I'm a woman over 30 who is taking a recreational type skating class this fall... just the basics for beginners. Obviously I am not attempting a shot at the Olympics here Just going through my second childhood and giving my butt some exercise

I need to buy figure skates. Would department store skates be fine for someone like me who will not be jumping or doing more than waddling around? The articles about buying skates that I've read seem to be down on cheap skates (cheapskates?) but perhaps those articles are written for more serious skaters? I would feel actually a bit stupid showing up with expensive and/or really good skates, if you know what I mean, not to mention I can't afford it.

If I look for something inexpensive/used, is there a particular skate feature I should look for or avoid? Certain materials or construction? Thanks for any help you folks could offer.

Definitely don't go buy department store skates. The boots have no support whatsoever, and support in the ankles is very important, especially for a beginner.

I would go to the rink you'll be taking lessons at and check out their rental skates. If they're leather, you could use rentals for a couple of lessons and then buy good skates once you're sure you're going to stick with it. That way, you can also ask your instructor where you should go to be fitted properly and sold an appropriate pair. If they have the plastic rentals, don't bother with them. The plastic boots are super uncomfortable. Ask some of the advanced skaters or a coach where they would suggest you go to be fitted for skates. The fitting is the important part, and a good fitter will take into consideration your experience level, height, weight, etc. when recommending a brand and model for you. Get recommendations though, because some pro shops just let the hockey guys do this and they often don't know what they're talking about, especially when it comes to fitting them properly.

One more thing- when you skate, you'll want to wear very thin socks or ballet-type tights in your skates. Be sure to wear whatever you plan to wear to skate when you're fitted.

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Shae-Lynn and Victor: We knew you were champions, and on 3/28/03 the whole WORLD found out! Thank you for twelve wonderful years!

One note on REntals in Canada. don't use them. They have no support.

You can either buy hockey skates or go to a figure skating proshop and buy a pair of low end figure skates. They shouldn't cost more that $125 for the boot and blade together. Make sure that the boot is the right type for your foot. You might want to check skates online at http://www.fs4christ.com and click on Figure Skaters' Market. I have many brand name stores and also some skating shops too. Get an education online before heading to the physical skating shop. You don't want to be sold a bill of goods.

Brigitte

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"It's not age that determines but the heart." "Skating is not just a sport for the young but it's a passion for the soul of the young at heart." Brigitte Laskowski

I am a nomadic adult skater who is a member of Windsor FSC (Skate Windsor) WOS SC again since Sept. 1st, 2008.

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Thanks very much for the advice. I am in Canada so that's helpful. I won't need the skates until next month so I have a bit of time to research before I go shopping.

I have quite wide feet which was always a problem with skates when I was young... seems they are all made so narrow...

Having the right skates is so important.

I'd like to share a story -- my son plays in a house hockey league and they had evaluation skates this weekend. Well there were two boys in his group that were obviously beginners - and the poor boys (probably 7 years old) were also obviously in skates that are too big for them. Their ankles were flopping to the inside...nobody can skate like that. I felt so bad for those boys because they may end up saying for the rest of their lives that they can't skate when it was really their equipment that was the problem, not necessarily their skating abilities.

So - I'd advise that you ask other skaters for a good skate fitter and find a pair of skates that are good for you. Good beginner skates don't cost all that much (around $125 for boots and blades). The alternative is to look for a used skate sale at a local club. You can get some good deals there. For example, I have a pair of barely broken in Reidells that I want to sell, and I will offer them for sale at our next club sale. People sell them for many reasons, not just because they are old. In my case, they were fit incorrectly (my fault, not the fitters, long story) and as soon as I got them broken in they got too big for my heel - they're in great shape.

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"The only place where success comes before work is in a dictionary." -- Vidal Sasson

"Never give up on a dream just because of the time it will take to accomplish it. The time will pass anyway." -- Unknown

As a kid I had horrible skates, all of us did and we treated them terribly. When I was a young adult I met someone on a temp job who was temping because it worked with her skating, still trying to get her gold dances. She encouraged me to spend the money for real skates and I did, I had no idea what I was getting but they fit well and cost a lot, but still a pittance compared to my friend's skates. I finally retired them last year as they were broken down, and have gotten a new "lifetime" pair which are breaking me in.

My point and I shall get to it, is that even if you are a recreational adult who might skate 10 times a year (and that's a lot for a weekend exercise skater) it is worth it to get real skates because you're now old enough to take care of them, and they will last a long time. If you are able to get a good pair of used skates, and fitted by a professional, all the better. If not, buy new ones, and if in the end if skating doesn't end up being a lifetime activity, you can always sell them and get some money for them. I can't say the same of Canadian Tire skates.

This goes for hockey or figure skates. There's skate fitters for hockey too, and they're all heat molded with disposible blades and can make figure skates look inexpensive!

P.S. I don't jump either and I'm blocking the image of myself waddling around which could be truth, but it's so nice to have skates with real edges, even if all I do is a dutch waltz.

Since you have wide feet, you probably should not even consider Riedells, which run narrow. Jackson (available in Canada) and they makes some very good entry level boot/blade outfits that are wide in the ball and heat moldable for fit.

