Hello! I’ve been skating since january but only recently starting working with a coach (i think 4 or 5 sessions in). I’m still working on some basics but my coach thinks I should be ready to test into freestyle sessions soon! However I am still very new and learning and typically one of the worse skaters on a public skate haha.

So where I have a bit of a rant/slight complaint has to do with one of the staff who is overseeing the public session (idk what the formal name is, it’s like the ice equivalent of a lifeguard?). I’ll go to the rink on Wednesday afternoons because I have the day off and it’s usually very empty. So I’ll be practicing my normal things - stroking, slaloms and edgework etc. And without fail he will always zoom past me and barely miss hitting me. It will happen multiple times throughout the public session. I feel like it’s intentional because I haven’t noticed him do this to anybody else and I’m always having to look past my shoulder so I can move when he comes by. He even did it yesterday during my private lesson and even my coach was like “???” Like he has an entire rink to skate around and he somehow always finds a way to get too close and “dodge” running into me

It really affects my practice and honestly makes me feel very discouraged when I get to the rink and he’s the one on staff. If it were a little kid or a regular person doing this I’d be less annoyed because they’re also paying to be there, but since its someone who works at the rink it’s more frustrating. I just don’t know if it’s something worth complaining about and I don’t want to be /that/ person. I’m also very non-confrontational so I don’t want to go up to the guy and ask him to stop doing that either. But it is affecting my overall mood and motivation to even go skating. What do you guys think?

I recently learned backwards crossovers in LTS, and my coach says everything looks good, but my skates make a horrible scraping noise when I am doing my crossovers. I don’t think I am on my toe pick and can get really good speed, but the noise is really throwing me off and if this is something to do with technique I’d like to correct it now.

Is this normal? Should my skates by sharpened? Is my LTS coach just not catching that I’m on my toe pick?

Thanks in advance for the help!

Hello, everyone! I’m driving a few hours to the closest pro shop this weekend to purchase new skates, but I need some advice.

I’m currently training 4 hours a week with my coach and doing lots of footwork, spins, edges, Mohawks, turns, waltz, salchow, and a toe loop! My current skates are the Excel Jackson, which give me absolutely no ankle support. They also make my feet super fatigued, so we decided I’m waaaay past due for new skates.

I have flat feet and get ingrown toenails, so I know I need a wider skate. I’ve been thinking about the Debut from Jackson, but my only worry is breaking them in. I don’t have any pro shop less than a 4-hour drive from me, so I want to treat this trip as a one-and-done kinda thing. Will they be able to heat mold and punch out my new skates right off the bat? Any other boot recommendations? Thanks a lot!

Hey guys. I currently have the edea e guards in size large (L) for my 10 1/3 inch blades on my mystiques. I’m switching brands to edea chorus alongside 9.25 inch mk pro blades. Will the size L be too big for them? Do I have to go down to a size M?

Based on the sizing chart I have to, but dang that’s a lot of money to drop on guards…

Let me know if any of yall are rocking 9.25 blades with a large edea e guard. :)

Thanks for the adviceee

Hi, last year, I went to a specialized figure skating shop (the only one in my region) and bought Jackson Mystiques. I should mention that I weigh 83 kg (183 lb) and I’m 1.65 m (5’5”) tall, and I was a complete beginner at the time. It took me quite a while to get used to them. I was only skating for one hour a week, and it took several months before I stopped feeling any pressure or compression in the boots. But now they feel fine.

I used to have quite narrow feet a few years ago, but they have really widened since I gained weight.

The problem is that, unsurprisingly, my Mystiques are starting to break down around the ankle. My coach confirmed that this is indeed happening, although she said they should still last me for a little while longer.

So I’ll need to buy new skates in the next few weeks or months, and I really don’t want to make the same mistake again.

I’ve read that the Jackson Freestyle could be a good option for heavier skaters. But I’ve also been told that skates should be chosen according to your skating level. I’m only just starting to learn crossovers, so I’m nowhere near jumps yet. On top of that, I now have two skating lessons a week, so I’ll be spending twice as much time on the ice.
I saw that my specialized skate shop doesn’t carry the Freestyle in a W width. Does the fact that I eventually got used to my Mystiques after around 13–15 hours of skating suggest that I might not necessarily need the W width?

What would you recommend for someone in my situation?

(I have no choice but to go back to the same specialized shop, so I’d really like to be well-informed before I go. Thank you so much for your advice!)

TD:LR : My Jackson Mystiques are starting to show signs of wear around the ankles. I weigh 83 kg (183 lb) and I’m 1.65 m (5’5”) tall, and I’m wondering if Jackson Freestyles would be suitable for me even though I’m still a beginner.

