Fast Forward Skate Center in Madison, WI

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Telephone:	+1 608-271-6222
Website:	www.fastforwardskate.com
Address:	4649 Verona Rd, Madison, WI, 53711 Allied Dunn's Marsh
Nearby public transportation stops & stations:	1.8 miMetro Transit 2.8 miHill Farms State Transportation Building Bus Stop (Westbound) 2.8 miHill Farms State Transportation Building Bus Stop (Eastbound)
Categories:	Skating Rinks Music Venues

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Bussiness info

Accepts Credit Cards	Yes
Accepts Bitcoin	No
Parking	Private Lot
Bike Parking	Yes
Wheelchair Accessible	Yes
Good for Kids	Yes
Good for Groups	Yes
Ambience	Casual
Noise Level	Loud

Music	DJ, Live
Good For Dancing	No
Alcohol	No
Happy Hour	No
Best Nights	Wed, Fri, Sat
Coat Check	No
Smoking	Outdoor Area/ Patio Only
Outdoor Seating	No
Has TV	Yes

Today

Today	7:00 pm – 10:00 pm Closed now
Local time (Madison)	10:33 PM Friday, May 30, 2025

Business hours

Monday	–
Tuesday	–
Wednesday	6:45 pm – 8:45 pm
Thursday	–
Friday	7:00 pm – 10:00 pm
Saturday	1:00 pm – 4:00 pm 7:00 pm – 10:00 pm
Sunday	1:00 pm – 4:00 pm

Description

Specialties

Skate to your favorite music hits new and old and feel like a kid again. Fast Forward Skate Center offers open public roller skating, birthday parties, private rink rentals for individuals or business’, roller hockey, roller derby a coin arcade and a full concession stand stocked with hot foods, cold foods, snacks and drinks.

History

Established in 1990.

Fast Forward Skate Center has been in Madison for over 20 years. It bought up what used to be Schwoeglers bowling alley and was turned into the venue it is today. Fast Forward has been a pioneer in speed skating, roller hockey and roller derby. It is a wonderful place for kids and adults alike.

Our roller hockey league has multiple teams and players that play nationally and have won medals at numerous tournamenents including NARCH and State Wars. Our Roller Derby team has been ranked as high as 4^th nationally and was the 2^nd program to be formed in the nation in 2003.

Our public schedule has always included Wednesdays 6:30 — 8:30pm, Fridays and Saturdays 7−10pm and Saturday and Sundays 1−4pm. Beginning in the fall of 2014 we will be adding new sessions into our regular schedule on Friday and Saturdays from 10pm-1am for adults 21 and older only.

New improvements are constantly being made as we strive to continue to be a fixture in the Madison community.

Meet the Manager

Justin A.

Manager

My very first job was at Fast Forward Skate Center and I immediately took a liking to it. I was 14 years old and started as a skate guard and roller hockey referee handing out skates, enforcing the rules of the rink and learning all I could from the staff and original owners.

In September 2002 the owners sold the business to a new owner and I was promoted to assistant manager to run the sessions and staff while working closely with the new Operations manager.

In December 2007 I bought the roller hockey league from Fast Forward and currently rent the facility to run the league myself.

In June 2010 seeing how I could no longer move up the corporate ladder I left the rink and started a Farmers Insurance Agency while still having Fast Forward in my heart.

In July 2013 an opportunity arose for me to take over operations of Fast Forward and I jumped at it, selling my Insurance Agency and have been focused on rebranding Fast Forward and building it up to the venue I know it can be.

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7 reviews of Fast Forward Skate Center

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A R.

Place rating: 3
Madison, WI

I used to come here when I was a kid. That was about 20 years ago. Nothing has changed. Literally nothing. The flooring, the walls, the arcade games, the tables. My 8 year old daughter had fun though. The bathroom smelled like sewage. There were signs up saying the rink floor is going to be redone soon, which is good, because it was really hard to avoid the parts of the floor that were very uneven and anyone that wasn’t a very good skater kept falling. Anyone that did stay upright would get tripped up by those that fell on the uneven parts.

