I finally got my clearance letter from the physio last Thursday so I'm free to resume derby training! I must admit it was killing me restricting myself to following the physio's instructions on what I could and couldn't do but I followed it and would you believe it my back feels a hell of a lot better haha. I eased back into my personal training with Suzie this week so it was no where near the intensity I'm used to but Suzie was being mindful of all my old injury problems. There were some drills that I couldn't complete because I started feeling pain in my knee or shoulder and instead of getting the shit's like I usually do because I'm 'weak' and can't cope I felt acceptance. All the pressure and destruction I've put on my body over the years has meant that I'm now at the stage that if I don't follow medical advice I won't get to bout at all so I'm going to have to work harder behind the scenes to strengthen my body on top of my normal training to have any chance of bouting. It's only taken 1 1/2 years for rationale to win over stubborness and having to prove I'm not weak. No point in thinking about 'what if's' and time wasted on the sidelines due to all the injuries, it's time to finally focus on where I want to go with derby and what I need to do to get there.
There were lots of derby events on over the weekend and I went to none of them due to other commitments. First up some of my team mates teamed up with Central Coast Roller Girls to bout as the Bloody Holly's at the Wintersun festival. It was all the more awesome as two of my team mates Posh Deck'em and Punkie BrawlSTAR made their bouting debuts. I heard they both got lead jammer and scored points throughout the night. I'm so proud of them :) Of course there was TGSS. My news feed on Facebook got flooded with posts from derby peeps leaving to go to TGSS, while they were at TGSS, and finally heading back which made me want to go even more haha. I'm really hoping to go next time. I did see positive posts and lots of negative posts about 'no derby' being played. It's such a controversial area of the game. On one hand I could understand teams going with that approach especially earlier on in the tournament as a way of preserving their energy for the latter stages of the tournament. The jam in the VRDL vs CRDL bout where no one moved for the full two minutes worked a treat for VRDL because in the jam they wiped out CRDL's lead in one jam and went on to dominate and win the bout. On the flip side watching skaters stand still isn't very entertaining to watch. It's hard for the sport to evolve without fan support but how do you keep both sides happy? Do you change the rules, work on strategies to try and combat 'no derby' or something completely different? I don't know the answer.
I guess most people have something they do when they need that little bit of motivation or inspiration. For me it's watching boxing related movies. Having done boxing for a while I appreciate the discipline required and the high intensity training, it's like a physical game of chess which is another reason I fell in love in derby. I find having all the boxing training scenes from the films running through my head helps me push on when I'm at the gym or going for a run which is a good thing for my fitness and therefore derby.
I've been guilty of having my head in the sand with a particular skill. I suck at it so bad that I've tried banishing it from my mind but the reality is that I can't do it properly but I need to be able to do it if I want to do more advanced skills. I'm ashamed to say it but it's walking on my toe stops, something so basic but I can't do it. I can barely walk on them and the best I can do is a few steps at a time at a very SLOW pace. Pretty much everyone I know can walk, run, tomahawk, so the 'Jilla' block and I can't do any of that. Having really weak ankles, or not wearing high heels probably doesn't help my cause. So while I already have a massive list of stuff I want to learn how to do this is something I'm going to focus on.
I've got bit of a funny story. I was chatting with some of our ref's at training and we were discussing how to legally combat the block that Jilla seems to have perfected where she gets to the front of the pack and skates right in the face of an opposing skater while skating backwards. I said I plan on asking her for an autograph or pic, that would probably confuse the fuck out her long enough to get around her in one piece :) Simon then said that he can't wait to see me bout against Jilla because he seems to think that as soon as she hits me my reaction will be 'Oh my God GodJilla just hit me' in a fangirl kinda way. Am I really going to be that bad? I hope not!
Finally the meaning behind the title of this post. Lately I've been thinking is it possible to equally love another league beside your own? Before I even put on a pair of quads NRDL became my favourite league after watching them in a bout. I eventually joined up to play derby and with HARD I've gotten an extended family who I'd go through bricks walls for. Problem is when I pick a team to support I stick with them which is what I've done with Newy. It's not like I'll ever play for them but I love their league. On the other hand I can't help but feel like I'm cheating on HARD for loving another league as much as HARD. Am I cheating on HARD?
Thursday, June 14, 2012
Thursday, May 31, 2012
When doing nothing is the most sensible thing to do
My shoulder injury has been getting better. I've been putting it through tests like air drumming to punk and metal songs and I haven't felt any pain so that's a good thing. Around the same time I injured my back and it wasn't even from derby. It was at work and I had to fill in for the delivery driver who was off sick. I had to lug some portable air con's up the stair's for the customer. I didn't ask for help, when I really should have because I struggled lifting them up so of course I ended up hurting my back. After all the injury problems I've had since I started derby this incident finally broke me. I knew I was going to have to spend another spell on the sidelines and then play catch up AGAIN. The amount of injuries I've had to date from derby is beyond ridiculous, some were just bad luck but most of them came down to me. I did some soul searching and tried to work out what I was doing that was making me so self destructive. For most of my life I've never liked to be perceived as weak, whether it was keeping everything inside, not crying in front of others, having to prove to everyone that I could do anything and wasn't a piker. I did it all, but by showing how 'tough and strong' I was I ended up actually making myself weaker and my body kept breaking down. You only have to look at the sport we play, we got knocked down, we get back up. I've seen skaters grimmacing in pain from a big hit or fall during a bout and somehow continue on. You have to be strong on one level to keep taking the hits otherwise you'll be too scared to take a hit which isn't the right attitude to have. I need to work on finding the line between 'toughen up princess' and knowing I'm injured. I'm not going to get it right from the get go but if I don't change my outlook I'm forever going to be stuck in this cycle of never progressing far enough to be able to actually bout because my body keeps breaking down. I've been off skates the past few weeks and I finally got to see the physio. Apparently I've got muscular strain in my back. I've been following her orders and if all goes well I'll be back on skates next Friday night.
While I've been off skates I've been going to some of our training sessions to watch and it's amazing how much you can really see on the sidelines. It's been amazing to see the progress of some of our skaters whether it's the more established skaters scrimmaging for the first time or the freshies who started recently. I swear some of them are already better than me. It'll only be a matter of time before you see the likes of Foggy, Shorley Tremble, Fear my Phat, Posh Deck'em, Butter Scream and Punkie Brawlstar bouting for us soon and they're all going to be awesome. I'm proud of my league and how far we've come in the short space of time. I want to achieve everything I can with them whether it's competing at TGSS or competing in a best of three series with NRDL (I'm going to pester both sides until they cave in hehe). I can't wait for the day I represent HARD on the track, it'll mean a lot to me.
