Important video - too many intermediate skaters think there is some sort of shame to wearing protective gear or using a heel brake. Keep all the stuff on, it may save your skin or your life one day. If you are a pro and not wearing any protection, then you are simply not pushing yourself anymore! 😛
I usually wear at least my wrist guards when skating. Taking my safety for granted at a skating rink one night, I ended up falling into the floor without my wrist guards and watched my own wrist break. Three months recovery from surgery and all the medical bills that come with it is a painful lesson to learn as an adult. You will fall at some point. Simple protection is just a must.
Older, wiser, and responsible for own medical bills and mortality. 😃 Love the video. I just put a sticker on my helmet that is a stick figure dude holding a brain and the caption "Hey, You dropped this!" Confidence is what we have before we truly consider the actions.
When I bought my skates, I also bought knee, wrist and elbow protectors along with a sturdy helmet. I have fallen only three times since I began skating two years ago. Never got hurt. Didn't even hit my head. But my knee, wrist and elbow protectors have deep gashes and scratches from the three falls. Each one of those would have left me with painful memories if I didn't have protection.
I know what you mean. I completely destroyed my first knee pads. My current knee pads will need to be replaced soon too. And those scratches are always a good reminder indeed. Thanks for leaving the comment, keep skating safe mate!
To be honest I never were protecting gear. But I always drive very passive and carefully, I scan the environment and search for possible risks. But I now the no excuse(; Fortunately my last serious inliner crash was more than 10 years ago when I was a child, i broke my both front teeth.
It amazes me to see so many others who do not wear protective gear. One trip up is all it takes to snap your wrist or skin your knee. Also, the technology for gear has improved greatly over the years because in the past they used to be very bulky and uncomfortable but now it's easy to find small, well fitting, ergonomic, breathable, and comfortable gear.
A good injury will keep you from doing what you enjoy. There are factors beyond a seasoned skater's control like a dog that pulls the leash out of a hand or the kid in front who makes a sudden lateral move. One of my crashes involved a slight downhill in a park, which I did not realize had been wet by a sprinkler, until it was too late. I was lucky to faceplant into turf and only suffer a sore rib for a few weeks. A bench or low wall might have killed me.....and I always wear protection. I see so many tutorials by good skaters who recommend protection, but don't wear it themselves.
Probably because I started skating later in life, and I already had some severely bad road rash due to cycling accidents, I got myself used to protective gear while skating. It won't even bother me. I fell so many times trying new tricks or getting confused by a new 5 wheels longer frame and got up with absolutely no scratches that is unthinkable for me not to wear the protection. If I started getting hurt I could simply lose the joy of skating. 🤷🏼♂️
an OIL slick spot on some wet leaves got me a few months back and i SLAMMED my Helmet on the concrete. i walked away unscathed but i got chills thinking about what if i wasnt wearing a helmet.
I use POC protective gear made for MTB riders. Their VPN technology is excellent with pads that mould after your body as they warm up and are soft and breathable while one rides but hardens instantly on impact! Pricey, but much cheaper than surgeries or chronic pain! 👍🏾😎
D3O material is also really good at shock absorption - many brands use it. The main downside of those kinds of pads is that they don’t “slide” on asphalt, and might come off during a crash - it is mostly to protect against direct impact. But they are way more comfortable/breathable, and saved me a few times…
When I was practising riding a skateboard at local park I hit a bump sending me off board backwards. Hit head so hard on concrete my body went cold, head tingled and I was dizzy for a few seconds. Luckily I was wearing a helmet, without it fall would've killed me as the triple 8 helmet shell got a dent in it. Got back into inlines after many years and I always wear a mips helmet now.
My god, that’s pretty horrible bro. I’m very happy that you’re ok now, and huge thanks for sharing this in the comment. These kind of stories can make a difference! I have my old videos where I don’t wear any protection. I should add big sign to them “I don’t do that anymore”. Thanks again for sharing your story and stay safe! If you don’t mind can you please reply which kind of helmet you wore when it happened. Was it a good one or not in your opinion? Also, I noticed many people don’t tighten up their helmets so they are pretty loose on their chin. Was it tightened up when it happened you fell? I hope I’m not too pushy with my question, but this topic is very crucial. Thanks again bro! P.S. I looked up MIPS helmet. Thanks for the tip.
@Niko - Rollerblading in Australia i was filming at the time on my phone but camera stopped when my hand let go of it. Was last time I used a skateboard. Yeah I always have helmet straps tight. Helmet was a protec signature model. It was the plastic shell that was damaged. Im sure helmet could still be used but wasnt gonna risk it. Spoke to helmet company and they said I shouldve gone Dr's with hit my head took and way I felt. This is why I now wear a mips helmet as it is better then a normal helmet on impact, just make sure you get a skate rated helmet like a triple 8 which are better then protecs I think, but the protec saved my life.
@@lohanette thanks again for leaving this comment. My helmet is both skating and bicycle rated. When I was buying it I was told that bike rated helmets have additional layer because there is a chance of collision with a car. Because I do cycle sometimes decided to go for this one.
