I had hoped to go to work on Saturday to do a few things that need doing (unlike many others, xmas season in my trade is a busy one for those of us unfortunate enough to not be on holidays), but was having too nice a day so put it off till Sunday. Which meant I could accept Jess and Craig's invitation to go skating with them. So I did.
Probably the quietest Saturday session I've been to in a long time, a couple dozen skaters on the big ice and maybe that on the small. Good to see Jana and Greg there, had a bit of a yarn with them about the current season while we did laps (they're in the Sharks), also Ben (Rangers) and Mick (Redwings) as I was leaving. Jess and Craig think I'm part of the 'scene' there, I'm sure, except that all the above are 'outsiders' like me. I guess we form our own clique in a way, but not in the classic 'rinkie' fashion.
I skated easy, didn't have the knee strapped and didn't wish to take any risks. Limited myself to a few crossovers each way, a few stops and a lot of transitions both ways. No pain and only a slight tiredness afterwards.
Craig tried on and picked up his new set of skates, Vapour XR 40s (Bauer). I think he is only now taking seriously the warnings I gave him regarding the prospective pain that he'll experience as he breaks them in. Both he and Jess scored some waxed laces for their own skates.
I also spent a bit of time in the Prosports store, trying on a couple sets of skates. Being happy with my Bauer Supreme One.4s I was keen to try a higher grade in the Supreme line of skates. Got fitted at the exact midpoint of 8D and 8EE, went for the EE sizing. My old Bauers are 8R, so the sizing is not entirely consistent between the different models. Also tried a top line Nexus skate as a control/comparison to the Supreme.
Ended up purchasing a pair of Supreme 160 skates. A bit pricier than I had originally expected but that's because I'm a model up from the one I'd been thinking about. No drama, this set has a couple nice features (eg removeable blades, tougher quarter panels to protect the ankles, stiched felt tounge to allow a tighter wrap around the lower shins) that I will appreciate over time. They took my foot better than the Nexus equivalent (too much loose space in that one), and didn't have the pressure points that I've come to expect from my Vapor inlines.
I only picked them up after they'd had their initial sharpening after the public session had finished, so didn't get a chance to try them out. Am unlikely to until after xmas, so I'll be wrapping them and putting them under the tree.
Which gives me one or two sessions to enjoy my old veteran skates, complete with their stitching that is coming out and the inner liner that is deteriorating away, and that extreme sense of trusting comfort a person develops with their ice skates over time.
I wonder where they'll end up once I retire them?
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