*ColdForged waggles eyebrows*

I started at 23 and love it even though I'm late to the game as well. I know lots of guys that have picked the sport up in their 30s and 40s and love it too. I used to play in a morning pickup game before work that had a 65 and a 63 year old guy playing. Both were pretty solid, too. Hockey really isn't about age so much as commitment. Because the game requires you to essentially reteach your entire body how to move to play the game, it takes a pretty strong force of will to say 'Dammit, I want to get better at this' and put in the time. If your local rink has public skates, go to as many as you absolutely can, all they require is a bit of cash and your own skates. Find a pro shop with a friendly experienced equipment guy to help you with skates in particular. A lot of rinks also have what's called a 'stick & puck' where the only gear requirements are skates, helmet and stick. Basically kids just skate around, take some breakaways on goalies and practice their own stuff. If you don't want to buy all the eq up front (and I can understand that!), get that equipment guy to help you out with the basics for stick and puck and get some time in those. Then pick up the rest of the gear a few pieces at a time, or all of it when you're ready for 'learn to play' classes. The biggest reason for having all your gear at those is because to really learn to skate, you need to fall...a lot. If you're not falling, you're probably not trying hard enough But, a good eq guy will help you find the pieces that are comfortable for you, and supportive. I tried on 4 different pairs of pants before I found the ones I liked, same with elbows and shoulders.

That being said, hockey is the greatest game there is. The speed at which it can be played is mind blowing. The athleticism required to skate at top speed, weave between players, control the puck, deke and deliver is tremendous. The amount of fun you can have just skating and screwing around on the ice is incredible. The fact that you can crash into guys at full speed, bounce a bit and keep on going makes it worth all that money.

The downside, of course, is the time commitment. You can really only learn to skate by getting lots of ice. Find an adult skating skills class nearby, too. I took a huge leap in my development after I took my first skating class and realized what I was doing wrong and what I needed to learn. I took what I picked up there and made myself do a lot of drills at public skates. It's really hard to play the game at all before you can hockey stop on both sides well, so make sure you're practicing that.

I teach friends how to skate all the time at my rink. I love doing it, and I think I can explain/demonstrate/give advice pretty well. My best advice really is to find someone who's a better skater than you are that will go to publics with you and help you out. And/or make friends with the skate guards And do it a lot! Any ice is good ice!

Give me a call if you're ever near northern delaware!

I started playing floor hockey and should be making the progression to ice hockey within a year or so. I'm only 20 and can rollerblade quite well so basically I just need to learn how to stop on skates (I could never get that when I first learned).

What position do you want to play?

Thanks for the words Mix. It's been a dream of mine to get into the game as well. I think as soon as things settle down I'm going to do some of those adult skating lessons to get started.

Dunno! I imagine it'll depend somewhat on what fits me. I have a feeling I'll wind up a defenseman. I'm relatively big (6'2", 215) and I'm more of a defender... in CTF games I'm not the guy that heads in for the flag, I'm the guy that protects and fetches ours. That said, I'd love to be a winger or even a center. I don't know that I'll have the right stuff for it, though. Don't want to be a goalie. Just don't.

I was about to say, we always start folks up in the forwards because, if they screw up, they fail to score (as opposed to giving up goals).

This is so true. I coach a team at my university (it's just floor hockey) and I make a point of praising my defencemen as much as possible.

I play centre but in a pinch I'm known to switch to any position that is needed. That's one of the many things I love about hockey, you are not locked into one position...even during a shift.

Not to mention that good defense requires agility to not get beat by fast guys and sharp passers. I hate lazy defensemen that don't move up with the play or get back fast enough.

I would say if you are interested in learning how to play hockey your best bet is to find someone who can skate really well and can show you the basic technique of how to skate well. Don't jump into that class where you have to buy all the gear and stuff, you will just get frustrated because your ability to skate isn't up to par. Things you need to learn are how to skate forward (of course) and take turns while crossing over with your feet so that you can keep or build up your speed for the straight away. Most people can cross over really well one way but have a tough time the other. Really work on getting good on your weak side. You don't have to be great just good. You should also learn how to skate backwards and even turn while skating backwards. Don't worry about speed that will happen once you have the technique of skating backwards down properly. Once you can skate both forwards and backwards you should than learn how to change from forwards to backwards on the fly without falling on your ass or loosing balance (especially if you want to play defense). Of course somewhere during all this you also need to learn how to stop, especially the power stop using the edge of your blades. It can be pretty intimidating to do at first but if you start of slow you will find it really isn't all that hard or scary. I started skating when I was like 7 or 8 years old and didn't learn to stop until about 2 years later. I would just do big banana turns or stop at the boards or fall into a snow bank to stop. Once someone took the time to teach me how to stop I had it down in less than 20 minutes and it totally changed the way I skated.

Once you have learned to skate, than pick up a stick and puck and with a buddy just practice passing and shooting etc. Again it is always good to practice with someone who knows what they are doing and can teach the technique. One of the biggest things is to learn how to handle the puck with your stick without having to look at it. If you ever want to play a game of hockey it is crucial you learn to keep your head up so you can see where you are going. Skating with your head down is the fastest way to get rocked even in non contact hockey.

Once you have all that down than consider joining one of those workshops and buying all the equipment etc.

The most important thing about skating is to make sure you have the right size skates. Make sure your skates are tight fighting. Generally you should be looking for skates that are half a size smaller than your shoes. Wearing skates that are too big for your feet will make it really hard to learn how to skate properly and bloody ankles as you'll find it hard to keep your ankles straight and the skates will rub your ankles raw. You should also ask around to find out where the best place to sharpen skates are as a bad edge can also make it impossibleto skate properly.

I have played some form of organized hockey for about half of my life. It can be a lot of fun. Left or Right Wing is the easiest position to play while defense (if played properly) is the most difficult. So start as a forward and if you like defense keep practicing footwork especially while skating backwards.

CF, I live in Raleigh and work at a hockey pro shop. Come check out Coolsports if you are still in need of equipment.

But skates are the most important part! Good, comfy, sharp skates will improve your skating in leaps and bounds. You'll have much better balance and lean control and be able to make sharper turns and quicker stops. Also, if you spend too much time in rentals you'll have to do some relearning when you get real skates. Plus, you can get your own skates baked to fit your feet. Just a helpful tip

Give in CF...Give in! Skates are a hockey players best friend (unless you are a goalie, their best friend is the goal post).

CF, I was off today, but there are only three or four guys who work there and all of them know what they're talking about. Coolsports has been getting in new products every week, including skates and sticks. As far as skates go, I would recommend something above entry level if you can sacrifice the money for it. There is a huge difference just between entry level and a mid range boot, including the whole baking issue as well. Since I wasn't there I can't tell you what boot would be best, but definately try lots of stuff on if possible. Good luck with your new sport

So how ya doin Coldie?

Excellent! Backward skating is a big hurdle for some people, I'm very impressed. I play defense a lot because I'm willing to, so I'm big on backward skating and backward footwork. It's mostly about the hips and using your center of gravity to get you moving in the right direction. Keep it up!