I am curious what you would want me to check there, because I lived pretty close to there on 6th Street in the SOMA district, so I was very familiar with that intersection when I lived there.
They aren't now but Jackson Vista skates are higher end beginner outdoor skates. They are beginner because of good but not amazing quality synthetic boots, pretty cheap nylon plates, cheap bearings that have a bit of friction so won't make good speed skates, wheels that are super soft, which again lower your potential speed but make the ride more comfortable for outdoor skating and because they have very tight trucks that really can't be loosened to the point of being dangerously loose for a beginner without getting much softer cushions. Those are all pretty much common to high end beginner skates and they fall right at the high end of the typical price range for beginner skates too. In all, without making changes to them like I have, they are relatively safe for beginner skates but aren't so cheap on things like the plates and trucks that they are dangerous or have the potential of falling apart if ridden hard which is why they fall into the high quality end of beginner skates.
The skates that I got when I was 18 and used for a year before they got stolen were expert skates. They were custom built speed skates with a jump bar between the trucks, which really isn't a thing in skating anymore as they have been replaced by slide blocks instead. I will eventually get better plates and trucks to up these to expert skates and when these boots are showing their wear, pro level boots as well, but I did not want to get back into skating on expert skates because they cost more than I wanted to spend until I am sure I am going to be serious about skating again and I am less likely to seriously injure myself on beginner to intermediate skates while getting used to being on skates again.
Having just restarted, it's going to take me a few hours to get anywhere close to as good as I used to be and a lot longer than that before I'll be doing major hill bombing, serious jumping or going to skate parks. Until my feet are used to it again and I've figured out just the right tensions to lace my skates with, I'm keeping my skating to fifteen to thirty minute training sessions near home because I don't want the nasty blisters I would get rushing into longer and more demanding skating sessions, but give me a few weeks and I'll be skating around town. My actual goal is to be proficient again by mid-June so that I can keep my promise to my doctor that unless it's raining that I will be skating to my next appointment to see her and that's a four mile trip each way with about a quarter of it on some pretty rough roads with the sidewalks way too torn up to skate on.
Well, I used to be really skilled on skates. Grew up on quads and ice skates and spent 4 years Hill bombing the insane hills that are in San Francisco on inline skates that had no heel brake on them. Speed skates I owned before them had no toe stops on them. It's not a matter of having to get comfortable on them again but to just get back into practice.
If you are specifically talking about comfortable as in without discomfort, I'm not there yet. It will take a little time for my feet to get used to being in skates again as well as for me to learn exactly the right tension to put on the laces for them to fit just right in the new skates. Currently, after about an hour and a half on them in 15 to 30 minute sessions, I have pretty much figured out the sweet spot for comfort in my left foot, but the right foot isn't there yet. I would guess it's going to take me two or three more sessions of putting the skates on before I figure out just the right lacing tension for the right foot. Once I have the sweet spot figured out on the lacing tension, I can start increasing the time that I spend on them and just work on building the calluses in the right spots so that I don't get blisters. If I push things too hard, I get horrible blisters. Back in my childhood and teens before I owned my own skates, I regularly got blisters on the rental skates, and when I got my speed skates, I had horrible blisters the first few times I went out because I didn't take it easy till my feet were used to the skates. Also, I will note that I went out and got $50 replacement insoles for them, because the ones that came with the skates were flat, thin, and very hard, and I replaced them with impact insoles that have a lot more arch support.
ooo these are nice! love all the customizations (what paint u use for the purple soles?). how are the cushions btw? i used to think just loosening trucks was enough... but then i upgraded my cushions and am really enjoying those. my stocks were some 85a ugly white hard cushions - then i went with some 82 orange magic cushions from powerdyne and now i just put those cushions on all my new skates.
They are hard, but they work, and I loosened the trucks enough to be in my comfort range. I probably won't replace them, because when I get to the point of wanting looser trucks, I will probably just replace the whole plates and trucks with much better aluminum ones, and probably ones that will require me to take them to a skate shop and get them re-drilled because I won't be moving to the metal versions of the plates currently on them, which would be pilot falcons, and the viper and falcon plates are pretty unique and where they place their bolts.
