Help I cant skate properly

[caps2600]

Hey Im a new member cool forum!

I played inline hockey as a kid a just got back into it few weeks ago. I need help diagnosing a problem. Im 25 years old and about 205lbs. I purchased pretty much the cheapest skates could find. Thor Tour 909 here is a link.
http://www.hockeygiant.com/tourt909isktsr.html
I put new rink rat wheels on the skate.

When I start my games I can skate ok but as the games go on and I get more tired I can barely move especially when I go from stop to trying to gain speed quickly what happens is my ankles just bend inwards and its hard for me to get moving I usually stumble a bit. I look ridiculous. Now stamina and endurance is no doubt a problem and that is something I am working on, but could part of the problem be that my skates are not stiff enough and of low quality, im a pretty big guy so do I need a stiffer skate, is that why my ankles are bending inward? I really did not know anything about skate stiffness when I made the purchase. Can someone confirm this or am i just out shape and suck at skating.

Thanks for any help

[DannyG]

hard to say without seeing you skate, but as you describe the problem, it appears your basic balance is not yet developed fully. It might be that your skates are also nowhere near laced tight enoough...

first skating instructor I ever had tells it like this: lace your skates as tight as you can. Go skate for three minutes. Sit down and tighten your laces again. Yeah, I know: "How can you lace 'em tighter when you already laced up as 'tight as you can' to begin with?"

Believe it or not, this demonstrates to you that you never got the laces very tight to begin with, you only thought you did. I now tell new skaters this, and it comes true every time. Try it.

Good luck, and keep skating. The more you do, the better it gets, you will indeed suck less and less the more you skate.

[caps2600]

Thanks for your insight. Im pretty strong and I lace my skates as tight as I can but I never check them after skating for a bit so ill keep that in mind. I just found my old mission skates from when I was younger and I was checking them out and the difference was huge between the two skates the cheaper tours I have feel like they are made of cardboard compared to the missions I can easily push the boot of the tours in with my hands and I noticed there is a crease in the boot of the tour from my ankle bending too much. So Im kinda convinced that these skates are no where near stiff enough for a guy of my size and thats playing a role here. Anyone else have any other insights, Im thinking about getting new skates either Mission T8 or T7 are the t8 overkill. My worst fear is wasting money on another skate that is not adequate I want the next pair to at least last me a year.

[quick_dry]

do you have a buddy at the rink that could take a short video of you? It doesn't need to be anything fancy - just phone camera quality - and post it up for people to look at. One at the start of the game when you can skate OK, and one at the end when you're having more problems.

[number 89]

Well, having ridden a skateboard for twenty years I can sympathize with wobbling ankels.Try re-tying your skates when that toddler feeling comes along, it could be as simple as your laces shifting , since I can't SEE you skate , I don,t want to blame your stride- is it possible your wheels need to be rotated ? coned wheels can cause some issues also. Good luck, keep skating.

[caps2600]

Thanks for all the great info, I pulled the trigger and bought new skates. If the problem persists im gonna take that video.

[quincybuj]

I am doing roller skating before. Does it mean that I already have the background on ice skating?

[DannyG]

I am doing roller skating before. Does it mean that I already have the background on ice skating?

yes, it does.

People will tell you things like, "Stopping is different," and such...

The touch and feel of your skates on the surface is different, but that is the only difference, really. Some skaters pick up the feel of the other surface in twenty minutes, some take a little longer.

The mechanics of skating are the same. The better you are on one surface, the better you will be on the other.

Over the past twenty-five years, I have ice skated over 3,000 hours, and over 15,000 hours on inline surfaces of all kinds. I truly no longer feel any real difference. I know some players still claim one is easier than the other, blah, blah, blah...

Go play and have fun, eh?

[quincybuj]

thank you danny g. for that inspirational advice.

[Kingsfan]

Sounds like a combination of loose skates, building stabilizing muscles , and possibly too soft of a wheel ... if the wheels are to soft it can create a soft feeling and also enable the wheels to move sideways while skating. It can take time to find the right wheel as I have been playing for 26 years and weigh 220, I skate on either 82 or 84 hardness. anything softer and its like im on poorly sharpened pair of Iceskates. Good luck

[michelaudorn12]

Well honestly i am not more experience in ice skating.. i am the beginner and try to become a best ice skater.

actually i really want to become a part of the inline hockey federation.
i wish i could.

[sxharr05]

I realize this is an older thread, but I wanted to see how the OP made out and add my input. As someone who is longer in the tooth (39) and heavier on the scale (230) then when I last played regularly, I will say that getting a skate that not only fits better but FEELS better has made a huge difference for me. Back in my comp/rec days I was between 195 and 205, much more fit and played quite often on Kohos (LOOOOVED THEM) that were stolen from my car and Missions that, when purchased, were pretty awesome IMO. However, I could never get the Missions to break in properly and my feet hurt more than anything else for days after a game. That was nearly ten years ago and what seemed to be the end of my "career". When my 9 year-old started showing an interest in playing I thought it would be a good chance for some bonding and some exercise. So I bought a pair of Bauer Vapors on clearance and after that long layoff I can say that after a few sessions my skating was better than ever. My feet very rarely hurt aside from "marathon" skates, they offer great support and I find myself paying less attention to what I'm doing and just doing it and I look forward to time on the rink. I'm even considering joining an old farts league come next fall. I'm sure that for me some of it is mental, as I am no longer worried about what people think of my gear OR my game. I'm just happy to be doing it.

Moral of the story: Get the best skate in terms of fit, support and comfort that your wallet can handle.

[RichardGraham]

Nice post, sxharr05,

Good luck!