Is it possible to get speed skates that are cheap but still any good? Perhaps mainly for beginners or those on a budget…
“Beginner” is a bit of a misnomer (yay, got to use the word ‘misnomer’) when it comes to speed skates because it’s hard to be a beginner and a speed skater at the same time. Presumably you have done some other type of skating before you’re jumping in with speed skating, right?
Well, let’s hope you have… If you’re a real beginner, there’s a chance it might be better to try out a pair of freestyle or recreational skates first.
But the issue here is the skates in this category are twice as expensive as skates in other categories, and this can be a problem for beginners and younger skaters who don’t want to fork out $400 for a pair of skates.
They’re more expensive because of all the technology that goes into optimising them for performance – both speed as well as power transfer. They are the sports cars of skates, so with this known I thought it useful to trawl through the different options out there for someone on a budget, and after a lot of thought and research, the best budget speed skates you can buy are the Atom Pro Speed Skate (though the Powerslide R2s and VNLA Carbons are also good options to be totally fair).
The Atom Pro’s weight in at around $250, depending on where you get it from. This is significantly less than most speed skates, and you end up getting a pair that are almost as good. And definitely an extremely fast skate that applies your power well, and lets you develop your speed and skills, and that is what you want.
You can get them on Amazon here available in sizes 6 – 13 last I checked (and you should get them in your size if you’re male, and women should order one size down from their shoe size)
Why I Choose Atom Pro Speed Skate
Right off the bat, if we’re saying you don’t want to go with an expensive pair of skate that reduces the range down to a few “budget” models, which we can compare between, such as:
Powerslide R2 II – buy here
VNLA Carbon – buy here
(And if you’re looking for kids, an options here is the Rollerblade Powerblade)
Probably out of the two of them Powerslide is the safer of the options.
These are definitely worth considering but I would still go with the Atom Inline Speed. Atom have crammed a lot of technology into their pro skate, but kept down the price, and they were designed in the first place to achieve this.
(As an aside, on sites like Alibaba you can find cheap high-quality looking skates – I personally have no experience with these but, if the price looks too good to be true it probably is)
They designed the skate with the specific purpose of keeping a carbon boot, but keeping the price point low enough for beginner speed skaters. Finding a boot at this price point without compromising a lot of stuff is quite difficult.
Atom have some excellent speed skates at the high end so they know what they’re doing – not every skate they do might live up to the hype, but overall they are popular amongst speed skates.
You want a really light boot to help you with speed of course, and this comes with a carbon fibre shell which is both super strong and super light. Carbon fibre is not something you used to be able to get as cheap as this. Once you skate on a carbon skate, many people say, you never go back. So that’s a core reason for choosing this one.
The carbon boot gives you great stiffness, which then relates to great responsiveness on the movement of your feet, but particularly, and this is key, transfer of energy. This skate will let you go really really fast. And that’s the whole point of a speed skate.
It features a microfiber upper part to the skate. Microfibre are just super light fibres that weight less than 1 delier (1 gram per 9000m). This isn’t a huge plus point, but it’s not negative either, and it helps with both the comfort, being resistant to abrasion, and being breathable.
With the microfibre upper the aim is to make the skate a bit more supple and forgiving. There’s a bit more padding, and the skate is a little longer a wider which means it’s a little bit more comfortable (for a speed skate – which aren’t known for their comfort to be honest).
Atom Pros Frame, Wheels and Bearings
All three components are excellent. This is what makes this boot stand out at this price point.
Atom Pro has “6000 Aircraft Grade Aluminium Frame” at 12.8 inches.
(Interesting aside: So another material sometimes used for frames is magnesium which is lighter with a density of 1.74 vs. aluminium’s 2.7, which you’d think would be good for speed skates but aluminium is much stronger, it breaks less easily – which his very important for the stress placed against it in speed skating, especially during acceleration. To be fair though, aluminium frames are basically standard with speed skates, but the Atom Pro’s frame is a good one)
Bearings and wheels are of course crucial for speed, and the Atom Pro has Bionic Abec 7 Bearings which roll extremely fast, and comes with 100mm Green Atom Matrix Wheels which are also high quality. They’re 86a hardness which is again is standard for high quality speed skates.
(Most speed skates boots come assembled, and thankfully these do too. That’s not a big point, but it’s helpful for beginners. Choose your size and you’re ready to go)
How To Heat Mould The Atom Pros?
The Atom Pro Skates are heat mouldable. Some people say you shouldn’t do this too many times as it may damage your skate, but by “cooking” the skate and shoving it on your feet, you can get it to form to the unique contours of your foot. If you’re getting blisters on one area, you can consider moulding it accordingly.
To heat mould you are literally putting your skate in the oven, hmm…
So here’s a quick recipe:
100 decgrees c, or 210 farhenheit, pre heat oven. Basically from 8 – 10 minutes, WITHOUT your wheels, just the boot and the frame. Then be careful when you take it out, don’t touch the metal parts, very hot. Tie it as fast as possible onto your feet, and position your skate in the skating position.
Baisc Overview of the Atom Pro Skates
To recap, the following features:
- Good technology for the price
- Comes Assembled
- Carbon Fiber Shell
- Microfiber Upper
- Heat Moldable
- 6000 grade aircraft aluminum frame
What size should you get?
Generally is to choose the same as regular shoe size should work for you, and one size below for women.
Where Can I Get The Atom Pros?
There are a range of online stores you can get them from, including their own website, but they are also available in Amazon here.