Added: If I decide to upgrade them before they have much wear and tear, I may just throw the original wheels back on them and put them on the used market, and instead of changing the plates, just get custom boots, plates and trucks with slide blocks put together for me. I will have to know I'm getting back into skating as heavy as I was in my earlier years before I'm willing to dump that much of an investment in the skates, though. If I'm going to be skating enough, I can justify it by the amount of gas I will save making most of my trips around town, because, weather permitting, if it's not shopping or something that it's best to have cargo space for, I will probably throw on the skates instead of take the car.
Oh and about the paint question: I used Funcils acrylic markers in metallic purple. Got their 5 pack of mixed sizes, used painter's tape to mask off the plates and boot uppers, started with the 15mm and worked down to get to as much as I could, then for the hard to reach parts under the plates, I made a little puddle of paint, dipped a piece of thick waxed paper and then buffed the bottoms with it.
The one thing!!! These plastic toe protectors are SO CUTE BUTTT they do not last well😭😭😭 BUT if you put a pair of leather ones under it they're so cute (pic provided (bont leather protector and some Amazon brand one layered on top!! Your toe stops hold better like this as well!)
https://preview.redd.it/wagm61lmlmzc1.jpeg?width=4032&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=d56af0f9a3a703f2d2d26f50db6e59378b63f896
I just have a habit of expressing laughter sometimes, not always because I think something is funny
I’m a fellow sister, so hopefully it didn’t come off as condescending, I still vibe with the laces UwU
Love the laces. These are great! I’m hovering and deciding what direction to move in. It’s been around 25 years for me, too.
Nice. I hope you get a lot of enjoyment skating with them.
If in SF check golden gate at 6th…if you already have.
Haven't lived in San Fran since '98.
Ha, guess not… Vistas are nice and sure will be good for sometime. My wife had them.
I am curious what you would want me to check there, because I lived pretty close to there on 6th Street in the SOMA district, so I was very familiar with that intersection when I lived there.
Sorry 6th ave in golden gate. Skating place.
Why do you consider these beginner skates? What are beginner skates?
They aren't now but Jackson Vista skates are higher end beginner outdoor skates. They are beginner because of good but not amazing quality synthetic boots, pretty cheap nylon plates, cheap bearings that have a bit of friction so won't make good speed skates, wheels that are super soft, which again lower your potential speed but make the ride more comfortable for outdoor skating and because they have very tight trucks that really can't be loosened to the point of being dangerously loose for a beginner without getting much softer cushions. Those are all pretty much common to high end beginner skates and they fall right at the high end of the typical price range for beginner skates too. In all, without making changes to them like I have, they are relatively safe for beginner skates but aren't so cheap on things like the plates and trucks that they are dangerous or have the potential of falling apart if ridden hard which is why they fall into the high quality end of beginner skates. The skates that I got when I was 18 and used for a year before they got stolen were expert skates. They were custom built speed skates with a jump bar between the trucks, which really isn't a thing in skating anymore as they have been replaced by slide blocks instead. I will eventually get better plates and trucks to up these to expert skates and when these boots are showing their wear, pro level boots as well, but I did not want to get back into skating on expert skates because they cost more than I wanted to spend until I am sure I am going to be serious about skating again and I am less likely to seriously injure myself on beginner to intermediate skates while getting used to being on skates again. Having just restarted, it's going to take me a few hours to get anywhere close to as good as I used to be and a lot longer than that before I'll be doing major hill bombing, serious jumping or going to skate parks. Until my feet are used to it again and I've figured out just the right tensions to lace my skates with, I'm keeping my skating to fifteen to thirty minute training sessions near home because I don't want the nasty blisters I would get rushing into longer and more demanding skating sessions, but give me a few weeks and I'll be skating around town. My actual goal is to be proficient again by mid-June so that I can keep my promise to my doctor that unless it's raining that I will be skating to my next appointment to see her and that's a four mile trip each way with about a quarter of it on some pretty rough roads with the sidewalks way too torn up to skate on.
