Ice skating is one of the favorite entertainments of children and youth and a very popular sport. The availability of rinks operating in the summertime made it even more common among the Russian masses. True, non-athletes periodically forget that the "equipment" used requires some care, otherwise it may well become unusable in the next season. It seems that the proposed instruction on how to care for skates will be useful to many beginner skaters, skaters and amateurs just to ride them. Here are collected tips from both experienced athletes and repair technicians.
Instructions on how to care for your skates, point by point
Nothing difficult for you to do. The main task is to protect the blades from rust, and the shoes from deformation. And to fulfill it is extremely simple if you steadily follow these rules:
- Skates can only be dried in delicate conditions, away from open flames or heating radiators. For the day that separates you from the next workout (if you ride daily), they will have time to dry naturally. And while the boot does not suffer. If in doubt about the timing, use electric shoe dryers that are laid inside.
- Carry skates only with covers on the blades - this will prevent the risk of injury. However, immediately upon arrival at the rink or home, the covers must be removed. Yes, and you need to immediately remove the skates from the carrying bag - keeping them in it is constantly harmful for the "well-being" of the inventory.
- Skating necessarily moisturizes the blade. Therefore, having finished the training, they must be wiped clean with at least disposable paper napkins. And having returned home, carefully repeat the procedure with a dry, soft cloth.
As you can see, everyday care is primitive and accessible even to a child. If a kid is skating in your family, teach him to take care of the equipment from day one, but make sure that he does not cut himself when wiping the blades.
Sharpening skates
Sooner or later, the "driving part" is certainly dull. This is especially fast for beginners unstable on ice. Therefore, the instruction on how to care for skates includes information about their sharpening. It should be noted that the purpose of this procedure is by no means increasing the sharpness of the blades, but restoring the grooves on them, which are compared when rolling. Without a pronounced groove, the horse will fall over, and you will not be able to push off or maintain balance.
To understand that the grinding time has come is simple: the ankles begin to get tired and numb. Doing it yourself is not recommended: you need to do it skillfully, you just ruin the situation, and still have to go to a professional. You can sharpen the blade a certain number of times, after which they will have to be changed. Having engaged in amateur performances, you simply reduce their service life.
Summer preservation
If you ride only on open ice, and for the summer you have completely different plans, you need to make sure that your equipment "survives" until the next season. The instruction on how to care for skates recommends the following actions:
- Shoes are packed as tightly as possible with paper. If you have special shoe pads - insert them. It is also good to place hygroscopic bags inside - they will prevent the accumulation of moisture.
- Outside, shoes are well lubricated with petroleum jelly or shoe cream (even if they are not leather).
- Blades are oily treated with machine oil or lithol.
- Each skate is wrapped in thick paper (newspapers are suitable, only they will have to be wrapped in several layers) or placed in a cardboard box.
Packed skates should be stored in a dark place where it is as dry as possible. Canned in this way, they will last without problems until the next season.
What you need to know about videos
Rollers are also skates, albeit in summer performance. In a sense, they have an even more complex design than a winter prototype. And to use them longer, you need to know how to care for your skates. Brief instructions look like this:
- Wipe your boots from dirt and dust.
- Tighten fasteners regularly.
- Swap the wheels according to the instructions attached to the rollers.
- Lubricate the bearings.
The instruction on how to care for skates, whether it’s their winter option or summer one, is simple and does not require special efforts - only attentiveness and regularity. If you follow it, your sports equipment will last a very long time, and you won’t have to buy a new one for years. Which is very pleasing, because skates are very expensive.