Algonquin's Zack May, 14, of Xtreme Wheels bound for nationals

CRYSTAL LAKE – When Zack May first walked into Xtreme Wheels Roller Skating and Family Fun Center almost two years ago, he wasn’t drawn to the neon-covered walls, the funky multicolored carpeting, or even the large assortment of blinking arcade games tucked in the corner.

Instead, May, a junior hockey player of six years, was only interested in the banner hanging prominently on the back wall that read, “Olympic Dreams Start Here.”

With it, a split image of eight-time Olympic medalist Apolo Ohno on the right, and Crystal Lake’s Hailey Leech, a four-time member of the Junior Women’s Inline Speed Skating World Team, on the left.

“That’s all it took,” said May, 14, of Algonquin. “All I wanted was to skate.”

Today, May is one of 25 kids and adults who compete on Xtreme Speed Racing, a growing inline speed skating team coached by three-time national champion Dean Hohl.

May has only been speed skating for a year and a half (like many of his first-time teammates who range from 5 years old to 62), but his background as a hockey player has given him a head start.

On Saturday, May will compete in the USARS Indoor National Championships in Omaha, Nebraska. He qualified by placing fourth in the Freshman Boys division at the Great Lakes Regional Speed Championships on May 27 to 28 in Canton, Michigan.

May, who will compete against skaters in his age group, was surprised by his immediate success despite picking up the sport less than two years ago. The costs associated with hockey made the swap of ice for hardwood the right choice for May and his family.

“I think it’s like really surprising to me because I’ve never done any nationals, or anything like this before,” said May, who will compete in 300-, 500- and 1,000-meter races. “I’ve done hockey for six years, too, and that gave me some training for skating before I did this.”

May isn’t expecting to place at nationals as a first-timer, but his goal is to advance to the finals. His favorite race is the 300 because he’s a better sprinter than long-distance skater, he said.

“I’m just hoping to try it out and see, and see how fast people are in my age group,” May said. “I know a lot of people there are way faster than me already, so I’m going to see my competition.”

Hohl, who opened Xtreme Wheels (formerly Crystal Wheels) in 1997, has coached a handful of teams over his 40-plus years of competitive skating, producing 17 national champs.

He used to coach the Dundee Flyers at Roxy Wheels in West Dundee, and he most recently was a national champion in 2013 and previously held the 500-meter national roller speed skating record.

Last year, Xtreme Speed’s Kole Zimmerman placed at nationals at 5 years old. That, however, is more the exception to the rule, Hohl said. Most national champions take five years to make, and the older you get, the more difficult it becomes.

“Lots of skating, lots of off skate, working out indoors and outdoors, weightlifting ... the complete program,” Hohl said. “We do everything for the kids. But first-year kids, we can’t train them like a national champion. Their bodies, their minds – they can’t handle it because it takes so much out of them.”

May isn’t the only member of his family on the team. His sister, Abby, also joined when she saw her big brother glide around the rink. Now, Zack says, he can get up to anywhere from 20 to 30 miles per hour.

Lake Zurich’s Marion Scott, an avid runner before experiencing knee discomfort, didn’t expect to be among those lacing up her skates when her youngest daughter, Eleri, 11, expressed interest in speed skating.

“She, for whatever reason, wanted to go fast,” said Scott, one of five members of her family on the team, including Ryan, 15, Seanan, 13, and Brennan, 7.

“It’s actually really one of the few things I can do with them because it’s all ages, and we all start at the same spot. I’ve been an athlete for a long time, but never have done anything like this.”

Scott quickly learned that speed skating is harder than it looks.

“It’s one of those sports where you try to perfect it and you never do, so there’s always more to learn,” Scott said. “The only problem is I don’t like to race when my kids are in there, because we’re all very competitive, and half of the time we end up elbowing and tripping each other.”

All the bumps, scrapes and bruises that come with it are a part of the learning curve.

During Monday night’s practice, May crossed his feet and leaned in to the corner turn like he has hundreds of times before. At the instruction of assistant Tom Sidor – “Go! Zack! Go! “ – he raced to the front of the line, clipped a teammate, fell face first and hit the ground with a loud thud.

May stayed on the ground briefly, but was back on his feet at the next opportunity.

“I usually don’t fall a lot, but it happens every once in a while,” May said. “I’ve fallen at meets a lot more. We’re just all so close, and just passing, you’ll hit each other’s skates just a little bit, and someone will go flying and we’ll all trip over (each other) and make one big dogpile.”

May hopes to avoid a major fall at nationals, but just getting there is a big first step. As he gets older, he’ll train longer hours and more frequently, but for now, he’s just happy to be skating.