If you are playing soccer, you need a black and white ball. If you are playing basketball, you need an orange one, and if you are playing tennis, you’ll need the little green one.Just like in any other sport, skating has its types of gear that depend on the situation you are wearing them in. Whether you do artistic roller skating, roller derby, shuffle skating, or any other roller skating, you will need a specific kind of skate. In this article, we will discuss Jam Skates Vs Speed Skates.Unless you are a roller skating expert or you have been practicing for a while, you probably had no idea of the many different types of skates there are.
Why Does It Matter If I Don’t Use The Right Ones?
Well, mostly because you don’t want to get hurt. If you wear artistic skates to a roller derby jam, you’ll probably end up hurting your ankle, badly. You want to make sure that whatever quad you are doing you have the right skate because these have different features for different kinds of movements. So now we’ll explain to you the difference between two skates that look super similar but aren’t: Jam skates and Speed Skates.
They are relatively low-cut compared to artistic skates. Since they are similar kind of end, they are used for entirely different types of skating.
What Are Jam Skates Used For?
Jam skates are used for jam skating (oh, shocker) But, what is Jam skating? It is a discipline that combines skating, gymnastics, and dancing. Begun in the 1970s, when the routines were more similar to disco. However, nowadays it is much more influenced by modern dancing like breakdance, but also by artistic skating. Jam skating is more about expression, rather than aggressiveness or speed
Traditionally, jam skaters used boot skates, like the artistic ones. Jam skating became so famous they designed skates that were specific for the need this discipline requires.
What are the characteristics of jam skates?
So, first of all, the main characteristic is that they are incredibly low-cut. Also, this kind of skate lacks a toe stop (the break in the front). Instead of a toe stop, the skate has what is called a dance plug (that’s just used to fill the whole usually). The frame’s weight is much lighter than other types of skates because it helps fast and agile movements that are needed when jam skating.
Even though speed skates usually don’t have laces either, it is a particularly important feature in jam skating. It lets the skater cover a larger area inside the boot (so they can concentrate their focus of weight onto the sole). Without the shoelaces, the foot has more freedom to flex as it controls where to focus the weight in the sole, this allows the skater to do the stunts more easily and with more balance.
Jam skater’s wheels are also smaller than speed skaters because they reverse directions quickly. Speed skaters stay on a lane and move forwards while jam skaters can change direction and have to accelerate FAST afterward.
Wheel lips are also common on jam skates because the lip offers more cushioning when the skater lands. It also can correct errors during plate landing and help the skater maintain balance.
What Are Speed Skates Used For?
Jam skates are used for jam skating (oh, shocker) But, what is Jam skating? It is a discipline that combines skating, gymnastics, and dancing. Begun in the 1970s, when the routines were more similar to disco. However, nowadays it is much more influenced by modern dancing like break-dance, but also by artistic skating. Jam skating is more about expression, rather than aggressiveness or speed
Traditionally, jam skaters used boot skates, like the artistic ones. Jam skating became so famous they designed skates that were specific for the need this discipline requires.
What Are The Characteristics Of Speed Skates?
So first and foremost, unlike jam skates, speed skates do have a toe stop that will help you brake. Speed skates resemble shoes the most, and they do have laces. Speed skates, unlike jam skates, try to keep a close foot to boot ratio, which is also why they have few padding.
Speed skates are also low-cut but not as much as jam skates; they will typically fit around the ankle bone. The design is specifically for freedom of movement and being able to maneuver a little bit more.
Speed skates also offer lightweight plates; this is in an attempt to reduce fatigue when skating longer distances.
Similarly, when it comes to the wheels, both disciplines have different needs. First of all, speed skaters need hard and grippy wheels because of the speed and overall impact they take. They also don’t tend to use wheel lips because you don’t really need cushioning but rather roll. A narrower wheel offers a better roll.
Speed skates also don’t need to make flexibility for acutely angled turns. When speed skating, you carve some shape of an arc on the floor almost all the time. Every stroke carves a proper, and it is sharper than the track path.
Jam Skates Vs Speed Skates
The main differences are the toe stop and the laces. Lately, many jam skaters have been using speed skates; this is because both skates offer freedom of movement and have a similar design. You can change the toe stop by a toe plug. However, you cannot use a jam skate for speed skating, because they will not be tight enough to support your ankles. And also because speed skating without brakes is rather dangerous.
The wheels are an essential factor too because they are the ones that provide either constant speed and arc or fast turns and accelerations. If you use jam skates for speed skating, you might not get the continuous arc and overall speed as you would with quad speed skates. Similarly, speed skates might not give you the momentum to change direction and accelerate as good.
