Jam Skate, Break Skate

Chances are you fall into one of two categories.

1) You know that Jam/break skating is AWESOME and respect those do it well.

2) You have no clue what Jam/break skating is.

Well, I'm going to enlighten you.
Jam Skating has been called many things. It's been around for decades and got it's start back in the 40's and 50's.

These are definitely not your parent's (or grandparent's) roller skates!


If you're not familiar with Jam skating, it might surprise you to know that it has a huge following with sponsored teams, competitions and the works. It's also the favorite hobby of many athletic people.

You'll often find that people who have backgrounds in dancing, gymnastics, hockey, martial arts, skate boarding, surfing and snow boarding will include in their style elements from their other hobbies. This lends a lot of uniqueness not only to that person's abilities, but also how they influence other skaters.

If you want to see more of it...be prepared to be impressed.
Jam skaters do it because they love it, and consider themselves as much an athlete as person who does any other sport. Trust me... if you've tried it... you'll agree it takes strength, skill, balance, endurance and style to do. And a whole LOT of practice.

Jam Skating is still mostly a male dominated sport. However the girls who get into it take it pretty seriously. As the next generation of girls get into the sport, I think we're going to see stronger competition and girls including more break dancing and power moves in their repertoire.



Best Known Jam skating Teams:
Daytona Boys Team Roll*Line

Breaksk8

V.O.W.2 Jam Skate

Websites:
Learn to Jam Skate

Jam Skate Videos
The Breaks8 Empire

Break Skating gets it's name from combining break dancing moves with skating. It typically doesn't involve skating around the entire rink, but staying more or less on one section of the floor and executing moves in time to the music that are fairly acrobatic.

Some people create routines for themselves, for partners or for groups. Other skaters do what is called "free styling", which means you're improvising movements, and making it up as you go along. A lot of new moves are created by something that happened impulsively while free styling or even resulted from starting to fall and catching yourself with some creative move.


While Jam and Break skating is done in almost every rink across the USA, but as with clothing styles and food preferences each region has a somewhat different style of skating. They even infuse the same moves with their own flavor which makes it look like a totally different move.



Some areas value what are called power moves, which typically involve a large physical movement like kicking your legs, doing a flip or a jump. Other places put a lot of effort into smoothness and rhythm. Flowing to the beat of the music and getting the right timing with dips, ankle movement or turns with a lot bending of the knees are what they appreciate.


There are also certain areas that are just know for making completely different choices. Detroit, Chicago and Eastern/ Southern areas for instance do more partner and trio skating that involves holding hands or locking wrists.



As skaters travel across the country to share and learn new skating moves and ideas, and online video sharing inspire more blending of styles, I think we'll see skating go to the next level. Not just of popularity, but of finesse and skill.