I went to the NRDL Smashleys vs Hellcats bout a couple of weeks ago with a few of my team mates. I ended up sitting next to CCRG El Presidente Sir Gestive while I was taking notes for the write up. He was great fun to watch the bout with. I laughed a lot :D The bout itself was great to watch. I picked up a few new things and got to see Jilla jam again which is always lots of fun. A while back I said on this blog that the next Newy bout I was going to work up the courage to go up to Brigand Strong and tell her how amazing a skater I thought she was. Well I worked up the courage but she wasn't even bouting that night, so epic fail on that wish! I've since discovered that she's as shy as me so this is going to make for an interesting intro next time I'm up there to watch a Newy bout hehe.
So why all the fascination with Brigand Strong? Newy are blessed with lots of kick arse skaters in their league. I came to this realisation the more Newy bouts I started watching. I remembered the first bit of advice that Jilla ever gave me when she said not to pigeon hole myself into one position for derby. It hit home when I started paying attention to both sides and not just the Smashleys. Although she's a Hellcat, Brigand Strong's performance were catching my eye. She was tall but built enough to be able to take a hit and dish one out with interest. She could also block AND jam equally effective which made her the complete player. That was the moment I started changing my own goals where instead of just wanting to be a good blocker, I wanted to be a good allrounder so that if I was ever needed to jam for my team, I'd be able to step up. Yeah I wouldn't be like Winnie Bruise but I wanted to be able to do the job. I could also relate to not being one of the big personalities on the track. People might not notice Brigand Strong because she's not one of the loud ones but you can bet your bottom dollar if she wasn't playing she'd be sorely missed by the Hellcats or the Dames. If anyone was ever going to threaten to break up the big two that is Cherry and Jilla, it would be Brigand Strong. OHHHH big call, right? haha. That's how awesome of a skater I think she is :)
While I've been off skates I've been going to some of our training sessions to watch and it's amazing how much you can really see on the sidelines. It's been amazing to see the progress of some of our skaters whether it's the more established skaters scrimmaging for the first time or the freshies who started recently. I swear some of them are already better than me. It'll only be a matter of time before you see the likes of Foggy, Shorley Tremble, Fear my Phat, Posh Deck'em, Butter Scream and Punkie Brawlstar bouting for us soon and they're all going to be awesome. I'm proud of my league and how far we've come in the short space of time. I want to achieve everything I can with them whether it's competing at TGSS or competing in a best of three series with NRDL (I'm going to pester both sides until they cave in hehe). I can't wait for the day I represent HARD on the track, it'll mean a lot to me.
I went to the NRDL Smashleys vs Hellcats bout a couple of weeks ago with a few of my team mates. I ended up sitting next to CCRG El Presidente Sir Gestive while I was taking notes for the write up. He was great fun to watch the bout with. I laughed a lot :D The bout itself was great to watch. I picked up a few new things and got to see Jilla jam again which is always lots of fun. A while back I said on this blog that the next Newy bout I was going to work up the courage to go up to Brigand Strong and tell her how amazing a skater I thought she was. Well I worked up the courage but she wasn't even bouting that night, so epic fail on that wish! I've since discovered that she's as shy as me so this is going to make for an interesting intro next time I'm up there to watch a Newy bout hehe.
So why all the fascination with Brigand Strong? Newy are blessed with lots of kick arse skaters in their league. I came to this realisation the more Newy bouts I started watching. I remembered the first bit of advice that Jilla ever gave me when she said not to pigeon hole myself into one position for derby. It hit home when I started paying attention to both sides and not just the Smashleys. Although she's a Hellcat, Brigand Strong's performance were catching my eye. She was tall but built enough to be able to take a hit and dish one out with interest. She could also block AND jam equally effective which made her the complete player. That was the moment I started changing my own goals where instead of just wanting to be a good blocker, I wanted to be a good allrounder so that if I was ever needed to jam for my team, I'd be able to step up. Yeah I wouldn't be like Winnie Bruise but I wanted to be able to do the job. I could also relate to not being one of the big personalities on the track. People might not notice Brigand Strong because she's not one of the loud ones but you can bet your bottom dollar if she wasn't playing she'd be sorely missed by the Hellcats or the Dames. If anyone was ever going to threaten to break up the big two that is Cherry and Jilla, it would be Brigand Strong. OHHHH big call, right? haha. That's how awesome of a skater I think she is :)
Monday, May 14, 2012
Winners are grinners
Training was cool, frustrating and painful all rolled into one on Friday night. I got bit of a reality check when we practising carving. When I was the one being carved I realised that some of my team mates have really improved a shitload and weren't having too much difficulty pushing me off the track, so that was a lesson for me to keep working hard at improving my game or I'll be a complete walkover on the track.
We were practising slides up and down the court and then going straight into a push up or sit up depending on which side of the court we were at. My only problem was doing the push up's because of my injured shoulder but I think the adrenaline was kicking in so the pain wasn't too bad. While doing a single knee slide and going straight into a sit up my left skate accidently used my right shin as a brake so now I've got a lumpy bruise on my shin with a graze running across the bruise from the wheel. Very hardcore :P
Towards the end of the night Matron was running us through paceline drills and we had to weave through it both front and back. Due to all the injuries I've had this was only the second time I've attempted to weave through a paceline. I thought I did ok but I also realised how tight you need to skate through the paceline because if you overskate it you go flying out of bounds and lose all momentum. Lots of short, sharp steps, got it. I just need to execute it on the track. The interesting part came when we had to weave in pairs. I was with Matron and she was really helpful because I'd never weaved in pairs through a paceline before, so my timing was pretty shite that Matron had to grab me and push me through at the right moment which was all good but then Jacqui went straight past me that I thought we were going to smash into each other so I hestitated. Matron said 'trust me' and went to push me past Jacqui but then I stacked it right onto my injured left shoulder and that was the end of my night. Good thing it happened right at the end. It looks like I'm going to have to go back to the physio who fixed my knee and ankle injuries last year. Dammit I was really hoping to avoid going back there for as long as I could.
