Safety Is Smart – Protect Yourself With The Good Gear

Here at RollerFit we believe that padding up and wearing protective gear is a personal choice for each skater. For us, it's a bit of a no brainer. Wearing protective gear is an easy way to keep us rolling well into the future. A little padding can do a lot to keep us in one piece and it helps build confidence, especially if you’re just starting your roller skating journey.

Just as it is with skates, so it is with protective gear; you get what you pay for. The cheap stuff isn’t going to provide much protection and it won’t last very long. Before you spend your hard-earned dollars on protective gear you should think about what type of skating you do and the potential risk of injury. If you’re a recreational skater who likes to roll on the local netball courts you’ll probably be okay with light or lower-end pads, but if you’re a park skater or derby player you need a bit more heavy duty protection.

So what do we recommend? To answer that common question we’ve put together a little gear guide with our top recommendations for each of the main pad categories. If you're looking to pad up on a budget, we've got you covered as well.

Helmets:

S-One Lifer
We are big S-One fans here at RollerFit! We’ve tried a few different brands in the helmet market and think that the S-One Lifer range offers the most comfortable fit, great protection, and a wide size range. These helmets are certified for multiple impacts but it’s always a good idea to replace your helmet after a solid hit.

Triple 8 The Certified Helmet
Triple 8 have also come to the certified helmet party with a range of colours and styles in their classic skate helmet. The Triple 8 helmets have a deeper fit than the S-One, coming further down on the forehead, sides and base of the skull.

Triple 8 Deep Cover Helmet
Triple 8 have released the newly designed Deep Cover helmet range. Drawing on over 30 years of experience in developing protective gear they have managed to create one of the lowest profile and deepest-fitting helmets on the market. 

Wrist Guards:

RollerFit Palm Sliders
Sure, we may be biased on this one but there’s a reason why we created our Palm Sliders. We felt like there was a high protection and high mobility gap in the wrist guard market, so we went ahead and filled it. These low profile guards have shock absorbing gel to reduce the impact of falls and a hard exterior shell so you can slide out of them too. If you’re not convinced, just check the reviews from our customers!

187 Derby Wrist Guards
If you feel like a more traditional wrist guard is what you need then we think the 187 Derby Wrist Guards are the comfiest traditional wrist guard available. The hard exterior splint provides good protection and braces your hands and wrists well without putting them at that awkward angle that cheap wrist guards do.

Smith Scabs Stabiliser Pro
For those wanting something a bit more slimline and svelte looking then check out the Smith Scabs Stabiliser Pros. These wrist guards offer full sleeve style protection with a permanent splint so they won’t slip. A good slim fit and durable, these guards will do the job in any skate setting.

187 Killer Pads Pro Wrist Guard
187 have taken the traditional wrist guard to a new level with wider area palm protection and internal padding for comfort. With 3 straps from bottom to top you can customise a secure fit without compromising finger mobility.

Knee Pads:

187 Fly Knee
The Fly Knees are a popular choice for roller skaters because they’re a really good quality pad for a pretty reasonable price. These pads aren’t too bulky but still offer good protection. If your knees are receiving regular high impacts like in roller derby or at the skate park you might want to opt for a more bulky set of knee pads.

S-One Park Knee
We think these knee pads are a bit slept on! With a comfortable sleeve design, the Park Knee pads have a decent amount of internal padding and a hard exterior shell to help absorb some impact and slide out of falls. This is all with being nice and low profile. Sophie from RollerFit HQ loves to wear these under her pants when hitting the skatepark or streets for slimline protection.

187 Slim Knee
The Slim Knee pads are the baby of the 187 Fly Knee and super bulky Pro Knee. These pads are pretty heavy duty but offer a more slimline fit. These pads will suit most types of skating but again, if you’re taking heavy hits to the knees an even bulkier pad may be better for you.

S-One Pro Knee
Our favourite high impact pad comes with a pretty hefty price tag but there’s a good reason for this. These pads are amazing, heavy duty and long lasting. The S-One Pro Knees are super protective without feeling bulky, so if you’re short or don’t like big bulky knee pads, these are the ones for you. Sophie from the RollerFit team has been smashing her S-One Pro Knees in the skate park and big bowls for a few years now and they’re still holding up. Because these pads hold up for a long time, you can get cap replacements to keep them in working order. 

Triple 8 Covert Knee
Are you a recreational or roller dance skater looking for a little bit of light protection that is slimline but doesn't impede your mobility? The Triple 8 Covert Knee pads are for you. The stretchy sleeve design makes them easy to put on and comfortable to wear, whilst the in built padding provides a little bit of cushioning.

Elbow Pads:

187 Elbow Pads
187’s standard elbow pads are made for impact. They have industrial strength stitching so they’ll stay together for a while to come. The contoured shape makes them comfortable for any kind of skating.

187 Slim Elbow
These pads are designed for some heavy duty impact but are a more streamlined shape so that you retain as much mobility as possible. The fit is not smaller, it is just the overall shape of the pad. They still have all the benefits of the standard 187 elbow pads but with more padding.

Triple 8 Covert Elbow
Made for the recreational skaters looking for light and super mobile padding to prevent the dreaded swellbow. A comfortable sleeve style fit so you retain your full range of motion and a little bit of built in padding to cushion light-medium impact falls.

Pad Packs:

If your protective gear budget is a contributing factor when choosing how you pad up, then maybe a pad set might be worth a look. Keep in mind the cheaper pads don't have lots of solid padding, so if you're taking medium-high impact hits or are trying to protect an old injury then you may need to save up a little longer.

Triple 8 Saver Series
These entry-level pads offer a one-size-fits-most size in the elbow and knee pads and the size you select to add to your cart is based on the size of the wrist guard. The Triple 8 Saver Series come in lots of fun colours and patterns and are a great choice for the beginner recreational skater whose looking to stop some scrapes and give them a bit of confidence with coverage.

Smith Scabs Tri Packs
The Smith Scabs Tri Packs offer a little bit more protection and padding than the Triple 8 Saver Series pads. These pad sets offer a wider range of sizing for a better fit and come in different colours and patterns. We recommend them for recreational skaters looking for a bit more protection than a budget pad set.

187 Six Packs
If you’re a beginner park skater or a recreational skater looking for more protection and higher-end pads for less, then check out the 187 Six Packs. These pads are the 187 Fly Knee and standard 187 Elbow and Wrist Guards that you can purchase separately. This way you know you’re getting good quality pads and a good fit. The Six Packs come in lots of different colours and there are even collab styles with Moxi Roller Skates.

That's all the recommendations we have for now but you can be sure we'll update you on any exciting new developments in the world of protective gear. How you choose to pad up, or not, is a personal choice. Falling is a part of skating but we can mitigate some of the risks by gearing up and this makes for a lot more happy times spent on roller skates to come. If you have any questions about protective gear or anything else skate related we’d love to hear from you.