Goalies: Rollerfly Slide Plates
- Thread starter bigwillie
- Start date
Fixed to Ruin
Come wit it now!
I watched the videos on the side and i'm not sold. It doesn't seem like it makes that much of a difference.
200$ to be able to move a little quicker from side to side. Seems like a waste.
200$ to be able to move a little quicker from side to side. Seems like a waste.
Sean Garrity
Quack Quack Quack!
The goalie on my inline team has them and loves them. He did however say it took a few games to get used to.
edit: I think he has a cheaper version though, I can ask when we play on Sunday and update you.
edit: I think he has a cheaper version though, I can ask when we play on Sunday and update you.
bigwillie
Registered User
Well, I found a guy online who was selling his relatively unused Rollerflys for just 100 bucks, so I said screw it and bought the damn things. I figure if I don't like them I can easily flip them for my money back since I got such a solid deal.
I should have them in a couple of weeks, so I'll turn this into a review thread once I get my hands on them. I'm super curious to see how they work out!
I should have them in a couple of weeks, so I'll turn this into a review thread once I get my hands on them. I'm super curious to see how they work out!
bigwillie
Registered User
Like SportCourt? Or what other surfaces have you been on? I can definitely get a little slide going but no pure butterfly slides like ice.
I know some roller guys will slide across on their cowling, but that leaves your pad off the ground a bit and leaves a little exposed.
Regardless, these will be waiting at home for me after work today. If I don't like them, there's already a few guys I play with who'd take them for what I paid. At worse, it will be an interesting test.
Beezeral
Registered User
- Mar 1, 2010
- 9,869
- 4,649
SportCourt, synthetic surfaces, that blue paint composite, you name it. It will never be as pure as ice hockey, but it just takes a little adjusting to find what works for you
bigwillie
Registered User
I guess I've never really found a good slide replacement then, or at least never been happy with what I've been doing. I'm pretty kick at knee shuffling across the crease once I'm down, but I think in place of butterfly sliding, I've relied instead on flexibility and will stretch to get to where I need to be. I usually get good reactions as the guy who can do the splits when I play roller, but I've always felt I could do better.
I got the Rollerflys yesterday and put them on last night. Weren't too difficult getting them fitted on my pads, but I can tell that it will be tough to get them adjusted perfectly.
First thing I noticed was that they do add some weight to your pads. This one was obvious but it is definitely noticeable.
I slid around the kitchen a bit and they're kind of awkward at first, but you do get a good slide from them, much more than without. I'm already optimistic, but I'll wait and see until I get them out on the rink and actually have to make saves with them on.
Beezeral
Registered User
- Mar 1, 2010
- 9,869
- 4,649
I did the same as you and adjusted my style to compensate. I think it gave me an advantage going back to ice hockey because I was able to improvise better in scramble situations
I don't know how, you can compare sliding on sport court to ice. Perhaps you should define sliding for us.
I've been on ice for a while, but I played for 4 years on sport court as well. The basic problem being that once your are down, you are down and in that spot.
You either make a desperation dive save if the play goes that way. Or if you have time/space you have to get back to your skates to reposition.
But still that wasn't the biggest issue for me. The biggest issue is breakaways.
Ice I can maintain my gap/speed going back and slide to one side or another if the shooter dekes. Roller my adaption was to either ride a cowling, but you are susceptile to the puck being stuffed under your pad then. OR to my glove side I can do a desperation lunge that riding my stick blocker down to seal low and my glove above that to get a shot being lifted above.
I also toyed with doing a pad dip, and that actually works fairly well if your timing is right. Basically have the leading leg up and drag your back pad down, keep much of your weight on the skate so you can make it to the post while sealing low with that back pad and the profile of your skate.
But I never could do a butterfly slide like you can on ice, moving a few inches doesn't count
Rollerfly is specifically made for that. BUT I know a couple of friends who had it, one it broke off a shot in the first month, still usable but was a bit questionable on durability. The other gave up on it because of the weight and just didn't like it, but I'm not sure why as it looked pretty good to me.
