The State of In-Line Skating in North America

so its true - nobody in-line skates anymore

or at least the number of people who in-line skate is steadily decreasing


i was talking to one of the managers of a sporting store and he was telling me that in-line skate sales have been diminishing consistently over the last 8 years or so

in fact - he said that annual sales of in-line skates is a quarter of what it was compared to 8 years ago

i believe the figures he mentioned were a mill in sales, and last year they only sold 250K


also of interest - the Salomon line of in-line skates is being discontinued

apparently they used to be owned by adidas, but they got bought out by the sports company Wilson, and Wilson does not have the facilities to continue making in-line skates anymore


anyway - in-line skates have 2 main parts - the boot and the wheels

the boots used to be made out of a thick plastic material (and weigh a ton), but now they are made out of fabric

they are not as durable, but they are hella lighter and more comfortable

other important features of in-line skates that i was informed of:
- some skates have a extra braking feature at the back, but this technology has never been mastered and apparently is quite fragile - it was meant to appeal to beginners, but is nothing more than a nuisance and it generally breaks with the slightest use
- the framing that holds the wheels can be made out of plastic or aluminum - the plastic is heavier and not as solid, so the aluminum is a no-brainer
- there is a variety of wheel styles (thickness and circumference) currently available - also the composition of wheels varies from company to company
- right now - the hottest type of wheel is the largest type of wheel - generally 100mm - allows a skater to go the fastest
- the dude at the store expressed some lament that Salomon was leaving the in-line skate industry because he held that they had the best wheels


the K2 style seems to have the most cross-over appeal

some of their blades actually had designs on them rather than the generic black skate with highlights

that kind of snowboard style seems kind of played out at this point

its all about the paisley and the curves


i see this project coming together nicely


earth tones
bold icons
paisley curves
focus on comfort and durability
environmental themes (environmental awareness is trendy right now)

maybe i can get Al Gore to endorse my in-line skates

top seller for sure


more updates to come