Starting rollerblading at 61. Am I insane?

Go for it.
find somewhere quiet and flat.
use the penguin method to start off.

You probably won't die but you will fall over a lot.

I'm presently looking forlornly at the bag containing my quad skates that I haven't used since our local rink closed in Bury (I was going every week pre-covid). I've been threatening to go over and skate with Geordiemick of this parish at Wigan rink for ages, but something has always come up.

Do you want to message me and we could arrange to both go over for one of the adult skate evenings? That way when you fall over you won't land on a small child. You'll also have us to give you some pointers, though whether thats a help or a hinderance...

Cheers. @martymac

I have access to quiet and flat places.

Not sure about eating chocolate biscuit but will give it a go.

Is there a local indoor rink? We have a YMCA that does sessions. Much easier than outside, and the staff are usually glad to give tips. Although, I don't have the ankles for blades, I only seem to manage skates. Enjoy! Wrist guards are probably your friend.

Do the pads include wrist guards? As I’d definitely advise a pair. I recently got a pair of skates and when time/weather/freedom allows I go to Morecambe front but I skated when I was young.

What is the worst that could happen?

Thanks @binners. I remembered that you had done a bit in the past. I am expecting to become very familiar with the effects of gravity  soon. I will bear your kind offer in mind once I have received the skates and when (if?) I attain some confidence on them.

Wrist guards are included in the pads. Thanks for asking, ladies.

I am not aware of any local rinks nearby but will have a shufti.

Not at all it's a great idea

Says leffeboy who is trying to learn at 60.  I can sort of do it but it's not great and not in control

What is the worst that could happen?

Well, I'm thinking broken bones, scarring and ridicule mostly...

**** the haterz, have fun.

Good on ya @leffeboy. :0)

"What is the worst that could happen?"

Ridiculous. My shorts are a lot shorter, tighter and glitterier than that.

You probably won’t die but you will fall over a lot.

I’m presently looking forlornly at the bag containing my quad skates that I haven’t used since our local rink closed in Bury (I was going every week pre-covid). I’ve been threatening to go over and skate with Geordiemick of this parish at Wigan rink for ages, but something has always come up.

Do you want to message me and we could arrange to both go over for one of the adult skate evenings? That way when you fall over you won’t land on a small child. You’ll also have us to give you some pointers, though whether thats a help or a hinderance

It's a good rink at Wigan, used to jump on the train over to Derby roller world fairly regularly too.

When we moved to Paris there were some paths nearby that were popular to rollerblade on and it looked fun so I bought some from our local Decathlon and ventured out. It was fun, but on my second attempt I overheard some kids say “did you see that old guy on rollers “. Never really the same after that.

You want Skikes grandad!

Alison has some - you're wearing trainers so can at least take them off and walk or run when you get stuck / defeated by a cattle grid 🙂 They also have fairly decent brakes and teach you to xc ski.

All videos make it look unimaginably dull 🙂

Mick - I have a feeling that they *might* cost a leetle more than I have "invested" in this so far!

I used to be mad for skating in the 90's. Baggy trousers and skate park stylee. Bought some new agressive skates back in March when not getting out riding much. Had a couple of goes down the small local skate park when all the kids were safely tucked up in school and was pleased to find even after a 20 year break the actual skating along part came right back. Trying to jump or do anything technical with rails or ramps however is incredibly hard work. Would be amazing for full body fitness though if I could keep at it but once summer arrived bikes and hikes and gardening have taken my attention and I'm far too embarrassed to be in the skate park in my 40's with the kids about. Hoping to take the skates with me whilst travelling in Spain this winter as am always seeing empty skate parks in sleepy towns over there previous winters. Oh and concrete seems harder these days than I remember when in my teens....

Yes..... She did the gateway drugs first🙂 Starting with living on rollerboots as a kid.

