Did I Mention That I Do Roller Derby?

Yeah, I did mention it, I know. A few times, I know. But now I'm going to really talk about it. I'm really going to tell you about derby, because it's awesome, and there's no reason you shouldn't hear me tell you all about how awesome it is.

Photo from Jason Santii. Thanks, dude!

  There are also all these devoted bloggers on my league, who give week-by-week updates on our killer practices, and frankly, they've inspired me. I want to talk about all my joys and pains and pains and pains and pains with the rest of 'em. So lets talk about ROLLER DERBY! Well, after you check out these other derby blogs from Bone Jr., IndyGo Wylde, and last but certainly as opposite of least as you can get, Babe Rainbow who writes a weekly blog for In This Week. Check out the latest post for awesome tidbits about a bunch of the girls in the league, including me, Lil' Dread Riding Hood.

And now it's time for me to blog. So here's the thing: roller derby is equally tough and addicting. There hasn't been a week that I haven't been sore the entire weekend afterwards, and there hasn't been a single week that I haven't had to force myself to stop. I genuinely do not want to stop skating at the end of practice. Or ever. I skate around the house all the time, practicing turning backwards in the hallway (often with hilarious/painful results) and doing crossovers between the kitchen and living room. Woot woot for hardwood floors, eh?

Last night we scrimmaged as a group, and I was so proud of myself for making it through the pack as a jammer, and more than once! And that also meant making it past some blockers who were being a total pain in the butt. Bruiser, I'm looking at you.

Another moment of personal pride: getting one good block in on Queen Anne's Revenge. Trust me, it's a big deal. Queen's like the crazy crack goddess of roller derby.

Then there were those few times I fell, got my finger smashed between the floor and someone's knee pad, and garnered a bruise on my arm I can't explain at all. It's not as good as the time I had distinct fingerprint-shaped bruises on my upper arm though. That was tight.

Then there was this time when we were having blocker/jammer drills and I went up against Sugar Plum Scary, who is totally kicking butt. But guess what else is awesome about her? She used to dance for Ballet West, and I USED TO HAVE A POSTER OF HER HANGING IN MY BEDROOM! I'm not joking. There was a time when my awe of her could not be contained, and now she's throwing me right back into it by turning into a killer roller girl.

On another random roller derby tangent: There's something in derby called your "derby wife." I totally wasn't there when Manna described it, but I heard through the grapevine that it's the one girl on your league you can count on for anything, but you also just want to hit the crap out of her. I'm always ready to lay a good one on Manna, and she is the reason I joined roller derby in the first place. I have to say though, I think I'm going to have a whole league full of derby wives soon, because I love them all to death, and heaven knows I want to knock them all to the ground.