10. Events

A birthday party at a roller rink is guaranteed fun and half the headache as your usual get-

together. The local roller rink is also a fun place to have a company party, celebrate

anything from retirement, going away, bachelor/bachelorette parties, or graduation, you name

it. There are different options to hosting skating parties, you can have your party during

public skating session with a designated time for your party’s activities, you could rent the

entire rink to yourselves or you can always just get a group of friends/ colleagues/co-workers

together and skate public session .

**Tip** Going roller skating is a really creative stop for a date night. Whether you are Fred Astaire
on skates or a rank beginner, don’t sweat it, you will either be really impressive or super cute (a win-win!).

 

9. Improving Coordination and Balance

Roller skating, like anything physical that requires use of the entire body, is a great way to

develop and improve coordination and balance. As a skater and coach myself, I always

encourage friends and family members with little ones to involve their kids in skating at an

early age to help with development of balance and strengthening of muscles (I’m talking 2

years old). Livestrong.com has even named roller skating as a great activity to build

coordination and balance. Check it out at http://werollerskate.com/livestrongskating

 

8. Meet New People

How many of us skaters have a story of meeting a special

someone at the roller rink? How about the moms who end

up adding the Stroller Skate session to their weekly routine

with other moms they met at the rink? How many kids,

tweens, teens, and adults have met some of their best

friends at the skating rink? If you have a story or two

to share please add a comment, I would love to hear them

all!

Bottom-line, if you’re tired of the same crowd or no crowd at all, you will definitely find

someone to connect with at the skating rink, its a very diverse and often colorful place where

people go to have fun.

 

7. The Music!!

Now word to the wise, all skate DJ’s are different and most public skate sessions are usually

themed depending on the time of day and day of the week, so…be sure to pick the right session

for you. A lot of rink flyers(advertisements) will say things like “Adult Night Thursdays or

70′s Flashback Wednesdays or TinyTot Saturday” you get the idea. Go on a day and time that

suits your taste in music. The music at a skate rink is great because they usually have

everything! Skating rinks in particular can get a subscription to monthly compilation CD’s of

popular music or any genre so their playlists are constantly being updated. You’d be

surprised how even the most beginner skater finds a way to get their dance moves in when

their favorite song comes on.

**Tip** Most skating rinks have a request list at the DJ booth so make nice with your DJ and get your
favorite song played!

 

6. Support Your Local Community

Skating rinks are small businesses and are usually family owned and operated. They employ

young kids and adults of their local community. Many roller skating rinks contribute to their

communities with outreach programs offering free or reduced skating lessons to children and

youth. Every year there are fewer and fewer skating rinks open due to lack of admissions.

Let’s not forget that the local roller rink provides a safe activity for kids and youth and

the competitive sports offered are a great after-school option.

Find a rink near you

 

5. Good Value

For a considerably lower price than a trip to the movie theater,

you can have an entire evening of fun and exercise at the

local skating rink. With discounts usually given to groups

or families and even entire sessions dedicated to saving

money like the “Cheap Skate”, this outing seems like a

no-brainer. I’ve seen kids spend an entire Saturday afternoon

at the skating rink for $10 or less! Now snack bars are

expanding their menus to include more substantial and healthy options you can even grab a bite

for a reasonable price.

**TIP**Many public sessions last about 2-2.5 hours but will overlap with another, so for an additional couple bucks you can extend your stay for another few hours.

 

4. Safe Environment/ Family Friendly

The great thing about skating rinks being family owned and operated (relatively small

businesses) is that the owners and managers tend to know their customers quite well. The

employees young and old are also very familiar with the customers and the regulars so they can

easily sniff out those who might become problematic and quickly diffuse any dangerous or

potentially disruptive situation.

As business owners whose clientele is largely children and youth, skating

rinks do a great job in providing a safe place for parents to leave their

children unattended. No business owner wants to think a child was harmed

or was in a dangerous situation in their place of business especially one

that serves families, from my 20 years in skating rinks I feel confident

saying that. Not just for skating a public session, but there are also

competitive skating teams that are great options for children and youth to

become involved in as a safe after-school option.

**TIP** Call or stop by the local skating rink to ask about hockey, figure, derby and speed skating teams.

Find a rink near you

 

3. Fitness/Exercise

Roller skating is recognized and recommended by the American Heart

Association (AHA) as an aerobic fitness sport. Just one hour of moderate roller skating burns

330 calories for a 143lb person. If that same person roller skates vigorously, they will burn

up to 590 calories in an hour. The number of calories burned per hour while skating at 6 mph

is 350 and 600 while skating at 10 mph. Not to mention you are having fun doing it! If you

don’t believe me, check out some of the photos in the rink of their competitive skating teams

and be prepared for your jaw to drop when you see the legs and glutes that skating can help you tone and

develop. Because of the weight of a roller skate not only are you getting a cardio work out

(from the full body involvement) but you are quickly toning your legs and booty.

Pull your kids off the computer on the weekend and spend the day burning calories and building

memories. Once they get the hang of it and meet a few friends you won’t have to barter and

beg them to exercise, they’ll be begging you for a ride and $10 to go skating for the

afternoon.

**TIP**Check out programs at your local skating rink that offer unlimited skating sessions for a low monthly fee, and cancel that gym membership that you pay every month and never use.

 

2. Nostalgia

Now if you’re under the age of 20 you might not “get” this

one, but anyone who lived post 1969 definitely has some old

skating rink memories. Maybe your parents took you as a kid,

or bought you a pair of skates for Christmas. Or perhaps you

were involved in the competitive skating scene at one time or

are still a part of it, either way some of our fondest childhood

and young adulthood memories took place in a skating rink.

If you haven’t stepped foot in a rink in a long time don’t stress, although it may be a different vibe than you last saw

it, skating is like riding a bike..sort of. If you used to be awesome on a pair of quads or

never had the chance to be as good as you wanted its never to late to rekindle the spark. As

a coach/instructor I’ve worked with all levels of skaters and to be honest some of my favorite

pupils have been skaters from the past who want to enjoy it again or who always wanted to go

backwards like those great skaters they watched from the sidelines. I guarantee there is an

instructor in every skating rink who would love to help you achieve your personal goals so go

for it! The great thing about skating is that you won’t be the only one who skated around the

time you did so you will make connections with others quickly and before you know you’ll be a

rink rat again just like you were ‘back in the day’.

 

1. Fun

If you’ve ever done it, you know why its fun. If you’ve never done it, its time you find out.

Maybe its the atmosphere, the physicality of it, the music and energy of a rink, the hint of

danger, the challenge, the opportunity to continue improving your skills, the youthful

ambience, the nostalgia….whatever it is to you its FUN! I don’t know of anything else that

kind of enamors people of all ages, but honestly I know people whose skating experiences are

generational, passed down through the family. I know people who have been skating from infant

to geriatric. How many old men and women play basketball every Sunday evening? Its a social

and physical activity that you will fall in love with so my best advice is to go find out why

its so fun, because for me it just is.

Don’t waste another minute,find a rink near you!

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1. Find a rink near you