I was in
blade heaven. There are over 20 miles of interconnected trails, and
lots more if you consider all the skate-friendly sidewalks and
streets. Some of the under-street tunnels flood right after a rain, so
you have to be prepared to stop, turn around and go over the streets
if the weather has been bad during the past week. I just got back from
a two-week stay there while making a video at the Phoenix Symphony
Hall. I spent every spare minute on that trail, and discovered some
great things I had not even noticed before. For anyone who might be
interested, here's the scoop.

There is a recreation center on Indian School and Hayden. It is called
the Indian Bend Wash Visitor Center. Large parking lot, big plaza,
lots of concrete, stairs of every configuration, walls, jumpable chain
fences, concrete-surrounded palm trees at regular intervals for slalom
fun, skatable restrooms and water. Up behind it was a big surprise - a
small skating rink, about the size of a tennis court, and square.
Smooth concrete, with ramped sidewalks all around, stepped edges
growing out of an incline from zero to three steps, and a nice view to
boot. Skate down from the rink onto the plaza (be careful - the
concrete joints radiate outward... you will drop a skate in one now
and then) and you will find a trail leading between volleyball courts
and baseball diamond, and it leads you to a tunnel under Hayden which
connects with the aforementioned trails. The main trail is superb,
from rolling to moderately steep hills, but none so terribly long as
to be painful. It winds around through parklands, around ponds, next
to streams, behind golf courses, and goes under most of the streets.
One street crossing is at an arched pedestrian bridge which gives a
nice boost going down the other side.

But the best part of the trail is... "the Wedge!" It's about a 15 or
20 minute skate from the visitor center along the trail. At any time
of day or night you are liable to find the experienced skaters here
showing their stuff, and it's pretty impressive. You hear about it
from street skaters who speak of it reverently, although most of them
have not been there and seem to register a certain awe or fear of
actually finding it. The Wedge is a long (about 60 yards?) concrete
dam right next to a huge concrete plaza (with wooden expansion joints
- nothing's perfect) underneath a wide street bridge. The bridge
provides merciful shade from the desert heat, and the wedge provides
the site for some great jumping. At one end of the wedge is a stream
which is normally benign, but which briefly floods during the late
summer monsoons. That is the Wedge's raison d'etre. But the engineers
almost certainly had us in mind when they designed and built it. It's
just too perfect. The dam is about five feet high at its highest
point, and the entire length of it is wedge shaped such that its sides
slope upward at 55-60 degree angles. The top is broad, flat, and
smooth; I'd guess 15 feet or more across the top, and as I said
earlier, about 60 yards long. A side trail comes down from street
level, down the ravine, crosses a short bridge, right to the base of
the wedge.

You can reach quickly just about any speed you want going down the
trail. Then... you hit the incline in a crouched position, rise,
spring and shoot off the top - the sky is the limit. An expert few
manage to go clear over and across the top, airborne, (definitely not
for the faint of heart or weak of ankle) and come down the slope on
the other side. 180's, 360's, obstacles, grinds, you name it... you'll
see it all there. An aluminum picnic table provides two levels for
grinds, and barrels provide good jumping material. At night, the dark
shadows under the bridge bring out a new dimension. One side of the
wedge is visible, the other is in darkness... you learn to trust your
feet. The chatter around the Wedge is generally about competition, and
a number of the regulars travel to compete in meets. Apparently, some
of them are doing well, too. Average age appears to be about 18. I
made the mistake of using the "when I was your age" line once and
offended a guy who, at 20, was pretty much one of the elders of the
wedge community. I explained that I was nearly 40, but I don't think
he believed me; maybe it was my ponytail. Something about the wedge
knocks a few years off your age... a 15 year-old asked me if I was old
enough to buy him cigarettes.

Near the Wedge is another "made for skaters" plaza with all kinds of
stairs, walls, and such for various kinds of practice. The whole
experience of the trail and its extras is almost too good to be true.
If you get to the Phoenix area, go nextdoor to Scottsdale and find the
trail along Hayden road. The Wedge is in the southern part of the
trail, between Thomas and Roosevelt, beneath the MacDowell Street
bridge (I think... I never went up to confirm that). Let the rest of
the family go see the Grand Canyon. Go to the Wedge. It's enough to
make you want to move to the desert.

Now... if the flood control engineers of Arizona could just find it
within their needs to install a 10 foot high, 60 yard-long half-pipe
beneath the other side of the bridge...

_________________________________________________________________

NEVADA

Las Vegas

See InLine June/July 1994 (vol 3, no 6), p. 14, for info about skating
The Strip, the UNLV campus, Red Rock Canyon and Route 159.

_________________________________________________________________

UTAH

Park City

From: kl...@captain-crunch.ai.mit.edu (Klaus B. Biggers)

My favorite skate is Royal Street in Park City, UT. It's a road that
goes about half to two-thirds of the way up Deer Valley Ski Resort.
Lots of turns and lots of new pavement. It's probably about 500 meters
(~1600 ft.) vertical and an absolute blast. There is little traffic
and the police are very mellow about the whole thing (the town does
depend on tourism you know). You can either bomb down it risking the
tarmac (sp?) tickle or get thousands of turns (literally). Its really
great in the summer since the temperature is rarely over 78 degrees F
or so. Also, in the winter, a bus runs up to the top on a regular
schedule and doesn't cost a dime. I kind of like the grunt up. It is
kind of strange though watching a blader skate by a "Watch for Ice"
hazard sign..

_________________________________________________________________

IDAHO

Coeur d'Alene/Post Falls

From: ah...@boi.hp.com (Andy Hill)
Date: Thu, 6 Oct 1994 18:10:48 GMT

The Centennial Bike Trail is a long, wide asphalt trail that extends
between Riverside State Park (NW of Spokane) and Coeur d'Alene, Idaho.

I was coming from the Idaho side, so I first started on the eastern
end of the trail (near the Coeur d'Alene resort). Only went a couple
of miles before turning around - lots of busy street crossings, a
railroad crossing (at the bottom of a steep embankment) that had to be
walked, and then devolution into a dirty, marked-off "bike lane" at
the eastern side of Post Falls. Blech!

After retracing my route, I drove to the western side of Post Falls (I
believe it is Post Falls Park). I skated up a short hill to the east,
and got back on the trail, heading west toward the state line (a bit
over 4 miles away). This was a much nicer section - very wide and
smooth, pretty clean, and hardly used (I was skating about 10AM on a
Saturday; probably saw a dozen people at most for the entire trip).
There were a few rural street crossings that could be rolled through,
and one nasty crossing (lot of road debris and traffic) at the Post
Falls Outlet Mall, approx. 1 mile from the state line. Probably the
worst feature of the trail is that it parallels I-90 for much of its
length, so there's a lot of traffic noise (too bad they couldn't have
put the trail along the Spokane River - that would be a real pretty
pathway). Once past the Outlet Mall, there were no more street
crossings. The bridge over the Spokane River at the state line was
pretty neat. After crossing the river, there is a sharp turn to the
right, and a somewhat steep downhill before crossing under I-90. After
this, I only went a couple of more miles before turning around. Mostly
gentle hills, with a couple of slightly steeper spots - nothing that
an experienced skater couldn't handle.

In summary, this is an excellent skating trail, if you get on at the
right place. I'd probably recommend parking at the Outlet Mall, and
heading west from there, although my route starting at Post Falls Park
wasn't particularly bad. Next time I'm up that direction, I'll try to
check out other sections of the trail - if I remember correctly, it's
about 40 miles end-to-end.

Sun Valley

From: ah...@boi.hp.com (Andy Hill)

Just got back from a work/play boondoggle in Sun Valley, Idaho. If you
ever have a chance to come through this area in the
spring/summer/fall, check out the Wood River & Sun Valley trails.

The Wood River trail is a very recent rails-to-trails conversion. It's
21 miles long (42 round trip), extremely smooth, and not much climb.
It's a cross-country ski trail in the winter (there was still quite a
bit of snow on either side of the trail this week).

The Sun Valley trail is about a 20 mile loop around Dollar mountain.
Not quite as smooth, and has some road intersections that are a bit
gravelly. Quite a bit more climb than the Wood River trail (with some
screaming downhill sections). Bring a spare brake!

_________________________________________________________________

COLORADO

* Breckenridge-Vail
* Glenwood Canyon
* Boulder
* Denver
* Fort Collins
* Colorado Springs

Breckenridge-Vail

From: p...@blackcat.stortek.com (Phil Earnhardt)

This is a fairly old trail; it was even re-surfaced a year or two ago.
It's an asphalt trail that runs from Breckenridge, CO to Vail, CO --
somewhere around 25 miles in each direction.

The section from Breckenridge to Frisco is fairly mundane. The section
from Frisco to Copper Mountain climbs about 600 feet in 6 miles -- a
fairly steep grade. If you are experienced in braking, the descent on
this trail is absolutely fabulous. If you're an efficient climber, the
climb is pretty fun, too -- you'll be passing a lot of tourists using
their Mountain Bikes in a fairly inefficient manor.

The section from Frisco to the top of Vail Pass climbs about 1000 feet
in 5 miles. Pretty steep stuff. It's a neat path -- winding
switch-backs in a "wilderness" area between the split-apart sections
of I-70. There's a rest stop at the top, so you don't have to lug lots
of water with you.

The section from the top of Vail Pass to Vail drops about 2000 feet in
7 miles. This is pretty mondo steep. Some sections of the trail are
just off the EB side of I-70 and the air is filled with the smell of
almost-melting truck brakes. Not fun. Also, you must be a skilled
braker to navigate this steep, narrow trail. Dual brakes may be a
necessity -- I wouldn't try it with just one. Also, I wore out 6
brakes the last time I did this, and still wasn't in town.

If you're unclear if you qualify as a skilled braker, here's my test:
how many brakes have you worn out and replaced? If it's over a dozen,
you'll probably be OK on this trail. Less than 3 is a No Pass
(literally!).

Glenwood Canyon

From: p...@blackcat.stortek.com (Phil Earnhardt)

I haven't been on this trail, but it looked absolutely marvelous. This
is a 10-mile or so stretch of canyon in the far upper Colorado River.

For the past n years (5?), this section of I-70 has been upgraded from
a 2-lane to a 4-lane highway. It is an absolutely breathtaking feat of
engineering! The WB lanes of I-70 are suspended up on the canyon; the
Hanging Gardens tunnels are really neat. I drove through here last
weekend; I had quite a difficult time concentrating on my driving....

The path is between the EB lanes and the Colorado River. It sometimes
winds in and around the highway and appears to shoot over to the Lakes
at the tunnels. I don't have a good judgment of the grade; I'd guess
it's 3-4% from Glenwood Springs to the Lakes. Clearly, the trick would
be to get a room at the Hot Springs hotel in Glenwood Springs, skate
upstream to the lakes, cruise back, and soak in the Hot Springs pool
the rest of the night.

Why am I telling you this? Especially since both of these trails are
now impassible? No good answer. Except, if you're planning a
spring/summer vacation now, you might want to put one or both of these
gems on your travel plans. If we want more trails like this, it would
be incredibly valuable for the local/state governments to get the idea
that tourists are going out of their way to visit these trails.

Boulder

From: ai...@hplvec.LVLD.HP.COM (Jim Aites)

I would like to take this time to submit my nomination for
"blade-capital" of the the world. (what do ya' mean you didn't know we
were voting?)

The city is Boulder, Colorado.

Last week-end I drove 50 miles (each way) to visit this famed area. It
is as good as the rumors have indicated. Every major road around town
has a 'greenway' containing a 6 foot wide contrete bikepath on both
sides of the road, and even the roads without 'greenways' still have
the wide walkways.

The prettiest/best run in town is the Boulder Creek Bikepath. This
path starts (at the top) about 2 hundred yards up the mouth of the
Boulder Creek Canyon, and windes for about 7 miles along the creek to
the far east side of town. It's all contrete, mostly shaded by trees,
about 5 bridges over the creek allowing travel on both sides of the
creek, and has at least 4 parks along the way.

I didn't take the time to check out all the intersecting paths which
lead off to other parts of town. (next time!) I saw a blades hockey
game in progress, about 5 beginers (practicing in near by parking
lots), almost as many Bladers as bicyclists on the path itself, and
even found some other folks who had commuted (from Denver) to check
out the turf as I was doing.

From: p...@teal.csn.org (Phil Earnhardt)

Boulder Creek trail is swell. Between 1st and 30th street is really
intermediate terrain, but there are a lot of beginners there. Between
1st and fourmile canyon turnoff is an expert trail: quite steep with
no turnouts. From 30th to 60th (or so) is a very mellow, very pretty
trail. When you come back to the west, you can see the entire
Continental Divide.

There are a lot of other good trails in town.

Both Boulder and Denver have bike maps. The Boulder one shows
road/path grades (and direction). The Denver one doesn't, but there
are a lot more trails down there. REI sells the Denver map.

Denver

From: p...@teal.csn.org (Phil Earnhardt)

Cherry Creek -- from the dam to the South Platte River -- is a pretty
neat playground. The trail along the South Platte goes for many miles.
Remember the magic rule: go upstream first, so you won't run out of
gas on the return trip.

C-470 -- the 1/4 beltway -- has a bike path along about 80% of its
distance. Here, substitute "wind" for "stream" in the magic rule.

Check with Grand West Outfitters for info on hockey and more
structured activities. They're at Broadway and 6th -- right off of the
Cherry Creek Trail.

My recollection is that there are several shops listed under skating
equipment listed in the phone book. One of them was adjacent to a
park, (the one with the Zoo or Washington park, not sure), which
might be the place for public skating. Calling or visiting these
shops would be a good source of info.

Wash Park is pretty busy and the trails are not the best.

Both Boulder and Denver have bike maps. The Boulder one shows
road/path grades (and direction). The Denver one doesn't, but there
are a lot more trails down there. REI sells the Denver map.

I'm going to try the moby long Denver viaduct sometime this summer....

Fort Collins

From: mcki...@me.umn.edu (Peter J. McKinney)

IMHO, The best in-line skating in Ft. Fun is along the Poudre River
and Spring Creek trails. They're paved nicely and are shared by
bicyclists, inline skaters, and pedestrians. There's at least 10 or 12
miles of trail and you should be able to pick up a map at any Ft.
Collins bike store.

Colorado Springs

If you have web access, there is a little bit of Colorado Springs
skating info available at <URL:http://usa.net/chanlz/blade.html>.

_________________________________________________________________

Plains

TEXAS

* Houston
* Dallas/Fort Worth/Arlington

Houston

The flattest city on earth. If you want hills, your only choice is to
sneak into the parking decks downtown at night, This is rather common
- just skate upward until the dweeb (they all are) security cop asks
you to leave. Skate out.

Street skating is allowed in Houston. Be reasonable. I've heard from
reliable sources that street skating is now officially legal, but
can't be positive.

Downtown. Very popular with skaters. In the spring through november,
Thursday nights are "the" skating nights downtown after the "Party on
the Plaza" (weekely free outdoor concerts downtown). There's also a
few skaters on weekend afternoons. Some of the big oil and bank
building security types don't like skaters on their marble, even if it
is a public sidewalk on a city easement.

The "skater-bar" in Houston is the Brewery Tap, on Franklin (one of
the northernmost eastwest streets downtown). Its also the major
hangout for the Urban Animals, Houston's famous "skater-gang". The
Animals organize skates on a semiregular basis - just join them on a
Thursday night at the Tap - they're a friendly bunch. In the past,
they also met at the old convention center (across from Jones Plaza)
on Wednesdays and Sundays for hockey.

Stop by the Montrose Skate Shop (on Stanford between W. Gray and
Clay). The owner is a longtime experienced skater who knows a lot
about Houston and the national skate scene. Don't let the appearance
of the house/shop scare you :) If there's any official skating event
or something sponsored by the Animals going on (like the Labor Day pub
crawl) he'll adverstise it in his shop.

Memorial Park is very popular on weekends. Its got a smooth 1+ mile
loop. On a given weekend day, there will be 50+ skaters, maybe more.
Racers and beginners alike skate there. Lots of bike racers too, so
give them room. On weekdays the "picnic loop" (where the skater/bikers
go) is closed to automobiles, making it even better.

Rice University has a smooth loop (~1 mile) around the campus. Several
shops use Rice for lessons, and the loop is popular with beginners.
Experienced skaters often stop by for a few laps, and grab a beer at
Valhalla (grad student pub, open every day but Saturday 4pm-2am with
50 cent draught beers and 2.50 pitchers).

Houston has lots of bike trails. Some are in terrible shape, others
are pretty good. I reccomend the Braeswood Bayou trail only west of
Buffalo Speedway. East of there it really start falling into severe
disrepair. Its not obvious where you can park to get access to the
trail, which is over 10 miles long. Some of the neighborhoods along
South Brasewood have roads along the Bayou, park at one. The trail
along Buffalo Bayou is OK, but during rainy season (late fall and
winter) the off-road portions through the park get washed over with
sand. Not fun.

On some weekend afternoons, the city of Houston closes Allen Parkway
for about a one mile stretch along the park along Buffalo Bayou. Nice
stretch of pavement just for bikers, skaters, baby carriages, etc.

From: Rob Butera (rbu...@rice.edu)

Excerpts from the Houston skating FAQ (Last updated 09/27/1993):

Skating is "street-legal" within the Houston city limits, barring
roads that are banned to bicycles (the only example I can think of is
a short stretch of Memorial Drive). However, don't be an idiot. Just
because you're allowed to skate on a road does not mean its a good
idea. A few rules of thumb:

1. Yield to cars. It keeps street skating legal by not pissing off
motorists, and they weigh a lot more anyway.
2. Stay off the busy roads in the daytime. Be well lit at night (buy
a Vista Lite or two at a bike or skate shop).
3. Houston's lack of zoning is convenient for skaters. It means that
many well traveled roads have other less traveled roads running
parallel to them through neighborhoods. Some of the "well-paved"
roads used a lot by skaters include Dunlavy (good North-South
route), Hawthorne (good connection between Montrose and downtown),
and the middle "skater lane" (i.e. car turning lane) on W. Alabama
- but only use this after daily business hours.
4. Obey the speed limit. This may sound funny, but cops in West
University have nothing better to do, and I know bikers and
skaters who have been warned.
5. The Texas Medical Center is private property and skating is not
allowed on its "interior" roads. This has been verified with UT
and TMC police. I know of a skater who has been pulled over, by a
TMC cop, flashing lights and siren :) :) :)

Where to Skate

Rice University
Good for beginners. The inner loop around campus is about a mile,
and a lot of newbies from West U. flock there on Saturday mornings
in the Spring and Summer. You can also skate the stadium when it
is open for football practice.

West University
A nice quiet community near Rice - most of the east-west roads
were paved in the past year. Don't speed - they'll get you. Its
easy to get above 15 MPH on their smooth pavement.

Downtown and Vincinity
Downtown is fun. A lot. You can find skaters downtown almost any
night of the week, although Thursday and Saturday seem to be the
most popular. There are numerous downtown bars that skaters often
meet up at (See below). Things to do/see include:

+ Jones Plaza Party-on-the-Plaza (a city sponsored band party)
is on Thursday night. However, after 11 PM or so, this public
plaza and some nearby buildings is a playground for free
styling skaters and skateboarders. Watch/learn how to skate
down ramps or large flights of stairs :)
+ Milam/Lousiana Theses are the two most popular roads to
cruise up and down downtown. Lots of buildings to skate
around. Lots of obstacles, sculptures to skate around or play
tag, stairs/walls to jump, etc. Beginners and experienced
skaters both love the buildings with marble sidewalks. Behave
yourself, and most security guards won't mind you being there
(though there are some exceptions).
+ George R. Brown Convention Center-- There are hockey games
here every Wednesday night, starting at 9-9:30 until 11:00 PM
or so. Beginners are welcome, though most players are
experienced and play in leagues around the city. Skate the
big ramp (parallel to I-45) if the gate is left open.
+ Parking Garages-- This is trespassing, and I plead the fifth
:) Ask any skater for details. The owner of a local skate
shop describes parking garages as like "fishing holes" - you
don't tell too many people, or its no good anymore (i.e. some
step up their security if they notice repeated skater usage).
However, there are a few regular garages that are not
guarded, or the guards just don't care. Be competent and know
how to brake before attempting even an easy garage, and
avoid those that are still open for business (i.e. only go
late at night).

Memorial Park
The "picnic loop" is another popular spot. On weekdays, it is
closed off to car traffic. This loop is popular to bikers and
skaters alike. When skating on weekdays, stay out of the way of
the bikers and skaters "in training" - a lot of racers work out
here.

Other Neighborhoods / Hills?
Montrose has some good roads, and some terrible ones. The closest
thing to hills that you'll find is around the Heights - i.e. roads
like White Oak, Studemont, etc. all near Buffalo Bayou. The
biggest "hill" in Houston (to my knowledge) is the the Houston
Ave. overpass over I-10.

Hermann Park
I used to tell people it stinks and not to waste your time.
However, there are now (relatively) new 6 foot wide cement paths
throughout the park that are great for skating, especially
beginners. Still not as long or scenic as Memorial, but good for
beginners or a lazy skate on a sunny afternoon. Watch out for
pedestrians and mothers with baby carriages ... The Miller
Amphitheatre offers a sad excuse for a hill ...

Braeswood Bayou Bike Trail
Park on Lookout Court, which is off of S. Braeswood just west of
Buffalo Speedway. You can take the bike trail from Buffalo
Speedway west to Chimney Rock (about 3.5 miles). The trail
actually goes west as far as Fondren and east as far as U of H,
but the pavement quality is much worse west of Chimney Rock or
east of Buffalo Speedway. Take note: if you want to head west past
Chimney Rock, the trail looks like it ends. It doesn't - you have
to cross the bridge (i.e. skate on Chimney Rock Rd.) over the
Bayou, where the trail continues on the other side of the bayou. I
find this to be a nice "6 PM workout" before heading home, and you
can skate into the sunset :)

Buffalo Bayou Trail
Good for mountain bikes. Bad for skaters. It COULD be the best
outdoor skating trail in Houston (lots of slight hills and
curves), but whenever it rains significant portions of the trail
get washed over with sand. The bike path between the parking lots
along Allen Parkway and downtown (via Tranquility Park) are in
great shape, however.

Woodlands
If you actually have a reason to go way out there, the trails are
pretty fun, and there are lots of them. Beware of sharp curves
with bikers coming around them from the other direction ...

Skater Friendly Establishments
Surprisingly, most restaurants and bars are skater-friendly,
especially in the downtown and Montrose areas. One big demand is for
late night food downtown. Two options are Pat's & Pete's Blues Burgers
(on Market Square) and Mai's (Vietnamese, on Milam). Both are
skater-friendly and open till 4 AM on Fri. and Sat. nights. Other
known skater-friendly bars/restaurants/clubs/coffee-houses in Houston
include: Warren's, Birraporetti's, Toads, Power Tools, Brewery Tap,
Fuzzy's, Cecil's, Emo's, Bitterman's, W. Alabama Ice House, 321
Alabama, Blue Iguana, Brazil, Cafe Artiste, Grif's, Catal Huyuk, House
of Pies, McDonald's, Gingerman, Volcano (though I think the crowd was
annoyed by our presence), Valhalla, ..... I'm sure there's many I'm
forgetting ...

From: font...@ravl.rice.edu (Dwayne Jacques Fontenot)

These are the standard answers and my thoughts on them:

Rice University
To hear people talk and to read articles in the local newspapers one
would think that Rice University is some great place to skate. Well, I
know a thing or two about the Rice campus, and I simply do not
understand this. Rice possible places to skate:

The "inner loop": Sure, this is a smooth asphalt loop, but it is a
road. It is for cars. The speed limit is 15mph, but some drivers
regularly travel at up to 60mph. Traffic is not as heavy as say, Main
Street, but it is heavy enough. I guess if you don't mind the cars,
and don't get easily bored with the loop, and like to skate into
Valhalla for a beer, then this is for you, but it's not for me.

The sidewalks: No way. Rice sidewalks are "pebbled paths". That is,
really smooth, bumpy pebbles held in place by concrete. This stuff is
so slippery, that it is difficult to ride a bike on it (though
technically one is not allowed to bike on it, so one probably cannot
skate on it either).

The Rice Stadium lot: Please wait while I stop laughing. This lot is
like an exploded mine field. One must be very careful when driving a
car over this surface. There are gigantic holes everywhere, and the
surface is not smooth at all.