I had a foray for a few years at inline speed skating, got a marathon time of 1:45 as well as completing the Goodwood 100 and Inline111 in Switzerland. All my training was a Eelmoor near Aldershot or Dorney Lake - the biggest hill I’d been down was the bridge at Dorney so image the ‘fun’ of a 5km downhill in a pace line of over 50 skaters doing 50kph+ with no brakes 😳

I used to drive out to Dorney at dawn for my training - before the dog walkers with their extendable leads got there. Drafting cyclists at 40 kph was always a bit of fun. Really good quad and core workout but the rigid carbon boots were brutal on your feet so good boot fit is crucial.

When we moved to Paris there were some paths nearby that were popular to rollerblade on and it looked fun so I bought some from our local Decathlon and ventured out. It was fun, but on my second attempt I overheard some kids say “did you see that old guy on rollers “. Never really the same after that.

When our local rink was open they did child-free sessions midweek. We went every week. There was a bloke there every week who was 81 and he spent the evening pootling around the rink, headphones on, listening to classical music. Not a single **** was given by him what anyone else thought. If I make it too that age, I want to be like him. Our friend MrSparkle here is a mere pup in comparison 😀

I recently returned to quad skating after a 40yr hiatus. Broke my wrist second time out and that was wearing wrist guards. Get better wrist guards.

I’ve got some second hand Decathlon blades (and all the pads) on their way to me so please give me some tips

Just be sure to wipe all of the blood off from the previous person that should have known better 👍😉

You want Skikes grandad

God that looks dull as dishwater.
you know what my alpine hike needs. Punctures

Yeah, imagine doing some sort of off road sport that involves wheels and tyres. How tedious…

I know nothing about rollerblading but, is four wheels not excessive? What's the point of more than two? (Genuine question, I'm sure there must be a reason.)

How does it compare with ice skating, is it a transferrable skill?

They do 30 mins or so for beginners at the start of the Wigan rink session on a weekend day IIRC.

Pop along there if you're local, just don;t be intimidated by all the really good kids, OAPs etc.

Is it transferable from ice skating? Yes, one of the women in the beginner bit with me picked it up incredibly fast and then admitted she was an experienced ice skater when pressed.

Must be something they put in your water:

https://www.lancashiretelegraph.co.uk/news/19383580.roller-skating-back-trend-darwen/

I know nothing about rollerblading but, is four wheels not excessive? What’s the point of more than two?

when you go over rough stuff such as cobbles it smooths it out.  Otherwise the front wheel would get stuck and over you go

skating on cobbles may just be a belgian thing though 🙁

excellent skating film btw:

It's certainly an unfashionable way to look like a pillock these days. But, good luck and enjoy! 😀

@Cougar

I know nothing about rollerblading but, is four wheels not excessive? What’s the point of more than two? (Genuine question, I’m sure there must be a reason.)

I also know nothing, but that's never stopped me from chipping in before, and I don't see why it should now.

I always thought it was something to do with being able to turn them if you put them on an angle?

I did go to Derby roller rink a few years ago. Once I got over feeling like an old weirdo amongst the young people, it was quite fun.

Golfchick - the tarmac at the heysham end of prom is super smooth.  There's a lady skater at that end we got to know through cycling, she s v friendly, if you see her tell her you know the Brompton boys.

excellent skating film btw:

@stwhannah - United Skates is an absolutely fantastic film. Despite doing loads of skating myself I had no idea of the huge cultural significance in the States. And some of the skating on display is insane!

Unfortunately its no longer on iplayer 🙁

Rollerblade wheels are not set on angle but ride height of each wheel is adjustable (or at least first and last wheel. This setting will affect turning radius and stability.
Other than racing models the blades do have a brake on other shoe but it isn’t most effective.  However, compared to roller skis the roller blades are probably much safer and are way easier to manoeuvre. Both become sufferfest when the tarmac ia bad, sandy or has wet leafs on.  I use both for training xc skiing but prefer roller skis as they have transferable motion to skiing on snow.

