“Can you stretch the skate?” We get this question a lot. Often, customers are convinced a blister or discomfort is caused by the skate’s ill fit. But this is not always the case…
Each person has different feet—a different arch, walk, stride, and so a skate will never be the same on two people.
Therefore, we strive to look at each of our customers in a unique way—tailoring the skate to their foot.
In short, we make it your skate.
Recently, a man came into the shop because he had a blister on the inside of his arch. He, like many others, asked for the skate to be stretched.
Immediately, we knew what the issue was. Although, we are no podiatrists, we have been in this business for over 30 years and have seen many skaters enter the shop with similar issues.
The good news is we can make it work. Even better news: You rarely need a brand new skate.
Here’s a peek into how we tackled this problem:
- Individual foot of the customer
- Fit of the skate
- Profile
How do they walk? What’s going on in the foot, leg, and ankle that may be contributing to the pain? From here, we can best make changes that will benefit each person.
A blister on the inside arch usually indicates pronation or in laymen terms: The foot is rolling inward as the heel strikes the ground. He was also suffering from shin splints. Any “room” in the skate can amplify this problem. (An inside secret: A blister identifies a different problem than a bunion, for example. So right away the injury is always a clue, my dear Watson.)
In general, we can use a multitude of support and pad aids to stabilize the foot and increase ankle support, impacting the comfort and fit of the skate.
Finally, we addressed the profile. Profiling grinds and shapes the blade for a specific skating style. For this customer, we looked to see if the blade is long and flat, as it should be in a speed skate. Most skates come with a generic profile that may not be right for your style and stance.
Without getting too scientific, profiling maximizes your skating potential. Period.
Correct, custom profiling has numerous benefits, including:
- Improved balanced
- Sharper turns
- Faster takeoffs
- Reduced fatigue
- Decreased injuries
At our shop, we have over 30 years of experience sharpening skates. There is simply no better place to ensure a correct profile.
It is all about proper body balance.
We also keep a record of every profile that we do, as well as the skate model and brand of the blade. Keeping this information allows us to duplicate the profile again if you buy brand new skates, saving you time and energy. Also, the record gives your skate a history in case you receive a poor job elsewhere; we can always go back and properly fix the blade.
After addressing all three of these issues, we are confident this customer will begin to find relief and be back out on the ice.
If you are having problems with the fit of your skates, begin to address the points we discussed, or better yet, bring it into the shop and let us figure it out with you.
Contact us today and put your best skate forward.
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