I dunno if you need to get a user to see this link. But for all you goalies out there you should check this forum out...
http://goaliestore.com/board/forum/...06399-rollerfly-replacing-slide-plates/page34
Nibbler
Registered User
bigwillie
Registered User
Not yet, unfortunately, my roller league doesn't start back until the 15th of January. There's a few pickups in between I'm going to try to hit up though so I may get a chance earlier.
I'll let you know as soon as I get them out there!
bigwillie
Registered User
So I've finally gotten these things out to several pickups and 2 games. Ultimately, I feel they do their job, although they don't suit my style as well as I thought.
The plates I got are second generation, meaning they are made with steel screws instead of plastic. This helps to make them a little more solid, since there was a lot of talk of the plastic ones simply popping out. If you're looking to buy, definitely go far 2nd gen or later. They are sturdy, but I think a direct puck could break them.
They add a decent bit of slide to the court, and a halfway decent butterfly slide becomes a reality when playing roller. It's very nice. Some guys estimate it's 80-90% as slippery as ice, but I didn't find that was the case. I noticed I was having to push much harder to get the same slide across I would have gotten if I was on ice, so I'd put it roughly at 2/3rds or so.
The biggest advantage of these, at least for me, wasn't butterfly sliding, but simply being able to flare legs out and move around once you were down in butterfly. I made a save on a deflection one game low glove side with a quick kick out that I wouldn't have been able to make without the added slide ability.
However, my dislikes are that they add noticeable weight to your pads, although that's to be expected. They are easy to attach but more difficult to get to stay reliably in place; mine tended to shift little bits throughout the game. I've heard recommendations of industrial strength Velcro to hold them in one spot, and I would go this route if you were serious about keeping them on permanently.
My main gripe isn't so much a fault of the product, but rather an incompatibility with my style. I simply play too much of a hybrid style for these to work for me. On both ice and roller, I strap my pads a little tighter that a strict butterfly goalie. The lack of pad rotation hurt me a little here, as it made it tougher to get the plate perfectly aligned for a quality push. I also feel I rely too much on half butterfly, and don't rely enough on butterfly slides to make these live up to their full potential for me.
Overall, I'd recommend them to hardcore butterfly ice goalies looking to play roller. For hybrids or long time roller goalies, the benefits simply aren't really there.
The plates I got are second generation, meaning they are made with steel screws instead of plastic. This helps to make them a little more solid, since there was a lot of talk of the plastic ones simply popping out. If you're looking to buy, definitely go far 2nd gen or later. They are sturdy, but I think a direct puck could break them.
They add a decent bit of slide to the court, and a halfway decent butterfly slide becomes a reality when playing roller. It's very nice. Some guys estimate it's 80-90% as slippery as ice, but I didn't find that was the case. I noticed I was having to push much harder to get the same slide across I would have gotten if I was on ice, so I'd put it roughly at 2/3rds or so.
The biggest advantage of these, at least for me, wasn't butterfly sliding, but simply being able to flare legs out and move around once you were down in butterfly. I made a save on a deflection one game low glove side with a quick kick out that I wouldn't have been able to make without the added slide ability.
However, my dislikes are that they add noticeable weight to your pads, although that's to be expected. They are easy to attach but more difficult to get to stay reliably in place; mine tended to shift little bits throughout the game. I've heard recommendations of industrial strength Velcro to hold them in one spot, and I would go this route if you were serious about keeping them on permanently.
My main gripe isn't so much a fault of the product, but rather an incompatibility with my style. I simply play too much of a hybrid style for these to work for me. On both ice and roller, I strap my pads a little tighter that a strict butterfly goalie. The lack of pad rotation hurt me a little here, as it made it tougher to get the plate perfectly aligned for a quality push. I also feel I rely too much on half butterfly, and don't rely enough on butterfly slides to make these live up to their full potential for me.
Overall, I'd recommend them to hardcore butterfly ice goalies looking to play roller. For hybrids or long time roller goalies, the benefits simply aren't really there.
