Category Archives: True Derby

Derby attracts a wide range of skaters. They come from all backgrounds and in all flavors. Each is following her own path. Here are a few of their stories.

Art of the Listen - Bench Talk, True Derby

PANDEMIC PHENOMENON – ROLLER SKATES SELL OUT

The Covid-19 shutdowns may have shuttered the roller derby season for 2020, but there is no lack of eight-wheeled, social distancing skating going on as a result of the times.

What more perfect way to glide through a shutdown than with a pair of skates, an open sidewalk, maybe a family outing.

A definite rush and a shot of physically produced serotonin!

But good luck finding skates if you don’t have some in your closet already.

Google Trends reports a surge of online searches for “roller skates” during the pandemic lockdown. And not just idle searches. That phenomenon has translated in the actual sales…or sell outs!

Would-be skaters complain they can’t find skates in stock. Major online skate retailers say they struggle to keep sizes and styles in inventory.

Some people say a certain LA actress and dancer named Ana Coto started the trend with her Tik-Tok escapades on skates (see BuzzFeedNews article: “These Very Cool Women On Tik-Tok Are Causing Roller Skates to Sell Out Online”)

Maybe her 1.1 million hits prove she created the pandemic phenomenon, but as she says herself “just watching people skate is good vibes all around.”

A glimmer of hope for those sidelined derby skaters — Germany just opened up for team training with proper safety measures. You can count on roller derby coming back strong soon.

And maybe some of those owners of new quad skates will take notice and come out for freshmeat auditions.

But if not, let’s just revel in the revival of roller skating.

SKATE ON!

Darla

(visit www.darlatherollerderbyqueen.com to subscribe to Darla’s regular blogs)

Art of the Listen - Bench Talk, True Derby

WHAT YOUR GUT FEEL IS TELLING YOU THESE DAYS….

Yes, there is a virus out there. What does your gut tell you about it?

That cold clutch in the stomach. Those fluttering butterflies.

Your gut tells you how you are reacting to the situation.

And it’s contagious.

Ask the derby girls on the bench waiting for the action of the bout. Wondering if they will get hurt. Hoping they will get in to make the big move. Anticipation. Or perhaps “What am I doing here?”

Maybe not a huge difference in the way your gut feels.

But…..one is fear. The other is excitement.

Check into your gut. Which is it? Depends on what you were just thinking about at that moment.

Anger is about the past, something that has already taken place. Disappointment is about the past. Sadness and Blame are about the past. So is your gut reacting to something you can’t do anything about?

Or is it fear? Fear and Anxiety are about the future. Also something you can’t control.

And here’s the way it works. The very moment you tune into that crazy stomach and check into what you were thinking, now it isn’t either! Now it’s Curiousity. Peace in some cases. Understanding. Acceptance.

Or an “Ah, Ha” moment. And that can lead to Excitement, Anticipation. Laughter.

So yes, there is a virus or something out there. Check your gut.

Feel better?

Great. Spread that around.

SKATE ON!

Darla

(2017 photo of the Lava City Smoking Ashes derby squad,taken by Michael Smith)

Want more of Darla’s blogs? Visit www.darlatherollerderbyqueen.com

Art of the Listen - Bench Talk, True Derby, Twinkle Lights Stories

24…..

Three derby skaters equal 24 wheels on any given day.

But on some days in history, just the number 24 speaks for everyone.

A day when a person who wore that number on a jersey leaves the world and wheels stop turning long enough for us to acknowledge some truths.

The truth that, like derby skates and skaters, we all come in different colors and sizes. From different places across the world. Different genders. Different sports. Different beliefs about where we go when it’s all over.

And for a moment we can see those common goals and traits of goodness that transcend competition, be it in basketball, politics or religion.

Same vulnerabilities of the body and spirit.

Same heartfelt gratitude that someone with the number 24 provided a glimpse of all that.

Something to remember as the wheels start to turn again.

SKATE ON!

Darla

True Derby

AN EYE FOR THE LADIES – KIKO JONES

Alex Rodriguez has his eye on the derby ladies. And they are glad he does!

He’s quite the favorite on the derby circuit. They lovingly gave him the skater name of Kiko Jones when he first showed up on the track to coach the Freshmeat (newbie derby skaters in training).

So what brought this giant of a man ( a former football player, marching band member, roller skater and skateboarder) to roller derby?

“It was a tough time in my life in 2008. Then the derby girls from Austin and Houston, where the derby revival began, needed some help in El Paso where they were staring a new league.”

“They needed help with equipment, wheels, bearings and such, and my background as a skateboarder was just the thing for them. It was just the thing I needed also in my life. I fell in love with the concept and gained so much respect for the ladies who worked so hard. They are special!”

The geologist and petroleum surveyor from El Paso went on to use his skills in the men’s derby league as a blocker. He officiates for three different leagues in three different cities.

“I serve as an outside pack ref, an inside pack ref, a jammer ref and the Eye in the Sky.” The last is not his favorite because he’s not on wheels, but it gives him the overview of the game he loves.

“Officiating is every bit as physically and mentally demanding as the game itself. Unlike many other sports, roller derby officials have to see the whole picture of a rule infraction before they can call it. What or who caused it, what the actual infraction is and what was the consequence. All in a split second and on wheels!”

Kiko Jones loves the sport of roller derby. But mostly he loves the girls.

“I’ve learned so much about women. Their passion, their many different and dynamic personalities, how they work so hard and sacrifice their bodies and times for the sport they love.

I love and respect women more than ever.”

SKATE ON, KIKO JONES!

Darla

(Look for more about Alex and other strong derby participants in the 2020 launch of Darla’s book and presentation “Strong Women, Fast Wheels, New Rules: How Roller Derby Can Change Your Life Without Ever Putting on Skates” – a look at the derby rules that can be applied to everyone’s life. Visit Darla’s website to watch for the release and to subscribe to blogs like this)

Art of the Listen - Bench Talk, Scabs and Other Body Parts, True Derby

SKIN IS ONLY SKIN DEEP

We all have it, you know.

Skin.

Derby girls know it because it is easily bruised, scraped (especially when in touch with velcro or the track) and painted.

It makes up about 16% of your body weight and is comprised of about 64% water. It is your largest organ.

It is waterproof and i insulates the rest of your body from temperatures, sun, chemicals. All the many nerve endings in your skin keep your brain in touch with the world around you.

We need skin. And yet it is only .5 mm thick at its thinnest point (the eyes, as in crows feet) and 4 mm thick at its thickest parts (palms and soles).

So why do we make such a big deal deal over what the top part of those millimeters actually look like, as in making it the biggest part of one’s identity?

White skin, black skin, yellow skin, and so on.

Good skin, bad skin, wrinkled or smooth skin.

Thin skinned people, thick skinned people.

Tight skin, saggy skin

Skin is only skin deep. There’s a lot of stuff going on under it. And it pretty much looks the same for everyone.

I say we quit looking at skin as our identity.

Skin is only skin deep.

SKATE ON!

Darla

(See what’s under this painted bench in Santa Fe, NM. Just a bench.)