Glenn Koshi was the lucky test skater for Bont's new secret weapon: the Bont Gigantathon. I'm not sure what event they are for, but these skates are huge and look like exciting equipment to try.

The 23 inch 6 x 110mm 3 point frame is only suitable for those very experienced skaters who love adventure and have the skills to figure out how to turn. You can see a video of Glenn's Gigantathon test run on Bont TV or check out more test photos on the Bont site.

There are already skaters lining up to buy this limited production frame. If you want to try them or encourage another production run, email Glenn at Bont Skates, so the company knows how many are interested in Gigantathon. The first orders will be available around the end of June and are designed for 3 point boots only. Maybe a new downhill event with limited turns will develop, just to keep these early adapters out of trouble.

Photos © Bont Skates

D. Miles Jr., the GodFather of Sk8, is all pumped up about the Napa Valley Inline Marathon and Half Marathon that will take place in less than two months. Here's his latest news from the San Francisco Skaters Digest:

Hi Skaters,

We are almost 8 weeks away from the Napa Valley Inline Marathon and Half Marathon. The course is the same in length, but the pavement is the absolute best. We have moved the course southward, closer to Napa where the hotels are cheaper and no 2 day minimum stay. Skaters will be staying at the Napa Valley Redwood Inn where we used to stay in the beginning when the races started in Napa. There will also be a large contingent of skaters staying in Calistoga at the Fairgrounds.

The Napa Valley community is very excited about this year's race. The event has made front page news several times and interest in skating in the Napa Valley has been growing. For the first time we are going to add a 5k skate for Napa residents on the totally flat part of the course and we're working on a roller disco party at Vintage High School in Napa on Saturday night.

This event is a work in progress and things are progressing very nicely. Skaters from Germany, London, France and other countries have registered. It seems the dollar is low and drawing people to vacation in San Francisco and skate the Napa Valley. There is also a group from Minnesota that is coming to represent. Registration is going very well, but the early registration discount will end on Tuesday, May 20.

You can save money by registering before May 20. This promises to be the very best Napa Valley Inline Marathon ever!!!

Keep Rollin',

D. Miles Jr.
The GodFather of Sk8
www.cora.org
www.skatinplace.com
www.SkateGoldenGate.com

This season's Napa Valley Inline Marathon and Half Marathon will take skaters past vineyards and wineries on a seven mile closed section of the Silverado Trail in the Napa Wine Valley. The course is closed to traffic during the race.

The three-day event begins with the San Francisco Friday Night Skate, a winery tour and Calistoga Skate Party on Saturday and the Napa Valley Inline Marathon and picnic on Sunday, July 13, 2008.

There are many other North American and International inline skating marathons and races for every level from novice to pro. If there is a recurring event that needs some attention, leave information for us in the Inline Skating Forum.

Every sport wants Olympic status and roller sports (including inline) are among them. So far, the efforts by the roller sports world governing body, the Federation Internationale de Roller Sports (FIRS), to earn Olympic status for any of its disciplines have not been successful. FIRS' past attempts to get Olympic status were most active around 2000, when inline speed skating was promoted as the most suitable roller sport for the Olympics.

Now, softball and baseball will be seeking reinstatement after being voted off the agenda for the 2012 London Olympic Games. And roller sports will join them in the battle for two available spots on the program for 2016. Golf, squash, karate and seven-a-side rugby are other contenders. All seven sport federations have received letters, requesting their presentations of their sport in October of 2009, when the International Olympic Committee assembles at Copenhagen. FIRS is working hard to ensure that a unified worldwide marketing and recruiting program supports their presentation to the committee.

In the U.K., the British Inline Skater Hockey Association (BiSHA) is working with other disciplines to form one governing body with the aim of achieving Olympic status. BiSHA has now achieved Sports Council recognition and forms part of British Roller Sports Federation (BRSF) – the governing body for roller skating disciplines.

• Can Inline and Roller Skating Become Olympic Sports?
  
