Moving from Matrix Legacy to Gold Seal or P99? | Golden Skate

Moving from Matrix Legacy to Gold Seal or P99?

Arwen17

Final Flight
Joined
Jan 20, 2017
So I'm hoping my skates last at least another year before I have to replace them. I'm just planning ahead in my mind atm.
I'm happy with Matrix Legacy currently. But I've always been in Jackson blades, so I'm very curious about trying a different blade maker.

I started out in Jackson Mark IV blades, since that is the blade that was traditionally attached to their old Freestyle skate model. I have never skated in the modern Jackson boots. I switched to Edea Ice Fly with Matrix Legacy attached and while the transition was rough at first, it's great now, so I totally want to stick with Edea boots in the future.

I've never had any trouble learning how to spin. I've read posts where people claim it's impossible to spin in Mark IV blades or other lower level blades. That was never me. I did sit spins, camel spins, etc just fine in them as a beginner first learning the spins. I learned two-foot spin and one-foot spin in the cheapest no-brand skates, then I switched to Mark IV blades for scratch spin and above.... only because I utterly destroyed the cheap, no-brand skates doing toe loops in them.
I switched to Edea Ice Fly with Matrix Legacy once the Jackson boots reached their end of life and because it was so hard to get a good take-off for axel with the tiny toepick of Mark IV blades.
I struggled with the crosscut pattern and "huge" toepick on Legacy at first, because I was so used to the straight-cut and TINY pick on the Mark IV. But once I adjusted, the larger pick has been glorious! I don't know if I really notice if a pick is crosscut or straight. I seem to be able to adapt to either one after awhile and it stops feeling any different. It's mainly the SIZE of the pick that helped for bigger jumps like axel.
I plain to just stick with crosscut, since it's what I'm used to now and don't see any reason to change.

The other thing that was different between Mark IV and Legacy was the "sweet spot" location for spins. When I was first adapting to Legacy, I would roll up too far forward and get on the "death zone" part of the blade. I've circled what I call the death zone on Matrix Legacy: https://imgur.com/a/8sOjXGL
I remember looking at my Mark IV blades and seeing there was no death zone, just a toe pick. So I could spin wherever I wanted on Mark IV. I just rolled up until I felt the bottom drag pick. With Legacy, I had to get used to spinning further back to avoid rolling up into the death zone area. Now that I'm used to it, everything feels normal again. I can feel the drag pick, but I can't even find the death zone anymore even if I tried. So yeah, I have no idea how I could find the death zone so easily at first, but now I have no idea where it is anymore and everything just feels normal.
What was scary about the death zone is I would step into a spin or start spinning rapidly and then hit that zone and fall out of the spin instantly and suddenly without warning. It was freaky because everything would be normal until it suddenly and violently wasn't. Like falling into a black hole that suddenly opened up on the ice lol.
I'm not able to see the bottom of high-level blades. Do all blades have this "death zone" and it was just the Mark IV blades that didn't have it because it's so low level?

I'm leaning towards Gold Seal since its got a crosscut pick, 8" rocker, and seems the most similar to Matrix Legacy. Both of my old blades, Mark IV and Legacy, are 8" rocker.
Since I seem to be able to adjust to almost anything and never really notice much difference between blades after the adjustment period is over, does it really matter? Is Gold Seal recommended for people who are good spinners or bad spinners? I see myself as a good spinner since I can apparently learn to spin on practically anything and I can save some of the worst spin entrance mistakes and force them to work anyway. I learn jumps quickly too, but I struggle with getting enough height and snapping quick enough into rotation, and that's just something that will have to improve with time, it's not a skate problem, it's a physical problem.


I passed all Adult MIF/FS tests in just 3 years, except for Adult Gold FS. Working on that and Intermediate MIF right now. First year was the Jackson/MarkIV skates and then next 2 years was in IceFly/Matrix-Legacy. I haven't experienced any issues from "overbooting" myself. I'm 5'9 tall, so I'm not a light pixie, even though I'm not overweight.
 

Ic3Rabbit

Former Elite, now Pro. ⛸️
Record Breaker
Joined
Jan 9, 2017
Country
Olympics
So I'm hoping my skates last at least another year before I have to replace them. I'm just planning ahead in my mind atm.
I'm happy with Matrix Legacy currently. But I've always been in Jackson blades, so I'm very curious about trying a different blade maker.

