Yesterday, I assessed two more "white stars" (non-contact) to became "orange stars" (scrimmage ready). One of those girls has been through a TREMENDOUS journey involving major injuries and emotional setbacks.
I started with Wookie Tango Foxtrot when I lived on the island of Kaua`i and taught their fresh meat intake. She was not new to rollerskates but was definitely new to roller derby. She was nonchalant about the sport but liked the community. Derby over there was pretty casual, so she was casual with it, too. When I made my exit to O`ahu, I didn't know about her breaking her back. She stuck with the sport and continued to help the league as an NSO through her recovery, but we had long since lost touch.
A few years later at a fresh meat intake on O`ahu, Tango appeared again! She had seen a bout and wanted to join up. She was freshly married and had moved here. Derby on O`ahu, it seems, was a little more intense than she had anticipated. She thought it was wise to redo the fresh meat program and I agreed, especially because of her big injury. She went through to become a "white star" and graduated out, continued on to get contact certified as an "orange star," and then as quickly as that had happened, broke her wrist. :(
If any of you out there have been off skates with an injury for a few months or longer, you know how absolutely devastating a series of injuries can be. By the time she got back on skates, she had lost a lot of her derby muscle mass and was very rusty. She lost a lot of her skills from the time off of skates, and her hot tears of frustration when she didn't pass her re-entry orange star assessment could've made her quit. (I might've). She argued with me and told me how angry she was, and that she thought it was incredibly unfair. All I could do was tell her the truth, which was hard to handle. It's heartbreaking to hear that you have to skate on the side during contact drills because you are still dangerous to yourself and your leaguemates, and that your body is not prepared for full contact. When a coach tells you that you've had a setback and that your body is not ready, and they explain that you're not the skater you used to be, it's not a good feeling. It makes you feel like you have lost your identity and it is a struggle to maintain your composure, let alone continue with the sport. Who wants to watch the rest of the league scrimmage while sitting on the sidelines? That's more painful than walking away. It's why injuries are so hard to come back from. It makes you mad at the coach and mad at yourself. You lash out. You turn against your league. You turn against your friends.
Instead of quitting, however, this chick worked through that initial anger and busted her ass on skates outside of practice days. She channeled the inner FIGHT she needed in order to pass her skills. THIS IS ONE MIGHTY WOMAN. She is super slight in stature and has to work harder than most derby girls to prove she can stand up in the pack and battle with the big blockers. This game teaches us ALL how we fit in. Sometimes I feel like derby isn't for everyone... and then someone like this girl... under 100 lbs and with some serious health conditions... proves me entirely wrong.
Tango still has a lot of work to do and is going to retake Derby Middle School in June to get even more training under her belt in order to become a solid Orange Star skater... but she has a lot of determination and is willing to do the work. With more scrimmage time and more practice, she is going to protect that Orange Star and become one of the most dedicated members of our league. I'm super proud of her! Not every skater can be Suzy Hotrod. Leagues need WTF's, too. You bet they do.
God I love this sport. This is why I love teaching roller derby. This is why I can't quit you.
I started with Wookie Tango Foxtrot when I lived on the island of Kaua`i and taught their fresh meat intake. She was not new to rollerskates but was definitely new to roller derby. She was nonchalant about the sport but liked the community. Derby over there was pretty casual, so she was casual with it, too. When I made my exit to O`ahu, I didn't know about her breaking her back. She stuck with the sport and continued to help the league as an NSO through her recovery, but we had long since lost touch.
A few years later at a fresh meat intake on O`ahu, Tango appeared again! She had seen a bout and wanted to join up. She was freshly married and had moved here. Derby on O`ahu, it seems, was a little more intense than she had anticipated. She thought it was wise to redo the fresh meat program and I agreed, especially because of her big injury. She went through to become a "white star" and graduated out, continued on to get contact certified as an "orange star," and then as quickly as that had happened, broke her wrist. :(
If any of you out there have been off skates with an injury for a few months or longer, you know how absolutely devastating a series of injuries can be. By the time she got back on skates, she had lost a lot of her derby muscle mass and was very rusty. She lost a lot of her skills from the time off of skates, and her hot tears of frustration when she didn't pass her re-entry orange star assessment could've made her quit. (I might've). She argued with me and told me how angry she was, and that she thought it was incredibly unfair. All I could do was tell her the truth, which was hard to handle. It's heartbreaking to hear that you have to skate on the side during contact drills because you are still dangerous to yourself and your leaguemates, and that your body is not prepared for full contact. When a coach tells you that you've had a setback and that your body is not ready, and they explain that you're not the skater you used to be, it's not a good feeling. It makes you feel like you have lost your identity and it is a struggle to maintain your composure, let alone continue with the sport. Who wants to watch the rest of the league scrimmage while sitting on the sidelines? That's more painful than walking away. It's why injuries are so hard to come back from. It makes you mad at the coach and mad at yourself. You lash out. You turn against your league. You turn against your friends.
Instead of quitting, however, this chick worked through that initial anger and busted her ass on skates outside of practice days. She channeled the inner FIGHT she needed in order to pass her skills. THIS IS ONE MIGHTY WOMAN. She is super slight in stature and has to work harder than most derby girls to prove she can stand up in the pack and battle with the big blockers. This game teaches us ALL how we fit in. Sometimes I feel like derby isn't for everyone... and then someone like this girl... under 100 lbs and with some serious health conditions... proves me entirely wrong.
Tango still has a lot of work to do and is going to retake Derby Middle School in June to get even more training under her belt in order to become a solid Orange Star skater... but she has a lot of determination and is willing to do the work. With more scrimmage time and more practice, she is going to protect that Orange Star and become one of the most dedicated members of our league. I'm super proud of her! Not every skater can be Suzy Hotrod. Leagues need WTF's, too. You bet they do.
God I love this sport. This is why I love teaching roller derby. This is why I can't quit you.
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| Wookie Tango Foxtrot |