Last week my favourite footballer Neil Mellor was forced to retire from the game due to ongoing knee problems. Big deal you say and none of you would even know him. It did make me think though. I've had similar knee problems to what he had and he had professional doctors and physio's looking after him and he still had to retire so what does that say about my situation? Is this as good as it gets for me? Are constant injuries and setbacks all I have to look forward to because no matter how hard I push myself and how badly I want to be good enough to progress and eventually bout my body can't cope with the demands of the sport. This is an ongoing internal battle I've had with myself ever since I picked up my first derby injury last year. Maybe it's just my bad habit of thinking the worst of a situation that's keeping this negative thought stuck in my head. If I ever had to quit derby for whatever reason I would want it to be my own decision and not out of my hands ie: derby ending injury etc. I don't know how most people find the demands of derby but the mental aspect of it really has a big impact on me. What to do?
On the flip side I had a frigging amazing day on Sunday. Thanks to the persistance of my trainer Suzie I entered the 4km Mother's Day Classic race at Parra Park. I didn't get too much running training in the lead up to the race and I hadn't competed in a race since I was in high school so I was expecting the worse. during the first kilometre my legs already started feeling the effects of jogging so I started walking a bit but then I eventually thought sod this and started jogging again. When I came up to 2km mark I thought I'd attempt to try and jog until the next kilometre without slowing down to a walking pace and would you believe it I did, then I thought I'd try the same for the next kilometre but I kept at it and ended up jogging right up until the finish line which completely surprised me. During all this I noticed a girl about the same size as me and around my age. I ran past her initially but then she overtook me and then started walking so that I caught up to her again but then she started running ahead of me and then walked for a while again. The funny thing was I caught her a few times looking back in my direction and would start running again when I caught up to her. I sensed a challenge and I'm extremely competitive so it was on like Donkey Kong. My only goal was to finish in front of her. We kept up the cat and mouse games right up until the end and as we were coming up to the straight leading to the finish line I thought screw you and I ran as fast as I could that my legs lost all normal feeling, and went all jelly like. Not only did I kick her arse, I also beat the time my trainer set me which was 40 minutes. I got 35mins 47 seconds so I was doubly chuffed and proud of myself which is a rarity for me because I'm extremely hard on myself. If I was able to achieve this with hardly any training imagine what I could achieve now that I'm taking up running again! I think the endurance laps we do at derby training probably helped me in the race. Apart from general soreness in my legs and back from running, I didn't pick up any injuries HOORAY! Although this wasn't a derby event, this result gave me a bit of confidence and hope that maybe just maybe my body might hold out so that I can bout one day. Winners are grinners!
So the plagiarism dramas with Central Coast Grandstand are partially sorted. Pepa sent a great, professional e-mail to them last Friday and one of the journo's replied back apologising for what happened. Whether we get a proper apology in the paper from them remains to be seen. That fuckwit Val Bridge who stole my work has yet to apologise so I'll be sending him a message telling him what I really think but keep it in a professional manner. Once again I just wanted to say a MASSIVE thank you to everyone who helped or offered to help. I was overwhelmed by the support. I guess it goes to show you mess with one derby girl you mess with us all :)
Everyone knows I love the tactical side of derby but judging by some of the crowd responses at the WIRD vs VRDL bout especially with the scrum starts not everyone is a fan. Maybe if enough people complain about the slow starts WFTDA may change the rules. I suppose the slow starts aren't terribly entertaining to watch but a part of me likes seeing the two sides make the most of the situation and get into the best position for their next tactical move. From these scrum starts we've seen new tactics form like the T-bone start so it can't be all that bad as it allows leagues to come up with new tactics. It allows the sport to keep evolving which gets a big thumbs up from me.
I'm looking forward to Saturday night. I'm going on a short road trip with some of my team mates to watch the NRDL intraleague bout between the Fort Smashleys and the Harbour Hellcats. Once again I'll be doing the write up for those who can't make it but it'll also be my last bout write up for a while so expect a killer write up (hopefully!).
We were practising slides up and down the court and then going straight into a push up or sit up depending on which side of the court we were at. My only problem was doing the push up's because of my injured shoulder but I think the adrenaline was kicking in so the pain wasn't too bad. While doing a single knee slide and going straight into a sit up my left skate accidently used my right shin as a brake so now I've got a lumpy bruise on my shin with a graze running across the bruise from the wheel. Very hardcore :P
Towards the end of the night Matron was running us through paceline drills and we had to weave through it both front and back. Due to all the injuries I've had this was only the second time I've attempted to weave through a paceline. I thought I did ok but I also realised how tight you need to skate through the paceline because if you overskate it you go flying out of bounds and lose all momentum. Lots of short, sharp steps, got it. I just need to execute it on the track. The interesting part came when we had to weave in pairs. I was with Matron and she was really helpful because I'd never weaved in pairs through a paceline before, so my timing was pretty shite that Matron had to grab me and push me through at the right moment which was all good but then Jacqui went straight past me that I thought we were going to smash into each other so I hestitated. Matron said 'trust me' and went to push me past Jacqui but then I stacked it right onto my injured left shoulder and that was the end of my night. Good thing it happened right at the end. It looks like I'm going to have to go back to the physio who fixed my knee and ankle injuries last year. Dammit I was really hoping to avoid going back there for as long as I could.
Last week my favourite footballer Neil Mellor was forced to retire from the game due to ongoing knee problems. Big deal you say and none of you would even know him. It did make me think though. I've had similar knee problems to what he had and he had professional doctors and physio's looking after him and he still had to retire so what does that say about my situation? Is this as good as it gets for me? Are constant injuries and setbacks all I have to look forward to because no matter how hard I push myself and how badly I want to be good enough to progress and eventually bout my body can't cope with the demands of the sport. This is an ongoing internal battle I've had with myself ever since I picked up my first derby injury last year. Maybe it's just my bad habit of thinking the worst of a situation that's keeping this negative thought stuck in my head. If I ever had to quit derby for whatever reason I would want it to be my own decision and not out of my hands ie: derby ending injury etc. I don't know how most people find the demands of derby but the mental aspect of it really has a big impact on me. What to do?
