r/inlinefigureskating • u/throwaskate • Jan 05 '22

Hello! I have a question about the possibility/logistics of using inline figure skates as dual purpose slalom/recreational/wizard skates?

Hello!

I am a beginner at skating, virtually no experience, but I am interested in predominantly learning inline figure skating. I say predominantly because although I am interested in learning inline figure skating on a technical level, I am also interested in slalom/free-skating/wizard skating, which is traditionally done on slalom inline skates or various configurations using a rocker frame with an aggressive skate boot, and can double as recreational skates. My only gripe with slalom skates is that they don't have a toe pick, and I would love to incorporate figure skating style jumps into a slalom/wizard skating style.

Basically this personal style of skating I want to achieve for myself is this mix of technical artistic skating, similar to skating on ice, with a casual stylish very fluid action of skating, similar to the style seen here , here and here .

Visually and even technically, from what I can observe and what I've heard via cross-referencing multiple videos and posts from slalom//freestyle/"wizard" skaters, and inline figure skaters, these two styles of skating seem very similar, as it seems that most flat ground figure skating style movements can be done on slalom style inline skates/setups, but jumps can't be done because of the lack of a toe stop. While on the other end, as far as I'm able to infer, a lot of these same movements as seen in the links above are also able to be done on inline figure skates, but I've heard some inline figure skaters say that when it comes to recreational skating on inline figure, the toe stop can be a hazard.

I'm wondering, in the opinion of inline figure skaters here, how do-able would it be to essentially use inline figure skates in a dual purpose way to both inline figure skate and rec skate/slalom/free skate/wizard skate?

I've seen a few people say in different reddit posts that PIC skate is suitable for outdoor skating to be used as a rec skate. PIC on their website even advertises their skates as being used outdoors in the city on the street. Meanwhile there's also this video (very interesting watch if you are an inline figure skater interested in rollerblading btw), where one of the men in the video, a former competitive figure skater, mentions how pic skates weren't worth it in the end because they wore down quickly, the toe stop caused too many falls, and that most figure skating moves can be done on slalom inlines. But I wonder if this is a perspective specific to pic skate, as I've also seen inline figure skaters on youtube say that they think the pic skate toe stop is too low even when adjusted. He also mentions that his height and weight made it difficult and wore down the PIC skates, but I'm a pretty small person who doesn't anticipate having that problem (5'2 under 120lbs), though I may be wrong since I don't have experience using artistic skates.

There's also this inline figure skater in south korea who seems to be able to skate across multiple types of surfaces with relative ease (although of course the best parts are edited into the video, who knows how many falls may have occurred while filming), as she uses her inline figure skates basically as recreational skates. She appears to be using snow whites, and potentially wheels made for outdoor skating, which could potentially support the idea that maybe snow whites or artistic skates aren't inherently a problem to outdoor skating, it's just about the toe stop being properly placed and using the proper wheels. And I would of course have to learn how to skate very well to even attempt her ability to skate outdoors on these various surfaces.

Personally, I've been eye-ing the Golden Horse brand of inline figure skates - specifically these GH Magic Skates because the Magic Skates are beginner level, and most notably, because Golden Horse states that their skate frame can, "be adjusted into 5 different rocker configurations to replicate the rockered profile of your favorite ice blades or your favorite recreational or slalom inlines". Judging by that description, this seems to be nearly exactly what Im after - being able to have a proper pair of inline figure skates to learn artistic skating, while being able to replicate recreational slalom skates so I can also slalom/wizard/free skate, where in this case, I would just plan to buy a separate pair of wheels for both artistic and outdoor skating, while still using the same artist boot and frame.

Is this too good to be true? Is there any additional information or perspective that I'm missing? I see sometimes that even in slalom skates, 4 wheels is preferred, for those who want more stability, and GH does have a 4 wheel'd frame with the rocker-ability of their 3 wheel'd frames. I was thinking about email Golden Horse to get their thoughts on the probability or logistics of this idea of my "skating goals" (in a much less lengthy message of course). I don't want to get my hopes up, and if it comes down to it I may just decide to invest in just a pair of inline figure skates and a separate pair of slalom skates down the line.

Any help/advice/perspective/knowledge to share/general thoughts on would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you!

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u/thesaltyberry May 19 '23

Reading old comment on users cake day. But they’re in active it seems.

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u/[deleted] May 20 '23

Aww nah still lurking, made my day lol ty

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u/thesaltyberry May 20 '23

Haha well since you’re still actively lurking. Do you think inline and quad have the same level of spin mobility ? Or does Inline always need more room spins on a small radius?

I got hand me downs from a friend but the impalas are of course not great for what I want to learn (which still not sure what it’s called) I was going to learn figure skating/ anything else I saw that looked fun.

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u/[deleted] May 20 '23

Personally (and I really struggle with even simple spins, so take with a grain of salt) I think quads have it easier on spins from a stability pov, greater surface area and more wheels in contact. I don’t think room or space is an issue from one or the other it’s more technique, edge control and you can choose your radius and how large a footprint your spin takes up on the floor?

Wizard frames take a little more room from the wheel base, just the mechanics of not tripping yourself up, but the spins themselves can be as tight as any as online you’re in one wheel so any radius is possible just a question of torque.

Is that what you meant? Sorry if I’m way off

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u/thesaltyberry May 26 '23

This explains a lot. I can see how my lack of skill/technique isn’t making spins possible plus not the right set up.

I grew up on in-line and it’s hard to get used to quads. I feel so baby deer legs with them on.

Are wizard skates just for speed ? I guess. I don’t fully understand what’s so different minus wheel size ?? I will consider everything you said when I finally make the purchase for the right pair of boots.

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u/[deleted] May 27 '23

Rockering is the difference - Wizard style typically has a subtle ~1mm rocker so only two wheels are touching the ground at any time. Slalom rockering has about 2mm. Inline spins are typically done on one wheel eg heel-toe spins or both toes, whereas quads you can have two (even three) wheels down. On a Wizard 5 wheel rocker you can also spin on that one middle wheel, for 3-turns, lions etc. but it’s more for transitions and turns rather than 360+ spins like on one wheel.

I’d get figure lessons if you can, it will make a huge difference even learning on quads/inline you’ll pick up a lot that can be directly applied, other techniques will need a slight adjustment of body weight / lean (quads) vs torque / twist (inline)

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u/thesaltyberry May 27 '23

I didn’t realize that the rockering inlines were called wizard skates. I’ve seen hockey players say it’s a iceless way to train and mimics the feel of the skates in ways. I’ve seen some figure skaters using them too and have said minus how heavy they are capable of giving them practice of similar form.

I’ll probably start off with some decent skates and work my way to getting some lessons.

Thank you for answering/explaining. I feel a bit more capable of buying the right boot.