The Rice Bike Track: Not an option. This is a bike track. It is for
bicycles. It is not for skaters. Skaters should not skate on it.
Bikers use the bike track to train on. It is extremely difficult to
ride around the track at training speeds while there are skaters on
it. Experts will tell you the worst accidents happen when there is the
greatest disparity in speed of the vehicles. That is the case with
bikes and skates. Imagine what a biker thinks when he comes up behind
a skater who is stroking his legs out to the left and right. It is
only a matter of time (IMHO) before skating becomes illegal on the
bike track, if it is not already.

The Rice stadium: This is a slight possibility. There are several
concrete ramps which could be fun, but they are quite steep. If one
could get in, it might be a fun place to skate, but once again, it is
probably not allowed.

Downtown
hmmmmm. We asked one person where to skate downtown, and they said,
"anywhere is fine". Yeah, rite. Anywhere is fine as long as it is on
the sidewalks. And the sidewalks don't excite me. There are several
cool plazas which are the property of large corporations. However,
the security guards will not let you skate there. I guess they don't
want to be sued, and I don't blame them.

So, where do people skate downtown which is not on the streets (lots
of cars)?

Memorial Park
I have no information. Anyone out there know good places to skate in
Memorial Park?

Hermann Park
This is the best place I have found so far, but that is only
relatively. There are lots of people with baby carriages. Most of the
time people on the sidewalks will hear you coming and move aside, but
usually the sidewalks are filled with clumps of people every 20 feet.
At least there are no cars. My current fun thing to do is to skate
around the manmade lake, including over the wooden humpback bridge :-)
but, inlines are so "new" there that everybody stares. Admittedly,
things are better on weekdays, but most people work on weekdays :-(

From: Robert Schmunk (pc...@nasagiss.giss.nasa.gov)
Date: Jan 1994

The Rice stadium lot has been referred to as a minefield, but this is
no longer entirely true. Part of it was repaved in late 1993, but
unfortunately it is also the part that is closest to the music
building. Consequently, any skater who ventures into this temptingly
smooth area is going to have to learn how to play dodge with cars
pulling into or out of parking spaces. The drivers of these cars only
check to see if there are large vehicles which might crash into them,
not 150-lbs skaters. This area might be more skateable on weekends,
but then you'll have to put with teen-agers getting driving lessons
from mom and dad.

From: j...@telescan.com (John Guynn)

One of my favorite places to skate is Cullen Park. It's down I-10
toward San Antonio. If you can get directions to the Velodrome (sp?)
it's close to there. There's a 5km bike trail that makes for a great
skate.

If you're closer to the Pasadena area go by Strawberry Park. There's a
1 mile path around the park. You're not supposed to skate on it but
the park "closes" at 10pm and the park officials have told me they
don't care if you skate on it after then.

Dallas/Fort Worth/Arlington

From: exu...@exu.ericsson.com (Ken Corey)

There's a place I've heard about up in Plano, but my vote goes for the
Whiterock Trail. We have a group of people that skate there. It goes
from Hillcrest and LBJ down to Whiterock Lake.

The trail is about 7 miles long, and has water fountains every so
often. It's a nice trail. Royal and Greenville down to the lake is the
easy end of the trail. Royal and Greenville up to Hillcrest and LBJ is
the hard end of the trail.

From: Joseph M. Izen (j...@utdallas.edu)

I skate in Plano on the Chisholm Trail, sometimes on the Bluebonnet
trail. You can pick up both near their intersection just south of Jack
Carter Park by the soccer fields. The Chisholm Trail also passes by
the Plano Public Library on Parker.

From: gra...@lobby.ti.com (Shawn Grammer)

[...] there are lots of places to skate in the Dallas/Fort Worth area.
The Whiterock, Chisolm, and Legacy Park trails have all been
mentioned. They are the longest smooth concrete trails, and therefore
the best for distance type recreational skating (of the 30 or so
trails mapped in the DFW area). If you like street and ramp skating,
those opportunities are available here too.

From: mfo...@alliant.backbone.uoknor.edu (Marc Foster)

I also suggest a good place in Arlington - River Legacy Park. Take
Airport Freeway west towards Fort Worth, get off in Euless on FM 157,
head south through the Trinity Valley, and turn right at the first
light after crossing the river (Green Oaks Blvd). It about a mile down
Green Oaks, and on the right.

From: judy.t...@pubcon.com (Judy T.texas)
Date: Sat, 1 Oct 1994 00:23:16 GMT

River Legacy Park in Arlington is very nice. Lot of paths along the
Trinity River as well as an inner circular run. Trinity River park in
Ft. Worth looks challenging. It has narrow asphalt paths but lot of
bladers and bikes.

There is also an off-the-beaten path a lot of people don't know about
on the west side of Arlington on Green Oaks Blvd. This path parallels
the Interlochen area. Has some good surprising slopes. Challenges your
"fear factor". Loved it...

South Grand Prairie (on your map) Nancy Dillard Lyon Rec. Trail is
just what it says...Recreational but pleasant.

Also, lot of the speed skaters go to Joe Pool Lake across the dam.
Some rough spots but dam is smooth.

The only problem I find in roller blading on these trails are the
people who step out in front of you. I invested in pads just for
"defensive" blading against those individuals who are oblivious to
their surroundings.

_________________________________________________________________

OKLAHOMA

Norman

From: "Marc Foster" (mfo...@alliant.backbone.uoknor.edu)
Date: Tue, 13 Dec 1994 12:45:46 -0600 (CST)

I suggest the OU campus. It has become increasingly skater-friendly
the past three or four years. Nearly all the upheaved sidewalk seams
have been graded flush to comply with the Americans with Disabilities
Act (if we fall over skating on them, chances are it's hard to get a
wheelchair over it, too). Not much in the way of slopes, unless you
try the parking ramps, or even better, the ramps for the football
stadium. Fall can be a problematic season, since the leaves and acorns
don't get cleaned up regularly.

_________________________________________________________________

MISSOURI

St. Louis

From: wse...@bb1t.monsanto.com
Date: Tue, 27 Sep 1994 01:33:19 GMT

For anyone looking to skate in St. Louis, the bike path in Forest Park
is the premier place. Forest Park is the central west end, bounded by
Hiway 40 on the south, Kighshighway on the east, Skinker on the west,
and Lindell on the north. It's 10km around and consists of a nice mix
of hills, curves, and flats. The bike path follows the outside edge of
the park.

One warning, though, the city is redoing the asphalt streets all over
the park and some roads the bike path crosses may be grooved in
preparation for new blacktop. There are also some road crossings where
hills empty onto roads. I go early on the weekends to avoid major
crowds although this will be less of a problem as the weather cools.

_________________________________________________________________

MINNESOTA

Minneapolis

If you want a really great place to rollerblade, Minneapolis opens up
the Metrodome to rollerbladers only (I'm not sure about during the
summer, but they do this all winter). It's about a half-mile (I think)
circle of the smoothest concrete you've ever been on. There are two
separate levels, one for serious rollerbladers and one for "the
family." A "must-blade" if you're ever in the area.

_________________________________________________________________

-"Where to Skate (Outdoors)" edited by Robert Schmunk
(pc...@nasagiss.giss.nasa.gov)
-rec.skate FAQs maintained by Tony Chen (adc...@cs.fsu.edu)

_________________________________________________________________

*This logo is Copyright 1994 (c) by Anthony D. Chen. Permission is

granted to use this logo in World Wide Web HTML files so long as this

copyright notice is included as an HTML comment alongside the
invokation (IMG SRC or HREF or otherwise) of the logo.

The logo may not be sold for profit, nor incorporated in commercial

documents or merchandise without prior written permission of the
copyright holder.

_________________________________________________________________

Tony Chen

unread,

Feb 1, 1995, 7:08:33 PM2/1/95

Posted-By: auto-faq 3.1.1.2
Archive-name: rec-skate-faq/part8

Rec.skate Frequently Asked Questions: Part 8
_________________________________________________________________

[Outdoor Skate Logo, East] *

REC.SKATE FAQ - PART 8: WHERE TO SKATE (OUTDOORS)

SECTION 2: EASTERN NORTH AMERICA, EUROPE AND AUSTRALIA

(Last changed February 1, 1995)

Recent changes include:

* Added blades@uiuc to on-line FAQ list (1/4)

* Added Indianapolis, IN, info from GSch...@Indyvax.IUPUI.edu
(1/13)

* Deleted pointer to now-unavailable New York City Rollerskating FAQ
(1/25)

* Added Toronto, Ont, info from dch...@accesspt.north.net (1/27)
* Added New Orleans, LA, info from BEL...@lsuvm.sncc.lsu.edu (1/27)
* Added New Orleans, LA, info from br...@larry.cc.emory.edu (1/31)

* Added pointer to Duncan Clarke's UK skating info (2/1)

TABLE OF CONTENTS

* Great Lakes
+ Illinois
+ Indiana
+ Michigan

+ Ohio
+ Ontario
* Northeast
+ Quebec
+ Massachusetts
+ Rhode Island
+ New York

+ New Jersey
+ Pennsylvania

+ Maryland
+ Washington, D.C.
* Southeast and Caribbean
+ Kentucky
+ Tennessee
+ Georgia
+ Florida
+ Louisiana
+ Bahama Islands
* Europe
+ The Netherlands
+ United Kingdom
* Australia

Information about Where to Skate (Outdoors) in Western North America
appears in Part 7 of the rec.skate FAQ.

Known local in-line skate FAQs on the net are:
1. US/CO: Colorado Springs skating FAQ:
http://usa.net/chanlz/blade.html
2. US/IL: blades@uiuc Urbana-Champaign info:
http://www.cen.uiuc.edu/~ar9079/blades.html
3. US/NY: Paperless Guide to New York City, Cyberskate page:
http://www.mediabridge.com/nyc/sports/activities/rollerblade
4. US/PA: Meng-Weng Wong's Philly skate FAQ:
http://www.seas.upenn.edu/~mengwong/phl.skating.html

5. Neth: JHD 'Bonzo' Keukelaar's Netherlands skate FAQ:
http://morra.et.tudelft.nl/~bonzo/inline/inline.html
6. UK: Duncan Clarke's UK skate info:
http://www.csv.warwick.ac.uk/~phulm/skate.stuff/.

_________________________________________________________________

Great Lakes

ILLINOIS

Chicago

From: RRAT...@vma.cc.nd.edu

There are cycle paths which go both north and south of the "loop" (the
downtown), along Lake Michigan. I have skated up north, starting at
Lincoln Park. I have also skated through the downtown both on
sidewalks and the streets, although, not during the business day (too
many cars). From downtown, a nice skate is up Clark Street north to
Wrigley Field. This is an interesting area, with used book/CD stores,
etc. You can judge distance based on address numbers: 800/mile. For
more information on where to skate (and not too), call the folks at
Londo Mondo (sorry, but I can not remember the address). Remember,
Chicago does have some really bad neighborhoods. For example, I would
not go west of Wells, in the area around Division Street.

From: tho...@tt726.NoSubdomain.NoDomain (Tom Depke)
Date: Tue, 19 Jul 1994 17:21:22 GMT

[...] is there anywhere REALLY cool to skate around Chicago? I've
read the FAQ about places to skate in Chicago but didn't see
anything really outstanding...is there?

It depends on the type of skating you are looking for. Is it speed,
tricks, or scenary? I like the lakefront down by the Shedd Aquarium
and Adler Planetarium for tricks and further north for scenary. The
problem is that it gets too crowded in peak hours and you can not get
a good workout in. So for that I go to Busse woods 53 & Golf. There is
a smooth bike path which goes for 8 miles and never seems to get too
crowded.

From: sny...@ssd.comm.mot.com (Fred Snyder)
Date: Mon, 12 Sep 1994 22:07:28 GMT

Having recently moved to Schaumburg, IL, I have discoverd the Busse
Woods bike path, in Rolling Meadows. Best accessible from Higgins just
east of 290, it's a 7.8 mile loop through surprisingly scenic terrain
with a good surface, not too crowded, frequent water pumps, everything
I could ask for except perhaps getting rid of the bicycles. It's no
Lake Shore Drive, but now that I've moved to the 'burbs, it will do
quite nicely. It still irks me that I have to drive somewhere to
skate.

From: lang...@prairienet.org (Ana G. Langlois)
Date: 24 Oct 1994 01:40:16 GMT

First of all, Chicago is a huge metro area. So if you mean downtown
Chicago I'll tell you that one of the hottest places is along the lake
shore. My wife and I were there today. We had a little skate. It was a
lot of fun. It was real windy. Good work out. Thousands of people
enjoy walking, soccor. rugby, running, bike riding, softball, kite
flying, etc., etc., etc.

Park and skate. If you come in from the south, park around the Field
Museum or the Shedd Aquarium and skate north along the lake. From the
north parking may be easier. There are parks everywhere that have
parking. The multi use trail is good, but not perfect.

In the northwest burbs there is a vert park. I forgot the name. I
think it's in Hoffman Estates.

Pick up a copy of Windy City Sports (free news magazine) you can get
it at any sport shop in the downtown area. On Clark Street, north of
the loop, there are a bunch of good stores: City Sweats, Londo Mondo,
Rainbo. They can tell you where the inline scene really is. Londo
Mondo (not on Clark actually) meets once or twice a week for fun
skates, outside. Winter will probably put an end to that though.

I hope that helps a little. The thing is that if you are in the
northwest burbs (for example) you may not want to fight traffic to go
downtown. So call a shop in the area you plan to be (or are) in and
ask them for help. If they don't know anything try Londo Mondo, City
Sweats or Rainbo.

Urbana/Champaign

If you have web access, blades@uiuc, a in-line skating group at the
University of Illinois campus, serves info at
http://www.cen.uiuc.edu/~ar9079/blades.html.

From: jms4...@uxa.cso.uiuc.edu (Clueless)

The [UIUC] Quad is a good place to do laps and play tag. (a group of
us play almost every night starting between 9 and 9:30)

The north quad has some nice stairs and a couple fountains to skate
over when the water is turned off. Assembly hall parking lot and most
of the other parking garages are good if you're looking for smooth
pavement. (The later are also nice if it's raining :) We've been
playing hockey in Assembly Hall parking lot, but there are problems
with the sewars swallowing the ball. If anyone knows a better place
where a lot of people can play (we had 13 tonight) hockey, please
tell.

There's a trail out near Windsor Road made for bikes and blades which
is a good place to go if you want to skate distance.

INDIANA

Indianapolis

From: GSch...@Indyvax.IUPUI.edu (Gary Schmitt)

Hello! Anyone wishing to skate during some bad winter weather is
invited to Indianapolis to skate at the RCA Dome. For those not
familar with the dome-type skating thing, it's done indoors on the
concourse (the circumferential hallway behind the stands). This makes

for a smooth, 1/3 mile circuit, with just a few relatively mild

expansion joints for excitement.

There are usually a fair number of beginers within the group of rec
skaters and there are always speed skaters training as well. The Indy
Inliners have club night on Wednesdays, 5-9 p.m., whenever the Dome is
open on Wednesdays. This season, most Wednesdays are skate dates, but
call (317)824-DOME beforehand. There are also many other skating dates
on the schedule, so call to check.

_________________________________________________________________

MICHIGAN

Detroit

From: dia...@cbi.com (Dianne Marsh)
Date: Wed, 27 Apr 1994 13:29:31 GMT

It really depends on where you are going in Detroit. I recommend the
"metro" parks in the suburbs. If you are staying in the city, the
closest metro park will (probably) be Metro Beach, ... nice because
the path briefly goes along the water, but flat. One of my favorite
metro parks is Stony Creek (trail: 6 miles), which is about 30 miles
north of the city near Rochester/Utica. If you are visiting farther to
the west, Kensington Metro Park (near Milford/Brighton) has 8 miles of
very hilly paved trails. Both Stony and Kensington encircle small
lakes.

If you visit one of the metro parks, you can pick up a map (free)
which describes all of them. The map describes which parks have paved
trails and includes probably the best street map of the metro Detroit
area.

I believe that the entry fee is $3 daily or $15 for an annual pass.
The pass allows entry to any of the Huron-Clinton Metro Parks. I think
that Tuesday is "free" day.

For more information on the Huron-Clinton Metro Parks, call
1-313-227-2757. The phone book also lists 2 toll free numbers, but
they are under "Metropark Golf Courses". Try them if you like:
800-234-6534, 800-477-2757.

_________________________________________________________________

OHIO

Cincinnati

From: usr2...@tso.uc.EDU (Stewart Rowe)

Two bike/hike trails near Cincinnati are also used by rollerbladers.

The Little Miami trail follows an old railroad bed for 22 miles, from
Milford, OH to Morrow OH, largely following the Little Miami National
Scenic River. Grades are very mild. There is a 6-8 ft. paved trail and
a parallel grass trail for horses. The best access, with parking,
plumbing, and skate rental in season, is at Loveland, mile 9. There
are similar facilities at Morrow (no rentals). Access at Milford is
difficult; one must cross a major US highway at a nasty intersection.
The Little Miami Trail is to be extended another 9 miles north to Fort
Ancient during the 1994-5 fiscal years, if the budget holds.

Weekend use is very heavy, with walkers, runners, bikers, baby
carriages, dogs etc., especially near Loveland. One would be wise to
start at Morrow during summer weekend afternoons. Better, pick a cold
December morning!

On the west side of the city, the county park district has recently
opened an 8-mile paved loop, at Miami Whitewater Park (we have two
Miami Rivers, Great and Little). This trail is used by walkers,
bicycles and skaters. Though mostly level, it has some grades
requiring reasonable skill. The parking area has toilets, food and
skate-rental concessions in season. An overlapping inner trail loop is
heavily used, but most of the larger loop sees little foot or bike
traffic. Some lightly-traveled nearby roads are used by cyclists, but
I've never seen skaters on roads in southwest Ohio--I expect any law
officer would find some reason to tell them to get off.

Dayton

The best places to skate in the Dayton area are on the bike paths.
Bike, joggers, and skaters (bladers? :) coexist as long as the
cardinal rule is followed: bike right: skate/run/walk left.

The River Corridor is approximately 13 miles long, including street
connectors (not many). Parts are in dire need of paving, but the run
from W. Carrollton to the Carillon Tower is fairly decent, and free of
pedestrians for the most part. There is a steel bridge that is best
walked across near W. Carrollton. Whitman's Bike Shop (in W.
Carrollton) is a good place to meet, get repairs, etc.

The Xenia-Yellow Springs bike path is 6 miles long, gently sloping up
to the north. It's an excellent way to build up your endurance by
skating hard north, then working on turns, spins, etc. back south.
Fairly straight. Note: there have been problems with exhabitionists on
this path. Do not skate alone. Young's Dairy is near the Yellow
Springs terminus, and is a great way to put on the pounds you just
worked off :).

Planned additions to these routes include the Beavercreek connector
(connecting the River Corridor and Xenia-Yellow Springs) and the
completion of the Xenia-Yellow Springs path south to Morrow, Ohio. The
N-S path would then run from Cincinnati to Xenia. The River Corridor
will eventually be extended south to Hamilton, near Cincinnati. The
bike/skate/run paths would then form a giant H across south-west Ohio,
encompassing more than a hundred miles of paved paths! You can help
speed up the process by contributing to your local/state "Rails to
Trails" organizations.

_________________________________________________________________

ONTARIO

Toronto

From: dch...@accesspt.north.net (Douglas Champigny)
Date: 27 Jan 95 01:43:42 GMT

If you can make it to Toronto this winter, try the skating at the
Skydome. Ready-to-Roll runs open skating every Monday-Thursday night,
up on the 500 level. This gives you a large oval around the entire
seating area, and is high enough to continue when other events are
down below.

From: ax...@FreeNet.Carleton.CA (Stan Krogh)
Date: Fri, 16 Sep 1994 12:53:15 GMT

If you are just interested in a flat skate take the ferry across to
Center Island...you can skate on a wide road without car traffic from
one end of the island to the other - about 5 miles one way.

From: da...@meaddata.com (Dan Hogg)
Date: 16 Sep 1994 18:48:22 GMT

I just returned from Toronto yesterday and was able to get in a couple
of evening skates while I was there. I stayed downtown at the
Sheraton, so only know about that area. First, skating isn't allowed
on the street (this is a recent ordinance) except along the side of
the street marked for bikes. Not all streets have these. Second, the
sidewalks are pretty crummy, with lots of cracks and, of course, each
section seems to be set at a difference height, making the ride
gnarly.

On the other hand, people on the sidewalk expect the unexpected, so
skaters are viewed as part of the scene. I saw about a dozen skaters
out each time I was out. Off Bay Street (Avenue ?) are lots of people
out just wandering around that you have to watch for. They like to
watch you too! There's a big street scene that has all kinds of people
out gawking and being gawked.

Queen Street is an artsy area with pretty cool people, but the
sidewalks suck and at night, all the businesses put their garbage out
on the sidewalk for pickup.

Around City Hall, it says no skating, but I found the cops didn't
enforce it. They were watching me jump the park benches and never said
a word. The benches, BTW, have no backs, so if you can jump, you'll
have no trouble getting over them. I wasn't doing any grinds or rails,
so that may be why no hassles.

Oh, one more thing...watch out for the trolley tracks - they are
everywhere when you least want them and several side by side, so I
couldn't get over them in a single jump. Have fun!

From: jsi...@bosshog.arts.uwo.ca (Jonathan Singer)
Date: 17 Sep 1994 17:09:02 GMT

Greg Franks (gr...@medusa.sce.carleton.ca) wrote:

My brother recommends Mt. Pleasant Cemetery.

Mount Pleasant Cemetery has been considered one of the best places to
skate. Two more suggestions:

1. The Beaches. It's a nice area, with a very nice, very long
boardwalk running along Kew(?) Beach. You can find it around Queen St,
heading to the far east (check a subway may and it should be pretty
clear, if you don't have a tour guide).

2. The Don Valley. Well, there's basically this big, long park system
that runs parallel to the Don River and Don Valley Parkway. It extends
from North York (Sunnybrook Park) down to the Beaches. I've ridden
about 10 km along the park system, and had very few complaints. I will
mention one thing though: it's very easy to take a wrong turn and end
up in East York. So either travel with a friend, ask directions quite
frequently, or E-mail me, and I'll try to give you a more specific
route. Keep in mind though that the park system would take about the
entire afternoon, and it's largely about scenery more than intense
skating. (Last point: if in the parks, go north to south - I've heard
that doing it the other way can be quite the workout).

_________________________________________________________________

Northeast

QUEBEC

Montreal

From: yat...@bnr.ca (Paul Yatrou)

There are several bike paths in the city. Try the Lachine canal bike
path. Go to the old port in Old Montreal (Vieux Montreal) and skate
Westwards along the river until you get to the Lachine canal path
entrance (ask anyone with blades on for directions). The path is
around 8 km long one way.

There is another path that ventures West towards Montreal West along
deMaisoneuve Boulevard (beginning at Greene Ave.), one that heads East
towards the Olympic Stadium (can't remember what street), and along
the North shore of Mtl (along Gouin Boulevard) --- all in all plenty
of klicks of skating available.

Of course, you can street skate along Ste-Catherine, St. Laurent, St.
Dennis streets (among the most interesting in the city).

_________________________________________________________________

MASSACHUSETTS

Boston

The trails on the Charles (at least when I left in 1989) could not
meet this policy. There are plenty of places where it would be
physically impossible for one bicycle to pass another unless there was
no opposing traffic. Portions of the trail up near the Allston exit of
the Mass Pike immediately come to mind.

I lived in Boston for 10 years. Fortunately, I was able to schedule my
work to avoid the crunch time on the trails--in to work after 10AM,
leave work after 6PM. The most fun was skating at night along the
Charles (yes, O'Leary, with light and helmet). This may have been
dangerous, but I rarely, if ever, saw any sinister types along the
park at that hour.

There are some pretty decent places to skate in Boston other than the
Charles. The linear park along the new Orange Line wasn't bad. I did a
lot of my practicing on the linear park from Davis to Alewife on the
Red Line. At that time, the nearly-empty Alewife parking lot, with its
gentle ramps and not-so- gentle spirals, was an excellent place to
learn hills.

From: Damon@nomaD

Maximus Skate Park has a half-pipe and a quarter-pipe street skating
area. 576-4723.

