Roller skates

Roller skate

Roller skates are devices worn on the feet to enable the wearer to glide along on wheels propelled by the legs.

History

The first patented roller skate was introduced in the year 1760. The inventor was a Belgian man named John Joseph Merlin. His invention did not become very popular among the general population.

In 1863, a man named James Plimpton from Massachusetts, invented the "rocking" skate. This was an improvement on the roller skate that afforded it the ability to turn. It allowed skaters to turn easily around corners, curves, etc. This invention opened the door for the masses to enjoy roller skating.

The Roller Skating Rink Operators Association was developed in 1937. It is currently named the Roller Skating Association. The association promotes roller skating and offers classes to the public. They aim to educate the population about roller skating. The current President is Joe Champa and the current Vice President is Bobby Braun. The Roller Skating Association headquarters is located in Indianapolis, Indiana.

Eventually, roller skating evolved from just a pastime to a competitive sport, beginning with roller hockey. This sport became so popular that it even made an appearance in the Olympics in 1992. The National Sporting Goods Association Statistics found, in a 1999 study, that 2.5 million people played roller hockey. Other roller skating sports include: speed skating, figure skating, and roller derby.

Roller skating popularity exploded during the disco era but tapered off in the 80’s and 90’s.

Health benefits

The Roller Skating Association’s web page offers some health benefits of roller skating. Some of these benefits include: Providing a complete aerobic workout; Burning 350 calories per hour while skating 6 miles per hour or 600 calories while skating 10 miles per hour. Roller skating is equivalent to jogging in terms of health benefits. The American Heart Association recommends roller skating as an aerobic fitness sport.

Museums

Roller skating has become such a popular pastime that there are even Museums dedicated to the history of roller skating. The National Museum of Roller Skating seems to be the biggest and most popular. The National Museum of Roller Skating boasts to own the largest collection of historical roller skates in the world. Along with having historical roller skates, the museum also contains pictures, medals, films, costumes, etc. that have significance. They also host a large library of roller skating books and have clips of highlights from roller skating competitions. The population is encouraged to donate anything that reflects, “the history of roller skating on a local, regional, national, and international level.”

Entertainment

Not only are there museums dedicated to roller skating, but the activity has also made it to the small screen with appearances in American entertainment. One example of this is a music video of Madonna's featuring Madonna herself sporting some roller skates. A more recent example of this is in Jessica Simpson's music video for her song “A Public Affair”. The music video stars Jessica Simpson, Christina Applegate, Eva Longoria, Christina Milian, Andy Dick, and Ryan Seacrest. It shows the four women “stepping out for a public affair” in a roller rink. The women are shown roller skating through the entirety of the music video.