Risport or switch for Egyptian feet?

[Elisabeth]

I'm planning on getting new boots and blades in a couple of months, and will of couse go to my skate shop to get fitted and ask advice from the fitter, but I wanted to do some research on my own beforhand, since there seems to be a lot of knowledge here.

I'm an adult skater 21 yrs, about 165 cm (5'5) and 65 kg (143 lbs). I'm curently working on lutz and starting single axel soon and my goal would be to start some doubbles next year. I skate about 5-7 hours a week.

I curently have risport electras with an aspire xp blade.
I have egyptian feet and I think I have normal or perhaps a little high arches.

The boots fit my foot really well, but I've had problems with them causing some pain on my inside ankle bones. I think it's the inside "edge" of the tounge that is pressning against my ankle bones and causing pain. Recently the pain has been getting a lot worse to the point where I have permanent bruises on my inside ankle bones if I skate more than 2 days in a row. I'm now using two gel pads on top of eachother to help, which takes away about 60% of the pain, but that still isn't ideal ofcourse. I think it's gotten worse lately because I've started to tie my skate tighter than usual because it feels like I don't get enough support otherwise (might be due to the skates starting to be too broken down?).

So, since I feel like Risport fits my foot well exept for at the ankle, I was thinking that that the RF3 Pro or perhaps the Royal pro (since I've heard it has more padding) could be some good options. Or would Royal pro be overbooting in my case? Has anybody else had the same problems with electras and how have you solved it? Or is this just a sign that risport doesn't fit me and I should try another brand?

Regarding the blades, I've come to the conclusion that I probably should switch to coronation ace or mk professional, but how do I know which one to choose? My only complain with the aspire xp that I currently have is that I've consistently found it hard to find my "sweet spot" while spinning, which seems to be quite common after reading some threads on the forum. I'm also confused because at my skate shop the blades are named "John Wilson and MK Coronation Ace" and "John Wilson and MK Professional" which I find confusing, because aren't they different brands?

I would be very grateful for some advice regarding what boots I should consider in order to solve my ankle bone pain and which blades to choose.

 

[Ic3Rabbit]

I'm planning on getting new boots and blades in a couple of months, and will of couse go to my skate shop to get fitted and ask advice from the fitter, but I wanted to do some research on my own beforhand, since there seems to be a lot of knowledge here.

I'm an adult skater 21 yrs, about 165 cm (5'5) and 65 kg (143 lbs). I'm curently working on lutz and starting single axel soon and my goal would be to start some doubbles next year. I skate about 5-7 hours a week.

I curently have risport electras with an aspire xp blade.
I have egyptian feet and I think I have normal or perhaps a little high arches.

The boots fit my foot really well, but I've had problems with them causing some pain on my inside ankle bones. I think it's the inside "edge" of the tounge that is pressning against my ankle bones and causing pain. Recently the pain has been getting a lot worse to the point where I have permanent bruises on my inside ankle bones if I skate more than 2 days in a row. I'm now using two gel pads on top of eachother to help, which takes away about 60% of the pain, but that still isn't ideal ofcourse. I think it's gotten worse lately because I've started to tie my skate tighter than usual because it feels like I don't get enough support otherwise (might be due to the skates starting to be too broken down?).

So, since I feel like Risport fits my foot well exept for at the ankle, I was thinking that that the RF3 Pro or perhaps the Royal pro (since I've heard it has more padding) could be some good options. Or would Royal pro be overbooting in my case? Has anybody else had the same problems with electras and how have you solved it? Or is this just a sign that risport doesn't fit me and I should try another brand?

Regarding the blades, I've come to the conclusion that I probably should switch to coronation ace or mk professional, but how do I know which one to choose? My only complain with the aspire xp that I currently have is that I've consistently found it hard to find my "sweet spot" while spinning, which seems to be quite common after reading some threads on the forum. I'm also confused because at my skate shop the blades are named "John Wilson and MK Coronation Ace" and "John Wilson and MK Professional" which I find confusing, because aren't they different brands?

I would be very grateful for some advice regarding what boots I should consider in order to solve my ankle bone pain and which blades to choose.

