nah i’ll be ok. but as u can probably guess i did fail the white star. this will hopefully be the last and only emo post of this blog but to say i’m not quietly devastated would be a big fat lie.

i got 2.91 out of the required 3. which is very close i think but still a big fat failzor !

the things i need to work on include : getting up quicker from knee falls and slightly increasing my speed in endurance. (half a lap would have got me over the line apparently. arrrrrgh)

another downer is that because i’m scheduled for an operation next thursday i can’t make the resit. Even if i could make and pass the resit i would still be out of action for a few weeks which would probably put me too far behind the pack.  i WILL however be back for next years  intake. hopefully much leaner and meaner then this time.

i’ll be putting my name down for volunteer duties and such until next intake. i love the sport and still want to be involved in some way until i can actually skate it up like a mofo !

a big congrats to all the girls that made it or will make it by next Wednesdays resit. and my condolences to those like myself that are out until next time. keep with it girlies !! we’ll get there !

i’ll try and keep this blog somewhat active with progress updates, general derby news and finds until the next bootcamp.

but until then it’s time to stamp my feet a little bit more and get this frustration out of my system.

<3 see yall soon.

on Monday i shared the huge rink with 2 primary school girls and a group of 3 older gents who i will refer to as “lemon party” . even though there was only a small group of people I’m sure they got a kick seeing me fall over multiple times practicing falls and plow stops (of which i still find impossible). i only stayed for an hour as it was still over 30 degrees and vowed to return on Thursday to skate with some of the VRDL ladies and fellow freshies.

Had a lot more fun on Thursday and i met a girl (donna kebab) which whom i used to play in an all girl gaming clan with years and years ago. spoke to a few girls and got some more tips and had a good hard skate.

then came Sunday….. dum dum dah !

It was a little cooler and more comfortable to skate this week and we went over everything we did the week before with additional skills:

lateral movement – moving efficiently from one side of the track to the other.

endurance - sprint skating (can do it but i need to work on my form)

jumps - over little cones  (can kinda do this)

skating on one leg - going to need to practise standing on one leg for a while on this one.

what i learned :

• Be  very careful when i fall forward, keep fists clenched
• Try not to fall backwards onto butt/tailbone (did this twice, very sore bot bot)
• Skate lower,  i stand too tall and will need to build leg muscles
• Balance, i need to practise standing on one leg and being more comfortable.

so there’s a lot of need to work on besides grasping the basic skills. i’m going to skate at least twice this week before the next training session. i would do more but i’m actually still sore today.

part of me felt i had improved upon last weeks efforts and part of me felt like i was falling behind. i’m sure a lot of the girls are going through similar emotions. i get over excited and then just over it. my body won’t do what i want it to.  all i know is i still want to roller derby whatever it takes.

Next Update : Boot camp Week Three

it was however awesome fun. was good to meet some of the girls i’ll be spending time with over the next 4 weeks but it really did show me how much i need to practise to keep up with the curve.

the stuff we were taught included was :

falls – one knee, two knee and 4 point ( i can do one knee but am a little unco on the others)

stops - t-stop (which i’m a little shakey on)  plow-stop (omg impossible)

stance - bend those knees !!! and cross over turns (which i can sorta do)

weaving - through cones (which i can sorta do)

i pretty much can’t do anything perfect and on top of that i almost passed out once but it’s given me a better idea of the stuff i need to learn. there was so many talented people and i don’t want to sound defeatest but i may not make this round of intake. i will of coarse be trying my hardest to improve and if i don’t make it i will be super ready next time with a good few months more time to practise the skills we need.

now it’s time to spend a couple of days recovering from the pain of using muscles i didn’t even know were there ^_^

Next Update : Boot camp Week Two