Hi everyone,
I started LTS a year ago (got about 100 hours of skating in so far) as a 31 year old guy having never been on skates of any kind before. After my first session, I knew it was something I loved and invested in a pair of Jackson Mystique skates. Since January I've been skating 5-6 hours a week and while I'm still progressing, I feel like my boots may be holding me back. I've been stuck around the Basic 4 level for awhile now. My one-foot glides, balance, backwards skating, and crossover progressions have been getting better, but I spend a lot of time fighting my boots. When I lace them up, I have to lace them super tight (so much so that the laces tear into my pinky finger when I'm tightening them) to prevent my ankle from wobbling, but then I have a horrible time bending my knees, which forces me to compensate by leaning forward when stroking, pumping, etc. If I loosen them a bit, I can flex my knees forward enough to do better pumps, crossovers, etc, but I loose support in my ankles from the boots, which makes stroking and gliding well really tough. The problem is especially problematic with my left skate, which is my dominate foot. I noticed that both boots have had a pretty decent crease in them for awhile now. I am thinking about taking them in to the skate shop I bought them from and getting an opinion from them, however I know there's a possibility that they'll just tell me I need new boots, regardless of whether I actually do or not. I'm totally fine investing in a more supportive boot and I know it won't be cheap, but I want to be sure that I'm not upgrading too soon. For reference (because I'm sure it plays into how fast my boots break down) I'm 6' and 220lbs with size 12W feet. If I do upgrade, I think I'd prefer leather over synthetic. Appreciate any advice you may have. Thanks!
I started LTS a year ago (got about 100 hours of skating in so far) as a 31 year old guy having never been on skates of any kind before. After my first session, I knew it was something I loved and invested in a pair of Jackson Mystique skates. Since January I've been skating 5-6 hours a week and while I'm still progressing, I feel like my boots may be holding me back. I've been stuck around the Basic 4 level for awhile now. My one-foot glides, balance, backwards skating, and crossover progressions have been getting better, but I spend a lot of time fighting my boots. When I lace them up, I have to lace them super tight (so much so that the laces tear into my pinky finger when I'm tightening them) to prevent my ankle from wobbling, but then I have a horrible time bending my knees, which forces me to compensate by leaning forward when stroking, pumping, etc. If I loosen them a bit, I can flex my knees forward enough to do better pumps, crossovers, etc, but I loose support in my ankles from the boots, which makes stroking and gliding well really tough. The problem is especially problematic with my left skate, which is my dominate foot. I noticed that both boots have had a pretty decent crease in them for awhile now. I am thinking about taking them in to the skate shop I bought them from and getting an opinion from them, however I know there's a possibility that they'll just tell me I need new boots, regardless of whether I actually do or not. I'm totally fine investing in a more supportive boot and I know it won't be cheap, but I want to be sure that I'm not upgrading too soon. For reference (because I'm sure it plays into how fast my boots break down) I'm 6' and 220lbs with size 12W feet. If I do upgrade, I think I'd prefer leather over synthetic. Appreciate any advice you may have. Thanks!