|
Grex > Ing > #65: The roller blading item |  |
|
| Author |
Message |
popcorn
|
|
The roller blading item
| 
Oct 2 01:31 UTC 1996 |
This item has been erased.
|
| 39 responses total. |
raven
|
|
response 1 of 39:
|
Oct 2 02:30 UTC 1996 |
I guess I have a question, why is rollerblading legal, and skateboarding
illegal? I must say I have been close to being run over far more often
by rollerbladers than skateboarders.
|
gull
|
|
response 2 of 39:
|
Oct 2 03:05 UTC 1996 |
Bicycles are illegal on the sidewalk in downtown Houghton, probably to
prevent pedestrians from being run over by bicyclists doing 30+ mph down
the steep hills here. ;) They make up for it with a nice bike path that
runs behind downtown, by the canal.
|
marcvh
|
|
response 3 of 39:
|
Oct 2 04:10 UTC 1996 |
Yeah, it's unfortunate that personal forms of transportation that lack
transmissions and good brakes, like blades or boards, don't work well
in hilly environs.
|
rcurl
|
|
response 4 of 39:
|
Oct 2 06:25 UTC 1996 |
Uhh...I don't think either rollerblading or skateboarding are illegal.
There are some small areas where one or the other are not permitted. As
I recall, general both are not permitted. Beyond that, I have observed
that skateboarders do things on their board that are much more likely to
cause injury to others than rollerbladers do on their blades - or perhaps
that is how it has worked out.
|
raven
|
|
response 5 of 39:
|
Oct 2 06:37 UTC 1996 |
re # 4 OTH Skateboarders tend to stay out of peoples way doing there
>tricks in parking lots or late night on ramps and steps when people
>aren't using them, rollerbladers OTH I have seen push through *crowds*
>of people. Skateboarding as far as I know is illegal at least in all
of dowtown A2 if not all of the city limits. Rollerblading is not
illegal in downtown as far as I know.
|
ajax
|
|
response 6 of 39:
|
Oct 2 08:29 UTC 1996 |
Before skateboarding was illegal in downtown AA, skateboarders commonly
sped through crowds of people, and did tricks around parks and steps
where non-skateboarders hung out, or would have had there not been lots
of skateboarders flying through the air. I found skateboarders more
threatening than rollerbladers, safety-wise, as well as more of a
sound nuisance in otherwise peaceful parks.
|
janc
|
|
response 7 of 39:
|
Oct 2 15:21 UTC 1996 |
Wow, this item took off askew pretty fast. I suspect that as far as
rollerblades vs. skateboards goes, there are arguments on each side.
Rollerblades are quiter and their users tend to be less into wild stunts,
but you can step off your skateboard and walk in a crowd. Rollerbladers
rollerblade everywhere.
Getting back to the original topic, yes, I rollerblade. I'm not terribly good
at it, but I am getting some confidence. It's cool (you get a nice breeze),
and graceful (no hunching over a bicycle), and a reasonable amount of
exercise.
The only really good places I know are Gallup Park, with it's nice long paved
path along the river, and Hudson Mill MetroPark. Hudson Mills has a very nice
paved loop trail, almost 3 miles long, with only mild hills. But it is far
from town and costs an entry fee.
|
llanarth
|
|
response 8 of 39:
|
Oct 2 15:32 UTC 1996 |
My dog pulls me on my rollerblades...
|
dang
|
|
response 9 of 39:
|
Oct 2 15:32 UTC 1996 |
Well, there's all those nicely repaved sections of Central and North
Campuses... :) I rollerblade, and am OK at it. I do it mostly for
transportation, because it's much faster than walking. (As to the nusience
thing, there's a group of middle/high schoolers who come onto campus and do
tricks on the stairs, even between classes when you can barely walk, it's so
crowded. I can see why people outlaw these things. Still, if UM was to
outlaw rollerblades, there would be quite an uproar. Maybe just outlaw
tricks?)
|
n8nxf
|
|
response 10 of 39:
|
Oct 2 16:29 UTC 1996 |
(As I understand it, skateboards were made illegal because of the damage
they were doing to cars parked in public lots.)
I'd love to try rollerblading but have enough other things to keep me busy.