Im a Starter, this is a great video - and cemented the importance of me buying the right protection to start with - as I was kind of heading towards buying the best skates I could to learn on - then only getting the protection once I got past learning stage and faster, so thank you for this, as its made me rethink my priorities !
During the summer, I'm not wearing protection until my skin gets tanned. Stupid, in terms of risk of hurting myself, but I'm rather riding slow, because during this time I'm just doing fitness. I just don't want to look like a zebra. Rather, I don't have time and patience to get a normal sunbath.
I use elbow,wrist, knee and helmet always, never go without. i trained myself to fall on my knees as one would do on a vertramp. So not wearing them now ad aim for the knees cause I'm using the kneepads so much otherwise would be very stupid. I do reccommend those triple eight vert kneepads a lot very comfy. When I go to a pumptrack of bowl I wear a padded underpants as well
I'm a newbie barely able to skate forward (yet). I ordered skates and pads at the same time but skates came first and I was impatient. Well, after a fall I was waiting patiently for my pads.
I completely understand you, I think every skater been in a similar situation; it’s impossible to say no to skating when your new skates are in such a proximity. Hope your fall wasn’t too bad and the pads will come soon.
I don't understand how some skaters think wearing helmets & pads "doesn't look cool". (As if the aftermath of brain surgery looks "cool"?) SMH. Skaters who wear full protection are the ones who actually do look cool. They look ready to handle anything that comes their way, and they look badass... like pros. Wearing protection can also boost confidence, which makes for less tension, which in turn makes for better skating.
Spot on re confidence. I forgot my helmet yesterday, had to skate without it, and I have to admit that I didn’t feel safe at all, so I couldn’t work out to my full capacity, it was damn scary. I used to skate without helmet, but once you get used to being protected, it’s gonna be hard to skate without it, just won’t feel safe.
1:03 Dude where is that park? I had a dream of a park that felt/looked like that a few years ago and as a West Coast American, I thought it might be on in the Northeast
Had a similar experience as jacob shared previously in the comment. A year ago, I fell backward while dropping in a skate bowl. I was wearing a spectacle. The impact was so heavy that the pads of my spectacle pad broke into my upper nose skin, and to other people, it was as if my eyes were bleeding. But I didn't know it, because I wasn't feeling any pain at all. All my head was blank. I was in a shock mode for more than a minute. To this day I felt lucky to have worn a helmet at that time, which totally saved my life. I haven't done dropping in the same bowl ever since, because the terrible memory kept floating in my head. Nowadays, every time when I saw a parent watching a kid, who is barely able to maintain balance, yet skates in a dangerous track, I would go up to the parent and advise him/her to buy a helmet for the kid.
Sorry to hear that. I started using elbow protection just recently, now I'm fully covered so to speak. It fells much safer and nicer this way I must admit.
I used to ride motorbikes a lot (from 18 to 24 I didn't have a car) Seen some proper roadrash. Not only do I wear gear, I won't go skating without long sleeves! Im also Australian. Id rather sweat than ruin the skin on my legs! Besides, ill sweat either way 😂
The only skating injury I had was not even while actively skating. I was standing still, talking to a friend and fell, ripped the skin of my hand on a sharp stone. I once was going down a hill pretty fast and tripped over a branch that a dog left on the path that I didn't see, I flew a little bit I am pretty sure but I just landed on my butt and slid on my pants and I didn't even have a scratch. I am kind of in that zone now, where I get bored during skating, because I am intermediate and pretty confident now. I will try to keep in mind to be careful. I've bought a new helmet but I am afraid I will not skate as much anymore if I have to put on 5 different pieces of protective gear.
I’ve watched a lot of skating videos and really enjoy yours. Practical and contain lots of advice from personal experience. Thank you for creating and posting. 😄💪
Thanks Jacob, I guess I'll get to that at some point. Right now I do this more out of joy and entertainment. I also found that making videos is a great way to engage with the audience.
I think a helmet is perhaps most important when you’re starting out because you have much less control over even low-speed falls so you’re more likely to hit your head. A helmet starts to become more important when you get more experienced and start doing more risky things. That said, there is always a risk so even if the worst-case scenarios aren't very likely, you need to carefully weigh the consequences against the partial insurance that a helmet affords - the other side to helmets is that many might look good but they are actually rubbish so they might give a false sense of security. I used to skate 20yrs ago and in spite of a couple of close calls I didn't fall at any great speed - apart from having to do a dive roll onto the grass when a novice suddenly veered across into my path (that's not counting the first few years when I learned to skate and still have some tiny scars in spite of wearing pads. The year's where I skated intensely I didn't do much that was very dangerous apart from going fast. 20yrs later and I have started skating after falling off my OneWheel a couple of times and injuring myself badly, I wore a helmet and wrist pads but nothing on my fist fall, but I was hardly moving and just really tired. The problem I see now is that Injuries take longer to heal and I don't want to have to sit around for the months it can take for that to happen. Yet in the Brisbane humidity and having to push myself to get out there so I can build my muscles and fitness to a level that allows me to enjoy it, I have rarely worn any protection. I’m planning to start wearing the wrist pads next then shop around for some light, breathable knee protection... I just need to keep skating though so if it all makes the process too tedious then I'll probably forego it rather than sit around not skating... I'm hoping that if I can build the skating addiction again that putting on pads and carrying them around won't matter so much. Additionally, learning how to fall could probably save people from serious injury at least as much or more than padding. If somebody has gone to that effort they might question why other skaters don't and why they think padding is their best protection... Of course doing both is best but if you only had one option.
