tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-48268667324179256712024-03-13T11:32:26.493-04:00Journey of a FreshieA collection of roller derby freshmeat stories and experiences.Helen Carnatehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14738776896971663362noreply@blogger.comBlogger66125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4826866732417925671.post-63430671632653273572014-07-21T11:48:00.000-04:002014-07-21T12:50:28.009-04:00Counting Hours<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">Recent steps
forward include a good practice last week, and me really looking forward to
practice again tomorrow evening. Last Thursday, there were two other girls brand-spankin’
new to derby, like myself (named Sara and Amanda). Plus we were fortunate enough to
have a <i>huge</i> amount of people there-
about 21 ladies on skates, including trainers, and one woman from <a href="http://www.turntwoskateshop.com/" target="_blank">Turn Two Skate Shop</a>
in Maine! It was really fun to skate with girls on my level, and to have so
many experienced women to generously give us direction. We practiced single knee
falls, standing on one foot, pre-transition stepping to turn around 180°, and
then that pre-transition stepping 360°.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>We also practiced double knee falls,
or as I like to think of this particular maneuver, “The Rockstar,” since you’re
supposed to be leaning back with knees and legs wide apart so you don’t accidentally
stick your skate up your butt. (If you’re into that, more power to you, but I
think derby is the wrong environment for intentional insertion.) I am really,
really bad at these. Plus I (while the other new girls were getting their feet
wet) started to try to put one foot out in front of the other to try to aim
towards crossovers. I am really bad at these, but possibly not as bad at these
as I am at the double knee falls. I think it’ll take a few more weeks to master
these skills, but I look forward to trying again soon, and at least getting my first
unintentional crossover fall out of the way.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>I feel like that’s always a step for
me. I’m going to fall a lot, on purpose and by accident. Most of the new things
I learn, I will eventually fall down while I’m doing. I kind of want to get all
of my first falls out of the way to help reduce the "fear" of falling. Like with everything else derby-skills-related, it
will all happen in time and with effort. For example, I feel like I wasn’t sore
enough after this derby practice, and so I’d like to make more of an effort to
stay lower when I’m in stance tomorrow. I will definitely spend at least a little time this week on those crossover pre-steps, and on those double knee falls.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">There were also a few girls there taking
their [insert scary music here] Level One Assessments. Big congratulations to them, as everyone I saw was working hard, staying low, and keeping their
heads in the game! It was great to get a sneak peek at the real skills I’m
working towards. Crossovers, toe stops, jumps and hops- if I wanted the skills
extravaganza, I certainly came to the right practice.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>I can’t go backwards yet. This might
seem pretty “duh” to everyone, but it looks so fun, and I keep feeling
impatient about it. At least I can plow stop now. I can’t T-stop yet- but using
plow stops, at my second practice ever I was able to stop for the first time,
on purpose, and without hitting the floor or wall. I mean, I’m still like a
baby giraffe up on those things, but I have to
give it time. (Remind me if you see me getting frustrated with myself out there.) The other week, I was so sore after practice that I couldn't walk up and down the stairs except sideways clutching the railing like an elderly woman, for <em>two days</em>. There's got to be an in-between- sore enough to know I worked hard, and yet still capable of engaging in my everyday activities. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"> I think I'm much more prepared for my discomfort now, at least. During the skating, it's my lower back, my entire "Tramp Stamp" area. After? It's pretty much everything, back and legs. I think once I get the hang of engaging my core more, it'll be the abs, too. But I have tiger balm, Aleve, Advil, Tylenol, lavender-scented Epsom salts, and peas in the freezer. Bring it, body.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>On a significantly more downer note.
I debated about whether or not to discuss this but I want to be as honest as
possible about my experience and where I am on my derby journey. I mentioned in my last post that I’m out of shape. I did not include detail, but I am overweight, and not insignificantly so. While I know
health and fitness are long-term goals, I still had a rough end of the week,
when I hopped on my scale and had basically gained ten pounds. Yes, I know, it’s
most likely me building thigh muscle; muscle is heavier than fat; the muscle will
help boost my metabolism in the long run by helping me burn more calories.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>But that doesn’t change the feeling
I get when I see the number on the scale. That doesn’t change the way my heart
drops and I get discouraged. Shaking it off and
getting my head back in the game does not come naturally to me. It takes
effort, and more than that, it takes a conscious choice every day. I am making that choice for myself today, and I can tell you, I'm more than likely to make it tomorrow. I just really want to see myself making that choice next week, if/when it happens again and I'm feeling disheartened.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>I don’t want to exercise myself out
like crazy today and head into derby tomorrow already too sore. So I am going to be
patient so that tomorrow night I can kick my butt on skates for as many of
those three hours as I can make it to. It’s another crappy night where I have
to leave right from work just to make it onto skates at all. I wish this were easier- but at
least, having practice Tuesday means I can go to adult skate on Thursday near
my house, and log more hours on the track. I wish myself luck...</span></div>
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12281793935210989164noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4826866732417925671.post-29871557762782057542014-07-17T13:49:00.000-04:002014-07-17T13:49:41.639-04:00Popping my Derby Cherry<b>By Freshmeat Sonya, <i>Special to Journey of a Freshie</i></b><br />
<b><i><br /></i></b>
One fateful Saturday evening, after five months of friendly urging and insatiable curiosity, I drove down directly from work to see my friend play in the first bout I ever saw, for the Bloody Bordens. I went intending to watch Hexy (Surreal Hexy Chaos) all evening. Lucky for me, her husband (Al Jynx U) was not being a zebra that evening, and he was able to explain what was going on to me. I had a lot of questions, and although I tried to keep my eyes on my friend, my attention was glued to the jammer almost every time. Something inside my brain awoke to the realization that I, too, wanted to be a part of this.<br />
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By the following weekend, I had done enough research to see that <a href="http://www.nhrollerderby.com/" target="_blank">New Hampshire Roller Derby</a>'s (NHRD) <a href="http://www.nhrollerderby.com/teams/misfits/" target="_blank">Millyard Misfits</a> practiced closest to where I live of all the leagues in my area. I tried to tell myself that maybe if I was still interested in a month, and if the schedule would fit into my work schedule, I would consider signing up. Then I threw logic, scheduling, and caution to the wind, and I sent the first fateful e-mail about beginning my derby journey. I got all my gear (after consulting with Hexy for suggestions and having Chiff from <a href="http://urbanmayhemskate.com/store/" target="_blank">Urban Mayhem</a> in Manchester help size/direct me), and I attended my first practice.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-IGe63oqoAes/U8gKom8_hEI/AAAAAAAABDQ/zyjwRF2nRVA/s1600/misfits.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-IGe63oqoAes/U8gKom8_hEI/AAAAAAAABDQ/zyjwRF2nRVA/s1600/misfits.jpg" height="265" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Contact-eligible Misfits practice pack drills at the NHRD warehouse</td></tr>
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To wet my feet I got on my R3s once, the day before practice. So I showed up to the Misfits a little sore already. I was frustrated with myself every time I had to take a break, both independently and at practice. I am a very stubborn person- I just want to be good at this, already! But my lower back has other ideas. Seriously, sometimes it's like the entire tramp-stamp area of my back is on fire, and I have to stop, even when the rest of my wants to keep going.<br />
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I will be the first to admit, I'm out of shape. I don't like working out, I never have; I don't like sweating, or breathing heavy, or feeling tired and sore. But even by myself, before I'd met a single Misfit or trainer, I realized that after just a little while, even if I wasn't good on the skates, and I fall down constantly, and even if my back and feet were sore, some part of me felt good. It’s a very independent feeling. There aren't many places I can go where I don't feel weirdly paranoid, like people are watching me in a negative and judgmental way, but the benefits to being new are that I don't feel obligated to prove anything to anyone. Even practicing on my own has a unique feeling to it, like I’m somehow flipping off everybody else on the track; I only care about what I’m doing out there.<br />
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The strategy I've been using so far to help combat my frustration is to remind myself that I need to take it one step at a time, to not get ahead of myself. Derby society has been incredibly welcoming and open to me so far; even just going out for drinks with Hexy's gang after her bout, it was obvious to me that the people who do derby are doing it for the right reasons (i.e. themselves and nobody else). I think it's only realistic for me to try to take it slow- try to give myself at least two days a week on wheels, to begin, and maybe reassess in a few months where I’d like to take derby from there in my life.<br />
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I've been slow and selective about who among my non-derby friends I've told. (I haven't even really told my mother yet, for example, and we're pretty close.) I don't like to go back on the things I say and I don’t want to be too open to anyone’s criticism until I’m actually ready for it. I want to give myself freedom if I keep going and this doesn't wind up being for me, too. Despite my hesitance, the most popular response from my friends, by far, is that everyone seems to believe I’ll be a perfect fit. While it doesn't really matter what others think, it’s nice to have some kind of validation from somewhere familiar that yes, taking this step might really be taking one step closer to finding out where I belong right now in my life.<br />
