Are rollerblades or roller skates better?

If you’re thinking of learning to skate, you might be wondering whether you should buy rollerblades or traditional quad roller skates. Both have their strengths and weaknesses, so it isn’t as simple as saying one option is better than the other.

Rollerblades have all their wheels configured in a line, making them fast and responsive, and better on rough terrain. Roller skates have two pairs of side-by-side wheels that offer a more stable base for beginners and make them ideal for skating at rinks, skateparks and on other smooth surfaces.

What are rollerblades?

Rollerblades — or inline skates — feature three to five wheels lined up one behind the other. This configuration can make them more difficult for new skaters to balance on, though the longer wheelbase has some advantages when balancing forward and backward. Once you’ve learned how to use them, however, rollerblades are quick and responsive.

What’s great about rollerblades when learning to skate is that you’re unlikely to clip the wheels on one skate into the wheels on the other skate and trip yourself over, which is a much more common experience when learning to roller skate. Expect to pay anywhere from $50-$300 for a pair of rollerblades.

What you’ll love about rollerblades

Rollerblades have larger wheels than roller skates, making them faster and better suited to activities where speed is essential, like roller hockey.
The large wheels also offer a smoother ride over rough surfaces, so roller blades are a better choice than roller skates for skating on sidewalks and trails with some bumps and cracks.
Although you might find yourself wobbling side-to-side, the long vertical wheelbase on rollerblades makes you less likely to fall over forwards or backward compared to roller skates.
Rollerblades are great for weaving and are highly responsive to lateral leg movements due to the tall boots.

What you should consider about rollerblades

Most beginner skaters feel less stable when using rollerblades compared to roller skates.
It can be tricky to make tight turns and intricate maneuvers while maintaining stability while wearing rollerblades.

Top rollerblades

If you’ve decided that rollerblades are the right choice, you still need to find your perfect pair. For serious skaters, the Epic Skates Engage 3-Wheel Inline Speed Skates are an excellent choice. Their extra-large wheels mean you can go fast, and you get a smooth ride over bumps and cracks in the sidewalk.

Rollerblade Advantage Pro XT Inline Skates are an excellent mid-range choice for skaters of all levels. They’re durable and supportive with a rear brake to make stopping easier.

LIKU Professional Inline Skates have thick, durable outer shells but with ventilation holes so your feet don’t overheat. They offer a nice balance between speed and stability.

If you’re buying rollerblades for a child, we love the Xino Sports Kids Inline Skates, which are size adjustable and have fun light-up wheels.

What are roller skates?

Roller skates feature two pairs of wheels side-by-side, each pair on its own axel — or “truck” — like on a car or a skateboard. Roller skates were around long before rollerblades, so they’re sometimes considered old-fashioned or uncool, but this couldn’t be further from the truth. Roller skates are often used for park skating on half-pipes and ramps and for roller derby, and you can’t get much cooler than that.

Roller skates — also known as quad skates — offer a wide wheelbase that feels stable, though it’s still likely you’ll fall when you’re learning. Roller skates are relatively inexpensive with basic models costing from $20-$60, though more expensive offerings can cost $200 or more.

What you’ll love about roller skates

The short wheelbase and moving trucks on roller skates make them highly maneuverable while remaining stable, which is perfect for roller derby and artistic roller skating (such as roller dancing).
The front stopper on roller skates makes it easy for skaters to slow down and stop.
As long as you’re on a smooth surface, you can make extremely tight turns when wearing roller skates.
The side-by-side wheels tend to make new skaters feel more stable. 
You can find roller skates in a wide range of colors, patterns and designs.

What you should consider about roller skates

Due to their smaller wheels and shorter wheelbase, roller skates don’t perform so well on rough or uneven surfaces. They’re great at a roller rink or skatepark, but not so good on cracked or bumpy sidewalks.
You can’t pick up quite as much speed on an average pair of roller skates compared to an average pair of rollerblades.

Top roller skates

Impala Quad Skates are an excellent higher-end choice that come in a range of fun designs, including holographic silver, black glitter and floral print. They’re well-made and suitable for a range of skate-based activities.

Roller Derby Roller Star Skates are affordable skates designed with the needs of roller derby players in mind. That said, they’re versatile enough for general street skating and even park skating.

Crazy Skates Rocket Roller Skates are perfect for kids who want to get into roller skating or have outgrown their old skates. They’re reasonably priced but perform well.

Should I get rollerblades or roller skates?

There’s no definitive answer as to whether you should buy rollerblades or roller skates. If you’re just starting out, you may find you feel more stable on quad skates, but it’s perfectly fine to learn to skate on rollerblades, too.

In fact, some people find them easier. If you’re looking to get into roller derby, then opt for roller skates over roller blades, as they’ll give you more maneuverability and stability when checking or being checked. For pure speed, however, rollerblades are your best bet. They’re also better for slightly uneven terrain.

Prices listed reflect time and date of publication and are subject to change.

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Sometimes it’s not easy to come home again. Especially when the scrappy St. Louis Blues are visiting.

