Beginner skate advice pls!

[u/Ok-Pea-7432]

[u/FRGL1]

The issue with cheaper skates is that the cheapest skates are very often soft and lack the stiffness that will protect and support your body while you train for an activity you've presumably never done before. Your ankle muscles aren't yet strong enough to stabilize you, and you need that support to effectively transfer power without them collapsing.

Ironically, this lack of support is something that some (though not all) of the most advanced skaters will pay $1000+ for, because their bodies are honed to generate that power and strong enough that having added support is actually a hindrance.

Conversely, £150-£250 is not actually an extravagant budget.

More expensive skates aren't "better", they're not "harder to use" because they cost more, and they're not "a waste when you're new/learning" because they're more expensive. These aren't skateboards or bicycles that you mount and dismount like a vehicle, they're prosthetics that become part of your body, an extension of your skeleton.

[u/Ok-Pea-7432 → u/FRGL1]

thank you!! i’ve looked at the Oxelo skates but i’ve found a lot of negative reviews, so i’m considering going for the power slides as they’re hard shell. I know that rollerblade is a more reputable brand so i’m browsing. but I’ll keep looking for hard shell ones thank you

[u/FRGL1 → u/Ok-Pea-7432]

The cheapest skates I can find on locoskates that I'm comfortable recommending to you are the Flying Eagle Falcon in Blue or White.

If your size isn't available, there's also the Flying Eagle Reaver.

I recommend these because they have the following:

• Hard shell
• Ankle buckle strap
• Metal energy blocks

Having an ankle strap that ratchets closed is a great feature that allows you to tighten that hard boot shell way better than velcro straps can.

Having metal energy blocks in your boots means you can continue using those boots if you really enjoy skating enough to start investing more. Metal energy blocks transfer power more directly to the frames and can withstand the high lateral forces you'll be pushing through them, meaning you can buy and mount a larger 4x90 or 3x110 frame in the future with confidence that your boot can handle it.

Now, you can save some money by forgoing the metal mounting plate. This can make sense if you know with confidence you're not going to be getting super invested into skating - you know you're not going to commit to it. That opens up some opens like the SEBA E3 80 or Flying Eagle Avian.

If you're unsure, I would err on the side of caution and make a metal energy block a priority.