All you need to know about rollerblading in Kyiv
My friends always criticize my excessive curiosity as I easily get enthusiastic about various hobbies. In fact a person needs only to mention an activity and if I’m not already obsessed with something else I’m hooked right away. So, it didn’t take long for my friends to infect me with a roller skating passion. According to their words there seems to be no better combination of a fun and energetic activity. All you have to do is buy inline roller skates or rollerblades, learn some basic rules of skating and hit the streets.
However, blading didn’t look so simple, so I sunk my teeth into skating literature on how to choose proper equipment. Most assistants in specialized shops for sports gear are not always up to date on rollerblading trends so you should browse several stores, consult with assistants and compare prices to find your ideal pair of skates.
Choose your level
First of all you should decide which type of roller skating you’ll do, speed, fitness, or freestyle skating. Speed skating can be compared to ice skating and is an acknowledged professional sport, including Olympic events. In Kyiv there are no areas for speed skating for adults. The only option you have is a sports school for kids, where alongside children learning how to ice skate you can inline skate.
If you don’t know how to skate and want to just skate for fun you should plunge into a less demanding level like fitness or recreational skating – the typical first step in roller skating.
Your first blades
While buying the blades, which are usually made of plastic, make sure that they have plenty of ankle support. Among the manufacturers producing fitness skates are the famous company Rollerblade that introduced inline design for roller skates, the Italian company Roces, also specializing in speed skates, as well as Korean company Fila. In case you buy soft-boot skates, keep in mind that they should have a plastic cuff or some other device to support your ankles. One of the famous manufacturers of soft-boot skates is K2. Of course if you buy one type of it doesn’t mean that you cannot do any tricks that are usually done in aggressive or freestyle skating. But for the beginning inline skater it’s better to choose comfortable skates at a medium price.
How and where to start
The best place for recreational or fitness type of skating is Mariyinsky Park, where smooth asphalt routes will give you a chance to speed a bit and to admire the beautiful views at the same time. However, if you still cannot keep balance you’d better start training close to home. Just try to stand on your blades, get used to them and only when you’ll get used to your new skates should you go outside and try to move around the yard, and then skate a bit in the nearby park. Remember to bend your knees, it helps to keep your balance. Only when you get skilled at stopping and turning should you venture out to more crowded places and parks. Besides, if you are not sure of yourselves, it will be even worse on an asphalted ground, where your speed significantly increases. Of course it is far better to find somebody, who will teach you some basics. Another piece of advice, warm-up before you begin to skate, this way you’ll be less likely to injure yourself.
For the bold ones
If you are daring enough to get into freestyle and aggressive skating, which means doing tricks like jumps, slides and grinds, you should choose a different sort of blades. Salomon is considered the best manufacturer for freestyle and aggressive skating but unfortunately they are no longer produced. Most popular brands are Roces, Powerslide, and Seba. Besides, the above mentioned rollerblade companies created a separate line for aggressive skating: TRS. The boots for aggressive rollerblading differ from those designed for fitness by their rigidness and weight. They can be either hard or soft, the latter giving more flexibility then hard ones, yet both types are almost of the same weight and are sturdier and heavier then fitness boots. Another peculiarity of aggressive rollerblading boots is a relatively small size of their wheels that add to your mobility.
Equipment
Getting on roller skates for the first time always gives the feeling of constant unsteadiness. Almost everyone except those who don’t have any nerves at all are afraid of falling at the beginning, which can make the process of learning to skate more difficult. If you are afraid of falling, buy protective gear. The common equipment set consists of knee, elbow, and wrist pads, though you can also add a helmet to the list but it’s rarely used for recreational skating. The clothes for your skating should be chosen properly. Mark, it is easier to skate in more loose everyday clothes or even better in a sports outfit made of elastic fabric.
Some more safety tips. Don’t skate through water, oil, mud or sand – the wheels will have very little traction and you will slip.
Ukrainian roads, except for designated skating areas, are extremely dangerous for rollerblading. Avoid cracks in the pavement, especially those running parallel to the wheels – if one of the wheels gets struck in such a crack, you can loose your balance. Another seemingly harmless obstacle is tiny pebbles, which get struck among the wheels and stop them rolling.
About…socks
Yes, socks. They are important in inline skating. You’ll immediately have blisters or feel uncomfortable and will hate roller skating for years ahead, if you don’t wear good socks. So, my first piece of advice on socks is: don’t buy cotton socks. The reason is that cotton is a very absorbent material and takes ages to dry. Another reason is that cotton socks tend to bunch up making you feel uncomfortable.
Getting ready for skating it’s also better to wear double socks to prevent blisters and other troubles. How can it help? The moisture will be absorbed between two socks and not between the socks and your feet.
Things to Bring When You Skate
To make your rollerblading adventure go down smoothly and safely I would recommend you always pack extra gear with you. Don’t forget your protective gear, an additional pair of socks, skate tools, a bottle of water, list of phone numbers you might need, a pencil and a paper, band-aids, blister kit, athletic tape, sunscreen lotion, elastic band to tie up your hair, sunglasses, and a music player.
Stores
Sportmaster (1 Maidan Nezalezhnosti, Globus, 590-1859)
Extrem Style (53 Hlybochytska, 251-7111)
Kant (1M Bazhana, 332-5020)
Drive Sport (1 Shamrylo, 456-6800)
Columbia (122 Chervonoarmiyska, 529-0243)
Elita Sport (7A Vozyednannia, 558-0908)