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The biggest question I've been asked so far is something I feel is pretty heavy: “What's your Derby name? Do you have a name picked out yet?” Honoring my personal commandment to take it slow, I refuse to announce anything yet. I want to put in the work. I need to make myself keep working hard, possibly harder in a physical way on a consistent basis than I ever have before. For the record, I have an idea about what I'd like, but I don't want to set anything in stone, at least until I'm considering Level 1 Assessment. And I'd like to think everyone already knows, but I feel a need to add, this is not a dig: if someone comes in, guns a-blazing, and they are ready to go from the first moment, then I want the best for them, and for them to be addressed by our derby community however they feel most comfortable. For me? I need to keep pushing myself, to keep earning things for myself. And my identity is a big part of my journey. I will pick up the mantle when I'm ready.<br />
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So much of the time in the rest of my life, I feel like I’m not good at things. Sometimes I feel like I'm just not good at anything I do. But the truth is I do have some talents, and some natural traits that can be both advantages and disadvantages: as I mentioned, I'm stubborn, and on the negative side, I tend to hold grudges. On the positive side, however, I've committed myself to at least trying my best at something new. I don't want to speculate too far into the future. I want to look at the next step I'm taking on the path that I'm on. Here's to hoping that I can let go of the grudges I've held against myself and my own abilities, and not let anything hold me back.<br />
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<br />
So what's next? Tomorrow, I go up to <a href="http://www.bruisedboutique.com/" target="_blank">Bruised Boutique</a> in Nashua, NH to pick myself up some outdoor wheels, before heading over to adult skate at <a href="http://skateland.com/" target="_blank">Skateland</a> in Bradford. Sunday, I'll break in my outdoor wheels and skate with Hexy for the first time. Tonight? I go to my second Misfits practice and try to spend at least an hour doing what I'm told and kicking my own butt in the process. Maybe I’ll see you there sometime soon.<br />
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<i>If you would like to write about your freshmeat experience for Journey of a Freshie, email Helen Carnate at helencarnate (at) gmail (dot) com!</i>Helen Carnatehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14738776896971663362noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4826866732417925671.post-49933666681547604922014-06-27T21:53:00.002-04:002014-06-27T21:53:52.387-04:00Journey of a Freshie Lives Again?<div style="background-color: white; color: #141823; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">
So back in the stone age (January 2010) when I was freshmeat with NH Roller Derby (NHRD) I decided to start a blog about my experience called "Journey of a Freshie". After every practice, good or bad, I would write down how things went, how I felt, where I had successes, and where I had failures. When I did this I had no idea how far it would reach. I had views and comments from all over the world with suggestions, words of encouragement, etc.</div>
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When I stopped skating in the spring of 2011 (couldn't make the time commitment with a new house and job and we had no rec team at the time) I stopped making posts on the blog. I would continue to get the occasional comments from people which I thought was kind of cool. Before I went to D1 Richmond last year I sort of semi-converted it to an announcing blog but left all the original posts.</div>
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<strong>Don't worry... I'm getting to the point!</strong></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.jra.jo/DesktopModules/DNNInfo_Classifieds/ClassifiedImages/5/lrg_827931_meat.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://www.jra.jo/DesktopModules/DNNInfo_Classifieds/ClassifiedImages/5/lrg_827931_meat.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">There's nothing quite like some nice, tender fresh meat!</td></tr>
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At the East Coast Derby Extravaganza (ECDX) in Philly this past weekend I was sitting out at the ONE picnic table where I could get service and a skater in a blue jersey came up to me. She asked if I had a freshmeat blog a few years ago that had sort of turned into an announcing blog and I said, "Yep, that sounds like me!" She told me that my posts were one of the things that helped her mentally make it through freshmeat with her league in Delaware. She said that it made her feel so much better to know that there were other people out there with the exact same struggles that she had, even if she felt like she was the only one on her league with them.</div>
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That really warmed up deep down in the cockles of my heart, maybe in the sub-cockle area, maybe in the kidney... maybe in the liver... I just don't know (bonus points if you get the reference). Anyhoo... that got me thinking that I don't have much to say about announcing these days that would warrant a blog post and if I did I'd probably post it through the NHRD blog.</div>
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<strong>SO... that being said</strong>, I'm thinking about resurrecting "Journey of a Freshie" with some contributing freshies from all over the place who are interested in writing regularly (once every week or two) about the trials and tribulations, the highs and lows of going from the start(ish) all the way through as far in their derby career they want to go. I'd delete/rehome my announcing posts and redo the theme of the blog to return it to its roots.</div>
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Here is the link to the blog: <a href="http://journeyofafreshie.blogspot.com/" rel="nofollow" style="color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">http://<wbr></wbr><span class="word_break" style="display: inline-block;"></span>journeyofafreshie.blogspot.com/</a> I'd recommend reading in reverse order from 2010 to see what sort of stuff my posts were about. Very mundane stuff but apparently quite a few people like reading about those every day derby experiences!</div>
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<strong>If you are interested in becoming a contributor, please email me at helencarnate (at) gmail (dot) com.</strong></div>
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Thanks bunches!</div>
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~Helen Carnate</div>
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NH Roller Derby </div>
Helen Carnatehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14738776896971663362noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4826866732417925671.post-15374395636857910602011-05-04T21:38:00.000-04:002011-05-04T21:38:13.630-04:00The journey has ended......for now.<div><br />
</div><div>I'm posting here because it seems weird for me to make an "announcement" on the league forums. On Thursday, April 21st, I resigned as an active skater from NHRD. Before people freak out, I am still very much involved with the league, just not as a skater. I'm still League Coordinator, forum admin, and PR foot soldier. There are a lot of factors that went into this decision but they all end up circling back to <b>time</b> at one point or another.</div><div><br />
</div><div><b>Bad Timing</b></div><div>As my last post stated, Mr. Carnate and I closed on our house the same day the season started. I had a conversation with another skater at our 2010 Awards Banquet and she asked me if I thought I would be able to keep doing everything I was involved in on the league once we bought the house. "Sure! It shouldn't be a problem!" but as soon as we grabbed that set of shiny new keys and walked into our first home I knew that wasn't going to be the case.</div><div><br />
</div><div>Sure, I denied it for a while but things came to a head when I found out what the fresh meat and teaming process was going to be this season. Since I was only a Level 1 I had some work to do before I was eligible to scrimmage. More on that later. We had some interesting house experiences that caused me to miss some practice early on (like the furnace being completely psychotic and having to keep a fire burning in the wood stove to keep the pipes from freezing).</div><div><br />
</div><div>As the weather grew warmer and the feet and feet of snow from this crazy winter began to melt we finally had a chance to look at our yard. It needed (needs) some serious work. Because I had prioritized derby over everything else, there was no time for anything BUT derby. Between skating in various locations and all the off-skates work I was involved in there was no time to rake leaves, mow lawns, stain furniture, make curtains, and don't even THINK about planning and planting a garden.</div><div><br />
</div><div>It turns out that skater I talked to on that chilly December night was absolutely right; houses change everything. My priorities slowly shifted and by the time April came around I really just wanted my life back so I could actually DO things around the house. As another skater put it in a completely unrelated forum post, "Derby will always be there. Other things may not"</div><div><br />
</div><div><b>Insecurities and Lack of Practice</b></div><div>So yeah... anyone who has read this blog knows that I am fairly insecure about my abilities as a skater. When I started I hadn't been on skates since the age of 11 or so. I was/am overweight and out of shape. I've made a lot of progress between when I started and now but things changed this season. Last season I was able to make progress at my own pace. This season I had to make progress on someone else's pace. This put me on what I like to call "The Derbycoaster" of emotional ups and downs from about late January up until the day I resigned (and even a little beyond).</div><div><br />
</div><div>In late January I took my level 2 assessments. There are two things I always knew that I needed to work on: transitions and endurance. As expected, I failed transitions and missed my 25 in 5 by two laps. I thought to myself, "I can do this! 2 laps isn't as bad as it could have been!". The other members of "Team Misfits" - the group of skaters from last year who weren't teamed but weren't fresh meat either - were skating just about every night of the week. To be perfectly honest, with all the other time I spent on derby, I had no desire to put even more time in. At this point, more time skating would have been at the expense of off skates derby work.</div><div><br />
</div><div>I took my level 2's again in early March - I needed more consistent transitions and turning toes stops and I failed the 25 in 5 again. By 2 laps, again. This frustrated me to no end because I had been going to practices and pushing myself and made no progress whatsoever. Still 2 laps away. It felt like 20. This was the first nail in the coffin of my skating career.</div><div><br />
</div><div>I knew that I needed to put extra time in on skates to improve enough to pass that damn endurance test but I just wasn't willing to do that. That's the bottom line. I love skating with everyone but if I'm not willing to put in the work required to get where I need to be to skate with everyone then I have no business skating with a WFTDA league like NHRD.</div><div><br />