I started out in Jackson Mark IV blades, since that is the blade that was traditionally attached to their old Freestyle skate model. I have never skated in the modern Jackson boots. I switched to Edea Ice Fly with Matrix Legacy attached and while the transition was rough at first, it's great now, so I totally want to stick with Edea boots in the future.

I've never had any trouble learning how to spin. I've read posts where people claim it's impossible to spin in Mark IV blades or other lower level blades. That was never me. I did sit spins, camel spins, etc just fine in them as a beginner first learning the spins. I learned two-foot spin and one-foot spin in the cheapest no-brand skates, then I switched to Mark IV blades for scratch spin and above.... only because I utterly destroyed the cheap, no-brand skates doing toe loops in them.
I switched to Edea Ice Fly with Matrix Legacy once the Jackson boots reached their end of life and because it was so hard to get a good take-off for axel with the tiny toepick of Mark IV blades.
I struggled with the crosscut pattern and "huge" toepick on Legacy at first, because I was so used to the straight-cut and TINY pick on the Mark IV. But once I adjusted, the larger pick has been glorious! I don't know if I really notice if a pick is crosscut or straight. I seem to be able to adapt to either one after awhile and it stops feeling any different. It's mainly the SIZE of the pick that helped for bigger jumps like axel.
I plain to just stick with crosscut, since it's what I'm used to now and don't see any reason to change.

The other thing that was different between Mark IV and Legacy was the "sweet spot" location for spins. When I was first adapting to Legacy, I would roll up too far forward and get on the "death zone" part of the blade. I've circled what I call the death zone on Matrix Legacy: https://imgur.com/a/8sOjXGL
I remember looking at my Mark IV blades and seeing there was no death zone, just a toe pick. So I could spin wherever I wanted on Mark IV. I just rolled up until I felt the bottom drag pick. With Legacy, I had to get used to spinning further back to avoid rolling up into the death zone area. Now that I'm used to it, everything feels normal again. I can feel the drag pick, but I can't even find the death zone anymore even if I tried. So yeah, I have no idea how I could find the death zone so easily at first, but now I have no idea where it is anymore and everything just feels normal.
What was scary about the death zone is I would step into a spin or start spinning rapidly and then hit that zone and fall out of the spin instantly and suddenly without warning. It was freaky because everything would be normal until it suddenly and violently wasn't. Like falling into a black hole that suddenly opened up on the ice lol.
I'm not able to see the bottom of high-level blades. Do all blades have this "death zone" and it was just the Mark IV blades that didn't have it because it's so low level?

I'm leaning towards Gold Seal since its got a crosscut pick, 8" rocker, and seems the most similar to Matrix Legacy. Both of my old blades, Mark IV and Legacy, are 8" rocker.
Since I seem to be able to adjust to almost anything and never really notice much difference between blades after the adjustment period is over, does it really matter? Is Gold Seal recommended for people who are good spinners or bad spinners? I see myself as a good spinner since I can apparently learn to spin on practically anything and I can save some of the worst spin entrance mistakes and force them to work anyway. I learn jumps quickly too, but I struggle with getting enough height and snapping quick enough into rotation, and that's just something that will have to improve with time, it's not a skate problem, it's a physical problem.


I passed all Adult MIF/FS tests in just 3 years, except for Adult Gold FS. Working on that and Intermediate MIF right now. First year was the Jackson/MarkIV skates and then next 2 years was in IceFly/Matrix-Legacy. I haven't experienced any issues from "overbooting" myself. I'm 5'9 tall, so I'm not a light pixie, even though I'm not overweight.

Both your blades so far are Jackson Ultima blades. Legacy has a flat rocker as does Mark ones. If you want to switch to a top blade (I presume you are skating on a Legacy 8 and not 7 right now because the latter would change the game). If you are on a Legacy 8, I’d suggest trying a Gold Seal for you, just be aware the rocker is more curved that you are used to. If you’re skating on a Legacy 7- you need to look at MK Gold Star (it will still have a more curved rocker than you’re used to).

Most importantly: If you don’t like a large bottom pick then you definitely want to steer clear of JW P99 and MK Phantom.

Good luck.
 