From: mdic...@bbn.com (Michael L. Dickens)

FYI: There are 2 Night Skates in Boston that happen on a regular
basis:

one is on Tuesday night, meet at the Hatch Shell on the Charles River;
leaves around 8:30 pm (or as soon as it's reasonably dark). Your $10
covers 3 glow sticks & some soft drinks. $5 each time thereafter. This
is a leisurely skate--no tricks or racing or jumping or stairs, etc...
unless you individually want to ;-> This skate is sponsored by John
Gilmore, who is somehow related to RollerBlade.

the other is Thursday night, meet at the Trinity Church in Copley
Square; leaves around 8:30 pm (or as soon as the leaders arrive & want
to go). Free to all, but this one is fast-paced. You can do jumps,
stairs, natural ramps, bricks, and any number of these combined. You
can also choose to go around & just watch; but you'll have to skate
fast to keep up. Frequent stops to let the leaders show off. If you
plan to participate, wear full protective padding, including large
knee pads, and wrist guards at a minimum. A helmet is recommended
(just in case....). The powers that lead give a short lecture on safe,
polite, respectful skating at the first stop. This skate is totally
unsponsored--skate free at your own risk.

By the Charles River, just get to harvard.
Allston/cambridge exit off Mass Pike.

Memorial drive: nice road... 8 hours open ... 11am to 7pm..
skated on sunday... only open on sundays ...
open for "recreational vehicles" only...
pretty neat... had two sets of cones set up... plus about 2 or 3 miles
of 4 lane road to skate... (bikes, skates, foot, unicycles,
skateboards..)
asphalt...few cracks..no real hills ... just by the cones.. mostly
flat .. by river ... nice....straight away...no loop....
not really crowded... too long to be crowded...short wait for slalom
.. one rental van ...

From: mdic...@bbn.com (Michael L. Dickens)

j...@eriador.Prime.COM (Joe Scianna) wrote:

I recently discovered the Bike path which begins in Bedford and
extends to Davis Square in Cambridge. It's perfect for blading. The
surface is extremely smooth. It's well marked with mile markers, so
there's no quessing distance travelled.

It's a nice alternative to the Esplanade. Although, blading along
the Charles River at sunset is tough to beat!

This is the "famed" Minuteman Path--~17 Miles of ~6' wide smooth
pavement. They've finally taken out the speed bumps that existed at or
near intersections, and replaced them with ground-level slabs of rock.
Much easier to get over the slabs.

The path starts in Davis Square between the Au Bon Pain & the Theater,
just across from the T-stop. The surface begins as fairly smooth
brick, and eventually converts into smooth pavement. You have to cross
a few big streets (like Mass. Ave in Arlington) before getting to the
longer sections. Once you get to Alewife (right at the T-stop), you're
away from the large busy crossings, and can start the speed skating!

ps. The path is slightly inclined, allowing for some great
speeds--I've gone a few miles doing 2.5 minutes / mile pace --> 24 MPH
continuous on 4 wheels!

From: stal...@world.std.com (Mark R Stallard)
Date: Tue, 5 Jul 1994 22:55:41 GMT

My favorite place to skate is on the Minuteman Rail Trail, which runs
from Davis Square, Somerville all the out to Bedford - 11+ miles long
each way. Since this was originally a railroad, the hills are very
gentle. The pavement is overall quite good after the first 1-1/2 miles
out of Davis Square. There are several places to eat and get
refreshements along the way.

To get there, take the T Red Line to the Davis station, and leave at
the Meacham Street exit. If you're lucky, you can get away with riding
the subway with your skates on. Right at the exit is an Au Bon Pain
sandwich and coffee shop, and they never hassle me about serving
myself on skates. Please don't try it, though, if you're not sure you
can skate with a lunch tray.

The path starts right outside the restaraunt. The first mile is pretty
rough; you'll have to skate over a lot of brick walkways, sandy
pavement and the like. You might be confused when approaching the
intersection of Mass Ave. and Cameron Street - keep an eye out for the
entrace; it's on the other side of Mass Ave near the Buy-Rite liquor
store.

You can also elect to start the path at the Alewife T Station.

Once in Arlington, the pavement quality improves substantially.
Repaved just last summer. There is one more path hiatus; this is
Arlington center. You have to cross both streets in a busy
intersection. After that, though, it's smooth skating.

My only complaint is that, like all good things, the path is overused.
On pleasant weekend afternoons you can expect a number of people with
small children, even baby carriages. A lot of bicyclists,
unfortunately, are real jerkoffs, too. They'll ride two abreast and
converse with each other, making it difficult for others to pass.

And then, of course, we have the dilletante racers. You know, the guys
with the very expensive bikes and bike clothing who are out to set new
personal bests. In this setting I would say they are the most
dangerous users of the path, because they often have no patience for
anyone moving slower than them. These guys should stick to the
roadways and not bother with the bike paths.

Anyway, I highly recommend the Minuteman path to all skaters.

From: bnh@active (Brian Hess)
Date: Wed, 6 Jul 1994 18:19:44 GMT

Mark R Stallard (stal...@world.std.com) wrote:

My favorite place to skate is on the Minuteman Rail Trail, which
runs from Davis Square, Somerville all the out to Bedford - 11+
miles long each way. Since this was originally a railroad, the hills
are very gentle. The pave- ment is overall quite good after the
first 1-1/2 miles out of Davis Square. There are several places to
eat and get refreshements along the way.

If you're a novice, or don't want to do more than a couple miles, you
might like to know:

The very smoothest pavement, with virtually no sand, only a few
expansion joints, and with the fewest road crossings (all of which
slow you down to a dead stop unless you are foolish) is:

from Bedford Street (4/225) in Lexington out to South Street (Bedford
depot) in Bedford. There are only 4 or 5 road crossings in 2.5 miles,
only one of which is really busy (Hartwell Ave.) This makes a 5 mile
round trip.

You can take the 62 bus from Alewife (please don't wear your skates!),
get off well past Lexington center, at the stop next after the
flashing yellow light (ask the driver for the Lexington public works
building if you're not sure). If you drive, park at either the
northeast corner of the track/road crossing in the public works lot
(in front, outside the fence they lock at night!) or behind a little
office park on the southwest corner of the track/road crossing. It's 3
minutes east of route 95/128 on 4/225.

From: SCHR...@PROCESS.COM (Jeff Schreiber)
Date: Wed, 19 Oct 1994 10:42 -0400

Last night a friend and I decided to try again for a journey into the
realms of downtown Boston for a little skate. We had tried once last
friday, but we didn't get very far. (We made the mistake of heading to
the Green line via Boston College. It took 2 hours once we got past
128 on the Mass Pike). This time we made the trek up to Alewife, and
rode in on the red line to Park Street. We did some nice cruising in
and around that side of the Common, and then headed out for more
congested areas! (for those of you hockey players in the Boston Area,
the pool in the Common, by the State House, is drained, and would be
cool for hockey!).

Well, we headed down along State street towards Quincy Market, cruised
in around there for a bit, but the cobblestones were a little too
rough. We headed over to the harbor, spent some time cruising along
the wharfs, and hung out at the Aquarium for a while, watching the
seals doing stalls and wall rides in their pens (the seals are
definitely cool!). Then we decided to head back through Quincy Market,
and up to the City hall.....

Absolutely incredible! I can't say how amazing this area was. The
brick plaza was a little rough on the legs, but it was worth it. There
is a T stop right there, with brick walls, and the brick walls were at
about an 80 degree angle, which made for some incredible wall rides.
Then we looked back towards the other side. The beauty of a field of
stairs! It was a stair bashing heaven! Nice wide steps with small
drops that made them skateable for even a first time basher. Like I
said, the brick was a little tough to skate on, but bumpy is a
relative term for Stair Bashers! there were sets of stairs, about
50-100 long steps, that went in perfect sets! 4 steps, 5 feet
platform, 4 steps, platform, 4 steps, platform, 4 steps, platform, 8
steps, 15 feet, 4 steps, 5 feet, 4 steps, 5 feet, then finally a nice
cruise of step, 4 feet, step, 4 feet (for about 5 or 6 steps!) A
definite must-skate for anyone within an hour or 2 to even a commuter
rail!!!

_________________________________________________________________

RHODE ISLAND

From: ti...@aol.com (Tim59)
Date: 22 Sep 1994 14:41:03 -0400

As requested, directions to Rhode Island 14 mile bike path.

Info:
"The path is approx. 14.5 miles long extending from Independence Park
In Bristol to India Point Park in Providence. Constructed along an
inactive rail line, the path offers some of the State's most scenic
views of coastline, estuaries and woodlands. The bikeway has a 10 foot
wide asphalt paved path with grass shoulders..."(1.)

The path crosses four towns and eight State parks. The surface is very
smooth and mostly flat with some very gradual hills. There are eating
places, shops and resting areas along the path within these 8 towns. I
feel it is best to start in scenic Bristol ...plenty of parking and
the path starts right on the Bristol harbor. The path follows the
water and through nice neighborhoods, past boat yards and state parks.
Most days, you face the wind on the way out and have a tail wind back
to the start in Bristol. It does cross 3 very busy streets so be
careful.

Directions:
Bristol, R.I. The start is located on Route 114 on the Bristol harbor.
Take Route 95 N or S to Providence. Take Route 195 East to Fall River/
Cape Cod Take Exit 7 off 195 East. Follow 114South for approx. 13
miles to Bristol Harbor.

Additional Info:
Ask for Jane at Bristol Chamber of Commerce (401) 245-0750. She said
she would send BayPath maps out to anyone interested.

If you go, please look for me. I'm male, 35, about 5'6".... I always
wear a baseball cap with Mickey Mouse on it. Say HELLO. I'm there
every night and different times on the weekend. Email comments on the
Path. I'm sure you will enjoy the ride!!!!!

ref. (1.) Bristol County Chamber East Bay Bike Path Map

_________________________________________________________________

NEW YORK
* New York City
+ Manhattan
+ Bronx
+ Brooklyn
* Long Island
* Westchester
* Albany
* Niagara

New York City-Manhattan

Warning: It is illegal to skate anywhere in the New York City subway
system. The fine is $100. That's enough for a new set of wheels and
bearings, so be warned.

If you have web access, the Paperless Guide to New York City
Cyberskate page contains a little bit of info about Central Park. It's
located at
http://www.mediabridge.com/nyc/sports/activities/rollerblade/.

From: David Madeo (dma...@is.morgan.com)

Depending on how hard core you are, you can skate year round in NYC.
Windproof insulated garments help. The prime season is March though
October. The New York Road Skaters Association (NYRSA) sponsors events
throughout the season. They can be contacted at 212-534-7858.

The most popular location in NYC is Central Park on the 6 mile loop.
Cars are barred for several hours each day during the week during the
"summer" season (which lasts until November) and all weekend
throughout the year. While you are sharing the road with bikes,
joggers, and walkers, there's usually plenty or room since there are
three lanes. When the autos are allowed back in, there's a sidewalk
for walkers, and a lane for bikes/skates. It does get a bit crowded
then.

Racing/Loops
The small loop goes counter-clockwise from 59th and Broadway around
taking the left at 72nd past Tavern on the Green and back to 59th.
This is relatively tame mild rolling hills.

The big loop is just under 10k if you're interested in racing. Go
straight at the 72nd turnoff, you go past the Met, around a long
turning downhill and along the top of the park. Then you're on a big
winding uphill. There's a long downhill leading back to the other side
of the 72nd crossover. While lots of people skate here, this is the
domain of the speed skaters. I'd be careful doing the big loop at
night; the top of the park isn't the nicest neighborhood.

It's important to go counter-clockwise. Most of the serious accidents
in the park have been caused by people going the wrong direction.

Slalom Course
Just south of the 72'nd crossover on the west side right outside the
Tavern on the Green is the cone lane. Most weekends, the cones are out
after noon. There's usually a line of people running the course and a
whole gaggle of tourists/skaters/bikes watching. There's a short
course that's usually not being used. This is where the speedskaters
hang out. They usually gather around 7pm especially on Tuesday nights
to do laps of the big loop.

Dancing
Last, there's skater's way. It's a road that was blocked off and
turned into some volleyball courts and a skating area. This is the
place for dancers to congregate. There's a path connecting the cones
area to skater's way. The bottom of skaters way connects to the 72nd
crossover. Typically there are three types of things going on. Some of
the skaters dance to the music of their headphones and/or the sound
system someone always sets up. Then there's the oval where people
throw their backpacks in the middle and skate around. Further down,
they alternate between hockey, jumping trashcans, and teaching skating
classes. You'll find a lot of quad skaters here as well.

Bandshell/Cherry Hill
The newest area in the park to skate in. [It] is just east of Skaters
way. There's a large tiled area where people skate in a circle.
There's the occasional hockey game though it's being discouraged by
the Parks Dept. (Too many other skaters and it's not enclosed.) This
is a good safe place to learn crossovers. Cherry Hill is a bit north
of skaters way and is basically a paved circle next to a lake. Mostly
beginners here.

Wollman Rink
This is where people go to learn how to skate in a safe controlled
environment. It's in the SE corner of Central Park.

Street Skating
Broadway and Fifth Avenue (especially at night) all are used by
skaters fairly extensively. There's a night skate every Tuesday night
(rain date is Wednesday) 8PM at Blades West (72nd between Columbus and
Broadway). Helmets, lights, and safety gear are all strongly
recommended.

There's a lot of places to do tricks, stairs, handrails, grinds in New
York. Too many to list and probably better not to. If you're really
interested in this, you'll have to find the right crowd first. Go on a
night skate or hang out at the cones on a weekend.

From: ri...@pipeline.com (Ricky Marshall)

I checked the Road Runners' map of Central Park. The distances they
give are:

71 W to 72 E: 1 mile, 716 yards, 31 inches
72 E to 90 E: 1748, 26
90 E to 103 E: 1351, 11
103 E to 102 W: 1, 1264, 19
102 W to 71 W: 1, 246, 22

It comes to 6 miles, 48 yards, 1 inch, or exactly 9700 meters, taking
39.37 inches to the meter. The Road Runners give the overall length as
9704 (I guess they use 1 more decimal place).

The so-called Terrace Road between East and West 72nd Streets is 542
yards, 3 inches, making the lower loop 2760.5 meters.

From: scha...@mtkgc.com (Pamela A. Schaefer)

Another great place to skate is along the south west side of
Manhattan. You can start at the Hudson River Park (Chambers St.),
continue to World Financial Center, then onto Battery Park City, and
end up at Battery Park. All this, without ever having to be on a
street. It is also great because the entire route is along the water.
And for people interested in "stair jumping", there is a great set at
the entrance to Hudson River Park.

From pc...@nasagiss.giss.nasa.gov (Robert B. Schmunk)

Date: Mon Dec 6 13:13:12 1993

[Hudson River Park] is a decent place to skate, but while skaters
(particularly teenagers) can often be seen doing tricks on the steps
at the north entrance, it's a no-no. There's usually some park
security folks wandering around in little white trucks, and whenever
they get to the steps, they chase away anybody they catch skating on
them. They've chased me off twice.

From pc...@nasagiss.giss.nasa.gov (Robert B. Schmunk)

Date: Mon Sep 19 16:27:30 1994

A prime Manhattan skating place has apparently just been opened and/or
re-paved. At least, I found out about it during a recent Tuesday night
skate. (BTW, due to an accident in June, helmets are now required
during the skate.)

Just go to the Chambers St. entrance to Hudson River Park, but instead
of going into the park and heading south, go north along West St.
Between the street and the waterfront, you'll find yourself on a
smooth bike/skate/ped path which goes at least as far as 11th St. Most
of this path is fairly smooth except for some entrances to piers or
such. At such places, there may also be large concrete barriers to
slow down cyclists and skaters who might be bombing along.

New York City-Bronx

From: David Madeo (dma...@is.morgan.com)

Mulali Skate Park is the only accessible ramp in New York. This is a
block away from Yankee Stadium. There's a mini 1/2 with a stair going
up and a larger 1/2 that you have to pump to get up on. There's a
whole bunch of 1/4 pipes and launch ramps. Occasionally these get
demolished by the local gangs so ask around first.

New York City-Brooklyn

From: David Madeo (dma...@is.morgan.com)

Prospect park in Brooklyn is similiar to Central Park, but not as
crowded. It's also a lot smaller loop. Some people do a loop in one
park, skate through the city and over the Brooklyn Bridge and do a
loop in the other park. The Promenade is a good place to walk, but
contrary to what some people say, not to skate. The pavement is
extremely broken up and the pedestrians are extremely slow, hard of
hearing and erratic. Also, going over the Brooklyn Bridge is possible,
but the wooden slats will have your feet buzzing for a long time. You
will not forget skating it. Nice views though.

Long Island

From: David Madeo (dma...@is.morgan.com)

Finally, there's a trail on Long Island a lot of skaters use. It's a
five mile trail along the Wantagh parkway from Cedar Shore park in
Wantagh, to Jones Beach. The cement path goes from Long Island over
several smaller islands and bridges to Jones Island fronting the
Atlantic Ocean. It's flat and there isn't much in between the two
ends. Bikes and joggers also use the trail. It's much easier to park
at Cedar Shore than Jones Beach during the summer.

From: jrga...@aol.com (JRGanson)
Date: 24 Aug 1994 22:53:04 -0400

Take the Grand Central Pkwy to the Northern State to the Wantagh Pkwy.
Proceed south on the Wantagh to Merrick Road East. Exit to Merrick
road, turn right proceed approx two lites the turn right into Cedar
Creek park. This is the staging area for skating on the bike path
along the pkwy doen to Jones Beach (about 4 mi). Also lots of skaters
in the park esp Wed, Fri, Sun when LIRTSA (Long Island Road and Track
Skating Assoc. meets for informal skating at 6:30 PM (See you there!)

Westchester

From: to...@nynexst.com (Dave Torok)
Date: 3 Aug 1994 03:20:06 GMT

Joseph P. Cernada (cer...@netcom.com) sez:

There's a fair amount of skaters at the Kensico Damn park/plaza in
Westchester County. I thinks it's in Valhalla (or maybe North White
Plains). Decent paved path, just under a mile around. Large concrete
area in the middle to practice moves. Good selection of stairs and
things to jump over. Cones set up for slaloming.

I also skate at the dam much of the time. It can get crowded, and
between Memorial Day and Labor Day they charge $1.25 parking, but if
you go in the late afternoon it's free. Good place for beginners.
Seems to be a decent social scene & good for people-watching. I'm a
beginning-intermediate so I can't comment on the center area or cone
area other than being an impressed spectator.

Albany

From: she...@cii3130-20.its.rpi.edu (Heather)

When I want a good workout, I head down to a nice path that runs
between the Hudson River and I-787. It's called the Corning Fitness
Trail, and it heads from Watervliet down to Downtown Albany. It's
about 5 miles in length. Although it's designed more for bikers and
runners and has a few bumps in the pavement, it's a good place to
skate.

From: sco...@wam.umd.edu (Scott Weintraub)
Date: 18 Sep 1994 23:31:50 GMT

The campus is decent but nothing special, IMO. You can find some
really nice skating around the capitol buildings though. Skating is
permitted there so the cops won't give you any problem and it's all
marble. I don't know what kind of skating you're into but if you're
into street, you'll find some really nice stairs, jumps, grinds, etc,
there. And if you're not into that stuff, it's just really smooth and
fun.

From: ls...@uacsc1.albany.edu (Lorre Smith)
Date: Sun, 18 Sep 1994 20:54:22

All these are assuming you want to roller skate. Ice is different.

The interesting thing about Albany for skaters is that the city gets
really empty after about 6pm and you can skate just about anywhere
(except Lark Street) unhindered by car traffic. There is a big hill
right in the middle of the city, though - you could scream your way
right into the Hudson River. There are a couple of college campuses in
the city, but not decent skating on them. The University (west of
downtown on Washington or Western Avenues) has decent but not great
parking lots - the podium here is interesting there if you're into
long colonades. If you have a car, well, you got a different story.
Guptil's skating arena and Rollerama are the rinks - they're in the
phone book if you want to call them for directions. There are 11 miles
of bike trails along the Mohawk and Hudson Rivers, and there are lots
of people who say that the park in Saratoga Springs (24-mile drive
straight north on Highway 87-exit 13 north) is awesome. There's an
interesting outdoor track on the north end of Troy (103rd Street in
Lansingburg) straight up route 4 and then about four blocks east on
103rd Street.

Niagara

From: v580...@ubvms.cc.buffalo.edu
Date: Sat, 2 Jul 1994 20:51:00 GMT

The Amherst Bike Path is long, uncrowded, boring and windy. Cross the
border. Park at Niagra-on-the-Lake and skate south on the bike path
along the Niagra Scenic Pkwy. I've skated in Philadelphia, in parks in
New Jersey, in Manhattan, in Rhode Island and in Boston and Cambridge
and this is the prettiest stretch of road I've been on.

If you skate far enough you can get a good view of the Lewiston-Porter
bridge and the rapids. After you finish the skate there is an ice
cream store on the river side of the main st in N-o-t-L that sells
rhubarb frozen yogurt (it's set back from the road; next to a
photo-shop).

_________________________________________________________________

NEW JERSEY

Hoboken

See InLine August/September 1994 (vol 3, no 7), p. 9, for some info
about skating Hoboken.

Sandy Hook National Park

From: Dennis Black (dbl...@cisco.com)

My personal favorite is Sandy Hook National Park (NJ). It's on the
south side of Staten Island. Check out a NJ map. It's about an hour
from NYC, depending upon traffic. There's a ferry from South Street
Seaport ($$$$ 25. round trip). It has 20+ miles of roads, and only a
minimal amount of people(a few joggers and a few bicycles) after
6:00PM and day. Just a handful of skaters so far. Also one side is the
bay and the other side is ocean, so on days like today and tomorrow
where it is 90+ inland, on the hook it will only get to the high 70's,
low 80's.

Saddle River County Park

From: jog...@camelot.fia.dmg.ml.com (Joseph Ogulin)

To the Fair Lawn area of Saddle River County Park (SRCP)... this is
where the slalom course is:
GSP North to exit 160. Turn left at the light at the end of the ramp.
Follow this road over Route 4. It becomes Paramus Rd. here. Follow
Paramus Rd. to the first light, turn left. Pass the signs that say
things like "Welcome to Fair Lawn" and "Say No to Drugs." On your
right, after passing these signs, you will find a small road which has
signs (small ones) that say "Bike Route" and "Parking for Bike Path
and Tennis Courts." Turn right here, and park in the lot.

To the Dunkerhook (Paramus) area of SRCP:
Follow the above directions, except go straight at the first light.
Pass the cemetery on your right. You'll see a sign on your left that
says "Dunkerhook Area, Saddle River County Park." Turn left there and
follow any other signs.

To the Ridgewood area of SRCP:
GSP North to exit 163. Follow Route 17 North to the Ridgewood Ave.
exit. Head toward Ridgewood (you'll loop back over the highway). After
you pass Paramus Rd., look on your right. When you see the duck pond
(and signs mentioning that it's the Ridgewood Wild Duck Pond of SRCP),
turn right into the area.

I can't recall how to get to the Glen Rock area. Sorry.

To Fair Lawn and Dunkerhook from the north:
If you're coming from the north on GSP South, use exit 163 (Route 17).
Exit at Century Rd. and head toward Paramus/Fair Lawn/Glen Rock (or
whatever it says). You will not cross over Route 17. Follow Century
Rd. to Paramus Rd. There will be a cemetery on your right (this is the
intersection mentioned in the Fair Lawn and Dunkerhook). To get to
Fair Lawn, go straight. To get to Dunkerhook, turn right. Follow the
above directions.

To Ridgewood from the north:
Exit the GSP at the Ridgewood/Oradell exit (I may be wrong, but I
believe it is 165) and head toward Ridgewood. You are now on Ridgewood
Ave. Just follow Ridgewood Ave. as above after you cross Route 17.

Trail descriptions:
There are approximately 6-7 miles of trails there. Most of them are
quite smooth, with a few rough spots along the way. They're about 5'
wide, and traffic is mostly walkers, joggers, bladers, and cyclists of
various ages from child to senior citizen. Adult cyclists and bladers
will generally follow courtesies and warn people in front of them when
they are coming up behind you. The whole series of trails winds along
side of a brook. Bugs are rampant along parts of the trails during
summer months in the evenings. There are a few hills, but most of them
are short, or not too steep. There are a few parking lots along the
way where many newbie bladers can be seen tripping, stumbling, or
moving forward when they have their balance. There are no street
lights along the trails, as they all pass through wooded areas. The
slalom course, for those interested, is in the Fair Lawn area by the
tennis courts. If there is nobody there and you have your own cones
(we tend to use cups because they're cheaper), you'll find red dots
painted on the ground. The dots are 5' apart (measured MANY times). If
someone is there, you won't be discouraged from trying. In fact if you
just stand there and watch, you're very likely to be asked to try the
cones. Just watch out for the geese and ducks in any of the parking
lots around duck ponds (Ridgewood and Glen Rock), unless you like
cleaning your bearings and wheels.

