So my poor, long suffering husband-to-be, F, finally gave in and did it. It was my birthday last week and I woke up in the morning to find a large, lumpy shape lying next to me in my darkened bedroom, light pouring in from the hall.
My first thought was, Oh my God. I'm in the Godfather and it's a horse's head.
My second thought was, Oh my GOD!!!! It's a Zuca!!!
I've been having an internal battle about purchasing a Zuca for my very own, for longer than I care to admit - torn between my love of all things kitsch and over-the-top, and the generally upheld rink etiquette whereby you can only get away with a Zuca if you are a. six or b. landing at least your doubles. I am neither, therefore entertaining the thought of buying myself a Zuca was always a guilty pleasure.
So the dilemma was solved for me. Okay, yes, maybe I did send F the link to the Zuca site. And bizarrely he got directions to the skate shop from my mate Headscarf Skater, that I had given her for blade sharpening the month before! Karma. But I was still surprised and delighted to find he had for the second time in a year (the first time involved The Ring) got my present spot on!
So, to the review. Needless to say I am in love with my Zuca. For those who don't know, it is a two-part jobby (F bought mine whole from the shop) - the hard frame, which you can buy in different colours (mine's pink, as above) for around £100; and the inner bag, which is replaceable and costs around £40, and for which there are plenty of colourful designs. The frame is AMAZING - it can support up to 300lbs in weight so doubles up as a seat which is fantastic on public transport in rush hour!! You can also stack on top of it so it's brilliant for pulling your shopping home.
The bag is durable and water-repellent, with more pockets than a magician's trousers. There is room for EVERYTHING I need to train - the bag is basically like a locker on wheels. In the main bag itself I can fit my skates, hard guards, off-ice kit including trainers, and skating kit. There is a mesh pocket at the top of the inside section, like a hammock, where I put spare socks, my gloves and legwarmers. The locker "door" also unzips leaving space for my blade chamois, and has two further inner pockets attached to it where I put my work pass and wallet. On either side of the outer part of the bag there are two large pockets (which I use for my skipping rope, program CDs and ankle supports) and two small mobile-shaped pockets, which I use for my mobile phone, rink swipecard and spare change for the metro.
Pros of the bag are, in particular: a. it's VERY lightweight, which makes it easy to heft in and out of cars and up longer flights of stairs (for shorter staircases and kerbs, there are two sets of wheels, one on top of the other, to ease the bag up. The bottom set light up when you roll the bag and are self-generating, so no need for battery changes!). b. When you pull it, even when it's full, it feels like you're pulling nothing at all - I don't know how they did it but it's amazing! c. You always have a seat, no matter where you are; and d. it's SO roomy - just amazing what you can fit in that bad boy.
Cons: a. it doesn't handle going down kerbs or stairs as well as it does going up them, but if you take a good firm grip on the handle, it manages a lot better. b. The back of the bag (where it meets the frame at the rear) is the only place that is not double-lined and therefore if you have longer blades, like me, you'll find small holes appear at the back very quickly. Forums online suggest they don't get worse too quickly so I'm keeping an eye on them. c. The only other con I can mention is the top of the bag. You stick it to the frame with sticky-back velcro that's not so sticky, so the top can collapse away from the frame. I find it's easy to quickly re-stick but research suggests a dab of superglue might put a stop to it once and for all.
Basically, I've not stopped smiling since the Zuca landed in my bed, and every night I have trouble relinquishing my grip on it long enough for F to prise it out of my arms and take me to bed.
So my advice is do it. Get a Zuca. It's a controversial issue among skaters - do you have one? If not, have you thought about it? What's your opinion - super seat-bag or status symbol?
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