Roller skating and ice skating, are they similar? is it easy to transition from one to the other?

They are not the same. I have much trouble roller skating but I can ice skate just fine, And roller blading (in line) is alot like ice skating

Roller skating and ice skating, are they similar? is it easy to transition from one to the other?
the blades cut thorugh the ice and you can really feel the blade beneath your foot. maneuravability is good. on in-lines you have the same motion, but it feels different because the wheels are more "spongy" than a blade. they are not as responsive as ice skates. cannot comment on regular roller skates..I don't do those.
Reply:I've been ice skating for some time, and I figured roller skating would be easy, because I ice skated. I was SO WRONG. Roller skating (I have quad skates) is completely different from ice skating. I am all over the place on roller skates. I'm having trouble finding, as the other poster described it, the balance point. And pushing off is different. So my stroking is cr*p. I'm actually looking for a roller skating teacher to get me over this initial transition!





Some things are actually easier on roller skates, though. Mohawks, for example, which I tend to wide-step on ice, are easy on roller skates.
Reply:Yeah, I wonder that to!
Reply:There are similarities, but technique changes for small things. A lot of the moves are the same, but due to the different center of balance between a blade/toe pick and wheels you may have to go at it differently. We used to have a skater at our rink who started as a roller skater and changed to ice. She did okay and excelled quickly, but -- not to sound biased -- I'd cringe every time I would watch her land a jump because she always landed on a flat. Wooo--- pretty double toe...yeesh, bad landing. :) I think she went back to the roller.





There are a lot of skaters who make the transition. Tara Lipinski started in roller and (obviously) changed to ice. It seems whatever skills a skater has in one carries over to the other.
Reply:well i used to roller skate when i was younger and when i started ice skating i found it easier than all the other beginers ... just because i knew how to roller skate !
Reply:i think it will be fine. it is a little different. roller skating has 4 wheels but rooler blading has all four whells in a row and is more like ice skating
Reply:Well, there are no toe picks on roller skates, so that'd be harder. In my opinion, ice skating is easier.


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Reply:yes it is, i used to rollar skate n in line blade alot, n thn i tried ice skating, now i figure skate 3 times a week =D so yea thy are similar, but whether or not its easy to change from one to the other depends on the person, it was rly easy for me.
Reply:They are really quite a bit different. I've been ice skating for years but I always have a hard time going roller skating.





Your balance point and where you have to put your weight are totally different when you go from being on a 1/4" blade to four wheels. Also, roller skates are quite a bit heavier than ice skates. Really, it's where you're used to putting your weight and balance that makes the transition tricky.
Reply:I know quite a few long time, experienced roller skaters (quad skaters) who switched to ice skating . . . and they are doing fabulously on ice. I do notice they use a lot more power on the ice than needed sometimes (roller skaters have to muscle it more in technique than on ice) . . . many say they have chronic knee, hip and back pain. The ice is more forgiving, so they say certain moves are a lot easier - like spins.





But as Roaring Mice mentioned, it's totally different the other way around . . . it's tough for ice skaters to get used to quads! On ice skates, because your leg balances on one thin piece of metal, it moves with your leg sort of like an extention of it . . . so it's easier to move about as it works with your "lean". But on quads, you have four "thick" wheels that keep your foot practicially planted on the floor . . . so you need to be more conscious of where the weight goes in your foot when you do a move. With the feet planted, the legs kinda have to torque, so I think that's why many of them have ankle/knee problems.





I rollerskated a lot as a kid, though not competitively. I think understanding how to move in them helped me to pick up ice skating quickly later on in life.





Now inline skating or "rollerblading" . . . though they are different from ice skating too, they are probably more similar than roller skates (quads).





:)



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