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Not feeling Frisky (a post about Feelings)

May 17, 2013 by Frisky Sour

This has been a hard week for me. On Monday, I found out I have gestational diabetes. It’s not that terrible, really, but bad news is not easily taken when you’re pregnant and hormonal. In my mind, I had this wonderful, if uncomfortable, summer all planned out that had included a lot of ice cream. Goodbye ice cream. Sorry kid, who I could have been harming when eating cake on Mother’s Day. I cried a lot.

Eventually, the emotion started to wear on me, too. What’s wrong with me, crying at the sight of my testing supplies and getting choked up about sandwiches? Shouldn’t I be strong?

You know what’s strong? Doing what you need to do, even if you’re emotional about it.

There are feelings in roller derby. There’s crying. If you have a terrible practice, you’re allowed to go cry about it in your car. Hell, I’ve cried DURING a game. Being strong isn’t about not crying. It’s about going back to practice after you have a terrible one, or being ready to go in the game and play your best no matter how you’re feeling. You only have to be strong for 1-2 minutes at a time at that point.

I’m allowed to not want to stick my finger with a needle. It’s okay if I flinch a little bit the first few times. What matters is that I do it.

Have you ever gotten pissed or discouraged and bugged out on the end of practice? What matters is being honest with yourself about why you did it, and if it was the right thing to do. If it wasn’t, forgive yourself and take action to make it better. That’s all we can do.

Right?

Be nice to yourself. Then go eat some ice cream.

 

 

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Bonnie Thunders is the LeBron James of roller derby?

May 15, 2013 by Frisky Sour

So, if Bonnie Thunders is the LeBron James of roller derby, who are you?

I like to think of my skating self as the Luke Babbitt of roller derby. (If you are an NBA basketball fan, this will make sense to you. If not – he’s a bench player for the Blazers who gets made fun of a lot.) STICK WITH ME HERE. If he’s not that great, how did the five-man unit of  Lillard-Matthews-Batum-Babbitt-Aldridge have a 72% winning percentage, huh? Also, I’m tall and awkward.

Do you have a famous person/professional athlete comparison for yourself or another skater?

For my basketball friends who don’t know much about derby, I would say that Bonnie Thunders is more of the Kevin Durant of roller derby. She’s the scoring champion, after all. She doesn’t need to be LeBron because the rest of her team is so strong on defense.

Let’s hear them. Who’s the Wayne Gretzky of roller derby? Who’s the Mia Hamm? Who’s the Venus Williams?

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Manatee Monday: Mother’s Day

May 13, 2013 by Frisky Sour

Manatee moms and calves are totally tight.

mom-and-baby-in-three

Photo from TripAdvisor

If manatees had calendars, they’d probably give their moms a bunch of sea grass for Mother’s Manatee MonDay, because manatee moms are pretty nice. Manatee babies (calves) stay with their moms for one to two years, even after the babies are weaned. They hang out together, and the manatee moms show the babies the ropes: migration patterns, etc.

Manatees are usually pretty quiet, but moms and babies do squeak back and forth. They’ve got things to chat about.

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Talking Derby with Pain Eyre

May 10, 2013 by Frisky Sour

251751_561513067201093_1477097923_nI follow Talking Derby on Twitter, so I knew that it was a book about roller derby, but I didn’t know by whom or what is was all about. Being the nosy person I am, I asked the author, Pain Eyre, if she wouldn’t mind answering a few questions for us.

Frisky: First, can you tell me a little bit about Talking Derby? What is it about, and who is it written for?

Pain: Talking Derby is a book of short short stories, more like vignettes, that make up what I’ve been calling my love letter to roller derby. They take place on the track, off the track, in the grocery store, in the kitchen, at the after party, all over really, showing how much the sport of derby completely takes over your entire life. I tried to capture the intensity of derby, the sights, smells, sounds and feelings of the sport, and touch on things that might be little known or little talked about that are unique to derby. The book is broken up into small moments that you don’t have to read all at once and the format mimics a bout: short intense jams that accumulate to form the game, and in the book short pieces of writing that you can pick up, read one or two, and pick up again later no problem. You don’t have to read them in order and they together form a cumulative impression of the sport as well as the characters.

As to who it is for, I was definitely thinking of the derby community when I wrote it, and I hope it will be something people in derby can relate to and enjoy on that level. However there is also a full glossary, an appendix explaining the basic rules and a diagram to help people who are new to derby, either fresh meat skaters or people who have never even heard of the sport but are drawn in by the appeal of something new.

Continue Reading »

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How often do you replace your knee pads?

May 8, 2013 by Frisky Sour

Skaters chat about knee pads a lot, but unfortunately, it’s often after an injury. New knee pads always feel so cushy and comfortable, don’t they? The Velcro is still sticky, and the padding hasn’t been compacted by months of being rode hard and put away wet.

I asked the ladies over at  Wicked Skatewear and they suggested that they replace their pads:

1)  When they’re cracked
2)  After all of the elasticity is gone out of the wrap around parts and I’m thinking about using duct tape

Food for thought. If you’re using duct tape to keep yourself and your friends from getting Velcro burn? Fine. If you’re using the duct tape to actually keep them on? Possibly problematic.