Arwen17

Final Flight
Joined
Jan 20, 2017
Both your blades so far are Jackson Ultima blades. Legacy has a flat rocker as does Mark ones. If you want to switch to a top blade (I presume you are skating on a Legacy 8 and not 7 right now because the latter would change the game). If you are on a Legacy 8, I’d suggest trying a Gold Seal for you, just be aware the rocker is more curved that you are used to. If you’re skating on a Legacy 7- you need to look at MK Gold Star (it will still have a more curved rocker than you’re used to).

Most importantly: If you don’t like a large bottom pick then you definitely want to steer clear of JW P99 and MK Phantom.

Good luck.


Thanks, yes I'm on Legacy 8" rocker. Does having a more curved rocker on the Gold Seal make it easier or harder to spin? Or will I probably not even notice much of a difference since I've never struggled with spins anyway?
Yeah, a larger bottom pick doesn't sound as appealing, which is why I'm leaning towards Gold Seal over P99.


Do you know anything about the "death zone" thing I was talking about up there?
 

Bill S

Rinkside
Joined
Jan 31, 2019
Country
United-States
Last fall, I experimented with a number of blades to find what I liked best...

Coronation Ace ca. 2007 with a rocker flattened to 8'
Coronation Ace ca. 2019
MK Professional
Ultima UB40 Protege
Eclipse Dance
Gold Seal
Pattern 99

I prefered the Gold Seal and the Pattern 99 in my tests. I'm currently using the Pattern 99 blades and like them a lot. The bottom pick is substantially larger than the GS and others, but that hasn't been nearly the problem I feared.

Both blades have main rockers over 8' radius, with the Gold Seal measuring 8.2 feet, and the P99 measuring 8.9' (!). Both are advertised to be 8' rockers.

One thing I realized is that the Gold Seal is a long blade, with the tail being about 1/4" longer than the P99. You might be stepping on your tail a little more often with a GS, but I really liked the blade regardless.

In my experiments, I found that I could easily adapt to differences in the main rockers within a few minutes, but it took longer to get used to spin rocker differences. For some of the blades, I un-mounted and replaced them before I could learn to spin on them. I adapted to spinning on the GS and the P99 the easiest.
 
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tstop4me

Final Flight
Joined
Oct 2, 2015
Country
United-States
The other thing that was different between Mark IV and Legacy was the "sweet spot" location for spins. When I was first adapting to Legacy, I would roll up too far forward and get on the "death zone" part of the blade. I've circled what I call the death zone on Matrix Legacy: https://imgur.com/a/8sOjXGL
I remember looking at my Mark IV blades and seeing there was no death zone, just a toe pick. So I could spin wherever I wanted on Mark IV. I just rolled up until I felt the bottom drag pick. With Legacy, I had to get used to spinning further back to avoid rolling up into the death zone area. Now that I'm used to it, everything feels normal again. I can feel the drag pick, but I can't even find the death zone anymore even if I tried. So yeah, I have no idea how I could find the death zone so easily at first, but now I have no idea where it is anymore and everything just feels normal.
What was scary about the death zone is I would step into a spin or start spinning rapidly and then hit that zone and fall out of the spin instantly and suddenly without warning. It was freaky because everything would be normal until it suddenly and violently wasn't. Like falling into a black hole that suddenly opened up on the ice lol.
I'm not able to see the bottom of high-level blades. Do all blades have this "death zone" and it was just the Mark IV blades that didn't have it because it's so low level?
Judging from your photo, what you call the "death zone" is simply the area behind the drag pick that is normally not sharpened by a conventional grinding wheel used for sharpening skates. The conventional grinding wheel has the geometry of a circular disc; a tech can't sharpen the region immediately behind the drag pick because you don't want the grinding wheel to contact the drag pick. From a sharpener's perspective, it's a "dead zone" because the grinding wheel can't access it. The extent of the dead zone depends on the blade (including pick) geometry and diameter of the grinding wheel.

This region can be sharpened via a special cross-grinder wheel or hand-sharpening tool. My tech always uses a cross-grinder to smoothen this region. Many techs don't bother because you normally don't skate on this region. You would skate on this region only if the ice is very soft, and you are rising up on your drag pick. This is typically considered bad form for a scratch spin; typically you will travel like crazy. You typically rock forward such that the drag pick and the sweet spot both contact the ice, and no further.
 

