Inline speed skating

[kayskate]

Even though there is a frozen pond in my neighborhood that I fully intend to try, I am thinking of summer. We have discussed inline, picskates, and quads a lot on the board. I have experience w/ quads and picskates. However, i am interested in road skating to xtrain w/jogging in the summer. I want to really push myself and am thinking speedskating. Also there are lots of schools w/ asphalt tracks in my area where I could add up the miles and time myself.

Here's the Q. Does anyone here do this? Any inline speedskaters in the grp? Please share your experiences. I am interested in the long 5wheel style b/c they supposedly are better for faster speeds. Plus they look super cool!

Kay
Who doesn't get much ice time these days.

[sunjoy]

W00T! You missed my post where I inadvertantly injected my speedskating views into a thread that was supposed to be about pic skates: http://www.skatingforums.com/showthread.php?p=304434#post304434

However, i am interested in road skating to xtrain w/jogging in the summer. I want to really push myself and am thinking speedskating. Also there are lots of schools w/ asphalt tracks in my area where I could add up the miles and time myself. If you are anything like me, at first, technique will be your barrier, and speedskating won't feel as arobically taxing as running. Hills and intervals are the answer.

Remember to round your back and shoulders, like a cat; keep them soft. Figureskaters, in particular, will find this strange, but trying to hold a nice straight or arched back while in-line skating will only lead to back fatigue that will make you stop way before either your legs or your heart get taxed.

I can recomend a few websites and books too:

Inline planet (http://inlineplanet.com/) (news, articles, tutorials on inline skating)
Inline planet forum (http://inlineplanet.com/forum/viewforum.php) (atmosphere is a lot like skatingforums "on-ice", but focused on inline speed. There is at least one other person there who figureskates in winter.)
Eddie Matzger's :bow: site (http://www.skatecentral.com/page13.html) (ton's of good stuff there, dig around)

Book: Speed on Skates, by Barry Publow.

Definitely ask around on the forums, or even better at your local speedskating club before buying boots and frames. Speedboots are probably even more finicky than figureboots, and you want to make a good choice. Many people are now buying '100s' (skates with 4x100mm wheels) rather than the older 5x80mm skates. They are smother, I'm told, on rough pavement. Most speedskates don't have a brake: some have aftermarket brakes. Gatorback skate (http://www.gatorbackskate.com/) sells speedskates with brakes, as well as the "gatorleash" which is supposed to help a lot.

It's a pack sport. Whether or not you ever want to race, training once-a-week or so in a pack has great advantages. You draft good skaters, and by drafting, you automatically emulate their technique. Speed clubs usually get together a few times during the week and have pacelines that you can join (for free). During the winter season, many will skate indoors at roller-rinks, and generally you would pay for that, but it's more formal and there will be a coach.

I'd take a few lessons too: usually you can make an informal arrangement with a coach or one of the good skaters from the speedclub, without commiting to long-term coaching. Tell them you can figure-skate, but want to learn proper technique for speedskating -- they'll love you fore it! :) Ask about the double-push (http://www.nettracing.com/pict/inst/step9.htm), too (think edge-pulls with the free-leg held behind). Depending on the coach, they will very likely have you work on classic technique first, but once you get used to your skates, you probably have the skills to learn to double-push. (I'm assuming you can do forward edge-pulls on ice).

WHY? Well, going fast is one thing. Pavement (and hills) make inline skating feel sluggish compared to ice. Speedskates help. I also like the finesse with edge-placement that the short-cut speedboots give. Although inlines don't seems to care as much about edges as the ice does (you can't 'catch' a bad edge for one thing, you'll just keep rolling straight), getting good speed on pavement requires obsessing about technique and foot placement. I like doing that. And boy will speedskating do wonders for your aerobic fitness.

Why not? Umm, well, last night I decided to take a break from the ice, and did a loop of the park in my speedskates instead. Of course I had to stop and gawk when I got to the ice rink, and then I found there was good pavement, so I started doing drills to the accompaniment of the rink music. :) This became especially fun when the music continued during the ice-cut, and I was the only one skating. :P Eventually my double-push speedskating drills gave way to spirals (meh), attempts at three-turns (crashed each time), and waltzes. I don't know what possessed me to try waltz jumps in boots that have no ankle support! I did fine actually, but it made me realize that I really self-identify with being a figure-skater now, and not just a winter dabbler.

And as I emphasized in my other post, Wear a helmet without fail, and wristguards. And learn to stop, because you can't hockey stop on inlines, and most speedskates don't have a brake.

I've written a lot, but feel free to message me if you have further questions! Mixing inline speedskating and ice figureskating is da bomb.

[kayskate]

Yes, I did miss your post on the other thread, though I even posted to that thread. I must've gotten a subliminal message thogu about speedskating. i also looked at the instructional vid someone posted about double pushing. Very interesting. I can see how this would be very useful for improving figure skating. Thanks.

Kay

[sunjoy]

i also looked at the instructional vid someone posted about double pushing. Very interesting. I can see how this would be very useful for improving figure skating. Thanks. I noticed that all the senior ladies shown on TV at Nationals today would double-push when they were stroking forward during their warmups. It's a small double-push, not the big heel-carve that's done on inlines, but I definitely see a blip of an outside-edge *inward* push before they change edges and do an inside-edge outward push.

It's so interesting to me, because I was going to ask my coach if she'd ever heard of it, and whether I could find a way to incorporate it into figure skating. To find out it's been there all along, and probably no-one even thinks about it.

[kayskate]

I actually do a double push and have for yrs. I don't think it is specifically taught, at least it was never specifically taught to me in yrs of ice lessons. You are right, that it is not as pronounced. It is more subtle. I hope to get some inline speedskates and get my butt in gear this summer.

Kay