Ice Skates

I tried out hockey skates at my ice skating class. It seemed as though the blades were really dull, though. At first I was slipping all over. Then, I got a bit more proficient with them a few minutes into the lesson. The difference between hockey and figure skates are that the hockey skates are rounded towards the front and the back of the skate. With figure skates, you have the toe pick in the front, and the back of the blade extends farther back, flat.

I think I may have actually done a bit better with skating backwards with the hockey skates. Without the toe pick in the way, it's easier to get a good push on the front inside edge of the blade.

However, in the free skate, I noticed that I felt a lot more unstable than at last week's free skate. I was not able to take the turns nearly as well. So, I switched out to a pair of figure skates to test out the differences. After getting the figure skates on, I was able to fly across the ice. I no longer had to be so careful on the turns. I could just let loose and build up speed without worrying about falling.

I found out more about the ice hockey class. It's $90 for the 7 lessons (45 minutes long). So, the price isn't too bad. I just am still concerned that I am not a strong enough skater to benefit from it - especially when on hockey skates (although perhaps some of my trouble came from really dull blades). But, I don't have to decide yet. I still have a couple more weeks.