Go for it, I am in my 50's and now skate more than I bike, absolutely love it. The main problem is finding smooth places to skate outside which is a bit limited.

Always be padded up and wear a helmet too.  Knees bent and stay low.
Some great YouTube videos to gander through as well for learning with

Skatefresh Asha probably one of the best https://www.youtube.com/@SkatefreshVideos

Also Bill Stoppard - https://www.youtube.com/@BillStoppard

If you have 15 minutes watch Slomo 

Might be over 9 years old but he's still skating now.

(cheers for the replies all, interesting)

I don't really know why you'd go skating when you could go cycling instead? (which is objectively waaaaaay better, obvs.)

@smudge why do you love it? (more than cycling?) Genuinely interested.

Sorry I'm not meaning to be negative here but maybe I am a bit....good luck to you 👍

I only did a couple of sessions, but I can say that as a newbie it was far more scary and felt more dangerous than MTBing.

So maybe just the ticket for thrillseekers.

This reminds me that I've still got my old set of Rollerblade blades back at my parent's house, bought them in California back in 1998! Only used them for a summer before they got relegated to the cupboard, should still fit me.

Good question,

Don't get me wrong I do also like/love mountain biking, but the ease of just keeping a pair of skates in the van and popping them on when I have a spare hour or so when I am out is probably the key for me.. I would not even look at  turning a crank over if only out for an hour tbh.

Time has been limited biking wise this year as my parter broke her hip (not from blading!) so I have been pretty much full time carer for most if it, now she has started rehab and starting small walks I can rollerblade at the same time 🙂 just making sure I don't knock her over off course!

It's also a great community to part off,  I don't think I've ever seen a miserable skater 😉

They also do marshalled Friday Night Skates in London which I would love to one day be a part off

I like the Skatefresh Asha recommendation on YouTube

Edwina Ellis started skating at 69

Love her attitude. “When I get old” 👌💪

I did consider trying blades once upon a time, but never followed through, however I did buy a longboard a couple of years ago. Tried riding it, and because of my shonky left knee, and me being goofy-footed, I just couldn’t keep a steady stance on it, my knee kept wobbling and making me feel really unstable and unsafe. 🙁

I’ve now taken up archery, that just involves me standing in one spot, no danger of falling over and causing myself any more damage than I already have.

I started blading because we suddenly started a magazine about it. I bought skates, pads and guards and loved it.
The guys who taught me encouraged me to throw myself onto my knees and just slide to see how easy it was to get low and slide to a halt.
Once I felt confident, could steer well enough and could control my speed he dragged out some hockey sticks and a ball and we played VERY slow hockey. That was a real eye-opener as you were focussed on the ball and playing hockey, NOT on trying to skate. That just came as part of the deal...

Hi Eddie, was that called ‘skatermag’?
I used to roller hockey too, loved it, even if I was rubbish lol I still have my sticks somewhere too.

I bought a set 2 years back to teach myself the skills I would need for ice skating as my wife and kids can all skate. Decathlon, pads, wrist guards, they've sat unused hidden in my shed the entire time

Long time inline skater here, 20+ years.
Mines the "aggressive" version though i.e. skateparks etc.

Love it, though hard work making time.
I'm from the town that was discussed in that lancs telegraph online news article listed on the previous page and I can confidently say nobody else here does it (anymore).
Used to be loads in this town when I was a kid. Not generally a good look for somebody in their mid 30s but so what.
It's hard on the body and when I was doing it regular I had a very stable and strong core and lower body. So much so that when I first started going to a gym I managed to get a 100kg squat for several repetitions within maybe 2 months of going. I stopped after that as it was boring.

Use wrist guards as that's the first thing to break for most skaters. Helmet and kneepads also being my main forms of protection.

If there's ever anybody in the northwest doing something then get a post up here, wouldn't mind joining any sort of social roll about.

