Taking Care of Your Skates

While rinks across the globe are shut down to curtail the spread of the coronavirus, I thought this would be a good time to take some simple steps to keep your skates in great shape. Properly maintaining your skates is important because it not only extends the durability and structural integrity of your skates but will save you a trip to the pro shop and money for repairs in the long-run.

Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hohjmWdeyic&feature=youtu.be

I came across this instructional video made by Mark Ladwig, an American pair skater who competed and placed 10th at the 2010 Winter Olympics.  In the video, Mark reviews how to keep your skates in good condition while being off the ice for an exptended period of time. I thought this would be helpful for my students and parents…

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hohjmWdeyic&feature=youtu.be

For those who need a reminder of how to take care your blades each time you get off the ice, please refer to my November 26, 2017 post, “Proper Blade Care”. I’ve also attached the link on ‘Boot and Blade Care’ from Reidell for your reference, https://ice.riedellskates.com/learn/skate-care

STAY SAFE, FIT, & HEALTHY EVERYONE!

Skating Gift Ideas For Your Beginners

This holiday season, celebrate your skater and all his/her accomplishments! There’s no better way to get excited about skating than by spicing up one’s skating materials. Whether your skater is interested in cute accessories, stylish clothes, or productive supplies, there truly is something for everyone.  As you prepare for the biggest shopping day of the year- Black Friday, check out my list of top skating essentials for your beginners.

Wishing you all a wonderful Thanksgiving and happy holiday season!

Skate Guards

Every skater needs blade protection, so why not get creative? With Rockerz, skaters have the unique opportunity to mix and match various colors to create their own customized skate guards. Not only do skaters get the blade protection they need, they also get to show off their personality and creativity on the ice! 

Soakers

Soakers are a great way to transform a boring skating necessity into something fun and playful. Whether your skater likes crazy colors or furry friends, there’s a style for everyone. This inexpensive gift is a great way to add some flair to a skater’s everyday essentials. 

Blanket 

While this may seem like a cliche gift, this is something all skaters need. Skaters get sweaty from exercising on the ice, but what about off the ice? Watching a competition or waiting for an ice cut to end can be freezing-cold experiences. Especially in the colder months, a blanket is a great way to keep a skater cozy in the cold. 

I always keep a blanket in my car and use whenever I’m at a competition. Since I have to arrive early to warm up and get ready, there’s always extra time before my practice ice and competition begins. I also use my blanket to cover me up while sitting at the stands watching my fellow skaters perform and compete.

Journal 

If your skater is a visual learner, a journal is a great way to further his/her progress on the ice. Not only do skaters get the chance to document their experiences and memories, coaches can also draw diagrams and write important points to remember. By keeping a journal on the ice, skaters can easily refer back to their notes and have a positive learning experience.  

When I was young, my spin coach kept a skating journal of my progress. During every lesson, she wrote down what spins I worked on and how many revolutions I did so that next time, I would try to do more than previous lessons. Also, I was able to track how long it took me to master a certain spin and compare this information with her other students’ progress.

Skating purse 

Every skater has a bunch of necessities to bring on the ice (hair ties, chapstick, extra gloves, water, CDs, tissues, etc), so why not get stylish? While Kiss and Cry bags are the most popular and most functional, any purse or small bag works. By getting a unique bag for the ice, skaters can show off their fashion sense and easily carry all their belongings. 

Zuca bag or suitcase 

Even more important than a skating purse is a practical bag off the ice. Skaters must lug their skates, gloves, change of clothes, socks, water, etc to and from practice every day which is quite an ordeal. This holiday season, invest in a suitcase or Zuca bag to fit all your skaters’ necessities in one place. The Zuca bag is especially great because it serves as both a suitcase and a seat for skaters to put their skates on when rinks get crowded. 

I prefer a suitcase to carry my skates, towels, socks, etc. mainly because I needed a larger bag for both my freestyle and dance skates. As I started to compete more and travel far, I found having the suitcase to be much more convenient because I could keep all my skating belongings in the bag when I had to check in at the airport and then take my bag directly to the rink. Also, I like the spinner wheels on my suitcase. Since the wheels rotate 360 degrees, it allows for easy movement in any direction.

Water Bottle

Did you know that when athletes deplete more than 2% of their body weight, their performance drastically decreases? (https://www.teamusa.org/USA-Softball/News/2018/April/01/Three-steps-to-hydrating-youth-athletes-for-healthy-performance). It’s important for your skater to stay hydrated as he/she works hard during practice and lesson time.

