#action sport posting

[sonic-adventure-3]

wait, there are different types of skates??? what are the different types?

yeah there’s a ton of different kinds!

the first major distinction when talking about skates is of course ice skates vs wheeled skates. i presume you’re asking about wheeled skates, so i’ll jump right into the second major distinction, quad skates vs inline skates.

quad skates are more commonly known as roller skates. inline skates are also technically a kind of roller skate, but culturally they’re rather different, and quad skates are what you think of when you hear the term. quad skates have four wheels on each skate, paired in two sets of two creating a rectangular arrangement, like a car, or most things that have four wheels lol.

inline skates are also known as rollerblades, but rollerblade is actually just the most well-known company that produces inline skates. inline skates can have anywhere from 2-4 wheels per skate (even as many as 5, or in rare cases, 6, though the most common you’ll see have 4), arranged in a straight line underneath the boot.

i’m an inline skate geek so those are what i like talking about, and what i know significantly more about, so i’ll continue talking about all the various types of inline skates under the cut!

first off: recreational skates. they’re also called beginner skates or hobby skates or sometimes fitness skates, but along with “recreational skates” those are more so terms used by people who use other kinds of more specialized skates. often just called inline skates in most storefronts, the only thing that really defines rec skates is that they aren’t any kind of other skate. as such, they vary widely in design but generally have softer wheels that provide a smoother ride but wear down faster, and a brake that attaches to the heel of your dominant foot skate. they’re your ordinary, basic, more beginner friendly skate meant for general, non-intensive use.

one common distinction among them is soft boot vs hard boot. soft boots are where the boot part of the skate is soft and flexible, making them significantly more comfortable, however they don’t offer as much support and can wear down quickly with any intensive use. hard boots are where the boot part of the skate is a hard shell, which are less comfortable and take time to break in, but are more supportive and last a longer time. the two images above of inline skates are soft boot and hard boot respectively.

what’s probably the next most common kind of skate: city skates. also known as urban skates or freeskates, but that last one can be confusing. these skates are designed to be ridden at fast speeds through varied city environments, and as such are more durable, faster, more manoeuverable, and provide more support than recreational skates. they’re built to survive some jumps and stair-bashes and nasty falls. the skates above have a three wheel setup, but both four and three wheels are very common. four wheels are more manoeuvrable, but three wheels are faster and can traverse rougher surfaces, generally.

slalom skates are confusing. they’re also called freestyle skates, as well as freeskates or city skates, because slalom skates are sometimes just city skates with different wheels, or are sometimes fully a different thing.

slalom skates that are specifically designed for freestyle slaloming, the sport of manoeuvring between closely set small cones with figure skating-esque spins and jumps, are less durable than city skates and are more flexible, giving less support but more agility. they have smaller softer wheels arranged with a rockered frame that raises the very front and back wheels, which give more traction and agility in the usually indoor or very even outdoor pavement skating areas.

they’re quite niche, have few companies dedicated to making them, and are generally quite expensive though, so regular city skates or city skates outfitted with similar wheel setups are also common, often more common than specialty slalom skates. hence why the distinction between freeskates and freestyle skates can be very confusing.

aggressive skates blissfully don’t have any other names, they’re (almost.) always known as aggressive skates. they’re designed for various tricks, jumps, and crucially, grinds. they’re significantly heavier and bulkier than other skates in order to protect the wearer, and the bottom of the skates are flat and outfitted with a soul plate that allows for creative grinds. the frames also have a groove in the center to allow for even more kinds of grinds.

aggressive skates always have either 2 or 4 wheels. the one above has four wheels, but there are also setups that replace the inner two wheels with anti-rocker wheels, small plastic wheels that don’t touch the ground, and freestyle frames that have nothing between the front and back wheel at all in various styles, most commonly a sort of triangular groove. both are designed to reduce or completely remove wheel bite found in flat (four wheel) setups, which is when wheels get in the way of grinding and kill your momentum or stop you from sliding. as such, anti-rocker and freestyle setups are significantly easier to grind with, but struggle a lot in doing anything else, notably general handling, wheel durability, and speed. whereas flat setups have a significantly more difficult time grinding, but perform completely fine in almost all other areas. anti-rocker setups are by far the most popular of them all.

