Going Barefoot in Your Skates: The Dilemma

It’s a common paradox amongst skaters.

You want the control and feel of going barefoot in your skates. So you do it. You scrap the socks and go au naturel in your blades because, at the end of the day, you want to perform and feel as comfortable as you can on the ice. Hockey, figure skating, speed skating, whatever the sport may be, you can’t be distracted with uncomfortable feet.

I get it.

Growing up in a small Canadian town, I was predisposed to play hockey as a young lad. My thoughtful parents ensured I wore the thickest, bulkiest, cotton socks in my skates. Like any good parents their hearts were in the right place. I mean, they can’t have their little guy’s toes getting cold during 5am practices. And Iet's be honest, when I was really young I didn’t care about the socks. Heck, does a 10 year old actually care about anything?

We’ll save that discussion for another time.

By about age 12, however, I discovered the liberating feeling of going sock-less in my skates. It just felt right. I felt like I had better control over my stride and which made my game better (At least it did in my head).

But then there was the downside.

A few months into my barefoot expedition, my skates began to stink.

Badly.

Now, I’ll be the first to admit that I probably wasn’t the best caretaker of my skates. I could have aired them out better or taken better measures to calm the stench. But I think I would have been delaying the inevitable. The entrapment of my bare feet in a leather boot began to slowly wear out my skates. They were rotting.

Now, remember that I’m only 12 at the time so I can’t say that I was really upset. Or cared at all. My parents, however, were none too pleased. As almost all parents know, hockey equipment costs and hockey league fees add up pretty quickly. So the idea of replacing skates every six months wasn’t something they were keen on.

I mean you could spend $200 - $500 on skates or about $9 for a six pack of cotton tube socks.

Do the math. My parents certainly did. And my preference for wearing no socks in my skates was shot-down by the parental trump card, which can be played an infinite amount of times FYI.

So this begs the question? What are the alternatives? If bare feet rots your skates and tube socks are just aren’t your thing, what options do you have?

I think you know where I’m going with this.

SPOILER ALERT. I’m a brand advocate for Thinees. I’m assuming you knew that. I mean we’re friends (right?). I don’t want there to be any secrets between us.

But here's what I'll say as honestly as I can:

Thinees socks give you the closest barefoot skating experience without actually going barefoot in your skates. Period.

Also, you get the added benefit of:

1. not rotting your skates, because Thinees' wicking material helps keep your feet dry; and
2. not having horrible smelly feet, because you're not wearing rotten skates.

There you have it.

There's also a wide variety of colors to choose from, if you're into that type of thing.

Now, if you are serious about finding skating socks that are perfect for you, I implore to look around, ask some friends, and try out different options.

Keep in mind what site you're reading on. But also keep in mind that we're friends too. ;)

Until next time...