</div><div><b>A Series of Unfortunate Events</b> </div><div>In mid-March, just after my second round of assessments, we got word that my father-in-law's terminal cancer prognosis had gone from 12-18 months to "weeks" overnight . His esophageal cancer had spread aggressively to his lymph system, lungs, and liver. Mr. Carnate and I dropped everything and flew over to the UK within 24 hours. We're so glad that we did but that was a week off of practice.</div><div><br />
</div><div>We came back on a Tuesday. The next Wednesday, after worsening reports, he passed away at home; a week and a half after we saw him. Mr. Carnate was, obviously, very upset being stuck all the way over here. There were a lot of logistics to be sorted out and it would have been extremely callous of me to say, "bye sweety! Good luck arranging everything... I'm off to practice!" So I missed practice all of the week before we headed back to the UK again, this time for longer for the funeral and to spend time with Ian's family.</div><div><br />
</div><div>On top of this, my grandfather passed away four days after my father-in-law. The day before I had been "teamed" on the Seabrook Meltdowns, my favoritest team in the whole world, as an alternate (since I wasn't scrimmageable). By the time I got back from the UK the second time I had missed two team practices and lots of bonding time. I went to a team practice on April 12th and felt completely and totally out of place (through no fault of the team or coaches).</div><div><br />
</div><div>I felt so far behind... to the point where I felt like I would never catch up. This feeling, paired with the "I'd rather be gardening" feeling was the biggest contributing factor in my decision.</div><div><br />
</div><div><b>Meat Hearts... I Love my Husband</b></div><div>The Derbycoaster was pretty brutal for me. After one of a handful of practices where I felt like I did really well I'd be riding on a high when I got home. Most other practices, I felt like I was never going to make it where I need to be and came home in tears. Mr. Carnate was completely puzzled by my apparent Jekyll and Hyde reaction to derby this season. I would be frustrated sometimes last year but never like this.</div><div><br />
</div><div>After a particularly bad day of derby I came home from work to Mr. Carnate standing in the kitchen with something reddish brown in his hand. It turns out he had cut a leftover pork chop into a heart shape and colored it red with paprika. He said, "I know you had a bad day so I made you a meat heart!". It takes a special kind of guy to do something that... creative (as it takes a special kind of gal to be completely touched by it). I love Mr. Carnate with all my heart and it hurt me that The Derbycoaster affected him, too.</div><div><br />
</div><div>We came back from our second trip to UK and I immediately jumped into bout week mayhem for our season opener. I had so much off-skates stuff to do that I skipped all but one practice that week to get ready for the day. That Sunday I had a frank, teary conversation with Mr. Carnate about my frustrations with skating, the things I WANT to be able to do with my time, and lots of other stuff. His concerns can be summed up in the statement that sealed the deal for me. He said, "If we spend this little time together now, what would it be like if we had kids?"</div><div><br />
</div><div>I want kids. He's on the fence, mostly because of how little *quality* time we spend together now. If I'm home (i.e. not at practice, I'm sitting in my office doing off-skates derby stuff). While we're in the same house, we're not spending time together if you know what I mean. We tried the "set one day a week aside" thing and it just wasn't working out. Something would always come up, usually family-related, that would torpedo our 100% free day with each other.</div><div><br />
</div><div>Something had to give. With tears in my eyes because I didn't want it to be true but knew it was, "I have to stop skating." I couldn't keep going on like this. I was tired of feeling like doo doo about myself after every practice. I wanted to do other things around the house that I could never get to. I wanted to get off the damn emotional Derbycoaster. And I wanted to spend *real* time with my family and not be worrying about what I wasn't doing.</div><div><br />
</div><div><b>My Wish</b></div><div>I wish that I still had a derby skating outlet that was low-commitment and mixed ability. This would solve both the time issue AND the feeling like crap about my ability issue. I could go back to progressing at my pace without all the pressure. Hopefully in the future, NHRD will decide to create a recreational group for the many people like me to can't or don't want to commit to the whole enchilada of the derby lifestyle. NH needs a recreational derby outlet and I would love to be a part of it when one pops up.</div><div><br />
</div><div>If any number of the circumstances above had been different, perhaps I would have made a different decision. If I had been a bouting skater, I would have probably felt comfortable missing the odd practice to do stuff that needed to be done. If I hadn't missed so much practice time due to, well, everything then perhaps those last two laps might not have been so elusive. If I hadn't bought a house I wouldn't have found all this neat stuff to do (pelletized lime, anyone?) or spent so much time/money at Home Depot.</div><div><br />
</div><div>My decision made me sad, but at the same time I knew that it was the right one. NHRD is awesomely amazing and I am glad I am still able to be a part of it in a reduced way. Maybe one of these days circumstances will change and I'll be in a position to come back full time and in better shape, but for now I know I'm doing what needs to be done. <3</div>Helen Carnatehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14738776896971663362noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4826866732417925671.post-12430942690355776002011-01-05T12:49:00.000-05:002011-01-05T12:49:55.052-05:00I'm still here!This is just a quick note while my boss isn't looking to say that I'm still here! I was unable to skate for most of September and October and NHRD has been on their off-season for November and December. We just had our season kickoff league meeting last night and we are ready to rock and roll for a super exciting 2011 season! Our first practice is tomorrow night and, Sod's Law, Mr. Carnate and I are closing on our first house that day. Only a handful of things in life trump derby but that's one of them.<br />
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I hope to get a post in this weeknd before my first practice on Monday but that will depend on Comcast's ability to keep their promise about turning on our interwebz on Friday.<br />
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See you all SOON!Helen Carnatehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14738776896971663362noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4826866732417925671.post-39883720527867622272010-09-19T20:21:00.001-04:002010-09-19T20:24:23.997-04:00The incredible invisible freshie.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://ts.realestate.com/cfs-file.ashx/__key/CommunityServer.Blogs.Components.WeblogFiles/california_5F00_musings/1780.busy_5F00_person.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://ts.realestate.com/cfs-file.ashx/__key/CommunityServer.Blogs.Components.WeblogFiles/california_5F00_musings/1780.busy_5F00_person.jpg" /></a></div>"Where have you been?" you may ask. The answer to that well-deserved question is, "not skating". At least with the league. There comes a time in some derby girls' lives when their real life must temporarily push away their derby life. Unfortunately, I have been experiencing one of those times.<br />
<br />
Between the tailbone injury, the leg injury, and a hellish situation at my real-life job, it has been a good two months since I've had a proper practice with the league. I was attending practices during my injured periods, just not skating, but since mid-August I have been working too much to be able to make weekday practices.<br />
<br />
I've been trying to skate when I can - typically at lunch or at the end of the "standard" work day. It outdoor skating, which I have to say I'm not a huge fan of, so skating at Roller Kingdom on Saturday on the silky smooth surface was lovely. I know. I used the words "silky smooth surface" and "Roller Kingdom" in the same sentence but after the parking lot at work, I meant it.<br />
<br />
<br />
I have been trying to stay involved on the weekends - those two precious days that I have deemed "mine" and which I refuse to let work defile as it has the rest of the week. You don't need to know what I do for work. It it will suffice to say that due to several unforeseen circumstances, most outside of my control, I spend a lot of time doing it as of late.<br />
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I miss derby. I miss the feeling that I'm doing something completely badass, even though I know that my skills are far from it. I am petrified that when we move to tryouts next season that I am going to fail and be exiled from this amazing group of women who I adore. The day of the meeting at work when I knew that the next few months would be hell, I spent my lunch in Mr. Carnate's car crying in the Wal-Mart parking lot about how work was going to temporarily force me to stop derby.<br />
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After a couple of productive weeks recently (and an article about Life/Work balance sent by Mr. Carnate) I decided that for one day a week (for now) my company can make do without me. It will do me (or my company) absolutely no good if I finish these projects, only to be a completely useless mass of gibbering human. One night a week of getting my ass handed to me for three hours will hopefully recharge me for the week to come. I just want to feel like I'm DOING something!<br />
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So this Thursday I am going to practice. From what I hear I am going to be in rough shape on Friday morning - must remember to strechhhhh afterward!<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.starling-fitness.com/wp-content/1lbfat.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a></div>On the food front, Weight Watchers has been going quite well, considering my activity level has been low. I've lost 12 pounds in the last 6 weeks, although some of that may have been muscle mass from being derby-less. That's 12 less pounds to lug around the track for 25 in 5. That's 12 less pounds to land on my ass practicing transitions. That's 12 less pounds to haul up off the ground after being taken out in spectacular fashion during a drill.<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="http://www.starling-fitness.com/wp-content/1lbfat.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I've lost 12 of these!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>I have miles to go - in order to become a WW lifetime member I have to eventually make a goal weight of less that 169 pounds. I haven't been that weight since I was 19 and fresh out of basic training. I don't know if that's attainable now in my early 30's. I sure as heck am going to try. 85 pounds to go... the average weight of an 11-year old girl.Helen Carnatehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14738776896971663362noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4826866732417925671.post-34168879524865177182010-08-13T10:53:00.000-04:002010-08-13T10:53:05.374-04:00I Heart Food<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://img.webmd.com/dtmcms/live/webmd/consumer_assets/site_images/articles/health_tools/gluten_free_diet_slideshow/istock_photo_of_loaded_baked_potato.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="217" src="http://img.webmd.com/dtmcms/live/webmd/consumer_assets/site_images/articles/health_tools/gluten_free_diet_slideshow/istock_photo_of_loaded_baked_potato.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;">My post this morning is going to be a little bit about Helen and a little bit about the person behind Helen.</span></span><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;"><br />
