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Few people realize how long skates have been in use, but the history of skating parallels the rise of civilization. The first skates were ice skates, which have been traced back to the 11th century Viking era.
Skates of this time used sharpened animal bones for blades and were fastened to crude boots made of animal skins. By the 1400’s these primitive ice skates were using metal blades. They were widely used in Scandinavia and other cold climates, for hunting and any other activity that required covering a lot of ground.
By most accounts, roller skates were first invented in the 1700s. One of the first was a Belgian named Joseph Merlin. In 1760, he exhibited his new invention at a masquerade ball in London, but the beginning was not an auspicious one; he crashed, spectacularly, into "a large mirror of more than 500 pounds value, dashed it to atoms, broke his instrument to pieces, and wounded himself most severely." Ouch. The pitfalls that still continue today were already in evidence.
Similar equipment was also almost simultaneously being developed in the Netherlands around the same time period. Usually these consisted of wood planks with wooden spools for wheels that were strapped to shoes. Improvements in design and materials continued gradually, metal wheels replacing wood, then finally rubber, which gripped surfaces better than any other material.
Roller skating achieved greater visibility to the larger public through appearances in ballets and operas that had ice skating scenes. Since there was no way to maintain ice in these venues, roller skates were used, to great public acclaim. There were also practical uses of this new technology, one in particular that will warm the hearts of readers of this publication. In the 1840’s in the huge Corse Halle beer hall in Berlin, waitresses started using roller skates to better cover the vast distances when delivering liters of beer to patrons.
Soon after, roller skating was introduced in America. By the late 1880’s roller skates were achieving great popularity, and were gradually being improved, with spring loaded frames that allowed for turning, better wheels, and ball bearings. There were now many varieties of the sport, recreational, ballroom dancing, polo, hockey, and speed skating.
Let’s consider for a moment the context of the times. Bicycles had not yet become commonplace, and the automobile was not to appear until much later. Basically, skates provided a way for people to achieve personal mobility (and have a lot of fun) that was unparalleled. By the early 1900’s, vast roller skating rinks began popping up in many cities, including the Chicago Coliseum and Madison Square Gardens. Roller skating was now a genuine craze that swept the world. The appearance of bicycles and after that, automobiles, slightly slowed the dramatic popularity of roller skates, but by the 1940’s there were still an estimated 40,000 roller skating rinks in the U.S.
The popularity of the sport continued through the 1950’s and 1960’s. Anyone of a certain age remembers drive-ins with skating carhops delivering food to cars and watching roller derby on local TV. Although there was a decline in the early 1970’s, the disco era of the late 1970’s brought back the popularity of roller skates, and many discos had roller dancing nights.
In the early 1980’s, two brothers from Minnesota created a roller skate with four wheels in a line, much like an ice skate, as opposed to conventional skates that had the quad configuration; i.e. two sets of wheels, front and back. Their "new" design was actually inspired by an antique pair of skates they discovered. Their new skates were called Rollerblades, and they slowly revolutionized the sport. The design of these skates was gradually tweaked and improved, with additions of lighter fiberglass construction, softer, lower cut boots, buckles in combination or instead of laces, better wheels and bearings, and even an automatic brake system that took all the fear and guesswork out of stopping, a problem all the way back to the beginnings of the sport and Joseph Merlin’s crash into the mirror.
Inline speed skates began appearing in the late 1980’s. These skates have five wheels, and a very low cut boot that just covers the ankle. Although they take a little getting used to for people accustomed to higher rise boots (you have to build up ankle strength), this design lets the skater bend the ankle and then use that torque to get a much more powerful stroke. This, combined with the longer five wheel frame, gives the skater a lot more power and control (and consequently, speed). This author is an avid speed skater, and a believer in the great workout delivered without the adverse impacts of, say, running. One enthusiast said, "It’s the closest I’ve ever come to flying." An hour or two of skating gives you the endorphins to just float through the rest of the day, and that beer at the end of the workout just tastes so good.
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