Hi, welcome!

Yes, stay in Risport and try RF3 Pro or Royal Pro, they aren't going to be overbooting for you, with what you said your height/weight stats were. I personally would have never put you in an Electra ever b/c it's not stiff enough for you.
As far as the blades: Either one of those two would work they're fairly similar-standard not Rev or Lite.

Good luck!

 

[Elisabeth]

Hi, welcome!

Yes, stay in Risport and try RF3 Pro or Royal Pro, they aren't going to be overbooting for you, with what you said your height/weight stats were. I personally would have never put you in an Electra ever b/c it's not stiff enough for you.
As far as the blades: Either one of those two would work they're fairly similar-standard not Rev or Lite.

Good luck!

Thank you for your reply!

 

[WednesdayMarch]

Time for new boots! The lack of support/breakdown is highly likely to be causing your current problems. I'd be starting with Risport as they seem to fit your foot, either the RF3 Pro or the Royal Pro, but see what your fitter has to say on the subject. (Don't allow yourself to be talked into Edea Ice Fly because they "feel lovely around the ankle"!)

Either Coronation Ace or MK Professional are suitable blades for you. John Wilson and Mitchell & King used to be separate companies but they are both now owned by HD Sports, so it may be that the parent company is trying to combine the branding. Both make top quality blades and have done so for many, many years.

 

[Elisabeth]

Time for new boots! The lack of support/breakdown is highly likely to be causing your current problems. I'd be starting with Risport as they seem to fit your foot, either the RF3 Pro or the Royal Pro, but see what your fitter has to say on the subject. (Don't allow yourself to be talked into Edea Ice Fly because they "feel lovely around the ankle"!)

Either Coronation Ace or MK Professional are suitable blades for you. John Wilson and Mitchell & King used to be separate companies but they are both now owned by HD Sports, so it may be that the parent company is trying to combine the branding. Both make top quality blades and have done so for many, many years.

Thank you for your answer! And don't worrry, I won't be talked i to getting Ice Flys, I've tried on Edeas previously and they were not for me

 

[Elisabeth]

Hi! A little update and some more questions:

I went to try on skates and decided on the royal pro. The skate shop said that my electras were really broken down and that's probably why they have given me ankle issues lately

So, I've setteled on the boot, but I would still need some blade advice. My plan was to get Coronation aces, since I would like to try and see if a 7' rocker would help my spinns. However, the shop had a pair of barely used royal pro with a legacy 8 blade attatched, which they suggested to me if I wanted to save a bit of money (which I'd be happy to do since I'm a student on quite a tight budget). I told them that I originally was interested in the coronation aces, but they said that the legacy 8 is really similar. I suppose any blade would be an upgrade from the aspire xp since it's really flat, but doesn't the legacy 8 have a 8' rocker? So my questions is: if I'm looking for a blade that will improve my spinns and make finding my sweet spot easier, would the legacy 8 still be a good choice or would the coronation ace be better?

 

[WednesdayMarch]

The short answer is that the Legacy 8 is really nothing like the Coronation Ace. For a start it has an 8' rocker! The Legacy 7 is far closer.

The choice really comes down to how much you want to save money. Yes, the Legacy 8 would be an upgrade from the Aspire, but if you want to improve your spins, Coronation Ace, MK Professional or even Legacy 7 would be a better choice. Good spinning, however, is possible on pretty much any blade. It's more about technique than rocker. The rocker can help make it easier but it isn't the be all and end all.

 

[Elisabeth]

The short answer is that the Legacy 8 is really nothing like the Coronation Ace. For a start it has an 8' rocker! The Legacy 7 is far closer.

The choice really comes down to how much you want to save money. Yes, the Legacy 8 would be an upgrade from the Aspire, but if you want to improve your spins, Coronation Ace, MK Professional or even Legacy 7 would be a better choice. Good spinning, however, is possible on pretty much any blade. It's more about technique than rocker. The rocker can help make it easier but it isn't the be all and end all.

Yes! That's what I was thinking that they are completely different since the rockers are different. They probably meant that it's a similar level blade as the coronation ace at the skate shop and I just misunderstood.

