Loving the new boots

So finally got to put in some wheel time on the new boots. After the left of my XL-55's decided it wanted nothing to do with it's sole, Beki had them warrantied, but Sure-Grip apparently no longer made my size so free upgrade to XL-75's! In addition to a more cushy collar area they included a beefy tongue and a velcro strap to hold the ankle in place, something I put to use at open skate today.

Since Weds is my usual open skate day I was excited to try the new setup out, so excited that I left the apartment without my precious crash pads. Turns out I am rather used to wearing them when I skate and I felt vulnerable without them. I had the trucks considerably looser than my previous setup, hoping to improve my cuts from side to side. After a couple laps I decided that there was such a thing as too loose and gave them each a bit of a turn to snug them up some more. The first 30 minutes I just tooled around, taking a few gentle crossovers and cuts, just getting a feel for the new boots and wondering when my feet would stop complaining about how long it had been since I was on wheels... Fast forward another 30 minutes and things were good to go. The looser trucks definitely let me make seemingly effortless cuts, but at the cost of requiring a bit more concentration in the crossovers. Once the feet were feeling good about the new boots, which I think are more comfortable than the old pair (no more angry rubbed-red line around my ankle from the cuff), I started going after some of the drills and testing the waters.

All those mind-numbing horse-stances while listening to youtube music videos are paying off. I was able to get, and stay, lower than usual, something which definitely helps with side-side maneuverability. I felt more stable in an aggressively low stance with my back more upright and thighs near parallel to the floor. Later in the day I tried my luck with toe-stop sprinting starts. I can get about 3-5 strong steps before I need to start skating, but at that point I am moving at a pretty good clip, so I am happy with how those went. Also, I was happy to see that the new boots with the strap seem to hold my ankle down more effectively, no more feeling of my heel lifting out of the rear of the boot. Ghetto-tomahawks and backwards skating also felt better, eventually I hope to be able to do toe-stop sprints to immediate tomahawk stops. Very happy with the progress considering the time spent off skates (almost 2 weeks, boo-hoo... I know) and looking forward to a weekend of watching bouts and going to practice. To put a cherry on top I am going to go to the 1-5pm Friday open skate as well. Oh happy day!