From commpost!opus!camelot!jog...@uu3.psi.com

I much prefer Saddle River County Park [to Brookdale Park] because it
has a 5+ mile trail (one way!) which is great if you're looking for
long skating runs. Most of the people there are friendly and follow
general courtesies when passing, especially when there's a large group
(this is cyclists, skaters, and runners alike!). There is also an area
where we do slaloming through cones. People in the group I usually
meet there have painted dots on the ground for the cones. They're 5'
apart (yeah, we know that competitions use 6' as the distance). Any
time anyone has cones set up, people are welcome to "try their luck."
We'll never tell anyone that they can't try it. In fact, if you stand
there and watch for a long time and you're wearing rollerblades,
someone's going to ask you to try it.

How to get to there:
* The Fair Lawn area is accessed from Century Rd. Use Route 17 and
exit at Century Rd. Head toward Glen Rock/Fair Lawn. The access
road (Dunkerhook Rd) is a small road between Paramus Rd. and
Saddle River Rd.
* The Dunkerhook area (Paramus) is accessed from Paramus Rd. The
access road (Dunkerhook Rd.) has a sign by it and is north of
Century Rd.
* The Ridgewood area is on Ridgewood Ave. Use Route 17 and exit at
Ridgewood Ave. Head toward Ridgewood.
* I can't exactly remember how to get to the Glen Rock area, but
Saddle River Rd. comes to mind.

Brookdale Park

From commpost!opus!camelot!jog...@uu3.psi.com

Brookdale Park is ok, but I've found that many of the cyclists there
are a bunch of assholes (mostly it's the cycling club members). They
might give you 3 inches clearance when they pass you while you're
avoiding debris on the side of the road. Next time I go there, I'm
going to bring a hockey stick with me (even though I don't play
hockey) and swing it back and forth as I go. If the cyclists bother
me, WHACK... >:-) Other than that, it's got a 1 mile loop with a
rather nasty hill. The paths going through the park other than the
main road (which has a car speed limit of 30 MPH, which of course
nobody follows) are not that great and could use some repaving.

How to get to there:
* There are entries on Grove St., Watchung Ave., and Bellvue Ave.,
all in Bloomfield. Take Route 3 to Broad St., head toward
Bloomfield.

_________________________________________________________________

PENNSYLVANIA

Philadephia

If you have web access, the Philly skating FAQ is available at
http://www.seas.upenn.edu/~mengwong/phl.skating.html.

From: mc...@VFL.Paramax.COM (Donald P McKay)

I've skated at two places west of Philadelphia I recommend to anyone.

Philadelphia-Valley Forge Bike Trail
The Philadelphia-Valley Forge Bike Trail is a (mostly) marked bicycle
route from the Art Museum in Philadelphia to Valley Forge National
Park. Some of the bike route runs along an old rail bed and has been
paved.

There are two paved sections I've skated. One is at the Valley Forge
end of the trail and the other is about mid-way.

The Valley Forge section runs from a little used section of the
national park located on the north side of the Schuykill River (exit
off of Rte 422 at the Trooper Rd exit; the park is to the left). The
section from Valley Forge park to Norristown is approximately 4 miles,
paved, flat and level. The only bothersome part is that you share the
trail with bicyclists, walkers and joggers. This part of the trail is
decently wide and recently paved in 1992.

The Conshohoken section runs from the Spring Mill SEPTA station in
Conshohoken for 3 miles east toward Philedelphia. Except for the water
treatment plant you have to skate by, this is an enjoyable area of the
Schuykill River area.

Ridley Creek State Park
Located approximately 15 miles west of Philadelphia. Warning--This is
hilly and you must be able to brake and otherwise control yourself on
rolling hills, 1 mile climbs and steep descents. Skating here is a
good workout.

In the state park, there is a paved circular path ostensibly for
biking, blading and walking. Total distance is a little over 4 miles
for one lap. There is a 1 mile section along Ridley Creek which is
rolling, no steep grades up or down. The trail (no matter which way
you happen to go) ascends from the creek bed to the main part of the
park which is on the top of some hills. I would guess a few hundred
feet elevation change although I've never checked a topo map. The
steepest grade is approximately .4 miles (up or down depending). The
trail is about 1 mile along the creek, 1 mile of gradual (compared to
the other) grade, 1.6 miles rolling over the main part of the park,
and the .4 mile steep grade--there are a few level parts of the run to
help slow you down, but none at the bottom where it rejoins the creek.

There are a few residences in the park proper so there can be an
occasional motor vehicle.

The fastest I've ever been on roller blades was going down the .4 mile
grade.

Pittsburgh

From: bry...@N3.SP.CS.CMU.EDU (Randy Bryant)

Date: Mon, 11 Apr 1994 13:59:01 GMT

There IS good inlining in Pittsburgh, but the combination of hills,
traffic, and potholes makes it hard to choose good routes. Here are a
few recommendations:

1. Schenley Park, convenient from the Oakland area (where UPitt & CMU
are located). There's a nice loop of 5K featuring some exciting hills
with decent runouts. Traffic is reasonable either early AM, or midday.

2. Zoo parking lot, in Highland Park. Popular hangout for racers,
because it's flat, uncrowded, and smooth (contrast to general
conditions listed above). There's a 400M oval marked out, but you need
someone to show you where it is. There's a group that generally gets
together at 5pm on Sundays & 6pm on Wednesdays

3. Oakland street skating. I understand there's a group that goes out
on Thursdays and skates stairs, parking garages, etc. Contact Rob at
Shadyskates (412) 731-5400 for more info.

4. Various suburban locations... I know of skaters who like both North
Park and South Park.

_________________________________________________________________

MARYLAND

Baltimore

From: ha...@aplcenmp.apl.jhu.edu (Marty Hall)

1. Loch Raven Reservoir. A 1.5 mile or so stretch of smooth pavement
on the east side is closed to traffic weekends from 10AM to 5PM.
Go up Dulaney Valley Rd. along west and north sides of reservoir.
Stay along the reservoir (ie bear right) when the main road bears
left at the restaurant. The next road is where skating starts.
Moderately crowded with walkers, skaters, and bicyclers on nice
days, esp after lunch. But shaded and cool.

2. Baltimore Street Skater's Club. They meet 1st and 3rd Thursday's
of the month in the Light Rail parking lot on Deereco Rd. This
runs parallel to I83 between I83 and York Rd, halfway between
Timonium and Padonia Rds. They meet 7:30-9:30 with clinics (from
raw beginners to moderately advanced) going from 8:00-9:00. They
recommend "joining" for about 20 bucks, but it is not required.
Joining also gets you a T-shirt. They also have hockey some other
night. Call Hal Ashman at Baltimore Boardsailing (666-WIND) for
more info. 60+ people on a typical night. If you can crossover
backwards, do a few jumps, and do basic slaloms around cones
(backwards, 1-foot, crossing legs forwards), then you are already
as good as all but their best instructors, but can still mess
around with the better skaters. The more advanced groups generally
take off into the surrounding industrial parks.

Cancelled if there is a home Orioles game that night.

3. Patapsco State Park. Just S of I195 off of Rt 1, near the UMBC
campus. It costs to get in, but skaters can park in the
residential area outside the park (go past the entrance up the
hill), and skate in for free. It is about 1 mile into the main
park, then there is a 2 mile stretch of river to skate along,
ending in a hanging bridge over the river. One side of the river
is a road (no cars allowed most of the way), the other is a bike
path.

4. Camden Yards stadium. Huge parking lots and smooth sidewalks south
of stadium and around it. Obviously avoid game days. Guards will
not let you skate between the warehouses (inside the large gates)
but will let you skate elsewhere. On a weekday or early AM
weekend, you can also skate over to the Inner Harbor for a nice
cruise.

5. Baltimore Annapolis Trail. Nice smooth bike trail running from
Glen Burnie to Annapolis. I've never ridden it all the way into
Annapolis, and suspect that to ride into downtown Annapolis would
be hard, since I think you would have to cross one major bridge
after the trail ends. Anybody know?

_________________________________________________________________

WASHINGTON, D.C.

From: dw...@aol.com (DWach)
Date: 14 Nov 1994 20:05:30 -0500

The National Park Service is considering, or has already decided, to
prohibit blading in most of Rock Creek Park, Washington, D.C. Right
now, Rock Creek has a pretty nice 4-6 mile section for skating, some
closed to cars, some not. The Park Service would ban skating except on
the sections closed to cars. The person responsible for this decision
is: William Shields, Superintendent, Rock Creek Park, Klingle Mansion,
3545 Williamsburg Lane, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20008. If you want to
do something to stop or reverse this decision, e-mail me at
DW...@aol.com.

From: geo...@eng.umd.edu (George B. Clark)

na...@eng.umd.edu (Naruhisa Takashima) writes:

For those in the D.C. area, I have skated on Rock Creek Park which
is real nice path for joggers and slow bicyclist, but I'm not so
sure if it's suited for Bladers. The path is narrow, damp in many
places, and ocassionally very steep which makes it very difficult
for speed control, which in turn leads to bail out or wipe out.

Most parts of Rock Creek Park's bike path are OK to skate, except for
one real steep place that even bike riders have trouble with.

Since the path goes through the woods, keep in mind that wet leaves on
the pavement are very slippery to skate over.

It's also fun to leave the bike path, and skate about the nice
neighbor streets adjacent to it.

From: sim...@eeel.nist.gov (Eric Simmon)
Date: Wed, 20 Jul 1994 17:33:51 GMT

Rock Creek Park:
from behind the Lincoln Memorial to Rt 28 in MD. Parts of the path is
decent pavement, parts suck. Be prepared to share the path with bikers
joggers and walkers. Sections of Beach Dr. are closed on the weekend,
which provides a good surface to skate on (but each section isn't very
long)

Capitol Crescent Trail:
Take K street west underneath the Whitehearst freeway, where the road
ends, the path begins. This is a new path with wide, smooth pavement.
It is only about 3.5 miles long right now, but will eventually go all
the way to Bethesda.

Downtown:
Plenty of good skate terrain downtown, just watch out for traffic and
bad surfaces (the mall has pavement with pebbles in it which is very
nasty, but doable). The asphalt can be hazardous in the summer because
it gets so hot your wheels just sink in.

From: tem...@usuhsb.usuhs.mil (Mitch Temoche)
Date: 17 Oct 1994 17:14:15 GMT

I went skating behind the Capitol once late at night. Lots of wide
open space, it was great and security didn't say anything. Liberty
Plaza on Pennsylvania Ave. is pretty nice and we also went up and down
F Street NW. Rock Creek Park has an excellent bike-trail for skating.
Recently I skated the parking lots on Research Blvd in Gaithersburg on
Sunday when it was empty. There's a lake in Germantown, MD on Waring
Station road that I've skated. I haven't tried Mt. Vernon bike trail
in VA yet but, I hear it's very crowded. You also might try Avenel in
Potomac MD there are some bike trails. Coastal highway in north of
Ocean City MD is very good too.

From: so...@cyclone.mitre.org (Stephen J. Okay)

[...] a lot of skaters tend to gather around Freedom Plaza on 14th St.
on Saturdays and Sundays. There are informal pick-up skates around
downtown that meet there on Sundays at around noon and take off for
various points in the city, usually doing a circle up past the Capitol
and around down Independence past the monuments & museums.

Freedom Plaza is also a hangout for the street/hardcore skaters.
People thrash there and over at the Liberator (Simon Bolivar monument)
on the end of 18th st. (NW side of the Capitol). There are stairs,
rails, barriers, etc. and a big huge flat stone plaza area in both
places.

From: pc...@nasagiss.giss.nasa.gov
Date: 04 Nov 21:34:45 1994

Just got back from a conference in Washington and I'll ditto the
recommend for Freedom Plaza, on Pennsylvania Ave between 13th and 14th
Sts. NW (that's two blocks east of the White House). I was there on
Wednesday and Thursday evenings and saw mostly skateboarders thrashing
the steps, but there was also a group of about 20 bladers who
collected around 9PM on Wednesday.

There were some other places in Washington that I also enjoyed
skating. Note that most if not all of these are probably very crowded
during daylight hours:
* East side of US Capitol: There's a huge parking lot here which is
presumably full-up when Congress is in session. It was extremely
empty when I visited between sessions.
* West side of US Capitol: There are some walkways leading from the
Capitol steps to the Mall which are pretty nice, with moderate
slopes and short step sequences. Also, right at the base of
Capitol Hill, next to the reflecting pool, is a statue (sorry, it
was poorly lit and I saw no identifying signs) that was great for
practicing stair-skating. I kept thinking some Capitol security
guys would show up and give me the boost, but even though I could
see a couple watching me from around the top of the Capitol steps,
it never happened.
* West Potomac Park: Ohio Dr., the road leading from the Lincoln
Memorial down to the Jefferson Memorial, has apparently been
recently re-surfaced and it made for some smooth blading. I've no
idea about the condition of the road south of the Jefferson
Memorial.
* George Washington Memorial Parkway: If one takes the George Mason
Bridge across the Potomac from the Jefferson Memorial, you'll
easily find a ped/bike trail along the river. It's in fairly good
shape and I skated it up to the Theodore Roosevelt Bridge before
crossing back over to the Kennedy Center. However, while it offers
a great view of Washington, it's very poorly lit, and narrow
enough to make conflict between bladers and bikers a major
problem.

_________________________________________________________________

Southeast

KENTUCKY

Louisville

From: steve...@aol.com (SteveS1222)
Date: 7 Sep 1994 12:07:06 -0400

Seneca Park has a walking path that is rather narrow with many
walkers. Cherokee Park has a 2.3 mile loop-road that is now one-way
with the inside lane reserved for bikes, walkers, and skaters. It's
much better than Seneca.

Another area I've started skating around is along the river downtown.
There is a walk path, narrow but little traffic because it's new, that
runs for a mile or two along the river. There is a free parking lot at
the end of 10th street and the path is right there. If you go east
past the construction, you can skate around the Belle of Louisville
dock also.

I've heard that a number of people skate on the Belvadere. It is the
open area above the construction near the Belle. I've not skated there
yet though, so I can't give you an opinion.

_________________________________________________________________

TENNESSEE

Oak Ridge

From: mldi...@bbn.com (Michael L. Dickens)

I'm not sure if inlines are allowed, but there was an indoor skating
rink on the east side of town (Oak Ridge), on the Turnpike.

OR does have some nice BIG parking lots to cruise around; mainly the
newly renovated Downtown (Indoor) Mall. I'd probably stick to the
Wal-Mart side because the pavement is better (and newer). There's
always the Kroger's, K-Mart, and Family Rec parking lots.

I'm from OR, but I've never tried skaing around town. I think it is
do-able, as biking was quite possibly in town. I wouldn't recommend
blading out to the 'Labs, because the road is way too narrow (as of
last year, at least. Maybe they finally got their act together &and;
did something about it!--it had no shoulder, and had room for 2 cars
and a bike). During the summer, there are lots of runners and bikers.
And also lots of traffic.

I'm also of the opinion that blading might not pass over too well with
the natives (of OR at least). Skate boards were (and I think still
are) pretty rad.

_________________________________________________________________

GEORGIA

Atlanta

From: g...@terminus.gatech.edu (toM o. genesE)

Well, I'm not quite sure what your looking for in a place to skate,
but if you are ever in Atlanta (well, it is on the East coast after
all) be sure to go to Piedmont Park. The park itself is home to quite
a few skaters, and no one minds their presence. Directly across the
street from the park is Skate Escape, the rec/speed skate shop
mentioned in the rec.skate FAQ.

Every Monday evening, there is an introductory skate through the
midtown area, starting at a shopping center near the park. Even though
the trip is labeled as introductory, when the skaters (80+) gather in
the parking lot, you can meet advanced skaters and pick up some tips,
see some tricks, etc. If you are into speedskating, Skate Escape has a
distance skate every Wednesday night.

There is also a local skate club, the Atlanta Peachtree Road Rollers.
These are the people who put on the Monday night skate, as well as
provide introductory skate lessons.

I can get more info on the club and these events if there is some
interest.

From rbu...@owlnet.rice.edu

Great skating city; lots of hills and really scenic. Piedmont Park is
really popular with beginners and pros alike. Go to the entrance near
Piedmont and 12th street. There's a skate shop on that corner (Skate
Escape). They can tell you whatever you want about other skating
events in the city, regular weekly skates with the Peachtree Rollers,
etc.

Cops don't seem to mind skaters as long as you stay out of everyone's
way (i.e. use common sense).

The Georgia Tech Campus is another great place, especially for
freestyle types. Lots of stairs (the ones by the student center are
ideal for stair-riding) and ramps, great hills, and a few parking
decks to boot.

_________________________________________________________________

FLORIDA

Miami/Lauderdale

From: thd...@isye.gatech.edu (Mark Tabladillo)
Date: 9 Sep 1994 17:43:23 GMT

Ft. Lauderdale has lots of flat places to skate. The path by the ocean
has just been changed to interlaced red brick, but it's still good for
skating.

South Miami, in my opinion, was a better place to skate. Theres a flat
concrete boardwalk that runs along the beach, though it's further from
the water than the Ft. Lauderdale boardwalk. At the southmost end of
the beach, there are paint marks for cones. Also, at the center of the
beach, there is building which has a square courtyard for skating,
which has a cone in the center, and music coming from large speakers.

Across the street, there are a number of small cafes, restaurants and
bars. I saw better and more skaters in South Miami compared with Ft.
Lauderdale. Both are great, and there are many places in South Florida
for skating (BTW, roller hockey is big, and there are plans to build a
large rink in Broward County).

From: car...@aol.com (CarlHK)
Date: 14 Sep 1994 18:29:05 -0400

Here in Miami Beach we've got a great boardwalk next to the beach
(Ocean Drive between 5th and 15th streets) where on any given day
you're bound to find tons of skaters. During the weekend we set up a
slalom course near 5th and Ocean (the dots are painted on the ground)
and skate at insane speeds. Sometimes a ramp is also out near 5th and
Ocean. Monday nights about 100 skaters get together around 7:30 pm at
Penrod's bar on 1st street and Ocean Drive for a skate around the Art
Deco district. We end up at Penrod's afterwards where the bar gives us
2 for 1 drinks. Good way to work out, meet folks and get buzzed. Nice,
eh? Tuesday and Thursday nights about 150 skaters get together with
the New River Rollers in Ft. Lauderdale for a 12 mile skate around the
intracoastal waterway and the canals up there. Beautiful scenery and
fantastic work out. Those skates end at the New River Saloon, for,
yep, more drinks.

Tallahassee

From: dc...@mailer.cc.fsu.edu (Daryl S. Cain)

A great place to skate! Its got it all--hills, flatlands, gentle
slopes, the works. Tallahassee is the capital of Florida and home to
both Florida State University and Florida Agricultural and Mechanical
University. Skating is a relatively new sport in Tallahassee. There
are few places to buy skates and none where decent accessories or
compentent help is consistently available. The law is tolerant (play
it cool) but some private properly owners can be pains.

The best place for flatlanders is the St. Marks Trail south of
Tallahassee. This is a paved railroad right of way with the trailhead
located on Highway 363 (Woodville Highway) just south of State Road
319 (Capital Circle SE). Plenty of parking is available, however,
space does get sparce on the weekends.

The trail streches 16 miles from Tallahassee to St. Marks--a small
fishing village famed for its manatee population. The pavement is high
quality with few rough spots. Traffic is light on the weekdays, heavy
on the weekends. Most walkers quit after 1-2 miles and skaters after
2-3 miles. >From there on down its smooth sailing except for the
bikers. The people are generally polite and accidents are rare. There
is a combination bike/skate shop at the north end of the trail. They
rent skates (Roces) and bikes for reasonable rates there.

In the spring the trail is beautiful. Flowers and shrubs are in bloom
and the lucky can generally find a good blackberry bush to pick.
However, snakes also like sun themselves on the warm trail so beware
the occassional rattler when you wander. Florida is a hot place so
pack plenty of water. Speedsters will find that Tallahassee is quite
hilly. Most hills are located on the East or North sides of town.
Pavement is of very high quality, it's asphalt with a fine gravel
base, but beware the ocassional patch of shell rock. By far the best
hill (in my experience) is located on Morningside Drive just north of
Highway 27 off Richview Drive on the east side. My wife has clocked my
friend and I at 45 mph near the bottom. The hill is about 1500 yards
long, straight, with a baby hill going up the other side to slow down
on.

For more radical skating work, the place to go is the Florida State
University campus. There is no telling how the campus cops would react
to skaters but mountain bikers generally get away with murder. The
place is a cornicupia of stairs, ramps, hills, sidewalks, speedbumps
and parking lots. The campus is huge and almost every type of terrain
except for mountain switchbacks are available. The only cavat is that
when classes let out during the semester the place becomes packed with
pedestrians. The best times to skate there are at night, on weekends,
and during the summer semester.

For the freestylist, parking lots are in great abundance in
Tallahassee. Most places are cool, but the rent-a-cops at the
Governers Square Mall are a pain in the ass. Its a real pity to, the
parking lot covers about ten acres and was just repaved about five
months ago with the smoothest asphalt you've ever laid eyes on. A
suitable alternative is the Kroger Center, located on the east side of
town between Highway 27 and Capital Circle.

Pick-up hockey games are held at Skate Inn East, 2563 Capital Circle
N.E. on Sunday - 7:00 pm and Wednesday - 9:30 pm. For more information
contact Steve Bohl at (904)656-2056. You gotta have your own stuff.

Be forewarned that there are few experienced skaters in Tallahassee.
For that reason there are no real "skater" hangouts. Most people have
a steady skate partner that they skate with but organized affiliations
haven't developed to any real extent yet.

There are many outdoor events in Tallahassee, such as bike-a-thons and
the like, and they're just now warming up to the idea of skaters
joining their ranks. Hopefully skaters will get off on the right foot
here and become a legitimate part of the exercise/fitness community.
So if your in town and maybe want to skate a few miles, drop me a
line.

_________________________________________________________________

LOUISIANA

New Orleans

From: BEL...@lsuvm.sncc.lsu.edu
Date: Fri, 27 Jan 95 13:12:33 CST

The most popular place to skate is Audobon Park (next to Audobon Zoo)
in uptown New Orleans. It is a circular track about a mile long with
bladers, bikers, and joggers. There used to be 3-hour street skates
around the city on Thursday nights and Saturday afternoons. I am not
sure if they are still going on. Call Park SK8 (504-891-7055) in N.O.
for more info.I would not try skating around the French Quarter - it's
wall to wall people and cars and the roads are atrocious.

From: br...@larry.cc.emory.edu (Brian B. Reid)
Date: 31 Jan 1995 06:30:19 GMT

I took a trip to N.O. a few months ago and skated the Quarter a bit.
If you go at a resonable hour (pre 1 p.m.) and keep your eyes open,
it'll be an interesting skate... nice scenery, anyway...

_________________________________________________________________

BAHAMA ISLANDS

From: SCHR...@PROCESS.COM (Jeff Schreiber)
Date: 9 Nov 1994 17:50:48 -0000

I was in the Bahamas in August for my honeymoon. The skateability of
Nassau greatly depends on where you are thinking of. If you are
talking about Downtown, I wouldn't recommend it (too crowded).
Otherwise the streets might be ok (but they drive like morons! and I'm
from Massachusetts :). Sidewalks are out, they are mostly all broken
up, they disappear randomly, and overall, wouldn't be any fun.

If you're thinking about the Carnival's Crystal Palace, or The
Radisson Cable Beach (or anything on Cable Beach), I would say bring
them. I did see one guy out on skates at the hotel. There are some
nice cement courtyards and paths in the larger hotels on Cable Beach.

As far as your comment about "as if that mattered" referring to the
police. I realize you said that as a joke, but I just wanted to say
that you should be careful. The police are pretty nice down there,
although some are corrupt. I would not suggest pissing them off
though. The Bahamas are nice, but if you go Downtown, I want you to
try to picture what one of the jail cells are like. It is a foreign
country, and I for one don't know all their laws, so I wasn't planning
on pushing the police if they warned me. Don't forget what happened to
that kid in Singapore!

_________________________________________________________________

Europe

THE NETHERLANDS

If you have web access, JHD 'Bonzo' Keukelaar
(bo...@morra.et.tudelft.nl) is assembling a Netherlands in-line skate
FAQ at http://morra.et.tudelft.nl/~bonzo/inline/inline.html.