There's an element of freedom to blading that doesn't exist on any other form of sport. Being attached to you, they are a direct extension and the possibilities for movements are almost endless.

@poolman yeah I normally park up next to happy mount park and skate all the way down til the hill, the first bit and later bits are wonderful but the red section in the middle is pretty awful, I'm just hoping that it'll all get redone when the eden bit is built!

@smudge cheers makes sense.

I bought a DJ bike recently not really knowing what I would use it for.

Turns out it's great for the same sort of thing.

Can just go and cock about on it for an hour at the pump track or attempting/failing to manual.

A good mess about when no time for a proper ride.

smudge
Free Member
Hi Eddie, was that called ‘skatermag’?
I used to roller hockey too, loved it, even if I was rubbish lol I still have my sticks somewhere too.

Yep, Inline (in small type) SKATERMAG

@keefezza - it’s the adults only skating at Wigan rink on Wednesday 27th from 7 - pm.

I quite fancy getting skating again if you fancy it?

Anyone else interested in that? @MrSparkle - are you up for that?

@eddiebaby wow congrats, that was a brilliant magazine  👌👏 nothing really replaced it.

I wasn't aware of the Wigan rink so might try to get over soon if I can blag an evenings dog free pass.

I'd need to arrange something for my son to not be home alone, shouldn't be too difficult to do though.

Now try adding in hockey to the roller mix and it's a recipe for extreme fun.

smudge
Free Member
@eddiebaby wow congrats, that was a brilliant magazine 👌👏 nothing really replaced it.

I can't take credit for it. That was all down to Aldie Chalmers (the editor) and his missus.

@binners - I’ve not even got the skates yet! 😆

Just out of interest I had a look on a Facebook marketplace for skates. The amount of decent sets of Bauers for sale with the ‘only used once’ tag suggest many have been this way before 😂

Check out the stuttering skater on YT.

<span style="color: #000000; font-family: Roboto, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, 'Noto Sans', sans-serif, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, 'Segoe UI', 'Apple Color Emoji', 'Segoe UI Emoji', 'Segoe UI Symbol', 'Noto Color Emoji';">Just out of interest I had a look on a Facebook marketplace for skates. The amount of decent sets of Bauers for sale with the ‘only used once’ tag suggest many have been this way before 😂</span>

I got mine off ebay 'used once' probably by some other old duffer who broke his wrist. Not stopping me tho

Nah mate, go for it. Pat took up MTB at 60 something and still going down race tracks at 80, you're never too young to start a new hobby!

The 360 cameras bring a new viewing dimension to the films.

Once you get addicted the N=N+1 becomes a S=S+1 🙂

Update: they're arrived. And only took a week... thanks Yodel. :0/

I've already progressed from falling over in two steps in the living room (hard surface) to not falling over in the bedroom (carpet). I think that as long as I confine myself to skating in bedrooms I am going to smash this!

Its all progress, my friend 🙂

I was just about to revisit this thread actually as I'm going to head over to Wigan Rink tomorrow night (7-9) for their twice-monthly kid-free session

Anyone else fancy joining me? I've had a straight 'NO!' from Mrs Binners

This is great to hear.

My girlfriend and I made an impulse purchase at Decathlon. Our main intent was to blade down the sea front on Puerta Pollenca, north Mollarca in the summer holidays. We found roller blading the best way to get around in the 35deg heat. Lots of breeze generated for very little effort.

We purchased our blades in June and went to the local muga to practice (the cage is great for those out of control moments). We also found the pitch markings great for practicing turns, stops etc.

She used youtube, I used my experience as a kid from the 90s, I can't believe what came back to me after 20 years!

Really good fun.

I’ve got some second hand Decathlon blades (and all the pads) on their way to me so please give me some tips and some encouragement.