Arwen17

Final Flight
Joined
Jan 20, 2017
Judging from your photo, what you call the "death zone" is simply the area behind the drag pick that is normally not sharpened by a conventional grinding wheel used for sharpening skates. The conventional grinding wheel has the geometry of a circular disc; a tech can't sharpen the region immediately behind the drag pick because you don't want the grinding wheel to contact the drag pick. From a sharpener's perspective, it's a "dead zone" because the grinding wheel can't access it. This region can be sharpened via a special cross-grinder wheel or hand-sharpening tool. Many techs don't bother because you normally don't skate on this region. You would skate on this region only if the ice is very soft, and you are rising up on your drag pick. This is typically considered bad form for a scratch spin; typically you will travel like crazy. You typically rock forward such the drag pick and the sweet spot contact the ice, and no further.

Then I guess blades like Mark IV just have such a tiny toepick that the sharpener can reach all the way and therefore there's no "dead zone" on the lower level blades. Whereas the higher level blades all have drag picks large enough that there's always a "dead zone" right behind the drag pick. I was just curious if all higher level blades have this "dead zone" or if it was something specific to Matrix blades.

I certainly learned to stay out of that dead area as quickly as possible when I switched blades because falling into it was like dropping off the edge of the earth. Not a fun feeling when you're in the middle of a camel spin.



Last fall, I experimented with a number of blades to find what I liked best...

Coronation Ace ca. 2007 with a rocker flattened to 8'
Coronation Ace ca. 2019
MK Professional
Ultima UB40 Protege
Eclipse Dance
Gold Seal
Pattern 99

I prefered the Gold Seal and the Pattern 99 in my tests. I'm currently using the Pattern 99 blades and like them a lot. The bottom pick is substantially larger than the GS and others, but that hasn't been nearly the problem I feared.

Both blades have main rockers over 8' radius, with the Gold Seal measuring 8.2 feet, and the P99 measuring 8.9' (!). Both are advertised to be 8' rockers.

One thing I realized is that the Gold Seal is a long blade, with the tail being about 1/4" longer than the P99. You might be stepping on your tail a little more often with a GS, but I really liked the blade regardless.

In my experiments, I found that I could easily adapt to differences in the main rockers within a few minutes, but it took longer to get used to spin rocker differences. For some of the blades, I un-mounted them before I could learn to spin on them. I adapted to spinning on the GS and the P99 the easiest.

Thanks! Good warning about the tail difference. I lost about 1/3 or 1/4 of my tail when I transferred to Edea boots since they require shorter blades. It felt really strange at first and almost a sensation like I would tip backwards off the end of my shorter tail. But that was the least-disruptive change I had to deal with.

Do you have any opinions on why skaters should choose GS or P99? If they're a good spinner go with GS, or a good jumper go with P99 etc? I think I can adapt to P99's toe pick, I just don't know if GS or P99 would be better for me. I just hear GS is far more popular than P99 for some reason.
 

Bill S

Rinkside
Joined
Jan 31, 2019
Country
United-States
The rockers of Gold Seal and Pattern 99 blades are very, very similar. I wouldn't expect a big difference in spinning between them. I didn't favor one over the other for spinning after skating in each of them for a couple weeks.

Here is a graphic that I made by tracing the two blades and overlaying them in Photoshop. This makes detecting rocker differences easy, but as you can see, there isn't much difference.
https://www.afterness.com/skating/images/boots_blades_2019/pattern_99/pattern_99_gold_seal_tracing_comp.gif

The toe picks, of course, are very different. The P99 also has lower stanchions which might help control the pick-in a little better. It would have less twisting leverage on the boot when jumping. The taller stanchions on the GS should give it an edge when you are at extreme lean angles so that you don't boot out. However this is more theoretical than what you actually feel in real skating.

I don't know why GS blades sell more. The tapered blades and side honing of a GS add cost with a small potential benefit*, so perhaps, like tasting wines, the more expensive one seems better.

*My own GS blades had a side hone that didn't extend to the cutting edge, so contrary to some claims, it could add NO benefit in edge grip. I could feel the effects of the tapered blade however, mostly during quick edge changes.
 

Ic3Rabbit

Former Elite, now Pro. ⛸️
Record Breaker
Joined
Jan 9, 2017
Country
Olympics
Thanks, yes I'm on Legacy 8" rocker. Does having a more curved rocker on the Gold Seal make it easier or harder to spin? Or will I probably not even notice much of a difference since I've never struggled with spins anyway?
Yeah, a larger bottom pick doesn't sound as appealing, which is why I'm leaning towards Gold Seal over P99.


