Ok, I am looking for a way to practice skills away from the ice. I am looking into PIC inline skates and they look great, but my question is, if I practice things like turns, spins, beginning jumps and edges with them, will I learn bad habits? Or are they enough like ice skates that I can tranfer from one to the other easily?

Also, I found online info on synthetic ice - its the stuff they use for ice shows, etc. I never knew this existed and apparently it can be used in any temp and they even sell small ones for in home use (a bit pricey but supposed to last 5-10 years and if you figure in ice time costs its pretty affordable). Has anyone ever skated on this stuff? Is it just like ice? Can you REALLY put it in your basement/garage and skate?

Im so excited - have my 1st privates next week!

I have skated on small exhibitions on the plastic ice. It took me a little bit of time to get used to. Like on crossovers, you can't bend fully and stroke like you would on the ice. You will slip off I did plenty of times, esp. if you are skating in full speed. Jumps wise you can do everything. Spins as well. You will see Blades have to be extremely sharp when you skate on plastic. Watch it get dull easily. Make sure you sharpen them before stepping on real ice.

If I had the plastic ice, I just see myself holding back everytime I would practice on it. Because you will feel hesistant on almost every move you make.

__________________
Tim David's Website

yeah - i figured something was wrong w it...cause it seemed like such a great way to practice i was wondering why more people didnt do it haha

Synthetic ice is quite common in hockey to practice shooting.

Skating on pic skates will only make your posture worse esp. on technical elements.

I had the "pleasure" on skating on them. Everything is muscled. From crossovers to jumps. And when you go back on the ice, you will look a like a hockey player trying to do jumps. It took me a long time to get my posture and flow back.

So nay, as well for pic skates

__________________
Tim David's Website

Hmmmmm......interesting opinion TimD...... I am a picskate user and I do not agree at all. Yes there are differences in the technique but the posture is the same.

I skate on picskates once a week mostly for jumps and it has not hurt my speed or flow (those who have seen me skate can attest) I think it is a good way to practice jumps(if you have a national champ roller coach as I do) I dont think my jumps are suffering(again...those that know me..know my jumps).

Consistant practice and great coaching are the key to both. Don't snub your nose at something just because it is different!

As far as jumps go...I find if I can do it on pic-skates...then it is much easier on the ice! Beleive it or not I find I have to be in BETTER body position to jump on picskates. You CAN'T cheat on picskates.....ice will give and blades will grab.....wheels dont go sideways and wood floors dont give!

__________________
Why are you skating so slowly? Get out of my way!

If you skate faster, it makes everything look better!

um ok, relax. Like you said its just an opinion.

Everybody will have a different experience, Im sure.

When I was wearing pic-skates, my experience, I was falling all over the ice. On single jumps!!! It was frustrating!!! (From the way I would take off to the landing part, my timing was a mess) From then on I developed a bad habbit on tucking my free leg when I am in the air.
Good for you if you havent developed that habbit on the ice.

Again, good for you for having a national roller coach.

Im sure your aware that no matter good of a coach one might have, its the drive that one should have. (And I know you do have that drive, so I am not saying otherwise)


I'm not trying to be negative, just sharing my experiences. Isn't that the point of this forum/board? So there

__________________
Tim David's Website

I've just started my second season on Pic skates. Last year I had only figure skated for 4 months and then went to Pics at ice out. When I returned to the ice last fall, my posture had improved. All the muscle groups needed were still all toned-up.

I still like ice a lot more. But in it's absence this will do just fine.

I'm chicken on my jump landings. The wheels don't grab and hold the way an edge can. Nevertheless, I'm working on jumps.

I have an even harder time spinning. Spinning on the front wheel is farther forward than the sweet spot on my ice blades. I've managed a two-footed spin of maybe 3 revolutions, but that's it.

I wouldn't switch between Pics and ice blades if I had ice always available.

But on the other hand, I do switch between Pics and fitness inlines every other day. Pics are really slow (small wheels), much slower than figure skates. BTW, your timing has to account for that.

Fitness inlines are great if you want an aerobic workout. I know,,,,ick! Lap skating! But I find that I can toggle back and forth between figure skating posture and speed skating posture. 20 cw laps followed by 20 ccw laps doing about 15 mph gets the heart rate up.

People I see at the arena can't figure it out at first....one day figure inline skating, the next day distance cruising. The hockey inline skaters can't keep up with me when I'm lap skating. But to be fair, they do change directions more abruptly than I care to try.

It takes me 4 or 5 sessions before I feel transitioned between ice blades and wheels.

OK, I'm rambling on.

Jon

PS, here are a few shots of my Pic skates. A couple of the shots show the rocker quite well.
http://www.sendpix.com/albums/06042206/54512v7zys/

I'll try and get a video this summer and post it.