</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;">I love food. I love the taste of a juicy medium-rare steak (apologies to the veggies I just grossed out). I love loaded baked potatoes. I love lasagna. I love bacon. I love ice cream sundaes. Food just tastes so freaking nice I can't stand it sometimes. This is at least a part of the reason I am the size I am today. (Note: I do eat a variety of foods, these are just some of the "bad" foods that I *love* the taste of)</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;"><br />
</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;">In an attempt to reconcile my love of food with my desire to be able to haul my butt around the track fast enough to pass my 25 in 5 sometime this century, among a few other personal reasons, I decided to join Weight Watchers last week.</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;"><br />
</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;">I really think I am ready at this point to make my eating habits a "lifestyle change" as all the people who know about such things say it should be. One of the things that I have learned very quickly in the last 7 days has been that the alternative choices I've been making to try to be healthier aren't, in fact, all that much healthier after all.</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;"><br />
</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;">For those who don't know, the Weight Watchers system assigns all foods a point value based on calories, total fat, and dietary fiber. A 200 calorie food with 8 grams of fat and 1 gram of fiber is going to "cost" more points than a 200 calorie food with 2 grams of fat and 4 grams of fiber. Each person in the program is assigned a points limit based on current weight, gender, activity level, and age. At the moment, I can have 32 points each day.</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;"><br />
</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;">One might think, as I did, that they are being "good" by having a Chicken Caesar Wrap at D'Angelo's versus, say, an equivalent size BLT. Said chicken caesar wrap will put you out 20 points. That's right, boys and girls, 2/3 of your daily points allowance for one "healthy" wrap. Let's look at this example for a moment. Sure, it's got lettuce (0 points veggie, yay!), and chicken (lean protein, yay!), but it also has creamy caesar dressing (fatty), parmesan cheese (fatty), and a wrap (fatty). I have learned quickly to not be fooled by a food item's "healthy" appearance.</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;"><br />
</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;">I could give any number of examples of places where, in the last 8 months since I started roller derby, I've tried to make the "healthy" choice where that choice really wasn't any good at all. Here I am wondering why I'm sweating my ass off for two hours at practice twice a week and going to an open skate on my own and NOT losing weight.</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;"><br />
</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;">The answer to my question has johnny rocketed me in the sternum and hip checked me off into a far corner of the rink in the last week. What I'm trying to do now is reconcile my love for "bad" foods with my desire to be successful in the program. My first experiment starts today.</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;"><br />
</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;">Mr. Carnate (who is also doing the program) and I have done really well this week. I found a way to make spaghetti and meatballs for 11 points (whole wheat pasta and ground turkey meatballs), and I made a chicken chow mein recipe packed with veggies and yum for only 5 points! We are treating ourselves to "bad" food tonight. I am planning to have one of my vices... a loaded baked potato (SO GOOD!) which will hit me 13 points all on its own. The point is, I have to plan for it. I'm being extra careful with my points today and munching on lots of veggies (cucumber slices on a hot day anyone?) which have 0 points. I can't do this every day but the beauty of the WW program is that it doesn't say, "you can't have this food because it's bad," it says, "Have the foods that you enjoy but in moderation and if they have heavy points, plan for it."</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;"><br />
</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;">The first true test will be this weekend's away bout in Vermont. I'm staying in a hotel, dangerously close to the Ben & Jerry's and Cabot Cheese factories, and going to after parties where large quantities of food and alcohol will undoubtedly be consumed. Will I have the will power to say NO to that plate of bacon ranch fries or that giant glass of fruity carb-laden alcoholic yumminess? If I breakdown and partake, will I be honest enough to tally up what my indulgence has cost me in progress? We shall see.</span></span></div><div><br />
</div>Helen Carnatehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14738776896971663362noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4826866732417925671.post-803163093229809622010-07-23T22:05:00.000-04:002010-07-23T22:05:23.591-04:00Derrière Defense<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://k4.stylefeeder.net/thumb/6c/89/6c89592467d552a99142cd07098e04398bc959b5-200.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://k4.stylefeeder.net/thumb/6c/89/6c89592467d552a99142cd07098e04398bc959b5-200.jpg" /></a></div>I certainly have plenty of natural padding in the buttockular region but apparently not quite enough (see the last two posts). This week I managed to find some crash pads that should fit and I went ahead and got them.<br />
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SS Trixie has told me and many others that wearing butt pads of any type is like wearing confidence. I'm sincerely hoping that is the case as I seem to have lost some of mine after my fall a couple of weeks ago.<br />
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I went to open skate tonight and could definitely tell that I was being more tentative than usual, even in a recreational skating setting. If I fall again on it in the near future I could do some serious damage that no doctor can really do anything about beyond saying, "Here's a donut pillow. Have a nice day." I don't want that to happen... I still have my goal of passing my twos before the beginning of the 2011 season!<br />
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In other news, I'm playing the Seabrook Meltdowns mascot, "Atomic Betty" next weekend at Roller Consolation. I am SO EXCITED. I'm going to roast in my outfit but it's definitely going to be worth it. To top it off, the Meltdowns have invited me to their team dinner on Tuesday! I know I belong to the league as a whole but being in the unteamed purgatory can sometimes feel... lonely (even though there are 10 other people like me out there). It's nice to feel like I'm a part of something more than that, even though it's only for one day :-)Helen Carnatehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14738776896971663362noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4826866732417925671.post-13606514580643796692010-07-17T21:50:00.000-04:002010-07-17T21:50:50.800-04:00Failbone<a href="http://www.billcasselman.com/sacrum-coccyx.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://www.billcasselman.com/sacrum-coccyx.jpg" width="181" /></a>As I mentioned in my last post I managed to fall HARD on my tail bone in a spectacular fashion nearly two weeks ago at practice. The truth is, it doesn't feel any better today than it did the day after the fall which makes me sad. I know there's nothing that can really be done for it beyond taking it easy.<br />
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It's amazing how many activities in life use that lovely little piece of bone we call the coccyx. I've skated recreationally twice since then but hard skating and deep crossovers are quite painful. I am missing practice on Sunday for a family function (Sister Carnate is in from St. Louis) so here's hoping it starts to heal up for league practice on Tuesday.<br />
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One bad fall in 7 months of derby isn't a bad track record though... I generally end up landing on one butt cheek or fall forward (as I should be) and don't have any issues.Helen Carnatehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14738776896971663362noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4826866732417925671.post-71990845382006867362010-07-11T19:30:00.000-04:002010-07-11T19:30:51.927-04:00Summer DoldrumsI haven't written for a while... it looks like the other derby blogs I follow are equally slow this time of year. It sort of feels like nothing has been happening, but at the same time I've been busy out of my head with derby stuff. I recently took on some additional responsibility in the league and had to step back from coordinating stats to make room in my brain.<br />
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Our home season will soon be drawing to a close since after the beginning of September, several inches of ice will cover our bouting venue track. Skate Free or Die will still be busy bees as they work to become eligible for WFTDA ranking in the coming months.<br />
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I will be busy busting my butt to pass level twos before January. Most of the April class has leveled up and been teamed already so there aren't many left in that weird la la land that is Level 1's.<br />
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I fell HARD on my tailbone at Tuesday's practice. I went to open skate on Friday to test it out and I could skate but it was definitely sore and it was uncomfortable to get low and hold it.<br />
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I feel obligated to make up for my lack of skating skills with off-skates work for committees. I also do it because I adore the league and want to see it be wildly successful. This weekend, though, I think I overdid it.<br />
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With the exception of a couple of hours to watch Max Payne with Mr. Carnate I spent the ENTIRE weekend working on derby stuff. I had an inkling that I'd gone too far last night when I saw the look on Mr. Carnate's face as I was answering derby emails on my phone while he was trying to sleep. I didn't mean to continue today but it just sort of happened. I get "in the zone" on projects sometime and need to see them through immediately so I have closure. It got to be 3pm and I realized that I'd spent the better part of two days working and then realized that I needed to start thinking about practice.<br />