Do you know anything about the "death zone" thing I was talking about up there?

More curve should help you spin even better.

Yes, the area you affectionately call the "death zone" is the part under the drag/bottom pick that isn't sharpened.

Again, I've worn or tested just about every intermediate and high level blade out there, I personally settled on a P99 for my freestyle blade. I'm pretty balanced between jumping, spinning and artistry, etc. I love my p99. (I love a large drag pick).

I've worn Gold Seals and liked them, as well as MK Phantoms. I tested the Gold Star, it was fine, but not my favorite.
 

NanaPat

Record Breaker
Joined
Oct 25, 2014
Country
Canada
There is a video of Tarah Kayne and Danny O'Shea by Wilson blades where they talk about their blades. Short version: he wears Gold Seals, she has P99, and they each passionately defend their blades as THE BEST.

I found the video very amusing for the interaction between them; the OP may also find it informative.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wPqZ3zeryH8 (skip ahead to 10:00 for the blade discussion)
 

WednesdayMarch

Nicer When Fed
Medalist
Joined
Mar 24, 2019
Country
United-Kingdom
Then I guess blades like Mark IV just have such a tiny toepick that the sharpener can reach all the way and therefore there's no "dead zone" on the lower level blades. Whereas the higher level blades all have drag picks large enough that there's always a "dead zone" right behind the drag pick. I was just curious if all higher level blades have this "dead zone" or if it was something specific to Matrix blades.

I certainly learned to stay out of that dead area as quickly as possible when I switched blades because falling into it was like dropping off the edge of the earth. Not a fun feeling when you're in the middle of a camel spin.

My MK Dance blades have a tiny dead zone, less than 1cm. They have a tiny toe pick. I could spin on them but not as well as on my Phantoms.


Thanks! Good warning about the tail difference. I lost about 1/3 or 1/4 of my tail when I transferred to Edea boots since they require shorter blades. It felt really strange at first and almost a sensation like I would tip backwards off the end of my shorter tail. But that was the least-disruptive change I had to deal with.

I recently swapped back to MK Phantoms from MK Dance because I just didn't feel comfortable with the short tail. I think I only used the Dance blades for a short time prior to my (somewhat catastrophic) accident back in 1999 and coming back after 18 years, I just didn't feel safe on them, especially with the lower height of my dance boots. (Everything else I loved, especially the narrow profile and seriously slick speed and edge changes.) I gave it two years, still hated the lack of heel and gave up. Going to back to Phantoms (which are the other extreme from Dance!), I'm deliriously happy. I was worried about the massive picks (no problem at all, as it turns out, because I skate on the correct part of the blade) and also the much longer tail. In order to compensate for the extra length, especially as I'm really a dancer and have very close footwork, I always have them 1/4" shorter than my boot length. Mounted flush at the front, just 1/4" in from the heel. Works very well for me. And my spins are back...
 

tstop4me

Final Flight
Joined
Oct 2, 2015
Country
United-States
Then I guess blades like Mark IV just have such a tiny toepick that the sharpener can reach all the way and therefore there's no "dead zone" on the lower level blades. Whereas the higher level blades all have drag picks large enough that there's always a "dead zone" right behind the drag pick. I was just curious if all higher level blades have this "dead zone" or if it was something specific to Matrix blades.
<<Emphasis added.>> That's not a correct guess. If the blade is sharpened with a conventional grinding wheel only, there will always be some dead zone for standard figure skating blades, regardless of whether the drag pick is small or large, and regardless of whether it's a low-level blade or a high-level blade. The extent of the dead zone will depend on the geometry of the drag pick and spin rocker, as well as the diameter of the grinding wheel ... and the skill of the tech. As I mentioned previously, there are special tools that will allow sharpening in this region. Even when these are used, however, typically you can feel some discontinuity in the hollow with your fingertip (unless the tech did an exceptional job), although you might not notice anything amiss upon casual visual inspection.

I haven't taken a close look at a Mark IV straight from the factory. But it would be unusual for there to be special factory finishing on a low-end blade. Did the same tech sharpen your Mark IV and your Legacy? Also, how well (or poorly) the dead zone is finished at the factory is highly variable. Another possible consideration is that the dead zone on your Legacy happens to have a really rough finish.
 

