Do Your Blades Need Alignment
Indicators that your blades may need alignment:
- skating using only the inside edges of the blade
- difficulty handling a specific edge using good skating technique
- knee strain or lower back pain
Faulty blade alignment impairs your performance and can cause injury over time.
For more information on Pro Skate’s blade alignment services, visit our Blade Alignment page.
What is Blade Alignment
Positioning a skate blade on a boot, in such a manner that it is relative to the foot and the biomechanics of the body of the skater. In short, it is the positioning of the blade on the boot so that the skater’s center of gravity is directly over the blade.
Imagine the classic image of a young skater trying to skate while using only the inside edges of their skates. This is a problem that can easily be avoided by repositioning the blade on the boot. Subtle changes to blade positioning on any level of skater can translate into significant gain in performance on the ice.
Blade alignment places your center of gravity directly on top of the blade, allowing you to control both the inside and outside blade edges quickly, equally and efficiently. The positioning of the blade on the boot is relative to your foot and body alignment as well as allowing for the biomechanical differences in your feet and body. Correct alignment will help support you in maintaining a more efficient stride, that will maximize your skating performance.
Blade alignment is something you should consider any time you are having difficulty holding a specific edge. This will be obvious when a skater’s technique is good, but they are only able to hold the desired edge if they compromise their technique.
Common problems such as pronation, supination or leg length discrepancies can cause a skater’s center of gravity to fall to the inside or outside edge of the blade. This may cause knee strain, lower back pain and groin injuries, which can be relieved by the adjustment of the blade position to suit the skater.
Blade alignment should be done in store with the skater present. However, skates that have been worn for a period of time will show signs of poor alignment that usually includes twisting of the boot. Although it is not ideal, the blade can be realigned to achieve improvement in performance without the customer being present in the store.
Keep in mind that skates are created as a production line item, and the manufacturing process is not perfect. As such, manufactures generally mount the blade in the middle of the outer sole of the skate, which is generally not the center of gravity for the wearer.
Professional Skate Service has done many thousands of blade alignments on skates for more than twenty years.
