Let me start by introducing Sebastien, who is a well-known French competitive slalom skater. He is the owner and webmaster of www.universkate.com, which has a large selection of great movies. I'd highly recommend spending some time on his website as there is lots of great stuff there.
Welcome to LondonSkaters.com, Sebastien, and thanks very much for sparing us some of your time!
Q (Mike): How many pairs of skates do you currently own, and what skates have you owned in the past that stand out in your memory? |
A: I own about 20 pairs of skates, every type of skates : slalom skates, downhill skates, fitness skates, speed skates, quads, aggressive skates, ice skates...
First I owned quad skates (Holy) then I had Rollerblade Lightning, after I used Roces Sydney and then Tecnica Twister. |
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Q (Mike): Do you have a "normal" job? |
A: I am a Student in a Master of Sport Management. I am also a certified roller skating instructor and I give skate lessons. |
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Q (Mike): What are your current slalom titles? |
A: I won 7 times the contest of Lausanne : 4 times in Speed Slalom and 3 times in Freestyle Slalom I won 4 times the French Championships two times in Freestyle slalom and two times in Speed Slalom. I won more than 40 titles in national & international Slalom Competitions since 1997. |
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Q (kiwidude): How long have you been skating and how old were you then you started? |
A: I was very young when I started, about 8-10 years old . I'm skating now for about 15 years. |
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Q (kiwidude): What equipment/wheels/rockering do you use? |
A: I use a lot different kinds of skates. I use more often Tecnica Twister, my favourite wheels are Hyper performance +grip 83A. I use the banana rockering. |
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Q (kiwidude): If we were visiting Paris would we have the chance to meet you in person? |
A: Yes, in these spots: Les Invalides, Notre-Dame, Palais-Royal and St Honoré. |
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Q (kiwidude): What's your favourite trick? |
A: My favourite trick is currently the wheeling, heel & toe. |
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Q (Steve): How do you find Tecnica Twisters compared to other skates you have used? |
A: They are closer to the foot, and they have a lot of precision (hard boot), the frame gives a lot of confidence in the moves too. |
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Q (Steve): What slalom moves are you personally responsible for creating? |
A: Volte, foot-spin, cone spin, Chapi-chapo, eight, etc. |
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Q (Steve): What tricks are you working on at the moment? |
A: I'm always thinking about new tricks! I'm working my backwards wheelings (heel & toe) |
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Q (Mentally Dull): Where did you get those nice rubber legs from? |
A: I did a lot of different sports before skating : basketball, volleyball, tennis, athletics... |
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Q (Mentally Dull): How many tonnes of plasters did you use up before you mastered all those amazing moves? |
A: I emptied my mother's first aid box several times!!! |
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Q (Naomi): How many hours a week do you spend practicing? |
A: I always practice slalom for my pleasure, I don't know exactly the time I spend, I stop when I want to stop. But I know I skate a lot, perhaps too much! |
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Q (Naomi): Do you still only skate when you want to, or like most other highly competitive sports do you sometimes have to force yourself to put the required practice in? |
A: Yes I only skate when I want to, but it's like a drug for me! |
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Q (Naomi): Who were your main inspirations? |
A: Skaters of Notre Dame when I started Slalom and myself. |
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Q (Miaow): What bearings do you have in your skates? They sounded so nice and fast on your SSS video. |
A: I use SKF ABEC 5. Mike: You can see the link to the SSS video and discuss it on our forums. |
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Q (Miaow): Do you do bearing maintenance, and if so, how? |
A: Yes, the rain! |
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Q (Miaow): What are your favourite skates? |
A: Tecnica Twister, of course! |
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Q (Bigsteev): What would you say your most technically difficult moves are? |
A: Grabbed wheeling, special, grabbed foot-spin. |
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Q (Bigsteev): How long did it take you to learn those moves? |
A: A lot of time and tries! |
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Q (Bigsteev): Do you prefer speed slalom or artistic/style? |
A: I love the two on the same level. I love to go the fastest I can on a slalom course. And I love to do the most different tricks I can on a slalom . |
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Q (Bigsteev): Whom do you consider to be your closest competition? |
A: Vinz Vu Van Kha for the freestyle, B. Gamba & M. Cimadomo for the speed. |
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Q (Robin): What are your top tips for budding slalomers? |
A: You have to slalom with your feelings. You can do everything you can imagine, if you just try. It's easier if you practice a lot ! |
