Rollerblading

I often wonder how far the latent homosexual desires of people that call others gay as banter on the interweb run?

Lots of people use these in Sweden and Finland to train during the summer for cross country skiing, in lines get used a lot as well but they have the space and bike paths to use them on. Nothing like cycling with 4 Finn girls when they are on these things, hypnotic would be an apt description.

How the hell do they stop/slow down on them things?

I would love to give them a try on some of the bike paths through the forests round here, but I don’t see quite how they work.

It was bad enough when I had blue Kryptonics and Bones on my boards, hitting gravel and pavement imperfections stopped it dead in its tracks, those tiddly little wheels must get stopped by the tiniest litte things.

Agreed, no idea how anyone skates street on those things, though I’m more of a 66mm Bullet man myself. Only have slimeballs left now.

Thinking too much now. I’m going to have to go and buy a new board aren’t I??

I still have a pair of skates and use them occasionally. Use to skate nearly everyday as a kid. I had skateboards and a BMX but always reverted back to the blades. Unity magazine was the month buy instead of MBUK not so many years ago.

How the hell do they stop/slow down on them things?

I would love to give them a try on some of the bike paths through the forests round here, but I don’t see quite how they work.
If you mean the red ones above they are sissy models with front brakes. Most roller skis do not have any brakes but the wheels are slower than inlines. For emergency braking you’ll have to do V or T-braking.

I have never understood the appeal of skateboards, snowboards andother skill/trick sports, with bikes, inlines and skates you can really move and feel like going somewhere.

Never liked inlines, aggressives are marginally better, I’m an old school bauer turbo with kryptonics kind of guy, not leg warmers though. Always fancied a set of these:

I would love to give them a try on some of the bike paths through the forests round here, but I don’t see quite how they work.

See a few people training with those red things in the forest. One guy out near the fossil pits usually towing a kid in a kiddie bike trailer.

Since they’ve been randomly “repairing” the paths round here recently with new stonechip, I’d be more worried about how you make them go, rather than stop. Was like riding on a beach on my CX bike the other day on one of the main bike paths. Hope it all settles soon.

I guess on that type, you lean down and pull the lever? Or get really clever and actuate it with the ski poles?

I was checking them out online earlier, and you can get some with relatively large wheels, which look like they would deal with hardpack paths, like these

http://www.powerslide.de/products/frames/x-plorer

and these look really snazzy, but unfortunately they don’t go big enough shoe sizes for me.

http://www.powerslide.de/products/skates/xc-trail

You can get brakes for them that activate by pushing a leg forward in a kind of telemark style.

I know what you mean about the freshly laid paths, its like riding through fresh loose grit, it kills any momentum.

Yeah certainly no PB’s on some paths round here now. Some bits did need sorting though. Even the path up to Frankenstein’s castle got fixed, although I think part of it totally washed away before and walkers coming down make you ride thru the trenches going up.

Not sure how the telemark braking works. Need to find a vid. Unless it’s tilting the boot more than XC?

As for EU size 47 max. – if that’s shimano sizing, it could be 45 in reality, which must be about average! 47 isn’t exactly that large tbh.

My old Hobie plank:

And it is a plank, too!

Always fancied a set of these:

that’s what me other half uses for skating outside..

she has a whole plethora of other wheels of varying width and hardness to use in various combinations when she’s playing derby..

their ‘what wheels for…?’ threads make our ‘what tyre…?’ threads look amateur