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I thought about having to tell Mr. Carnate, "Bye sweetie, I'm going to practice" after essentially ignoring him the entire weekend. While I love roller derby, he deserves better than that. I made the (tough) decision to skip practice to spend time with him. I know I won't get better if I'm not skating but sometimes real life and marriages need to take the driver's seat.<br />
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I hope to have more interesting news to report soon (although I did earn my first two derby bruises from Slick Tracy and Moxie Moonwalk!). I have added contact information to my profile if anyone would like to reach my outside the comments section. :-)Helen Carnatehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14738776896971663362noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4826866732417925671.post-17020018310267562742010-06-20T19:54:00.001-04:002010-06-20T19:54:39.873-04:00Swoop, swoop-eh-doop...I made it out to open skate again last night (which worked out well since practice this evening was cancelled). I really wanted to work on transitions but I chickened out since I was the only derby person there (until Tank showed up later) and didn't want to be falling constantly all by myself.<br />
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I decided that I wanted to work on swoops... that graceful, lunging move that gets you from inside to outside or outside to inside lickety-split. I watch people like Roxie and PutUNya do them and they are so smooth and graceful with it. The look effortless while I mostly still feel like it's a weird contortion to turn that sharply. If I'm going to be a good blocker, I need to learn to be more mobile on the track I think swoops are a big part of that.<br />
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As I learned the last time we did a drill on these, turning your hips is the key. My hips, being cranky and arthritic, don't like to turn fluidly on my own. I probably looked ridiculous doing it but I found that moving my arms in the direction I want to turn, dancer-style, seemed to help. I still find swooping left easier than swooping right but by the end of my 2-hour session I was feeling ok with them.<br />
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I think this week is a blocking week which I am GREATLY looking forward to. League practice is Thursday and I'm hoping to show up early to work on transitions by myself off to the side before practice starts. I know that the endurance will come (crossovers do feel nearly second nature now) but there's a big ol' wall up between me and those turning toe stops that will allow me to scrimmage, hopefully by the end of the year!Helen Carnatehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14738776896971663362noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4826866732417925671.post-70385215169653789292010-06-17T22:41:00.000-04:002010-06-17T22:41:05.607-04:00Wiff TAH-DAH!This is just to short post to say just how proud I am of my league, <a href="http://www.nhrollerderby.com/">New Hampshire Roller Derby</a>. Today we graduated from the <a href="http://www.wftda.com/">WFTDA</a> Apprentice Program and became a full member of the association.<br />
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This is the culmination of almost exactly three years of work on the part of many many women. This is a very exciting time for us and while I had very little part in the work that was done, and I'm not a "full" scrimmaging skater yet I can't say enough how happy this makes me.<br />
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CONGRATS NHRD! You earned it! :-D<br />
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See the full press release from WFTDA <a href="http://wftda.com/news/WFTDA-adds-eleven-new-members">HERE</a>.Helen Carnatehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14738776896971663362noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4826866732417925671.post-23860616304511595052010-06-11T22:59:00.000-04:002010-06-11T22:59:05.542-04:00Crashing Teen NightIt's amazing how well a mass of half-dressed teenagers can put things in perspective for you. My very first derby experience was on a teen night. I remember feeling completely overwhelmed by the throngs of kids speeding around me. I felt so slow and clumsy.<br />
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Tonight felt completely different. While I didn't exactly dance through the crowds I definitely weaved my way in and out of groups of girls texting-whilst-skating and boys punching each other in the shoulders. I used my fairly newfound dodging skills to avoid crushing some girls who appeared suddenly in front of me from nowhere. I wasn't the fastest but I certainly wasn't the slowest. I didn't have the grace of many of the skaters on the league but I didn't feel clumsy.<br />
<br />
I plied the three other people in the rink who were over the age of 30 with season schedule cards and even participated in the ladies speed skate (which consisted of a handful of us sprinting and a bunch of girls moseying along). It was interesting to get a sense of how much has changed since my first time out on my own skates at recruitment night :-)Helen Carnatehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14738776896971663362noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4826866732417925671.post-53720179197931400922010-06-10T22:59:00.001-04:002010-06-10T23:00:40.929-04:00Focus on the positive<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.bence.ws/SMILE.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://www.bence.ws/SMILE.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>I've decided that too many of my blog posts sound like rants. Talking about how my hip hurts, or how I'm not losing any weight doesn't make it get any better. I'm going to try to avoid dwelling on the things that went wrong during a practice (see previous post) and try to focus on what went well during practice instead. This means that some nights I may have a short post but we'll see how things go...<br />
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Tonight's practice was at JFK. It felt like my first time there in ages. The floor was ridiculous. It's highly polished concrete that, during the off-season, becomes a hockey rink. It's usually pretty slick but my 88A <a href="http://www.bruisedboutique.com/onlinestore/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=89_129&products_id=205&zenid=5k95bajsskrg58vsnmjm3lp7b5">Radar Flat Outs</a> are generally OK. Tonight was crazy.... I felt like I was sliding even on the straightaways! There must be a way to use the slide to some sort of advantage, like in rally car driving!<br />
<br />
We did a double pyramid drill tonight that I did probably 90% of. The 10% I was out was not due to a physical issue directly, rather it was a "wardrobe malfunction". I laced my skates too tight and was having foot issues so I quickly took them off, stretched my feet out, and got back on the track. We went up to five laps and back down, doing calisthenics in the middle in between; then switched directions and went up to five and back down again. Considering I completed my first ever pyramid just last week I am pleased that I did as much of this one as I did.<br />
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We also did a weaving pace line drill. It's interesting that pace lines use to be the bane of my existence. I couldn't do them to save my life. Now I don't even really think about them. Granted, I put myself in the slow line but with the other vets in that line I don't know that there's any shame in that. I was at the front of the line which meant that I did my weaves last. I made it through the whole line, trying to be a good communicator (thank you <a href="http://www.customguards.com/">Gladiator</a> mouth guard!), and still had enough juice to do my weaves too.<br />
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The last thing that I don't think I did great as compared to the rest of the league but it was personal improvement for me was moving from side to side across the track using "mini-crossovers". We did a brief drill where we had to skate the length of the straightaway moving quickly from inside to outside. I want to work on that more next time I'm at Roller Kingdom on a more stable surface - I hope it's agility week next week - my fave!<br />
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June is full of promotional events and I'll be spending all day Saturday hanging out at the Gilford liquor store with Maully O and Miss Chiff - hopefully I'll be able to glean some good derby pointers from them while I'm there!Helen Carnatehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14738776896971663362noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4826866732417925671.post-49780864741762596322010-06-07T16:17:00.001-04:002010-06-07T16:17:47.619-04:00If it's not one thing...Last night was a rough practice for me. Even though I was there for all four hours and on skates for most of the non-scrimmage time it felt like it was a couple of steps backward for me.<br />
<br />
My first issue last night was that I didn't properly hydrate before practice. This should have been the first thing on my mind with all the hot, humid weather we've been having. I was ok when I started skating but by the end of a 16-minute push/pull drill I was feeling dizzy and shaky. I tried to do a couple more drills but was getting so dizzy that I needed to sit down and drink water.<br />
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While the dizziness started to go away as I drank my brain switched focus to the other major issue I had list night - my arthritic hips. They really haven't been an issue thus far, other than on the odd occasion, but I think that the hot, humid summer weather is making them flare up. After practice last Tuesday I could barely hobble around the office at work.<br />
<br />
I acquired this lovely ailment during my time in the Army National Guard. I developed a major stress-fracture on the right side of my pelvis which wasn't diagnosed or treated until I had been doing hard labor on it for six-week it had progressed to the point that I could no longer stand up (fortunately during the last week of basic training).<br />
<br />
After three months of recovery time I was allowed to finish training but the months of compensating for the pain/injury caused issues in my left hip. From that point on, any time I ran, did lots of walking, or other hihg-impact activities I get a lot of hip pain and it's worse if it's humid.<br />
<br />
Was back when the arthritis and bursitis was first diagnosed I was given some samples of the anti-inflammatory Bextra, which has since been pulled off the market. I could take it on an as-needed basis and it worked beautifully. I think it's time to get myself back to the doctor to have it checked out again.<br />
<br />
Everything in derby uses your hips and while I don't want to do permanent damage to myself I am not willing to give up on this crazy sport. I just need to find a way to manage the inflammation when it gets bad (which is not all the time).<br />
<br />