On the flip side I had a frigging amazing day on Sunday. Thanks to the persistance of my trainer Suzie I entered the 4km Mother's Day Classic race at Parra Park. I didn't get too much running training in the lead up to the race and I hadn't competed in a race since I was in high school so I was expecting the worse. during the first kilometre my legs already started feeling the effects of jogging so I started walking a bit but then I eventually thought sod this and started jogging again. When I came up to 2km mark I thought I'd attempt to try and jog until the next kilometre without slowing down to a walking pace and would you believe it I did, then I thought I'd try the same for the next kilometre but I kept at it and ended up jogging right up until the finish line which completely surprised me. During all this I noticed a girl about the same size as me and around my age. I ran past her initially but then she overtook me and then started walking so that I caught up to her again but then she started running ahead of me and then walked for a while again. The funny thing was I caught her a few times looking back in my direction and would start running again when I caught up to her. I sensed a challenge and I'm extremely competitive so it was on like Donkey Kong. My only goal was to finish in front of her. We kept up the cat and mouse games right up until the end and as we were coming up to the straight leading to the finish line I thought screw you and I ran as fast as I could that my legs lost all normal feeling, and went all jelly like. Not only did I kick her arse, I also beat the time my trainer set me which was 40 minutes. I got 35mins 47 seconds so I was doubly chuffed and proud of myself which is a rarity for me because I'm extremely hard on myself. If I was able to achieve this with hardly any training imagine what I could achieve now that I'm taking up running again! I think the endurance laps we do at derby training probably helped me in the race. Apart from general soreness in my legs and back from running, I didn't pick up any injuries HOORAY! Although this wasn't a derby event, this result gave me a bit of confidence and hope that maybe just maybe my body might hold out so that I can bout one day. Winners are grinners!
So the plagiarism dramas with Central Coast Grandstand are partially sorted. Pepa sent a great, professional e-mail to them last Friday and one of the journo's replied back apologising for what happened. Whether we get a proper apology in the paper from them remains to be seen. That fuckwit Val Bridge who stole my work has yet to apologise so I'll be sending him a message telling him what I really think but keep it in a professional manner. Once again I just wanted to say a MASSIVE thank you to everyone who helped or offered to help. I was overwhelmed by the support. I guess it goes to show you mess with one derby girl you mess with us all :)
Everyone knows I love the tactical side of derby but judging by some of the crowd responses at the WIRD vs VRDL bout especially with the scrum starts not everyone is a fan. Maybe if enough people complain about the slow starts WFTDA may change the rules. I suppose the slow starts aren't terribly entertaining to watch but a part of me likes seeing the two sides make the most of the situation and get into the best position for their next tactical move. From these scrum starts we've seen new tactics form like the T-bone start so it can't be all that bad as it allows leagues to come up with new tactics. It allows the sport to keep evolving which gets a big thumbs up from me.
I'm looking forward to Saturday night. I'm going on a short road trip with some of my team mates to watch the NRDL intraleague bout between the Fort Smashleys and the Harbour Hellcats. Once again I'll be doing the write up for those who can't make it but it'll also be my last bout write up for a while so expect a killer write up (hopefully!).
Wednesday, May 9, 2012
Blah, blah, derby, blah
I'm currently nursing some battle wounds from training over a week ago. I injured my right ankle and left shoulder in two stacks on different nights. My right ankle is feeling ok, I guess the true test will be to see how it pulls up at training on Friday night. My left shoulder seems to be getting worse in terms of pains and the restriction I'm getting in my arm. Being left handed I'm fairly reliant on it so that hasn't helped with the recovery. If there's any consolation it's that the stacks happened from pushing myself at training during various drills. Hopefully the stacks and injuries decrease in time the better I get on my skates.
Although I still feel like I'm stuck in a rut progress wise, I've been doing things behind the scenes to try and help me make the next step up. I started speed skating classes. Although all the stuff is coming from an inline skaters perspective I've disocovered that making even the slightest changes in technique could possibly make a big difference on the derby track so I'm excited about getting to as many classes as possible. My trainer Suzie has been pretty awesome in tailoring my sessions with her to mimic movements in derby and doing core work which has all been great for derby. I'm starting a non-derby fitness project which will HOPEFULLY come to fruition next year depending on whether everything works out. Put it this way I want this as badly as I want to play derby. The good thing is that the benefits from this project will help me out with derby too so it's a win-win situation. Lastly I'm extremely fortunate to be getting a lot of mentor type help from Cherry both on and off the track. She's been a great help so far and I'm really greatful for all her help so far.
I went to Roller derby heaven for the first time and bought some stuff. One of them being a proper skate bag. I got the Antik one but the funny thing is I don't even own a pair of Antik's. I do have Gumballs on my skates, does that count :P De-Bri (who also skates with NRDL and is in the kick arse Fort Smashleys) was really helpful and I'd highly recommend going there if you need derby gear. I ordered myself a set of arm bands which now serve as extra motivation to get my arse into gear so that I can get competant enough to scrimmage so that I can use these suckers.
The last couple of weeks have been an absolute roller coaster in terms of my bout write up's I do for RDAU. I got my first constructive criticism about my write up's at the WIRD vs VRDL bout by someone I know. They told me they thought my write up's were too detailed and long for them. I'm not going to lie I was slightly crushed when I got told that because up until then all the feedback I got was positive so I thought I was doing a good job. The reality is not everyone's got to like the things you do so I went away and thought about it. Yep I know my write's up are on the long side. I've got absolutely no background in journalism so I had no idea what I was doing when I started these write up's. I tell these write up's from my perspective so all the strategy and detailed info is stuff that I watch out for in bouts so it's heavily featured in my write up's. Plus I'm also trying to re-create the bout for people who couldn't make it or the skaters who can't remember because they're...well bouting of course. I've decided that yes I could probably make it a little less detailed but I'm not going to change my writing 'style', that's just the way I write. If enough people don't like it and mention it to RDAU then they could get someone else to do it and there would be no hard feelings from me, I did the best I could.
I must admit I am missing the experience of just going to a bout and watching it as a fan without being worried about making notes for a write up. I've got the NRDL bout on the 19th lined up as a definate write up but after that nothing set in stone. The last time I just watched a bout was in August last year so I'm thinking after this next Newy bout I'll go to a few bouts and just watch, starting with the WIRD bout on the 26th May. I plan on watching a Newy bout too whenever their next season starts. So I'm officially on temporary hiatus while I go back to just being a derby fan for a little while.
Lastly I was informed by Hans and Mini from CCRG last Sunday that the write up I did for their bout last month for RDAU was plagarised by a Central Coast publication. I got sent the link and low and behold apart from a few different sentences it was mostly a direct copy of my original write up with no credit to me. Here's my write up and here's Val's 'write up' . Spot the fuck all difference. I was fuming when I saw it. This hack journo gets paid to write but I don't and then my work gets knicked. These write up's take up a lot of my own personal time too only for someone to copy and paste it and call it their own. I'm in the process of writing a formal letter to them. If I don't get a satisfactory response I'm going to step it up just like I mentioned on my Facebook page so watch this space. I just want to clear up that in NO WAY do I hold CCRG responsible for this fuck up, it's got nothing to do with them. I'd happily cover one of their bouts again.