A customized water bottle with your skater’s favorite color and/or design is a perfect gift and will certainly stand out among the many other bottles, avoiding potential mix up with other skaters’ bottles. I highly recommend a vacuum insulated stainless steel bottle because it keeps the drink cold which is refreshing especially after a tough workout and also it’s easier to clean. I like the Hydroflask and S’well brand bottles due to their designs.

Skating clothes 

Arrive on the ice in style! Feeling great is key to skating great, so why not get in on the latest fashion trends? Whether your skater is into iconic skating brands such as ChloeNoel or casual workout clothes such as Lululemon, the rink is the perfect place to show off one’s updated wardrobe.

Happy Shopping!

What is a Blade's Radius of Hollow?

Now that my students’ parents know when to sharpen their child’s skates, many have encountered a problem when asked “What radius of hollow do you want?” and confused what the ‘right’ answer should be.

Before I provide you some guidance on the radius of hollow used by beginner skaters, let me first explain what the term means.  I won’t spend too much time going into detail because it can get very technical; however, I will try to give an overview so you have at least a basic understanding. 

A blade’s hollow is the length running between the two edges on a blade or the curve that’s carved into the bottom of the blade. This shape is created by grinding the blade with a sharpening wheel. The size of your blade hollow has a significant impact on how you skate. You can have a deep or shallow hollow depending if you want more or less edge. 

Photo Courtesy: https://weekendwarriorshockey.com/how-sharp-should-my-skates-be-blade-hollow-demystified-2/

The depth of the hollow is determined by the radius. It’s called radius of hollow because the grinding stone that is used to sharpen your blade has a curve on it.  This curve on the stone is formed from the radius of a circle which is the same curve that is used to shape the skate’s blade surface when sharpened- in the shape of a hollow. A smaller radius means a smaller circle which creates a deeper hollow, making the blades feel sharper and have more edge (or more bite). 

A normal hollow is generally 1/2” to 1” (most beginners are 3/4” to 1”).  A larger hollow is recommended for beginners because it gives the skater greater glide and speed since the edges are not digging deep into the ice. As your child’s skating improves and skills advance, you can go from a shallow hollow of 3/4“ to a deeper radius of 5/8” to 1/2”.  I find the attached chart detailing the different radius of hollow a handy reference to have in figuring out what measure has less/more bite and glide. Also, I find the diagram below to be helpful- it’s not drawn to scale but is exaggerated to help show the difference between the radius of hollow for the specific measures.

Photo courtesy: https://www.researchgate.net/figure/Skate-blade-radius-of-hollow-ROH-frontal-view-Units-for-the-25-50-and-75-is_fig2_249956702

My figure skate blades have 1/2” hollow which gives me a good balance of having a sharp feel and edge along with more glide and speed. Contrary, my dance blades have a deep 3/8” hollow (most ice dancers have 7/16”- 3/8” hollow) because it’s critical for me to perform intricate footwork and deep edges and turns. The only drawback with a deep hollow is that you don’t get as much speed and so you have to work harder to get more glide. Also, the deeper the hollow, the more often you have to get the blades sharpened to maintain the edge. That’s why I get my dance skates sharpened much more frequently than my freestyle skates. It’s always an adjustment for me switching back and forth to these different skates but I feel its what’s appropriate for me in these two different skating disciplines. The two diagrams that I’ve attached show the different radius of hollow in my freestyle and dance blades. It’s difficult to see because it’s only 1/8” of a difference but my dance blade has a deeper hollow.  

As your skating level changes, you will require a different radius of hollow so you’ll need to experiment and find the measure which works best for you. It took me almost a whole year before I determined what radius I was most comfortable with so don’t worry as you and your child will find the ‘right’ hollow.

How Often To Sharpen Skates?

I get asked this question a lot and honestly, there really is no right answer because it all depends on your skater’s preferences, needs, and requirements. Also, each skater has different degrees of how sharp they like their blades to feel so despite the many recommendations out there, the final decision should rest with your skater. 

First, what does it mean when I recommend that your child’s skates need to be sharpened?  You need to have sharpened skates to help with pushing and gliding forward, pivoting and turning, spinning, jumping, and stopping. Your child’s skate blades will get dull from continuous use and eventually lose its “bite” or grip on the ice. When the skates are sharpened, both the inside and outside edges of the skate blades will be razor sharp and should have no nicks on them because the rough parts will be smoothed out.  