  
• How Some Inline Skaters Slide Into the Olympics
  
  
• The Olympic Status of Inline and Roller Sports
  
  
• Roller for Olympics – the FIRS Plan

Part of the solution is simple, but difficult to implement. If you share the Olympic dream for your inline discipline, work to build our recreational and competitive numbers and increase visibility in any way you can... even if you just invite a friend to skate. We need every "body" that we can get to sell our inline and roller sports.

Image © Rollersports.org

The media was out when the Skate Against Violence Roadskate anti-violence skate-a-thon left San Francisco on Monday, April 14, 2008 and arrived at the Santa Monica Pier on Thursday, April 17. Check out the news from their local Bay Area channels 2 (FOX), 7 (ABC) and 11 (NBC). Twelve skaters from six countries including France, Switzerland, Singapore and the Phillipines skated nearly 500 miles to show that inine skating is fun, healthy and a great alternative to violence.

The California Outdoor Rollersports Association uses the Skate Against Violence to raise awareness of their youth program which is based on the President's Fitness Challenge. For more information, visit the President’s Council on Physical Fitness, and your local organizations can start similar youth fitness achievement programs.

Graphic © C.O.R.A., Skate Against Violence

Road rashes are not contagious, caused by allergies or a result of sensitive skin. Road rash is a common abrasive sports injury that is caused by a sliding fall on a hard textured surface like pavement, rough cement, gravel or any other rough terrain. When friction scrapes off some of the top layers of skin, the resulting abrasion is called "road rash." Road rash is not something that is limited to inline skaters. Motorcyclists, bicyclists and skateboarders are also involved in activities that can create road rash. The best way to prevent road rash is to wear protective gear and protective clothing. The best back-up plan is to make sure you know how to treat road rash, if you get one.

Find out more about abrasive injuries:

• How to Treat Abrasions
• What is a Floor Burn?
• Abrasion and Road Rash Information
• Try a Road Rash Repair Kit

There is one other "Road Rash." This one happens every spring in Texas and is one of many Inline Roller Cup marathon races for pro and fitness skaters.

The following athletes have qualified for the USA women's inline hockey world team at the recent team trials in Colorado Springs, Colorado:

• Allison Era of Glendale, Arizona
• Lisa Giovanelli of Middletown, Connecticut
• Lisa Henning of Culver, Indiana
• Antoinette Maldonado of New Haven, California
• Brittany Martin of Torrance, California (goalie)
• Jennifer Munhofen of Alpharetta, Georgia
• Charlotte Nicholson of Morrisville, North Carolina
• Jaime Rasmussen of Garden Grove, California
• Catherine Santo of St. James, New York
• Kathleen Savino of North Bransford, Connecticut
• Miranda Van Atta of Woodland, California
• Michelle Vedder of Cary, North Carolina (goalie)

These officials will manage the USA women's inline hockey world team at the world championship:

• Team Coach - Jeff Prime of Long Beach, California
• Team Manager - Barry Jackson of Medina Township, Ohio
• Alternates: Taylor Blair of Fort Colins, Colorado and Stephanie Metcalf of Colorado Springs, Colorado

The athletes and officials will represent the United States in competition at the 2008 FIRS World Inline Hockey Championships that will take place in Dusseldorf, Germany, July 5-12. The Host Federation will be Deutscher Rollsport und Inline Verband of Germany, and activities will take place in the city of Düsseldorf and Ratingen for men's and wonen's events.

More World Inline Hockey Championship Information:

• The German Inline Hockey Federation
• The German Roller Sports Federation
• The Event Bulletin
• International Roller Sports Federation
• Rhein Rollers Inline Hockey Team – the event organizer's team

The Moscow News reports that for a number of years there has been growth in inline skating. The Russian capital is huge, and skating provides a great way to cover distances and see the sights, whenever the weather is good. The popularity of inline skating destinations is determined by which have the smoothest asphalt, a rare find in Moscow. A scenic view is important, too. The following are good locations to start with:

• The Sparrow Hills area and Moscow State University have trees and greenery, offer a view of the city, are closed to most traffic and snacks and drinks are available.
  
  
• The embankment has a trail which starts at Kievskaya and goes to Gorky Park.
  