In my totally non-scientific opinion, I’d say that most skaters should replace their knee pads every year or so, or sooner if one of the above issues comes up.

Just as a little anecdote (yeah) to back this up: I was having a lot of pain when falling on my right knee in the summer of 2011, maybe. After some scary doctor’s visits and an MRI, I found out that I had/have a partially-deteriorated meniscus. That’s not terrible, so I was cleared to skate immediately. I got new knee pads, and felt fine from then on.

How often do you guys replace your knee pads?

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Roller derby popularity chart

May 6, 2013 by Frisky Sour

Someone googled “roller derby popularity chart” to get here the other day. They were probably looking for some kind of information on how fast the sport is growing, blah blah blah, but that’s not what came to my mind when I saw that combination of words.

Internet, I give you my roller derby popularity chart:

chart_1 (2)

Click to embiggen

What do you think? Did I get close? Is there too much of a Rose City bias in there? Maybe other leagues aren’t so into FROYO?

Posted in Derby, My super fun activities | Tagged , , | 7 Comments »

Manatee Monday: Sunny day at the beach!

May 6, 2013 by Frisky Sour

It was 84 degrees yesterday in Portland, Oregon. When that happens, Portlanders grab their dogs and congregate near bodies of water. I don’t have a dog, but I do have a manatee friend, so we headed down to the river for some sun.

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You probably can’t tell here, but I have a Blazers blanket and he has a Blazers rally towel.

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Looking cool there, buddy! Speaking of looking cool, even a manatee gets hot after there’s too much sun. In Florida, he would just dip under the water, but the river is too cold for manatees here.

IMG_3051 (800x800)

 He also got to try some local foliage, though he got a little excited and almost got his nose scratched by a blackberry bramble.

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We hope ya’ll had fun in the sun, or on the track, or wherever your weekend took you!

Heads up to those of you who’re new to Rose City: You can, if you so choose, run down to the river to dunk yourself after practice. It’s about two minutes away from the Hangar on foot. Yes, it’s the Willamette River, so it isn’t exactly pure as freshly-fallen snow, but at least it flows north so it doesn’t have as much of the city filth in it yet. Fun facts!

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All about Derbyline with Boxcar Bethy

May 3, 2013 by Frisky Sour

Boxcar Bethy skated for the Rose City Rollers for an all-too-brief time several years ago, until family matters moved her back to Canada. These days, she’s skating for Thunder Bay and hosting Derbyline, a new call-in internet radio show all about roller derby. Naturally, I wanted to hear all about it.

 

Frisky: So! Why an internet radio call-in show?

Boxcar: Well, I wish I could say that Derbyline is the realization of some grandiose dream, but honestly I just jumped on the opportunity when it presented itself. CampTV is an awesome studio at Confederation (in Thunder Bay, Ontario), and I’m uber-lucky to have an awesome coach, The 5th Wheel, who is also a fantastic producer!

That being said, I love interviews and always have. Whether in magazine, podcast, or talk show format, I just find it interesting when people let you take a tour of their mental space.

 

Are there any subjects in particular you’re really interested in chatting about? Do you have a few favorite or “pet” subjects?

I wanted to do this show to give every skater the chance to tell his or her story. These days, the roller derby community (myself included!) tends to put a lot of focus on the very top tier of players and teams. It’s easy to forget that there is an entire matrix of really interesting ideas and experiences that exist simply because the grassroots / DIY / local league model of roller derby is still so prevalent, and derby people are so heavily invested and involved in so many aspects of the sport.

When people tell me they are nervous to be on the show, because they might not be roller derby experts or superfans, I tell them that it’s their personal experience that matters. I want to be able to draw parallels between the everyday derby experiences of someone like a rookie in my league and someone who has won a WFTDA Championship title. And that helps keep the show grounded, too. I am happy when people who know nothing about derby tell me that they enjoyed the show. I’ve always thought that it’s the people who make roller derby so special, and I’m proud to be able to spotlight the glorious weirdness of our community.

 

How can people participate and/or listen?

People can always call in during the show. Our call-in line is (807) 473-3800. There is a chat board on the CampTV site, as well, and people can even post their phone numbers if they don’t want to pay long-distance to Canada. We have the ability to Skype guests in, but usually reserve that for feature interviews due to logistics. People can also get involved via Twitter and other social media! We try to have a hashtag going for each episode, so people can tweet us their Qs and comments.

 

What do you have up your sleeve for this Sunday’s show?

This Sunday, we’re talking about the big ol’ crazy family of roller derby. In studio, I’m talking to Jenny Chaos and Allspark from Thunder Bay Roller Derby. We’ve got Smarty McFly from Arch Rival calling in a review ARRG’s Saturday night bout against Ohio, plus Pain Eyre calling in to talk about her book, Talking Derby, as well as Elektra Q Tion from the You Picked a Fine Time to Leave Me Loose Wheel blog!

