K2 Cirrus inline skate review

These were my first pair of skates, bought in April 2000. Please note that this review is only my opinion and thoughts on this model of skate, and that any decision you may make regarding purchasing based on this information is at your own risk entirely.

I made the classic mistake of buying skates too large with this pair, but I was only one size wrong, and with an extra insole the skates fitted acceptably well.

They come in men's and women's models - the men's is pictured here. The women's model looks much the same, but the red trim is done in blue, and the foot shape and ankle support is different.

Boot

Well padded and nice and soft. These skates are very comfortable, but do feel slightly vague and less well defined than the Salomon TR9s. Having said that, this never caused me any trouble while skating, including doing manoeuvres that require precision foot placement. It's possible that this feel may have been caused by the fact that the skates were slightly too large for my foot, but I don't think so as I could tighten the laces and buckle so that all of my foot and ankle was held firmly.

As I mentioned in the TR9 review, the ankle buckle on these skates is excellent, and the easiest to use and adjust. The remainder of the fastening system is conventional laces only. They are convenient and reasonably fast to use, although not as user friendly as the Salomon speed lacing system.

These skates have a loop of thick cord at the top back of the boot to hold the skates by - this is an excellent feature, and I'm actually somewhat irritated that the Salomons' I now own don't have this. They make carrying skates around much easier, and it's possible to hold the K2s in one hand easily with these loops. The TR9s are more difficult to hold with one hand, which is not helped by their weight.

The skates weigh 3,3kg, but bear in mind that's without the heel brake attached, and with very worn wheels.

K2 Ankle Support

Ankle support is very firm in side-to-side movement. These skates have a big strong cuff that supports very well. Fore-aft movement has a fairly large amount of flex, but I liked this.

I've heard two people complain about the lack of an ankle strap to hold your heel down and in the back of the boot, but I didn't really have a problem with this. I can see where they are coming from, though, as the feeling is different.

Heat moulding

These skates don't support heat moulding, but do form around the shape of your feet after a period of wearing.

I met one skater in the park on Sunday who complained that the padding on his K2s had gone hard, and that he no longer liked his skates. I didn't experience this problem, though.

Cirrus Frames

The frames on these skates feel incredibly solid and strong. Not only is the aluminium curved, it is ribbed on the inside, really adding strength and stiffness. Unfortunately it's quite good at catching dirt thrown up by the wheels.

Wheels and Bearings

77.5mm 78A wheels were mounted when I bought the skates. Again a soft compound, but the wheels were of a considerably wider profile than those of the Salomon TR9s I reviewed. These are incredibly quiet skates, especially when new, so much so that 8 times out of 10 pedestrians just don't hear you coming and often get a big fright as you go past them.

I used to warn pedestrians that I thought were about to move in my way, but not anymore - with these skates that's a problem as they're not expecting you and often end up dodging into you.

Bearings are standard K2 ABEC 5s, and are C-clip based. Not as easy to disassemble as the plastic covers on the Salomon bearings.

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Overall Conclusion

A great pair of skates. I was really happy with them, and I only changed to new skates as my friend offered to buy these second hand. He couldn't afford new skates, and I wanted skates that were the right size for me so it was quite convenient. I was quite tempted to get the K2 Cirrus again, but I did prefer the Salomon TR9s after trying them on. I'd personally rate the K2 Cirrus at perhaps 95% as good as the Salomon TR9.

Although I considered them, I didn't go for the Salomon TR10s as these are too optimized towards high-speed recreational skating, with a lower ankle support. If I'm going to get into speed, I'd rather buy a proper set of 5-wheelers.

More K2 Reviews

Disclaimer

As usual, this review is only my opinion about these skates, and your mileage may vary. You should always carefully judge whether the skates you intend buying are best suited for you and for the purpose you intend using. Remember that fit and comfort are extremely important, and you may wish to read the inline skating buying guide here on this site.

Inline Skate review - K2 Cirrus 2000