The thread on New Blades, and my problems with three turns and spins got me thinking once again that I may benefit from a bigger rocker. I'm on Coronation Aces now, with a 7' rocker, but I have a pair of Coronation Comets (8.5' rocker) that I've been wanting to try. If hubby can find them, I am going to use them tomorrow, when the only skating I do is coaching tots followed by skating on an empty public session, and then coaching first graders later. I also have daughter's first pair of Gold Seals (8' rocker) that I could try if the Comets feel too flat for me.

I'm interested in any experiences you have had with a move from a smaller rocker to a larger one.

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I switched from Aces' to comets but it was quite a while ago so I don't have any specific stories to share... however I do remember feeling WAY better in the comets. I felt like it was easier to hit the sweet spot when spinning and I felt like I was standing better with more support... all just from changing the blades. Part of the problem with my aces had been that I felt like i was sliding and I gripped the ice better with comets.

They felt really weird/different at the begining of my first session but I got used to them quickly and by the end of my 2nd session that day I was comfortable in them and could perform all my elements.

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I went from 6.5" (Wilson Excels) to 7" (MK Pros) and spinning is where I noticed the most difference. Other than that, not much difference for me in terms of edge control.

Also, don't under estimate the powers of getting your blades realigned. That alone made the difference for me!

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jazzpants

11-04-2006: Shredded "Pre-Bronze FS for Life" Club Membership card!!!
Silver Moves is the next "Mission Impossible"
(Dare I try for Championship Adult Gold someday???)

Thank you for the support, you guys!!!

A year ago, I went from Coronation Ace (7") to Pattern 99 (8"). I had been using the Aces for about 5 years.
I have always had problems with the back scratch and back camel. But with the Pattern 99s, these spins became easier. I guess there's more sweet spot for me to maneuver with. I also noticed that back 3-turns seemed simpler to do.
That said, I do miss the toe pick on the Aces--it was easier for me to do back pivots!

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Doubt whom you will, but never yourself.
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I was thinking about that too, yesterday. When stepping forward in the prelim power threes, I noticed that I seemed to go onto an inside edge on my R foot. I could feel the pressure on my arch, but it wasn't visible to my coach. Could also just be me not having my weight in the right place.

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Okay, one way to tell -- go on a straight line and skate forward on two foot, then lift to one foot (your right in this case), keeping the hip as squared as you do on two foot. If you keep like you're quickly swerving to your left and on the inside edge, you may have a blade alignment problem. It should not be so easy to swerve over to the inside edge.

Just food for thought...

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Cheers,
jazzpants

11-04-2006: Shredded "Pre-Bronze FS for Life" Club Membership card!!!
Silver Moves is the next "Mission Impossible"
(Dare I try for Championship Adult Gold someday???)

Thank you for the support, you guys!!!

Just over a year ago, I went from MK Dance (which I had used for probably 15 years) and which has a 7 foot rocker, to Ultima Ascend (then the Ultima dance blade), which has an 8 foot rocker.

I have felt much more stable once I got used to the blades, since changing to the flatter blade. Note, however, that I am definitely chubby... so I think the flatter blade helped somewhat from that perspective.

I think the only way to do a direct comparison between a blade with a smaller (rounder) radius and a blade with a larger (flatter) radius is to compare two pairs of new blades. Most blade rockers get a little flattened out after repeated sharpenings, so a 7' rocker will behave like a blade with an 8' rocker (or even flatter) after a few years. But on the bright side, that is probably why people tend to spin better on new blades even when they have a bigger radius than their previous blades!

that's a good experiment. I was actually having a problem because i kept going into a right inside edge on my new skates. I could not go in a straight line on one foot. I was planning on going to the pro shop on friday to have it fixed. Does it usually take a while before you get the blade aligned properly anyhow? (as in, continuosly going back and forth)

Depends on the skater and the pro shop. It usually takes me forever to get a blade aligned properly, but I'm a freak with a pelvis and hip that used to torque. Now that I have the biomechanical problem stabilized, I still find it takes me a couple of adjustments to get it just right.

I will also add that if you are able to get someone who can do the alignment right at the rink itself, it speeds things up considerably... (i.e. you don't leave the ice or the blade guy, until you are happy with it.) Also, make sure your coach is there, so they could determine whether it's the blade alignment or whether it's (as the blade guy says...) "a coach's thing."

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Cheers,
jazzpants

11-04-2006: Shredded "Pre-Bronze FS for Life" Club Membership card!!!
Silver Moves is the next "Mission Impossible"
(Dare I try for Championship Adult Gold someday???)

Thank you for the support, you guys!!!

well, the pro shop is located at a rink, but the admission for the session is sooo expensive (something like $14, when I'm used to paying $4) If I'm lucky, the skate guy can let me in, but it would depend on who is working. Also, I don't have a coach yet (my lessons start again in January). But i skated a lot when i was younger, so i can kinda feel when things are off. Any chance i'd get lucky and he'll get it right the first time?

Yeah, I know... but the cost of lost skating time plus traveling repeatedly and the hassle factor is worth the cost of admission to the session...

Of course, I should add that I didn't have a coach at the session when I got my blade realigned. But my skate guy is a "really good" ice dancer too, so he was a reasonable substitute for my coach.