 

What else do we need to know?

Feel free to share your topics, ideas or stories with us! We want to make this everyone’s show & represent what people are thinking, feeling, and going through in the wide world of roller derby. Hit us up!

Also, podcast lovers, stay tuned! We are working on getting the show up on iTunes. For now, we are posting archived episodes on YouTube. Check out the first episode here; the 2nd episode should be posted imminently!
And, finally, make sure to watch us live every Sunday night at 8 p.m. EST on www.camptv.ca.

Social media:
facebook twitter

 

 

****

Thank you, Boxcar! Can I just take a moment to say that Boxcar really is the best? Member of the Top 10 Sweetest Members of Rose City during my tenure, easily. Take a listen.

Coincidentally, one of Derbyline’s guests for this week, Pain Eyre, will be discussing Talking Derby right here on the blog next week. It’s a small derby world.

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May 2013 Frisky Power Rankings

May 1, 2013 by Frisky Sour

Welcome once again to the Frisky Power Rankings, where I rank women’s flat track roller derby according to my whims/in-depth knowledge.

  1. Gotham. Gotham is not subject to the “stop being boring rule” Denver and Rat City are subject to, below, because they are Gotham and we can expect that they are still very good.
  2. Bay Area Derby. They play Montreal this month, in a game that promises to be shiny and attractive, no matter the result.
  3. Cute baby animals. Spring has arrived! Bring on the babies!
  4. Texas. Will they continue their regular season goodness? Sure, why not?
  5. Philly. Their win over Charm is looking better after Charm wins a couple of solid games.
  6. Having a roller derby coaching business. From the looks of it, you just get awesome at roller derby, then get paid to fly to other countries and boss people around. Why didn’t I ever get awesome?
  7. Windy City. Beating London on their own floor – pretty good, even if it’s only by 30 points or so.
  8. Denver. Every month you don’t play a game, I drop you in the rankings. TAKE THAT. STOP BEING BORING.
  9. Angel City. How did they get better after losing Fifi Nomenon? I don’t know! Magic?
  10. Rose City. Oh my beloved Rose, giving up 250 points to  Angel City. They need to figure a few things out regarding 1) not going to the box and 2) what the blockers should do if/when their jammer goes to the box.
  11. London. Their loss to Windy is a little closer than Flat Track Stats expected. Not too shabby, ladies. We’ll see them on the west coast in June. (!!!!!!!!!!!) Anyone up for a road trip to Seattle?
  12. Charm. 100-point wins over Boston and Ohio are no joke.
  13. Montreal. Yes, I give extra points for neon.
  14. Some team I never think of as that good that’s going to surprise people early on.  Atlanta? (BTW, I can see why beating teams by 400 points would shoot you to the top of the mathematical rankings, but come on. Beat someone good.)
  15. Naptown. A peek behind the decision-making process: I don’t know. They’re pretty good, but not THAT good.
  16. VRDL. Come hang out with us, please.
  17. Rocky Mountain. They beat Pikes Peak by 447. In related news, I found this article. 
  18. Minnesota. They play Denver and Rocky Mountain next weekend. That is a hell of a dehydrating, low-oxygen one-two punch. We’ll keep them below Rocky Mountain here for that reason. Prove me wrong, Minny!
  19. Rat City. Yeah. Playing roller derby is fun. (STOP BEING BORING.)
  20. Round numbers. They’re so hot right now.

What do you think?

 

 

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Don’t compare yourself to other skaters

April 29, 2013 by Frisky Sour

File under: Impossible advice.

This morning, I horned in on a Twitter conversation about Rose City’s upcoming home team draft. Draft was for me, without an instant of doubt, the most stressful event of my roller derby career. Worse than tryouts. Worse than getting skates stolen. Worse than any championship game. I have the feeling it’s probably the same for our Fresh Meat today, and now it’s tougher than ever to get onto a team. Hard Dash was bummed after studying what the Meat listed as their strengths and weaknesses, because they really don’t realize how good they are at skating.

Every year or so, someone in roller derby would give me this impossible advice that may be applicable in this situation: Don’t compare yourself to other skaters.

Not compare myself to other skaters? That’s all roller derby skaters DO! Raise your hand if you’ve made lists or spreadsheets with your predictions of who would make a team or a roster. (Only me? Maybe? I know other people get obsessive, too.) When we compete, it’s natural to look at the girl next to you to wonder how you both stack up in the eyes of coaches and captains.

Then you’ll make a team, and a game roster will be about to come out, causing more comparison and misery. If you make the roster, you can pore over the stats later and wonder why so-and-so got played in more jams than you did.

Yikes, ladies.

While it’s only natural to compare yourself and your abilities with the other skaters around you, people tell you not to do it because it’s  not  healthy or constructive. It’s also taking mental energy that you could be devoting to something more important, like focusing on your damn drill, or thinking about who’s going to win RuPaul’s Drag Race. Focus on your own skating, because that’s what you can change.

 

Is there something that helps you from going down the negative comparison spiral?

 

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