Not too much skating to talk about this post but I suppose there's more to derby than just skating.
Although I still feel like I'm stuck in a rut progress wise, I've been doing things behind the scenes to try and help me make the next step up. I started speed skating classes. Although all the stuff is coming from an inline skaters perspective I've disocovered that making even the slightest changes in technique could possibly make a big difference on the derby track so I'm excited about getting to as many classes as possible. My trainer Suzie has been pretty awesome in tailoring my sessions with her to mimic movements in derby and doing core work which has all been great for derby. I'm starting a non-derby fitness project which will HOPEFULLY come to fruition next year depending on whether everything works out. Put it this way I want this as badly as I want to play derby. The good thing is that the benefits from this project will help me out with derby too so it's a win-win situation. Lastly I'm extremely fortunate to be getting a lot of mentor type help from Cherry both on and off the track. She's been a great help so far and I'm really greatful for all her help so far.
I mentioned on Facebook a few weeks back that I wanted to do an experiment with skates and test the difference between traditional skating boots vs football boots in terms of agility, ankle support etc. I was initially going to go with the ones I used for indoor soccer but the sole is too flexible that it would require too much re-inforcing before putting it on a plate. My other option is to go with the ones I use for outdoor soccer because they have the hard plastic sole but it would mean having to grind down the studs before getting them on plates. Here's a pic of what I'm talking about, yep I'm old school when it comes to football boots, none of this synthetic, brightly coloured crap that some people wear nowadays :)
This boot dream of mine has been delayed for the time being, only because I'm trying to look after myself. They would be a lower cut then my current skates so I have to keep my into consideration my dodgy ankles. So I'll put this into plan when I pass my next level in derby which is Sargeant and it would mean I could bout intraleague. It would also mean that I would have been injury-free long enough to be able to progress so my ankles should be stronger by that stage too. I just need to find someone who could grind them down enough without stuffing up the boot and making sure the plate will fit square on the boot. I know a few skaters from WIRD have this set up so I might ask them.
I went to Roller derby heaven for the first time and bought some stuff. One of them being a proper skate bag. I got the Antik one but the funny thing is I don't even own a pair of Antik's. I do have Gumballs on my skates, does that count :P De-Bri (who also skates with NRDL and is in the kick arse Fort Smashleys) was really helpful and I'd highly recommend going there if you need derby gear. I ordered myself a set of arm bands which now serve as extra motivation to get my arse into gear so that I can get competant enough to scrimmage so that I can use these suckers.
I must admit I am missing the experience of just going to a bout and watching it as a fan without being worried about making notes for a write up. I've got the NRDL bout on the 19th lined up as a definate write up but after that nothing set in stone. The last time I just watched a bout was in August last year so I'm thinking after this next Newy bout I'll go to a few bouts and just watch, starting with the WIRD bout on the 26th May. I plan on watching a Newy bout too whenever their next season starts. So I'm officially on temporary hiatus while I go back to just being a derby fan for a little while.
Lastly I was informed by Hans and Mini from CCRG last Sunday that the write up I did for their bout last month for RDAU was plagarised by a Central Coast publication. I got sent the link and low and behold apart from a few different sentences it was mostly a direct copy of my original write up with no credit to me. Here's my write up and here's Val's 'write up' . Spot the fuck all difference. I was fuming when I saw it. This hack journo gets paid to write but I don't and then my work gets knicked. These write up's take up a lot of my own personal time too only for someone to copy and paste it and call it their own. I'm in the process of writing a formal letter to them. If I don't get a satisfactory response I'm going to step it up just like I mentioned on my Facebook page so watch this space. I just want to clear up that in NO WAY do I hold CCRG responsible for this fuck up, it's got nothing to do with them. I'd happily cover one of their bouts again.
Not too much skating to talk about this post but I suppose there's more to derby than just skating.
Saturday, April 28, 2012
Dear Diary...
I've got a confession to make - I fucked up. I figured over a month ago that I didn't need this blog so I dropped it but since then I came to the realisation that this blog provided a great outlet for me whether it was good or bad news. Since I stopped the blog I could feel the anger and frustration from derby build up. I figure bringing this blog back is better than putting holes in the wall.There's no rules this time around, this blog will be whatever it needs to be.
There's a few things that have been bouncing around in my head that I need to get out before my head explodes. I'm sorry but the rest of this post may get messy and all over the shop with no real structure. It feels as though I'm forever battling myself, and it's frigging tiring. Whenever I have a setback with derby there's a part of me that will have a whinge but keep going but there's always that other part of me that thinks I should pack it in and quit since I'm only getting injured and not getting anywhere fast. Derby is the first thing in MANY years that I've not quit when I've had a setback. In fact, it's the one thing that's given me the most setbacks that I'm surprised I haven't quit, I'll get around to why I think I haven't pulled the plug.
Most people have probably heard the term 'roller derby saved my soul'. I don't know if it did mine but it certainly helped get my life back on track. The issue in question isn't important but the longer I'm involved with derby, the more the 'old' me comes back. I'm nowhere near as shy as I used to be and there's more fight in me. I know when some people take up derby they create a persona that could be completely different to how they are in real life. That was never my case, in fact I'd never create a fan page for myself on Facebook (and there's absolutely nothing wrong with those that do) to separate derby and real life because it's one and the same for me. The only difference is just like when it comes to Liverpool, derby allows me to show my passion for the sport, so I'm a LOT more vocal and a lot less mellow haha. Maybe it's a good thing that I do bout reviews because I'm too busy scribbling down notes to let loose with the cheering and yelling :D
I admit I'm extremely hard on myself. If we had a swear jar at training and I had to pay for every swear word I say at training when I fuck something up or get frustrated I reckon our league could buy a factory outright and convert it to a derby venue. Especially the last few weeks when I've either struggled to keep up with the pack or can't do the drills properly, it's like why the hell is everyone else getting it but me? The other one is getting injured and having to watch from the sidelines. This isn't a woe is me, I'm after some sympathy paragraph. It's frustrating as fuck not being able to keep up with the rest of my team mates. I swear on all my Liverpool possessions that I'm not the slightest bit jealous, in fact I'm so bloody proud of them and what they're able to do on the track. I just hate the fact that I'm holding them back during drills or endurance because I can't keep up with them.