I guess I just feel like if it's not one thing it's another at this point. I had a lot of back pain early on (which has greatly improved). Then I had the whole arch pain/skate issue (which has now been resolved). Now it's my hips. While I am confident that this is all manageable, I'm just frustrated that there are more hurdles to jump in my derby progression.<br />
<br />
Lots of people offered encouragement last night which helped get me through some tough spots. Thanks to some ibuprofen from Slam I think my hips are much less sore than they otherwise would have been.Helen Carnatehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14738776896971663362noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4826866732417925671.post-60688676226088767082010-06-01T22:41:00.001-04:002010-06-02T09:13:38.728-04:00WTB endurance plxTonight's practice kicked my butt. It was one of those soaked-braids kind of practices. Even now taking a deep breath feels... weird. It was endurance night - practice focus is harder to keep track of now that we're moving around so much.<br />
<br />
It probably didn't look like much to the casual observer but I'm pretty proud of myself tonight. It wasn't pretty but I did every drill for the entire duration and skated on the actual track the entire time. I thought I was going to die at some points, but I did it - including the pyramid drill which I've never completed before. I thought I did ok with replacement blocking with Hollywood, Vinnie, and Vixen.<br />
<br />
Although it was a positive night for me, it became even more apparent that I have no endurance. I don't always have the ability to get out and skate in the evenings so I'm trying to decide whether using an elliptical machine (lovingly referred to as the "elliptiwotsit" by Mr. Carnate) or my recumbent bike will have a greater effect.<br />
<br />
The one thing that wasn't so good tonight that I may go see a doctor about again was my hip. Between walking in the parade on Monday and the big change in humidity today my left hip was killing me from the time I woke up this morning. Tylenol arthritis didn't even touch it. It made maintaining a low derby position challenging.<br />
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We also did a suicide drill where we sprint and do baseball slides at each end for two minutes. Hauling my fat arse up off the ground was very difficult by the end. I don't know if there is any way to strengthen those "getting up" muscles besides practicing getting up but I'm going to look into it. Dropping 75 pounds wouldn't hurt either. ;-)<br />
<br />
I put my tuners back on for Roller Kingdom and SNHU this weekend... I notice the difference between those and my flat outs a lot more now than I did when I first switched over. I felt much faster tonight as compared to using my flat outs. I need all the help I can get!Helen Carnatehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14738776896971663362noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4826866732417925671.post-40024637729552627632010-05-29T19:17:00.000-04:002010-05-29T19:17:19.922-04:00Bleeding for derby, but not on the track!Has it really been 57 days since our last blood drive? Time flies when you're playing derby, I guess!<br />
<br />
Today I donated my A+ lifejuice with NHRD to benefit the American Red Cross. Or at least I tried to. After my 19 minute bleed the first time, I was determined to come in juiced up on iron and so well hydrated that I could float my way to Manchester. I just barely made the cut on Iron, despite gorging myself on red meat throughout the week. I drank a liter of water the morning of the donation (granted after two "pineapple bombs" at karaoke the night before).<br />
<br />
I came in with my shiny new donor card and did my best. Unfortunately, after about 5 minutes, my best just wasn't good enough and they had to end my donation early with a partially full bag. I hope they can do something useful with it at least!<br />
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The league had set a goal of 25 units before this drive. I am pleased to say that my the time Dirty Kat Box and I left around 12:45 that we had helped collect 43+ units of blood! I add the plus because they were still accepting people, even though the drive officially ended at noon. Way to go NHRD!<br />
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I'm feeling a bit derby deprived as it will have been a week on Tuesday since my last official practice. I'm going to try to get to Roby tomorrow evening after the sun sets for a bit of action and I'll be skating in the parade in Manchester on Monday (although I'm a little nervous about that - nothing like doing a face plant in front of parade crowds!)Helen Carnatehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14738776896971663362noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4826866732417925671.post-5459454413946983472010-05-25T22:30:00.000-04:002010-05-25T22:30:03.826-04:00I have a lot to learn!This isn't a rant, by any means. I had a pretty darn good practice tonight - my first full practice after being cleared for contact. I have to say it was a little weird not raising my hand when the trainer asked who wasn't cleared for contact. It became extra apparent to me tonight just how much I still have to learn.<br />
<br />
I hung in there with almost every drill for the whole time (had a lace issue during one, and a back cramp during another). We were doing some long endurance drills so I'm pretty pleased with that, based on prior performance.<br />
<br />
I need to stop psyching myself out over transitions. Methinks the tennis court across the street and I have some hot dates coming up.<br />
I need to be more laterally agile when booty blocking. I have a big butt and can get my feet wide but that does me no good if I can't move side to side to stay in front of a jammer or another blocker<br />
I need to get faster. I feel like a turtle compared to everyone else.<br />
I need to learn to run on my toestops, or otherwise get better starts.<br />
I need to strengthen my core and ensure I have good form so I can minimize back cramping.<br />
<br />
There's a lot more that I need to learn but those five things really jumped out at me over practice tonight. My booty blocking was fail tonight but I was able to land a solid-feeling shoulder hit. Yay for baby steps!Helen Carnatehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14738776896971663362noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4826866732417925671.post-90061019352477578432010-05-23T15:57:00.000-04:002010-05-23T15:57:46.457-04:00NHRD knows how to party!We had our second home bout last night at the JFK Coliseum in Manchester. Skate Free or Die! faced off against the Western Mass Destruction of Pioneer Valley Roller Derby. It was a hard-fought game on both sides but, in the end, PVRD came out on top 134-46.<br />
<br />
Attendance was really light which I attribute to a couple of things. 1) I think we had a LOT of fans come up from CMRD for the April bout which really swelled our numbers and 2) It was a gorgeous day and a lot of people probably said, "meh... I think I'll grill tonight rather than go see roller derby." I went to a Boston Derby Dames game last weekend and there were people tailgating outside. If it's legal, we should totally get that tradition started here!<br />
<br />
One of the things that's tough to communicate to the audience sometimes is that this season we are playing teams of a much higher caliber than previous seasons. After a 5-4 season last year the league has decided to step up their game and play some more experienced leagues, or play the A-Team rather than the B-Team of some leagues. The result is that we might not win as many games but we learn a LOT in the process, and isn't that what it's all about?<br />
<br />
I know that I'm the type of person that learns or experiments with things based on watching other people do them. For example, I was watching Empress work with No Name Erica during the transitions drill on Thursday. Doing things slo-mo, Empress dragged her dominant foot a bit and then quickly turned toward that foot. My right foot is my dominant foot. I balance on my left and tend to T, and toe-stop with my right. While attempting transitions I've been trying to do everything backward (balancing on my right and turning onto my left). I'm eager to try the other way... maybe something will click! I'm hoping that I'll be able to use the "watch and learn" method with other things, too!<br />
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After the bout and break-down I went to hang out in the locker room with everyone. I skipped this last time and felt like I kind of missed out on things. I had a hard lemonade and enjoyed schmoozing with people. We all started to head to Spare Time for the after-party. There were actually seats available when I got there!<br />
<br />
The evening was filled with music, food, drinks, good friends, and much shenanigans. Without calling too many people out some memorable moments included PutUNya putting ice cubes down everyone's shirts, Hearty and Empress moshing, Maully O dancing with, well, everyone, me NOT spilling ranch on the server, singing along to everything with Scurrie, Indigo, and Moxie, and generally having a fantastic time with everyone. :-D<br />
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I can't wait to do it all over again next month!Helen Carnatehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14738776896971663362noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4826866732417925671.post-31365406807175117582010-05-21T22:40:00.004-04:002010-05-21T22:43:17.873-04:00W00T!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://phoenix.fanster.com/files/2009/04/cheer.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><b><i><img border="0" height="400" src="http://phoenix.fanster.com/files/2009/04/cheer.jpg" width="278" /></i></b></a></div><b><i>The following w00t was delayed due to unscheduled late-night celebration. We apologize for the inconvenience.</i></b><br />
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Last night I passed my Level 1 assessment. W00t.<br />
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It was unexpected, so much so that when Bettie came over to No Name Erica and I, I thought we were in trouble for something (Bettie has a good poker face). Allow me to recap the back story...<br />
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Two and a half weeks ago we had our assessments (second time around for me). I passed everything EXCEPT crossovers. The feedback I received was that they're there, but I get fatigued quickly (which is true), and when I'm fatigued my cross-overs get clunky (not cool). So Erica and I were told that we were "mere practices away".<br />
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Cool. Because there wasn't really anything we could do in the freshie corral that would help us, Bettie and Empress allowed us to participate in light contact (booty blocking, leaning, etc) drills.<br />
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Last night I was warming up on the track (actually inside the rope!) and I was doing crossovers and not even thinking about it. They felt good. Stable. Effortless. The very first drill we did after warm ups was a transitioning drill which always makes me feel completely inept because, at the moment, I can't do them. Period. I paired up with Indigo (another freshie) and we tried to stay off to the side and work on them while standing in place. I think I've figured out part of my problem (I'm turning the wrong way) and plan to test my theory on the apartment complex tennis court on Sunday.<br />