I just wait till the lakes and Huron river freeze over and strap on my ice
skates ;)
|
janc
|
|
response 11 of 39:
|
Oct 2 16:31 UTC 1996 |
The dog pulling thing looks scarey to me. I saw a young woman recently being
pulled by a very enthusiastic dog. She yelled "stop! stop!" but the dog
hadn't learned that trick and kept barrelling along. I suppose it is OK if
you are willing to let go the leash (in which case you have to figure out how
to get the dog back) or if you are really good at braking.
|
birdlady
|
|
response 12 of 39:
|
Oct 2 19:02 UTC 1996 |
Rollerblading at NMU was an experience due to the hills. My favorite thing to
do was to watch freshmen take their rollerblades up-campus to skate down Kill
Hill (the hill you take from the dorms to the classrooms...great for
sledding). By time they got to the base, they were screaming and flapping
their arms. It was dangerous because Circle Drive (a main commuter street)
went through there, and the rollerbladers couldn't stop before the crosswalk.
After one girl stopped herself by going headlong into Payne Hall and another
young man almost got hit with a car, the campus Public Safety outlawed
rollerblading down Kill Hill. You'd get a speeding ticket (yes...that's how
fast you could get up to). Just shows how stupid people can be when they're
bored. Rollerblading makes excellent transportaion, though, since I can't
ride my bike anywhere downtown.
Back to Dan's comment about how upset people would be if they outlawed
rollerblading on the UofM campus... Maybe they could just say that it's
illegal for your blades to leave the sidewalk? I mean both at once... =)
<birdy tries to picture rollerblading without pushing off and laughs>
|
scg
|
|
response 13 of 39:
|
Oct 3 03:46 UTC 1996 |
I've been meaning to try roller blading for a long time, but have never quite
pushed myself to spend the money. One of these days...
|
bubu
|
|
response 14 of 39:
|
Oct 3 05:51 UTC 1996 |
I rollerblad all the time, mostly to play hockey...A good Place though to just
skate is Kent Lake recreational area...They have a trail that goes around the
entire lake
|
popcorn
|
|
response 15 of 39:
|
Oct 3 06:27 UTC 1996 |
This response has been erased.
|
srw
|
|
response 16 of 39:
|
Oct 3 07:41 UTC 1996 |
Kent Lake is SE of Brighton - near I96. About 1/2 hour from AA.
|
janc
|
|
response 17 of 39:
|
Oct 3 14:10 UTC 1996 |
I thought it was cheaper than $25 a weekend to rent skates. The number that
sticks in my head is $14.
|
popcorn
|
|
response 18 of 39:
|
Oct 3 16:03 UTC 1996 |
This response has been erased.
|
bubu
|
|
response 19 of 39:
|
Oct 3 17:11 UTC 1996 |
I can get specific directions to you if you are interested..I fished in a
tournament there about a month ago. I rode with someone so I wasn't comletely
aware of the path we took, but I can ind out...
|
bruin
|
|
response 20 of 39:
|
Oct 4 00:31 UTC 1996 |
BTW, that should be "in-line skating" as "Rollerblades" is a brand name. I
have to keep it in mind when I do the "Ann Arbor News" Saturday Freebies (i.e.
list them as "in-line skates," not "Rollerblades.")
|
e4808mc
|
|
response 21 of 39:
|
Oct 4 02:31 UTC 1996 |
Kent Lake is in Kensington Metropark, at the Kent Lake Road exit to I-96, the
second exit east from 23. You can also get into the park from Kensington Road
and Milford Rd. There are shorefishing piers, boat rentals, launching ramps,
cross country ski trails, nature trails, bike rentals, and a golf course.
I sail there sometimes, and it is large enough that you are not crowded too
badly by others.
For the truly bold, just up milford Rd is Mill Pond, the headwaters of the
Huron River. If you start there, or in Kent Lake, you can canoe all the way
down to Ann Arbor, and beyond to Lake Erie. Hard to roller blade that far
though. (Just to get this paragraph back on topic).
|
scg
|
|
response 22 of 39:
|
Oct 4 03:54 UTC 1996 |
I suppose I could rent them, but if I'm going to get good at I think I'd need
to do it more than I could just renting them.
|
marcvh
|
|
response 23 of 39:
|
Oct 4 05:17 UTC 1996 |
So why are rollerblades so expensive to rent? A set of rollerblades
costs maybe 1% of what a car costs, but rents for 25-50% of what a car
rents for.
|
ajax
|
|
response 24 of 39:
|
Oct 4 15:02 UTC 1996 |
It's probably because there's a small market for the rentals; many
car rental facilities rent hundreds of cars at a time. There are also
certain costs of doing business - employees cost about the same whether
they're renting cars or skates. There might also be some liability
insurance built in there, too, though I imagine they make you sign away
your first-born child before you get the skates! :-)
|