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Cheers,
jazzpants

11-04-2006: Shredded "Pre-Bronze FS for Life" Club Membership card!!!
Silver Moves is the next "Mission Impossible"
(Dare I try for Championship Adult Gold someday???)

Thank you for the support, you guys!!!

Maybe I've just been lucky, but not once, in my entire life, have I had trouble with blade alignment. Nor have any of my other skater-friends. I've been skating for 18 years. I'm just sort of fascinated with all these blade troubles...

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~No thinking, breathing, or hesitation!~

people who pay attention to the slight difference in their blade alignments are usually those who are serious about their skating. u have been skating for 18 years and I do not believe you at all.
I can't believe that u can have a blade screwed onto ur skate without alignment and it can be perfect. are ur boots magic?

Not to my knowledge. Do you have facts to back that up, or is it just your opinion based on your how many years of experience?

We play nice here. If you want to be insulting, I'm sure there are many other places where that would be welcome. I'm not a moderator, but I did start this thread and do not care to have it deteriorate like this.

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Fascinating... I'm curious -- when you get fitted for your skates, did you try out the skates right at the rink and they make blade adjustments as you are trying on your boots and you don't leave until you're happy with your blade and boot? If so, that would explain it!

Otherwise, you likely to be a very lucky skater!!!

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Cheers,
jazzpants

11-04-2006: Shredded "Pre-Bronze FS for Life" Club Membership card!!!
Silver Moves is the next "Mission Impossible"
(Dare I try for Championship Adult Gold someday???)

Thank you for the support, you guys!!!

One tyype of blades I would not reccomend if you are a dancer is the new parabolic blades. I'm a precicission skater whois half way through my dance tests. I am not great at jumps but I have always been able to twizzle well. The new parabolic blades are great for speed and edges but they change your center of gravity and twizzles and footwork is much harder

Add me to the list of those who have never needed their blades adjusted. When I got my present blades (which are nearly dead, alas.....), I got the fitter to attach them for me. Then I asked my coach to check the alignment - he told me to skate on one foot in a straight line (i.e. on a flat), which I duly did, on both feet, said they were fine, and told me to get on and get used to them!

Having said that, a friend who is also a coach, although he does not teach at our rink, was having great problems with the alignment of his new (actually I think 2nd-hand, but still good) boots and blades.... He knew something was "off", as he couldn't hold is outside edges; I think he's sorted them now.

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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!

My daughter has never had problems with the alignment of her blades until the present pair. She is a senior level dancer and just switched to parabolic blades. She too can no longer twizzle. She has the blades alighned several times but just cant seem to get her twizzles back. I think we will be putting her old blades back on until we can buy another set of non-parabolic blades.

You can also look at the bottom of an old pair of shoes that you've worn for awhile and see how the soles are worn down. If the inside is worn, then you pronate, which means you put more pressure towards the arch. If they are worn on the outside, then you supinate, which means you walk more on the outside of your foot. If you pronate, you can move the blade a little to the inside so your weight is more centered over the blade. I am a little bow legged and supinate, so I have had to move the blades severely to the outside (it's almost comical). After going around in circles with my coach, I finally started mounting the blades myself!
Good luck and stand your ground!
Becca

i guess you have magic feet. my ankle is majorly screwed up, so i always pronate. Actually, if i hold my right foot out straight, it my ankle actually bends inward almost 90 degrees. So getting skates, or just any pair of shoes, tends to be a problem for me, so i'm not surprised that i need to get blade adjustments.

I think I'm lucky in that the person who fits my boots really does know what he's doing. He can look inside your boots for a few minutes, suck his teeth, and see exactly what the problem is, and deal with it! So I expect him to get my blades right first time!

Suiyan, one of the dance coaches at my rink tried parabolic blades and loathed them - couldn't wait to switch back to regular ones!

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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 have always pronated, but I never felt that it was a problem in my Klingbeils before now. Today after teaching the tot, I tested the alignment as Jazzpants suggested (thank you, Jazzpants!) and found that I fell to the inside on both feet. My boots have also been feeling pretty loose on my feet, but if I lace them up too tight I have pain. I had the opportunity to ask our skating director about it today and she said the blades could have shifted. I think if I have a little blade shift coupled with the boots loosening up, that could be my problem. I also had another thought about it today, which is that I was doing FO threes with ease right before I broke my wrist. At that time, I was dieting and did Nordic Track while off ice to keep the weight loss going. By the time I got back on the ice, I had lost another 15 pounds. Maybe my boots have been not quite right for my feet since then. Anyway, today I switched to the Coronation Comets and added an insulating foam insole. I had to cut the front part of the foam because there was not enough toe room, but the boots feel snug without being laced too tightly. I'm teaching a beginners class in about an hour, so I will have a chance to check out the changes then.

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I had to get new boots after a loss of about 15 pounds. My heels were sliding in my previously snug-fitting boots. Since then, I've lost another 20 or so, but haven't had the same problems. It sounds funny to tell people that I lost weight in my feet, of all places. It's worth checking into. I hope to not buy more skates until I start working on the doubles my coach (who is taking serious drugs and not sharing) claims I will do in the future.