Nimyue

On the Ice
Joined
May 15, 2018
The only thing I'd like to add is that, well, you will never need a P99 or GS. There's really no reason to spend that sort of money. I mean maaaybe if you start landing dbl flips and lutz and start double double combos, but even then you don't NEED it. You can wear a CA or MK Pro for the rest of your skating life just fine.

I understand wanting a high level blade. I really really really want patterns... for ... reasons? But basically both my coaches told me it would be fine if I wanted them, but really sort of a waste of money. I have a solid 2S now, am landing some 2T, and have landed a couple 2L. My jumps are also rather large for an adult. So if I ever start landing 2Lz or doing double-doubles I'll probably get a P99, but frankly, even though I have large jumps, am a natural jumper, etc this is sort of a pipe dream lol. Most likely I'l be wearing my Eclipse Aurora (CA clone) for the rest of my skating life.

But ultimately, if you have plenty of money to afford them, I guess why not? Just don't feel like you have to.

ETA: Also you might end up hating the JW spin rockers, and that's a LOT of money to spend on a blade you might not like. I'd try the CA first so if you hate it, it's only a $200 experiment instead of a $500 one.
 

Arwen17

Final Flight
Joined
Jan 20, 2017
<<Emphasis added.>> That's not a correct guess. If the blade is sharpened with a conventional grinding wheel only, there will always be some dead zone for standard figure skating blades, regardless of whether the drag pick is small or large, and regardless of whether it's a low-level blade or a high-level blade. The extent of the dead zone will depend on the geometry of the drag pick and spin rocker, as well as the diameter of the grinding wheel ... and the skill of the tech. As I mentioned previously, there are special tools that will allow sharpening in this region. Even when these are used, however, typically you can feel some discontinuity in the hollow with your fingertip (unless the tech did an exceptional job), although you might not notice anything amiss upon casual visual inspection.

I haven't taken a close look at a Mark IV straight from the factory. But it would be unusual for there to be special factory finishing on a low-end blade. Did the same tech sharpen your Mark IV and your Legacy? Also, how well (or poorly) the dead zone is finished at the factory is highly variable. Another possible consideration is that the dead zone on your Legacy happens to have a really rough finish.


Yep same skate sharpener for both blades and he never did anything special to them. That dead zone was just the way they came from the factory. Maybe the Legacy dead zone is larger than normal. But I have no idea without someone else's blades to compare to. I think most of my rink is in low-level blades or JW/MK. I think I'm one of the only ones with Matrix blades.



The only thing I'd like to add is that, well, you will never need a P99 or GS. There's really no reason to spend that sort of money. I mean maaaybe if you start landing dbl flips and lutz and start double double combos, but even then you don't NEED it. You can wear a CA or MK Pro for the rest of your skating life just fine.

I understand wanting a high level blade. I really really really want patterns... for ... reasons? But basically both my coaches told me it would be fine if I wanted them, but really sort of a waste of money. I have a solid 2S now, am landing some 2T, and have landed a couple 2L. My jumps are also rather large for an adult. So if I ever start landing 2Lz or doing double-doubles I'll probably get a P99, but frankly, even though I have large jumps, am a natural jumper, etc this is sort of a pipe dream lol. Most likely I'l be wearing my Eclipse Aurora (CA clone) for the rest of my skating life.

But ultimately, if you have plenty of money to afford them, I guess why not? Just don't feel like you have to.

ETA: Also you might end up hating the JW spin rockers, and that's a LOT of money to spend on a blade you might not like. I'd try the CA first so if you hate it, it's only a $200 experiment instead of a $500 one.


yep, totally aware I'm overblading. But the internet is full of people doing it, so why not try it and see if I can feel any difference. If I decide I like Matrix better, I can always go back. Overall, I'm not really worried about it not working out. I'm really not expecting to notice much difference at all frankly, since I'm the type of skater who seems to be able to adjust to anything. If I knew a certain brand or whatever helped me skate better, then sure, stay with that. But since I'm jack-of-all-trades-can-skate-on-anything, might as well buy what interests me.


There is a video of Tarah Kayne and Danny O'Shea by Wilson blades where they talk about their blades. Short version: he wears Gold Seals, she has P99, and they each passionately defend their blades as THE BEST.

I found the video very amusing for the interaction between them; the OP may also find it informative.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wPqZ3zeryH8 (skip ahead to 10:00 for the blade discussion)



That's so cute! Basically what it amounts to with GS vs P99 is "do you want a more aggressive toe pick or not?"
 

