Ice hockey is one of the most expensive sports to play these days. You have to buy a ton of equipment just to get out on the ice in the first place but then you have to rent the ice time or join an ice hockey league. In today’s economy saving money should be a top priority so it is important that you take proper care of the ice hockey equipment you do have to avoid needing to purchase any new gear.
Ice hockey skates are the most important piece of equipment, aside for maybe the ice hockey stick, in the game so you will want to take extra precautions with your pair of hockey ice skates. Even a pair of cheap ice hockey skates can run you about $100 you’d be throwing that money away if you don’t treat them well. There are a few key things you can do for your ice hockey skates after every game that will extend the lifespan of your skates and keep them in tip-top condition for play.
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Let Your Ice Hockey Skates Breath
Have you ever noticed that used ice hockey skates have a distinct odor to them? That smell you’re sensing is the buildup of bacteria and decay brought on by sweat and heat. The more you play in your ice hockey skates the more you will sweat in them. It is important that after every game you take your ice skates out of your sports bag and leave them out to dry off. If you keep your skates cooped up in the dark of a bag with the rest of your hockey equipment they are going to fester and smell.
It is also a good idea, while you are drying out your ice hockey skates, to spray them down with bacteria killing solutions like Fabreze or Lysol. You could also use various foot odor powders inside the boot of your skate to kill off as much bacteria as you can. The cleaner you keep your ice hockey skates the longer they will last.
Wipe Down the Blade of Your Ice Hockey Skates
Playing on ice has its benefits. You can move faster, go farther, and slide cleaner on ice than you could on concrete or grass but ice skating also tends to create snow. As you skate down the ice you are carving up the ice surface and those ice shavings will stick to the blade of your skate. It is always a good idea to wipe down the blade of your skate as soon as you get off the ice.
Use a towel to wipe off any snow drift that might have built up on the bottom of the skate. Wipe down the blade and the chassis and any other metal parts on your boot to avoid rust build up. The longer you wait to wipe down your ice hockey skates the more you leave them vulnerable to the elements; no one wants to play on a rusty skate so don’t let yours get that way.
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Cover Up Your Blade When Not On the Ice
There is often a lot of surface area to cover between the time you put on your skates and the time you reach the rink surface. An ice hockey skate, though seemingly fine to walk in, can be completely ruined if worn while walking on concrete, carpet, or tile. To protect your ice hockey skates while walking around off the ice you should cover them with plastic skate guards.
You can find a variety of skate guards at your local skate shop. Some will be made out of soft rubber and others out of hard plastic but they all serve to protect the blade of your skates from getting dulled and chipped by surfaces other than ice. The ideal way to protect your skates would be not to wear them at all unless you plan on skating as soon as you lace them up but we don’t live in an ideal world.
Know When to Get Your Ice Hockey Skates Sharpened
Even if you manage to protect your ice hockey skates from all the elements and take care of them like they were your long lost children you are still going to find them dulled over time. Just like any kitchen knife, the blade of an ice hockey skate will dull over periodic use. To keep your skates in the best condition it is a good idea to get them sharpened at least twice per season but if you are really adamant about it you can sharpen them after 4 – 8 hours of play.
Most professional hockey players, like the ones in the NHL, will sharpen their skates before every game they play just to make sure their blades are in the finest condition possible but for most amateur or recreational players it isn’t necessary to sharpen them quite that often. Different positions will also find they need to sharpen their skates at different times. For instance, goalie ice hockey skates are rarely sharpened because a dull blade makes it easier for the goal tender to slide back and forth across the crease.
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If you follow these simple guidelines for taking care of your ice hockey skates you will have no problem keeping your skates in the best condition. The better you take care of your skates the more money you will save in the long run and the better you will perform out on the ice.
Choosing the correct size skates for you will also make a difference in the life of your skates. As you continue to use your skates, your feet will heat up and the padding will begin to compress over time. This will cause your skates to feel loose. Have you ever wondered why your new skates were tight and hurt your feet a bit and now you feel like you need to tighten your skates after the first 15-30 mins of skating? New skates have a break-in period and for this reason people tend to buy them a little too big. They feel good at first but over time they feel loose in sports and can even cause blisters. Here are a few tips to getting a good fitting skate.
Tip 1: Don’t buy skates that are too big. Ice hockey skates run big when compared to your normal shoe size. A size 9.0 Nike/Bauer or CCM would be compared to a size 8.0 or even a 7.5 in normal shoe size.
Tip2: most skates now a days are “heat moldable” this means that you can virtually eliminate the painful break in period and get a custom fit to your foot. This also will allow you to buy a skate that will not loosen up after you have played in them for a while. Each brand has a slightly different method for heating or baking the skates so be sure and check the owner’s manual before you heat up your new skates.