SACKVILLE, N.B. -- A New Brunswick couple is on a mission to prevent the aches and pains that come with learning how to skate.
However, their innovative product takes aim at the teacher -- not the student.
When Chris Patterson first started teaching his young children how to skate, it didn’t take long for him to realize that it can be a bit of a pain.
“I was bent over holding her up. We did one lap. She wasn’t having fun, I wasn’t really having fun, and we were like, ‘Let’s go,’ and there’s got to be a better way to get kids out at a young age skating and having fun on the ice,” says Patterson.
He and his wife Martine, who is a physiotherapist, got to work on what’s now known as the ABS Skate Trainer with Harness.
The two-stage glider is complete with a harness and handle, with a goal of helping little ones learn how to skate, while saving parents from a sore back.
“For me, I’m not comfortable on skates at all, so it gives me the confidence that I can go with my kids and go skating because I don’t have this person that I need to lift and support and try to teach them how to skate while I’m wobbling on the ice,” says Martine Patterson.
The Skate Trainer has come a long way from its original design of PVC pipe and an old Jolly Jumper harness. So far, the Sackville, N.B., couple says the reviews on their product have been positive -- including a glowing endorsement from their four-year-old son.
“I learned in the Skate Trainer and I got really fast from these new skates,” says Jake Patterson.
Chris Patterson says their invention has even helped children with disabilities hit the ice.
“One little guy that’s confined to a wheelchair, he was able to actually go out and have the feeling of skating for the first time ever in it, so that was pretty special for us to see that,” he says.
Tim Smith, who coaches his four-year-old son Layton’s hockey team, says he recommends the Skate Trainer to any parents planning to lace up with their little ones.
“I see a lot of parents struggle themselves on skates, with back issues, with just the ability to skate, so having the product really helps the parents and it helps the kids, just for a more enjoyable experience,” he says.
The ABS Skate Trainer with Harness is available online.