i’d say that recreational skates, city skates, and aggressive skates are the most common kinds of inline skate, but there are other even nicher kinds as well.

there are speed skates, designed for going as fast as possible. they have no ankle support whatsoever to allow for maximum agility, and huge wheels and wheel bases for going fast. there are marathon skates, very similar to speed skates except with far more ankle support so you don’t hurt yourself as readily traversing long distances fast.

there are inline figure skates and hockey skates. which fully and genuinely are just their respective kind of ice skate with wheels. they’re mainly used by ice skaters in the off-season, though they do have some support as separate sports, particularly inline hockey.

and finally, there are off-road skates. these bad boys look absolutely stupid with their huge TIRES. not even normal wheels but TIRES. they come in various styles including some that are powered and attach to your normal shoes. they’re absolutely wild all around and i love them.

that’s just about all the kinds of inline skates that i know of, but there may be kinds that i missed or further subcategories or distinctions i’m unaware of. also requisite disclaimer: i am not an expert, i don’t have too much experience actually skating, i just like skates a lot and read about them sometimes. thus, please take my words with a grain of salt.

thanks for reading!

[etrosgate]

the second readthrough of world trigger is where it really kicks in

[tazskylardaily]

September 19th, 2023 - Taz via Instagram post: «This blackbelt is getting framed. Can you spot why? Clue: It’s in the freeze frame»

[fae-morrigan]

my one request is if you hated jon's age up, at least do the rest of us a favor and put some goddamn respect on phillip kennedy johnson's name.

[daisyachain]

There are works which are not [genre] but works made that have read a lot of [genre]. YJ is not an anime but it is a cartoon that has watched a lot of anime. MTMTE is not a comedy but it is a space opera that has watched a lot of sitcoms. I’d like to learn the term for a work that is deep in conversation with a genre without belonging to that genre even as a hybrid. Specifically works that address, lampshade, satirize, employ genre signposts without obeying genre conventions.

[flaticeball]

the idea of a Gayest Player In The NHL bracket at all is already in poor taste to some degree bc i get everyone loves to make the “they’re so gay for each other fr” jokes but the condition of the actual league and its actions right now is like. you do understand why calling these people Gay Icons (Positive) for funny haha jokes is just. at best inappropriate timing, yes? but the idea of literally including one of the guys who got pride nights cancelled with his homophobia is just. can we take a minute to realize that hockey fandom doesn’t take place in a void completely unconnected to reality and see that this is just. a Really Bad Look. at best.

[narryffdreaming]

i'll see people scared of trump's administration 24/7, i'll see people pointing out all the harm he's doing 24/7, but then as soon as taylor swift becomes his target it's like everything turns into a joke. or "it's not that serious" anymore.

i mean, that stadium went crazy with cheers when they saw trump on the screen, then booed with the same energy when they saw Taylor on the same screen. all those people together, in one place, cheering for a man who spreads nothing but violence and hate, then booing a woman that he already declared to hate. and then said man still shared that exact same moment on social media for everyone to see, along with the words "the world is healing".

but somehow people still expect her, and her boyfriend, and her family, and her friends, and everyone around her, to speak up and stand up to him. all the time, at any chance they get. it's like... i dont get it, really. for everyone to treat it so lightly instead of acknowledging what a dangerous situation can be for her at any event/place she's at genuinely doesn't make any sense to me.

so yeah, in the end, i dont think it's stupid to think that sometimes the best thing you can do "for your girlfriend" is to play the game and avoid putting even a bigger target on her back. you can make it about anything you want, but from the way i see it, there's absolutely nothing else he could've said that couldn't have potentially made it worse tonight.

