How Perth's king and queen of skating keep rolling back the years

ABC NEWS (Australia)

When Peter and Barbara Rye put on their rollerskates, they move in a kind of unison that only comes after five decades of marriage — three of them on wheels.

Transcript

00:00It's a special kind of unison, afforded after 50 years of marriage.

00:10Peter and Barbara were crowned state champions in the couple's dance division.

00:15They were also the only skaters.

00:19It's a real shame that the young skaters aren't still doing it because they can do so much more than we can now.

00:27But the lack of competition hasn't stopped them from training three times a week.

00:32It's still fun, it's still rewarding to go out there and compete.

00:38To push yourself, so many people our age just sort of vegetate rather than push yourself and keep achieving,

00:44even if sometimes you can't achieve what you used to be able to achieve.

00:50Over three decades, they've witnessed the artistic event go out of fashion.

00:55What's kept them going is simple, a shared love for the sport and the community.

01:04I've always said, and it's unfortunately becoming less and less so as our fans have faded away one way or the other,

01:10that the national championships isn't so much a competition as a reunion.

01:16But with new skaters coming through the doors, the couple are hopeful it can be revived.

01:21If they get roller skating to the Olympics, everyone will want to go.

01:25Like skateboarding did, everyone will want to try it.

01:27And that's a good thing. So that will keep us going.

01:29A sport wanting to bounce back.

01:35With Peter and Barbara locked in for the ride.

01:40It's 84.

01:44and a guy like bird earlier.

01:45Old ruler over there is control 18,325 over the ride.

01:49This is a physical resistance side that's a lean military chair that you're ready to ride with.

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