Using inline skates to commute

[minwookie 0]

I currently only play ice, but was thinking of converting an old pair of skates to have around to play inline with.

Is it a bad idea to take these out on the city streets? I realize that I would need really dense/hard wheels so they don't get chewed up quickly.. but will the chassis and boots hold up?

Thanks.

[lotus 2]

It worked out for the kids in Hackers so I don't see why not

Then again, they were on high quality "Rollerblade" brand it seems.

To attempt to be useful, I'd assume it would hold up just fine and if it didn't, and you were mostly using them for travel, I don't think you'd notice.

[interpathway 9]

Remember that ice and roller are completteeelllllyyyy different feeling. Not to mention the change in learning to stop.

[minwookie 0]

Great reference, bud.

I was just thinking outloud. Moving into the city soon.. pretty much a big downhill from where I'd be working and I could take the bus/train back up. There is this one hill that scares me. How exactly does one stop on a downgrade on inline skates?

[lotus 2]

Great reference, bud.

I was just thinking outloud. Moving into the city soon.. pretty much a big downhill from where I'd be working and I could take the bus/train back up. There is this one hill that scares me. How exactly does one stop on a downgrade on inline skates?

on ya face.

good question =]

[interpathway 9]

Quick 90 degree turn. The hard wheels will "skid" across the pavement. Literally go forward, lean down your left or right shoulder, then pivot around it until you're facing 90 degrees the other way. It'll become obvious with practice.

[lotus 2]

I've never attempted one going downhill but when thinking about it a little more I guess it wouldn't be that different, unless you gained some serious speed....

[minwookie 0]

That sounds like a horrible time to hit a pothole or a manhole cover or a crack on whatever crappy DC road I happen to be on. Maybe this isn't such a good idea.

[lotus 2]

That sounds like a horrible time to hit a pothole or a manhole cover or a crack on whatever crappy DC road I happen to be on. Maybe this isn't such a good idea.

haha I wouldn't really recommend it. Go get some "heelies" :P

(just kidding, don't do that.)

[IniNew 51]

Quick 90 degree turn. The hard wheels will "skid" across the pavement. Literally go forward, lean down your left or right shoulder, then pivot around it until you're facing 90 degrees the other way. It'll become obvious with practice.

Unless you have no qualms with injuring yourself on a daily basis I'd strongly recommend against trying to do any sort of inline stop on any kind of rough city pavement, save for the T-Stop.

[fieldofdreams 0]

If you have a steep hill, the best thing to do is to keep your speed down. Don't go in a straight line downhill, slalom from side to side of the street. (If you can) it really helps control your speed.

[ExitTwoEighty 7]

How far is it? I wouldn't recommend it in case you get hurt going to work. I tried it going to school once and it sucked. Came into class sweaty, had to change to shoes, and had to find a place to leave the skates.

[Vishi05 0]

Skating uphill is fine, skating down hill is kind of scary. You can do it but you should drag your leg behind you which is hell on your wheels.

[tamtamg 12]

i do it occasionally to get to campus when the weather is nice out. You should scout out your route by foot first and take a look at the the road/side walk conditions. You will feel every imperfection on the ground. My route to campus involve a couple of hills, slaloming the hills is key. Also, learning the hockey stop in rollers will help a lot(using harder wheals make it easier to start sliding). As for the wear and tear, I haven't notice anything too dramatic, except I burn through wheels. This is mostly due to when i drag one of my skates behind me to slow me down when i go down hills where i can't slalom.

[fawn111 0]

Lived in NYC for about 6 years.... commuted from upper east side to Midtown.

Occasionally would skate to work. You;d think this would be suicide in NYC but not really at all. It is actually quite safe. All you ahd to do was stay with the flow of traffic.

Coming home on Lexington avenue in the 70's was a decent sized hill. But if you timed it right all you had to do was put one foot in front of the other for stability and gun it. N Never once had to make the emergency stop.

[fatwabbit 93]

You could get the recreational skates with the heel brake pad...

[brettlynch11 0]

You could get the recreational skates with the heel brake pad...

I'd rather fall on my face. Joking.

But seriously...

[shute 4]

i remember when i skated to work as a 16 year old i would turn around and go down hills backwards. no joke either... i did it because i would do it with one foot planted and rolling and the other foot would step down at 90 degrees to control the speed. it was like skate boarding

[Ground Zero 0]

I've done this a whole bunch a times and live in a crazy city (NYC Midtown morning traffic can be challenging - damn Cabs!).

Like they stated before walk the path that you plan to skate, look for pot holes and or uneven surfaces, blind spots (anything from objects such as mail boxes, store awnings, FINE LOOKING WOMEN :D as well as the natural elements such as the sun glair, foggy days etc...) and the worst one of all wet spots. Last thing you want to do is get caught at the end of a long stride and have your grounded skate slip out from under you. With that being said "DON'T SKATE IN THE RAIN" like alot of fools do here in the NYC do cause all you do is rust the crap out of your bearings! Hopefully you have a bike/skating lane which is a BIG PLUS!!!

Make sure that you wear pads unless you are totally sure of your feel of the surface that you will be skating on (roads = tar, sidewalk = smooth to rough concerte). Get comfortable with the grip of your wheels as they won't have the bite of ice blades. Remember that your wheels will have a change of grip as they start to wear down (don't forget to rotate you wheels) during your skates to and from work.

Choose a decent set of wheels to skate in, cause you don't want to blow a tire!

Wheels I skate in the street are Lebeda Asphalt - great grip and long lasting. Wheel hardness of 84A is the way to go!

http://www.inlinewarehouse.com/LABEDA_Hock...scpage-LGA.html

You could also try aggressive inline wheels but I don't really know much about the way the feel and skate. Might have to visit a local store and talk with someone about those kind of wheels (grip, bearings, width, see if it will fit in the type of chassis you plan on doing the ice to roller conversion)

http://www.inlinewarehouse.com/catpage5.html?ccode=WHSTREET

Get out there and skate in enclosed enviroments and then get out there in the streets. Practice on your stops, draging a leg, t-slide and the good ol' hockey stop slide. I would look at videos on youtube for reference as explaining it in words can be hard to picture.

[Rustyhole 1]

remember as it gets warm the tar softens which can be a hazard if you're on the road not to mention at the crap at the edges. even older sidewalks or ashplalt can suck as the vibration through your feet can be a bit much. also as stated before wet areas can seriously hinder your traction esp. uphill. the heel brakes actually work pretty good but damn my ankle gets tired after any kind of sustained braking