I recently wrote a blog post about a roller skating place, called Orbit Fun center. And when I went there, I figured out how much fun roller skating actually is, so I really wanted to go again, despite my problems with getting used to having a brake in the front of the roller skate. And since I did not want to visit the same place twice, I decided to try out a different skating rink, called Skate World of Kettering, which is extremely popular, and very close to where I currently live.
How to get to Skate World of Kettering, best times to go and prices.
Skate World of Kettering is situated on 1601 East David road in Kettering, Ohio. The place is somehow in the middle of a residential area, so there are no interesting places right next to it. But what else would you need there, you are going skating, after all!
The parking lot is quite small, and it was full when we got there, so we went inside to ask where can we park, and the person at the front desk told us that it is okay to park on the street. As weird as it sounds, parking on the street is perfectly normal and acceptable in the United states of America (unless otherwise marked).
Why do all the skating rinks that I visit look like warehouses from horror movies?
Skate World of Kettering has pretty confusing opening times. On Mondays, Skate World of Kettering is open from six to nine at night, and it will be empty, since Monday is a school night. On Tuesdays, you can skate from six to eight at night, Wednesdays are open from seven to nine thirty at night.
Thursdays are closed for private events. Well, if you want to skate on a Thursday there, celebrate your birthday there - you will have all the place for yourself and your friends. Friday nights are usually packed because the place is open from five thirty to ten at night.
And here come the days with the super confusing opening times - Saturdays and Sundays. On Saturday, the Family fun skate takes place from ten in the morning to four in the evening, then, from four thirty in the evening to seven, there is a Public family skate event, and from seven thirty to eleven at night, there is a super skate session with 80s music and I greatly recommend it!
Sundays are the most packed days because a special offer is going on - all you can eat pizza! They only offer two types of pizzas - cheese and pepperoni, but they are delicious. So, on Sundays (you will want to burn all those calories from eating unlimited pizza, trust me), you can skate from ten in the morning to four in the evening at a Family fun skate event, and from four in the evening to ten at night at a Public family skate event.
But what is the difference between the Family fun skate and Public family skate? There is almost no difference, really. Family fun skate event also includes some games, such as races and backwards skating competition, and the Public family skate offers just skating. And a lot of kids, so pay attention! I am speaking from a personal experience.
And sometimes, Skate World of Kettering is closed for private events, such as the extremely popular birthday parties, so check their website before you go to avoid disappointment on arrival.
The place is not expensive at all, and you can pay even less if you decide to take advantage on some of the offers - I will describe them in one of the following paragraphs. Admission prices depend on the time of the day you are visiting, but they range from four to eight dollars per person, and the skate rental has a fixed price of five dollars per person. And just like at Orbit Fun center, you can skate until the place closes for the same price. Well, I doubt you will, because it is pretty tiring and the skates are heavy, but I dare you to try!
The process
I guarantee you that the first thing you will notice upon entering the building, are the brightly coloured floors.
It looks pretty cool, doesn’t it? And it looks even cooler under the UV - light, if you attend the UV skating party. When you are done admiring the cool floors at the Skate World of Kettering, you have to buy the tickets at the front desk. Or show your free tickets, if you have them. They will give you a receipt for the skate rental and the food voucher, if your deal included food. So do not throw any of those receipts away, because you need them to redeem these services.
Skate world of Kettering is super colourful.
Then, walk through the hall with arcade games to the food court. If you purchased the food option, of course. Show the server your ticket and tell him or her what kind of pizza you want - cheese or pepperoni. They will call you on the loud speaker once your food is ready - it only takes about fifteen minutes.
The pizzas are pretty good.
Then, go to the skate rental counter and show the employee the skate rental ticket. And then the fun can start!
That is a lot of roller skates!
The roller skates
When renting the roller skates, pick skates that are half a size bigger than your regular shoe size. If you read my entry about Orbit fun center, you probably noticed that I was complaining about their roller skates and I thought they could not be worse. But it turned out that the roller skates at Orbit fun center are actually much much better than the ones at the Skate World of Kettering.
