What makes Ice Skating such an expensive sport?

My daughter just started private ice skating training. She has not started doing any competitions yet. For now I don't find it expensive, but everyone is telling me...oh you better start making more money to be able to pay for that...what does everybody mean...at what point or level of training/competition does it get so expensive? What is the most expensive part of it all... The most important thing for me is that my daughter really loves skating, and I want her to pursue this and have a sense of achievement...but I don't want to take a second mortgage for it either...Thanks...

What makes Ice Skating such an expensive sport?
Well, it's not one particular part that is expensive . . . if you look at the accumulation of expenses as a whole, say like just in a year, THAT'S what's expensive.





Figure skating is truly addicting . . . most of us who do it just LOVE it and literally cannot get enough of it. I started as an adult and I never thought I would be into it "this much" - but I certainly had my share of forking out the bucks. I can only imagine a little girl's (or boy's) dream to be the best skater in the world . . . and it's so wonderful to have parents that will do whatever they can to make those dreams come true. But, even though there are ways to shave some of the costs, on the whole, it's still an expensive sport.





Ice time . . . perhaps it's "only" just a few bucks per session. Public sessions (about $5 - $8) for a couple hours are cheaper than freestyle sessions (about $8 - $15) for less than an hour. Once your daughter starts getting advanced that she can't get full practice during public (like higher jumps/spins/program), she MUST go to freestyle sessions. Sometimes one freestyle session won't be enough (one for lesson, then another for practice afterwards). And then a couple times a week won't be enough, she'll want/need to go almost everyday. Can you imagine how ice time alone can add up?





Coaching, as everyone has already mentioned, get expensive. Group instruction is indeed the "cheapest" - not just for the basics. There are advanced classes for power stroking, artistry, moves in the field, etc etc. . . . taking them all would not be cheap. Having privates once a week may not be too bad. But as she gets better, she may want/need more lessons. Not just twice a week, but some advanced kids have a lesson from different coaches (yah, more than one coach) for different aspects of their skating every day!





Off ice training, yoga, pilates, dance(s) like ballet, competition expenses (coach fees, entry fees, yours/daughter's and coach's expense for traveling ones), dresses (although you can learn to sew them and decorate them yourself), videos/dvds/photos of the competition, coach gifts, test fees, sometimes fees for hospitality for the judges (afterall they volunteer), club fees, skates (growing feet will need new skates often and you can't skimp on skates/blades, especially as they get advanced), sharpenings, skate/boot maintenance, practice outfits (dresses or not - it'll be a "peer" thing - what everyone else is wearing), all the figure skating accessories that kids want from peer pressure like those zuca bags, gas for the car (with gas prices going higher and higher these days, many short drives will eat it), your time to be chaufeuring around . . . . . I'm sure I didn't cover it all, but you get the picture. Each of these things may not be particularly expensive, but altogether it can sure add up quickly!





I had a friend (adult) who took up skating after getting married and having kids. She actually got quite good . . . but was bummed she couldn't get into it as a child. She actually did take lessons when she was little, and her parents saw how enthused she was for the sport to the point they saw how talented she was . . . so they made her STOP skating because they knew it would eventually cost them an arm and a leg to keep her on the ice. I think that's so SAD. She didn't even get a chance.





So I think it's great that you are giving your daughter a chance to pursue skating and to have a sense of achievement . . . take it step by step and see how it goes. You'll see how the expenses can get tacked on . . . but if you understand your budget and don't let the expenses get out of hand, you should be fine. Many families just find a way to make it all work out . . . if she gets really good - she can find sponsors down the road. It's the perfect opportunity to teach her about family finance and how money just doesn't grow on trees . . . sometimes it takes work on top of work to make things happen. Whatever happens, at least you are giving her this chance.





Best of luck! Don't let the expenses scare you - yet - wink!
Reply:I guess the ice skates =O
Reply:Haha.


The higher you get level wise, the higher the price becomes.


Skates = 1600


Coach = 45 per half hour lesson 3x a week


Group lessons = 200 for 1 time a week 3 month sessions


dresses = around 100-300 and up


tights = 20 a pair, and man they rip fast


knee highs = 10 a pair, need tons


bunga pads = like 30 per knee/elbow


skate sharpening = 10 every month or so


competitions = around 300 each more/less depending on event


shows = around 200, plus/ minus costume fee


ice time = 10-12 an hour


bag = around 100 for a nice zuca


professionally cut music = around 40


warm up gear = around 150 for complete outfits


skating jacket = around 40 and up





plus numerous fees and medical bills if you get hurt as much as i do.


lol
Reply:Well, the prices posted by Buttons seem very high to me, glad I don't live up there anymore. This is my take on it:





Skating is so much more than what people think.





