I was a bit unsure about skating with fishnets on, but the only annoying part was that the velcro from my wrist guards kept snagging on them.
Overall, I had a lot of fun. It was a mashup, so we had a range from fairly fresh meat up until Team Texas travel team skaters present at the game. We did a 5 line and just kept cycling through. I ended up alternating jamming and blocking when it was my turn to play, I think ideally, that's what I like to do, jam a little and block a little. So, maybe I'll make a good relief jammer?
I played on the same team as my teammate, Durty and she also mentioned the same thing. I guess I've put so much pressure on myself to skate hard first to get drafted, and now to prove my worth to my team (which I know is soooo unecessary, but it's totally self-imposed), that I've not felt the fun part about playing a game. I wasn't being judged this game, I didn't need to prove myself to anyone, and I felt successful most of the time. I think all of this contributed to the fun factor.
I went into the game with 2 goals for each of the positions that I would play:
Jammer goals:
Juke and move feet and use speed changes at tripods and don't get knocked out at the top of the pack.
I Think I did fairly well at juking and quickly moving my feet. And I did stop my momentum a couple of times at the front of the pack and got out - but I also did get knocked out about equally.
Blocker goals:
Stay with a buddy and block/play offense low and dig hard. I think I was actually pretty successful in all of these areas. Never was I alone, and I was able to contain and track lots of jammers multiple times.
Offensive Blocker goals:
Break formations and contain to clear lane for jammer. I was actually kind of glad to have just practiced containing and playing offense this past week at practice, so it was nice being able to put those into action.
Overall, the game was a comfortable level of game play for me. I was able to feel effective with the current skillset that I have. Now that I've had this confidence boost, time to amp up the intensity and become more confident to play at the level of my league-mates.
Tear gave me some homework to work on and so tonight, I watched the last BOTAS Texas vs. Montana game at half speed and pause to predict what was going to happen. I'm going to continue doing this so that I can just learn the game even better.
***
At the afterparty, I got a chance to talk with some of the skaters I used to skate in rec league when I started out the first time. I also got a chance to talk with a retired heartbreaker, who is super fun and cool. One of them mentioned that I am the last home grown skater to have been drafted onto a home team. While it is true, I don't want it to stay that way. Hopefully our rec program will be able to start up soon and will attract a new wave of derby players. Derby just makes life better!
I also got a chance to watch a juniors game and that was so inspiring to watch. While skating around in their awkward-because-still-growing bodies, I thought about how many of the skaters who are thriving in derby would've never been able to play any other more traditional sports that are available to kids that way. What an empowering thing; another reason why derby makes life better!
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