Wednesday, April 20, 2011

Roller Derby Girls Do It On All Fours.....



Hi my name is Kim and I blog over at Skates and Stiches! I am super excited to be guest blogging for Kamika today and can't wait to tell you all about my love....DERBY! I've never been much of sporty girl. I was one of those kids who had a good report card, except for my mark in P.E., which usually said something like "Kim puts a lot of effort in even if she hasn't got the exact skills." The only real sport I ever took part in for any length of time was dancing, and that doesn't really feel like a sport. You're having so much fun that you don't think of it as exercise. I've dipped in and out of dancing for most of my life, and while I love it, I find going to dance classes and not being as bendy as the other girls a bit intimidating. Most of my dancing these days is confined to my living room when my boyfriend is out the house.


I don't like sports in general. And then I discovered roller derby. I came across derby the way a lot of people I know did, and that was from watching the movie Whip It. While it has existed for a while (even outside America), I had no clue of its existence until this movie came out. I watched and thought it looked like the most fun ever, and while gushing about it on Facebook, I was informed that Edinburgh in fact have a league. How did I not know this?



Getting involved in derby was a big step for me. To join the Edinburgh fresh meat (newbie) session, you have to have your entire kit before you start. This includes skates, toe guards, knee pads, elbow pads, wrist guards, a mouth guard and a helmet. I went out and bought all of mine in one go and it came to about £220. It seemed like a lot of money to shell out on a sport I wasn't even sure I could do, but it just seemed so amazing, and I wanted to be a part of it so badly, so I risked it. I could always chuck the stuff on eBay if I didn't like it.

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However, there was never any need for that. One thing I noticed right away about the Edinburgh derby girls is how welcoming, nice and encouraging they are. I asked a lot of stupid and obvious questions when I first started derby, and I never once got anything but a full answer with a smile. Going along to a fresh meat session is terrifying. You don't know anyone, and you know there are a lot of people who are going to be a hell of a lot better than you at skating. But that didn't seem to matter once I actually got there, because everyone welcomes you in with open arms.

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I've been skating since October 2010, usually once or twice a week. It doesn't seem like too much, but it's amazing how much you can learn in that time. Every week I felt like I was adding something new to my knowledge base, and every week I was working towards the dreaded 25 in 5. As part of derby you have to sit a minimums test, which ensure that you have the skills needed to be in a derby team. One element of this is skating 25 laps of the track in 5 minutes. That works out to about 12 seconds a lap. The first time I did it I got 17ish laps. It seemed like I would never get to 25. But every week I got a little faster, always adding half a lap or so to my time, and I just passed my 25 in 5 (and my whole minimums test) at the beginning of April. I couldn't be happier.

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If you are thinking about getting involved with derby, I would encourage everyone to have a go. It doesn't matter what you look like, if you look at a derby team, you will see girls of all shapes and sizes. It doesn't matter if you've never skated before. Some of the best skaters in our team couldn't even stand up when they first got on skates. The first time I went skating I had to hold on to my boyfriend the whole time because I was too scared to let go. It doesn't matter if you find it stupidly hard. It's supposed to be hard. It's also supposed to hurt. You will fall over and you will get bruises, but you will also get there. It doesn't matter if you get there faster or slower than everyone else, you'll get there. And it will definitely be the most fun you've ever had.

4 comments:

  1. That is SO COOL! I really want to go see a match. :)

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  2. you should look for a bout in your area! Derby games are SO much fun!

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  3. I'm so happy to hear it's making it's way around the globe. I ref for a team here in FL which is one of the last states to get derby after it's revival. Congrats on your obsession! It's a healthy (sometimes costly) one to have!

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