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We did some drills working on lateral movement. I know I need to work on my agility. I think that as my endurance improves that the agility will partially come along with it. We did a basic drill where we had to move quickly to the inside and outside of the track using a single, quick crossover.<br />
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The next drill was kind of cool... we grouped up in fives - one jammer and four blockers. Only one blocker was active, the other three were zombie opposing blockers. The active blocker had to push her way through the zombie blockers to hit the jammer coming up on the outside. The jammer would then drop back and come up on the inside and the blocker would have to push through the zombie pack again. I got Grace with a shoulder check that pushed her out of bounds (and unfortunately me as well). I joke with her for the rest of the evening that she was my "first".<br />
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Later we did a booty blocking drill in groups of three - two blockers and a jammer - which was a basic, get around the pair of blockers drill. We're so big that we had to divide in half to fit everyone on the track. I was in the first group to skate and I went with Bash and Ethel. I accidentally clocked Bash in the face with a flying elbow :-(<br />
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After we finished it was our turn to go to the middle for workout-type stuff. I knew I had worked hard tonight because my pigtails were drenched. I have sooooo much to learn yet on the contact side but I felt like it was a pretty good night. As we were getting up, Bettied came over and crooked her finger at Erica and I (this is where I thought we were in trouble). When we skated over a big smile spread across her face and she said. "Congratulations, you have passed your level ones!".<br />
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I, of course, released a "squee" and gave her a big icky workout hug. Then Erica and I gave each other a hug. Then I skated over to Empress and said, "I would give you a hug but I'm icky" and she said, "oh please, like I'm not" and gave me a hug. :-D I'm smiling as I type this remembering the feeling.<br />
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To some people, level 1's are not a big deal - they're easy. To me they were not. It took me four months and fifteen days to pass. I have gone from a completely non-athletic couch potato who hadn't skates since age 8 or so to being cleared for contact. To quote Mr. Vice President, "This is a big %(&$ing deal!".<br />
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I need to keep in mind that I have now gone from being a big fish in a small pond to being a teeny tiny fish in a big pond and I have a LOT to learn. I have been pushed out of the nest for my own good and am now forced to fly on my own.<br />
<br />
I wanted to take a minute to reflect on some of the goals I've mentioned throughout this blog that I've now achieved:<br />
1) Skate through an entire practice without dropping out of a drill.<br />
2) Force myself to skate on the track, even though I am slow.<br />
3) Skate over the damn rope.<br />
4) Stretch more - this one is debatable. I did really well for a while but lately I haven't been doing my extra stretching.<br />
5) Good form - this one is also debatable. I'm doing better than I was but I'm still getting back cramping when doing longer drills that require low derby stance.<br />
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<b>New goals</b><br />
1) Work on transitions whenever there is down time and on my own.<br />
2) Force myself to do crossovers every single lap of a sprint, even if I'm not going that fast.<br />
3) Skate for five minutes straight regardless of laps (I'll have to time myself).<br />
4) Be eligible for teaming by the beginning of next season.<br />
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I think my biggest hurdles as I look ahead to level 2's will be transitions/turning toe stops and the endurance component. Everything else I am confident that I will pick up during the coming months.<br />
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Thank you for sticking with me on this one. Thank you to everyone who has given me advice or encouragement along the way. I know this is just the first stop on a long road trip but I really wanted to thank the people who helped me get this far in the first place. Sometimes it felt like I would never make it.<br />
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Even though I am technically no longer considered a freshie now, let the journey continue! :-DHelen Carnatehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14738776896971663362noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4826866732417925671.post-63104987874544598312010-05-14T13:20:00.002-04:002010-05-14T13:47:46.895-04:00Level 1/2?Last night, I got my first taste on contact... sort of. The contact portion of the league was doing a drill where you form a pace line and everyone is given a "secret number". The person closest to the back of the line with #1 is the jammer and the other person with the #1 further up the pace line had to block them when they came by.<br />
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Initially FM Erica and I were over in the freshie corral but Bettie was watching the drill and said that the two of us should be out there - so out there we went! I happened to be jammer #1 and earned myself a minor back block when Osteo came out and booty-blocked me. I didn't fall, and I didn't turn it into a major by pushing her over so not bad for my first encounter with contact!<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://blog.nola.com/flattrackfever/2008/02/large_Dec1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="255" src="http://blog.nola.com/flattrackfever/2008/02/large_Dec1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>A bit later when it was Osteo's turn to jam and I had to block I definitely whiffed it. I saw her coming up on the far outside and tried to swoop out to catch her but my timing was way off and I went behind her... I think it'll take some work to get the timing thing down. I hung with the pace line again for about 98% of it... the other 2% I spent on the side stretching a mega side cramp.<br />
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Maully O came up to me at the beginning of practice and said that she wanted to work with me on booty blocking and Slam said she put a booty blocking drill on the lineup for Sunday "in my honor"... I must have done something right on Monday!<br />
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I know I'm getting a little bit stronger, and a little bit faster, with a little more endurance but impatient me is taking over again and I just want to be better now! I know that endurance is not something that you just wake up one day and have - it builds up over time. Hopefully my 25 in 5 endurance will be built up by the time I master my turning toe stops which are the only two things I'm really concerned about for level twos when that day comes.<br />
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I just need to keep pushing the crossovers at every practice. If I am sore and stiff, like I am today, then I know that I pushed it. If I wake up the next morning from a practice and feel fine then that tells me I should have worked harder!<br />
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Last night I started to conquer a woosy JFK fear I've had of skating over the track rope. It seems like it would trip me and I would fall on my face. Some people roll over it and others step over it so I guessed it was a comfort thing. During the speed skating drill I made myself skate over it and didn't fall so I was quite pleased with that.Helen Carnatehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14738776896971663362noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4826866732417925671.post-17450877320875873362010-05-10T23:04:00.001-04:002010-05-11T10:01:28.260-04:00Helen 1, Pace Line 0<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.strub.ca/assets/images/db_images/db_pace_line_design.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://www.strub.ca/assets/images/db_images/db_pace_line_design.gif" width="200" /></a></div>Ok... so I have to give the pace line credit for previously kicking my ass, and things certainly weren't perfect this time but I'm going to take it for the personal victory that it is. Tonight I stuck with a pace line for the entire drill.<br />
<br />
Those who have been following this journey for a while know that pace lines are (one of) my nemesis. Between back pain from bad form and a weak core to the agonizing arch pain I used to get with my old skates, pace lines did me in completely.<br />
<br />
1) I was slow. I didn't really have sticky skating DOWN yet and too-tight trucks made things more difficult than they should have been. While I wasn't exactly Zippy McSpeederson tonight I feel like I had the technique down. With looser trucks I was able to get at lot more of the "slalom" action that Irate always describes. It also makes pushing around corners easier.<br />
<br />
2) I was too bent over. I still struggle with this and experienced a bit of back pain tonight but Slam's reminder of "if your back hurts you're doing it wrong" helped me remember to sit into it more. Sitting into it fatigues those same hip-area muscles that give me trouble on crossovers but hey, if they're getting fatigued then I am using them and they are getting stronger!<br />
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The drill in question was the "endless jammer" drill which is where the league splits in half and one half packs up and the other half forms a paceline. The first person in the pace line skates ahead and pushes through the pack like a jammer would then ends up at the back of the pace line. Rinse. Repeat. I nearly hung the whole time in the pack but had to drop out at the end for water (I've got this nasty cough thing going on).<br />
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The only drill I had trouble with tonight was the transitions drill - on the whistle, transition. This was a challenge because I can't do transitions to save my life. Hollywood offered to work with me on them if we can find some time outside of our work schedules which is cool.<br />
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We did a lot of work tonight on form for speed - between Trixie's hints and what I have gleaned so far from my national-champion speed skating uncle I at least mentally grasped what was going on. Fix the fatigue, fix a lot of things. We did the cross-over component drill (push with one leg only, then the other).<br />
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We also did a non-contact version of Lion and Gazelle which was PFA - Pretty Freaking Awesome. I thought I was going to get eaten immediately and I didn't! The first time I went I was a gazelle. The whistle blew and I just took off. I tried to get speed-skater low on the straightaways and build up as much speed as I could and squeak around the turns. No one caught me and I think I surprised some people (including myself) which was cool. The next time I went out I was a lion and was able to catch the gazelles fine (they were instructed to stack packed up).<br />