You pay for:





- the boot, which you will be getting a new pair every 6 months to a year for the higher levels (custom usually for elite, or a really expensive boot with custom changes such as punching out the ankles and heat molding)





- the blade, which with the boot is at least $1000





- the sharpening, every few weeks, which is about $10 (I'm not sure why you payed $20 to $30)





- the private lessons, they can be very cheap for the lower levels, but for the higher levels it's at least $30 per hour, now imagine the skaters with world class coaches





- the ice time, which is included with every lesson, it's about $10 for an hour, though you can save by going to public on those less busy days (though it's rare, unfortunately)





- the tights, they can last a while but if they tear at all, you can't compete with them therefore you buy another (and another....), these cost at least $20





- the warm ups, consist of gloves which may rip, practice pants, and maybe a headband for those colder days, all can be cheap but the black tight pants cost me almost $70





- the maintenance, the guards to protect your blades, soakers to keep them dry, something to dry them off with, leather protector to protect those expensive leather boots from damage, and a bag to hold everything (which could be a cheap bag or backpack) guards and soakers are less than $20, but must be replaces when they get holes





- the dress, which I must say can be cheap but once you are a senior, you just don't repeat dresses (not banned or anything, just not common), and you should have a practice dress or two, practice about $100 and custom a couple hundred to $1000





- the competitions, you must be to travel to those competition, and to enter them, and to pay for practice ice, and for any beverages you buy, price varies





- the club membership, which is required to compete, most expensive is around $100





- the testing, which is also required to compete at a certain level, these get more expensive the higher the level is, and there are two tests for each level, tests get as high as about $100, maybe more





- the training, ballet lessons, conditioning, and anything else you add at least $100 a week for seniors, but I'm sure you could do it less often (gym memberships, or personal trainers, and ballet instruction, usually private)





I'm sure I missed a few things but the point is, it's possible if you save money in one area or two. I use an old washcloth to dry my skates. I go to public more than freestyle, there's also less chance of someone else running into you (which has happened to me several time).





I did this as a balance between the most expensive and least expensive:





$9, 340 per year





IF you skate 4 days a week for 1 hour each, and get two private lessons each week, as with the other expenses. Though prices vary depending on where you are.





Point is, see how far she goes before dedicating her to the sport. If you've ever seen Ice Diaries, it gives a look into the life of skaters.
Reply:Well private lessons from the coach normally cost 10-15$ per 15 minute sessions. an hour is already 40-60$.





Skates get resally expensive 500-1000$ same with entering fees, test fees. And with competition more skating so more teaching which costs a lot.





Even the dresses will start costing a lot if you get them custom made.
Reply:First of all, the skates your daughter are using are obviously not custom skates. They are probably fine for crossovers, but when it comes to landing a gazillion doubles and triples each week, normal skates just break apart (it sure happened to me when I started doing doubles). Custom skates are designed to fit your foot like a glove and they are of high quality materials. Because they are handmade (you can't just buy them at K-mart, you have to order them to be made with a mold of the skater's foot), they are damn expensive. My custom Harlicks cost me 1000 US dollars, and that's without the added price of the blades and another 70 dollars for special insoles for my feet.





A senior skater that skates very often will ruin their custom skates in about 8 months (imagine how fast they'd need to buy a new pair if they used beginner skates). If that skater isn't a millionaire or earning endorsements or prize money, buying the skates alone without the blades can be expensive over time.





Coaching can be damn expensive indeed. The reason why your daughter's coaching probably isn't expensive is like thinking about school teachers. For one, if she's in a group class in a rink, then the price tends to be low because coaches teach several skaters at the same time. This is good for low levels, but senior skaters need private coaching. For one because they need a coach paying 100% attention to their figures and another because seniors both skater far faster and do monster jumps. I wouldn't want to crash against someone landing a triple Lutz on top of me.





There's tons and tons of coaches that can teach Bunny hops and crossovers, but when it comes to Intermediate level skating, the amount of competant coaches drops amazingly. For example, in Mexico City there's very few coaches that would know how to properly teach a Flying Camel even though there's about 100 coaches (mostly for low levels though). You must also have to see it from this viewpoint as well: How many skaters get past the Axel and get good enough to learn Doubles?





Most skaters in the sport learn the basics up to Gamma level and then of that chunk some learn all the singles and just stay there. The amount of skaters that make it past the Axel and Doubles drops amazingly (especially skaters of my age group), so in essence, if there's little demand, there's little need for elite coaching.





