New Speed Forum Visitors - Introduce Yourself!

[Timbostang]

Hi, I'm Tim. I'm 42 and live in Conroe Tx.

I'm a fairly new skater. I use to skate every once in a while when I was a kid. When I got out of the Marines I bought some k2 Flight 76s for my wife and I. I might have put 50 miles on them. Here recently I noticed my daughters aptitude for skating and decided to get us both started with Texas Speed Club. So we have been skating for 2 and a half months now. I bought her some Luigino Kids Challenge adjustables about a month ago so she is still getting use to them. I got some k2 radical 100 hybrids on 4x105 z-frames and found them too mushy. Just got some Luigino strut boots last week and mounted them on the z-frame. I've got weak ankles so I'm having a tough time adjusting. We attended a speed skate clinic last month and found out just how bad our ability and technique really are. Or it could just be that they should have listed it as an advanced clinic and we would not have went.

My 100m lap time is a 13.2 and hers is 14.5. So this is where we are now!!

[darthblader]

Welcome aboard, Tim! I'm a Conroe-dweller myself...pretty much mostly skate at Carl Barton Jr park on 336. Is Texas Speed Club out of Rainbo? Guess I'll have to google that...

[Timbostang]

They are at the Humble Family Skate Center. Every once in a blue moon they will go have a practice at Rainbow. I actually won some Renfest tickets at Rainbow last week on Sunday skating on my quads in the 18+ skate races.

[Gennady Karasev]

I'm 23 y/о.

Many years ago as a child I had some noname skates with very noisy crap bearings and 80mm wheels...)) It was in summer. In winter I usually was playing hockey in my district.

This spring I was in anticipation of a good and warm summer in Moscow, so I bought Seba FR1 with 80mm Matter wheels. It was good skates for start. There was a lot of group skating along the Moscow river and other districts (also it was exploring for me).
In the middle of the summer I've started to train with speedskating school 3 times a week. It was great progress for me: my technique improved a lot, my speed increased. In the end of summer my trainer told me about coming competitions in Russia Federation, Germany.

My first speedskating marathon was at the old landing strip with the shape of scale-beam, U-turns and wet asphalt. The time was terrible (most of the participants were so): 1h56m, but i was looking forward to new marathons with good courses and nice weather.
Next full marathon was in Cologne, Germany. It was still last starting block and wet asphalt. The result: 1h39m. Not bad, i thought.
Outdoor season is closed now, the temperature is near 32F(0C), the ground is wet almost every day, the snow will cover the ground soon...till May.

The setup I've got last week:

Luigino Strut 2012, Aqua Tech//Flyke turbo frame 13.1" 4*110mm//4 Matter G13 (Tr2) & 4 Matter Max G (Tr3)//Bones Super Reds bearings.

This winter i will run twice per week along the Moscow river from my home and back and will be looking forward for new speedskating season in Europe and U.S (yeah, speedskating is a great way to travel a lot). The goal is 1h20m in Berlin Marathon.

Hello to all speedskaters!

[niko]

Hiya!

I'm Niko, 42, from Germany (Rhine area) and after reading here for quite a while (tons of good info in here!) I thought I register to participate more actively in the discussions.

No big skating history...skated 1x per week (regular nightskate) when working in Frankfurt 2005/6. Then 3 years of "no sports" when having returned to home town until I found the guy in the mirror looked horrible.
Got myself some semi race skates (and the Publow book!) and started again 1x per week with a nice bunch of folks. After my 2nd Marathon in 2012 someone convinced me to check out our local speedskating club which I eventually joined in August 2012. Got myself some decent speed equipment and made quite some progress with proper training (supported by gym and clinics with Yann and Bart in 2013) which led to a 1:14:42 at Berlin Marathon (B block) this year

Goal for 2014 is to shave off another 2mins in Berlin and to further improve technique to become faster and more efficient.

Current gear: X-Tech and Junker custom boots, EO (non-rockered) and Core Icon frames (both HiLo), G13 wheels which proved to be a major improvement over the AmWings I had used before.

cheers and maybe I meet the one or the other at some race...
niko

[arbingordon]

Hi,
I'm John, 22.
I enjoyed skating quads and inlines at rinks in my youth, and was lucky enough to try speed skates at the time as well, which I enjoyed immensely.
I couldn't afford the sport until recently, now that I can I'm on luigino sting boots with mogema cross trainer frames, bionic bearings and sgb 80mm wheels.
I also have a 4x105 P51 frame and 100mm atom burn black wheels.

[Humpchops]

Hello forums.
My name is Victor and I'm 28. Been skating for a long time now and have always enjoyed speed skating. I'm not very good at it but enjoy the adult nights at the local rink. I GET TO SKATE AS FAST AS I WANT =)

Anywho hope to ask many questions and get back into shape to do a marathon or something.

[TAP135]

Hi all.

more like reNew again to the forum, It's been a long time since I've been on this forum.

I'm new to the Raleigh,NC area and I am looking for other skaters to skate with. I relocated from the Philadelphia area and I've been skating for a long time.

I skate alone for the most part at the moment on the local trails roads in the area.

[tucker16]

Hello all

My names Tom Smith, Been retired from speed skating for a good while now and just recently started back up with a speed team in Indiana. Got my kids into speed skating about six months ago on both quad and inlines. Been a tough road back for me as I really have not taken care of myself as well as I should have and a few injures since back in the day. Starting back up has really been great for me and the kids absolutely love it.
I skated from 1989-1992 in the south central region for pasadena tx speed team and also deerpark tx speed team. Occasionaly practiced at champions out of spring tx too. Looking to share /receive knowledge of the sport.