The easiest way to know when to sharpen skates is when your skater complains that he/she is slipping on the ice especially when he/she tries to land a jump and/or spin and can not feel any gripping edge.  Those times when you thought your child was not having a good practice and was not putting in his/her best efforts could have been in fact due to dull or damaged skates hampering performance (or “bad ice”). Another way to determine if skates need sharpening is to do the fingernail test- turn your thumb upside down and gently run your fingernail width-wise across the blade (if you run it length-wise, you will be sure to cut your nail). If you see that some of your nail shaves off then the blades are likely to be sharp. You should do this test on 3-5 spots up and down the blade and also on the inside and outside edges. It may also be helpful to feel the blades before and after they are sharpened to help determine whether the blade is dull or sharp in between sharpenings.

You don’t want to wait too long to get skates sharpened because there will be a dramatic difference when it does get sharpened and your skater will require time to adjust to the new blades.  You also don’t want to get the skates sharpened too often; otherwise, it will wear out your blades (and you know how expensive blades costs). If the skates are too sharp, your skater will have a difficult time pushing forward because the grooves of the sharp blades get stuck into the ice. Remember, the sharper the skates does not make your child skate better!

Personally, I prefer my blades to be very sharp especially since I do freestyle and ice dance. My edges need to “grip” the ice when I spin and takeoff and land my jumps. I also need good control to make clean deep edges for my patterns and footwork. I prefer my dance blades to be super sharp compared to my freestyle blades because ice dance requires supreme control and precision of edges when completing difficult turns in patterns. As I got older I spent more time on the ice so I needed to have my skates sharpened frequently.  I believe I had my skates sharpened on average every 8-10 weeks when I was a beginner and low freestyle skater.  As I progressed to a higher level and began ice dancing, I got my skates sharpened every 4-6 weeks.  

I find it helpful to keep a log of how many hours your skater is on the ice in between sharpening so then you can be anticipate scheduling your next sharpening appointment. Please take note that a skate sharpener’s appointment book can get filled quite quickly and you definitely don’t want to be pushed back another week or more to have the skates sharpened.  Not only will your skater be very unhappy but he/she won’t be able to have a productive practice session and/or lesson if constantly frustrated with dull blades. Trust me, I’ve experienced it many times despite trying to make my appointments two months in advance! 

Lastly, it’s crucial who you go to get your skates sharpened- I can not stress it enough! You must go to a reputable and reliable professional/specialist who sharpens figure skates because your skates are sharpened very differently from those of hockey skates.  For many years now, I’ve been going to Jim Skibin at IceHouse ProShop in Hackensack (https://www.icehousenj.com/pro-shop).  Jim has sharpened and set boots to blades for Sarah Hughes, and also worked with Tara Lipinsky, Johnny Weir, Kyoko, Brian Boitano, Oksana Baiul, amongst many others. I also go to Greg Gilman at Polar Skate Shop in East Hanover, NJ (https://polarskateshop.com).  I trust my skates to no one else except Jim and Greg as I need to have peace of mind when I’m out there performing and competing. 

Every skater is different so determine the sharpening needs based on his/her preference and requirements. Don’t be afraid to experiment with different sharpening to find what your skater is most happiest with.

Remember to always protect your blades
especially after a sharpening!
(Nov 26, 2017 post)

When Should You Learn to Tie Your Own Skates

The most important part of lacing skates is the area where the foot and ankle bends

Skaters tying their own skates may seem like a stressful and daunting challenge as well. However, I can assure you that it is not as bad as it may seem. Take it from me who struggled with tying my own skates and having my mom do it for me for five years until I was ten yrs old! I always liked my skates super tight, and as a child I never believed I had the strength in my fingers to tie them to my satisfaction. However after watching my mom do it at every session and practicing at home, I eventually mastered it on my own. Now I won’t even let my mom touch my skates! It is important not to expect your child to learn immediately because it is a gradual process that will take much time and practice. By following the instructions below and constantly practicing, all skaters will eventually have the confidence and capability of tying his/her own skates. However, it is important to remember that skaters definitely do not need to tie their own skates right away. Parents should be in charge of tying skates until their child is old enough, strong enough, and comfortable enough on the ice.