Angee: Introduce Yourself

Angee · **Site Rank:** Healthy Friend

Hi, I'm Angee. I play roller derby for the Dockyard Derby Dames in Tacoma. I recently joined the Tacoma Center Y with the goal of keeping in shape during our off-season, increasing my upper body and core strength, and finishing some rehab on a knee injury.

Now that I've joined the Y and done some experimenting with weights, I doubt I'll stop going once the season gets into full swing--my arms are so weak!!! Hurting my knee was a bit of a wake up and I decided to try to increase my cross-training to target muscles that don't get as much of a work out in derby because this will help prevent other injuries.

I work for Northwest Sinfonietta, a professional orchestra that plays in Tacoma and Seattle; however, I am not a musician myself. I do fundraising, events planning, donor relations, and grant writing.

I've read some of the posts on this forum and I can relate to a lot of what people are saying. I played soccer pretty competitively all growing up, but playing derby has gotten me into the best shape I've ever been in and I think it's partly because it is so fun that I forget I'm working out. When it IS hard and I have to push myself beyond what my mind thinks my body can do, my competitive drive kicks in and I have the support of 50 other women who are encouraging me to keep going. I find it hard to push myself without those team/community elements.

Thanks Ken, for introducing me to the weight machines. I'll track my workouts in the weights section. Everyone else, maybe I'll meet you sometime soon

Angee

tammy · **Site Rank:** Site Admin

Thank you for introducing yourself, Angee! Welcome to Healthy Pals!

I played basketball growing up and in college so I know all about being competitive and pushing yourself. I don't know much about Roller Derby though. What exactly is it? I'm curious.

Angee · **Site Rank:** Healthy Friend

Roller derby is so hard to describe! It's a full-contact sport played on an oval track by two teams at a time. Each team plays 5 players at a time, 4 blockers and 1 jammer. The jammer is the point-scorer. The 8 blockers start in a pack and the jammers start at a 2nd starting line behind them. The jammers score points by lapping the pack and passing players on the opposing team. Games are called bouts and they are usually played in two 20- or 30-minute periods. Within each period, there are jams. Each jam can last up to 2 minutes. Teams sub in new players at the start of each jam, and the players re-group at the starting lines.

There's a 5-minute video that explains the rules in more detail here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_T8izdlc-dY

I hope that explains it! -Angee

Y's Guy · **Site Rank:** Moderator

sounds pretty straight foward to me!

tammy · **Site Rank:** Site Admin

Thanks for sharing the roller derby video. I watched it and it makes sense now. Wow, that sport looks physical! Do you guys really push and shove each other like that? What position do you play?

Angee · **Site Rank:** Healthy Friend

Ideally, you only push or shove your own teammates--either into another team's player or to give them an extra boost of speed. The contact rules are a lot like soccer: you can hit shoulder to shoulder between the shoulders and the knees. I play jammer a lot and I block some too. Our season starts again in late February. If you're interested in seeing a bout I'll let you know the date and I might be able to score you some free promo tickets :mrgreen:

I didn't know about derby until I started playing it, so I've only ever watched it as a skater, but all my friends and family that have come to bouts have had a lot of fun.

tammy · **Site Rank:** Site Admin

Angee,

How is the roller derby going? Are you in season now? When does the season last from?

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