UNITED KINGDOM

If you have web access, Duncan Clarke is assembling information about
where to skate in the UK at
http://www.csv.warwick.ac.uk/~phulm/skate.stuff/.

_________________________________________________________________

Australia

Brisbane

From: e430...@dingo.cc.uq.oz.au (Michael Cheng)
Date: 24 Oct 1994 10:25:56 GMT

The Riverside bike path along Coronation drive: heads from the city to
Toowong. It's a nice flat stretch, not really wide, but nice scenery.

The Skate Ramp just off Hale St (almost next to Lang Park). The only
times I've ever been there, its been packed out with truly excellent
skaters (making me feel rather inadequate). Some of the stuff is just
awesome. Once you get here, ask anyone, and I'm sure they'll be able
to suggest more spots.

I, myself, skate at the University of Queensland Campus. Rent a Cop
security guards are continually on your case though.

Canberra

From: m...@posmac.UUCP (Mark Purcell)

The network of bike paths is quite extensive, one can go from one end
of the city to the other on bike paths. The paths are all >1.5m and
made from hot mix, which makes them fast and ideal for pole work
training for X-C.

There is nothing like blading around the lake just as the sun is
coming up over the mountains, with the smallest amount of mist over
the lake, and only one or two joggers/cyclists to worry about.

There are some problems though, before most road crossings there is a
section of about 1.5-2 m of concrete bumps, which play like hell on
the legs. It is possible to jump these but not the easiest.

Melbourne

See InLine April/May 1994 (vol 3, no 5), p. 12, for some info about
skating Melbourne.

From: will...@numbat.cs.rmit.OZ.AU (Krensen)
Date: 30 Jun 94 06:53:20 GMT

There's a lot of great skating spots 'round here, but I'll tell of a
cupla faves:

1. The Swanston street walk thing.. It's the main street of Melbourne
and it's about the smoothest in town... like marble! At one end is
the Museum, at the other a train station and there's a slight
downhill gradient between the two... The fun bit is getting in
behind the trams and getting sucked along by the draft... it's
also fairly good fun since skating in the CBD is illegal between
7am and 10pm... :-)
2. The trek between the Station and St. Kilda beach... Heaps of
smooth road and footpath, slightly downhill, lots of businesses
with steps/ramps/curbs at the front... St Kilda beach has a great
track which goes for miles and is full of inline people... it's
got a great vibe and heaps of grass to fall over on for learning
those new tricks... Also lots of beginner skaters to crash into!

From: rbag...@us.oracle.com (Robert (Oracle-AU) Bagnall)
Date: 22 Jul 1994 06:03:31 GMT

Are there any Australians out there who have already looked into the
legal aspect of inlining here? ie whether we are classed as vehicles
or pedestrians, and hence are we or are we not allowed to skate on
the road?

The bike paths in St.Kilda (a Melbourne inner bayside suburb) have
'cyclist only' signs also say 'Skaters Excepted' (they appeared about
18 months ago) - so at least the St Kilda city council give skaters
the same rights as bikes !

As Michael said above, you can skate in the City, but only after
normal shopping hours - the Melbourne City Council has banned
'Rollerblading'[1] when the city is normally full of people.

[1] Yes, the use of 'Rollerblades' are banned - someone from Bauer
must be on the city council :-)

_________________________________________________________________

-"Where to Skate (Outdoors)" edited by Robert Schmunk
(pc...@nasagiss.giss.nasa.gov)
-rec.skate FAQs maintained by Tony Chen (adc...@cs.fsu.edu)

_________________________________________________________________

granted to use this logo in World Wide Web HTML files so long as this

copyright notice is included as an HTML comment alongside the
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The logo may not be sold for profit, nor incorporated in commercial

documents or merchandise without prior written permission of the
copyright holder.

_________________________________________________________________

Tony Chen

unread,

Feb 1, 1995, 7:08:46 PM2/1/95

Posted-By: auto-faq 3.1.1.2
Archive-name: rec-skate-faq/part9

Rec.skate Frequently Asked Questions: Part 9
_________________________________________________________________

[IMAGE] *

REC.SKATE FAQ - PART 9: SKATING CLUBS AND ORGANIZATIONS

(last changed February 1, 1995)

This section of the FAQ is a list of skating organizations and clubs,
for all types of skating (although you may see an emphasis on in-line
clubs). If you don't see your local club in here, please send in as
much info about it as you can to me. Thanks.

_________________________________________________________________

TABLE OF CONTENTS
* General Notes
* Organizations on the Web
* United States
+ California
+ Florida
+ Georgia
+ Illinois
+ Massachusetts
+ New York
+ North Carolina
+ Pennsylvania
* Other Countries
+ Ontario
o Ottawa
o Toronto
+ Sydney, Australia

_________________________________________________________________

General Notes

A listing of in-line skating organizations across the United States
regularly appears in Inline magazine, published bi-monthly.

From ajz...@netcom.com
Date: Fri Mar 4 00:21:55 1994

You can get the ice skating info on Clubs from the US Figure Skating
Assn 20 First St. Colorado Springs, CO 80906. I'm not to sure what
they charge for the booklet or if they sell it to a non-USFSA member.
If not, find an arena in your area and see if you can xerox somone's
book. Any rink has a directory of rinks thruough the ISIA - Ice
Skating Inst. of Amer. . . . ice hockey orgs from USA Hockey, 2997
Broadmoor Valley rd, Colorado Springs CO 80906. Roller skating infor
US Amateur Conf. of roller Skating, P.O. Box 6579, Lincoln, NE 68506.

From gr...@sce.carleton.ca
Date: Sat Mar 5 16:17:18 1994

Information on all speed skating clubs in Canada can be found by
contacting:
Canadian Amateur Speed Skating Association
1600 James Naismith Drive
Gloucester, ON K1B 5N4
Canada

fone: (613) 748 5669
fax: (613) 748 5600

_________________________________________________________________

Organizations on the Web

* blades@uiuc may be accessed at
http://www.cen.uiuc.edu/~ar9079/blades.html

_________________________________________________________________

United States

CALIFORNIA

From: g...@pulsar.commodore.com (George Robbins)
Date: Sat, 22 Oct 1994 18:30:18 GMT

eel...@uxmail.ust.hk (Curtis Ling) writes:

[...] I was reading the FAQ and saw that there was a "Friday night
fun skate... 15 mile tour of the city" starting at 8PM, at the Ferry
building along the embarcadero (wherever that is). I was wondering
if that would still be going on in November, if it was a regular
thing, and if not, if there were other such regular events.

If you look at SF, it sits on the end of thumb-shaped penninsula. The
Embarcadero is the water-front street through the old dock area, kind
of crescent shaped. The Ferries building is the old Ferry terminal, I
think it's mostly offices and a Restaurant now. I seem to recall it's
close to where Market St. would intersect the Embarcadero if there
wasn't a zone of confusion in between. Look for the Bay Bridge and you
won't be too far off. Anyone in the city should be able to point you
in the right direction.

Note that this is much closer to the main business district than the
to Fishermans Wharf/Pier 39/Presideo/Cannery tourist-trap "end" of the
Embarcadero. At that end there's a bit of a park and litle beach where
there's also supposed to be some skating activity during the day. The
Embarcadero is dead flat, and there are lots of not-too hilly routes

around the city - the really nasty hillsare when you try to go up and
over the the penninsula instead of around the periphery. (kind of like
HK)

Take your skates in any case, skating or biking is a very good way to
see the city - it's big enough that walking everywhere is a real pain,
and cars aren't particularly convenient. Just carry some shoes in a
backpack so that you can take a bus/trolly bus/cable car, or if you
decide you want to go up or down one of the really steep streets.

From: lfl...@netcom.com (L. Floyd)
Date: Sun, 23 Oct 1994 19:20:36 GMT

[Re:] San Francisco Friday Night Skate (Midnight Rollers)

As far as I know, the Friday night skate goes on every Friday of the
year, weather permitting. George gave good directions to the start
point. Look for the Ferry Building clock tower at the east end of
Market Street. There are parking spaces in the extra-wide median on
the Embarcadero right there at the Ferry Building. To play it safe,
pay the $3.00 (self-pay box) - I got a "warning" many weeks ago.
People start to gather in the parking lot I just mentioned at around
8:00 pm or earlier. The skate starts at 8:30. There are plenty of
folks who do the skate. Last Friday the count was over 325 skaters:
young, old, women, men, kids, in-line, quad, racing, newbies. Wear
your helmet and bring along one of those blinky lights things so you
won't get smushed by a car or bus.

From: ke...@drogges.tti.com (Kevin Carothers)
Date: Fri, 3 Jun 1994 22:08:28 GMT

Lake Balboa Skate & Kite has a beginner/intermediate class every
saturday & sunday. Cost is $5.00 for skates & pads, and 2.5 hours of
beginning/intermediate instruction by *-damn-* good street skaturs...
Most informative 5 bucks *I* ever spent. Call for details at (818)
782-1234. They give you a free lesson (or 2 or 3... depending on how
nice you are :) if you buy your skates there.

They also have a skating club, but I don't think it meets formally
anymore.

_________________________________________________________________

FLORIDA

From: kwol...@com1.med.usf.edu (Kenneth N. Woliner)

To let as many people know, a new skate club is forming in North
Tampa. We are still undecided about a name, but do have a course laid
out on smooth streets, with street lights. We also have a water stop
halfway. The distance for the skate is about 7 miles, but it can be
cut down to 4.5 for those with less endurance.

Critical Info:

The club skates Wednesdays from 8 p.m. to 8 p.m. We eat and drink at
Goodfella's afterward.

Meet at the Goodfella's Parking lot (Bruce B. Downs and Amberly) at
7:30 to warm up and put your skates on. We will leave at 8 p.m.

Bring: Your skates, wrist guards (and other safety equipment), light
colored clothing, and flashing lights or a flashlight (so cars can see
you).

Further questions can be directed to:

ken woliner
kwol...@com1.med.usf.edu

14501 Raven Brook #412
Tampa, FL 33613
(813) 979-1636

_________________________________________________________________

GEORGIA

From: pa...@lidssun1.marc.gatech.edu (Paul Lomangino)

1. Name: Atlanta Peachtree RoadRollers
2. Location: Atlanta, GA
3. Phone # of primary contact: (if available) Henry Zuver (Pres. of
IISA)
4. Type of club: STREET
Type of skate: Mostly In-Line
5. Location description: Meet in Rio parking lot - skate through
various neighborhoods, downtown Atlanta
Rio - Intersection of North Ave. and Piedmont in Atlanta
Mondays: All levels skate, Wednesdays: Intermeidate-Expert
Sundays: 32 mile endurance skate
6. Requirements: Need own Equipment, Helmets Recommended
7. Fees: none ($5/yr "official" membership
8. General skill level of the club: Mixed
9. Any other comments: Lotsa fun! We host the Athens-to-Atlanta
Marathon skate

_________________________________________________________________

ILLINOIS

From ry...@ux1.cso.uiuc.edu
Date: Tue, 2 Aug 1994 21:25:26 -0500 (CDT)

1. Name: blades@uiuc
2. Location: Champaign-Urbana IL
3. Phone # of Primary contact: Amy Ryan, 217 328 7060, and/or e-mail
address: eig...@uiuc.edu
4. Type of club: Street Skating, Hockey, Distance, and Casual Skating
Type of skate: We play hockey a couple of times a week. Most every
night, we can be seen playing tag on the quad. Some people go fast
some go slow. We are a diverse group of skaters.
5. Location description: We can be found at Assembly Hall playing
hockey, the main quad playing tag. Or on the internet in our
mailing list bla...@uiuc.edu (finger bla...@uiuc.eud for more
information)
6. Requirements: Safety is strongly encouraged, however we do not
_require_ any protection. You must use your brain and you must
have fun.
7. Fees: We're free.. we pay enough money for tuition, save your fees
to buy better skates
8. General Skill Level of the club: We have all skill levels.. our
goal is to educate people to become better skaters, while we work
on improving our skills. We combine all levels of skating,
resulting in fun for everybody.
9. Any other comments: finger bla...@uiuc.edu for more information

Also check out the web server at
http://www.cen.uiuc.edu/~ar9079/blades.html.

_________________________________________________________________

MASSACHUSETTS

From da...@osf.org Wed Mar 2 16:13:30 1994
Date: Wed, 02 Mar 1994 16:13:18 -0500

There is a skating club in Boston called the 'In-line Club of Boston'.

The hotline # is 932-5457 ( WE-B-KIKS ).

In-line Club of Boston
Kendall Sq.
P.O. box 1195
Cambridge, MA 02142-0009

The ICB offers a newsletter, T-shirt, hotline, clinics, night skates,
races, discounts, and more.

From da...@osf.org
Date: Wed Mar 2 16:15:42 1994

This information should replace the earlier information on night
skates. What used to be the Thursday night skate is now the Monday
night skate.

There are 3 night skates in Boston that happen on a regular basis.
These skates are seasonal. They generally start in early May and run
as long as the weather permits. Last year the Monday and Wednesday
skates ran until late November!

Monday, Extreme, 8:30pm
This is a free unsponsored & unorganized event. Skate at your own
risk! Meet at the 'frog pond' in the Boston Common. It is the large
empty cement pool on the Park St. Station side of the Common.

Tuesday, Beginner, 8:30pm
Meet at the Hatch Shell on the Charles River. Your $10 covers 3 glow

sticks & some soft drinks. $5 each time thereafter. This is a

leisurely skate - no tricks or racing or jumping or stairs, etc...

unless you individually want to ;-> This skate is sponsored by John

Gilmore.

Wednesday, All levels welcome, 8:30pm
This is the In-line Club of Boston night skate. Meet at the Trinity
Church in Copley Square. All protective gear recommended. Call
617-932-5457 ( WE-B-KIKS ) for more info.

From: mdic...@bbn.com (Michael L. Dickens)

There are 2 Night Skates in Boston that happen on a regular basis:

one is on Tuesday night, meet at the Hatch Shell on the Charles River;
leaves around 8:30 pm (or as soon as it's reasonably dark). Your $10
covers 3 glow sticks & some soft drinks. $5 each time thereafter. This

is a leisurely skate - no tricks or racing or jumping or stairs,

etc... unless you individually want to ;-> This skate is sponsored by
John Gilmore, who is somehow related to RollerBlade.

the other is Thursday night, meet at the Trinity Church in Copley
Square; leaves around 8:30 pm (or as soon as the leaders arrive & want
to go). Free to all, but this one is fast-paced. You can do jumps,
stairs, natural ramps, bricks, and any number of these combined. You
can also choose to go around & just watch; but you'll have to skate
fast to keep up. Frequent stops to let the leaders show off. If you
plan to participate, wear full protective padding, including large
knee pads, and wrist guards at a minimum. A helmet is recommended
(just in case....). The powers that lead give a short lecture on safe,

polite, respectful skating at the first stop. This skate is TOTALLY
unsponsored - skate free at your own risk.

_________________________________________________________________

NEW YORK

From pc...@nasagiss.giss.nasa.gov (R.B. Schmunk)
Date: Mon, 07 Nov 1994 17:52:11

New York Road Skaters Association (NYRSA),
328 East 94th St., New York, NY 10128;
212-369-6285:

An in-line-dominated organization and perhaps the most well-known of
city skating groups because of their management of several events in
Central Park and elsewhere during "skating season". Dues are $25 /
year, and an extra $8 gets you a NYRSA T-shirt. The membership card
entitles you to a 10% discount at Blades, a local chain of skate
shops, and $5 or $10 off the entry fee for races and many other
NYRSA-sponsored events. A small application blank can be found on the
Central Park skate guide available at Blades, the most prominent of
which is Blades West, at 120 West 72nd St., just off Columbus Ave.

_________________________________________________________________

NORTH CAROLINA
1. Club Name: Triangle Skating Club
2. Location: Research Triangle Park NC
3. Charter: Recreation/competitive club, speed, marathon, distance,
freestyle, tricks, distance, fun. Trips and social activities.
4. Contact: Skating Connection 24 hour recorded information (919)
460-0964
5. Contact Name: Matt Cohen tsc...@mdc.pdial.interpath.net OR
mco...@bnr.ca
6. Schedule: Check the skating connection
7. Roads: Some of the best in the State. Skater friendly city.
8. Meeting Place: Park & Ride next to the Governor's Inn. Exit 280
off I-40. Parking lot is across from NCNB.
9. Skill level: Mostly intermediate level skates. Beginner clinics
every so often.

From: ali0...@unccvm.uncc.edu (Dailene Wilson)

1. Name: Charlotte Blade Rollerz
2. Location: Charlotte NC
3. Phone # of primary contact: Dailene and Jack Wilson (704)344-1555
and/or e-mail address: ali0...@unccvm.uncc.edu (Dailene Wilson)
4. Type of club: Speed skating, distance skating, some street
Type of skate: mostly speed and distance (12-25 miles per skate),
very hilly- beautiful neighborhoods. Occasional downtown skate-
stair bashing, rail sliding, etc.
5. Location description:
Central YMCA, East Morehead
Sundays @ 6pm, Tues and Thurs @ 6:30pm, Saturdays @ 11am
Beginner skates:
Wednesdays 5-8pm, Alpine Ski Center ($5 rental, 332-2824)
Thursdays 5:30, Tennis & Ski (377-3175)
6. Requirements: Helmets and wristguards required on all skates
7. Fees: $10 club membership (that means you get a newsletter 6 times
a year- you can skate with us for free!)
8. General skill level of the club: Mostly intermediate to advanced
skaters. Beginner sessions available through the local skate shops
(see above).
9. Any other comments: We ask that all skaters that join us on
Saturday, Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday be proficient in stopping
and controlling their speed as the terrain in Charlotte is very
hilly!

_________________________________________________________________

PENNSYLVANIA

From Randy_...@BRYANT.VLSI.CS.CMU.EDU
Date: Thu Mar 10 22:32:20 1994

1. Pittsburgh Inline Skating Club (PISC)
2. Mailing Address:
2811 Brentwood Ave.
(First Floor, Rear)
Pittsburgh, PA 15227
Club president: Amy Krut (412) 885-2233
3. Email contact: Randy....@cs.cmu.edu
4. Type of club: All aspects of inline skating
5. Various activities in Pittsburgh area
6. All club skates require a helmet
7. Varies by activity
8. All skill levels

From Randy_...@BRYANT.VLSI.CS.CMU.EDU
Date: Thu Mar 10 22:38:24 1994

1. Greater Pittsburgh Unified Speedskating Club
2. ...
3. Primary Contacts:
Bob Halden (412) 744-0037
Wade Smith (412) 241-5967
4. Short Track (ice) speedskating
5. Meet at Golden Mile Ice Arena, Monroeville, PA
6. Must wear helmet.
7. Fees: Currently $10/session, but varies with club finances
8. Skill level: All levels
9. Other comments: Programs for children, adults, and special
olympians

From: jim...@aol.com (Jimfed)
Date: 25 Jul 1994 18:56:04 -0400

I am a member of the P.I.S.C., and for those of you who are
interested, we have 2 Pittsburgh skates a week. Tuesday we meet at the
Giant Eagle's on the South Side at 7:30, and Thursday we meet at the
fountain in front of the Frick Fine Arts building in Oakland. We have
been averaging 10 - 15 people on these skates, but, would love to have
more show up.

Tuesday night's skate is a long one, averaging between 10 and 15
miles, and Thursday's is shorter with more tricks and stuff.

I also have a practice skate at Gateway Senior High school for
beginners and practicing. This meets Wednesday night at the tennis
courts at 6:30.

_________________________________________________________________

Other Countries

ONTARIO

From gr...@sce.carleton.ca
Date: Sat Mar 5 16:17:18 1994

1. Name: Ottawa Pacer's Speed Skating Club
2. Location: Ottawa, ON, Canada
3. Phone # of primary contact: Greg Franks (613) 726-9594
and/or e-mail address of contacts: gr...@sce.carleton.ca
4. Type of club: Speed Skating (Short & Long track), Adult and
Children.
Type of skate: Short and Long Track speed skating
5. Location description: Indoor: Dulude Arena, Ottawa, ON.
Outdoor: Brewer Park (Natural Ice oval)
Outdoor: Rideau Canal (winter obviously - 7km continuous ice)
6. Requirements: Must provide helmets and other saftey equipment.
Rental skates available.
7. Fees: Yes -- depends on membership catagory.
8. General skill level of the club: All. We have three time slots:
Children learning to skate, Competitive Skaters, and Adult
recreational.

_________________________________________________________________

Toronto, ON Hi there, I was just on the re. skate newsgroup and I read
your article regarding clubs and organizations. I am a member on the
Toronto In-Line Skating Club, and I write to you from the Toronto, ON
area.
1. Club name: Toronto Inline Skating Club (TISC)
2. Club President: Wayne Burret
3. Location: Toronto, Ontario
4. Telephone Numbers:
+ President: 905 272 1774
+ Club Inquiries: 905 822 2100
+ e-mail contact: ai...@freenet.toronto.on.ca
5. Mission Statement: To further the sport of Inline skating. To
enjoy and participate in the fastest growing sport ever!

I've been a member for two years, and they have been very productive
ones. The coaches are some of the finest speed skaters in Canada, two
of whom were on the Canadian World Team this year.
_________________________________________________________________

SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA

From Brendan Bouffler (bre...@comms.unsw.EDU.AU)

"The Sydney City Skate is a regular weekly skate (in-line) organised
by the people at Bondi Boards & Blades. We meet outside the McDonalds
at Circular Quay _every_ Wednesday night at 7:00pm. The skate
generally lasts for about two hours covering around 20-25 Km's (12-15
mi). We go over the Harbour Bridge for a speed run, and then skate
around town along a varying route that regularly covers places like
the Opera House, Darling Harbour, Botanic Gardens, Mrs Macquarie's
Chair, Sydney Uni, Kings Cross and other notable spots.

Information can be got from:

Bondi Boards & Blades
230 Oxford Street,
Bondi Junction
Ph. + 61 2 369 2212

or, of course, via email to me at bre...@unsw.EDU.AU"

_________________________________________________________________

Tony Chen

unread,

Feb 1, 1995, 7:08:48 PM2/1/95

Posted-By: auto-faq 3.1.1.2
Archive-name: rec-skate-faq/part10

Rec.skate Frequently Asked Questions: Part 10
_________________________________________________________________

[IMAGE] *

SECTION 1

_________________________________________________________________

(due to space limitations, the first two picture links contain no
pictures for the time being) The tutorials are still available
however.

Here are some cool grind pics
Here are some cool half-pipe pics from ftp.sunet.se
Jumping Tutorial
Backwards stair-riding Tutorial
_________________________________________________________________

Skating Tricks and Moves Section 1
----------------------------------
(last changed Jul 12, 1994)

Table of Contents
-----------------
o Stair riding
o Curb grinds and wall stalls

STAIR RIDING
------------
From: ai...@hplvec.LVLD.HP.COM (Jim Aites)

I'm pretty comfortable riding stairs (frontwards and backwards), but
discovered something which in hindsight should have been obvious, and might
be worth mentioning to those who are looking for stairs to ride.

Simply put, there are stairs worth riding and the are stairs that you'd be
nuts to do anything but jump down/over.

Dangerous stairs: Ride-able stairs: Fun/easy stairs:

|__ |____ |______
| | |
|__ |____ |______
| | |
|__ |____ |______

Too obvious you say? Yeah, me too. I durn near nailed myself going backwards
down a dangerous set the other day. I guess I figured that stairs were stairs.
Wrong thinking is punishable...via PAIN!

From: rbu...@owlnet.rice.edu (Robert John Butera)

Tonight I finally did my first competent stair bashing, doing 6-8
stairs at the Party-on-the-Plaza in downtown Houston. I thought I'd
share some of what I learned with others, since this thread comes
up a lot.

* I was surprised how EASY is was - a lot of it is overcoming
the confidence factor and being relaxed.

* It really helps to watch someone. I decided to try it when
I saw someone that I KNEW was a much less experienced skater
than me, and decided, dammit I'm going to tackle this thing.

* The BIGGEST tip I have for getting started is to constantly
remind yourself to keep one foot in fron tof the other. The
ride is a lot smoother. After about an hour of doing it,
I could get myself to do it with my skates almost
side-by-side, but your much more likely to lose your balance.

* At first I kept on tripping on the bottom stair or two (yet
miraculously I never fell!). The guy who showed me how to do
it noticed that as I progressed down the stairs, my rear foot
was moving forward and becoming more "side-by-side" with my
front foot (see the previous note). The trick was to relax
yet concentrate on foot placement.