Which leads me to bouting. If/when that day ever comes I don't know how much fun I'd have, let me explain. I'm extremely competitive, I have been all my life. I'd get the shit's if I lost a game of uno. I was always like that with soccer, unless we were hammering the opposition I'd be fully focussed on the game and of course take it personally if I fucked up but I'd never take it out on my team mates, I'd actually be the one to pick them up. I reckon I'd be the same with derby.
I have this constant fear lurking over me that I'm not going to make it in derby. People seem to like my bout write up's I do for Roller Derby AU but I'm selfish I don't want that to be the only thing I do with derby. I want to be good enough to bout with HARD. There's days where it feels like it's no closer to happening.
I don't politics or play games so I'd never put my hand up for any Board member roles when it comes to voting at the AGM. I'd help out any other way I could whether it's doing write up's, NSOing, working on strategies I think I'd be of more help in those areas. Speaking of tactics/strategies I've discovered since I started doing those that I've been able to pick up patterns certain players/combos of players use, especially NRDL since I've covered a shitload of their bouts already.
In regards to NRDL I don't deny they became my favourite league before I even put on a pair of quad skates. When I joined HARD, Newy then became my equal fav. What the? I don't even play for NRDL, what gives? When it comes to teams I'm extremely loyal it's why I've been a Liverpool supporter for over 22 years. When I pick a team, I stick with them and Newy is no different. When the day comes that HARD bout against NRDL, I'll be hoping for a HARD win but no doubt the bout will hold extra significance for me and I won't apologise for that.
I think that's about it for now.
- Sylv
There's a few things that have been bouncing around in my head that I need to get out before my head explodes. I'm sorry but the rest of this post may get messy and all over the shop with no real structure. It feels as though I'm forever battling myself, and it's frigging tiring. Whenever I have a setback with derby there's a part of me that will have a whinge but keep going but there's always that other part of me that thinks I should pack it in and quit since I'm only getting injured and not getting anywhere fast. Derby is the first thing in MANY years that I've not quit when I've had a setback. In fact, it's the one thing that's given me the most setbacks that I'm surprised I haven't quit, I'll get around to why I think I haven't pulled the plug.
Most people have probably heard the term 'roller derby saved my soul'. I don't know if it did mine but it certainly helped get my life back on track. The issue in question isn't important but the longer I'm involved with derby, the more the 'old' me comes back. I'm nowhere near as shy as I used to be and there's more fight in me. I know when some people take up derby they create a persona that could be completely different to how they are in real life. That was never my case, in fact I'd never create a fan page for myself on Facebook (and there's absolutely nothing wrong with those that do) to separate derby and real life because it's one and the same for me. The only difference is just like when it comes to Liverpool, derby allows me to show my passion for the sport, so I'm a LOT more vocal and a lot less mellow haha. Maybe it's a good thing that I do bout reviews because I'm too busy scribbling down notes to let loose with the cheering and yelling :D
I admit I'm extremely hard on myself. If we had a swear jar at training and I had to pay for every swear word I say at training when I fuck something up or get frustrated I reckon our league could buy a factory outright and convert it to a derby venue. Especially the last few weeks when I've either struggled to keep up with the pack or can't do the drills properly, it's like why the hell is everyone else getting it but me? The other one is getting injured and having to watch from the sidelines. This isn't a woe is me, I'm after some sympathy paragraph. It's frustrating as fuck not being able to keep up with the rest of my team mates. I swear on all my Liverpool possessions that I'm not the slightest bit jealous, in fact I'm so bloody proud of them and what they're able to do on the track. I just hate the fact that I'm holding them back during drills or endurance because I can't keep up with them.
Which leads me to bouting. If/when that day ever comes I don't know how much fun I'd have, let me explain. I'm extremely competitive, I have been all my life. I'd get the shit's if I lost a game of uno. I was always like that with soccer, unless we were hammering the opposition I'd be fully focussed on the game and of course take it personally if I fucked up but I'd never take it out on my team mates, I'd actually be the one to pick them up. I reckon I'd be the same with derby.
I have this constant fear lurking over me that I'm not going to make it in derby. People seem to like my bout write up's I do for Roller Derby AU but I'm selfish I don't want that to be the only thing I do with derby. I want to be good enough to bout with HARD. There's days where it feels like it's no closer to happening.
I don't politics or play games so I'd never put my hand up for any Board member roles when it comes to voting at the AGM. I'd help out any other way I could whether it's doing write up's, NSOing, working on strategies I think I'd be of more help in those areas. Speaking of tactics/strategies I've discovered since I started doing those that I've been able to pick up patterns certain players/combos of players use, especially NRDL since I've covered a shitload of their bouts already.
In regards to NRDL I don't deny they became my favourite league before I even put on a pair of quad skates. When I joined HARD, Newy then became my equal fav. What the? I don't even play for NRDL, what gives? When it comes to teams I'm extremely loyal it's why I've been a Liverpool supporter for over 22 years. When I pick a team, I stick with them and Newy is no different. When the day comes that HARD bout against NRDL, I'll be hoping for a HARD win but no doubt the bout will hold extra significance for me and I won't apologise for that.
I think that's about it for now.
- Sylv
Monday, April 23, 2012
What's this, a post?
Excuse me while I just wipe the cobwebs away from this blog. Yeah I know I said I wasn't continuing with the weekly blog and I don't think it has been missed by anyone but I think yesterday's events warranted a one off post.
So what was so special about yesterday? Well the ERRD all stars trained at our training venue before our training session. They're bouting against the SRDL Assassins on the 12th May. I really wanted to go to the bout but I've got my cousin's engagement party on that night and family always comes first no matter how much I love derby.
I went to training 2 hours earlier to go and watch the ERRD guys train and this time I was going as a fan of the sport. No pen and paper, no write up's (and now I've just contradicted myself with this post). I was looking forward to watching them scrimmage because it's been a while since I've been able to just watch scrimmage/bouts and be a fan cheering from the sidelines. My jaw was stuck to the floor with each skater walking through the door with skaters like Jilla, Danger, White Hawk, Manic Bullet, iKandy, Janis and the list goes on. There was Lola, Fifi, Dobie and Punky representing HARD.
I must admit I was ohh so tempted to put my gear on and hope that no one noticed I wasn't supposed to be there. The reality is though if I did do it I would have been absolutely annihilated and that's just in the warm up. I'm not going to let any secrets out in terms of what they did at training but I went from fan to eager student when they started training. They covered things I've never done at training so I managed to pick up a few new things that I'd love to try one day. It was such a great learning experience listening to these really experienced skaters.
