So….

You know, it sure is funny how life can deal you a bad set of cards every now and then. It has been an extremely up and down week for me and I should let you know that as of Monday (11/26) I became unemployed. I have sat here looking at my incredible new pair of skates trying to decide if I need to sell them to come up with some extra money or if I can survive without the money. The quick and easy answer is that I need to sell my brand new pair of skates.

I can’t tell you how bad this decision sucks for me but it is the right decision at this point in time. Once I get back on my feet I absolutely plan to re-purchase the skates and continue my comeback. You know that feeling you get when you haven’t skated in a while and you just can’t wait to go to practice? Yea, I have that like crazy right now which makes letting the skates go is that much harder.

So here is what I have for you, and keep in mind the products have been skated on one time and are pretty much brand new.

Challenge boot (Size 9 US, 41 Eur)

Pilot frame (4×110)

G-series wheels (110’s)

Ideally I would like to get $650 for the complete set. I am willing to split the set-up but will have those conversations on an individual basis. If interested please email me at ryan at ryanshell.com.

Practice #1

So I just got home from my first practice. If you are a male you will appreciate what I am about to say. I went into the bathroom to put my spandex on and then I suddenly thought to myself “Damn… wrong underwear!” Boxers just don’t work with spandex. Luckily I had a backup pair of spandex which made everything kosher.

After a few warm-up laps I felt mildly comfortable on the new skates… I should definitely emphasize mildly. The Challenge boot seems to be a bit lower cut that my previous Verducci which made me feel a bit wobbly. I will also attribute the wobbly ankles to lack of skating which is a given.

I skated the pace line for the B group to get some additional time on the floor and followed that up with pace line for the A group. I stayed in until 15 laps to go which was acceptable. I could have lasted a bit longer but my legs were getting tired and I started to get that “just back on my skates out of control feeling.” I definitely don’t have the top speed that I used to but I think that will come in time.

It is really nice to see Cheek skating so well. I think if skaters from outside the area saw a Piedmont practice they would be amazed. Tonight for example there was Cheek, Harry, several Jr. World Team members… oh, and this guy you may have heard of, Joey Mantia. That isn’t to mention the pool of older skaters that are extremely talented and have tons of experience. Sorry, I digressed.

We did some 5 lap relays which allowed me to work on my sprints but again, the wobbly ankles and additional height from the 110’s made me feel very sloppy. I have typically had a custom or semi custom boot so I think having a stock boot will take a bit longer to break in. I will give it two weeks and if it hasn’t taken to my feet it will be time to stick it in the oven. My main issue is that it feels a bit big around the ankles which causes me to tie it really tight… something that I hate to do.

I also unfortunately brought the wrong pair of socks and they moved around a bit causing a very small blister on my right foot. The plan was to skate tomorrow in High Point but I might take the day off to let this blister heal a bit. If that is the case my next practice will be on Thursday.

All in all I think I had a good first practice and got a ton of floor time. My goal for the next practice is to make the pace line until the final 10 lap race at the end.  I should also add that I am a bit more timid than I used to be.  Back when I skated Senior… fear pretty much did not play a factor, but I guess with age you naturally take less and less risks.

I would say practice #1 went well and most of all, I had fun.

The Start of a Skating Comeback

Welcome to my new blog that is going to basically be a journal of my attempt to make a speed skating comeback. My name is Ryan  and I am 28 years old living in Greensboro, NC. I started skating for Piedmont when I was 14 years old and competed until I was 20… give or take a year or two. As most speed skaters know, you have to practice 3 – 4 times a week (if not more) to stay in top skating condition and while I was still young, I was also starting a career and skating lost the battle to responsibility.

As many “old school” skaters have done, I made a couple various comeback attempts several years ago but my interest either dwindled or work got in the way. I am now at a point where I think I can work skating into my schedule and I also want to maintain my current physical stamina for another sport I do, road cycling. The winter temperatures and lack of daylight make it extremely hard to get on the bike and I think skating will really benefit me when the biking season rolls around. Anyway, back to skating.

Several guys that I used to skate with started showing up on some of the weekly bike rides I was doing last summer which immediately made me have the desire to skate. As we continued to ride together throughout the summer we would talk a little biking and a little skating, all the while my desire to skate was slowly increasing.

About three weeks ago my bike training went from 150+ miles per week down to around 45 each week. My body seemed to be screaming at me saying, “Hey you lazy bum why aren’t you working out.” Have you ever had that feeling? See, for me, the fear of gaining back the 15 pounds that cycling helped me lose was constantly in the back of my mind so I knew I needed to subsidize my lost time on the bike with something… and skating was by far the best option.

That being said I started looking into purchasing a new pair of skates. What a pain in the butt this was. I can’t begin to tell you how bad I hated the thought of purchasing an entirely new set-up. My Verducci was perfect with the exception that it wouldn’t fit the 4×110’s and getting some sort of attachment to use the large wheels only seemed like something that would constantly plague me with problems. When I have previously tooled around with a comeback most skaters were still on 84’s and 100’s had just started to come into the picture which meant skating on 84’s wasn’t that big of a deal. Things are way different now. Everyone has on the big wheels, which means the pack is going to travel at a faster speed… not just one skater rolling a bit better than everyone else. Think NASCAR at Daytona.

After looking into the various set-ups and prices I decided to purchase a Challenge boot and the Pilot 4×110 frame. I went with the Challenge simply because the same folks who made my Verducci (Which was great) are producing these boots. Same goes for the frame. I must add that 110’s are freaking huge! It’s almost ridiculous how large the wheels have gotten. Did we throw ability out the door somewhere along the line? I wonder how many people have abandoned the sport due to the fact that they could not afford to keep up with the equipment? That is another post for another day.

Needless to say I got my skates last weekend and will be going to my first Piedmont practice tomorrow night. Tony (coach) has already started asking… “Are you gonna skate Roanoke? Are you chicken? Are you to old?” (If you know Tony, you know he is mostly joking.) Sure I want to skate Roanoke. Will I be ready? How long will it take to get me into “skating shape?” Will I get remotely close to the level I used to be at? Has the sport left me behind? I guess these are questions that I will answer in the coming months.

By the way, my old skates are in great condition and are for sale. They are ideal for someone who is skating to simply stay in shape or for a beginner. Size 9 Veruducci, 5×84 Shockwave, and Hyper SGB wheels (good condition). Shoot me a quick email if you are interested in the skates (ryan at ryanshell.com)

Look out for a post practice update tomorrow night.