  
• Victory Park or Poklonnaya Gora on Kutuzovsky Prospekt has good asphalt and offers variety in the grade of the terrain.
  
  
• The All-Russian Exhibition Center (VVTs) at VDNKh and the Bota­nichesky Sad are popular spots with skate rental available.
  
  
• The Luzhniki Stadium at Spor­tivnaya has a roller drome.

If you feel that there's safety and fun in numbers, join a group of Moscow's inline skaters for organized rolls. Roller.ru provides information and advice about choosing and buying rollerblades, where to go blading and where to get tuition. Free basic skills and slalom lessons are available at Poklonnaya Gora. The site has a schedule of organized rolls, too.

What can you do you do to reduce stress? We all need to manage stress and keep our outlook positive. For many people, inline skating provides stress management in activities like those listed below.

• Learn to dance on skates.
• Enjoy skating through scenic locations.
• Enjoy good music while skating.
• Try a fitness skating activity.
• Share time with friends who skate.

Listen to your body. But, instead of reaching for that drink, a cigarette or your favorite sweet snack for comfort, release nervous energy and emotions by embracing inline skating instead. A good inline workout will provide much-needed cardio stimulation for your body and will give your mood a relaxng lift, too.

The President's Fitness Challenge and the President’s Council on Phyisical Fitness were designed to motivate Americans to stay physically active and exercise regularly. The goal is a lifetime of fitness instead of periods of outstanding sports achievements.

The challenge of the Presidential Sports Award program is to commit to regular participation in any sport or fitness activity. Why not use inline skating as your sport of choice?

If you earn your Presidential Sports Award in inline skating, you will have dedicated enough time to meet this challenge and improve your skating, too. What a great way for a new skater to start, a returning skater to get back into it or for a skater who is already dedicated to develop skills.

Anyone age six (6) or older can participate, and inline skating is just one of the activities that qualify. Each participating skater will need to skate for at least 50 hours to earn an award. A maximum of 1.5 hours will apply toward your time each day. This makes great base for beginner fitness, speed, hockey or figure skating programs that can be taught by coaches, certified instructors, clubs and rinks.

The Presidential Sports Award package includes the following:

1. A letter of congratulations from the Co-Chairman of the President's Council suitable for framing.
   
   
2. A blazer patch (embroidered emblem) identifying the sport or fitness activity.
   
   
3. A certificate of achievement from the current President of the United States, personalized with your name and suitable for framing.

For more information about the President's Fitness Challenge and Presidential Sports Award programs, visit the President’s Council on Physical Fitness. Your local skating club or organization can use inline skating and roller sports to start similar youth fitness achievement programs, too.

The big fox is flying and the 2008 World Inline Cup marathon races are well under way. These events feature the best skaters in the world at the start of each event and combine fun, festivities and many cultures. Joey Mantia (USA) was the clear winner of the first World Inline Cup race of 2008 in Zugersee, Switzerland on April19th. The Colombian sprinter, Cecilia Baena, won the women's speed division.

Men's Speed Results:

1. Joey Mantia – USA – Luigino Answer Wheels
2. Luca Saggiorato – ITA – Rollerblade MPC World
3. Massimiliano Presti – ITA – Luigino Answer Wheels
4. Andres Munoz – COL – Matter Inline Center World
5. Francesco Zangarini – ITA – Rollerblade MPC World
6. Jorge Rosero – COL – Rollerblade MPC World
7. Naselli Claudio – ITA – Luigino Answer Wheels

Women's Speed Results:

1. Cecilia Baena – COL – Bont Wheels
2. Nicole Begg – NZL – Bont Wheels
3. Sandra Gomez – ESP – Powerslide Alessi World
4. Nathalie Barbotin – FRA – Powerslide Alessi World
5. Alexandra Vivas – COL – Bont Wheels

There are three events scheduled in May – on the 3rd, 17th and 25th. And the action continues in June, July, August and September.

Get More WIC Information:

• Complete 2008 World Inline Cup Schedule
• WIC Philosophy and Background
• News From the WIC