* When I got back to campus, I tried skateing backward down
some wimpy 2-4 stair spread out stairs. The people here are
right: I think backwards stair crashing might actually be
easier. I intend to go downtown tomorrow night and try the
backwards thing on some larger stairs.

Overall, a great night for skating. I also found the "ideal parking
deck" with those two important prerequisites: no visible security and
a working elevator (its really steep, but has 6-7 levels). Such
parking decks are becoming few and far between around here as more
skaters start "invading" them, making the security dudes a lot more
testy ...

Thanks for everyone's responses on the axle kits. Those who have
made comparisons seem to prefer the one by Lazzy Legs.

From: @sedona.intel.com (Kenneth Creta)

In article , prok...@acf2.nyu.edu (Andrew) writes:
> I've been skating for about 3 month now, but still can't skate down-
> stairs. I tried to go up the stairs and it works well, very fast! I saw peop
le
> going upstairs and did not find it difficult at all. But looking down from th
e
> top of even 7 step stair scares the shit out of me.

Try a smaller set first. A wouldn't advise going straight to 7 stairs.

>I tried going down from the
> fourth step of a 15 step stair, but I ended up running downstairs, not skatin
g.

This will never work. You need some speed to prevent your skates from catching
on them. My friend and I (we do stairs all the time) have recently started
hit the stairs at a snail's pace. Not as easy when going slow.

> Do you have to keep the blades horisontally, when you go down, or at a 45 ang
le?

Although I don;t really think about it, I guess I'd have to say horizontal.

> It seems that if you keep the skates at an anlge, you end up running downstai
rs,but if you keep them horisontally, the brake would definitely get in the way
on
> almost any stairs, except very flat ones. Or you have to approach the stair a
t
> an angle, to make the path longer?

A good way to start. Stairs are much easier at an angle. The easier way is
if your front foot is opposite the angle your going. In other words, if
your back foot is your right (mine is) try angling right to left.

If you go slow, your brake will definitely be a concern. I don't bother with
one anyway. What could make someone want to stop anyway :)

Ken

From: ma...@unidata.ucar.edu (Matt Hicks)

I saw some street freestyle on Prime Sports Network (I think it was) a
few weeks ago and I noticed that the guys doing stairs seemed to be
just dragging the toe wheels of their trailing foot (feet?). All their
weight was on the leading foot and the trailing foot seemed to be just
a rudder or for balance only. Anyone had any experience with this
technique? See the worst ASCII drawing in the world below if this is
not clear.

/ /
/ / \
/ / \
O|---------- /\ \
| | / | |
O| ----------/ | |
______ O| / | |
| |__| |----|
|_O_______ | |
| | \__
|________ | \
| |________|
|___@ @ @ @_
|
|
--

From: kcr...@sedona.intel.com (Kenneth Creta)

Hi,
I've been stair bashing for a LONG time now. However, I've always
wondered about my form and whether I was doing it right because it has always
seemed that my ride was ALOT rougher and bumpier than others I've watched.

Last night proved that something was wrong. My friend and I were
taking our favorite set of stairs REALLY SLOW. This isn't so easy. Howver,
while my friend was able to do it OK, I found that my back (right) foot kept
on catching on the steps. My friend thinks I put too much weight on the back
foot and I think he might be be right because when I listen, he sounds like
CHUNK-KA CHUNK-KA where I sound like CHUNK CHUNK. You know what I mean.

Any of you find yourself in a similar situation?

Ken
--

From: so...@cyclone.mitre.org (Stephen J. Okay)

In article har...@leland.Stanford.EDU (Lawrence Chr-Jr Liu) writes:
>Jeff writes:
>
>Out of curiosity, do most skaters think 180's or 360's off stairs are easier?
>I'm trying to learn 360's, but I can't quite get the hang of it -- any
>suggestions? (These 360's are on flat ground for now, I don't have the full
>no fear mentality -- yet ;) )

I haven't quite gotten there either yet, so I'm going to say 180s :)

My typical approach to 180's:

Approach the stairs at a moderate speed and when I reach the first one, jump
up like I was going to do a curb jump. I usually land on the 3rd or 4th step
and stop there quite solidly and firmly. As soon as I'm sure of my purchase on
that step(about a second or so), I push back with my front wheels and turn
around to land facing forward.

is it much of a transition to make this a 270?

I think the reason I haven't done a 360 yet is that I'm not that comfortable
landing backwards. Although I am getting better with the heel-to-heels, so
I do feel more comfortablke landing and then spinning or doing wide circles.
(Thats the best I can manage with this so far...but they are getting WIDER! :)
)

ObTrick: Found another cool office over the weekend. TThis one not only has
a deep curb ramp, but also a long cement one running up to the front
door. I was catching some major air off this, almost enough to start
doing tricks in midair..
For those in the area,this is the Dept. of the Interior building over in
Sir Isaac Newton Square in Reston...they've got some pretty cool stairs too..

From: kcr...@sedona.intel.com (Kenneth Creta)

In article , cd...@cleveland.Freenet.Edu (Douglas J. Narby) writes:

> Stairs (this one not explained too well; and I haven't had the Testes to
> try it without some clues).

Remember to bend you knees and put more weight on the back foot than the
front. I put my left foot 1/2 a foot length ahead of my right (my right
leg is the stronger of the two) and bend my knees to absorb much of the
impact. When people get scared, they straighten up which winds up in a
wreck. Also, while going down, try to be light on your feet. I know that
sounds funny but picture it and "float" over the stairs. Use the force,
Luke :)

If you try backwards, put your stronger leg forward (uphill) and put your
(most of but not all) weight on your toes. Like forward, put most of the
weight on your stronger leg. Too much weight on your heels can result in
catching the foot throwing you on your back.

We have two flights of 6 steps with about 5 feet of flat in between and I
like to hit the first going forward and then switching backwards for the
next flight. Or going down the first set, and jumping into a 180 over
the second and so on.

> My best trick so far is jumping a flight of four stairs. Now I am trying
> to learn to do crossovers whilst skating backward.

I think backwards cross-overs is one of the best techniques that develops
overall skating ability. It really forces you to balance and takes quite
a bit of practice before you are really comfortable. BE SURE TO PRACTICE
BOTH LEFT AND RIGHT EQUALLY. I see alot of people who can go one way but
not the other.

New Tricks:

Work on 360 jumps off the ground (forward and backward). Once you
have those down, hit a jump and do it (again, forwards and backwards).

Try a "Dutchman". Jump off a ramp, grab both feet behind your back
while in the air and land (on your feet :)

From: co...@elec.canterbury.ac.nz (DAve.)
Subject: Re: Stair/Wall Jumps..

In article , ho...@netcom.com (Will Leland) writes:
> RE: how to ride down stairs
> SPEED! just get going a good clip, put your weaker foot in front of
> the other for more stability, and ride down with most of your weight
> on the back skate.
> I ran into an upper limit on stairs though. When I got up to 10 steps
> I ran out of speed (and balance) and did a major face plant. Do those
> hockey helmets come with face cages :)

Speed is nice - balance is better! :-)

Once again, though, you need to be able to skate more or less one foot in front

of the other. I like to push my front foot out, almost straight so that if
it gets caught on a step it 'springs' back in front really quickly.

Then place the trailing knee really close and almost behind the leading one.
This forces one to bend that trailing leg, which takes up a lot of the bumpines
s.
The more relaxed the back leg is, the smoother the ride goes.

I have managed 15 consecutive steps this way. The only reason that that is
the limit, is that I have not found more than 15 consecutive steps. :-)
It is real easy to lose your nerve after 12 or so. As soon as you stiffen or
straghten up the back leg, it is all over :-\

Anyways, this is *MY* method (MHOs only) - it is certainly not everyones.
I think one just needs to find what is most comfortable for oneself.

--

From: ki...@iat.com (Kimon Papahadjopulos)

First of all, like most everything else, this skill comes with practice,
and at first that is really hard to do since you don't know how to do
it yet.

The first thing you have to do is find is a good bunch of stairs to practice
on. On the Berkeley Campus there is an ideal sight: one of the buildings
is built on an incline so that the bottom floor is underground at the
top of the hill and completely exposed on the bottom.

Because of this, a stairway that runs the length of the building
"fades away", so that there are no stairs at one end, but it builds
up gradually to about twenty steps at the other end.

Besides being very wide, the the steps are also very long. If you
can find a set up like this, your halfway there already. This way
you can practice with one or two steps, and move up one at a time when
you get more confident.

>When skating down narrow stairs, is it easier to go straight down
>or is it easier to go at an angle? It seems like going at an
>angle might be easier because it would provide more opportunity
>to have both skates in contact simultaneously.

Can you really go down truly narrow stairs at an angle? On a wide
bunch of stairs, going down at an angle is much easier because you don't
go nearly as fast. This is essential when you are learning.

>How should your weight be distributed? Should it be equally
>distributed, shifted mostly to the leading leg, or shifted mostly
>to the trailing leg?

Almost all on the trailing leg. The front leg is mostly a guide.

>Does having a brake on one skate increase the risk of a fall?
>Since the brake extends beyond the rear of one skate, my concern
>is that it might get caught on the edge of a step. Therefore,
>should the skate with the brake lead, follow, or does it matter?

Learn how to t-stop before you learn stairs. The back break is a hazard
for any sort of trick, whether it be crossovers, skating backwards, or
going down stairs.

If you are interested in doing any of the above, it's well worth your
while to learn how to get by without the back brake. It will probably
save you a bunch of nasty falls.

IMO, anyone that is trying to learn stairs with a brake is just asking
for it. Generally, learning a t-stop is your first trick, since it's
easier to learn, and makes most other tricks easier.

It also kind of proves that you know what you are doing, and are ready
for the next level.

And you're right about the brake getting caught on the edge of
each step.

Also, when you are practicing, you often times are not in the best balance
when you finish a set of stairs. If you happen to catch your brake
when this happens, you are probaly going to end up on the pavement.

>Is there a safe, piecemeal way to learn skating down stairs, or
>should I necessarily expect to fall as part of the learning
>process?

Again, if you can find a nice set of stairs, you don't necessarily have
to murder yourself. Practive on two or three stairs and then move up.

But of course, wear full protective gear, and don't complain if your
skates break. Rollerblade Lightnings are very sturdy, and hold up fairly
well. I'm sure TRS's are good too, maybe even Macroblades and Aeroblades.
But don't use Zetra's or any skate with a metal blade. SwitchIts in my
experience are somewhat frigile for this sort of thing.

!*!*!

It should be understood that if you push beyond the level of your
abilities, and you happen to land on your head, even with a helmut,
you could kill yourself.

!*!*!

>Is stair skating always risky, even for those who have mastered
>it, or is it fairly safe once a skater understands how it is
>done?

I have not done a lot because I have concerns about my knees: going
down stairs really puts a lot of stress on your knees, as well as your
skates. From what I have done, I believe that skating stairs
becomes as easy as anything else after a while, as long as you know the
particular staircase that you are going down, and there is no one walking
up it.

From: ahe...@expert.cc.purdue.edu (Sean Ahern)

>IMO, anyone that is trying to learn stairs with a brake is just asking
>for it. Generally, learning a t-stop is your first trick, since it's
>easier to learn, and makes most other tricks easier.

No way....I learned you to skate down stairs by teaching myself to be
aware of the brake and what I was doing with it.

I have also taught other people how to do this as well.

I think leaving the brake on makes you more aware of what your skates are
doing.

>It also kind of proves that you know what you are doing, and are ready
>for the next level.

Exactly my point about leaving the brake on.

Now while I don't use the brake except when I have to do SUDDEN stops like
when a car pulls in front of me, I think it's a good thing to leave on for
safety's sake.

>And you're right about the brake getting caught on the edge of
>each step.

Well, not if you have enough speed. I have found that stairs are actually
harder at slow speeds. Going slowly, the edge of the stair will give a pivot
that can throw off your balance. If you are going moderately fast, you just
skate right down the stairs, almost as if they are one surface.

You MUST make sure that one skate is in front of the other and your knees are
bent deep. You also might crouch down a bit and lean forward. I have found
that this helps me keep my balance. Don't lean forward too far or you will
tumble forward. (not fun on stairs)

>Also, when you are practicing, you often times are not in the best balance
>when you finish a set of stairs. If you happen to catch your brake
>when this happens, you are probaly going to end up on the pavement.

Ahhhh, if you are not leaning backwards when you are going down, you shouldn't
be in a position to catch your brake anywhere.

>Again, if you can find a nice set of stairs, you don't necessarily have
>to murder yourself. Practive on two or three stairs and then move up.

Yes, this is very true. Start out on a wide set of stairs. If you can get
one stair (kinda like a curb), try to keep going and get the next one. If you
get pretty good at this, try doing them a little faster. You will learn the
basic techniques of stairs this way and will soon be able to move onto steeper
and steeper stairs.

>>Is stair skating always risky, even for those who have mastered
>>it, or is it fairly safe once a skater understands how it is
>>done?

>I have not done a lot because I have concerns about my knees: going
>down stairs really puts a lot of stress on your knees, as well as your
>skates. From what I have done, I believe that skating stairs
>becomes as easy as anything else after a while, as long as you know the
>particular staircase that you are going down, and there is no one walking
>up it.

It DOES get easy, after a while, but they are still challenging as every flight
of stairs has a different slope and width to them.

From: j...@lvld.hp.com (Jim Aites)

re: stair-riding (from an e-mail discussion...possible FAQ submital)

>For the intermediate skater who hasn't tried stairs yet, what would you
>say are the basic skills?

Practicing curbs is a good idea, specially if you 'drop off' instead of
'hop off'. The difference being one of jumping vs riding. A short set of
two or three easy stairs (with wide risers) would be the next step.

>...t-stops with either foot. Probably backwards skating, too?

180's and 380's are probably part of that as well. Not that these are
*needed* for stair bashing, but if someone is doing this level of stuff
then they could certainly handle stairs.

>Is there anything else that people should master before they begin?

No...not 'master', but there are a few things a person needs to know in
order to be relatively successful at handling stairs:

1) a 'reasonable' speed is required!

Contrary to common knowledge about the laws of physics, folks generally
lose speed when going down stairs. Backwards bashing however, will
actually cause one to GAIN speed. No, it's not 'magic'...

Many of us have started down a flight of stairs at a good speed, only to
slow to a crawl, and end up 'bailing out' before reaching the bottom. This
'leap of faith' (hoping you can reach a flat spot when you throw yourself
over the last few steps) is probably the most dangerous thing about riding
stairs. So, if going forward - hit them at speed!

The loss of speed is mostly due to that fact that folks tend to ride the
stairs 'flat', instead of leaning into it and angling the skates as though
on a hill. Riding 'flat' means that the slope isn't really affecting your
speed. While bashing backwards, however, EVERYONE lets their heels lead
the way and the foot naturally angles (er...toes up), thus restoring the
'slope' and gaining speed.

While flat-riding, it doesn't matter what style you use...but keeping
your weight on the trailing skate is relatively standard. Aggressive
bashers often use a wider front-to-back skate placement, but more
importantly, they LEAN into the slope to avoid losing speed.

Note: go easy on this folks...nobody wants to see you do a header down the
stairs.

2) they call it 'bashing' for a reason. Accept it!

Yup, bashing, bone jarring, bouncing, slamming, and in general, beating
yourself up (ok, your skates) while riding stairs is an expected part of
the game. A willingness to accept that it feels uglier than it looks is
needed. Hummm...some folks may argue that it 'looks as bad as it feels'
as well! Either way, you've got to go with it.

3) backwards *IS* easier. But more intimidating.

Honest! Because there is an extra 'shock absorber' (ie your ankle can flex
to your toes whereas your heel is pretty solid) and because your feet will
naturally angle down, the backwards ride is a heck of a lot smoother than
riding stairs frontwards. If you have trouble just 'going-for-it', then
start slow, and use a hand-rail. (normally this is NOT a good thing to do)
Keep a reasonable front-to-back stance and let everything flex!

Note: If you find that going backwards is NOT easier/smoother, then please
let me know. Not that anyone can help you at this point, but rather
because I'd be curious to hear about the 'exception to the rule'.

4) failure to wear a helmet ANYTIME you are rolling backwards or doing
stairs is (of course) enough to get you 'certified' (as insane) in most
states.

I was the first in our group to do 'killer' steps (4 flights of seven
stairs each) backwards. I started from a standing-start at the top while
clutching a hand-rail. The clutch turned into a light balancing guide
after the first three steps...and then I was free-wheeling down the rest.

CURB GRINDS AND WALL STALLS
---------------------------

From: har...@leland.Stanford.EDU (Lawrence Chr-Jr Liu)

In an effort to revive the trick thread, I was wondering if anyone out there
in netland has performed a "front-side curb grind", as described in the latest
issue of InLine. They mentioned rubbing surfboard wax on the steps to get a
better grind, but I was also wondering if the trick can be performed without
waxing.

Another question -- has anyone tried those smaller wheels for tricks, like
"Little Roxs" (I think that's what they're called). Are they necessary for
rail slides, or can one just remove the third wheel and either slide on one's
frame or add a teflon plate?

The one trick I'm thinking of learning next is the 180 into stairs and riding
the rest of the stairs the rest of the way -- how important is it to land one's
wheels on the stairs? Do I have to land both skates at the same time squarely
on the steps, or is it just jump and land and ride?

From: so...@cyclone.mitre.org (Stephen J. Okay)

In article klanac@ih-nxt05 (Chris Klanac) writes:
>har...@leland.Stanford.EDU (Lawrence Chr-Jr Liu) writes:
>
>>In an effort to revive the trick thread, I was wondering if anyone out there
>>in netland has performed a "front-side curb grind", as described in the lates
t
>>issue of InLine. They mentioned rubbing surfboard wax on the steps to get a
>>better grind, but I was also wondering if the trick can be performed without
>>waxing.

Saw it, haven't tried it...

On the subject of 180's though, I've been trying something new during lunch
at work the past couple days. Skate down/across a parking lot, 'till you get
to a median/island. Curb-jump, followed by a 180, landing backwards, then
do whatever...(I've also been working on heel-to-heels, so I've been going
into one of these after I land, partially to practice them, but also because
they can start from a backwards skate, so it looks pretty cool)

I've avoided curb grinds 'cause I'm not sure how well my rails would hold
up to something abrasive like your average concrete curb. I'd probably
try it on something like one thats been painted "No Parking" and more
or less sealed though. Wax? ---maybe, but modding the turf seems a little
bogus to me...

From: dma...@is.morgan.com (David Madeo)

In article har...@leland.Stanford.EDU (Lawrence Chr-Jr Liu) writes:

>In an effort to revive the trick thread, I was wondering if anyone out there
>in netland has performed a "front-side curb grind", as described in the late
st
>issue of InLine. They mentioned rubbing surfboard wax on the steps to get a
>better grind, but I was also wondering if the trick can be performed without
>waxing.

You'll definately want to put some wax on. Find out where the
skateboarders in your area wax the curbs and you'll be able to feel
the difference. Rub the wax all around the edge of the curb. I
suggest being precise where you start and stop the waxing. When first
learning you can do a left foot plant on non waxed curb and then bring
the right foot on to the wax, start sliding and bring the left foot
on. It's really important that you get used to skating up to a curb
and jumping onto and off of it at different speeds and angles. It
takes a while to get used to landing and balancing with a curb between
the 2nd and 3rd wheels.

A trick that people are just starting to do around here is to do a
plate/frame scrape and click into a curb grind.

Another much harder is to do a 180/360 to land on the curb for a curb
slide. Start by just trying to land, then move on to the slide.

Supposedly the "latest" is to do sole grinds, but I don't see any
great reason to try them. Stand next to a curb, put the outside edge
of your frame and the bottom of the boot (the sole) against the corner
of the curb. Put your whole weight on this, take the other foot and
out it in front in the traditional grind angle. Do this at high
speed.

I just learned how to do stairs at the courthouse. If you saw that
ABC show two weeks ago, it's the same stairs Aton tumbled on.

From: j...@kepler.unh.edu (Spectre)

The reason they suggest waxing, is because they don't suggest
taking off the 3rd wheel back. If you take off the 3rd wheel, you will
slide a lot better. I suggest that you make some type of a shield or plate
to protect your frame. If you look in the same issue of In-line, thereis
an article about people in New York. Look at the picture of the FR group's
skates...one has a shield to protect his frame, one doesn't. If you look
between the wheels on the skate that doesn't, you will see what will
happen if you do too many curb grinds without the shield (his frames are
chipped away between the 2ond and 3rd wheel, and the 3rd and 4th). When
you take off the wheel, you won't really need the wax...but it's easier
to learn with the wheel in, since your skates will 'lock' onto the stair
between the wheels, instead of having a free sliding space, and you'll
slide better with the wax. once you get good at angling your feet, you
will be able to slide on your frames without having to take off the wheel.

>Another question -- has anyone tried those smaller wheels for tricks, like
>"Little Roxs" (I think that's what they're called). Are they necessary for
>rail slides, or can one just remove the third wheel and either slide on one's
>frame or add a teflon plate?

I havn't tried the little wheels yet (actually I don't see myself
trying them at all, I don't really want the loss of speed, or the added
wear on my bearings...) Right now I have a sheet metal plate on my skate
where the 3rd wheel was, and I'm looking around for a hunk of plastic
(any suggestions in the eastern MA, southern NH area?) to make a more
sturdy and less makeshift slider.

>The one trick I'm thinking of learning next is the 180 into stairs and riding
>the rest of the stairs the rest of the way -- how important is it to land one'
s
>wheels on the stairs? Do I have to land both skates at the same time squarely
>on the steps, or is it just jump and land and ride?

It all depends how you bash. Do you have to keep your weight
distributed evenly, or can you pick up a skate when you are going down.
If you bash with even weight, then you will want to land pretty much im
the same position that you would be if you bashed to that point...if you
can pick up a foot, then you just need to land on the dominant foot, then
you can adjust yourself to a more comfortable position as you bash down.
One suggestion...work on just jumping into the stairt and going from there
before you start trying 180's into them....it will hurt alot less if you
screw up going forwards then going backwards (spines smacking cement stairs
isn't really my idea of a good time :)

From: holr...@student.tc.umn.edu (James A Holroyd-1)

Jeff, I noticed this, too. The frames look *really* hacked on.
Your shield sounds like a good idea, but it doesn't sound like metal would
either last too long or slide too well to be of any use... I recommend
that you use some skateboard rails (Powell-Peralta Gorilla Ribs were my
favorite, but I don't know if they still make them)... they last forever
and slide forever. Just cut one down so it fits between your wheels,
epoxy it to your shield, and slide on.
I've also been thinking about making a rail that fits between the
2nd and 3rd wheels on my skates... just a small piece of plastic that
would either clip or screw into the cross brace in my lightning should
work. Anbody seen anything like this? It would reduce the ground
clearance of the skate, but this shouldn't be a problem. I think it would
make it way easier (and less harsh on the frames) to rail-slide.

Steve: Yep, they're fun, aren't they? Haven't done them (180 jumps over
curbs) to a
heel-to-heel, but I have kept rotating and sort of spun around in a crouch
to a forward position again once I land... it's not that hard, and it
feels like a 360, 'cept you're only in the air for half of it. I still
haven't got the courage to try 360's over a curb yet.

From: kcr...@sedona.intel.com (Kenneth Creta)

In article , cd...@cleveland.Freenet.Edu (Douglas J. Narby) writes:
>
> Sounds cool, Ken, but now we have three jargon terms:
>
> Stall, Curb Grind and Rail Slide.
>
> Anybody care to DEFINE them? Throw in any more us newbies are unlikely

Imagine standing in front of a wall about 3 ft high or so (on your feet).
Now imagine jumping up onto it with both feet, "stalling" there for a second,
and jumping back down. That idea except on blades is a stall. That is also
a VERY basic stall. Now try jumping off the wall to one or more other nearby
walls and doing a 360 in the air before landing. That's a cool stall. Keep
in mind that in order to land stable on the wall, you really have to land on
the corner such that the front two wheels are above the wall and the rear two
wheels are below: o
___o foot
|o
wall | o

I think a curb grind might be the same thing but on a curb instead.

A rail slide is just what it sounds like. Approach a low rail pretty much
parallel. Then jump up onto it as if you're stalling it but instead of jumping
onto it and stopping, you slide down it as far as you can. I can't seem to
find a railing that would lend itself to this (i.e., low enough).

