Roller skating has gradually evolved since its early beginnings. Today it refers to inline skates as well as quad skates. The initial form of roller skates was cast away due to difficulty in manoeuvring.

It was in 1980 that the Rollerblade Company introduced the commercially produced inline skate for the first time. A high boot with a single line skate and a heel stop was christened ‘inline skates’.

Inline skates consists of a boot, outer shell, inner shell or inner shoe, wheel bearings, frame and other accessories for safety. The selection of your inline skates depends upon the type of inline skating that you opt for. There are four types of inline skating; speed skating, free skating, aggressive inline and competitive skating.

Aggressive inline skates are more common. It involves performing tricks like jumps, flips and slides.

Aggressive inline skates are used to perform manoeuvres such as acid grind, soul grind and flat spin.

Aggressive inline skates are made of carbon fibre, a light but hard outer shell, inner shell and polyurethane wheels with steel bearings.

Inline skates for speed skaters are different from aggressive inline skates. The boots are not high unlike aggressive inline skates. The wheels are larger in size. These differences are based on the requirements of the high speeds reached in speed skating

Competitive skating is more of an art form of inline skating. It involves dance, synchronized movement, and grace. A soft boot is better suited for this form of inline skating.