Outdoors

Nordic skiing on the street with Skike bike-skates

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Skikes are designed for a warm-weather cross country skiing workout © Photo Plohe
The new Skike V07 Plus will hit the market in August
The Skike VX Solo
The Skike VX Twin includes a heel lift system
Skikes are designed to offer a fun, engaging workout © Photo Plohe
Skikes are designed for a warm-weather cross country skiing workout © Photo Plohe
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When we first saw the term "Skike," we immediately thought "skate bike" (i.e. a scooter-like contraption combining bike components with skating action). We were probably thinking of the similarly named Trikke and its brother the Skki. The Skike does combine biking and skating, but it's a different kind of skating and a different kind of skate-bike. Essentially a roller skate with biking influences, the Skike is a tool for asphalt cross country skiing.

Unlike on the roller skates and inline skates we're used to seeing (or were used to seeing decades ago), Skikes use a pair of large 15-cm (5.9 in) wheels shod in inflatable tires – that's where the "bike" part comes in. They're also considerably longer than the foot, with the wheels placed at the very front and very back, connected by a lightweight frame. Instead of the full shoe of other skate designs, Skike's design is more open and light, using a series of three straps to secure foot to frame, and a braking system providing stopping power. They're designed to be used for both street and light off-road applications (think smooth paths).

One of the latest models, the Skike VX Twin adds a heel-lift system, giving Skikers the option of regular skating or diagonal stride skating. Skikers can open or lock the heel lift on the fly with a toggle switch.

The Skike VX Twin includes a heel lift system

Unlike the last generation of inline skates, which played heavily on the "extreme" nature and trick possibilities of the sport, Skikes are more for recreational users. They're billed as a sort of middle ground between the speed and adrenaline of classic inline skating and the slow, steady workout of Nordic walking. The skates are designed to be used with poles in a sort of warm-weather version of cross country/Nordic skiing. Company claims state that 90 percent of your muscle mass is worked, providing a fun, complete workout.

The original Skike was crafted by Austrian inventor Otto Edder in 1997. From there, the design was fine-tuned, and handcrafting gave way to a license deal with Hong Kong's Four Ace International, which has manufactured the skates since 2006.

While Skikes have been around for a while, it appears that the company is making a play at wider distribution and marketing. The skates were on display at last week's Outdoor Friedrichshafen show, and a slew of recently uploaded YouTube videos, including the one below, provide a closer look at Skike action. Skikes are available in a variety of markets, including more than 20 European countries, North America and Australia. There are several models, most of which range between US$200 and $450.

Source: Skike

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4 comments
mrhuckfin
I guess everything old is new again? I saw this same EXACT thing clear back in the late 70's in Popular Mechanics? :-)
sk8dad
...and then again in the 90's...
Just need to to wait for fanny packs to get popular again.
Gadgeteer
Not roller skates. These are shortened roller skis. Roller skis existed long before 1997.
MQ
AS Above.... Note: from the font of Knowledge (for more go to the source)
The first rollerskis were built in the mid ‘30s in Italy and North Europe. In the early 1950s, when cross-country skiing started to evolve to a serious competition sport, the necessity for good summer training grew. All around the world from 1950s to 1970s people experimented with skis on wheels.
Adding Brakes and a more ergo appearance combined with a marketing machine...
Ideas Just get recycled all the time....
Still hard to beat the demonwheels for a great time, extreme ride... powered by Kite, wing or Gravity..
Nordic skiers have always had to train in the off-season.... putting a set of wheels on a ski was seen as a logical step a long time ago.... (For those who think it is a (new) good idea, a locking latch on touring skis is common place on European Rendonee /Touring skis, so nothing new there either... it allows to lift the heel for walking and lock it down for downhill runs... as this system was designed by an Austrian he obviously took inspiration from Fritschi , Dynafit etc. Not to say that you can't make an idea better,, pneumatic tyres, and brakes are a great addition.... (It is harder to waste sped on rollerskates on the road than it is on snow and ice...)