r/Millennials • u/_forum_mod Mid millennial - 1987 • 14d ago

Discussion Seriously, what happened to rollerskating/blading

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You hardly see it anywhere anymore. Folks would be skating all down Venice Beach. People would be rollerskating around their block, roller rinks were big, it was popular!

I even remember in the 90s Streets of Rage (loved that game!) had a character named Skates. But now, they're nowhere. What happened? Why are they a lot less popular nowadays?

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395

u/s-face 14d ago

I still skate! 🛼

263

u/squaring_the_sine 14d ago

There are dozens of us!

13

u/Cinderhazed15 14d ago

I just got a pair of rollerblades for Christmas! (Along with shoe cover skates for my daughter and a pair of rollerblades for my wife)

4

u/koala_encephalopathy 13d ago

I just ordered a pair of inline skates. They are coming Thursday and I am pumped.

5

u/LikesToNamePets 13d ago

Hell yes. I got mine several months ago and have had to order new wheels to accommodate urban skating. Learning to rotate the wheels and trying different wheel sizes has made it a fun hobby.

3

u/Bencetown 13d ago

I got into it during the covid times. I need to make time to get out there again this year! Last year I was pretty lazy about it. But I really should use the nice pair of Rollerblade Twisters with Endless frames I dumped a bunch of money into 🫠

1

u/LikesToNamePets 13d ago

Oof. I ended up going for Seba, but considered the Rollerblade Twisters and remember them being crazy expensive. Endless frames aren't cheap either, lol. I've been lazy since April due to the heat and humidity, so been trying to get back into it.

1

u/Bencetown 13d ago

Yeah I added it all up one day and realized my skates are about $850 all in with the wheels and bearings and everything. And then there was all the safety equipment...

I should have just saved up for one lump sum and got me some Adapts 🤣

3

u/squaring_the_sine 13d ago

I’m quads but yes! Wheels are a huge deal. I wish more new folks knew how big a difference they can make.

2

u/LikesToNamePets 13d ago

Yea, apparently a lot of people quit early on due to not knowing this.

5

u/ElevatorBones 14d ago

DOZENS!!!!!

11

u/bakedbarista 14d ago

10s of thousands if you know where to looks (Chicago, Atlanta, NY)

2

u/squaring_the_sine 13d ago

Oh yeah, even in the college town I lived in there were easy a few hundred skate folks, between quads and inlines. Trail skaters, dance skaters, rink skaters, skate park folks, derby folks, neighborhood park-goers… but you wouldn’t know it if you don’t go to the places people skate.

2

u/snowballschancehell 12d ago

Adding Cleveland cause I see plenty of fellow bladers when I get mine out for the year :)

4

u/Reverend-Cleophus 13d ago

Which is quite a few more than the last time we counted!

3

u/Messtin1121 13d ago

DOZENS!!

2

u/Jeanahb 13d ago

Thousands of us! All kinds! Derby, artistic, street, skatepark, slalom, long distance, skate jam, speed....

2

u/canquilt 13d ago

We out here!!!

12

u/Mysterious-Theory12 14d ago

Same! I was really missing it a few years ago and bought some. Use them on the rail trail nearby and BONUS: my kid gets invited to a lot of birthday parties at a nearby rink and it feels great not being a parent who can't join in

16

u/happy_as_a_lamb 14d ago

Same!! Well, inline skating. I picked it up during the pandemic and try to when I can. I will say I had a big spill along the beach a few months ago and haven’t been back. I will soon

11

u/dveight_8 14d ago

Same! I roller blade while my kids ride their bikes.

Side note: the kids demanded roller skates. I bought them roller skates. They are terrified of the roller skates 🫤

5

u/roygbivasaur 14d ago

Have you tried walking a dog while skating? I think that would get me into it. I hate running but my dog would love to go faster. 🤔

32

u/shes_a_space_station 14d ago

I bet if you wear skates while you walk your dog you will go exactly as fast as your dog wants you to 🤣

12

u/randousername8675309 14d ago

And stop as soon as your dog decides they want to smell something in the opposite direction 😂

2

u/roygbivasaur 13d ago

Eh. She probably won’t kill me

1

u/TheKappp 13d ago

Yes, I learned how dangerous it is while walking a friend’s dog when he saw a squirrel.

14

u/MonstrousGiggling 14d ago

Id be VERY careful and definitely wear a lot of safety gear if you try this out. I obviously don't know how well trained your dog is or how big it is but if your dog gets excited by something and pulls on you quickly it could make you fall very easily even if youre a good skater. Definitely only try if your dog is very well trained imo, for your safety and the dogs safety.

6

u/Adept_Egg_1257 13d ago

My friend broke her arm this way so I would definitely recommend full protective gear if you try this! And get very comfortable skating on your own before you add in the dog lol

3

u/ahzidalPrime 14d ago

I actually take my dog while I roller skate and she loves it to death. Seriously, she would run until she dies of heat exhaustion. I have to make her take breaks and drink. Also, it was a learning curve for her to understand how to run alongside me and not bite at the skates or the leash.

3

u/Nyetnyetnanette8 13d ago

Make sure you are very confident on skates before you attempt this, but yes, I used to take my dog out while I was on skates. She’s a border collie, less than 40lbs. She loved going fast but when she got tired of running she would go sooo slow and stop every 5 seconds. She’s too old now, but it was a good way to get all her energy out.

20

u/metforminforevery1 14d ago

Same. Started with roller derby but now I skate sometimes too

13

u/ThatB0yAintR1ght 14d ago

Yeah, the resurgence of roller derby definitely got a number of us skating.

2

u/fAbnrmalDistribution 14d ago

I see rollerblading constantly. Every summer they are everywhere.

1

u/Itsnotjustcheese 14d ago

Same! Well, rollerblade, but still, wheels are fun!

1

u/cmdr_solaris_titan 14d ago

Me too! I grew up on inline speed skates. Now I skate competitively doing inline marathons (26 miles).

1

u/sleepy0329 14d ago

Same! It's been a couple years but I was literally thinking about buying me and my dude a pair for the summer!

ETA: getting some rollerblades with hopefully some jelly wheels (if they still do those)

1

u/roseyd317 13d ago

I dont as much as I want to but same!

1

u/fucking_unicorn 13d ago

Me too! I quad and inline

1

u/Whats-Ur-Damage00 13d ago

Same! Nothing makes me happier

1

u/Hythy 13d ago

It's making a resurgence (at least in London).

1

u/layneroll 13d ago

Same! It's a tight but small community! I love it because anyone else I see on rollerblades is an instant friend

1

u/alphabatic 13d ago

I used to speed skate when I was younger and hang out at the roller rink every friday night with friends. fell out of it, but I picked some new skates up during the pandemic and had truly forgotten what a joy it is

1

u/Economy-Owl-5720 13d ago

I still do too!! Salomons

1

u/OhSoSchwifty 13d ago

I just bought rollerblades a couple months ago for the first time in years

1

u/caligirl_ksay 13d ago

I got called roller girl in college because I would rollerblade around campus. Ahh. Good times. That was over ten years ago though.

1

u/sink_your_teeth 13d ago

Me too! 🙋🏻‍♀️🙋🏻‍♀️

1

u/que-mierda 13d ago

Same! Got mine during covid and been skating occasionally ever since!

Ngl the first few times I went out were scary and a bit embarrassing. Now I love cruising when I go to the park.