Kids' ice skates, and the adjustable shells that cover four sizes

Why adjustable skates are the right answer

Children’s skates have exactly the problem children’s ski boots have: a foot that outgrows the shell long before the shell wears out. Skating has an unusually good solution that skiing does not, which is a two-piece boot with a lever that lengthens it.

One shell covering four shoe sizes is not a marketing rounding. It is the published range, and it is the reason this is one of the few categories on this site where buying for a growing child is straightforwardly sensible.

Figure blade or hockey blade

The difference that matters for a beginner is the toe pick: the row of teeth at the front of a figure blade. It is there for jumps and it is also the thing a beginner trips over, because a child who leans forward catches it and goes down face first.

• Hockey blade: flat, no toe pick, slightly rockered. Easier for a young beginner to stand and push on, and the right choice for a child who might play hockey later.
• Figure blade: longer, with a toe pick. Better for anyone who wants figure skating lessons, and marginally more stable at a standstill because the blade is longer.

For a family that skates twice a winter at a public rink, either works. If the child is very young and keeps tripping, the toe pick is often why.

Sizing a skate

1. Measure the foot in millimeters, heel to longest toe, standing, in the sock they will skate in. The method is the same as the ski boot chart.
2. Skates generally run close to shoe size or half a size down, unlike ski boots. Check the maker’s chart against the measurement rather than assuming.
3. Set the adjustable shell to the current size, not the top of its range. A skate with room in it means the ankle is unsupported, which is the main complaint about adjustable skates and is usually a setting problem rather than a product one.
4. One thin sock, not a thick one, and not two. Same reasoning as a ski boot: a thick sock fills space the boot needs and makes feet colder. Why.
5. Laced properly: loose over the toes, tight across the instep and the ankle, moderate at the top. Most children’s ankle wobble is a lacing problem.

When renting still wins

If your family skates once or twice a winter at a public rink, rent. Rink rental is inexpensive, the skates are sharpened regularly, and there is nothing to store or carry.

Buying starts to make sense at around five or six sessions a season, or as soon as a child starts asking to go. On our convention of a two-season horizon, a $64.99 pair used across two winters is genuinely cheap per session, and the adjustable shell means it may cover three.

The maintenance nobody mentions

New skates from a general retailer often arrive unsharpened or only roughly sharpened, and a blunt blade slides sideways instead of gripping, which feels exactly like being bad at skating. A rink or a skate shop will sharpen them cheaply, and it is worth doing before the first outing rather than after a disappointing one.

Then dry the blades after every session and store them with soft guards on, not hard plastic ones, which trap moisture against the steel and rust it.

Helmets on ice

Ice is harder than snow and a beginner falls backwards onto the back of the head more often than forwards. Many rinks now require helmets for young children, and a ski helmet works for public skating.

The children’s helmet picks apply here too, and it is the same helmet you would use for sledding, which is a large part of why buying one is good value even for a family that barely skis.