Playing at Grand Casino Arena for the first time in a month, the Minnesota Wild saw a second period lead disappear quickly, as the Blues rallied for a 3-1 win on Sunday.

Pavel Buchnevich scored the game-winner late in the third period for the Blues, snapping a shot just under the crossbar behind Wild goalie Filip Gustavsson as Minnesota lost back-to-back games for the first time since mid-January.

Robert Thomas added an empty-net goal for the Blues in the final minute.

Kirill Kaprizov scored the only goal for the Wild, who got 21 saves from Gustavsson in the loss.

“I thought we had enough looks to be able to get, you know, more than one goal,” Wild coach John Hynes said. “Then they had a good look in the third and that was a heck of a shot by their guy. Unfortunately it was a game where we didn’t find a way to penetrate through, but I thought our effort was there.”

While the Blues applied steady pressure in the scoreless first period, Minnesota had the best scoring chance when a long lead pass sprung Kaprizov on a breakaway from the blue line. But St. Louis goalie Joel Hofer thwarted the Russian star’s attempt at a flip of the puck over the leg pad.

Minnesota finally broke through late in the second on a power play. After St. Louis made a shorthanded rush to the net, Minnesota came back with numbers, and put the game’s first goal on the board when Matt Boldy fed Kaprizov for a chip-in at the side of the net.

The goal was Kaprizov’s 219th of his career, which tied him with Marian Gaborik for most in franchise history.

“We see him every day, so we just know how good he is,” said Wild center Joel Eriksson Ek. “I think it’s just a matter of time and he’s going to break it. The more he scores, the better chance we have to win the game.”

The lead was brief, as Blues defenseman Logan Mailloux zipped a shot through a screen and past Gustavsson with less than two minutes to play in the middle frame.

“It just goes very close to (Quinn Hughes’) leg there,” Gustavsson said. “You lose it for half a second and that’s all it takes.”

The Blues got 22 saves from Joel Hofer, to even their season series with Minnesota at 1-1. With Gustavsson on the bench for an extra attacker, Hofer’s shot at the empty net with 1:07 to play was deflected and went just wide.

“I think we go to the net a lot today, and we have so many chances,” Kaprizov said. “(Their) goalie played pretty good.”

The Wild suffered a loss before the game began, with veteran winger Marcus Foligno missing due to a lower body injury he incurred on Friday in Utah. There was no update on the severity of the injury after the game, with Hynes saying Foligno is still being assessed. Minnesota had called up Tyler Pitlick from Iowa to take Foligno’s place on the fourth line. It was the 32nd game for Pitlick, the former Centennial High School standout who is in his first season with the Wild.

Prior to the opening faceoff, the Wild honored eight of their 10 players, and several members of their support staff, who participated in the 2026 Winter Olympics, including their three American gold medal winners.

Briefly

The Wild made a minor league trade on Sunday evening, sending Iowa forward Boris Katchouk to the Philadelphia Flyers in exchange for defenseman Roman Schmidt. Originally from Michigan, Schmidt, 23, is listed at 6-foot-5 and 218 pounds. He has spent all of this season with the Flyers’ AHL team and will report to Iowa for the Wild.

Katchouk was acquired by the Wild on Dec. 28 and had played eight games for Iowa.

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By ADIL JAWAD AND MUNIR AHMED

KARACHI, Pakistan (AP) — Violent clashes between protesters and security forces in Pakistan’s southern port city of Karachi and in the country’s north left at least 22 people dead and more than 120 others injured as demonstrators supportive of the Iranian government attempted to storm a U.S. Consulate on Sunday, authorities said.

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In the north of the country, demonstrators attacked U.N. and government offices.

The violence came after the United States and Israel attacked Iran, killing its Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Police and officials at a hospital in Karachi said that at least 50 people were also wounded in the clashes and some of them were in critical condition.

President Asif Ali Zardari expressed his “profound sorrow over the martyrdom” of Khamenei and conveyed his condolences to Iran, according to his office. He said: “Pakistan stands with the Iranian nation in this moment of grief and shares in their loss.”

Summaiya Syed Tariq, a police surgeon at the city’s main government hospital, confirmed six bodies and multiple injured people were brought to the facility. However, she said the death toll rose to 10 after four critically wounded people died.

In addition, 12 people were killed and over 80 wounded in clashes with police in the northern Gilgit-Baltistan region when thousands of protesters angered by U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran attacked the offices of the U.N. Military Observer Group and the U.N. Development Programme (UNDP), local police official Asghar Ali said.

A government spokesman, Shabir Mir, said all staff working for those organizations was safe. He said protesters repeatedly clashed with police at various places in the region, damaged the offices of a local charity, and set fire to police offices. However, he said authorities had deployed troops and brought the situation under control.

The U.S. Embassy in Pakistan said in a post on X that it was monitoring reports of ongoing demonstrations at the U.S. Consulates General in Karachi and Lahore, as well as calls for additional protests at the U.S. Embassy in Islamabad and the consulate general in Peshawar.