Sharni joined me watching them train and we were both in stitches with Jilla and the stuff she comes out with. I felt for poor Dobie during one of their drills, Danger got her with a good hit coming around the bend that she caught some wicked air and landed hard on her arse. I was so impressed with Dobie she bouted in the CCRG bout the night before, trained with the ERRD guys and then did our normal Sunday training. What a machine! I've seen WIRD's Manic Bullet bout a couple of times now and I'm still amazed at how low she gets when she jams. She gets so low that she could literally kiss the floor if she wanted to while she was skating. It's amazing to watch.
I was getting ready to watch them scrimmage when one of the ref's asks Sharni and I to NSO. I must have jam timer tattooed on my forehead. I go it during our scrimmage because I'm not scrimmaging yet but this was one time when I wanted to just watch and not pay attention to timing the jams because there was a chance the jams would go for 5 minutes instead of 2 because I'd be too busy watching. I did the NSO duties and I didn't even screw up... I surprised myself. The scrimmage was frigging awesome to watch. I'll be cheering for the All Stars while I'm at the engagement party.
I figured I'd fulfil a fangirl wish of mine, both Jilla and Cherry at the same venue as me I sensed a photo op! The ERRD guys were getting ready to leave just as we started doing endurance so I quickly left the track and hijacked Cherry who was training the freshies. After a few technical difficulties (the bloody camera wouldn't work) I eventually got a snap with both of them. I was happy as larry even though my jaw was sore from the massive grin I pulled hehe. There was no tears or marriage proposals like those crazy teenage girls over One Direction. I've just got massive respect for both of them as skaters and what they do on and off the track when it comes to derby.
I had the piss taken out of me by a few people (not that I cared) but how many people can say they've had their pic taken with their favourite skater? I was lucky enough to get it taken with both of them so :P haha I've got the pic out of the way, I would love nothing more than to come up with or against the both of them on the derby track one day and have a beer with them afterwards.
Until I started watching more NRDL bouts last year all I really knew was Jilla but the more of their bouts I watched the more amazing skaters I discovered. One of those skaters was DangeRass so I figured I ask her a photo too with Jilla doing her monster impersonation!
So all in all it was a brilliant start to the arvo. It got better because Santina and Danger Blond were back training with us. Santina and I had a laugh during the pushing drill we were doing but then it all went to crap. With each passing drill nothing was going right for me. I was struggling with each drill, I had Apple, Cheya and Cherry drag my arse around the track for the various drills. It felt like I was doing all this stuff for the first time. The longer it went on the worse it got and the more frustrated I got so of course the self doubting thoughts kicked around in my head, fuck it I'm not quitting. I've just lost my derby mojo, I just need to work hard at getting it back again. Earlier this year I really started to improve after last year's injury affected year so I know I can do it. It's more mental than anything.
So that's about it. Aren't you glad you don't have to put my whinghing on a weekly basis anymore :)
So what was so special about yesterday? Well the ERRD all stars trained at our training venue before our training session. They're bouting against the SRDL Assassins on the 12th May. I really wanted to go to the bout but I've got my cousin's engagement party on that night and family always comes first no matter how much I love derby.
I went to training 2 hours earlier to go and watch the ERRD guys train and this time I was going as a fan of the sport. No pen and paper, no write up's (and now I've just contradicted myself with this post). I was looking forward to watching them scrimmage because it's been a while since I've been able to just watch scrimmage/bouts and be a fan cheering from the sidelines. My jaw was stuck to the floor with each skater walking through the door with skaters like Jilla, Danger, White Hawk, Manic Bullet, iKandy, Janis and the list goes on. There was Lola, Fifi, Dobie and Punky representing HARD.
I must admit I was ohh so tempted to put my gear on and hope that no one noticed I wasn't supposed to be there. The reality is though if I did do it I would have been absolutely annihilated and that's just in the warm up. I'm not going to let any secrets out in terms of what they did at training but I went from fan to eager student when they started training. They covered things I've never done at training so I managed to pick up a few new things that I'd love to try one day. It was such a great learning experience listening to these really experienced skaters.
Sharni joined me watching them train and we were both in stitches with Jilla and the stuff she comes out with. I felt for poor Dobie during one of their drills, Danger got her with a good hit coming around the bend that she caught some wicked air and landed hard on her arse. I was so impressed with Dobie she bouted in the CCRG bout the night before, trained with the ERRD guys and then did our normal Sunday training. What a machine! I've seen WIRD's Manic Bullet bout a couple of times now and I'm still amazed at how low she gets when she jams. She gets so low that she could literally kiss the floor if she wanted to while she was skating. It's amazing to watch.
I was getting ready to watch them scrimmage when one of the ref's asks Sharni and I to NSO. I must have jam timer tattooed on my forehead. I go it during our scrimmage because I'm not scrimmaging yet but this was one time when I wanted to just watch and not pay attention to timing the jams because there was a chance the jams would go for 5 minutes instead of 2 because I'd be too busy watching. I did the NSO duties and I didn't even screw up... I surprised myself. The scrimmage was frigging awesome to watch. I'll be cheering for the All Stars while I'm at the engagement party.
I figured I'd fulfil a fangirl wish of mine, both Jilla and Cherry at the same venue as me I sensed a photo op! The ERRD guys were getting ready to leave just as we started doing endurance so I quickly left the track and hijacked Cherry who was training the freshies. After a few technical difficulties (the bloody camera wouldn't work) I eventually got a snap with both of them. I was happy as larry even though my jaw was sore from the massive grin I pulled hehe. There was no tears or marriage proposals like those crazy teenage girls over One Direction. I've just got massive respect for both of them as skaters and what they do on and off the track when it comes to derby.
I had the piss taken out of me by a few people (not that I cared) but how many people can say they've had their pic taken with their favourite skater? I was lucky enough to get it taken with both of them so :P haha I've got the pic out of the way, I would love nothing more than to come up with or against the both of them on the derby track one day and have a beer with them afterwards.
Until I started watching more NRDL bouts last year all I really knew was Jilla but the more of their bouts I watched the more amazing skaters I discovered. One of those skaters was DangeRass so I figured I ask her a photo too with Jilla doing her monster impersonation!