From: so...@cyclone.mitre.org (Stephen J. Okay)

Well, after exchanging messages with some of our resident bladerats
here on the group, I went out and thought I'd try a few of the tricks
that have been described here with varying degrees of success...
The university here I usually blade around has some interesting structures,
so I used those for this.

Rail Slide: Didn't work so hot, but I think thats 'cause I'm too
worried about losing my balance, my hands won't let go of the rail,
or let me rest on my wristguards to let me slide down. A good
way to practice this is to find a "double" railing to do on.
Should look like this:

\
\ \ \ \ easier)
on this one| \ \
|\_/

__________________________________________________________________________

-Tony Chen (adc...@cs.fsu.edu)

Tony Chen

unread,

Feb 1, 1995, 7:08:54 PM2/1/95

Posted-By: auto-faq 3.1.1.2
Archive-name: rec-skate-faq/part11

Rec.skate Frequently Asked Questions: Part 11
_________________________________________________________________

[Tricks Logo] *

REC.SKATE FAQ - PART 11: SKATING TRICKS AND MOVES

SECTION 2

(last changed January 25, 1995)

TABLE OF CONTENTS
* Jumps
* Pipes and ramps
* Rail slides
* Slalom

_________________________________________________________________

Jumps

From: dc...@mailer.cc.fsu.edu (Daryl S. Cain)

dbr...@Mr-Hyde.aoc.nrao.edu (Daniel Briggs) writes:

Suggestions for exercises on how to work towards a good 360? How
high should I be able to jump in order to have a reasonable shot at
finishing the 360 before landing. For that matter, how should my
feet be set on take off and landing?

The trick is to power your rotation from your torso and just carry
your legs along for the ride. It helps me to hold my arms out in an L
shape (one arm out to the front and one out to the side) and swing
them to get the rotation going. The best way to practice is in your
shoes on the grass (softer when you fall). It's my theory that if you
can't jump and do a 360 in your sneaks (wear heavy shoes to simulate
the weight of skates) then there's no way in hell that your going to
do one in skates. Its also my theory that the best positionl for your
feet is about six feet straight down from your head, I mean, the
hardest part about spinning (on land or in the air) is staying
vertical and balanced.

From: so...@cyclone.mitre.org (Stephen J. Okay)

holr...@student.tc.umn.edu (James A Holroyd-1) writes:

Steve: Yep, they're fun, aren't they? Haven't done them (180 jumps
over curbs) to a heel-to-heel, but I have kept rotating and sort of
spun around in a crouch to a forward position again once I land...

Well, its not really OVER the curb so much as it is using it as a
launchpad of sorts. But yes they are fun.... :)

Crummy ASCII art follows:

____ +--------Launch into 180 here...
/ \ | _
/ \ | / \
/ ___\|/__ \ curb hop
/ / \ \/---------- skating path
Land 180 here ^^^^^^^^^
curb/traffic island

From: j...@kepler.unh.edu (Spectre)

dbr...@Mr-Hyde.aoc.nrao.edu (Daniel Briggs) writes:

Suggestions for exercises on how to work towards a good 360? How
high should I be able to jump in order to have a reasonable shot at
finishing the 360 before landing. For that matter, how should my
feet be set on take off and landing?

Go back to basics. Take off your skates, stand in one place, jump up
and spin around. Concentrate on thinking on what you are doing, one
step at a time. Once you get to a point where you think you can
explain it to a crippled 12 year old, then put your skates on. Start
without moving. Just do the same thing, jump up, turn around (Pick a
bail of cotton if you really want to), and get the feel of what parts
of your body emphasize the speed and control of the spin. Then just
start rolling, and doing it. Once you get to the point where you can
do it with a good speed roll, then everything beyond (curbs, stairs,
etc) is just conquering fear...it's not any different wether you spin
over a perfectly smooth pavement, grass, stairs or a car. If you can
make the jump without any of the obsticals, you can do it with the
obsticals...just close your eyes at first and you won't kno the
difference :)

From: holr...@student.tc.umn.edu (James A Holroyd-1)

Regarding 360's:
I've almost got them now... I'm spinning most of the way round, but I
keep dropping one foot too soon, so I end up landing like this:
(apologies for the ascii art)

(spinning clockwise)

This isn't really a problem, but it looks kind of stupid... I think I
need to get more of a "pop." I also need to keep my skates closer
together.

The physics behind the spin is actually pretty simple:
While you're still on the ground (the wind-up phase), you give
yourself angular momentum by turning your torso in the opposite
direction to the one you're going to be spinning in, then twisting
into the spin and jumping. Hopefully, you'll give yourself enough
momentum to make yourself go some multiple of 180 degrees when you're
in the air. You can make yourself spin faster by pulling everything in
closer to your axis of rotation. I saw a TV program on PBS once about
video/computer analysis of ice skaters doing jumps... they had one
skater who couldn't do a triple-something-or-other, and they diagnosed
her problem as leaving her arms too far away from her body. They had
her lift weights, which strengthened her arms, which let her pull them
closer in to her body, which helped her finish the jump. One
interesting thing to note about ice skaters is that they usually start
jumps with one leg at least partially extended away from their body.
When they pull the leg in, it reduces their polar moment of inertia,
which increases the rate of the spin (since angular momentum is
conserved, neglecting air resistance). Because most in-liners start
their jumps on 2 skates, we can't get the slingshot effect of bringing
the leg in, consequently we can't do triples on flat ground. Anybody
out there doing ice-style jumps on inlines? Any thoughts from you
ice-skaters out there?

From: mdic...@bbn.com (Michael L. Dickens)

cer...@ait.com (Joseph P. Cernada) wrote:

I still haven't figured out how to get any height while jumping in
this position. I get maybe 5 inches off the ground. Anybody have any
suggestions on how to jump higher from the heel-to-heel position?

It's leg strength. And the ability to raise your legs up like an
airplane's wheels retracting.

If you're in New York, check out the now-somewhat-talked-about Victor
- the master of side-surfing. Before he moved (from Boston), I've seen
him jump a barrel (about 3' height & 1' radius) on it's side while
side-surfing, and have heard that he can do the same barrel standing
up!

What he does highly resembles retracting his legs as he goes up, and
dropping them back as he comes down. Quite impressive.

_________________________________________________________________

Pipes and Ramps

From: Spectre (j...@kepler.unh.edu)

Re: pipes

> I'd appreciate it if you could drop me a few pointers so that if I find one
> someday I won't kill myself on the first time out...

Pointers:

START FROM THE BOTTOM!!! Never start from the top until you get get
yourself to the top from skating, and not climbing. Even if it is a 3
foot quarter pipe...don't start from the top till you can skate up it,
turn around at the top, and come back down without falling. I was
teaching a friend of mine, he was fooling around on a 3 foot
quarter...I told him to work bottom to top. He skated up, up the ramp,
and stood on the top... the "dropped in" (Started from the top
standing up), fell backwards and sprained his wrist, now he doesn't
want to skate pipes anymore.

Work your way up, get used to the transition from flat to sloped..
it's a very strange sensation going up a curved incline vs. a flat
incline. Work on getting used to going up on the transition, turning
around, and coming back down, all fluid.

Once you get comfortable with the transition, you have to learn how to
pump. Pumping is what makes you gain speed when your in the pipe,
since gravity and friction will slow you down a little... I don't know
if I can explain this well but....as you come up to the transition,
bend your knees some...When you start up the transition push your feet
out...the result will just be you standing up...but pushing against
the centrifical (sp?) force will let you get a little more speed. When
you turn around at the "apex" of your ride up...do the same...turn
around, bend your knees a little, and extend against the pipe...you
will notice a BIG change in speed, since you will be getting more
speed than you would if you where just riding down the side of the
pipe. Repeat this for both sides...From the bottom, pump, up the
transition, turn around, pump, down the transition, across the flat,
pump, up the transition, turn around, pump, down the transition. If
there are skateboarders or other skaters there, watch them, expec.
their knees... You can ask them, but a lot of skateboarders don't even
realize they do it.

Pumping is the secret to riding...the better you can pump, the higher
you will go...with out pumping, you will never gain speed, and will
never get as high has you were when you turned around on the other
side.. (Simple physics)

Once you think you have control over that...say you can get to a point
where you can grab onto the top of the pipe and pull yourself up on
the platform, your almost ready to drop in. At this point, you want to
start by going in sitting down. Maybe the first time, sit on the edge
and slide down, just get used to the hight and the speed when you
slide... Then sitting down, put your hands on the coping (the metal
pipe that is on the edge of the pipe) and push yourself forward...you
have to go forward enough so when you stand up, your body will be
perpendicular with the pipe.. push off...and stand up...and go like
you did when you started from the bottom, except you already have some
speed. That part sound dificult, but after a couple of tries it gets
really easy.

Once you feel comfortable with that, you can either 1) drop in
standing up...(put first to wheels over edge..bend your knees and
touch your toes...you'll roll into the pipe, and your legs will be
perp with the pipe.. then you just need to stand up) 2) Start lifting
your feet some as you go in...lift yourself up on your hands, put your
feet behind you so that your feet are higher up with you go in
sitting./..that way you get more used to to the actual hight from the
top...keeping going till your comfortable with getting your feet all
the way to the coping before you push yourself in.

If there are any other skaters there, you can ask them for tips, but
do not "drop in" until you feel comfortable...I did that once...12
foot pipe 1 foot of vertical...dropped in...forgot to bend my
knees...face plant damn close to the flat....

Good luck...be careful....wear a helmet and knee pads at least.... let
me know if anything isn't clear.

From: sav...@csu.murdoch.edu.au (Duncan Savage)

Saw a neat trick that some guys (including one who looked about 13)
are doing in Sydney, Aus. Basically, they use a standard skate ramp,
skate into it, but instead of rolling up it, catch their toes (I don't
remember if it was with one or both feet) on the front of the ramp,
flipping themselves into a forward somersalt with their heads just
about scraping the ramp. They land on the other side of the ramp.
Needless to say they had a full complement of protective gear, and
given the protection even their stuff-ups didn't look too painful. I
don't think I'll try it just yet.

From: holr...@gold.tc.umn.edu (batty)

Charlie, I agree wholeheartedly with your construction technique, but
we found different geometry worked better for us when we built launch
ramps for skateboarding.

When you go off a launch ramp, you are launching so that you land away
from the ramp, so the top lip of the ramp doesn't have to be
perpendicular to the ground. If you build a ramp with a radius less
than 6 feet, it feels really weird. We found that the ramps that were
easiest to launch off were the ones that we could go fastest on, which
gave us more air time. 8 foot radius worked well for us.. You
suggested building a ramp with a 2.5 foot radius. The distance from
your center of gravity (somewhere around your bellybutton) to the
bottom of your skates is about 2.5 feet (less if you're crouching).
When you hit a 2.5 foot radius ramp that goes to vertical, your skates
will go up the ramp, but your center of gravity will stay in one
place... you'll also go straight up in the air and either have to
launch to one side, or you'll have to land back on the ramp.

Here's some really bad ascii art showing my favorite launch ramp:

____
* |
* |
* |
* |
* |
*______________________________

The "launch angle" was a little more than 30 degrees, the whole ramp
was about 8 feet long, and it was about 2-3 feet tall. It was (as I
remember) about a 10 foot radius. it had a small platform at the top
(which, combined with the length of the ramp, made it very stable) We
could hit this ramp going *very* fast, and it sent us a long way. This
is what worked for us.

From: ai...@hplvec.LVLD.HP.COM (Jim Aites)

Hey, you SKATEBOARD'ers! Got any helpful hints for us fledgelings?

| found different geometry worked better for us when we built launch ramps
| 8 foot radius worked well for us.

Is it just me or are a lot of folks under the (obviously) mistaken
impression that some launch ramps use a parabolic curve? Ignoring the
fact that the previous poster indicatated that the ansi-art was poor,
this STILL looks like it isn't a radius type ramp.

____
| * |
| * |
| * |
| * |
| * |
| *______________________________

Also, I've jumped ramps where the vertical part of the ramp was MUCH
closer to 90' than it was to 45'. I'm not saying that they were better
than the above, as a matter of fact, you *have* to go fast so you
don't stall at the top of the ramp...and dribble over the top lip.
<grin> Hang time (altitude) gets outragious pretty quickly, and all
without landing more than 10' from the ramp. Does this match with
anyone else?

From: j...@oin.unh.edu (Spectre)

Fakies are A half-pipe trick. It's actually a un-trick. You go up the
side of the pipe like you are going to do a trick, go in the air, and
do nothing...not even turn around. You then come back into the half
pipe skating backwards (Which isn't nearly as simple as street skating
backwards :)

> Work on 360 jumps off the ground (forward and backward). Once you
>have those down, hit a jump and do it (again, forwards and backwards).

My favorite: 360's clearing 6-8 stairs.

One that I've been playing with, if you find a long bench, or low
wall, or something at least 10-20 feet long. Jump onto it with a 180,
land backwards with one skate on the bench and the other scraping
along the side of the bench, then jump off with another 180. I'm
pretty sure in half-pipe lingo, it's a backwards rail grind, but I'm
not sure.

|____| - one skate
||
other skate -> |____||-------
|| | bench

From: adc...@cs.fsu.edu (Tony Chen)

j...@oin.unh.edu (Spectre) writes:

>
> |____| - one skate
> ||
>other skate -> |____||-------
> || | bench

A more flashy version of bench riding is to jump on top of the bench
(or some kind of edge) and into a spread-eagle (I guess this would be
a 90? 8-) Ride all the way to the end and jump off with a 180 so as to
land in another spread-eagle, but with your feet reversed.

Another variation, find stairs that are sectioned with flats in
between flights. Ride the steps sideways (spread-eagle) and flip 180
in the flats. You could also flip to backwards-bashing or whatever.

From: jnew...@ecst.csuchico.edu (Gadget)

Just to add the simple ones to the list, here goes...
* Front wheels of both skates
* Front wheels of both skates in parallel
* Back wheels of both skates
* Back wheels of both skates in parallel
* One wheel (front/back/left & right)
* Heel & toe
* Front/back/mixed wheels while spread eagle

Of course all these can be done backwards as well.

Oh, and as a great drill. Cross over backwards while going forwards
and cross over forwards when your going backwards....

From: so...@cyclone.mitre.org (Stephen J. Okay)

Subject: Stair/Wall Jumps..

In the ever continuing chronicle of attempts to break my neck, I
thought I'd share some thoughts on my stair and wall work that I did
last night.

I went over to a local high school that has some rather interesting
structures for thrashing on, so following a couple quick laps around
the parking lot, I set to work on the stairs, and while I have no
problem jumping up/over up to 4 steps at a time, or back down, I still
have absolutely no clue as to how to actually ride the damn
things...any hints/ideas would be much appreciated, esp. from our two
resident thrashers on the group...

Aerials are a different story. I can now say with a good degree of
confidence, I can do a 180 (and sometimes a 270) from back off of up
to 4 steps. The trick seems to be in starting your turn when you
launch. I've always fallen when I've tried this until I realized that
its just too much to think about if I try to turn in mid-air, so its
better to just start right off doing it.

Walls:
Had moderate success hurdling, getting over a couple walls/barriers.
The idea is to use head straight for the wall and use it as a vault of
sorts to propel yourself into the air with. My biggest problem with
this is that I need to remember to lift my feet higher. I kept
scraping the wall and consequently losing control, making for a really
sloppy landing... I did get over clean once or twice, which probably
looks really cool, but who knows...I was the only one there...

Another cool thing I noticed in my warmup skate: Those sloped ramps
that are often built into curbs as bike or wheel chair ramps make cool
jumps. Dip down the side closest to you and then ride up the lip of
the opposite side and if you're going fast enough, you'll clear the
curb and catch some air(Just make sure no cars are coming,as this does
kind of definitely put you out in the street). So I did that a bunch
of times and liked it a lot...Kind of reminds me of one of my favorite
skiing maneuvers: dipping down into the gouges made by other skiers
and popping out into the air on them.

Oh, I also tried the dual braking thing again, but at higher speeds
than before. Balance is definitely the key to this one. Everything
above your waist should be pointing forward, and everything below
should be leaning back on your heels. Anything else throws your
balance too much, IMHO.

Helmets:I have a Protec skateboarding helmet, that has the 1-impact
foam core with a hard plastic outer shell(none of this wimpy
'microshell' stuff) that fits pretty well. Good side coverage of the
side of my head down past the ears, and covers down the back of my
head. I've gotten some skateboarding/music stickers for it, and it
looks cool. Yes, its the full combat style of helmet, but I definitely
would not thrash without it.

From: IO0...@MAINE.MAINE.EDU

i've never seen "fakies" before. (well, i have a friend who will
occasionally "catch a fakie" but that is something _completely_
different, and not related to skating). the term comes from
skateboarding and means simply "backward". thus the usage would be "i
jumped 180 to fakie...", which tells you that the person started
facing forward. "fakie" preceding a trick name means that the person
was skating backward when the trick was started, i.e., a "fakie 540"
would be one and a half revolutions, starting from backward (and
landing facing forward, hopefully, for a 540 :).

you haven't mentioned anything about airs in your list. that is a
large area, and as far as i know there is no standard for skate airs
(regarding the airs that aren't duplicates of jumps performed in ice
skating, like grabs). well, one thing that could fit on the list of
"not airs" is skating crouched, with most of the weight on one skate,
the other leg being bent so that the knee is close to the ground
(several inches) and only the toe wheel is rolling on the pavement. if
you can't picture it, either see it on MTV sports or watch a man
proposing to a woman, same stance. anyway, it's known locally as a
crunch, as in, "gallivan to crunch".

From: a...@dsbc.icl.co.uk (Andy Wardley)

Last Saturday afternoon was a sheer joy for me. I spent nearly 4 hours
skating the half-pipes in my local park and seeing as it was my first
real (i.e. more than half an hour) session and I managed to get quite
good, I thought I'd share with you my trials and tribulations and tell
you about some of the interesting places I've got bruises.

The smallest of the pipes is about 2 foot high and absolutely bloody
useless because it is so small. The next is about 3 foot high and just
about skatable with inlines. (sorry, did I mention I was skating
inlines?) The 4 foot pipe was great - high enough to get some speed,
wide enough to give some maneuvre^H^H^H^H^H^Hmanoovre^H^H^H^H^H
movabilty room but not so big as to risk neck-breaking for the
uninitiated (me). Bloody good fun!

Whoever said in the FAQ that you shouldn't drop in straight away was
dead right! I skated about half an hour and pretty much got
comfortable with it before dropping in. The first two attempts,
however, resulted in me landing flat on my arse, causing the first
large bruise area and a severe jolt up the spine. Attempt three was
the success and when you've done it once, it's a piece of piss. You've
just got to throw all your weight forwards and get you body
perpendicular to the wall of the pipe. Bloody good fun!

Managing to keep my speed up was the next big task and I slowly got
the hang of it. The trick seems to be to bend your legs up towards you
as you go up into the curve and then extend them out again as you are
coming back down again. It's hard work, particularly on the stomach
muscles, as it requires a lot of trunk flexing. Bloody good fun
though!

Next step was to try a few rail grinds. Easy! Trying to slide along
the rails took a bit more confidence and after limited success, I
decided to leave that for next time. Bloody good fun!

I briefly tried the big pipe. It's about 10 foot high and not to be
skated lightly, IMHO. I didn't drop in because they didn't have the
ladder out to get to the top platform and I didn't really fancy trying
to build my speed up to jump up onto the platform. Again, maybe next
time. The other thing was that there is a sign saying that full safety
kit should be worn on the big pipe. I didn't have a helmet and
thinking about it, I don't reckon it would have been a good idea to
try it without. Bloody good fun though!

On that note actually, I really wouldn't recommend skating pipes
without knee pads and wrist guards *at the very least*. I have bruises
on my knees, elbows, shins, ribs (I landed with my arm under my chest
- Ouch!) and backside and that was with knee pads, elbow pads and
wrist guards. Without those, I would undoubtedly have plaster on at
least one wrist and both knees. I think you can safely manage without
a helmet on all but the biggest pipe but your mileage may vary. It
does take a few bruises to get the hang of pipes, but after the first
couple of hours, the falls are fewer and further between and generally
much more controlled. Bloody good fun too!

If you haven't skated pipes and get the chance - try it! It is really
good fun and doesn't hurt much. I tend to be a bit reckless when
skating - more conservative skaters may well find the experience less
painful.

Anyway, I better go because this post has got very long. Just thought
I'd let you know about my skating experience. If you want to hear
more, I've got Megabytes more I can write about the afternoon :-)

More importantly, if anyone wants to make the trip to South London on
a Saturday or Sunday afternoon (I'm not sure if it's open during the
week) then I can let you know exactly where to find the place.
Similarly, if anyone knows of any other pipes or good skating places
in London, let me know. Apologies to all overseas readers - I realise
it's a bit far to come from the US or Oz or wherever, but if you ever
do find yourself over here....

From: mdic...@bbn.com (Michael L. Dickens)

Subject: Re: Pipe-Dreams

a...@dsbc.icl.co.uk (Andy Wardley) wrote:

> Last Saturday afternoon was a sheer joy for me. I spent nearly 4 hours
> skating the half-pipes in my local park [...]

Hmmmm. So did I - at the indoor skate park in Cambridge - MA that is.
And, yes, it was (& still is) bloody good fun.

Pipes there range from a couple feet with about a 6' radius, to 10'
with an 8' radius - ie: 2', 4', 6', 8', 10'. The half-pipe is 9' with
a 1' extension on one side, with a 8' radius. (I think the 8' radii
are correct; but are close enough for this discussion.)

> Whoever said in the FAQ that you shouldn't drop in straight away was dead
> right! I skated about half an hour and pretty much got comfortable with
> it before dropping in. The first two attempts, however, resulted in me
> landing flat on my arse, causing the first large bruise area and a severe
> jolt up the spine. Attempt three was the success and when you've done it
> once, it's a piece of piss. You've just got to throw all your weight
> forwards and get you body perpendicular to the wall of the pipe.

Agreed with the "don't drop in until you're comfortable" thing. I was
on the coping & doing fakies, forward & reverse 180's, and almost
stalls before I dropped in. I remember the first time I tried on any
pipe I fell on my arse as well. But once I got the feel down, I
immediatly went up a couple of levels.

> Managing to keep my speed up was the next big task and I slowly got the
> hang of it. The trick seems to be to bend your legs up towards you as
> you go up into the curve and then extend them out again as you are coming
> back down again. It's hard work, particularly on the stomach muscles, as
> it requires a lot of trunk flexing.

It's called "pump"ing. It's supposed to be bending the legs, not from
the waiste. But most everyone I know splits the task. As you drop in,
you start with legs bent, then "pop" them straight during the
transition. As you approach the pipe to go up, bend slightly, and
"pop" the legs again during the transition. This "pop"ing transfers
potential energy into kinetic energy & vice versa using centripetal
forces, sort of (I won't get into the physics here). So the better you
get at "pop"s, the faster & higher things will go.

> On that note actually, I really wouldn't recommend skating pipes without knee
> pads and wrist guards *at the very least*. I have bruises on my knees,
> elbows, shins, ribs (I landed with my arm under my chest - Ouch!) and
> backside and that was with knee pads, elbow pads and wrist guards. Without
> those, I would undoubtedly have plaster on at least one wrist and both
> knees. I think you can safely manage without a helmet on all but the
> biggest pipe but your mileage may vary. It does take a few bruises to
> get the hang of pipes, but after the first couple of hours, the falls are
> fewer and further between and generally much more controlled.

Definitely a good idea to wear full armor. This might even include
"hip-clips" - pads that clip for hip & thigh protection. Helmets & big
knee pads are a must. Wrist guards are good for sliding & such, but
you should be able to train yourself to fall onto your knees from ANY
position.

Last Saturday I was doing stalls on the 9' pipe - and on one occasion
I pushed off too hard. I knew I was not going to make the whole
transition, so to save myself I pulled my legs up & fell directly onto
my knees. Hit the last foot or so of the transition & slid the rest of
the way down. Because I knew I wasn't going to make it, I
automatically (w/o thinking out it) fell onto my knees. The big cushy
knee pads saved my back again!!!

From: a...@dsbc.icl.co.uk (Andy Wardley)
Subject: "Pipe Dreams 2" presented in glorious Inline-O-Rama

Another weekend of hard-hitting half-pipe skating action was had by
myself, and in a spirit of uncharacteristicly unselfish generosity, I
thought I'd share my tales of woe and joy with all you loverly people
out there. Yes, you too can experience Inline-O-Rama from the safety
and comfort of your own homes....