The roller skates at Skate World of Kettering look much better than the ones at Orbit fun center, but they are less comfortable and less stable. They are wider so you have to tighten them really well, and yet your feet will wiggle inside when roller skating. Hello, twisted ankles! The wheels are also a bit off the center, so I had some problems with the balance all the time.
The good thing about the Skate World of Kettering, comparing to the Orbit Fun center is that when you get your skates, they will put your shoes away for you. When you return the skates, you will get your shoes back. They do have lockers, but it is just much more convenient this way.
The skating rink
Since it is almost holiday season, there is a big Christmas tree in the middle of the skating rink. It looks pretty cool… unless you lose your balance and crash into that tree. Well, I have not seen that happen to anyone, but still.
The skating rink here is a little smaller than the one at Orbit fun center, but it is much easier for beginners (like me). The entrance to the skating rink is tucked away, meaning it is much safer to join other roller skaters that are already in the rink. The walls are padded, so potential crashes will not be painful. And, last but not least, there are big steps on one side of the skating rink, where you can sit down when you are tired.
The funny thing about this skating rink is that they will rotate the skating direction every once in a while. That means you will be skating clockwise, and then there will be an announcement on the loudspeaker that you have to start skating counter - clockwise. It is all good, unless you are having trouble stopping. Just like I do. What I did was just go straight until I reached the wall, so I was able to stop (more or less) safely and start skating in the opposite direction.
The floors on this skating rink have a much better grip than the ones at Orbit fun center, and once you get used to it, you will realize how much easier it is to make sharp turns.
Games
Skate world of Kettering has quite a few arcade games that you can play when you are taking a break from roller skating. Some of the deals that I will describe in the next paragraph, already include some game tokens. To be able to play, you have to get a rechargeable card at the front desk. You can put as much money you want on it, and you can bring it home with you if you are planning to visit Skate world of Kettering again.
A cotton candy claw game!
Some of the games allow you to earn virtual tickets that you can exchange for cool prices. The bad thing is that you actually have to play a lot of games to earn enough tickets to be able to redeem them for a prize.
Some of the games are typical claw games, where you try to capture a stuffed animal and other (useless but cute) things. In one of them, you can get cotton candy, and in one of them, you can get regular candy. I was able to capture a few candies on that one, and I am happy that I checked the expiration date before I ate them. They expired almost a year ago!
Another cool game is situated right next to the food court. And what makes it so cool? Everybody wins something! Well, they only have key chains, but if you want to feel a sense of accomplishment because you won something (or you want to make your kid happy), this is a good game for that. The key chains are a terrible quality - what a surprise - but you get what you pay for.
There is also a big inflatable course right next to the skating rink, and it looks so much fun, but unfortunately, you have to be younger than twelve to be able to play in there. I totally wanted to try it!
Groupon deals and other discounts
Skate World of Kettering constantly has great deals on Groupon. If you do not know this app, please do yourself a favour and check it out. It is a website with great deals for local services and products. For Skate World of Kettering, they usually offer two deals.
The first deal is admission and skate rental for two people for nine dollars! Yes, that is cheap. And it is perfect for a date night - something fun and a little unusual. The second deal includes admission to the place and the skate rental for four people, an extra large pizza and two hundred game tokens for the arcade games (which equals ten dollars).
Another cool offer is the Kids skate free twice a week deal. Well, you need to be younger than twelve to be able to take advantage on this offer, but if you have kids and you are looking to save a few dollars, this is the perfect opportunity. How does it work? You have to register on their website, and they will mail you the tickets once a week. The downside of this offer is that you cannot sign up more than two kids, but hey, it is something, right?
A few words for the end…
I feel like I missed an important part of my childhood by not going roller skating when I was younger. But luckily, my job (I work as a nanny) allows me to act like a kid from time to time, and I used that as an excuse to go roller skating twice in one week.
