The group who organizes public skate nights, hosted a Roller Disco Puppy Party, and offers various roller skating and dance classes in Greater Victoria is making a public plea for space to host future Friday skate nights.
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Roller Skate Victoria launched in 2018 and has seen a steady increase in the number of people rolling out to skate with them since. But they’ve run into some difficulties keeping up with demand. With classes starting and no confirmed facility to host Friday Night Skates in early 2020, Roller Skate Victoria’s Vicky “Rage” Major made a plea to the public for suggestions.
“If you know of a space available on Fridays, that will allow wheels, and can accommodate 100 to 200 people who love to skate on Fridays, please let us know,” Major said. “We’ve run into dead ends everywhere,” she said. “A lot of places write us off immediately because of the wheels, but it’s really no more damaging than floor hockey with the hard sticks hitting the floor. The wheels are soft, and we use soft toe stops.”
She said the group has several “really awesome” venues, including the Archie Browning Sports Centre in Esquimalt which is used for ice skating in winter, and the gymnasium at Royal Roads which she said is too small for the public skates.
Major said the organization rented out about 77 pairs of skates in the first hour of their most recent public skate. She said other regulars have gone out and bought their own skates since joining, so the number actually attending is higher.
The organization was also approved by Saanich for a permit to rent skates out in Lambrick Park in April. They ran sunset skates on Sundays in the lacrosse box from 7 to 9 p.m., and Roller Sweat workout classes on Wednesdays from 6 to 7 p.m. By August about 10 people were attending Wednesday Roller Sweat classes, said Roller Skate Victoria director Martin Newham.
Newham said the next step is to go back to Saanich for approval to rent out skates in summer 2020. But, he said, the organization will have to talk about whether they can or will put on skates at Lambrick Park again in the summer because they currently don’t have enough of their accredited instructors available to run kids camps, public skates and classes.
Newham urges people to contact the group and come out to a public skate or a class if they have roller skates to donate, are interested in learning to skate, want to become an instructor, or just want to get fit and have fun.
Find Roller Skate Victoria on Facebook, Instagram, or send them an email at rollerskatevictoria@gmail.com.
READ ALSO: Roller skating is making a comeback in Esquimalt
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