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Another manufacturer that makes entry level skates with blades attached is Risport

I've skated in Risports (Laser, SuperCristallo, RF3Super) all my skating life, so I wouldn't know any better about brands. But I do have a wide flipper-like foot from heel to toe and they work for me.

Something suitable would be the RF4 or the etoile under the collection "Classic".

The best bet is to get yourself fitted for a good entry-level boot - everybody's feet are different, and we all like different makes of skate! Ask at the rink where you plan to take lessons, and they will tell you where to go to buy your skates (this may even be at the rink itself - many rinks have a shop attached).

Buy figure skates, don't let yourself be talked into hockey skates unless you really want to play hockey! You may think now that you won't ever want to jump (yeah, right, we all said that!), but you might easily want to dance, which you can do from a pretty early stage, and hockey skates really don't do it!

I do hope you learn to love this sport as much as so many of us who started as adults have done. Which sentence probably doesn't make sense, but you appreciate the sentiment, I'm sure.

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Mrs Redboots
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I love my computer because my friends live in it!
Ice dancers have lovely big curves!

I'd like to second the advice about trying Jacksons. They're shaped nicely for wider feet and have some excellent low-end models. Avoid Riedell, which many pro shops try to push on you. They're notoriously narrow!

Good luck and welcome to all the fun.

Welcome to Rinkside, Keely!

I agree with everyone's advice: get the best skate you can afford. It's completely worth it! I started skating in rentals and couldn't glide on one foot to save my life. I struggled through my first learn-to-skate class that way and then purchased a pair of skates between that class and the next (where I learned forward crossovers). Boy, could I tell the difference! I went from really struggling to hold a one-foot glide for six feet to gliding across the short axis of the rink on one foot with litle effort.

It's all about support -- if you don't feel supported, you won't feel stable and therefore won't skate as well as you could have.

Good luck buying skates and check in with us to let us know how you're doing! When I was just starting out, I got tons of advice and encouragement here. I still do!

Thanks a ton everyone. There is indeed a pro shop at the rink -- or so I hear -- but I wasn't sure if they were more pricey than an outside place. But I'll have a look. I can spend about $200 Canadian, which isn't a lot but sounds like I can get something decent. I might have to buy a hockey helmet too since they're mandatory for anyone who can't stop. I can't remember if I can stop or not. Hmmm....

Appreciate the advice for wide feet... blurrysarah, "flippers" are exactly what I have flat triangles! Will probably not spend a lot of time trying Riedells if they are narrow. I suppose if there is some kind of fitter at the shop who measures my feet they should have some idea where to start... right?

I am determined to get figure skates rather than hockey skates. Eventually... way, way, way in the future... I haven't ruled out doing a bunny hop or other acrobatics some day rather than slapshots on goal

I started at age 31 and bought Jackson's. They were on sale at the rink shop and were a little less than $100. This was four years ago. I only skate about 10 times a year, but I still have my Jackson's and have been very happy with them.

Keely,I know you said you live in Canada but where in Canada if you don't mind me asking?

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beks~
"winning isn't everything... wanting to is."

" the only place where success comes before work is in a dictionary"

"It’s not necessarily the amount of time you spend at pracitce that counts; it's what you put into the practice."

Mississauga Ont.

Ditto. I started in Riedells before getting switched to Risport Super Diamantes when I was on my Bronze Dance. I briefly went to Harlick, but I came back to the Risports, and I doubt I'll ever wear anything else.

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Shae-Lynn and Victor: We knew you were champions, and on 3/28/03 the whole WORLD found out! Thank you for twelve wonderful years!

The other day I tried on a Riedell (supposedly my size), and my foot was squashed in all directions. The ankle of the boot was so splayed from my foot I couldn't lace them up.
I don't know if that was the enormous amount of ankle gel padding or what, but they were so painful I couldn't stand up in them much less think about skating.

So now I have to add huge ankle bones to my list of foot deformities as well...along with the wide heel and toe, high arches...etc.

I'm another "old beginner," and adding to all the good things people have already said, I can say that getting a good pair of skates instead of struggling with the rentals made all the difference to me. I could never get the same rental pair, and each lesson I was trying to compensate for a different set of problems rather than being free to concentrate on what I was being taught. Good equipment is a must! and my beginner's Riedells weren't that expensive.

Other skaters here also suggested Bunga gel pads, which really save my ankle bones from friction, bruising, and bleeding (the rental skates caused that last one!).

Hope you find the right pair of skates and have fun at your lessons!

(Off the topic a bit -- I'm a "Canadian born abroad" and have cousins in Mississauga. )

Eeech...just on the subject of bleeding, I know someone who took her father skating with her one session. He used a pair of rentals, couldn't get comfortable in them. Come time to go home, he took off the boot and found himself bleeding from a large (and incorrect) screw that had poked through the sole.
I don't even want to think about the possible diseases you could get from that.

Er... For some reason I'm no longer very interested in rentals...

Seriously, all the advice is very much appreciated. Sometimes the internet is an amazing thing. I don't know any skaters in "real life," let alone my age (39ish) and thanks to cyberspace I have probably already avoided at least 10 mistakes I would otherwise have made starting this hobby. So thanks everybody.