My Review of Online Jump Rope Dealers

(I am not sure why I can't format paragraphs....) I am forever in search of the perfect rope. Although I've noted on previous blog entries that the Lifeline Speed Rope is my favorite, it is not perfect. The cord is a bit on the stiff side. Therefore, I have spent countless dollars on various sites looking for the perfect rope. In this blog entry, I will review three sites that I have ordered from A jump rope is a fairly simple equipment....a rope and some handles and you're good to go. But there is a "feel" to it that is a bit undescribable. And what may feel good to me may not feel good to others. So take everything written with a grain of salt. With that said, I recommend ordering from companies that specialize in jump ropes as opposed to sporting good store brands. Ropes that you can find at a sporting good store tend to break faster and there aren't too many size options available. The first site I ordered from is http:www.buyjumpropes.net. I've ordered their Championship Freestyle Rope, Cable Freestyle Rope, short handled Licorice Rope, beaded rope, the Quad Speed Cable Rope as well as accesories. I will only talk about their beaded and Championship Freestyle because those are the ropes I use the most. Their beaded rope is quite light. I would check to make sure the knots are tied correctly because one of them wasn't and the rope slid through the handle and the bead went flying everywhere. It should be tied in a figure 8 knot for security. The handles aren't unbreakable but then again, I was doing releases on concrete so I was probably treating it too harshly. But overall, a good beaded rope, I went with the one inch beads and had my color combination custom made (a nice option). The Championship Freestyle is a long handled rope that is designed to make executing certain moves like crosses easier. Nice choice of handle colors, maybe not a big deal to some but it's a nice option to have. The cord is a bit thin and that is the one critique I have of this company. I wish they offered different cord thickness for their other ropes (e.g. short handle licorice rope) but they are all the same. The strength of this company (aside from their customer service that all the companies I'm reviewing excel at) is that their ropes are fully adjustable. They have these cord ends that you pull apart and can slide along the length of the rope so the size of the rope will be perfect for you. While tying knots is a fine option, adjusting it this way is more precise and aesthetically is more pleasing. Another great thing about this company is that you can buy replacement handles, cords and cord ends if your rope breaks. So no need to buy a whole new rope. When ordering your rope, it may be advisable to order spare parts. Overall, a great company and highly recommended. The next site is www.jumprope.com . I've ordered their standard speed rope, their fitness speed rope and the Lite Beads beaded rope. Onething I really love about this company is the variety. Their PVC cords come in 3 different thickness. Their standard speed rope is in the middle (about the same thickness as the Lifeline Speed Rope but more pliable). Their fitness rope is their thickest (about the same thickness as the Sports Authority Professional Speed Rope that I reviewed in a previous blog). I don't own their long handled freestyle rope but it's their thinnest cord (I'm assuming about the same thickness as the Championship Freestyle). The handles on the standard speed rope is a bit on the small side, the handles on the fitness speed rope is about right for me. Their ropes are not adjustable so you have to tie knots to make the rope right for you (luckily, their 9 foot rope is sized perfectly...one thing to watch out for, not all 9 foot rope are sized equally. There is a surprising amount of variance between companies). They offer a wide range of rope length so jumper that are extremely tall or short shouldn't have a problem getting a rope that works for them. The standard speed rope is very nice, the cord thickness is just right and this will probably be the plastic rope I replace the Lifeline with. They also offer a variety of bead sizes. They have standard beads (either 1.5 or 0.75 inches long), Power beads for a bit more weight to give you a harder workout or their Lite Beads (1 or 2 inches). You can also choose to make your own rope, they will send you a string, beads and handles and you assemble the rope yourself. A nice option to have because it is much cheaper. I ordered their Lite Beads beaded rope. You need to buy a minimum 6 Lite Bead ropes (there's no minimum for the other bead type) but they are not expensive (roughly $6 a rope). The beads seem a bit heavier than the ones from buyjumpropes.net but when swinging it, didn't feel too much of a difference. The 9 foot bead ropes from jumprope.com were much shorter than then 9 foot bead ropes frombuyjumpropes.net. The 9 ft rope from jumprope.com was just right for me while I had to take out some beads from the rope from buyjumpropes.net (not a big deal either way as its better for the rope to be too long than too short). Like buyjumpropes.net, a quality company and highly recommended. The last site I want to review is www.jumpnrope.com. I tend to view this company as more high end for the competitive jumper although they offer various types of ropes. I've only ordered one rope from them, the R1 cable speed rope. But I feel compelled to write a review because this rope blew me away. I've liked a lot of ropes but none has ever blown me away. The handles are amazing, much smoother than the Quad Speed Cable Rope from buyjumpropes.net. The turn is almost effortless, that is how smooth it is. I call it a jump rope on steroids. Yet you still retain a feel for the rope. When stringing together multiple double unders with a plastic speed rope, my arm starts to tire and most I ever hit was around 65 (I have to qualify this by noting that I lift weights before I skip so some pre-fautigue). With the R1, I was able to hit 99 (not 100, 99!) the second time I used it. Then after another failed attempt at 100 (98 this time), I shattered my best by getting 108 unbroken double unders. Not all that impressive in the scheme of things but I'm not all that great a jump roper anyway. The R1 cable speed rope is just a super rope and anyone interested in speed skipping or breaking your double under best would do well to get this rope. So that's my review of 3 online jump rope dealer. You can't go wrong with any of them. At the very least, you'll get your order in timely fashion. Just like I've bought many ropes to find the right one for me, you'll probably have to order a few to find the right fit. But these companies are a good place to start. Happy jumping!