Mission S500 or L7? Please Help!

[worleybird 0]

I read every post I could find comparing Mission L7 to Mission S500 skates. I still cannot decide what to buy. I do not have the luxury of a good LHS within hundreds of miles (central Texas) that has these skates. I have owned the following Mission skates:

- Proto Vi (Inline) purchased new in Houston about 7 years ago

- Helium He550 (Inline) ordered online a year and a half ago

- Amp 8 (Ice) bought used on ebay when an Ice rink opened in town 1 year ago

Here is a little more background for you to help me choose:

Several years ago, I drove to Houston and then all over the city for several hours trying on several brands and models of Inline skates. The mission Proto Vi were what fit me best. When I wore those out, I got the He550 skates.

When the local ice rink opened, I bought the slightly used Mission Amp 8 skates on ebay. I had been ice skating once before in my life when I was about 12 years old, so I was not going to drop a bunch of cash on ice skates (I am 39 now).

I am an intermediate rec league skater at 6' 2" and 195 lbs. I lace my skates as tight as I can bear. I am not terribly fast or agile. I play mostly defense.

I was thinking the higher ankles on the L7 skates might be just what I need for better stability, but I am concerned they will be totally different from the three pairs of mission skates that have fit me very well so far. Looking at all the photos I can find on the web, the S500's look a lot more like my other skates than the L7's.

Thanks in advance for any suggestions!

[Chadd 916]

The L7s will probably be most like your other skates.