ice skates - The virtual ice Skates museum

English speed skates

This section is to be enlarged soon.	Fig.1: English speed skates, 3rd quarter 19th century Manufacturer: unknown Mark: none Technical data: total length: 30 cm; height over ice: 7.5 cm; platform: 25 cm long, 6 cm wide; runner blade: 16 mm high, 7 mm thick, with gutter; weight: 305 g.
Fig.2: English speed skates, 4th quarter 19th century Manufacturer: unknown, probably Dutch Mark: Technical data: total length: 38 cm; height over ice: 5 cm; platform: 30 cm long, 6 cm wide; runner blade: rear-front 18-13 cm high, 3.5 mm thick; weight: 290 g.

Fen skates
In England speed skates were called fen skates.
This name derived from the wet grounds around the Wash (in the northeast) which area is known as Fen District. Sometimes these ice skates are also called Whittlesea Runners, probably because there has been a good blacksmith at Whittlesea, a little town in Cambridgeshire. Fen skates have runner blades that are lower at the toes than at the heel. The rider therefore stands a bit head first in a natural way. This was thought a good position for riders of relatively short distances.