Reader Ebony tells all about the awesome hobby of roller skating... could it be right for you too?
Ebony says:
I learned how to roller skate when I was small, but only got into it seriously about four years ago. My dad took me along to the rink because I was always complaining that I was bored on Saturdays and needed something to do!
At my local roller rink they do games and disco skating. At first I was intimidated because the older ones - and even people my own age - seemed to be able to skate so well! The people there had been skating for a long time and had lots of experience. I fell over a few times to begin with, but you have to get back up and try again - if you don't, your confidence will go and you won't succeed.
That is still my motto now, as I am in the process of learning to do tricks like axel jumps and mape jumps, and I fall over all the time. I suppose you get shocked the first time you fall, and you think, 'No, this is dangerous, I'm not doing this again!' But if you can get over that first reaction and make yourself carry on, it's just so much fun and practice is definitely the way to learn, of course.
I practice in the week, in the evenings after school - in the summer especially, and the odd winter evening as well. I also do speed skating up and down the pavement and try to improve my times and get faster. I also practice axels, spins, jumps and just general skating up and down! At the weekend, I just dance/ skate to my favourite songs at the roller disco. Going with my friends is my favourite thing to do. You can go around with them and chat, but sometimes they get a bit surprised when they see what you can do! I am trying to find an artistic skating club in my area - no luck so far, but I will keep on looking!
The main thing you need is a good pair of skates, although arm pads and knee pads may be useful for a beginner! A good pair of skates would cost around £60 - it may sound a lot, but they will last for a very long time! Once in a while you may need to change the stoppers as they get worn out, and you can get new wheels too! My advice for beginners would be to give roller skating a go... but don't go too full-on! You think, 'Oh yeah, I can do this,' and you get all cocky and then you fall over and your confidence is knocked. I like the speed and the tricks of skating - and it is so much fun to do jumps! Learning is hard - but if you want to get good at something, it's the only way!
Cathy says:
I love the sound of this - I quite liked roller skating when I was a teen. I was especially good at the falling over bit! Would YOU ever give roller skating a go? COMMENT BELOW to have your say!
I learned how to roller skate when I was small, but only got into it seriously about four years ago. My dad took me along to the rink because I was always complaining that I was bored on Saturdays and needed something to do!
That is still my motto now, as I am in the process of learning to do tricks like axel jumps and mape jumps, and I fall over all the time. I suppose you get shocked the first time you fall, and you think, 'No, this is dangerous, I'm not doing this again!' But if you can get over that first reaction and make yourself carry on, it's just so much fun and practice is definitely the way to learn, of course.
Cathy says:
I love the sound of this - I quite liked roller skating when I was a teen. I was especially good at the falling over bit! Would YOU ever give roller skating a go? COMMENT BELOW to have your say!
Thanks for featuring me Cathy! �� x
ReplyDeleteI would definitely try roller-skating as the first time I fell over I broke my arm and became nervous. But thanks to Ebony I will get my skates on
ReplyDeleteI'd love to rollerskate sounds fun and somethings to try this summer 🙂
ReplyDeleteI used to do roller blading(one line of wheels) but my skates got too small:-(
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