My blog was originally started as "confessions of a rollergirl." It has since organically evolved into a plain ol' blog of sorts. I quit derby, joined burlesque, and now am headed back into derby once more.
I remember the day I decided I wanted to try roller derby. It was back in 2004. I heard an announcement regarding a bout on a local radio station in Tucson (the Frank Show on KFMA). I heard Berlin Wall talk about derby. I knew I wanted to skate for the Iron Curtain. I knew I wanted to be a part of it. Well, I hesitated. I knew I couldn't skate and I had never been athletic. Come late July 2005. I heard yet another gaggle of roller girls on the radio and I knew that I at least wanted to give it a whirl.
I met the gals at Skate Country on a Thursday in August. I had to wear fruit boot rentals and was very much discouraged. But I wanted to try. I got my health insurance and ID in and before I knew it, I was at CHS at the outdoor rink on a Wednesday night for newbie practice. Two other girls joined at the same time I did. One of them dropped out early, the other, as far as I know, is still skating for the Furious Truckstop Waitresses.
I went through almost 20 falling practices in the next three months. I tested on a freezing cold Wednesday night with Sgt. Pepper Spray. I was initially told I should keep doing newbie practices and not scrimmage for a few weeks...apparently some gals, including some coaches, were against that. I had passed and I deserved to scrimmage. I had been avoiding scrimmages because I was told I should...it almost got me into trouble.
I remember my first scrimmage...I was nervous as all heck. No where as nervous as before a game though. It took me awhile, but I slowly got better. I realize now that I was just honing my skills when I departed in June/July of 07. I was hitting hard, getting my timing down..and then, I had to stop. I had a few injuries, and my knee was really bothering me. But what really had me was grad school and my job.
I was in the process of finishing my M.A. and with classes out, I was assigned on the field crew up here in Jerome. I was gone four days out of the week, missing some very vital practices. There was no way I could continue derby, and finish my thesis AND skate and make the practices I needed to be a team player.
Yeah, league politics were hard. They always are. When you get a bunch of women together, no one will see eye to eye with everyone else all the time. It just isn't so.
Now here I am, joining a league with only 2 months of serious practice under its belt. But oh how exciting. I realize how lucky I was to skate with one of the most prestigious leagues in the country. Tucson is an old league...one of the first in this rebirth of female flat track derby. I had the chance to skate with the most talented athletes in the game. I was part of a well-run, efficient league that helped found WFTDA and put on the very first national championship EVER! We had one of the first travel teams, we held some of the very first bouts (after Texas and AZRD among a few others). Man, I am just beginning to appreciate what I truly was a part of.
I was watching a league newly into their second season of existence (I was watching bout footage online)...the pack was slow, jammers easily getting in and out of blockers, little blocking, tripping, lack of balance..etc. I do NOT mean to rip on new leagues. I will be a part of one shortly...but it made me realize how TRD works like a machine for the most part and the fact that I skated with gals that were some of the best in the country had me continually improving. I was one lucky gal to skate for TRD and have the talent teach me like they did.
We are very lucky here in Northern AZ that we can head to Phoenix to skate with these same leagues (TRD and AZRD). This will keep this league on it's toes (or toe stops if you will). They will be every improving and challenging themselves.
I am not the best skater...I'm not the best roller girl. I wasn't the best in the league, I wasn't the best on my team. I made mistakes, got in the way, fell for no reason, had penalties, fights, etc. But for someone who has needed to be the best at everything or she quits, derby was a very humbling and challenging experience for me.
Yes, I wanted to chuck my skates and call it quits on a number of occasions. I wanted to stay home on Sunday, Wednesday, and Thursday to study or just veg. But those days...game days, scrimmages, that went well made it all worth it. A great block, getting through and getting lead jammer...it was a real ego booster :o) For someone who had never truly been athletic...it was a phenomenal experience.
And now I have another shot at it, from the ground up.
Northern Arizona Roller Derby is underway over the mountain in Prescott. It's a pain to have to drive 30 miles to practice, but I can manage it once a week. We may have to be somewhat autonomous over here in the Verde Valley, with practices on our own. But I think we can manage it.
I'm really excited to be getting back into something that brought me so much out of my comfort zone and into a realm that I was very unfamiliar with. I will be a teammate, a coach, a league member, and part of the sisterhood once more.
Now I just need to get some drills down for practice tomorrow.
And I need to decide...will Paris Troika, No. 5 skate once more? Or with this new league will a new skater be born?
You might not think it's a big deal, but for a rollergirl, there's a lot in a name.
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