Hot Blades! : This New Sport, Which Takes Best of Roller- and Ice-Skating, Is All the Rage

Whether you’re young or old, a roller-skating fan or just hip to the latest trends, you have to know that roller-blading has taken Southern California by storm this summer.

It’s an exciting sport that combines the best of roller-skating with the best of ice-skating. Though it has wheels and boots similar to those used in roller-skating, what sets roller-blading apart is that the two pairs of side-by-side wheels have been streamlined into four wheels that run like an ice-skating blade down the center of the boot.

Thus, the limitation of ice skating--needing to find a frozen surface in this desert climate--is eliminated, freeing up the roller-blader to attack nearly any and all surfaces.

Besides the advantage of overreaching the boundaries of an ice skating rink, roller-blading offers other advantages.

“You can make quicker turns, and I find I get much better maneuverability with blades,” said Anthony De La Cruz, 17 and a senior at Orange High School. “This, in addition to the fact that they go much faster.”

The increase in speed of roller-blades over that of roller skates is due to to the location of the wheels. With all in a line and with very little spacing between them, there is less resistance from the skating surface.

De La Cruz also said that while he roller-blades mostly for entertainment and pleasure, the sport is quite physically demanding. It was, in fact, on a TV program showing athletes in training that he first became aware of roller-blading as both a recreational sport and a muscle-building activity.

“When you first start out, your ankles are really weak and your legs kind of ache,” De La Cruz said. “But after that, it’s as easy as walking.”

The physically challenging aspect of roller-blading has left some choosing to remain with their old favorites--for the time being.

Steve Galloway, 42, of Anaheim said he tried roller-blading three or four times but has returned to roller skating both for the “expressiveness and artistry of roller skating . . . and the fact that you have to crouch down a lot lower in the roller-blades.”

Galloway, who skates 40 miles a week, says the popularity of roller-blades may cause him to rethink his decision in the near future, and he may purchase a pair.

Department and sporting goods stores sell roller-blades for $80 to $200 a pair.

Jose Carpio, 23, a sales clerk at Nordstrom’s in Santa Ana, says roller-blades have been available at the department store for nearly a year and have sold quite steadily since their introduction. He attributes this to the competitive pricing of the Rollerblade Lightning 608 model, which sells for about $170.

“Roller-blading has taken over a lot of Southern California sports because you can get on these things and go just about anywhere,” Carpio said.

Oshman’s Sporting Goods store in Santa Ana reports brisk sales of roller-blades. Oshman’s offers several styles, including the Bladerunner, which sells for about $85, and the Zetra 303, selling for about $130.

While it’s primarily adults making the purchases, Oshman’s manager Gayle Barnes says people of all ages are wanting their own roller-blades.

Roller-blades can also be rented, particularly at beachfront establishments such as Ocean Front Wheel Works near the Balboa Pier in Newport Beach.

Eric Mosser, 17, is a salesman at Ocean Front Wheel Works. He says they have been renting out roller-blades for two years. Cost is $5 an hour, and Mosser figures he rents to about 75 customers each day of the weekend.

For Sandy MacDonald, 27, of Huntington Beach and Kim Wakuta, 29, of Torrance, it only took one rental to convince them to purchase their own roller-blades.

“We only rented once, bought our own, and now we’ve talked our friends into renting them too,” said Wakuta, adding that the two make trips to the beach every weekend to roller-blade.

The speed attained by roller-bladers, along with the maneuverability, help to draw roller-skaters into this hybrid sport.

“I think it’s a little different than roller skating,” said Mark Hill, 19 and a June graduate of Foothill High School. “It’s more fun because they’re more maneuverable, faster, and you can do more tricks.”

De La Cruz concurs, adding: “It’s fun to just skate around town in them because you can jump off basically anything. It’s kind of a freestyle thing.”