We have tried out rollerskiing in Hyde Park, London, for the first time last summer. We’ve already been back, since, and were about to book more sessions when London was placed under the current lockdown.
Prior Experience Inline Skating and Cross-Country Skiing
Both Ellie and I have done a fair bit of inline skating. For Ellie it’s been several years since she last put on her skates, I usually go inline skating several times a year. As a kid, growing up close to the Bavarian Alps in Germany, my parents regularly took me cross-country skiing. One popular track started just behind our backyard. As a result of our different backgrounds, I found it a lot easier than Ellie to learn the basics of rollerskiing. I am still very much a beginner, but I feel comfortable on the rollerskis and can easily and safely get from A to B.
Two Techniques: Classic, and…
There are two main techniques: classic and skating. Classic is very similar to the standard level-ground, steady-speed cross-country skiing technique. Your two skis are always parallel. You push yourself off one leg, slide, then push yourself off the other leg, slide, and so on.
…Skating
Skating is much more similar to the standard inline skating technique. Your skis are never parallel, but always in some kind of V-shape. Most of the time only one ski touches the ground. Your left ski moves towards the front left in the direction of travelling, then your right ski moves toward the front right, then front left again, front right, and so on. What’s very different from inline-skating is, that you make plenty of use of your sticks to push yourself forward, normally using both sticks in parallel for each stride left and each stride right.
Which one to choose
Our teacher recommended classic for all beginners, so Ellie chose this option. I tried both techniques, classic during the first session, skating during the second session. I discovered that skating is much easier for me. On the other hand, classic has a nice feel and touch to it and is also more energy-efficient. I will probably continue to alternate the two styles.
It is worth noting that each technique requires different equipment. For example, for classic style, your skis will have a set-up that prevents the ski from rolling backwards, while this is not the case for skating. Sticks have to be much longer for skating than for classic. This means you cannot just switch between styles during the session.
Activity Provider
Over the past few years when we walked through Hyde Park, more often than not, we saw at least one or two roller-skiers. During one of our walks last August we spotted a bigger group with instructors and asked for their names and contact details. This is how we ended up booking our sessions with Rollerski.co.uk. They provide training, sell and rent out equipment.
They have been around for about 15 years and consist of a very experienced team of cross-country skiing athletes who share a passion for rollerskiing during the warmer months of the year. Several of the trainers have competed on national and international level. All instructors are Snowsport England qualified. Our trainer, Jordan, has been teaching rollerskiing since 2014. He competed in the British National Cross-Country Ski Championships in Ruhpolding in 2015 and became GB Men’s Series Rollerski Champion the following year.
How much does it cost?
A one-hour lesson for up to three people, including equipment hire and an instructor, costs £90. This means that our lesson for two was £45 per person. Pretty good value in my opinion. Once you have reached a basic level, you can join the group sessions which consist of up to 20 people and several instructors. They are much cheaper. You usually have to become a member. Best to check the website for more details.
We will be back for more rollerskiing fun as soon as the lockdown is over. 5 out of 5 in our book.
Looking for more fun outdoor activities? Check out our posts about canyoning, caving, rock-climbing, mountain biking, and our rides on Rage buggies, a powerboat, a jetski, and a jetlev.
15 Comments
I hadn’t heard or seen this before. I used to rollerskate at the roller rinks back in the day and I know a couple of friends that still skate in Hyde Park. This looks like a lot of fun although I’m not sure how good I would be now.
Thanks for the comment, Wendy. 🙂
Yes, whole lot of fun. I was quite proud of how well Ellie did on her first attempt.
We enjoyed our visit to Hyde Park when we were last in London. But we never saw people roller skiing. I am sure with lockdowns the paths are clear enough to do this more easily than when we visited in the summer of 2019. These might actually be a better balance option for us than inline skates. It would be great to find a place to rent the equipment before investing in it. Many years ago we did a lot of cross country skiing. Almost a must-do winter activity in Canada. And one we are even considering this year locked at home.
Oh.. how cool, so you’ve visited London several times, including recently. Yes, the rollerskiing people only appeared a little while ago in bigger numbers. Cross-country skiing would be a popular sport in Canada, I’m sure. Even in Southern Germany people like to do it every now and then.
This looks like so much fun! Especially for our teens who both ski & snowboard. Also a great activity next time in London. When we were last in London in 2019, it was super crowded but now with no travelers, what a fun way to get outside & exercise too. Noted for when we come back to the UK!
Thank you, Cindi. I am sure you will enjoy it as much as we did. 🙂
I’ve never seen rollerskiing before, but it looks like fun! I used to rollerblade as a kid, but haven’t done it in years. And I never learned to ski. So I wonder how I’d do… but it looks like fun to try it. Thanks for sharing!
Thanks for reading and commenting, Becky. You’re quite the sporty one, so I’d imagine you’d figure out how to rollerski in no time at all. I think you’d almost certainly have as much fun as we did. 🙂
Looks like a great work out! And the weather looks pretty good for January.
I have to give you guys a lot of credit, it seems like you are exploring every weekend and trying new things! Making the best out of every day.
Thank you, Gaz. Wish we were in Thailand… here in Old Blighty we’ve been in lockdown since December and it will last at least until 8 March, possibly longer, so until they let us out from our holes (most central London flats like ours are tiny) we are very limited in what we can do. Rollerskiing was a while back, but we’ll definitely be on rollerskis again this year.
I’ve heard about rollerskiing, but never actually seen it in person. Looks like a lot of fun! Seems like a great option when alpine skiing would involve traveling to another country, renting gear, and waiting in lines. Nice winter weather, by the way!
You’re a proper outdoors guy, Noel, so this really means something coming from you. 🙂
Ellie and I had a great time and will definitely book more rollerskiing sessions once the lockdown is over here in Old Blighty.
I didn’t know that there is such a thing as roller skiing. Around this time of year we have real skiers in Berlin ^^
I remember Berlin gets real cold in winter, yes. Lived there for couple years. 🙂
I had never even heard about this before let alone done it. You guys find some neat things to do. I wonder if this is bigger in larger cities in America.