Techinque is ofcourse more important than the equipment, I was mainly wondering if there is a really big difference between the blades when it comes to spinning, or if I'm just overthinking it? I'm just torn because I would be saving almost 300 euros if I went with the used skates and the legacy 8 blades

 

[NanaPat]

I'm just torn because I would be saving almost 300 euros if I went with the used skates and the legacy 8 blades

300 euros out of what? If we're talking 600 euros vs 300 euros, it's a lot of savings. But if it's 900 euros vs 600 euros, or 1200 euros vs 900 euros, you'd be investing a lot of money in a used boot and not-as-desirable blade.

 

[Ic3Rabbit]

Yes! That's what I was thinking that they are completely different since the rockers are different. They probably meant that it's a similar level blade as the coronation ace at the skate shop and I just misunderstood.

Techinque is ofcourse more important than the equipment, I was mainly wondering if there is a really big difference between the blades when it comes to spinning, or if I'm just overthinking it? I'm just torn because I would be saving almost 300 euros if I went with the used skates and the legacy 8 blades

Do not buy used boots, you will regret it.

 

[Elisabeth]

300 euros out of what? If we're talking 600 euros vs 300 euros, it's a lot of savings. But if it's 900 euros vs 600 euros, or 1200 euros vs 900 euros, you'd be investing a lot of money in a used boot and not-as-desirable blade

The new would be about 600 and The used 300

 

[Elisabeth]

Do not buy used boots, you will regret it.

Could you please elaborate on why? I understad that you cant be a 100% sure on what condition they are in, but I would assume that the shop has checked them and wouldn't sell them if there was anything wrong?

 

[NanaPat]

The new would be about 600 and The used 300

So the "barely used" skates are about half the price of new ones. Or perhaps a bit more than that, if the blade on them is less expensive than a new Coronation Ace.

I guess you have to decide if you are willing to risk 300 Euros on skates that may not work out for you.

Did the shop tell you any details about the used skates (like when they were bought, how much they were used, why the original owner is selling them)?

 

[Elisabeth]

So the "barely used" skates are about half the price of new ones. Or perhaps a bit more than that, if the blade on them is less expensive than a new Coronation Ace.

I guess you have to decide if you are willing to risk 300 Euros on skates that may not work out for you.

Did the shop tell you any details about the used skates (like when they were bought, how much they were used, why the original owner is selling them)?

They said that they had been used for about a month, I didn't ask for more information, but I will when I'm going back in a few days.

I'm seing that the general opinion is that the used ones might not be a good idea, so I might have to forget about them...

 

[NanaPat]

They said that they had been used for about a month, I didn't ask for more information, but I will when I'm going back in a few days.

I'm seing that the general opinion is that the used ones might not be a good idea, so I might have to forget about them...

Perhaps @Ic3Rabbit will give more details about her opposition to used skates or other skaters will chime in about used skates.

 

[Ic3Rabbit]

@Elisabeth: In most cases used skates are just a bad idea in general. Even if they are a brand that fits your foot, they're going to be used and shaped to fit the original owner, same with the blades, which are at this point have had their permanent mount and cannot be moved for your positioning skating needs do not line up with them. Then comes if the blades are even good anymore, they can only be sharpened properly so many times, which you also don't know (if they've been sharpened properly).

Just say no to used skates. Look into what we've suggested for YOUR needs and the traditional style Coronation Ace or MK Pro blade (again, no lites or revs).

Good luck!

 

[Elisabeth]

@Elisabeth: In most cases used skates are just a bad idea in general. Even if they are a brand that fits your foot, they're going to be used and shaped to fit the original owner, same with the blades, which are at this point have had their permanent mount and cannot be moved for your positioning skating needs do not line up with them. Then comes if the blades are even good anymore, they can only be sharpened properly so many times, which you also don't know (if they've been sharpened properly).

Just say no to used skates. Look into what we've suggested for YOUR needs and the traditional style Coronation Ace or MK Pro blade (again, no lites or revs).

Good luck!

That makes sense, thank you for a thorough answer again! I will get the new skates and the coronation aces.