Steve L.

Place rating: 3
Madison, WI

Violet L’s friend hosted a retro-themed birthday party here on 5÷3÷14; we stopped-in for an hour or so.
+ New owners appear to be putting some effort into the building
+ Ceiling tiles are gone, and replaced with corrugated metal
+ Lighting fixtures repaired
+ The dank, sweaty smell is gone
+ Staff was very friendly, helpful, and good natured
+ Music was superb
— Skate floor is still quite uneven; saw several people fall in spots where there were issues with the flooring
— Parking lot is still very DMZ-like
I’m hoping they keep making improvements, and wish them well.

Jenny Z.

Place rating: 4
Madison, WI

Yes, the parking lot has tons of potholes and you feel like you might get mugged. Yes, it is quite dirty with dust, old Twix wrappers and empty Gatorade bottles in the corners… and yes of course it is stuck in a time warp. Oh, and there is one somewhat creepy but nice 50 year old man skating «to the beat of his own drum» and kids who cut you off and end up hitting the wall. However, this place is freaking FANTASTIC-everyone is in a good mood, there is great skating music (just to clarify, I didn’t say great music, I said great skating music), the snacks are just like I remember, they have glow sticks and other glowing objects (i.e. glowing grills and pacifiers)…and if you’re there to have a good time and skate your pants off, you’re gonna love this place. Apparently there are new owners and things are on the up and up. I would go back when I have the chance and I suggest you do too!

Deb S.

Place rating: 1
Madison, WI

I went to Fast Forward today for a private party for 300 Girl Scouts. The rink floor was in bad shape with patches and bumps that could launch you airborne. Because my daughter is allergic to dairy she could not eat the pizza that was brought in by Pizza Hut. Although there were hot foods (such as French fries) in the heated case at the concession stand, I was not allowed to buy anything because it was a private party. Really people? The person who told me this was the DJ working double duty behind the counter, and said, «Hey, I would let you but management doesn’t want any food sold during private parties.». Hey, that’s some great customer service you have there! The parking lot is a crumbling mess with a narrow ramp that accommodates only one car. It is a shame that a city the size of Madison has only one roller rink. It is more of a shame that Fast Forward is woefully lacking in so many ways. I’d give it zero stars if I could.

Bridget J.

Place rating: 5
Chicago, IL

I took my kids here and we had a great time! Love the little rooms for birthday parties. So cute!

Dave J.

Place rating: 2
Oregon, WI

The entire property is run down, kinda creepy and pretty yucky. I had rented some inline skates thad had moldy inserts. I think they may be the only roller rink in Madison so you don’t have too many options.
Obviously this place is popular with kids and they don’t seem to notice all the blight so we would just grin and bear it.

Joyce G.

Place rating: 3
Charlotte, NC

First, I’m shocked there aren’t other reviews of this place.
Second, I called to get their card acceptance policy anticipating a covert issue and the Manager Lea followed up to my voicemail the next day and provided a standard solid rationale/policy for card acceptance.
Why does this matter? There was a charge that was credited back but it bothered me as I sent the kid out with the specific card to use. Cash is hard to come by in my world — swipe for as much as possible to maintain a proper ledger of accounting.
Anywhoo, THE CARD MUST HAVE THE NAME OF THE PERSON UTIILIZING THE CARD. ok~ IF «CID» is denoted they ask for such.
Sidebar: I hate places that ask for the ID AFTER they’ve already swiped. I’m like come on. Do this first.
At any rate, going forward I look forward to seeing how things get handled.
As for the atmosphere. I like the roller rink set up but I’m not the kind of adult that would drop a kid off or group of kids off to skate alone without adult supervision so that’s what I don’t like when the trouble making instigating kids are left alone, unsupervised and free to roam. Want to know what that looks like… go check out CHUCK E CHEESE reviews (not from me but others) and you’ll know.
They have theme nights, dance contests, group discounts and special openings.

Fast Forward Skate Center

Madison, United States