I'm just so excited

I did it! I decided to suck it up and just go for it!

I've been tossing the idea around about checking out the local roller derby practice squad but was timid about reaching out to them for fear that they would watch me skate one time and laugh me all the way out the door with a nice little golf clap as I shamefully got in my car and drove away in exile.

I've decided! I'm going to my very first ever roller derby practice this weekend. Sunday. 4pm.

I emailed the coach, I got on their online forum and introduced myself as the timid little novice I am. The response was overwhelming. Welcomed with open arms. Encouraged to show up and embarrass myself severely. Promised that I would not be exiled for my lack of experience or basic coordination. So, I'm going.

Oh I'm sure you would just love to see the horror as it unfolds but I'm not nearly nice enough to give you that kind of satisfaction. And I don't have a video camera to document the comedic roller skating adventures so there. Ha! :)

I will however make sure to take pictures of all the nasty bruises I bring home with me after my first practice.

Just FYI if you are so inclined:  PFM Practice Squad

And...this just came out. It's a documentary about the Rat City Roller girls. You can get it on Amazon if you want it.

Roller Skating 101

Well, I've got to say, this roller skating thing is a little more difficult than I imagined it would be. I mean, I'm not the most graceful person I know, and although I had some great balance at one point in my life, I'm not sure I can still make that claim.

I didn't have this info for my last post so here's the link to the skates I bought. Rock Skates.

I strap on my skates and pop up, ready to take on the rink, only to realize that I'm not so steady on wheels. My first attempt was probably comical to watch. I clung to the wall like white dog hairs on black wool. I stumbled and rolled my way around that rink. Oh my goodness, I can't even begin to tell you the fear when the wall ended and it was up to me to stand on my own 8 wheels. But, I did it. Alas, I was rolling. And I might add, I did not fall. Not even once.

My first time out was a smashing success. I actually got relatively comfortable pushing myself around the floor. Yes there were moments of wobbles and uncertainty but that's all part of the learning process right? Right! Second time was in a different roller rink. The nastiest roller rink I think I've ever imagined. Yuck. Smaller floor, older carpet, puddles under the lockers, a smell that just won't quit. Ugh! But, it turned out to be a pretty darn good experience except of course for the sticky nastiness that was on the bottom of my purse after puting it in one of the lockers. As we were pushing ourselves around the rink, a guy who seems more comfortable on wheels than off approached Hubby and asked him if he wanted any pointers for skating backward a bit better. He was struggling to figure it out on his own. Um, yes please! So there we are, skating in the pit of all roller pits getting a free lesson from a professional freestyle inline skater. Oh boy!

A word of advice, stay away from the roller rink on Valentine's day during the Family Skate session. Yes, I speak from experience. Hubby and I went to the rink last night for a couple hours of skating fun, foolishly thinking it was going to be about as busy as it was last weekend. Not so much. A dozen adults or so and probably a couple hundred kids flying, falling, skating the wrong direction, and causing a number of head-on collisions. How is that math possible? I mean really. 20 adults to 200 kids. Is that even legal? I'll tell you what...it shouldn't be. Now I understand why those weird people put leashes on their kids. It wasn't so bad at first but it just kept getting busier and busier and the kids were getting more and more reckless by the moment. It wasn't bad sitting back and watching the chaos but maneuvering through the wreckage was less than enjoyable. I fell once and Hubby fell twice but all were due to our own mistakes or attempts to miss the pile-ups spiratically scattered around the floor.

The good thing about our adventures last night though is that I was finally able to master the figure 8 skating without picking your feet up at all. Hard work on your thighs but it was really exciting to finally get the hang of it. Now if only I could stop. I'm still not comfortable on one foot so picking one foot up and dragging it behind me to stop is not yet so attainable. I'm trying and will master it sooner or later but I'm definitely not easy to watch, I'm sure.

So, how about some lessons?






That should do it for now. Now who wants to go roller skating?

I bought skates

Typical short girl. I just give it all up right off the bat. Yup! I totally did. I'm a complete nerd just so you know.

I went roller skating today all by my lonesome because my new unfriend ditched me at the last possible moment. Well, let me clarify that now before we move on. She was never really my friend in the first place. She was a coworker that I had met for happy hour a couple times and been turned down for other non-drinking related activities. She isn't someone that I was dying to be friends with by any means but was willing to give it a shot if all the stars aligned and we just happened to get along like peas and carrots. I invited her to do a couple different activities (considering that she too is/was interested in losing weight) and my invites were accepted only to either no-show no-call or at least she had the balls to call me moments before she was to be arriving today to tell me that she was tired and didn't want to go. Sealed deal now sweetie pie. No thanks to the possibility of a friendship. I spent years getting rid of lazy people that were unreliable and unwilling to be accountable. No need to invite any new ones in.