[military1st]

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[kelvinchoy82]

[tyresdeg]

callum ilott | iowa 2023

[sonic-adventure-3]

The SA2 Soap tie-in is iconic, and because of how weaved in it is I truly believe that the game would not exist in a recognizable form if not for the influence of inline skates.

Soap shoes were invented by a longtime Rollerblade employee, and are undoubtedly, unequivocally, and indisputably based on aggressive inline skates which are skates with with a groove in the middle of the wheel frames to facilitate grinding. Soap shoes similarly have a groove in the middle of the shoe for the same purpose.

Alongside Sonic and his Soap shoes, there’s Shadow, whose rocket skates/air shoes/etc are 100% based on aggressive inline skates. Firstly, the parallel between Soap shoes and inline skates is obvious, and it’s a fun differentiator between the similar-yet-different rivals or whatever. Secondly, Shadow’s stride is 100% based on inline skating. Thirdly, the Sonic series is largely steeped in and takes influence from counterculture of the 90s and early aughts, and while their presence is largely diminished today, aggressive inline skating was an incredibly, insanely, and unbelievably big counterculture movement back when SA2 was being developed. Finally, grinding is the big mechanic of SA2, and it later became a staple mechanic of the series as a whole. In real life, the only sports that grinding actually exists in are skateboarding and aggressive skating, and their derivatives like snowboarding and soaping. The mechanic had to be based off something, and considering the section that does feature a snowboard (streetboard?) doesn’t have you grind on any rails and doesn’t last the entire game, it’s pretty safe to say it’s taken straight from aggressive skating.

To sum up my thoughts: inline skating is super important to SA2 and the Sonic series as a whole with how grinding has persisted as a mechanic, Shadow is an inline skater (not roller skater!! They’re different things!), Soap shoes are based on aggressive inline skating, and It makes me sad when people forget about inline skating!

[tazskylardaily]

September 21st, 2023 - Taz via Instagram post: «I cut the bit where I slipped cause it was raining 🤣»

[whileyoureinschoolidothisallday]

hey buddy if you're gonna turn the country into a reality show could you get less predictable writers

[imvgeswrestling]

》》》

[ominousvibez]

might just uhhh speed through the last fights of the sports festival in the halfa!izuku au

[laughingcatwrites]

As a reminder that good exists out there, a coworker recently confessed to me that he found out his child is questioning their identity (kid's gender redacted for this post). The kid is keeping it from him, so he can't say anything to them or show that he knows, but he's doing his best to get mentally prepared and educated so that he'll be ready whenever his kid does feel comfortable enough come to him.

For context, this guy is a big, bulky middle aged dude who loves sports and typical outdoor "manly" activities. As his coworker and friend, I know he's a kind and sweet teddy bear of a person, but his kid probably views him as a stern, authoritarian figure, the way most teenagers view their parents. His family lives in a conservative area, so I'm sure between that, their dad's looks and interests, and the fact that their dad is a Figure of Authority, the kid is worried that they won't be accepted.

But you know what? When he found out about his kid, the first thing he did was reach out to his closest queer friend and ask for resources for parents of questioning children. His biggest fears are that his kid will be bullied or discriminated against and won't feel comfortable enough to be themself. His second action was to find himself a mentor in another parent who went the same situation (kid coming out in a conservative town). The other person is preparing him for some of the struggles his kid may face and the fights he may need to take on as a parent to make sure his kid is safe and treated well.

Something I want to emphasize for people focused on language as the primary method of allyship is that when we spoke, he used some outdated terms and thoughts about gender and sexuality. That does not make him bad. These were the terms and thinking used about questioning teenagers when he was growing up and he never needed to learn more current ones. But now that he does have that need, he's throwing himself in head first because that's his kid and he's darn well going to make sure that his kid feels welcomed and has a safe place to be themselves even if they never come out to him.