Types of Ice-Skating Blades

Ice skating was invented in Finland in 3000 B.C., According to National Geographic. The first ice skates were long, thin bones tied to the skater's feet with leather strips. These rudimentary skates helped the Finnish people to conserve energy as they crossed the many ice-covered lakes in their country.

Modern ice skates consist of a stiff leather boot attached to a blade made from carbon or stainless steel. The type of blade that you would use depends on the type of ice skating that you plan on participating in.

  1. How They Work

    • When you step on the ice with skates on, the metal in the blade causes the ice to melt slightly. This allows the blade to glide on the water, which quickly turns back to ice. The size and configuration of an ice skate blade has a direct impact on how fast you can move and how well you can maneuver on the ice. Longer blades create more water, which allows you to move faster.

    Figure Skating Blades

    • Figure skating blades are wide with a crescent-shaped hollow ground into the bottom of them. If you run your finger along the blade, you can feel the two edges on either side of the hollow called the "inside edge" and the "outside edge." These edges help the blade to grab the ice when performing intricate movements.

      They also have a gentle contour on the bottom called the "rocker." Figure skating blades have a notched toe on them called the "pick" or "toe pick," which allow you to perform jumps like the flip or the Lutz where the pick is dug into the ice and used to propel you upwards.

      There are two figure skating blade configurations called "freestyle" and "dance" or "patch" skates. Freestyle skates have a higher, sturdier boot to support your ankle when performing jumps. The blades are slightly longer than the boot at the heel and the pick is larger and more pronounced.

      Dance skates are used in both ice skating dances, such as the Waltz or the Tango, as well as patch. Patch is an ice skating session where you perform many kinds of figure eights on the ice. It received its name because before each session, the ice rink is sectioned off into approximately 20 patches intended for use by one skater each.

      Dance or patch boots are cut slightly lower than freestyle boots and are made of thinner leather. This allows the ankle to bend more during the intricate dance movements. The hollow on the bottom of the blade is more pronounced, allowing you to take deeper edges, and the pick is much smaller.

    Hockey Blades

    • Hockey blades are thinner than figure skating blades, are flat on the bottom and curved at the ends. The flat bottom allows you to move faster since more metal is making contact with the ice, thereby producing more water. Hockey skate blades are the same length as the boot, but have no picks.

      Goalie skates are made specifically to help you keep a low center of gravity and to protect your ankles from the force of a flying hockey puck. The boots are normally encased in a hard plastic around the ankle, toe and heel. The blades have less of a contour to them, are slightly longer than normal hockey skates and are set closer to the boot.

    Speed Skates

    • Speed skates are also known as racing skates. Unlike figure skating blades, there is no hollow. The bottom is set perfectly flat and level so that they do not cut into the ice. Since racers need to get as up as much speed as they can, speed skate blades are normally several inches longer than the boot. These longer blades create more water when coming in contact with the ice allowing you to move much faster. Speed skate blades have no toe pick.

    Touring Skates

    • Touring skates are also known as Nordic skates. Like speed skate blades, they are much longer than your foot, have no toe pick and no hollow, but they do have a slight contour or rocker.

      Unlike other types of skates, these blades are not attached to skating boots. They come with bindings that you would attach to your ski boots. This allows them to be taken on and off easily when you switch from skating across a frozen lake to skiing on the snow.