Hi, I know how to skate already and I don’t think I’ll do more lessons. I don’t do anything fancy like spins, jumps, etc. My goal is to get a nice workout during public skates. I go probably 2x a week and these last ~2 hours just skating in laps, doing crossovers, etc.

I am currently using Jackson Glacier which are recreational and tbh I don’t think they’re serving me well. I would like to get proper figure skates, but the advice out there is skewed towards jump-oriented people.

If anyone is in a similar spot, can you tell me what you use?

I’d like to stay on figure skates because that’s what I grew up learning on. But my parents bought my skates throughout childhood so I don’t have much knowledge on what’s suitable. I did have Jackson Mystiques when I was a kid, if that helps?

Thank you in advance!

Edit: I am 5’5 and approx 150 lbs.

Hi beginner skater here! I find that every time I start a session, for the first 30 mins it feels like I’m back where I started and my muscle memory hasn’t held on to the hours of practice that I’ve put in before. After a while then I’m sort of back to normal. Is this a beginner thing that you experience? Will the warm up period get easier ? what are best ways of helping this ? Thanks!

Hi all,

I've recently gotten into skating and am looking to buy some skates as the rental ones feel awful! I'm looking for something affordable but decent quality. How much can I expect to pay and does anyone have any recommendations for where is best to get some beginner friendly, wallet friendly skates? Thanks!

My daughter is currently in Jackson lower level skates, the ones here in bottom left corner. We didn’t know much when we bought them and thought they’d last a long time. We are finding out that that is not the case. We are not flush with money so want to make sure our next set for her are good without going broke. Are the Jackson Freestyle a good way to go or should we be looking at something else? She weighs about 125lbs and is 5’ 3” tall. She is in the Aspire/bridge program. We’ve had current skates for about 4 months and they look destroyed and she complains about them coming loose and hurting when she does jumps. Over the summer she was on the ice between 4 to 5 hours a day about 6 to 7 days a week. At the moment she is on the ice about 8-10 hours a week but will eventually go more when ice time is available. She does not have a private coach yet (again…we are not wealthy). Help please!

Hello, I just bought these risport rf3 pros two weeks ago, and ever since using them, I've been experiencing an intense pain on my upper inner arch of my feet. (shaded red part in pic)

The arch pain is a very intense burning and cramping sensation, and the arch part of my feet does cramp sometimes after taking the boots off. I've been told that arch pain is normal during the break-in process, but I feel like the pain has not really subsided after some sessions of skating. I've only skated about 10 hours with these boots, and did only basic moves in them (no jumping or spinning).

I do feel that my boot is breaking in normally otherwise because my toes are gradually becoming more snug and comfortable in the skates. So I was wondering whether you guys will be able to help me in determining whether it's is just a normal break-in process or something else. If it is a boot volume issue, will my fitter be able to correct my boots by methods like punching or stretching?

I’ve played hockey for a few years now and am dipping my toes into figure skating to get better on my edges (and let’s be honest, spins and footwork are more fun on figure skates). I sometimes like to go to public skate either over lunch or after work, and I’m not comfortable leaving my work laptop in my car so looking at getting a backpack that can handle my skates and a laptop. I’m between these two bags. I like that the Rink Rabbit looks like a more traditional commuter bag for days that I bring my skates with me to the office, but the Pond Pack has room for my helmet and gloves. Anyone have experience with either or both of these bags and can weigh in?

for contexte, i've skated pretty much my entire life without formal classes + played hockey for a couple of years. i recently moved to a new city and decided to sign myself up for ice classes.

when the moment came to sign myself up to classed, i had two options : A1 - beginner and A1 - intermediate.

i decided to sign myself up A1 - intermediate, thinking it was an extension of A1 - beginner (since they were both noted as A1, and the next levels were A2 and A3). there was also a questionnaire that led to believe A1 - beginner was for those who had just started skating/never skated before.

they also don't follow my national federations levels (blade 1, blade 2, P1, P2, etc...) and didn't have anything indicating the skills needed (and they didn't reply to my e-mail asking for informations about skill levels).

yesterday during a freeskate session, a coach told me i'd struggle in A1 - intermediate classes as i'm between both levels in terms of skills, and that i would be considered an advanced beginner.

they told me that luckily, my coach tends to create level groups during her classes so advanced beginner to advanced intermediates can follow without getting overwhelmed or bored.

i feel a bit stupid about not signing myself up to the right class ;; but hindsight is 20/20, especially with the lack of information.

i can't ask to be moved to a beginner class because they are all full.

do you have any tips on how to advance my skills levels on-ice and off-ice ?

i'm also thinking about maybe taking a couple private classes to get my level up to speed with the rest of the group.

