Skating in Nakuru town has gone up a new level as people from all walks of life embrace it.
There are youths who now go to school on the skates but more so, new business opportunities have arisen out of the sport that is quickly attracting many.
Every Sunday, a training ground is opened behind Maasai Curio Market in Nakuru just outside National Bank. The training ground which is usually roped off to keep away motorists provides an ample space for the trainees to practice the sport that others consider risky. However, the proprietors are making good money out of the exercise with each participant paying Kshs. 300.
The trainees who range from kids of about four years to adults are provided by skating shoes for the training and a reflective jacket for the day. If they are to practice in the course of the week, they have to buy their own skating shoes. This has opened up new business opportunities for enterprising businessmen.
“I started selling skating shoes around the middle of last year when people started taking skating more seriously. Young people were coming to ask for the shoes and I took the risk to bring the shoes,” says a trader who sells the second hand skating shoes near Legacy Hotel in Nakuru.
With more and more people taking up skating, the business opportunities in skating can only improve.