Elite coaches are expensive. I had some classes that lasted less than 1 hour that cost 70 dollars when I was in the US. Yes, 70 dollars per class and I had several of them. Many elite coaches charge 100 dollars per 1 hour class. However, elite coaches in Mexico City seldom charge over 25 dollars per hour, but when the average chilango earns only 400 dollars a month, you can see that 25 dollars is damn expensive over the long run.





Competitions can be expensive, but not so much as skates and coaching. Local comps are cheap, you just drive to a local rink and that's it. But some competitions can be in the other side of the country and there's plenty of competitions where you must travel to other countries (even half around the world). Elite skaters get a lot of those expenses paid by wealthy federations and competition organizers pay for travel and hotel costs for elite skaters, but a skater just moving up the ranks might feel the pinch. Even in a rich country like the US, local skating clubs have a hard time getting the money to send skaters to compete.





Skating dresses can be expensive as well. It depends on how often does your daughter plan to compete. A nice custom dress can cost about 100 dollars. I personally don't like seeing extremely low levelled skaters competing because it's boring to watch endless Bunny hops for 2 minutes, but competition early on is important to get used to the pressure.





Tests aren't expensive though. If your daughter is showing a lot of progress, I highly reccomend to consider doing tests to move her up. Not all coaches are sugar coated sweet and genuinely want their students to progress. Many of them just ignore the student and cash cow on the money. I know it because I lived through it myself. If your daughters sadly has a coach that isn't pushing her at all, a test badge can say a lot, that your daughter is more serious than they think and that they need to learn tougher figures to compete at their new level.





Well, those are some reasons why skating is expensive. It's not like soccer where you can just put on tennis shoes and go in a lot and play it, you can't skate anywhere (unless you live in a cold climate and can at least skate in a lake during the winter), many people live 1 hour away from their rink so gasoline costs can add up as well. But if you know how to make a good budget, skating isn't only available to the wealthy, middle class people can do it if they plan their cash ahead.





Oh, and many skaters do offskating exercise. I go to a gym. You should consider putting your daughter into ballet once or twice a week if she's up for it, it will do wonders for her skating.
Reply:If your daughter wants to skate just for fun, it may not be as expensive as you think; however it will cost you some.





BUT, if she wants to compete and tests or even skate at an elite level, you are talking about BIG BUCKS.


Skating involves other training beside the skating itself: strength, ballet, pillates, yoga....


Good luck.


This site below will give you additional tips on skating and how to pick a coach.


Hope I was helpful.


http://thetripleaxel.blogspot.com/2008/0...
Reply:Budget the amount you spend on coaching with the amount of time your daughter practices. I think six hours of practice to one half-hour of coaching or until she has learned the lesson. Also costumes and skates can be quite expensive. E-bay has an overwhelming supply of costumes. Select a few competitions a year.
Reply:Everything about skating is expensive!! :)





-Private lessons range from $15 to $50 for a half hour. Some skaters have more than one coach.


-Freestyle ice can cost $10 to $20 for less than an hour. Some rinks will let skaters practice on their public skating sessions, which are usually cheaper, but it still adds up.


-Local competition fees are usually around $100 for maybe 2 events, plus everyone's got to have the t-shirt or sweatshirt from the competition. Plus many skaters do various competitions around their area, but that still requires travel expenses, hotel and food.


-Dresses are usually $50 for a practice dress and the sky's the limit for competition dresses. That's not including tights, accessories and warmups.


-Accessories.....skaters need guards, gloves, bags, soakers, off-ice equipment and all sorts of other minor details.


-Testing fees vary, but are in the area of maybe $25 per test when she gets into testing her moves in the field, freestyle or dance tests.


-Club fees also vary by club, but usually if a skater is competing and/or testing, they need to belong to a skating club. My club, for example, is $100 a year.


-Off-ice training...some skaters participate in dance, ballet, yoga, pilates, weight lifting, etc. to help their on-ice abilities.


-SKATES!!! The skates probably are the most expensive part and with kids with growing feet, they need new ones more often. A beginner skate can cost in the area of $100. That usually consists of a boot/blade set. The more advanced she gets, she'll need a boot with stiffer ankles and more support. These boots can cost $300 on up. And with the more advanced boots, the blades do not come with them. Blades are purchased seperately. Blades can also cost anywhere from $60 to $600...and probably more. For a competitive skater, it's pretty normal to spend $800 on a new pair of skates/blades. That does not include the cost of mounting the blades and sealing the soles. For young skaters with growing feet, sometimes they can find other skaters or skate shops that sell used skates....skates/blades that are used, but still in good condition with adequate support and sharpenings. How often a skater needs new skates depends on how much they're skating, if they're feet are still growing and what kind of jumps they're doing.





