Inline skates By facebooker_10216938607518719 1800 Different people experimented with roller skates 1970 Models that combined skate and boot in one unit appeared. 1970 Roller disco was popular 1980 Rollerblade launched Team Rollerblade Period: 1989 to 1995 The number of new entry-level inline skaters increased by almost 50 percent for a number of years, going from 2.5 million to 18.5 million. 1990 Inline skating became popular. 1990 Inline skating was one of the fastest-growing leisure activities in the United States. 1990 Inline skating became a fitness and leisure trend. 1990 In Europe, sales topped out 1993 More than 50,000 people contacted the National In-Line Hockey Association to get more information about the sport. Jun 24, 1995 The first annual Extreme Games, broadcast by ESPN and included inline skating. 1997 The magazine ESPN Total Sports reported that Arlo Eisenberg was “the Picasso of skating.” Period: 1998 to 2004 The number of inline skaters in the United States who skated at least once a year dropped by almost 50 percent