Vinyl vs. Leather - What Makes a Better Roller Derby Boot?

All of the boots we recommend for derby are either leather or vinyl.  Generally speaking, high-end leather skates are superior in most ways, besides the ethical ones for those that prefer cows still mooing.  But in the lower price ranges, that's not so much the case - in many ways, vinyl boots are superior to similarly priced leather - especially for rookie derby skaters.   Of course, not all vinyl boot-wearers are rookies.  We're often asked to help skaters find vegan (non-leather) skates that are appropriate for what we do.   And actually, vinyl skates do have some features that make them an attractive choice.

FIT

Vinyl is flexible and forgiving - especially compared to leather skates in the same price range.  If you're not absolutely sure about what size you wear, vinyl can be a good compromise.  Vinyl skates don't break in - they are not going to mold to your feet like leather will.  The truth is that by the time your feet start changing the fit of those skates, the vinyl is breaking down.  Depending on how hard you skate in them, and how often, once the vinyl starts to break down, you may have from a few weeks to a few months left in them.  But the good news is that while you do have them (usually about a season), they're good skates; usually comfy, usually inexpensive, usually a very good buy.  And vinyl skates in the beginning price ranges tend to run medium width (Boxers, R3s, Pacers), while most of  the similarly priced leather skates veer towards narrow (Torq, Carerra) or very wide (Rock).   So your odds of getting a comfortable fit in them - especially ordering mail-order - are considerably higher in vinyl boots.

DURABILITY

The fact is, vinyl is not durable - not like quality leather.  But the reason we recommend vinyl boots over the leather ones in the same price range is pretty simple.   $100 skates aren't made of quality leather.   The only way manufacturers can afford to produce leather boots at that price point is to use lower quality leather and overseas workmanship.  And that lower quality leather typically has a stiffening agent added to it to help it last longer.  The boot may theoretically last longer due to the stiffening agent - the jury is out on that one.  My experience was that my first two pairs of lower-quality leather skates (both made overseas) were no more durable than vinyl.  Neither lasted longer than a season, either.  But the same stiffener that is meant to make the leather more durable also makes it, well - stiffer.  Similar-quality leather boots are harder to break in, far less forgiving in slightly wrong sizes (read: blisters & callouses in loose boots, foot pain & worse in tight boots - sometimes both if you're really unlucky).   The comparison of vinyl boots to really well-made, high-end leather boots stacks up a lot higher for the latter, though.  When you start comparing the counters - the ankle, arch & foot support - in vinyl vs. best-quality leather boots (like 265s, 595s, 695s), then it's a whole new ball game.   The 265s and better are a lot more durable in many ways.

COST

Vinyl boots are cheaper than US-made, high-quality leather boots.  They're also usually a little cheaper than similar price-point leather boots, as well.  For about $100, an average rookie skater can get vinyl boots that will last her about a season, less if she skates hard and practice constantly - longer if she's mellow, still learning to skate, or just skates more recreationally. 

However, you can't talk about cost without talking about durability again - how much did you spend and how long will that last you before you have to buy skates again?  If you do skate really hard, you're likely to tear through really high-end skates quickly, as well.  In the durability bit above, we talked about vinyl vs. cheap leather.  For my money, I'd choose vinyl every time.  But how does vinyl do against high-end, quality leather boots? 

Not so good.  High-end boots still wear out in our sport.  It won't be as fast, and good skates made of good quality materials by hand by little old ladies in a factory filled with pictures of their grandkids will be better crafted, more comfortable, better-fitting, better engineered for our sport, and have more support and features you will love - and NEED, once you're out of the rookie stages.  But at the rate I'm going, personally, I'm still tearing through great (expensive) skates at the rate of about one pair per season, as well.  Maybe less than a season.  To compare, I sincerely doubt I'd even get a solid month out of a pair of stock vinyl boots.  I guarantee that my well-made, relatively expensive leather boots are better in a thousand ways than any pair of vinyl boots.  But while they are far more durable, especially, like I mentioned before, when you factor in the counters - the fact remains that derby beats the shit out of more than just our bodies.   

So basically, to compare cost and durability, you end up with an equation that is made up of your experience level, how aggressive you skate, what type of surface you're on (concrete eats skates) - and how much you're willing to spend, how often.  My favorite track skates are high quality leather with upgrades - 265s.  They're 6 months old and look like I backed my conversion van over them - repeatedly.  Outfitted the way they are, they would have cost me $447 if I bought them as is at my shop.  I think I could get at least another 3-5 quality, comfortable months out of them if I tried (and could switch a lot of the hardware out to new boots, so that's not money lost).  But I skate on concrete, I'm all over the track, I practice 4 days a week and play a game every weekend - I'm guessing I'm probably about as hard on skates as rollergirl could be.  Vinyl boots wouldn't last me a minute. 

ETHICS

All skates - without exception - in that $100 or so price range, are made in China - and all skates, at this moment, that aren't made in China, are made of leather.  For those with strong ethical reasons for choosing vinyl, that may be a consideration.  Is choosing a non-animal product ultimately better from an ethical perspective than choosing a product made in far-lower-than-US-standards of factory working conditions?  Since all mass-produced skates made in the United States are made of leather, the only way to get US-made vinyl boots is to have them special ordered.  The problem is that to have them made in vinyl would be expensive, prohibitively so for a material not likely to last longer than a season.   So I don't have a solution for that, unfortunately.  We've been asking manufacturers to make a US boot with all synthetic materials (vinyl on the outside, cambrill or equivalent lining) for over a year, and we don't have anything yet.  But if enough people ask for it, I bet they'll come around!

About the Author

Ivanna S. Pankin owns and operates the Sin City Skates roller derby gear shop and skates for the Sin City Rollergirls in Fabulous Las Vegas.  She founded Arizona Roller Derby in 2003, skated in the first ever inter-league game against Texas Rollergirls in 2004, and moved to Las Vegas in 2005 to more easily plan RollerCon, the annual roller derby convention her new league hosts every summer.  She's not an expert, but she has quite a bit of experience and she won't bullshit you!

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This was written for publication in a derby magazine, and the editor asked for that last bit.  I left it in for comic relief so that you guys that know me could get a giggle out of it.  xox ivanna