What a story! Thanks for sharing mate! In regards to how to fall, once I approached a girl on the ice rink, she was skating professionally, and I asked her if there is any "right" way to fall. To my disappointment, she said she didn't know much about that. I was really hoping that there is something to keep in mind when you fall. I remember during my first bouldering session they taught me how to fall. Hands up, crossed on your chest, land on your bottom and then curve your back and roll to reduce the stress on your backbone. So it both protects your hands and your back. But nothing like that I heard about skating. Maybe it's a topic worth exploring. I totally understand your feelings about heat and humidity. That's exactly why I was too reluctant to wear protection. Right now I found a compromise, not very expensive protection (apart from the helmet, it's expensive enough): I'm not a downhill or speed skater. A few days ago I bought Oxelo protection, a whole set for just A$50-ish. It looks very breathable and good. My current knee pads, you'll be laughing, I bought them for A$5 because the expensive ones were too bulky and sweaty. But after that incident I mentioned in my video I'm wearing all that stuff at all times. The sweat is pouring, but don't really want to repeat that experience. The long recovery from injuries is definitely a big demotivator. Especially joints, and ligaments, those things may take forever to recover. For a long time, my shoulders were the weakest point because I fell on my palms and the shockwave travelled to the shoulders. But after some point, it just stopped. I started doing more stretching exercises. My own physiotherapy so to say. I hope you'll find your motivation to skate. Brisbane looks like a fantastic city for that. I really love that video of Asha where she's skating in Brisbane and tells how to maximise your fitness output from skating.
I once knocked my front teeth out in a low-speed forward fall. It was so quick and unexpected that there wasn't time to get my arms out in front of me. Talk about an expensive injury! Two root canals and several crowns later, (at $1600 apiece), I now wear a SISU mouth guard every time I skate. I've fallen on my face a few times since getting the mouth guard, and it saved my teeth each time.
Totally agree with you, never go skating without protection. Yet, you don't wear elbow pads. IMHO, they are very important to wear, just because you elbows are higher off the ground and risk to break a bone there is higher and not always you can protect them with your wrists
Thanks for the comment mate, I agree that elbows may suffer, and I did have few falls on them. I’ll give them a try actually. I’m one of those unfortunate skaters who learn on their own mistakes only. I think I made enough mistakes already. I’ll give it a go for elbow pads 👍
Overconfidence is a dangerous thing. A lot of people think they're invincible, until that serious injury occurs. I wear a helmet, knee pads and gloves.
Great advice. I am an early intermediate skater and wear protective gear. I notice that most of the good skaters do not. So this is a good reminder that everyone should consider it
Thank for leaving the comment mate! I really envy you because you can assess your risks properly without having to take the hard way like I did. There is another good effect of wearing protection actually; because you know you're safer you feel more confident during our training sessions and your progress can accelerate. Back in the day when I didn't wear protection I intentionally avoided many moves I wanted to learn, especially the slides. But with protection I just feel more confident, I can push a bit harder.
I 100% appreciate your knowledgeable words! I think that for many, they have simply gone the route of "monkey see, monkey do!" Many skilled, or long time skaters/bladers are seen with no protective gear on. So the natural course of many others to take is, "if they can, why can't I?" Being like the next man is not always the wisest choice! I skate the parks fully geared up, and even in my private practice sessions indoors. I don't care! I once had a good friend laugh at me when he came to the place I practice indoors. He said to me, "wow man, you are geared up like you are outside!" We too often take safety and health for granted, until it is too late! One big misconception is that you may be able to mitigate falling by bracing for it, or preparing in advance somehow. THIS IS FALSE! I have only fallen once in my few years of rollerblading ,by Gods grace, and it was not my fault! Someone else clips my right foot. It caused me to lose balance, and tumble. It blindsided me, and happened to quickly for me to respond in a pro-active manner. Had I not had on protective gear, it would have been a more painful endeavor. GOD-SPEED my friend. So I truly appreciate this video, blader-to-blader! #SOUL_BLADERS_4_LYFE
Thank you for such an elaborate comment Jeff. I personally don’t believe in “safe falling”. I’m making a research video on this topic right now. One thing is when your fall is controlled, you can do it the way you like. But there are also falls you didn’t see coming, like the one you described. Also, if you watch the real pros who get paid for skating, figure skaters, speed skaters, they fall absolutely randomly, on their backs, on their wrists. I think they are instinctively protecting their heads.
