#105
“LET’S GO SKATING!”
I woke up to those three glorious words a few weeks ago when Chelsea, one of my best friends from back home in New Jersey sent them to me in a text message.
In a previous post, I mentioned how I bought a pair of roller skates several months ago in Raleigh. My interest in roller skating was initially rekindled after I had looked for fun activities to pursue in Raleigh and discovered the Carolina Rollergirls roller derby league. I thought, “I can do that! Roller skating and ice skating are among the very few sports I’ve always been good at!” Eventually, my ambitious dream of becoming a roller derby champ faded after reading about the time commitment the sport requires and hearing from numerous people upon mentioning this aspiration, “Uh, I don’t think that’s for you Christine. You’ll never survive.” Although my professional goal was shot down, I decided I would still purchase a pair of roller skates. What’s a better and more fun way to exercise than roller skating?
One Saturday afternoon, shortly after I had gone for a run, I set out on my quest to find a pair of skates and headed to Jellybeans Skate Center. Not only did I not realize how far of a drive it would be, but after making the 45 minute trek to Jellybeans, I realized that because I had taken my apartment key off my wallet for my run, I wound up leaving the key on my desk and locking myself out of my apartment. Before heading home, I texted my roommate asking if he would be there to let me in or whether I could meet him somewhere to borrow his key. When I finally got back to our apartment, he asked if I had been out running errands. “Well, sort of,” I said. “I went to buy a pair of roller skates!” I proudly declared. He began cracking up. “So not only did you wind up locking yourself out of our apartment, but you’ve been out all day buying roller skates?”
After proudly declaring to the social media world that I had bought the pair of skates, my friend Chelsea texted me, “OMG I WANT TO GET ROLLER SKATES TOO. THEN WE CAN GO SKATING TOGETHER!” Shortly after Christmas, I asked her what her favorite gift had been. “Definitely my new roller blades!” she said. We were ready to roll.
The day after New Years, we went to the park where we skated for about an hour and a half. “Hey! My mom used to own a pair of those,” the man who took our photo commented, pointing to my “diner girl skates.” The weather was beautiful for January, a herd of deer were grazing in the nearby field, the sun was setting, and a group of ten-year-old boys began cracking up as a tripped over a rock and fell during the last few minutes of our skating adventure. It was perfect. It was only appropriate that we ended our adventure with a trip to Sonic to get ice cream.
The sun setting at the park that day.
Cheers!
If you’ve ever found yourself thinking, “What ever happened to roller skating?” or even, “Why doesn’t anyone go outside anymore?” or “I wish there was a more fun way to workout,” I hope that you will help us in the movement to bring roller skating back.
What do you guys think? Do you have any fond roller skating memories? Anyone own a pair of skates or have kids who do?
Project Light to Life 
I have a pair, bought them two years ago but then moved to Switzerland, to an area up in the mountains and it was really scary to skate there 🙂 but now that I’ve moved I’ve found some routes which are perfect, I just have to wait till the snow is gone 🙂
I love this! I used to roller skate so much throughout my childhood but then it became unpopular and no one was seen dead in a pair of blades.
I’m 25 now but I’ve considered buying a pair a few times – might just have to do it now!
Oh, yes. We used to roller skate back when skates clamped to our shoes with a key that tightened them appropriately! It’s a wonderful, fun activity and should definitely come back, and not necessarily in-line skates, which are a different thing altogether.
Last summer I became aware of a roller derby “team” in our area of Alaska. I went to some of their events, and it was fun to watch. There were definite rules, which they explained. Pushing and blocking were part of it, but nothing like what I remember on TV many years ago. This particular group donates half of their earnings from the events to a charity that benefits women and children. Everyone wins!
Oh my word! I SO used to skate when I was younger. I loved it so so much. I agree with your sentiments 100%!! Forget the computers, the games on them and the phones. Go skate!! So much fun and yes, what a work out! hmmm, would I look stupid at my age roller skating? LOL…great post!
I’ve got a pair of inline skates and my wife has quads like yours. I thought I’d be too old (48) but there’s a retiree in Glasgow who teaches people to skate, and while there’s a mix of ages it’s mainly older people.
Great exercise. I take mine with me when he head to Troon (a town on the coast about an hour from where we live) and skate along the front. It’s really good fun.
Roller Derby is awesome–give it a go! (As long as you have good health insurance, that is! *laugh*) Also, guess what? I went to my FIRST EVER roller derby bout in North Carolina–the Blue Ridge Roller Girls vs The So Ill (Southern Illinois) Roller Girls. Fell in love with it as a sport. Here, my favourite Roller Derby team is the Bradentucky Bombers! (Florida)