Rinking
SKATING on rollers, now so popular, is by no means a new pastime. More than fifty years ago there was a room devoted to skating on rollers, and parlour skates have figured in the catalogue of toy-dealers for many years, but these skates were rather toys than useful adjuncts to a pleasant and healthful pastime. To skate well on rollers required a mechanical adjustment of the wheels or rollers which was not supplied until the now well-known Plimpton skate was introduced. A comparison with the ordinary parlour London skate of the toy-shops and a Plimpton skate will at once show the difference. The London skate is a simple adaptation of the ordinary ice skate; three rollers, and sometimes four, are substituted for the blade of the skate. The rollers follow each other, firmly fixed in a metal frame, the last one under the heel is made of vulcanised Indiarubber in order to act as a retarding brake when the skater wishes to stop. The Plimpton skate, on the contrary, has four wheels set in pairs. The wheels are of boxwood or lignum vitae, and are interchangeable. By means of Indiarubber between the wheels and the sole of the skate, the pressure of the foot gives a lateral motion which not only enables the skater to execute the most graceful evolutions, but gives him a power of stopping and altering the direction of his movements equal to the ordinary ice skate. There are several other kinds of skates, but, with the exception of the Stanhope skate, they are all more or less adaptations of the American skate known as Plimpton's. The Stanhope skate, introduced by Mr. Dean, the well-known bootmaker of the Strand, differs from all others in having but two wheels and these wheels are arranged like the wheels of a bicycle, one large one in front and another smaller one under the heel. The front roller or wheel is firmly fixed in a metal frame to the metal sole or slipper of the skate. The hind wheel is acted upon by a strong spring, which is regulated by a screw to the weight of any skater, in order that, by changing the pressure of the body from the sole to the heel, the spring may act as a retarding brake on the hind wheel, and enable the skater to check himself when in full career. The mechanism is the simplest known, and cannot fail to be popular, though it takes a much longer time to master the initiatory difficulties by the beginner than it does by the use of the Plimpton skates. The Stanhope skates, like the Spiller and other skates, may be bought for private use. This is not the case with the Plimpton skates, which are only sold to those who have obtained a license or concession for their use. A glance at the diagram will show the difference of the construction of these skates.
To skate requires what in modern parlance is termed a rink, or a skating floor specially prepared for the purpose; for with the American skates came the Transatlantic term "rink." In America, when the cold is severe, water is let into a shallow basin of considerable dimensions beneath a roof, and permitted to freeze for the use of skaters. At night the rink is gaily lighted up, and a band is generally in attendance to enliven those who avail themselves of this delightful amusement. Instead of ice an asphalt or cement floor is now provided for the roller skates, and the term "rink" is used to distinguish the building, as rinking has become the common term for roller-skating. To boys, however, who wish to practice roller-skating, an asphalt or cement floor is not always to be obtained; an ordinary wooden floor would soon be destroyed, and the skater come to grief if he practiced on one; it is therefore necessary to provide some substitute, or some preparation, which could be easily applied and as easily removed, to make an ordinary floor adapted to roller skating. It has been found that a mixture of whiting and lamp black or blue, shaded to a dark gray tint, when mixed with size, made by dissolving glue in water, until it will neither crumble into dust when dry nor become sticky when being applied to the floor, answers every purpose. It prevents dust, it stops the cracks, and checks splinters from rising to interfere with the skaters' progress. It is agreeable to the eye, is easily repaired, and can be removed by washing with warm water. There is generally in country houses, and occasionally in towns, a spare room which can be devoted to this purpose. The use of the skates can only be acquired by practice. To skate well it is necessary first to see that the skates are clean and well oiled as well as perfectly free from grit. Until the learner gains confidence, he should avail himself of the hand and arm of a friend; if that friend is a skater so much the better. The best help is given by the friend passing his right arm beneath the learner's left, and grasping his right hand whilst holding by each other's left hand. The learner's first impulse is to try to walk, but this effort, if unsupported, would speedily bring him to the ground. He must, on the contrary, try to strike out in a lateral direction slowly and steadily, for too much haste will not mend the speed. He must beware of trusting himself too much on his heels, and this he will avoid by bending his body slightly forward as he glides each foot forward alternately. The strange sensation of having to balance yourself on the ever-moving castors beneath your feet gives rise to some awkward movements and not a few falls, but after a little practice he will learn to keep his hands as close to his side as possible, to learn to balance himself by the movement of his body alone. When he can do this, and move along with that graceful rolling motion, he may try those pirouettes, double threes, vines,&c., which are known as fancy figure skating. No written directions can teach figure skating in a rink, but by consulting the chapter on ice-skating, some idea may be formed of the manner in which it is executed.