Which protective gear do you recommend wearing?
SAFETY FIRST
We recommend wearing a helmet, knee pads, elbow pads and wrist guards while roller skating. Protective gear is extremely important, especially in the beginning when still finding your balance on eight wheels. Thanks to these awesome skate brands, we can feel safe and look cute at the same time!
HELMETS BY S1, MOXI & RIO ROLLER
PADDING BY MOXI, RIO ROLLER & IMPALA
PROTECT THOSE WRISTS
We need to take extra good care of our wrists, not only because they’re delicate, but we also tend to fall on our hands a lot while skating, especially in the beginning. Padding often comes in a set that already includes wrist guards (as shown above), but we recommend different wrist guards, because from our own experience we’ve found that the Oxelo Wrist Guards to do a much better job of protecting and also preventing sore wrists.
PROTECT THAT BOOTY
Another thing we always recommend - crash pads. Falling on your butt is totally normal and happens to the best of us, it can unfortunately be one of the more painful falls we experience when roller skating. Especially when learning how to drop in at the skatepark, landing on your butt can be particularly painful. Thanks to the awesome invention of crash pads we can give our butts a little extra cushioning to prevent some of that impact and allow for a softer landing.
PROTECT THOSE KNEES
For those of you looking for the best knee pads on the market, derby pads are definitely the way to go! Designed for roller derby players, they offer more protection and have overall higher quality. Some examples include: 187 Pro Derby Knee Pads, Smith Scabs Derby Knee Pads, and TSG Derby Knee Pads.
PROTECT THOSE SKATES
Once you have all your protective gear and are ready to roll, you might be wondering if your skates need protecting too - indeed they do! This is especially the case for park skaters, because even if we try our best to keep our skates nice and new looking, they do eventually get scuffed, especially at the front of the skate.
Luckily toe caps prevent this from happening! Toe caps come with some skate models, but not all. Depending on which skates you get, you may need to order them separately. Most skate shops carry these little protective caps. If you’re feeling motivated, you can also give it a go and try making them yourself! Toe caps definitely help to keep your roller skates looking nice and new for longer.