Rollerblade Stopping Techniques

Learning to stop on your Rollerblades without injuring yourself can be challenging, especially for beginners. Some in-line skates are equipped with brakes, which make stopping relatively simple. In some cases your brakes may be adjusted poorly or may not work. Additionally, you may choose to Rollerblade with skates that do not have brakes. Regardless of the type of skates you own and your experience, you will find it helpful to learn all of the Rollerblade stopping techniques so you may effectively stop in any situation.

  1. Cheat Stop

    • If you are a new in-line skater, it is highly unlikely that you will be able to effectively stop with or without brakes, so you will need to cheat. Because you are a beginner, you will most likely not be traveling too fast. Try to skate near a rail or a wall and grab on until you come to a complete stop.

    Grass Stop

    • In some cases a wall or rail may not be readily available or you may feel as if you are going too fast to control your movement. If you should find yourself in this situation, step into some grass as you are skating. The grass will slow you down and if you fall, it won't hurt as much. Stepping or skating into a rough area with rocks or gravel will also slow you down like grass.

    Bend Your Knees

    • Bending your knees while keeping your feet close together on a flat area will bring you to a complete stop. Many Rollerbladers prefer to stop this way because they slow down gradually before coming to a complete stop. However, if you are trying to stop quickly for traffic or another hazard, bending your knees will not allow you to stop fast enough to avoid a crash.

    T-stop

    • Experienced in-line skaters often use the T-stop to slow down gradually. It may take some practice to get the proper timing down, but once you master the T-stop you will not only be able to stop easily, but you will also be able to change directions easily. While you are skating, position one of your feet behind the other and turn it horizontally to form a T. After you begin to slow, you may choose to change directions or come to a complete stop.

    Spin Stop

    • Another advanced Rollerblade stopping technique is the spin stop. In order to perform a spin stop, you must be skating quickly, but not too fast. Make a very quick turn that is as small as possible. When you pivot you will be traveling in a small circle. Because you are held in one area with the turn, you will eventually come to a full stop.