So all in all it was a brilliant start to the arvo. It got better because Santina and Danger Blond were back training with us. Santina and I had a laugh during the pushing drill we were doing but then it all went to crap. With each passing drill nothing was going right for me. I was struggling with each drill, I had Apple, Cheya and Cherry drag my arse around the track for the various drills. It felt like I was doing all this stuff for the first time. The longer it went on the worse it got and the more frustrated I got so of course the self doubting thoughts kicked around in my head, fuck it I'm not quitting. I've just lost my derby mojo, I just need to work hard at getting it back again. Earlier this year I really started to improve after last year's injury affected year so I know I can do it. It's more mental than anything.
So that's about it. Aren't you glad you don't have to put my whinghing on a weekly basis anymore :)
Monday, March 19, 2012
Smash you very much
So I went up to Newy to watch the opening match of the season between the Fort Smashleys and Harbour Hellcats (I'm hoping to finish the write up after this post). Here's a funny fact. I've lived in Sydney all my life BUT I've been to more Newy bouts than I've been to ALL bouts I've gone to in the Sydney area. Plus I think it's probably a sign I've been to too many of their bouts when I go line up to get my media pass while lining up in the general admission line and I haven't even opened my mouth but they already know who I am and give me a media release form :)
I sat and watched the bout with Big Kahuna and had an amazing time. It was great chatting with him about all things derby, he's a funny bugger so I had a few laughs too. It was also great hearing his insights during the bout and picked up a few new things in terms of strategy. Hopefully I'll get to watch a bout with him again in the future.
I also had two of my team mates come up to watch a Newy bout for the first time with Hayley and Keiryn making the trip up. It was funny hearing Keiryn's reaction about being slightly worried coming up against them as they play more physical than SRDL. I know I'd get slaughtered by Newy on the track but fuck it I can't wait to come up against them one day and then have a beer with them afterwards!
As for the bout itself it will go down as one of my all time favourite bouts. Neither side had a 14 player squad due to injuries so the bout got scrappy as tiredness kicked in but I was equally amazed and excited at the same time by the fitness and determination that both sides showed to got right up until the final whistle. I swear just when I thought I couldn't love them anymore they go and surprise me again. Read my write up when it gets uploaded there's heaps of other goodies I'll mention about the night. I'll give you one more nugget of info guess who jammed multiple times at the bout, yep Jilla! I haven't seen her jam since the very first bout I ever went to in October 2010 and it was an awesome sight to behold. (Pics courtesy of the Nav Man). When I grow up I want to be as good as her!
So I have an open invitation to train with Newy but I'll cash that in when my skating improves. I'm working on another thing. I've talked Newy up to my team mates and we've already had other leagues scrimmage and train with us so along with our head trainer Lola I'm trying to get Newy to come and scrimmage with us some time this year *cough* hopefully one of the skaters coming down would be Jilla :) *cough*
As for me after seemingly progressing the last few weeks I felt like I stagnated last week at training on both nights. I knew the progress wasn't going to last forever so I'll deal with that so that the progress can kickstart again. I'm officially ruled out of bouting in our first intraleague bout in May/June. I need to be a Corporal level 2 for at least 8 weeks before I can attempt the Sergeants test and I'm a Corporal level 1 with less than 3 weeks before the exam. Watching the scrimmage last night which had members from CCRG and SRDL in it too I *knew* that if I was in that scrimmage I wouldn't have survived so I'm not up to that level. So here's my master plan. I've had enough of talking about my derby dreams. Talk is cheap and I want to do my 'talking' on the track instead of writing about it. I flirted with it before Christmas last year but I'm officially calling it quits with this blog starting tonight. I'm putting all my focus into training to make sure I'm bouting this year. I'll stick with the RDAU write up's only because I learn more about the game by doing them. I'll update my progress as status updates on my Facebook page but that's about it.
To the people that have read this and the friend's that I've made from this blog SMASH YOU VERY MUCH and hopefully see you on the derby track sometime soon!
Sylv aka Lisbeth Slammed-her.
I sat and watched the bout with Big Kahuna and had an amazing time. It was great chatting with him about all things derby, he's a funny bugger so I had a few laughs too. It was also great hearing his insights during the bout and picked up a few new things in terms of strategy. Hopefully I'll get to watch a bout with him again in the future.
I also had two of my team mates come up to watch a Newy bout for the first time with Hayley and Keiryn making the trip up. It was funny hearing Keiryn's reaction about being slightly worried coming up against them as they play more physical than SRDL. I know I'd get slaughtered by Newy on the track but fuck it I can't wait to come up against them one day and then have a beer with them afterwards!
As for the bout itself it will go down as one of my all time favourite bouts. Neither side had a 14 player squad due to injuries so the bout got scrappy as tiredness kicked in but I was equally amazed and excited at the same time by the fitness and determination that both sides showed to got right up until the final whistle. I swear just when I thought I couldn't love them anymore they go and surprise me again. Read my write up when it gets uploaded there's heaps of other goodies I'll mention about the night. I'll give you one more nugget of info guess who jammed multiple times at the bout, yep Jilla! I haven't seen her jam since the very first bout I ever went to in October 2010 and it was an awesome sight to behold. (Pics courtesy of the Nav Man). When I grow up I want to be as good as her!
AND an amazing shot of her leaving blockers in her wake!
So I have an open invitation to train with Newy but I'll cash that in when my skating improves. I'm working on another thing. I've talked Newy up to my team mates and we've already had other leagues scrimmage and train with us so along with our head trainer Lola I'm trying to get Newy to come and scrimmage with us some time this year *cough* hopefully one of the skaters coming down would be Jilla :) *cough*
As for me after seemingly progressing the last few weeks I felt like I stagnated last week at training on both nights. I knew the progress wasn't going to last forever so I'll deal with that so that the progress can kickstart again. I'm officially ruled out of bouting in our first intraleague bout in May/June. I need to be a Corporal level 2 for at least 8 weeks before I can attempt the Sergeants test and I'm a Corporal level 1 with less than 3 weeks before the exam. Watching the scrimmage last night which had members from CCRG and SRDL in it too I *knew* that if I was in that scrimmage I wouldn't have survived so I'm not up to that level. So here's my master plan. I've had enough of talking about my derby dreams. Talk is cheap and I want to do my 'talking' on the track instead of writing about it. I flirted with it before Christmas last year but I'm officially calling it quits with this blog starting tonight. I'm putting all my focus into training to make sure I'm bouting this year. I'll stick with the RDAU write up's only because I learn more about the game by doing them. I'll update my progress as status updates on my Facebook page but that's about it.
To the people that have read this and the friend's that I've made from this blog SMASH YOU VERY MUCH and hopefully see you on the derby track sometime soon!
Sylv aka Lisbeth Slammed-her.
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