Roller skating is all about the excitement that comes with speed. Expert speed skaters can skate super fast while maintaining a balance.
You can speed up the spin of your roller skates by using several techniques and endurance training. You can also improve the frame and bearings of your roller skating skates to get a more rapid performance.
Here are Three Main Components that Make Your Skates Spin Faster.
Many skaters don’t realize how important it is to upgrade their roller skates if they want their wheels to spin faster.
Like all other types of gear that improve their performance, roller skates are no exception.
Your skating sessions will be more enjoyable if you upgrade your skates.
You can upgrade three components of your skates to make them spin faster:
- Wheels
- Bearings
- Frame
Let’s take a closer look at each component and examine how it affects the speed of our skates.
1. Wheels
The wheels of your roller skates can also be divided into indoor and outdoor wheels.
Outdoor wheels have a lower rebound rate and are generally softer than indoor wheels.
You should check the wheels to ensure they are suitable for your indoor/outdoor purpose.
It is best to get both indoor and outdoor skate wheels. Although it might sound challenging to switch between indoor or outdoor wheels, it’s actually quite simple.
Indoor skating wheels can be purchased in various levels of hardness. These are known as Durometer ratings. These hardness ratings are 92A, 95A, and 97A. The lower number, the more soft your wheels will be.
It is important to plan where you will be indoor skating. If you plan on skating on an indoor surface that is standard, choose 97A. 95A wheels are recommended for slippery indoor surfaces. If you have a slippery indoor surface, choose 92A.
Outdoor skates have a different Durometer rating. The range is from 78A, softer, to 85A, which gives you the hardest outdoor wheel. Find out how hard you want your wheel to be, and then choose the one that matches your Durometer rating.
When upgrading your skates, it is not just the hardness of the wheels that matters but also the size of the wheels. The larger your wheels are, the more you can get from them with less force.
Large wheels can also ignore uneven floors, mainly due to impurities.
Skaters generally prefer sizes between 58 and 70 mm. However, 62 mm is the most common size.
Smaller wheels will be more appealing for indoor and artistic skating because they offer greater maneuverability and precision. However, these wheels are best for experienced skaters. It is better to have larger wheels if you are just starting out with roller skating.
2. Bearings
Upgrade the skate bearings if you want to make one upgrade on your roller skates. Roller skates that aren’t too expensive will have lower-end bearings. Your wheels won’t roll as well as roller skates with higher-end bearings.
This is because a poor quality bearing does not reduce friction between your wheels and the axle.
This results in resistance to high speeds. Higher quality bearings roll at a faster and smoother pace.
The question is: How do you find out what type of bearings your original roller skates came with?
The ABEC (Annual Bearing Engineering Committee) scale is used to rate skate bearings. The ABEC ranges for roller skates vary from 1 to 9, depending on the quality of the bearing material and how smooth these bearings are polished. Skate bearings will move faster if they have a higher ABEC number.
The Swiss bearing is a second bearing rating slightly different from the ABEC ratings.
It doesn’t matter which bearing rating system you choose. Remember that these bearings take time to break in once installed (or you can ask your local skate shop for help).
While your first few upgrades may not be your fastest, you’ll soon find that you are skating faster when your bearings start to coordinate with your skates.
3. Frame
You can also upgrade your skates to make them more agile by changing the plates on the bottom of the boots. These plates can be metal-based (mostly aluminum) or plastic-based, such as high-quality vinyl and nylon.
Roller skates with metal plates are usually cheaper than those with plastic plates.
Metal plates are heavier than plastic plates, which can negatively impact the speed of your skates.
Although plastic plates are more expensive, they are lighter and easier to handle.
If you intend to do a lot with your roller skates, metal plates are better than vinyl or plastic ones.
You should choose metal plates if you’re a serious rider. But if speed skating is your thing, you can upgrade your skates with a high-quality vinyl/plastic plate.
Proper Technique
Your skating and balance skills play an important role in speeding up your skating.
Begin by standing still, then balance on one skate. Next, alternate between the skates. Next, balance on one skate and roll. You want to be able to balance well while skating fast.
Then push one of your skates forward, and the other straightens as it glides. It’s almost like you’re on a skateboard. Repeat the process with the other foot.
Balance is essential for faster speed. Your body posture and proper weight transfer are also important.
You should not rotate your shoulders or chest. The motion should be below your waist. You can speed up your movements by doing this.
To prevent your shoulders from twisting, you can lean forward and swing your arms back and forth rather than crossing your arms.
When you stride, make sure your stride is diagonally pushing forwards. Each stride should be perpendicular.
Avoid stroking with your skates in a straight line. This will reduce your speed and absorb your energy.
If you skate diagonally, your speed will increase. You can do the same for skating backward.
You should make sure your hockey pants don’t get too long or restrict your movement.
Endurance Training
Roller skating can be tiring, but it is fun. You need to keep going even if you feel tired.
Many beginners feel physical and mental pain during their skating sessions.
It is normal to feel tired from the strides. However, it is important not to let this feeling stop you from moving forward.
Endurance drills can help you focus and get the speed you need to be able to skate for long periods. Either you can sign up for endurance training programs or do it on your own through speed skating.
You can set benchmarks and push yourself to go faster every time you go out on a skate.
Set yourself challenges and competitions. Each time you surpass your “best” performance, you will improve your performance.
Conclusion
You can skate faster and for longer periods if you have the right techniques.
You should also consider upgrading your roller skates, regardless of whether they are frames, bearings, or wheels. They will bring you better top speed and thus higher performance.
