Hey there, I’m a casual but experienced ice skater but since all the ice rinks are closed down due to the pandemic I’m considering getting into rollerblading to scratch that skating itch. I’m not looking to do tricks or play hockey or anything I literally just want to listen to music and vibe.
What kind of rollerblades should I look for for my use case?? I’m used to ice skating on hockey skates so something that would let me easily transition from that would be good.
Also how bad of an idea is it to buy rollerblades from amazon?? Is it like getting a skateboard from walmart??
Also will rollerblading even scratch that itch?? how similar is it to ice skating??
thanks in advance
For your stated goal, pretty much any set of skates will work if you have access to good terrain, though smaller wheels (as found park/aggressive skates) will have a lower potential top-end speed and struggle more with uneven or broken terrain than medium-sized wheels (as found on most lower-end recreational/light-duty fitness, freeride/urban, and freestyle/slalom skates) or larger wheels (as found on higher-end recreational skates, some urban and slalom skates, many cross-training/heavy-duty fitness skates, and speed/racing and marathon skates).
Roller hockey skates are fairly common, and available in a wide range of sizings & styles, and at a variety of budget points. Inline figure skates do exist (the most notable ones being the Snow Whites), though they tend to be far less varied and far more expensive than the inline hockey skates (or most of the skates of most other disciplines). So, there are options on those fronts depending on what you want and ho much you're willing to spend. That being said, neither of those styles of skates is particularly optimized for cruising & vibing along a trail or bike lane, while recreational or freeride skates are designed with that task in mind.
As far as purchasing skates through Amazon or similar services, it's more a matter of personal preference and community pride, as there is something to be said for supporting specialty skating vendors (especially with everything that's going on right now, with the pandemic). But, the skates themselves are no different - a set of (for example) Rollerblade Zetrablade recreational/fitness skates from Amazon or from Dick's isn't going to be materially different in any significant way from a set of Zetrablades from Inline Warehouse or from Thuro Skate Shop.
As someone who goes in the other direction (that is, primarily and preferring urethane-on-asphalt over steel-on-ice), I find that (at least for me) ice skating does "scratch the itch" for inline skating (the ice rinks here are open, with limited capacity, timed ticketing & sessions, and other COVID-related measures in place), so I'd imagine that it would work in the other direction, at least for some.
What size would I wear in men’s in these skates ? I’m a size 11 in women’s
Rollerblade Zetrablade Men's Adult Fitness Inline Skate, Black and Silver, Performance Inline Skates https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07G29KJTL/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_fabc_A2PGC2H8KEC0B9EDVXWA
To answer the stated question: USW sizing is one increment greater than USM sizing, and USM sizing is one increment lesser than USW sizing.
The actual formulae are:
So, USW 11 would be equivalent to USM 10, and both correspond to a foot length of 10.667in (270.933mm).
With regard to determining what sizing is appropriate for the you for the Zetrablades, the "correct" answer is to take accurate measurements of both of your feet, and to use the dimensions of whichever (if either) of your feet is larger with Rollerblade's own sizing chart for the Zetrablades.