I also found Pics slower, but once I got back on the ice, I could really fly. It was amazing. I liked Pics for stroking, xovers, MITF skills. I also used to quad skate for distance and quad roller dance. Might go back to it. Ice time has been so scarce lately.

Kay

__________________
Visit my figure skating journal
http://www.skatejournal.com/

I know from your previous posts in other threads that you are a good spinner on ice. Have you had success spinning on Pic skates?

If so, how about some pointers? The best I can do actually is completley the wrong technique on blades. For a CCW spin, I'll be on the front wheel of my left foot and the rear wheel of my right foot. Most of my weight is on my left foot. Trying to Get a one footed spin seems to place my weight way out at my toes and I don't feel stabile.

Thanks,

Jon

PS: My skating buddy & I are in a forever-competion for doing things on ice/wheels that the other can't. Our in-stock mock comment for observing such a skill is an emphatically stated "I HATE you!!". When she observed my spin on the Pics, no matter how lame, it was better than what she had (nothing). I got the desired "I hate you" comment and it made my day. We don't hand out such praise for trivialities!

None whatsoever. And yes, I am a very good ice spinner. However, this does not mean spinning is impossible on Pics. Just watch the coaches' vid available from the Picskate Co. There is also a web site of an adult Picskater in London in my links section. I think his name is Dave. He can do quite a few things on Pics.

IMO, I would have to devote the kind of time to Picskating that I did to ice when I was learning to achieve similar skill. However, I bought the Pics as a supplement, not a discipline in itself. I find them very good for basic stroking and dance skills. 3turns and such are much harder on Pics. Personally, I have had more luck on Pics in a roller rink on a wood floor. However, I did most of my Picskating on an outdoor roller hockey rink that is made of sealed blacktop, and is really smooth, but not like polished maple.

BTW, I could also spin really well on quad rollers as a kid. Don't do that anymore either b/c it is a separate discipline and I do not want to mess up my muscle memory. Dioubt I could do it right off anyway. Getting those quad skills back would require serious commitment. I did distance skate on quads and had a short stint a couple of yrs ago w/ roller dance lessons. Both were beneficial to my ice skating in terms of endurance, strength, and posture.

Whoever finds the secret to spinning on Pics, please post it here!

Kay

__________________
Visit my figure skating journal
http://www.skatejournal.com/

Found an artistic roller forum that I will watch for more Pic info. Seems to be current and active, unlike many of the roller forums I have found. So if you are interested, here's the URL.

http://www.askaboutskating.com/forum/viewforum.php?f=13

Kay

__________________
Visit my figure skating journal
http://www.skatejournal.com/

Kay,

Thanks for the URL.

You would laugh at our lunging attempts. We're on a plastic sports floor, but nevertheless the coeficient of friction is so high between the boot & the floor that we come to a stop fairly fast.

I'm going to lung a few more times to get a good wear patch on the leather. Then I'm going to epoxy a skid plate of teflon at the wear spots. I'm not going to tell Crystal: I just want to see her reaction when my lunge suddenly goes on forever.

Jon

Ok, our rink has melted and drained it's ice for the season. The synthetic surface has been installed. Unfortunately, it's only 20 x 40' but beggars musn't be choosers. I'm waiting for the skating director to let us know it's time for our first session on this synthetic surface. I'm sure it will be a hoot!

I think I will wear my old skates there-don't want to tear up my new ones!

When I've gone I will let you guys know how it went...might be a few more weeks tho'

__________________
Skate@Delaware
Ah, show skating!!! I do it for the glitter!

How hilarious! Lunging on anything but ice sounds like a great way to destroy a pair of boots, but I think you've found the solution. Keep us posted!

Kay

__________________
Visit my figure skating journal
http://www.skatejournal.com/

ah yes,, my skate buddy jon...
i bought a pair of pic skates two years ago and LOVE THEM!-especially on pavement,,, and no,, there is no cheating like you can get away with on ice. you can either do something,,, or you can't.
however, there ARE exceptions!! russiet is a good example of that.. kidding.... he took to spinning on those thing first try!! [ hate him. ] i myself love the traction you get on pavement,, but we have a plastic floor that is real tricky,,,my feet slip out ALOT.
i think you will appreciate the familiar posture in the sense that you'll be in a skate boot with a heel,,, not the generic 'inline' flat foot stance. that made alot of difference..... you'll 'hold' yourself as a figure skater.

Now how can I surprise you with my teflon lunge plates! And where were you today???

Jon

hey,, how's this for lunging?
set a skateboard off to the side,,, skate up next to it,, drop you 'lunging' foot ONTO it as you go by,,,[ arch down- like on ice] ha! try to hold THAT!
as for where i was,,,, i was out on pavement..[ us young folk don't need the plastic to cushion the crashes!! ]