NanaPat

Record Breaker
Joined
Oct 25, 2014
Country
Canada
That's so cute! Basically what it amounts to with GS vs P99 is "do you want a more aggressive toe pick or not?"

That and if you try a set of blades and like/love them, don't go looking around for something better. Tarah says something like "why would I change. They're the best!"
 

tstop4me

Final Flight
Joined
Oct 2, 2015
Country
United-States
That and if you try a set of blades and like/love them, don't go looking around for something better. Tarah says something like "why would I change. They're the best!"
But the quandary is: Even if you love the blades you have now, there might be a different pair that you will love even more. And you won't know, unless you're willing to experiment.
 

Ic3Rabbit

Former Elite, now Pro. ⛸️
Record Breaker
Joined
Jan 9, 2017
Country
Olympics
But the quandary is: Even if you love the blades you have now, there might be a different pair that you will love even more. And you won't know, unless you're willing to experiment.

Hence why I've tried like every blade out there! :laugh:
 

NanaPat

Record Breaker
Joined
Oct 25, 2014
Country
Canada
That and if you try a set of blades and like/love them, don't go looking around for something better. Tarah says something like "why would I change. They're the best!"

But the quandary is: Even if you love the blades you have now, there might be a different pair that you will love even more. And you won't know, unless you're willing to experiment.

Hence why I've tried like every blade out there! :laugh:

You guys may be willing or eager to try different blades, but Tarah and Danny are definitely not. According to the video, Danny has only ever used Gold Seals, and Tarah has been in P99s since she got a pair to replace her first (unnamed) low-end blades.
 

Ic3Rabbit

Former Elite, now Pro. ⛸️
Record Breaker
Joined
Jan 9, 2017
Country
Olympics
You guys may be willing or eager to try different blades, but Tarah and Danny are definitely not. According to the video, Danny has only ever used Gold Seals, and Tarah has been in P99s since she got a pair to replace her first (unnamed) low-end blades.

I tried mine coming up the ranks or did tests for the blade people. I have stuck with my P99's for a very long time since.
 

tstop4me

Final Flight
Joined
Oct 2, 2015
Country
United-States
You guys may be willing or eager to try different blades, but Tarah and Danny are definitely not. According to the video, Danny has only ever used Gold Seals, and Tarah has been in P99s since she got a pair to replace her first (unnamed) low-end blades.
<<Emphasis added.>> And because of this, Danny has no data whatsoever (objective or subjective) to support his assertion that GS is the best, and Tarah has no data whatsoever (objective or subjective) to support her assertion that P99 is the best. All they are justified in saying is that their particular choices worked sufficiently well enough for them that they were not motivated to try anything else. If they had tried something different, then they might have been bitterly disappointed at the one extreme or over-the-top astounded at the other (or, more likely, something in between) ... but they'll never know. So what is the rationale for proposing that the Danny and Tarah blade philosophy is a wise one to follow? Ic3, on the other hand, has a rock-solid basis on which to state that P99 is the best for her ... because she's tried them all. As Mr. Spock would say, "That's logical."
 

Arwen17

Final Flight
Joined
Jan 20, 2017
You guys may be willing or eager to try different blades, but Tarah and Danny are definitely not. According to the video, Danny has only ever used Gold Seals, and Tarah has been in P99s since she got a pair to replace her first (unnamed) low-end blades.

<<Emphasis added.>> And because of this, Danny has no data whatsoever (objective or subjective) to support his assertion that GS is the best, and Tarah has no data whatsoever (objective or subjective) to support her assertion that P99 is the best. All they are justified in saying is that their particular choices worked sufficiently well enough for them that they were not motivated to try anything else. If they had tried something different, then they might have been bitterly disappointed at the one extreme or over-the-top astounded at the other (or, more likely, something in between) ... but they'll never know. So what is the rationale for proposing that the Danny and Tarah blade philosophy is a wise one to follow? Ic3, on the other hand, has a rock-solid basis on which to state that P99 is the best for her ... because she's tried them all. As Mr. Spock would say, "That's logical."

And this interview is posted on the JW youtube channel. The entire reason JW does these interviews with athletes is because of product endorsement deals. These athletes would never say anything else because they are being paid to endorse the JW product.
 
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