That's just a quick list of things. Just like any hobby or sport, the cost for skating can quickly get out of control. Depending on what her goals are also can determine how much is invested. Some skaters decided they don't want to compete. Some skaters are happy just getting through the group lessons programs and don't want the private lessons. There are some skaters who just get sick of skating too and quit. There are a lot of directions it can go, but cost depends on how involved she wants to be. The list above just scratches the surface. She may be interested in joining a synchronized skating team which is hugely expensive also. There are some things you can do to keep cost reasonable. Keep her private lessons to one a week. Some skaters have multiple lessons a week. If possible, until her feet stop growing, get used boots and blades. When possible, skate on the public sessions rather than freestyles or club ice. Check eBay for dresses -- I've found some nice ones there much cheaper than what I'd pay a dressmaker -- or have a talented friend/relative make dresses. Growing up, when I needed skates, my mom would tell my family members to give me gift cards for the skate shop for Christmas or my birthday to help defray the cost of new skates. Also maybe when you're daughter is a little older and more advanced, she can work a deal with her club's basic skills program. Some coaches will have their skaters teach the group lessons in trade for their own lessons.





My arrangement with my mom was she would pay for my skating as long as she didn't have to argue with me to practice. I obviously didn't go to the Olympics, but I still skated for a long time, did lots of competitions, shows and did cool things that I wouldn't have done if I weren't skating. Being a part of the sport doesn't have to break you financially to still get a quality experience out of it.





Good luck and happy skating!! :)
Reply:skating is always going to be expensive no matter what. skates average between 600-1200 dollars and dresses can cost anywhere between 300-10,000 dollars depending on the kind. usually you have to start paying for expensive skates like right after freestyle because of the better quality and bend. dresses that are expensive can be held off until like the novice level. thats when skaters usually get all of their dresses custom made. when you pay for private lessons you're also paying for ice time so it will get pricey. the most expensive part of skating would have to be the cost of traveling and for a coach. i hope that i helped you. ( - 8*
Reply:Well...skating is a really expensive sport if your daughter starts to get more into competitions if and she wants to commit to it with private lessons and such it's gonna get really expensive. I skate and first of all lessons can cut a TON out of your pay check (depending on the coach, mine cost 35 dollars for 25 minutes so that gives you an idea) Also skates are really expensive. Mine are ridells and the cost about 400 dollars. Plus competitons can get really pricey as well. But you have to decide wether or not your daughter really wants this and if she wants to persue skating than it's your descion to spend the cash. :-)
Reply:well its the combo of everything. figure skating is actually the second most expensive sport to horse back riding.


heres a list of things i used to pay for in Boston and the prices





1. custom skate boots about 1000 - needed every six months or so depending on the amount of time skating


2. skate blades also about 1000 depending on the blades


3. coaching fees 60 - 200 an hour ...you normally have quite a few hour lessons a week


4. ice time fees 10 dollars a session about


5. ice membership club fees- about 1000 a year


6. tights 20 bucks a pair....they rip easy too


7. dresses-90 for a practice dress...300-5000 for a comp. dress


8. frequent skate sharpenings -20-30 bucks each time


9. off ice training/dance classes


10. testing fees


11. competition entrance fees


12. butt pads for falling


13. bunga pads for your skates


14. mandatory club dinners that you have to pay for whether you go or not.


15. travelling fees for competitions/tests








i would say the costlyness starts probably at the preliminary/pre juvenile level when practice and competition first start becoming more intense and require greater committment and more time at the rink!!
Reply:if u just strted it wont seem expensive.private lessons can cost newer from $20 - $50 for 1/2 hr. competitions are very expensive. from about $45 - $70 for Each event. private ice time, ice time, music, cutting music, skates can cost $100 for beginner - $1000+ . if ur doing a competition out of state. travel expenses. usfsa club member ship isu also has member ship fees. dresses, tights, gloves, skate guards, soakers, skate bags, skate sharpening. i have at least 1 group and 1 private lesson a week, i practice 1 or 2 times outside of that lesson on different days all in all my mom is gonna pay about $200 -$350 this month. keep in mind, i have a competition so extra lessons and ive alrdy got skates etc. so it can be very expensive. i have a friend whos mom forks out $500 a month for 3 kids lessons. not skates or tights etc.
Reply:Ice is expensive, lessons from coaches add up $$, dresses, teams, competitions..........oh and if you do syncho man it's a lot of moolah



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