And she is down! She gets back up and off she goes. She catches up to the pack and passes the other Jammer. Oh, she takes a ht from the pivot but she stays up and keeps going. Man, they are making her work for this. But she is determined. She plows through the rest of the pack and calls it off before the other Jammer could even get into the pack. That's five points for Rocket Bitch!
Two weeks ago i went to a Roller Derby bout, and it made re realize just how much i love and am missing this sport.
For those of you who don't know what it is, its a contact sport played by two teams. A game consists of a bunch of different plays lasting 2 min or until it is called off by a Jammer. Everyone is skating in the same direction with the pack starting at the first whistle and the Jammers at the second. For a team to get points, their scoring player, called the Jammer, scores points by lapping members of the opposing team. The rest of the team, called the pack, try to help their Jammer and slow down or stop the other Jammer from getting through and scoring. So in effect everyone is playing offence and defence at the same time.
The definition of the sport that attracts the majority of people that have never heard of it, is that there are a bunch of bad ass chicks on roller skates beating the shit out of each other.
For the most part this is true, but there is actually some skills used and talent needed to play an interesting game.
Most people know this sport because of the film Whip It that came out in 2009. This is actually how i started playing. The idea of the game really got my attention so i decided that i was going to look for a team in my area. To my surprise there were actually a few teams that i could join. The only problem was that i wasn't old enough to play yet.
Thank god my team in Lacombe was amazing and let me join anyways. I wasn't allowed to play in games but they thought that if i practiced for a year before i could play a game i would have some serious skill when the time came around. It was true. They don't call me Rocket Bitch for nothing!
So I practiced, and worked my ass off for almost a year, and it paid off. The first games i played, we won. I felt like a Rockstar! People i didn't even know were coming up to me and congratulating me saying what an great game we played. I even had somebody come up to me while i was at work and tell me how great they thought i did.
I had never felt this way before. I was wanted and needed, and thats just how Roller Derby is. Everyone is so friendly and inviting. There is no other sport where you get to almost murder somebody thats not even on your team on the track and then get crazy and party with them at the after party.
I have a lack of Derby Love in my life right now and i miss having a Derby Family, so i am going to try out and hopefully make in onto one of the Terminal City Rollergirls. Wish me luck!!
