Posts Tagged ‘safety equipment’
Baby’s First Bout
April 16th, 2010
This post is way overdue – I’d hoped to give you some hot-off-the-grill impressions of my first bout, but traveling and bouting and getting back into the groove at home made me slower than I’d thought I would be…. But it’s given me time to think about what I want to write, and I’d like to share what I learned (and some random observations for good measure).
Things I Learned
- Do not, under any circumstances, put on your fishnets before you embark on a 5+ hour drive, unless you want to be mistaken for a waffle iron later! I wasn’t sure how much time we’d have before the bout to get ready, what the “locker room” would be like, etc. So I went ahead and put on my underthings. Baaaaad idea. I looked like I was ready to have syrup poured over me any second. And it’s sorta painful to get a fishnet brand pressed into your backside.
- Check out the time zone of where you’re going before you agree to leave really, really early in the morning. Sure, we live at the edge of Eastern Daylight Time, and we were heading pretty much west – but would you think that’d factor in to the travel math for me? Noooooo. So we were there pretty early – and there is more “hurry up and wait” before a bout than you’d think, so we were cooling our heels for more than a minute.
- Do something really strenuous and physical in the booty shorts you plan on wearing for the bout, even if they’re under a skirt like mine were. If they give you a wedgie during your preliminary tests, they’ll surely give you one while you’re playing – mine turned out to be much more booty than shorts. I’m just saying. Everyone in Paducah saw my butt cheeks. Everyone. And while my teammates were very complimentary (thanks, girls!), it’s a teeny bit embarrassing to find out after the bout that you’ve flashed an entire fan base….
- It takes a couple of jams (or more) for you to find your legs, especially if you haven’t done this before. Coach T says that everything you ever learned leaves your brain when the whistle blows. Too true! My first couple of jams were, well, ugly. I got out of my Derby stance. I got separated from my teammates. I fell, a lot. I got discouraged, and in my own head too much. Shake it off – don’t let it affect the whole bout.
- Item 4 leads me to the following: make sure your knee pads are on nice & tight. Not cut-off-your-circulation tight, but tight enough to stay on. I lost a knee pad in one of my first tumbles, and have some lovely rink rash to show for it…. So when you take that first hard hit from a stranger, all your gear should stay in place.
Blue Lightnin' @ Radioactive City
Finally – remember that this is the coolest thing you’ve ever done, and have FUN. You are participating in something that most people are too afraid to even dream about. I mean, I’ve never been in a game for any other sport where the coach asked, “Is anyone missing some metal from their face? They found this on the track….” Every second on that track is precious, glorious, fantastic. Do your best, and leave it all on the track. Repeat.
Skate Hard,
- Rumble Strumpet
