Do you look stupid if you wear full roller blade protection?

Question

I haven't rollerbladed in years, and want try it again this summer. As an adult would I look stupid wearing full gear in the park or on sidewalks?

Answer 1

Much better than you would look strapped into a hospital bed with a spinal injury.

Answer 2

Yes, you do. Full rollerblade attire makes any adult look like a complete nerd.

However, I can't recommend skating around unarmored. The handguards may come in much handier than you expect, and they actually look fairly cool, like some sort of post-apocalyptic zombie-battling gauntlet. Your wrists and palms will thank you.

The knee and elbow pads won't save your life, just your skin. But you're tough, you can handle some scrapes, right? I go without them. Almost any time you fall during normal blading, you'll absorb the shock with your hands, not your bendy joints.

That just leaves the helmet, the geekiest-looking piece of the ensemble. You really should wear one. However, most standard rollerblade helmets make you look like an iridescent mushroom, which is not a fashion most people go for. My advice is to get a helmet for another on-pavement sport, and preferably one with a visor. The visor reduces the geek factor by at least 80%. Go for a solid color, because everything else immediately looks humiliating once you get it out of the store.

Your best bet is to choose something completely unlike anything anyone has ever seen before, so they'll be unable to immediately tell if you look awesome or ridiculous, and hopefully you'll have skated off before they can decide. For this, I recommend helmets by Espira, particularly the Knock or the YAD. http://www.epsira.com/e/indexframe.html

Hope this helps.

Answer 3

This is answer to the question you deleted, but I really want you to hear this so I am posting it inappropriately to your current question - sorry but please take this to heart with all the love for another human being that I seriously want you to feel. So here is my answer:
Ok, I don't want you take this as just another person being callous and uncaring toward you but I'm going to tell you what I think you need to hear.
Grow the F$%# Up! You are older than your classmates but you are acting like a baby. Put everything in perspective. While your life seems like it sucks right now, that which does not kill us makes us stronger - really, its not just a dumb saying.
In 10 years you are going to look back at these years and tell yourself, "Damn, that sucked but I wouldn't be the person I am today if I hadnt' gone through that"
Life will not come to you if you wait long enough, stand up on your own two feet and take from life what you want from it. If you want a girlfriend, the only way to get one is to go out and ask 100 girls for their phone numbers, if you get 1 to talk to you when you call, well - you have a date and forget about the other 99. The only thing low self-esteem and feeling sorry for yourself will get you is a sorry life and life too short for that.
If your schooling seems hard, wait until you're in the real work world, get used to and find a way to deal with stress now (write stories, paint pictures, play the guitar - it doesn't matter if you're any good, just do it) and you will find that with a good job that financially lets you live the way you want to live, life is a whole lot easier. Don't let todays stress give you a crap life for the rest of your life. Money certainly can't buy happiness but seriously - it makes thing a whole lot easier.
So buck up, man up, do whatever you gotta do but get your head on straight, get your education and excel beyond any expectations anyone ever had for you.
Remember - Sucess is always the best Revenge!w

Answer 4

In my opinion and for whatever is worth, i understand what you mean, even when lots of people instead will mumble rational answers and miss your point entirely.
Sensible, practical folks will play it safe on their answers and preach safety before looks. But i would like to see them practice what they preach. They don't.
Everybody likes to look cool, and nobody wants to look nerdy except the nerds and that's because they are.
To answer your question and getting to the point, here are my two cents as advice : If you feel stupid, there is little choice since you be going out there already with low confidence. I don't particularly think you'll feel comfortable if you are un-comfortable. Take this into consideration : 1) How fast do you go ? Really fast ? 2) When you fall do you have a propensity to bruise badly , in other words would you say you are a 'fragile' person ? 3) How much do you really care of what others think, since they think same as you do, and you KNOW you look stupid., i'm sure you realize tjhat now. Be Zen about it and let it be.

Rene

Answer 5

Being a skateboarder for 15 years and also rollerblading and snowboarding I can't say NOT to wear the safty stuff but honestly...we all look stupid in it. You shouldn't need a full set up, wrist gaurds are nice and a helmet is okay(going to look stupid with it) but it's worth it if you fall. I concider myself a pro at falling and protecting your wrists is big. Most people use their hands to cetch themselves and thats where a sprained or broken wrist comes into play. I only where knee pads and elbow pads helmet(required) when I'm at a skate park. I'm just lucky I havn't gotten seriously hurt not using that stuff. Do you feel lucky? If not then wear it.

Answer 6

Yes, misskate got it right ,I have watched some people bounce their heads off the skating surface several times ,wrists broken,you name it , B U T when they got out of hospital and the house later(much later) they geared up .Some had no choice but quit. For several years we cringed watching this DR. a ( surgeon) bumbling around on blades many times falling.Wear the stuff for a while until U get the feel again especially if U roll on rough streets. Older people fall back usually and I have seen their heads crack and bounce 12 inches off floor.Not nice to see or feel.--JOKE--Rollerskater lady falls hard,--man tries to help showing concern--Woman says -my I got an awful crack , Man-never mind that now my dear ,but are you hurt??

Answer 7

Anyone who's suited up in every conceivable piece of protective gear against even the remotest chance of injury does in fact look foolish.

Answer 8

I think it is better to look stupid than be injured. If you are an adult w/kids, then I think you can understand what I am talking about. You don't want to get injured doing and activity that is recreation so you better protect yourself. If you were to get injured, you wouldn't be able to use your vacation days and sick days for what they really are (VACATION DAY + extras!!!!), instead you would have to use them to recuperate your injuries. So if I were you I would wear any protection available.

Answer 9

yeah you would look stupid, but at the end of the day you get to take the pads off. If you are not wearing them and get hurt you are in a cast for a lot longer.

Answer 10

so many potential accidents from roller blading... broken wrists, scared up knees and head injuries ... people wearing protection are responsible and care about their bodies ... people who are trying to make themselves look good in public while doing a dangerous sport are stupid

Answer 11

better to look stupid with gear, than stupid with bandages.....i felt the same way when i bought all the safety stuff for my mtn bike, but when i got out there and saw a lot of people the same way, now i see people without safety gear and they look like idiots