Hi all! I skated as a child but have not skated in over a decade so I decided I’d like to get back into it. I’m a woman with a wide foot, size 7 from what I understand and need to find skates that are good on rough sidewalks. After some research, I am debating between the Rollerblade RB cruiser or the FR1 skates? Any recommendations or tips would be much appreciated. Thank you!
Edit: ive looked on amazon and every small store i could find and the RB cruisers are unavailable until October, but there is Rollerblade Advantage Pro XT in women’s available now. Are they comparable? Would the Pro XT not be recommended for a wider foot?
Something to note is that there are significant differences in sizing between the sexes (see here if you want all of the technical details), with a definitively-"wide" USW 7 (see here) being equivalent to a USM6 that is between "medium" and "wide" (see here).
As far as the Cruisers (see Rollerblade's own sizing chart here) go, it looks like Thruo Skate Shop in Massachusetts has many (30 sets, at the time of this writing) in stock, in USM 6/USW 7/EU 38.
As far as the FR1s (see FR Skates' own sizing chart here and here), it looks like Thuro has one set of FR1 80 skates left in EU 38 at the time of this writing. Additionally, it looks like Inline Warehouse in California has the FR1 80 in stock in USM 6/EU 38. Alternatively, InMove Skates in Pennsylvania has the FRX 80, which is closer in pricing to the Cruisers, in stock in EU 38.
A similar model to the Cruisers and FRs to consider is the Powerslide Zoom Pro 80 (see Powerslide's own sizing chart here), not to be confused with the One Zoom 80. Inline Warehouse indicates that have those in-stock in the EU 37/38 (USM 5.5/6, USW 6.5/7) sizing, though for some reason their selector has them labeled with the UK sizing ("skate size 4-5").
Another wide-fitting skate that is in the same general class (freeride/urban skates) as the Cruiser, FR1, and Zoom is the Uptown from K2 Skates. Unlike the others, the Uptown is a softboot skate, eschewing the hardboot construction of the others. It looks like Inline Warehouse and Amazon have the Uptown in-stock in USM 6/USW 7 sizing.
The Advantage Pro XT is a completely different class of skates (recreational) from the others listed. They are less-robustly built (which they make up for in comfort-focused aspects), and are intended solely for light-duty fitness skating on paved surfaces in reasonably good condition. While not bad skates in their own right when used as intended, they are a lower-tier option even within their own class