Just to follow up own experience, I've just changed last week from Decathlon skates to a more solid shell skate made by FR and they feel a lot more stable and easier to control.  Still struggling with T braking at anything more than a jogging pace but they feel much better connected to me rather than something I am wobbling on top of

Noted. At this stage I'll stick with the ones I've got but I will upgrade if I am keen enough to keep on with it. The skates and pads only cost me £23.

So far I haven't ventured outside on mine - I'm still wobbling across the kitchen floor!

Oh this is awesome - looking forward to the updates 😀

I decided to (try) to learn to skateboard last year and quickly progressed from carpet 🤣 to balance exercises in the kitchen and then on to kick turns in the unfinished basement of our US home. Unfortunately a (bicycle related) ACL incident last Christmas put paid to my Tony Hawk aspirations but I still wonder what might have been and indeed if it's feasible to skate in a knee brace 🤔

Good luck!

The skates and pads only cost me £23.

I started with some Bauer skates from ebay like that.  In retrospect they were terrible and should have gone straight in the bin as they were destroyed but I didn't know it.  Then got some  Decathlon ones and they were miles better just because they weren't dead.  Don't be afraid to move on quickly if you are having a good time.

Merci, m'dear.

Interesting thread. I had regular skates in my teens. Bought some cheap blades later in life. Never really stuck at it till I turned 50 & got back in to it. Upgraded to some Seba FR1’s & the difference was night & day. If you’re starting out don’t go for 3x110’s. You are pretty high up & they carry a lot of speed. 4x80 is the ideal beginner set up. Game changer for me was going 4x90 on Endless frames. They have  very slight “rocker”, where the centre wheels sit a mm lower. You wouldn’t think it would make much difference but the difference in manoeuvrability is amazing.

Boot fit is critical, take time to get it right. It will hurt at first, you’re working muscles you may not have worked before.

Stsy low, your knees should be over your toes. Staying upright will seem difficult at first but it soon comes.

Unlike some activities, you have to put the hours in to get even a basic level of ability on skates. Watching Ricardo Lino, Sean Unwin, Nico Torelli etc on YouTube, it looks so easy. It’s not.!! Your basic stop is a drag stop, a T-Stop as it’s otherwise known. Get it right & it’s effective at losing speed but it is limited. Powerstops & slides take a LOT of practice.
But get a bit of confidence & nothing comes close.

There’s a group in London called Friday Night Skate, who run a proper marshalled ride on you guessed it… But they do a gentler Sunday ride. My lad was down in London for a show so I joined the Sunday “Stroll” as they call it. Took some guts to meet 100 others in Hyde Park but I can thoroughly recommend it, I learned a lot by watching & asking others.

Get out there & give it a go. !!

Upgraded to some Seba FR1’s & the difference was night & day

FWIW it's the FR3s that I bought and yes they seem to really make a difference.  I haven't done the rocker thing yet but I'm still trying to go in a straight line :).  My aim is to be able to do the Brussels version of the Friday night rollers when it starts up again next summer, it always looks great fun

As Binners has said, I've skated a lot and I'm 50. Been on the things non stop for 13 years now, played roller derby for 3 teams at one point and played in the European Championships.

Roller skating was the end of my biking career, no driving hours to get to a trail or cleaning bikes, £3 for 3 hours of exercise, fun, and on the basis that 12 years of the 13 years I've skated has been with women I've met at the rink, it's a shag palace too 🤣🤣

Used to have a pair of Bauer quads BITD. There were four of us and we used to play hockey.

Saw this the other day..... Something to aspire to perhaps?

Something to aspire to perhaps?

No, never. He has an unbelievable amount of control but that is like watching Rampage with even more fingers in front of my eyes.

It's a funny thing.

As an adult were often self conscious or mocked if we're on a skateboard or skates, but it's perfectly 'normal' for middle aged people to glide about the ice rink.

One's seen as adult and ones seen as something for kids.

Maybe it's just the time these sports have existed. But who cares - you just cannot beat the feeling off coasting over smooth tarmac.

Anyone that's never skated is missing out on one of life's good things.