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I got my first taste of positional blocking and I want more. I need to get those crossovers nailed so I can play with the big girls! I had loosened my trucks another half turn at open skate which was great for agility moves but I decided that I felt way too unstable during crossovers and balancing so I dialed them back a quarter turn and they felt much better. Maybe I'll do them back a quarter again in a couple of weeks.<br />
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Soooo... all in all an awesome, but tiring practice tonight. A little less coughing and a little more breathing would be good for Thursday! Thursday's goal - skate on the track. No skating on the outside for me. If anyone sees me skating on the outside, please yell at me unless it looks like I am under great duress. Thank you to Slam I Am for an awesome practice while SFOD was away playing with the Nuts.Helen Carnatehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14738776896971663362noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4826866732417925671.post-15951203046901032302010-05-05T22:43:00.001-04:002010-05-06T08:49:05.452-04:00Close but no cigar<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://img.groundspeak.com/waymarking/display/b5aa49d1-4f2f-4f51-90eb-92602dd54056.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://img.groundspeak.com/waymarking/display/b5aa49d1-4f2f-4f51-90eb-92602dd54056.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Apparently fairgrounds in the 19th century would give out cigars as prizes for winning a game. If you came close but didn't quite win, no cigar for you! Think Soup Nazi but about 100 years earlier. That sums up my evening well.<br />
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I got to Roby around 6ish and put my gear on slowly. It is a skating rink in the winter and a fairly smooth cement surface once the ice melts. It had mostly dried out after yesterday's monsoon. It was a crazy crazy day and I was mentally out of it tonight.<br />
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I skated around a few laps and did some scissors and figure eights. The surface was smoother than I was expecting but it still gave a lot of resistance to stops and slides. I think I'll be coming here often this summer.<br />
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Empress and Bettie showed up just before 6:30 and got everything ready for the level ones. We had some warm up and stretching time and Empress did some really nice visualization stuff. Unfortunately whatever I gained from my visualization I shattered by making the doom noise to myself when they said we'd be doing crossovers first.<br />
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I think it was tough for me, knowing that was the one thing I needed to work on. Granted, I'm glad we did it at the beginning rather than the end because by the end of the night I was pooped. I guess it was good to get that out of the way. It made everything else way stress free.<br />
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Empress and Bettie both told me during the drill that I was close. After we did the balance drill (which I did a million times better than last time) Empress said that it was a technical issue and not a balance issue.<br />
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We did all the rest of the level one stuff... sticky skates, slides, stops, stepping. Neisha left some of her butt on the Roby Park surface during baseball slides - ouch! It took some time to get accustomed to not sliding so much but I think everything generally went well.<br />
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After the assessment finished, Empress pulled myself, Chuck, and Erica aside. We were the borderline people for, you guessed it, crossovers! She took some time watching and skating with each of us. Chuck ended up passing (yay Chuck!).<br />
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Empress and Bettie talked to each of us afterward and they hit the nail on the head with me. My issue is not balance, it's fatigue. My legs, especially my left one, are not quite strong enough yet to be able to sustain massive amounts of cross-overs. What that means is I can do them, but I get tired quickly. When I get tired I get clunky. When I'm clunky I'm vulnerable to hits. Totally understandable.<br />
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They said, and I asked if I could quote them, that the two of us "are mere practices away" from passing. That really gives me a renewed send of hope and drive for the next couple of weeks. I want this so badly. I want to progress so that family and friends can come and watch me. It feels like reaching for the finish line in slow-mo.<br />
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We've also been cleared to skate with the league unless they're doing crazy hardcore hitting. With leaning or booty blocking we can participate which is really cool. Until we officially pass, if the rest of the freshies are doing stops and slides we'll be out with the league. Scary but very cool and it sort of gives a fresh level of personal responsibility for our success. As Bettie and Vicious said earlier today, once you pass, that's it - you're out of the nest and we need to be even more responsible for our own success and/or failure.<br />
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So a big giant huge congrats to everyone who passed. Hopefully I'll be joining you shortly. To those who didn't, fuggeddaboudit! Well, don't really forget, but you know what I mean. The feedback that we're all provided gives us things to focus on in the coming weeks and months.<br />
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As Empress likes to remind me, on my very first practice I couldn't get up off the floor, even with Bettie and Hazel's help (thanks to some of those hardcore plyometrics). To put that in perspective, Bettie said that I did my single knee slide recovery in two seconds - the level two standard. If you'd have told me on day one that I'd do that five months later I don't know if I'd have believed you. I know that even when I do pass that I have a lot of challenges ahead of me for level twos- chiefly, transitions/turning-toe stops and the 25 in 5. Doing transitions is something that I can drive my butt to Roby for and practice all on my own.<br />
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Thank you to all of the training staff and especially to Bettie and Empress for making assessments a really positive and encouraging environment. I know what I need to do and am ready to seriously push it. I'll be rockin' the ankle weights at work tomorrow!Helen Carnatehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14738776896971663362noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4826866732417925671.post-82049817840379785272010-05-04T22:10:00.001-04:002010-05-04T22:11:50.795-04:00Even the best laid plans...Soooo... the Roby Park thing isn't going to happen tonight thanks to the lovely, yet unpredictable mother nature. We had quite the storm come through earlier this evening which turned Roby Park into Roby Pool. Instead of skating, the three of us freshies (Me, Slashya, and Kristin) met Bettie, Dee, and Sloppy Jones at Chili's for dinner and chit chat.<br />
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It was a nice chance to bond with people off skates. I allowed myself to admit out loud that it's ok to say "no" to derby sometimes. Poor Mr. Carnate was all excited when it rained and said, "This means you're not going out tonight right?". When I told him about the alternate dinner plans he got the sad puppy face and said "oh... ok.... :-("<br />
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I need to remember that sometimes it IS ok to say "no" to derby. After an all-derby week last week and another one shaping up this week I need not only some family time, but some "me" time as well. I took next week off from work and I'm going to be home by myself all day everyday. It's going to be awesome. It will be time to catch up on a lot of the non-derby life stuff that has fallen by the wayside since this amazing sport took over my life in January.<br />
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Assessments are tomorrow at 6:30. All I can do, knowing that I've never skated on this surface, is push to do my best. If I don't make it again then so be it. Bettie made a good point tonight that once we pass, that's it. We're on our own - not that she doesn't still love us - but that we need to take it upon ourselves to work on the things we need to work on for level twos. Even if I don't get there this time, I think it will be soonish. I can feel it getting closer.Helen Carnatehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14738776896971663362noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4826866732417925671.post-8053600672770415812010-05-02T21:28:00.002-04:002010-05-03T09:34:01.003-04:00Less than Three the Freshie MamaIt occurred to me tonight that NHRD's freshie mama and freshie coaching staff don't always get the love and attention they deserve. Bettie Off Dead is a bouting-retired skater who spends 100% of her time with us freshies training us to be the best level ones we can be. We also <3 Vicious but as an active member of Skate Free or Die!, she needs to have her own practice time too!<br />
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Bettie and Vicious train all of us, from the freshies who can barely stand up in their skates to the freshies who could probably pass level twos if they were given right away. They are super patient and if explaining things one way doesn't work, they turn things around and explain them differently.<br />
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While they get to give people the good news that freshies have passed their level ones, they also have to give some freshies the bad news that there are a few things that we still need to work on. Excuse the double negative but we don't not pass because they don't like us, rather, they like us so much that they don't want us to get our sternums mashed in until we're stable enough to take the hit. Sometimes that can fall out of focus. Assessments are there to keep us and the skaters around us safe!<br />
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The most awesome thing about Bettie and Vicious is that they never give up on people. After telling me (after I asked) on Thursday that I probably won't pass she says to me tonight at Recruitment Night that if there's the opportunity at practice tomorrow she wants to watch me zip around the outside of the track to work on my crossovers during hitting drills that I can't participate in anyway. She also offered to possibly come down from Manchester to practice with me at Roby on Tuesday night.<br />
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She's still gunning for me to pass on Wednesday. <3 Bettie. She made the little invisible wings attached to my heart flutter with hope tonight.<br />
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If you are an NHRD freshie and you are reading this, post it to your status (JK... I hate those things on Facebook). But seriously, if you are a current, former, or future NHRD freshie and <3 Bettie and Vicious too, please post some love here for them to read. :-)Helen Carnatehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14738776896971663362noreply@blogger.com4