So anyway, I went skating. I suck something serious! Can barely stand in skates let alone push myself around the floor at any regular pace without hanging onto the wall. So what did I do with that experience? I'll tell you. I headed straight up to Fast Girl and bought myself a pair of roller skates and all the necessary pads while chatting it up with the owners who just so happen to be members of the Rat City Roller Derby teams.

I have to say that I LOVED them. The owner and her hubby and friend who were manning the store were super helpful and super nice. So now I'm fitted with all the necessary equipment to learn to skate just like a roller girl. Now if I can just figure out how to skate like a normal person first. There are beginner lessons offered at my local roller rink tomorrow. Perhaps I'll pay my $9 and go check it out. Afterall, I have skates now, I should probably learn to use them.

Yikes! Oh my gosh, I just had a horrifying image in my head. A flashback of the tennis lesson fears. I'll show up with my skates over my shoulder, pay my fee, lace up and hit the floor. You see me all smiles and nervous as nervous can be. Then I look around and realize that I'm surrounded by a gaggle of 5 year old kids. The instructor is 15 years old and I'm the only adult anywhere to be seen except for all the proud parents with their video cameras on the benches. Seriously? Now those parents (who are all probably younger than I) are going to have me on their videos of their little ones for all eternity. Video footage of me making an absolute fool of myself. If I end up on that funny video show, you better believe I'll be showing up on their door step to collect my share of the winnings.

Stay tuned...

Stuff and Roller Skating

I can't even begin to understand or explain why I've seemingly abandoned this blog over the past month and a half or so. I can tell you for sure that I haven't dropped off the planet, nor have I been hiding out slacking. Definitely not. Quite the contrary actually. I've been very busy. Busy with the other blog. Why I've spent all my time and energy over there is just a mystery to me too since it was an afterthought. I have been staying very active though, even if I haven't been blogging about it. How about a little recap before I talk about my current goings on?

December was dedicated to kickboxing. I loved kickboxing. So much fun. I did want to visit a real kickboxing gym and get a private lesson to see what the real thing is all about but didn't get around to it. Instead, I just took a bunch of aerobic kickboxing classes at my gym. Great workout. Lots of fun. Two thumbs up for sure.

January was dedicated to racquetball. I bought a racquet and everything. Watched some youtube videos about how to do it. Then Accountabilibuddy and I hit the court and smacked those little balls around all over the place. Rules? Who needs those! It was challenging just taking turns. There was no scoring or rules, just running around chasing the crazy ball everywhere and trying not to get a black eye from all the commotion. It was super fun and again, a great work out. I'm definitely going to keep playing. Who knows, maybe we'll even learn the rules and try to play for real.

February is, well, it's a mystery still. I haven't quite decided. So here's what I'm thinking. Hubby and I went to the first bout for the Rat City Roller Girls this last weekend. My first bout ever. The only thing I had ever seen of it before was in watching the Whip It movie. Loved that movie by the way. Well, after meeting one of the roller girls a few months ago, I decided I wanted to check it out. So much fun. So totally fits me and my personality. Now of course I'm thinking about puting roller derby on my goals. I'm 32 years old, if I'm going to do something like that in my life, I should probably get on it sometime soon. One problem. I can't skate worth a crap. In fact, I got rid of my rollerblades because I hated them so much. Hmmmm....how am I going to do rollerderby if I don't skate? So, roller skating is on my list of possible activities. Maybe I can do that this month.

I was also thinking of doing some kind of martial art this month too since I didn't do it in December like I was originally thinking. The other posibility I was thinking of is belly dancing. I've never done that before either and always wanted to.

Well, what about roller derby? Is it something I can do if I just learn to skate? Or is it meant for the athletically gifted? Upon a tad bit of research I learn that some of the best roller girls had to learn to skate to do it too. That sounds promising. I look at the fresh meat page and find out that there is a midseason tryout happening um....NEXT WEEK. I'm a smart one and all but not sure if I could learn to skate well enough to hold my own in tryouts in one week time. What if I could? Is it even possible? I have no freakin' idea. I definitely get the superwoman complex where I think I can do anything if I want but even I have to question the aptitude for such a feat. Well, perhaps I can learn to skate and practice over the next few months, focus on getting the ACSM stuff taken care of and Punk Rope started then being totally prepared and practiced and ready to kick ass....show up for tryouts in the summer for next season. Hmmmm....now that's a thought.

So, what about lessons? Do you really need rollerskating lessons? I've put skates on before and felt my way around the floor a few times. Can't one just dive in and figure it out? Or do I need someone to teach me how to do all the fancy maneuvering and stuff?

Okay, how about, I make roller skating my activity for the month. That way, I can check out all this stuff and know for sure what I'm up against and if I would even like it. Yup! I think that's what I'll do. Then I'll report back here and share all my bumps and bruises with you as I determine whether or not I can hack it as a roller girl wannabe.