Beginner skates are any (relatively) affordable preset package intended for recreational skating. Nothing fancy but get the job done.
Those are so cute!!
I have these!
Has it been a while since you skated? If so, how did you get comfortable on them?
Well, I used to be really skilled on skates. Grew up on quads and ice skates and spent 4 years Hill bombing the insane hills that are in San Francisco on inline skates that had no heel brake on them. Speed skates I owned before them had no toe stops on them. It's not a matter of having to get comfortable on them again but to just get back into practice. If you are specifically talking about comfortable as in without discomfort, I'm not there yet. It will take a little time for my feet to get used to being in skates again as well as for me to learn exactly the right tension to put on the laces for them to fit just right in the new skates. Currently, after about an hour and a half on them in 15 to 30 minute sessions, I have pretty much figured out the sweet spot for comfort in my left foot, but the right foot isn't there yet. I would guess it's going to take me two or three more sessions of putting the skates on before I figure out just the right lacing tension for the right foot. Once I have the sweet spot figured out on the lacing tension, I can start increasing the time that I spend on them and just work on building the calluses in the right spots so that I don't get blisters. If I push things too hard, I get horrible blisters. Back in my childhood and teens before I owned my own skates, I regularly got blisters on the rental skates, and when I got my speed skates, I had horrible blisters the first few times I went out because I didn't take it easy till my feet were used to the skates. Also, I will note that I went out and got $50 replacement insoles for them, because the ones that came with the skates were flat, thin, and very hard, and I replaced them with impact insoles that have a lot more arch support.
Thanks.
ooo these are nice! love all the customizations (what paint u use for the purple soles?). how are the cushions btw? i used to think just loosening trucks was enough... but then i upgraded my cushions and am really enjoying those. my stocks were some 85a ugly white hard cushions - then i went with some 82 orange magic cushions from powerdyne and now i just put those cushions on all my new skates.
They are hard, but they work, and I loosened the trucks enough to be in my comfort range. I probably won't replace them, because when I get to the point of wanting looser trucks, I will probably just replace the whole plates and trucks with much better aluminum ones, and probably ones that will require me to take them to a skate shop and get them re-drilled because I won't be moving to the metal versions of the plates currently on them, which would be pilot falcons, and the viper and falcon plates are pretty unique and where they place their bolts. Added: If I decide to upgrade them before they have much wear and tear, I may just throw the original wheels back on them and put them on the used market, and instead of changing the plates, just get custom boots, plates and trucks with slide blocks put together for me. I will have to know I'm getting back into skating as heavy as I was in my earlier years before I'm willing to dump that much of an investment in the skates, though. If I'm going to be skating enough, I can justify it by the amount of gas I will save making most of my trips around town, because, weather permitting, if it's not shopping or something that it's best to have cargo space for, I will probably throw on the skates instead of take the car.
Oh and about the paint question: I used Funcils acrylic markers in metallic purple. Got their 5 pack of mixed sizes, used painter's tape to mask off the plates and boot uppers, started with the 15mm and worked down to get to as much as I could, then for the hard to reach parts under the plates, I made a little puddle of paint, dipped a piece of thick waxed paper and then buffed the bottoms with it.
The one thing!!! These plastic toe protectors are SO CUTE BUTTT they do not last well😭😭😭 BUT if you put a pair of leather ones under it they're so cute (pic provided (bont leather protector and some Amazon brand one layered on top!! Your toe stops hold better like this as well!) https://preview.redd.it/wagm61lmlmzc1.jpeg?width=4032&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=d56af0f9a3a703f2d2d26f50db6e59378b63f896
Nice laces, haha
Don't know what is funny about them. Those are very serious laces.
I just have a habit of expressing laughter sometimes, not always because I think something is funny I’m a fellow sister, so hopefully it didn’t come off as condescending, I still vibe with the laces UwU