Skates and Planes

I took the plane last weekend. All my little habits came back to me, but it had been a (relatively) long time since my last visit at the airport and a flash crossed my mind: I definitely don’t understand the efficiency of their security system.

• 1. LUGGAGE CHECK-IN

First of all, you have no choice but spending your whole trip away from your baby-skates: they will be choking in your luggage under a pile of suitcases in the trunk of the plane, while you will be (comfortably?) seating on a chair. And why is it so? Because your frames/plates are weapons.

True, I’m so into stabbing the eyes of the pilot or exploding the windows of the plane with my trucks.

Although I think that it’s a little extreme, I suppose that there are no distinctions in the rules for the different kinds of skates, and that ice skates could be enough to crash a plane. (!!!)

I broke my plate!

"...doing street rollerdancing..."

 

After only 8 days -- i.e. a bout, four derby practices and half a rollerdance session.

So I went to the skateshop... and this is when the real sh*t began.

• I asked not to have the same model in exchange because I didn't trust the plates anymore. Ok... but they had no other derby plates in size 4. Damn!
• And what about Lazer plates? Not my size either.
• Artistic plates seemed the only option left: designed for jumps, they wouldn't break. But: 1) The thread for the stops is specific to artistic, so I'd have to wear (big) artistic stops and 2) Bearings size 7 only, whereas I can have bearings size 8 for free.
• I dropped the option when they found a Dynapro Powerdyne plate size 4 hidden in a corner. Woot woot so happy! Until we tried to put them on my boots. My feet are too small and the stops jutted out from the boots. Well.
• As there was nothing satisfying, I asked them to give me the same model I had broken, at least to have provisory plates for the bout against Stuttgart the following weekend, and not to have to drill new holes in my boots for plates I wouldn't like -- which I would change eventually (and make a new set of holes for the final plates). Unfortunately, they didn't have my size in stock, at all.
• Back to the only option left: the artistic plates! I had to pay them and they will refund me the price of the plate I broke. I had no choice anyway. 

My Babies are back...

...after a little plastic surgery!

 

Minx

"Gone for wheels, back with skates"

I went to Hawaii Surf that morning with my friend Jim with whom I rollerjam to buy narrower quad wheels for dancing.

 

After having asked to show me all the wheels they had, we made the most of our coming to the shop to try the new arrivals of quad skates, including the Antiks and... the Minx! The very ones I had tried one week before, because Amelia had just bough them. My feet dangerously and instantly merged with the boots so that I had only one option left: buying the 450€ skates. And they were so worth it that I hardly hesitated!

 

A couple of months ago I had to buy quad skates, and not having had a crush on any I chose the cheapest ones waiting for love at first try. I finally found them! The heel is a bit upswept so that it reminds me of inline skates, and the chassis is quite high too. Like, like, like! And they are so reactive that I can even slalom with them. Haha! Beware!

 

I couldn't help but baptize them the following day for our first bout. I'm proud of them, they did well for their first ride =)