For those of you who read last weeks issue of "Pipe Dreams", you'll
remember my adventures on the half-pipes at my local park. Since then
I've got quite high up on the gnarly scale and even quite "rad"
according to the local sk8boarders. I'm told this is a compliment :-)

Dropping in, turning, jumping out, these are all second nature now and
bruises are certainly fewer and further between. I also junked my old
Bauer knee pads and got some serious thick pads (not cheap at #25 UK
Quids) after realising quite how much my knees were suffering even
with the pads. The new ones are infinitely better.

I've got the hang of popping/pumping to get some speed up. This means
I can catch some serious air on my way out of the pipe, 180 and drop
back in with little trouble. I reckon a 360 would be fairly easy but I
haven't attempted that yet. My pumping isn't perfect and I found that
I still can't get up and out of the 10' pipe, but practice will no
doubt make perfect. Thanks to Michael for the tips - they helped a
lot. Can anyone actually tell me what the physics are involved in the
process?

Stalling on the rail is a fave of mine and easy for the novice. I
still can't get any decent slides along the coping - maybe I'm just
not going in with enough sideways velocity. Anyone got any
suggestions? I've also tried to stall, jump 180 to a forward stall in
prep to drop in forwards. Didn't work - will keep trying.

The basic fakie (i.e. don't turn and drop backwards) and the stall to
a fakie (i.e. stall on the rail and then drop backwards) are also
quite easy to master and seem to generally impress people who think it
looks inherently dangerous to skate a pipe backwards. Actually, it can
be because you have to be used to taking a transition backwards. You
can then reverse-fakie (is that the right name?) at the other side to
get going forwards again. I bit of a jump when you r-fakie can be
impressive but make sure that your skates land back inside the pipe.
One time, mine didn't, and my left skate caught the top, rolled
backwards onto the platform and I smacked my shin badly on the coping
and slid face-first into the pipe. Well-bruised my shin but it was
BLOODY GOOD FUN!

If anyone has any hints or can tell me about other good trix to try,
I'd love to hear about them. At present, I am the only inliner who
skates the pipes so I don't have anyone else to watch, discuss trix
with or get inspiration from. The sk8boarders are a good laugh and fun
to watch but I worry that I might start to sound like them, man....
:-)

From: j...@kepler.unh.edu (Spectre)

mdic...@bbn.com (Michael L. Dickens) writes:

>a...@dsbc.icl.co.uk (Andy Wardley)
>
>I think I'll go back and review my advanced calculus physics book to see
>what it said in the first place. After all, I never really read the book
>for class - just did problems out of it to pass.

I sat down and calculated what exactly was going on about a year ago
and it is completely out of my brain now (face plants don't help
physics memory very much :). It has to to with the combination of the
centrifital force and the action/reaction principle. by pushing
against the centrifital force you are adding more force, and since the
half pipe can't break (you hope) the force has to be evened another
direction, sideways, which is influenced because of gravity, so the
result is an encrease of speed. Take a look at vectors and force.

I'll try to put in a little more thought on this and get back to
everyone.

_________________________________________________________________

Rail Slides

From: j...@kepler.unh.edu (Spectre)

I don't know if we've gotten much into rail-slides, so I thought I
would be the one to bring it up.

For those who don't know rail-slides, they are sliding sideways along
a railing. They aren't the easiest things, unless you take off one of
your wheels. If you take the 3rd back (of the 4) out, and at least put
the axle back in for support on your frame. A lot of people have
teflon or other plates designed to go in place of the wheel so you
slide on the plate rather than the frame.

I was working on stair bashing this weekend and got a bit bored, so I
started doing rail-slides on the railings instead.

Jump up on the railing (You can stay the direction you are going, but
I like to do a 180 on the way up so I'm facing the way I'm gonna fall
:) With the wheel removed, you want to land on the gap, where the
wheel was, then you simply (Not quite :) just let your feet slide
along the railing down the stairs.

Best way to practice, find something like a railing that is about 3-12
inches off the ground, skate up, land on it, and slide as much as you
can. I don't recommend that you try it right off the bat going down a
stairway, since the sensation of sliding backwards is REALLY strange.
The skate park that I practice at has 2 railings that are about 6
inches off the ground. One is a railing that was taking off of a wall,
and the other is just a 3 inch diameter pipe that is placed on some
wood so that the pipe sits in the wood structure with 1/2 above the
wood.

_________________________________________________________________

Slalom

From: Jim Aites (j...@hpsmpk.lvld.hp.com)

I enjoy slaloming and will make a stab at introducing others to it.
Critique and alternate ideas are invited.

Slalom (Note: one of the most misspelled words known to mankind)

The movement known as a 'slalom' is normally applied to the art of
dodging in and around a series of obstacles. Being pulled by a
ski-boat or weaving thru the poles on a ski slope are two well known
examples. This discussion will try to address some of the joys and
techniques used when affecting this move on in-line skates.

There is both a natural 'swing' and a physical 'compression' that come
into play while doing a slalom. The 'swing' is durn near natural, but
by understanding and making proper use of the 'compression' it is
possible to use this technique to slow your speed, maintain, or even
increase it.

Note: Although the slalom can be accomplished in a stylish manner by
almost any skater, the ability to use the technique to slow down
should not be considered a replacement for any of the more standard
braking methods. Also, I believe that serious slaloming is well within
the scope of the intermediate skater. Although novice skaters have
more important things to learn before slaloming...like stopping...I
feel that is is something that any skater can/should do.

Before trying to address the mode used to change your speed, let's
talk about the simplicity of the move while coasting or going down a
very slight grade.

Basics:
The slalom movement is based on the transfer of weight during a
continuous series of serpentine turns. This linking of alternating
turns can be a slow-and-easy movement, or it can be as fast as skiing
a tight mogul field.

Although there is a 'classic' position for doing a slalom (crouched
with knees and feet together), it may be done with feet in an open
placement or even in the water-skiing (one foot in front) position.
The most important thing to keep in mind is your ability to handle
your steering and speed.

Generally speaking, a couple of standard down-hill skiing suggestions
come to mind. The most reasonable of these is the idea of keeping your
shoulders and head facing straight down the hill (or direction of
travel). Your upper body can provide added stability and leverage to
manage the slalom movement itself. Giving yourself this extra
stability will help a lot in avoiding an 'over-rotation' which happens
when you just ride the turn, and then try to go the other way...only
to find that your momentum wants to carry you around even further!

Steering:
I mention this first because it is critical that you be able to steer
your skates without lifting them. As a point in fact, you will not be
able to do a free swinging one-footed slalom without mastering this
type of steering in one form or another. The following is a basic
practice move suitable for anyone, including novices.

One-footed slalom: (suggested method - author)

One of the simplest moves and most important ideas in skating (imho)
is the ability to do small slalom movements while on one foot.
Steering with one foot is basic for doing stable cross-overs,
free-style, surviving a one-footed recovery, or...doing slaloms.

While moving at a slow glide on one foot, simply shift your weight
comfortably onto your heel. Hey, easy there! Just lift your toes a
bit. No need to try heel-walking yet! Now, simply use your body and/or
free leg to help point your toes in the direction you want to go.
Weave.

Note: I know I said one-footed, but I meant either foot. Practice
both! This is easy, my 7 year old does it. She found that she needed
to practice it to help her do controlled T-stops.

The basics of slaloming hinge on your ability to steer in some manner
similar to this. PLEASE TAKE NOTE!

Safety thought:
The 'feet side-by-side' stance used often in slaloming is probably one
of the more dangerous (from a front-to-back balance perspective)
things about it. The one-foot forward water-skiing stance makes a
great deal of sense when moving between smooth/rough pavement. In
either event, beware sand and water! It is also suggested that your
first attempts at slowing while going downhill be done on a wide road
with no traffic. (nice grassy shoulders next to the road might be a
good idea as well) If you find yourself picking up speed instead of
slowing down, just continue a turn till you are coasting back up the
hill.

Changing speeds: (This is where it gets interesting.)
In the process of 'carving' a turn (with both feet), you will find
that there is a point of compression. Adding pressure before the
furthest swing of each turn will increase (or help maintain) your
speed. Letting yourself 'give' just after the point will slow you
down. (if this reminds you of changing speeds while on a child's swing
then you might have the idea ;')

When going down a hill, simply doing a slalom is not a sure way to
slow you down. It will probably keep you from going as fast as a
straight run, but that doesn't mean that you won't pick up enough
speed to lose control. Making your turns wider or 'deeper' will help
shed more speed because you are spending more time going diagonal or
crossing than heading down the fall-line. It is important that you
find the give-point (after compression) and learn to take full
advantage of it.

While practicing your slaloms, you may be tempted to try 'shreading'
some of your speed during each turn by unweighting the outside foot
and then shoving your heel outward with a bit of extra force. This can
help in slowing, but it is awkward and dangerous in execution. There
is a tendency for the heel to 'catch'. Fair warning!

Other pseudo-slalom moves:
* Linked cross-overs with a slalom type one-footed glide.
* Outside leans...use the opposing foot. (counter-intuitive...looks
great!)
* Catch the give-point of the compression, and use it for a 'spring'
type action. Care to try 'popping' a 360' in the middle of a hill?

Just for fun:
After you've proven to yourself that you can maintain or increase your
speed by pumping a slalom, try heading up a narrow sidewalk. Amaze
your friends or passing motorists.

From pbr...@math.berkeley.edu
Date: Sat Sep 4 19:47:25 1993

I have a few comments to add. My skating is currently cross-training
for veldrome racing (bicycles), but I also have experience racing
slalom and GS.

One of the things that you leave out is the necessity of keeping one's
weight forward. That is, imho, the main use of poles in skiing. The
pole shouldn't be planted next to you; it needs to be planted in front
of you. To maintain control in a slalom and use the "swing" properly,
your weight needs to be forward. My suggestion for practice is skating
by carving turns with alternate feet. The more you flex your boot, the
more your rear wheels drag, and the more speed you lose on each turn.

To practice pole planting, sit in a chair. Sit forward a little, and
move your feet back some, keeping your feet flat on the floor. Now,
reach out with your hand and lean forward. See how that feels? Now try
it on skis at 50 mph...

From: Hank Hughes (thi...@ccs.neu.edu)

Jim Aites (j...@hpsmpk.lvld.hp.com) wrote:

Note: I know I said one-footed, but I meant either foot. Practice
both! This is easy, my 7 year old does it. She found that she
needed to practice it to help her do controlled T-stops.

The basics of slaloming hinge on your ability to steer in some
manner similar to this. PLEASE TAKE NOTE!

Very true ... but

Another approach may be too shift the weight forward (onto the ball of
your foot). Start on a patch of grass/carpet with your feet in a
v-stance. Then lunge like a classic fencing champion by mimicking a
stroke, but keep the weight on the balls of your feet. You're more
nimble with the weight on the balls of your feet. Then lift the
trailing leg slowly.

Concentrating on the final stance:

With a lot of flex into the tongue of boot and knee, try to drop a
perpendicular from behind the support leg's knee down to the space
between the 1st & 2nd wheel. Basically, if you look down you should
not be able to see your foot because your knee is in the way. To
balance, press on your outside toes to turn in, or press on your
inside `BIG' toe to turn out

In motion:

To steer, point your knee into the direction you wish to turn. This
rolls your ankle & center edge into the appropriate inide/outside
edge. Now you can grind through turns (& hear the whoosh from breaking
traction).

From: Robert Schmunk (pc...@nasagiss.giss.nasa.gov)
Written: November 28, 1994
Revised: January 25, 1995

Having become a regular at the New York City's Central Park slalom
course, I guess I'm qualified to throw in some comments on the topic:

The Course:
The slalom course lies in the recreational lane of the Central Park
loop, between Tavern on the Green and the Sheep Meadow. The finish
line for the New York City Marathon passes through the center of the
course. Due to its location, the course has a good slope and you don't
have to get up much speed before you start down. Depending on the
trick, the slope sometimes means that you have to "slalom faster" near
the bottom of the course. The course also has a slight curve to the
right.

Usually, the slalom course is a series of 27 cones, but the length has
varied on occasion. When the National Slalom Championship was held
here in October 1994, the course was 30 cones long. I've heard that in
other towns, slalom courses are sometimes only about 15 cones long,
but my guess is that future competitions will use lengths closer to 30
because it provides more opportunity for video-genic combination
stunts.

Cones are placed on a line of dots spray-painted at six-foot
intervals, which was recently confirmed by laying a 5'10" skater
between dots and finding a bit of clearance at each end. Really hot
slalom skaters sometimes use an alternate set of dots that are spaced
at two-thirds of the spacing on the main course, or 4 feet. However,
I've never seen them do a perfect run longer than 16 cones on the
alternate course.

The cone themselves are 8 inches tall and made out of orange plastic.
When the Central Park slalom course is not open (it's monitored by
members of the New York Road Skaters Association, and while it's
almost always open from noon to sundown on clear weekends and
holidays, there's no set schedule that specifies who's in charge),
I've seen desperate cone skaters rummage for pop cans or paper cups
and use them for cones, perhaps filling them with water to keep them
from blowing away. However, the height of regular cones can be
disconcerting if you've practiced a lot using pop cans, so if you're
serious about slalom skating and think you may want to compete some
day, get some real cones.

The Tricks:
One amazing thing about learning to slalom skate is that everybody's
interests diverge after the first trick or two, and if you stick at it
a couple months, you may be doing tricks that the pros (or at least
the supposed experts) are afraid to learn. For example, I'm pretty
proficient at sideways skating and am just beginning to learn
backwards maneuvers, but I know people who have slalom skated longer
than I and who are in exactly the opposite situation.

One last comment before introducing types of tricks: You'll likely be
wasting your time if you make your first attempt at many of these
tricks on a real slalom course. For example, if you can't maintain
your balance on one skate for ten seconds as you skate down a smooth
empty street, you're not going to be able to do a forward one-foot. If
you haven't slalomed before, you probably ought to make your first
attempts somewhere where there are no cones in the way.

Dividing into categories, there are:

* Forwards tricks:
+ Parallel: The first trick all slalom skaters learn, and you
don't need a set of cones to do so. Just place your feet next
to each other, with one leading by perhaps an inch or so, and
alternate which one is leading, thus introducing a serpentine
motion into the line of your path. The posture for the rest
of the body is very much like that used by downhill skiers,
and whenever a newbie me asks how to do a parallel, the first
thing I ask is "Do you ski?" Some other tips: 1) Remember
that ski instructors are always telling newbies to bend their
knees; 2) Keep your hands out but not up (i.e., below
shoulder level) and somewhat in front of your shoulders; and
3) On your first few tries, concentrate on a clean skate all
the way down the course and don't worry about skipping a cone
or three if it makes you feel safer. I also found that I got
the smoothest parallel if my knees were practically glued to
each other. I jettisoned my knee pads in order to attain
this, but you'll have to evaluate that safety decision for
yourself.
+ Monoline: Exactly what it sounds like. The skates form a
straight line, with the heel of one just ahead of the toe of
the other. This is a good next-step trick to learn after the
parallel.
A variant of the monoline which one frequently sees is
usually called a "telemark" due to its similarity to the
cross-country skiing posture. Basically, the trailing foot is
tilted so that only its toe wheel is touching the ground.
Usually the skater is crouched low to the ground, often with
one knee almost scraping asphalt.
+ One-foot: One of the first tricks attempted though not always
one of the first mastered, the one-foot brings out the
greatest variety in different approaches to doing it, all of
them valid. It's simply skating down the course with only one
foot on the ground, but the variety comes in when each skater
decides what to do with his extra foot. Some hold it out to
the side, some hold it behind, some in front. Some use the
extra foot like a rudder, some kick like a Rockette, and some
hold it dead still. Perhaps the coolest variant is the
"flying eagle", in which the extra foot is held behind you
and you get down in so low a crouch that its wheels may
actually be above your head. This is an extremely fast
maneuver, and if you're of short, stocky build, you'll look
like a bullet.
+ Criss-cross: Using a scissoring motion of the legs, you cause
your skates to pass each cone on opposite sides, with your
legs crossed at every other cone. To do this, you'll likely
need to cock your hips so that one foot is always ahead of
the other and so that your skates don't bump as you cross and
uncross your legs. If your leading foot also has a brake
mounted on the heel, I know from personal experience that
you'll need even a bit more clearance or you could trip
yourself, badly. Even though the criss-cross is one of the
first few tricks a slalom skater may learn, it seems to be
one which you always have to pay a lot of attention to what
you're doing, because when your legs are crossed, there's
little room for recovery if something goes wrong. I've banged
up my left knee pretty badly from this.
+ Alternating criss-cross: With this major variant, you
alternate which foot is in the lead. Thus, your right foot
crosses in front of the left, then you uncross, and then your
left crosses in front of your right. If done well, this is a
subtle trick, and spectators may think you're just doing a
vanilla criss-cross unless they're paying very close
attention.
+ Cutbacks (or crossback): This looks a bit like a criss-cross
(or maybe an alternating criss-cross), but the crossing
maneuver involves lifting one skate entirely off the ground
and swinging it around behind the other before putting it
back down.
* Sideways tricks:
+ Sidesurf: Like the monoline, the wheels of your skates form
an almost straight line and one follows the path of the
other, but in this case, the trailing skate is oriented so
that its toe is pointing from whence you came. Thus, your
body is in something of a spread-eagle position. A lot of new
sidesurfers use arm motion (sometimes almost violent) to get
their bodies to swing around the cones, but with some
practice, you can turn a sidesurf into a very graceful
maneuver which requires only a little movement by your leg
muscles.
+ Parallel (or compressed) sidesurf: Instead of the wheels all
being in a line, the skates are side-by-side but still
pointing in opposite directions. Your skates keep wanting to
drift apart into a regular sidesurf, so this can be difficult
to hold. I only know one or two people who can do it for 27
cones.
+ Independent: Again, skates are pointed in opposite
directions, and a scissoring motion is introduced so that the
skates pass the cones on opposite sides. I found the most
difficult part of doing an indy was getting my trailing skate
to come around, as my leg sometimes seemed to lock into one
position. Getting low to the ground, almost sitting on the
cones, seems to help. While the other sideways maneuvers
listed above can be done fairly gracefully, the independent
is almost always raw action. If you really push it, you can
actually accelerate quite rapidly, so that an indy becomes
one of the fastest slalom tricks there is.
+ Wave: Seemingly uses the same posture as the sidesurf, but
rather than follow a single line, the skates are spaced
fairly widely and pass each cone on opposite sides. I've also
heard it described by one practitioner as an "out-of-phase
independent", whatever that means. It's certainly easier to
watch than describe.
* Backwards tricks (essentially backwards versions of forwards
tricks):
+ Monoline: Perhaps the simplest travelling backwards trick.
Certainly the one I've most frequently seen.
+ One-foot: Again, the cool thing is the variety in what
skaters do with the foot that's off the ground, although
something that looks a bit like a frozen martial arts kick is
the most common.
+ Criss-cross: According to some skaters I've seen doing this,
it's easier to do than a forward criss-cross, because you
have to cock your hips anyway so that you can turn your head
to see where you're going. However, this presumes you know
how to skate backwards in the first place. I will admit,
though, that it seems safer to do a fast backwards
criss-cross than a forwards one.
+ Alternating criss-cross: I've only seen one skater who could
do this backwards.
+ Parallel: Also a very difficult trick to master, as I've only
seen a couple people who could do it. Others who try keep
slipping into a backwards monoline.
* One-wheel down tricks: There are numerous variants of the above
tricks in which both skates are on the ground but at least one has
been tilted so that just one of its wheels is actually touching
pavement.
+ Extended and double-extended tricks: The word "extended"
simply means doing one of the above tricks but with one of
your skates (almost always the leading skate) tilted so that
only its heel wheel is touching the ground. Thus, I've seen
an "extended alternating forward criss-cross", in which the
skater alternated which of her feet was crossing in front of
the other, but whichever was in front got tilted upwards as
soon as it started swinging around to the front. Some of the
extended maneuvers are surprisingly easy to learn if you have
removed the brake(s) from your skate(s); I was able to do a
perfect 27-cone extended sidesurf on only my third attempt
(of course, I'd known how to do a regular sidesurf for three
months by then).
With a "double-extended" sideways maneuver, both skates are
tilted so that only their heel wheels are on the ground. The
double-extended independent is extremely cool. There are
people who apparently can do a forward parallel with only the
two heel wheels on the ground, which I presume also counts as
a double-extended trick (note: in order to maintain
stability, the skates in a double-extended parallel are
usually spaced much more widely than in a simple parallel).
+ Heel-and-toe tricks: These are like double-extended tricks
but one foot has its toe wheel on the ground rather than the
heel wheel. They can be done forwards, backwards and
sideways. A very popular heel-and-toe trick is the forward
monoline, but it requires building up some strength in the
calf of the leading leg. Other heel-and-toe tricks I've seen
successfully done are the forward crisscross and the
sidesurf, plus an unsuccessful (but fun to watch) backwards
criss-cross.
+ Toe-and-toe tricks: Just like its sounds, only the toe wheels
of each skate are on the ground and rolling. The only
toe-and-toe tricks I've seen completed and/or attempted are a
forward parallel and a forward criss-cross.
* "Unclassifiable" tricks: Some tricks just don't fall very easily
into the classifications above. One I saw recently was a "half
Remy" (sp?), in which the skater was basically spiraling down the
slalom course, doing a 180-degree spin around each cone (this
implies that a full Remy involves a 360-degree spin around each
cone!). I got dizzy just watching. In any event, it wasn't really
a forwards maneuver or a backwards maneuver. I presume that there
are other tricks that can't be easily pigeon-holed.
* Ballistics: A ballistic trick is simply one of the above tricks
done at high speed. At the Central Park course this is done by
launching from about 100 feet from the first cone rather than the
usual 40. A ballistic flying eagle really hauls, and a ballistic
backwards combo is guaranteed to blow spectators away. Just make
sure that you have spotters watching to be sure that nobody
blunders into the course during your approach (this is a common
problem in Central Park).
* Grapevines: A "grapevine" is a slalom maneuver performed on a
positive slope. The most common such trick is a backwards
criss-cross, and some folks may refer to that specific trick as a
grapevine. Some sort of self propulsion is obviously necessary in
order to keep your speed from tapering off on the way uphill (like
in a Road Runner slo-mo shot), so the most frequent maneuver I've
seen done up a slope besides the backwards criss-cross is the
independent. However, I've managed to do an uphill sidesurf, and I
know skaters who claim to have done uphill one-foots. For all but
backwards criss-cross and perhaps the independent, efforts to keep
your momentum up will pretty much negate any "grace" factor seen
in the downhill counterparts of these tricks. A good way to
practice grapevines is to set up a flat slalom course, but make
sure that it's long enough that you're not just coasting through
on your initial momentum; if you can accelerate through a flat
slalom course, you're ready to try an uphill course. Also, I know
from personal experience that equipment can play a large roll in a
successful grapevine, as I went in one day from being almost
totally unable to do an uphill independent to being able to
consistently do a 27-cone course by just upgrading from Lightning
TRSes to Aeroblades, with their larger wheels and new bearings.
* Combos: A combination trick is simply that, a combination of
tricks done in a sequence. How many different tricks you attempt
to do in one run depends on how long your cone course is, and how
many cones you do with each trick. Very often combos are signature
moves; one NYC skater is known for a forward criss-cross down the
top half of the course, followed by a 180-jump into a backwards
criss-cross. Not all combos are that difficult (or impressive),
though, as I've found it fairly simple to slide from a sidesurf
into an independent. Better skaters may even disguise a bad slalom
run by converting a trick about to go awry into an easier trick.
* Pairs: There's pairs figure skating, so why can't there be pairs
slalom skating? A popular pairs maneuver is for the leading skater
to do a backwards criss-cross while the trailing skater does a
forward criss-cross (in fact, this is often done when the leading
skater is trying to learn how to do a backwards criss-cross).
There's a couple here in New York that has recently taken to doing
backwards combos while holding hands. Tres cool!

There are presumably many more maneuvers, or variants on the above,
but the problem is that the names for them may also be regionalized.
Even within one locale there may be more than name, especially if a
trick has a lot of variants (e.g., the flying eagle variant of the
forward one-foot), and a name based on a combination of the above
terms may have a special, fancy name. For example, I've heard a
backwards monoline called a "rattlesnake" and a double-extended wave
(wow!) is a "tidal wave".

Also, there are some signature maneuvers that only the inventor seems
to know how to do and which are thus as yet un-named. I hope to add
some of them to the above list when I figure out what their performers
are doing.

_________________________________________________________________

-Tony Chen (adc...@cs.fsu.edu)

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