It advised U.S. citizens in Pakistan to monitor local news, stay aware of their surroundings, avoid large crowds and keep their travel registration with the U.S. government up to date.

U. S. Consulate windows smashed

In Karachi, which is the capital of southern Sindh province and Pakistan’s largest city, senior police official Irfan Baloch said that protesters briefly attacked the perimeter of the U.S. Consulate, but were later dispersed.

He dismissed reports that any part of the consulate building was set on fire. However, he said that protesters torched a nearby police post and smashed windows of the consulate before security forces arrived and regained control.

Protests in the area surrounding the consulate went on for hours, with dozens of youth, some covering their faces, throwing stones at law enforcement officials and vowing to reach the consulate where hundreds of police and paramilitary officers have been deployed.

The clashes prompted Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi to issue an appeal for calm.

“Following the martyrdom of Ayatollah Khamenei, every citizen of Pakistan shares in the grief of the people of Iran,” Naqvi said in a statement, but urged people not to take the law into their own hands and to express their protests peacefully. The provincial government of Sindh also urged citizens to express their views peacefully and warned against engaging in violence.

Protests took place elsewhere in Pakistan

In Islamabad, police fired tear gas and swung batons as hundreds of protesters, angered by the killing of Khamenei, tried to march toward the U.S. Embassy. The clashes took place outside the city’s diplomatic enclave, where the embassy is located, and additional police had been deployed.

Meanwhile, in the northwestern city of Peshawar, authorities also used tear gas and batons to disperse thousands of demonstrators attempting to approach the U.S. Consulate to hold a rally and to denounce the killing of the Iranian leader, police said.

Protesters also held a peaceful rally in Multan, a city in Punjab province, chanting slogans against Israel and the United States.

Mamoona Sherazi, who attended the rally, said that she was protesting Khamenei’s killing. “God willing, we will never bow before America and Israel,” she said.

Protesters also rallied and clashed with police repeatedly near the U.S. Consulate in Lahore, the capital of eastern Punjab province, police said. Authorities said that the government has stepped up security around the U.S. Embassy in the capital, and consulates across the country to avoid any further violence.

Munir Ahmed reported from Islamabad. Riaz Khan and Rasool Dawar in Peshawar, Pakistan, Babar Dogar in Lahore, and Asim Tanveer in Multan, contributed to this story.

By CATHY BUSSEWITZ

NEW YORK (AP) — Oil prices rose sharply when market trading began Sunday, as U.S. and Israeli attacks on Iran and retaliatory strikes against Israel and U.S. military installations around the Gulf sent disruptions through the global energy supply chain.

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Traders were betting the supply of oil from Iran and elsewhere in the Middle East would slow or grind to a halt. Attacks throughout the region, including on two vessels traveling through the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow mouth of the Persian Gulf, have restricted countries’ ability to export oil to the rest of the world. Prolonged attacks would likely result in higher prices for crude oil and gasoline, according to energy experts.

West Texas Intermediate, the light, sweet crude oil produced in the United States, was selling for about $72 a barrel Sunday night, up around 8% from its trading price of about $67 on Friday, according to data from CME group.

A barrel of Brent crude, the international standard, was trading at around $79 per barrel Sunday night, according to FactSet, up about 8% from its trading price of $72.87 on Friday, which had been a seven-month high at the time.

Higher global energy prices could lead to consumers paying more for gasoline at the pump and shelling out more for groceries and other goods, at a time when many are already feeling the impacts of elevated inflation.

Roughly 15 million barrels of crude oil per day — about 20% of the world’s oil — are shipped through the Strait of Hormuz, making it the world’s most critical oil chokepoint, according to Rystad Energy. Tankers traveling through the strait, which is bordered in the north by Iran, carry oil and gas from Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Iraq, Qatar, Bahrain, the UAE and Iran.

FILE – Fishermen work in front of oil tankers south of the Strait of Hormuz Jan. 19, 2012, offshore the town of Ras Al Khaimah in United Arab Emirates. (AP Photo/Kamran Jebreili, File)

Iran had temporarily shut down parts of the strait in mid-February for what it said was a military drill, which led oil prices to jump about 6% higher in the days that followed.

Against that backdrop, eight countries that are part of the OPEC+ oil cartel announced they would boost production of crude Sunday. The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, in a meeting planned before the war began, said it would increase production by 206,000 barrels per day in April, which was more than analysts had been expecting. The countries boosting output include Saudi Arabia, Russia, Iraq, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Kazakhstan, Algeria and Oman.

“Roughly one-fifth of global oil supply passes through the Strait of Hormuz, a vital artery for world trade, meaning markets are more concerned with whether barrels can move than with spare capacity on paper,” said Jorge León, Rystad’s senior vice president and head of geopolitical analysis, in an email. “If flows through the Gulf are constrained, additional production will provide limited immediate relief, making access to export routes far more important than headline output targets.”

Iran exports roughly 1.6 million barrels of oil a day, mostly to China, which may need to look elsewhere for supply if Iran’s exports are disrupted, another factor that could increase energy prices.