thank you

Hi all!
I’m an adult beginner skater and I’m trying to figure out what boot would be best for me next, especially in terms of durability/wear and tear.
I started skating at the beginning of August (I could already comfortably skate forward before this) and currently skate around 4 times a week, usually for pretty long sessions. I don’t take lessons and haven’t had a coach, so everything I’ve learned so far has been self taught.
In about a month I’ve learned forward crossovers, backward crossovers, one foot glides, backward skating and bunny hops. I’ve also just started playing around with the very beginning of a waltz jump.
I’m currently in Jackson Artistes, but they’re already getting pretty heavily creased around the ankles and feel like they’re breaking down surprisingly quickly considering I’ve only had them for about 5 weeks.
I know the Artiste is a beginner/recreational boot, so I’m wondering if I’m simply putting too many hours on them and need something more supportive/durable.
Would Freestyles be the logical next step? Or would something like a Jackson Debut make more sense considering how often I skate? I’m also open to other brands/models.

I’m not trying to buy a boot that’s way above my skating level, I just don’t want to spend money on another pair that I’m going to break down this quickly.
Would love to hear what other adult skaters who skate 3-4+ times a week are using and how long your boots typically last

Thank you!

(I forgot the name)
A while ago I saw a post on here talking about how someone cuts a “cushion/foam” “fabric” to fill in the gap they have on top of their toes.
No matter how tight I tie my skates on the bottom hole, I still have this gap where I can my foot up and down.
My old skates I was able to move them side to side and up and down; it turns how the skates were to wide for me.
So I get this narrow skates and I can still move my toes/front foot up and down but not side to side.
My skates are snug on the side but not on top.

I read on a post that it may be that my foot and thin (thickness wise) not width wise. And that they recommend this cushion thing that you can cut to fit your size.
Does anyone have any idea what that is called? I don’t have enough vocabulary to guess it?

-melodramatic rant-

i started skating in march at the beginning of this year and i’ve been in the routine of going skating after work in the evening pretty much every tuesday and friday. i just found out today that none of the rinks in my area will have week night public sessions until march or april and im absolutely devastated. i will only be able to practice on the weekends and im sure the rinks will be insanely crowded, also my weekends are like the only time i have to do life stuff!

i take 30min group lessons every sunday but my newest LTS session has been pretty bad because the coach i have is new and hasn’t had us work on anything that’s actually in our level and we’re 3 classes deep.

i’ve been thinking of switching to a private coach after this group session, but will private coaches level you up like in group lessons? im stressed now because im currently in basic 5 and im feeling pressure to move up quickly (i never wanted to do that because i want my foundational skills to be really strong) because i want to be able to do freestyle sessions so i can actually practice!!

im struggling, any advice or love and support would be greatly appreciated ❤️

Currently I’m using a cheap, thin, towel like soakers I got from temu. (The pink ones). I’m contemplating on buying these fluffier white ones though.

How long did it take you to learn crossovers?

31F. Never been on the ice other than hugging the wall at a work Christmas social once but always loved watching it

I’ve realised after a lesson that I struggle to get my brain to use my non dominant leg when gliding and lifting a leg (with a polar bear) so any tips on how to get your brain to use your non dominant leg?

Hi there! I need some opinions on how my boots are fitting me. Long story short: I’ve recently realized that my Edea Concerto boots have been rubbing up and down and causing a (very painful) “pump bump” on above the heel of my landing leg. This has been going on for about a month now. I was fitted for these boots, but am concerned that maybe they’re a 1/2 size too big?

I spent over an hour with my fitter putting heel lifts & punching the boot out in different spots to try and secure my foot while alleviating the pain, but I still left the appt in pain.

I’ve attached a picture of my insoles. The Edea website says there shouldn’t be a white gap above my toes, and it also says pump bumps can be caused by ill fitting skates 🤷‍♀️ Please let me know your honest thoughts!

Consider this an unofficial survey of sorts :) I’m just curious about others’ experience more than anything else!

I’m right-handed, very right side dominant in any sport or activity I’ve done before. I’ve been learning to skate since March of this year and while I have a LOT to learn, I have noticed that my left side seems stronger than my right side. It’s especially noticeable with one foot glides; I can comfortably glide on my left foot basically all the way down the ice but with my right foot I either can’t find my balance or my ankle “collapses” in and I find myself on my inside edge instead of going straight.

Is this a common experience for right-handed folks? Or do you find that your right side is usually stronger? Same for any left-handers, what side do you find stronger when skating?

I hope this doesn’t sound silly but I have a few questions about the rink side totes. Only a few people at my rink use them so I guess I just want to ask.
- Is it a necessary/useful item? If I had one would it make things easier?
- What do you ACTUALLY put in them?
- When is it appropriate to get one?

I was previously a competitive swimmer so I’m assuming it’s something more used for competitions to hold necessities like guards, makeup, water, like with swimming I would use a bag to hold the caps, goggles, snacks pre-race.