Thanks all. T Smith

[WJCIV]

Originally Posted by tucker16

My names Tom Smith, Been retired from speed skating for a good while now and just recently started back up with a speed team in Indiana.

Which one, and which league? I think in addition to the regional league that is certified with USARS there are two rookie leagues organized by competing rinks in Fort Wayne.

If you skate in the GLSL or the rookie league out of Rollerdome I will see you around.

[tucker16]

We skate for Rollerdome out of Mishawaka In. They have been running the rookie league and will be doing great lakes in April.

[WJCIV]

Okay. If you were at the boot camp this past Sunday I am the coach for Logansport who was also skating.

[Born2SkateNL]

Hello there,

Just completed the involved process of attaining membership to your lovely forum! My name is Ruben, I'm a Dutch citizen but have lived in NJ, USA for the majority of my life. I'm 28, a professional video editor, and have gotten out of shape...

I've skated ice before as a child (a requirement in the Netherlands) and loved it and then some casual skate nights at the 400m oval at Thialf in NL when I moved back for a while when I was 19... Not much since then. I rode a bicycle across the country (USA) in 2009 so am no stranger to physical challenges.

Having always loved speed skating and buoyed by the Netherlands' recent amazing performance at the Olympics I've decided to take up inline speed skating as ice, sadly, isn't much of an option round these parts!

I've been doing extensive research on skates to buy and have my eyes on some. I do have some old K2s: fitness boot, speed frames but from what I've read theres not much point (other than fitness) to starting on those just to have to learn low cut boot technique fresh anyway. So... looking to jump in with both feet, and now that I'm on here, no one is allowed to let me not follow through!

-Ruben

[Letme]

Originally Posted by Born2SkateNL

So... looking to jump in with both feet, and now that I'm on here, no one is allowed to let me not follow through!

Hey Ruben,
Nice to see that ice is generating some more population for inlines I can just confirm your conclusion as I have just put someone from Bont Semi-Race to low cut Vaypor and he had huge lack in ankle strength.

[tucker16]

Were you the one giving Braxton a run for his money? I did enjoy the boot camp. Being out of the sport for over 20 years is tough to come back and run with these young guns. Its still a blast though.

[WJCIV]

Originally Posted by tucker16

Were you the one giving Braxton a run for his money?

Yep.

Originally Posted by tucker16

I did enjoy the boot camp. Being out of the sport for over 20 years is tough to come back and run with these young guns. Its still a blast though.

I took almost a decade off. When I came back it was a bit humbling when the young ones could beat me, but a couple of years of hard work fixed that. Just remember how much fun the actual skating is when you have a hard time rolling out of bed the next morning and you will be fine.

[tucker16]

So what is the easiest way to transition from quad to inline? I have never really sKated inline and have a hell of a time on them.

[livebychance]

When my brother and I were kids in the seventies we skated almost every Friday and Saturday night. Great times and great memories totally forgotten until I went to a birthday party at Fantasy Skate rink in Reading, PA. three long years ago. Moving around on the skate floor on rental quads feeling fast and waiting for the floor guard to tell me to slow down (which did not happen), I noticed somebody with inline skates that had giant wheels (110's). When I approached the individual he told me he was a speed skater. What the heck was he talking about, speed skating on inlines I never heard of such a thing. Talking with him further, he said there was a race coming up in a few weeks at Whitehall, PA if I wanted to come and watch. Speed skating races start at 6 am which did not particularly go over well with the family. After a little coaxing and a bribe of breakfast, and lunch out they agreed to go. Watching my first race I was totally hooked.
When I got home I went online and did all kinds of research to find the right equipment. (Changed three times since then). Joined Fantasy Speed team the week after the race.

As with any sport in order to be good you have to train, have a good coach and train some more.

I compete both indoor and outdoor, but my passion is indoor.

My name is Lee I'm forty nine years old and I skate for Fantasy Speed Team out of Reading PA.

[slowsk8]

Originally Posted by tucker16

So what is the easiest way to transition from quad to inline? I have never really sKated inline and have a hell of a time on them.

Get the inlines, hang up the quads. Train, train and train some more.
Check out this thread http://www.skatelogforum.com/forums/...ad.php?t=50455

[slowsk8]

Originally Posted by livebychance

When my brother and I were kids in the seventies we skated almost every Friday and Saturday night. Great times and great memories totally forgotten until I went to a birthday party at Fantasy Skate rink in Reading, PA. three long years ago. Moving around on the skate floor on rental quads feeling fast and waiting for the floor guard to tell me to slow down (which did not happen), I noticed somebody with inline skates that had giant wheels (110's). When I approached the individual he told me he was a speed skater. What the heck was he talking about, speed skating on inlines I never heard of such a thing. Talking with him further, he said there was a race coming up in a few weeks at Whitehall, PA if I wanted to come and watch. Speed skating races start at 6 am which did not particularly go over well with the family. After a little coaxing and a bribe of breakfast, and lunch out they agreed to go. Watching my first race I was totally hooked.
When I got home I went online and did all kinds of research to find the right equipment. (Changed three times since then). Joined Fantasy Speed team the week after the race.

As with any sport in order to be good you have to train, have a good coach and train some more.

I compete both indoor and outdoor, but my passion is indoor.

My name is Lee I'm forty nine years old and I skate for Fantasy Speed Team out of Reading PA.

Great to hear you're training. Other end of the country but who knows might bump into you some day.
Never to late to start I was still learning how to skate at 49. Racing came later.