APRIL 14: SUCIAS AT ODESSA, TX (TALL CITY ROLLER BETTIES)
April 15, 2012 · by crossroadscityderby · in Bouts,Sucias
I have always enjoyed participating in athletics. I enjoy the physical activity, the mental challenge, the competition and the camaraderie amongst the team. In May of 2011 I walked into Dickerson’s barn and discovered Roller Derby. It is everything I have loved about sports and so much more. I have found an outlet for physical activity, a new mental challenge, but most of all I found a sisterhood of wonderful women. I was like a kid waiting for Christmas in the days leading up to the bout vs. the Tall City Bombshell Betties in Odessa, TX. First, because it would be my first road trip with the Sucias. I usually bring my kids to away bouts, but this time I was on my own! Second, I was excited to test our skills against a team we had not played before and who has their very own Team Bionic member, Christy More Cowbell.
So Friday evening, we all met up and headed out. We arrived about 1 a.m. and quickly settled in to get a good night’s rest. The next morning we had quite an adventure at the local Wal-Mart. Who knows you may even find us on the people of Wal-Mart! Soon it was time to get ready for the bout. We drive up to the hangar at the airport and are beyond thrilled with their skating space. They have SOOO much room, especially after we recently have found ourselves homeless without a bouting space. Several older airplanes and memorabilia were housed in the hangar, which added to the ambiance. The game began and we quickly realized two things. One we were working great together as a team and all our work with holding our walls and staying together were paying off. Second, the referees left much to be desired. We were facing many trips to the penalty box and the penalty board was filling up quickly.
At halftime Hearno and Barbie were in penalty trouble. Coach Bombshell was forced to sit Hearno and Barbie for the beginning of the second half. At halftime, Coach gave us a pep talk and encouraged us to step up and said some of us would be jamming that don’t typically jam. He looked at me and said, “That means you.” At first I was excited, then the second half began and he threw me the jammer panty. My heart pounded, my palms were sweaty (ok so everything was sweaty cause it was hot as hell in there, but you get what I’m saying) and I started shaking, then I looked around and saw I was surrounded by the most amazing women and realized I would be okay! The thoughts in my head started running through the list of things I knew I needed to do as a jammer, but most of all, I just said, “Don’t mess this up!” There was no way I would let these women down. This was only my 5th bout ever and just five months ago during my first Sucia bout, I didn’t even get to put a skate on the track. Now Coach is trusting me to go out there and put points on the board. What an incredible ride!
I even jammed against Christy More Cowbell and surprised myself. She was very good at juking and going around to the outside to get around the pack. Surprisingly, we figured out her strategy pretty early on and stopped her by holding a strong four wall. It was a great strategy though, especially considering the pounding you took as a jammer trying to shimmy your way through the pack or sneak through on the inside line. The game experience is much different as a jammer than as a blocker. I remember coming up to the pack and analyzing where every player is, doing my best to be patient and wait for my blockers to create an opening, and knowing I better be ready for anything. As a blocker, you need to be ready for what the jammers or other blockers are throwing your way. I was hammered every time through as a jammer, but I impressed myself. I walked away with a few impressive bruises and some scrapes on the face, but Coach threw those jammer panties my way quite a few more times, which was quite the confidence booster! I may not have made lead jammer as often as I would have liked, but I remember thinking what awesome blockers we had and how that made my job as a jammer that much easier.
The game was close the entire second half, it came down to the last two jams to determine the winner. The score teetered back and forth between Sucias lead and Tall City as lead. Tensions were high, especially with the ejection of Hearno, who now holds the record for most ejections for CCD!! Tall City got a power jam and took full advantage by having their blockers slow the pace of the game in addition to some poor split pack calls, and even worse penalty calls. Tall City was now in the lead with a strong point margin. At one point, we started a jam with only one blocker and no jammer. We were all on the edge of our seats and rallied together because we knew we weren’t about to let this slip through our fingers. Despite one minor away from ejection, Barbie was in as a jammer and she worked her magic, accruing points then calling the jam. We were now back in the lead with just one jam left. Barbie showcased her knowledge of the game and athleticism by patiently waiting for a wide open pass through the pack, as did her blockers who held back the Tall City Jammer to zero points and we all watched the clock as it slowly ticked down to 0:00. Many tears fell after that final whistle. The tension was high as we all watched and waited for the final outcome. Now it was over and time for the celebration to begin! We were all pretty emotional as we walked away with another tally in the W column! I know I will never forget this bout and the high I got from that jammer line.
-Goldy Blocks #3brs
April 15, 2012 · by crossroadscityderby · in Bouts,Sucias
I have always enjoyed participating in athletics. I enjoy the physical activity, the mental challenge, the competition and the camaraderie amongst the team. In May of 2011 I walked into Dickerson’s barn and discovered Roller Derby. It is everything I have loved about sports and so much more. I have found an outlet for physical activity, a new mental challenge, but most of all I found a sisterhood of wonderful women. I was like a kid waiting for Christmas in the days leading up to the bout vs. the Tall City Bombshell Betties in Odessa, TX. First, because it would be my first road trip with the Sucias. I usually bring my kids to away bouts, but this time I was on my own! Second, I was excited to test our skills against a team we had not played before and who has their very own Team Bionic member, Christy More Cowbell.
So Friday evening, we all met up and headed out. We arrived about 1 a.m. and quickly settled in to get a good night’s rest. The next morning we had quite an adventure at the local Wal-Mart. Who knows you may even find us on the people of Wal-Mart! Soon it was time to get ready for the bout. We drive up to the hangar at the airport and are beyond thrilled with their skating space. They have SOOO much room, especially after we recently have found ourselves homeless without a bouting space. Several older airplanes and memorabilia were housed in the hangar, which added to the ambiance. The game began and we quickly realized two things. One we were working great together as a team and all our work with holding our walls and staying together were paying off. Second, the referees left much to be desired. We were facing many trips to the penalty box and the penalty board was filling up quickly.
At halftime Hearno and Barbie were in penalty trouble. Coach Bombshell was forced to sit Hearno and Barbie for the beginning of the second half. At halftime, Coach gave us a pep talk and encouraged us to step up and said some of us would be jamming that don’t typically jam. He looked at me and said, “That means you.” At first I was excited, then the second half began and he threw me the jammer panty. My heart pounded, my palms were sweaty (ok so everything was sweaty cause it was hot as hell in there, but you get what I’m saying) and I started shaking, then I looked around and saw I was surrounded by the most amazing women and realized I would be okay! The thoughts in my head started running through the list of things I knew I needed to do as a jammer, but most of all, I just said, “Don’t mess this up!” There was no way I would let these women down. This was only my 5th bout ever and just five months ago during my first Sucia bout, I didn’t even get to put a skate on the track. Now Coach is trusting me to go out there and put points on the board. What an incredible ride!
I even jammed against Christy More Cowbell and surprised myself. She was very good at juking and going around to the outside to get around the pack. Surprisingly, we figured out her strategy pretty early on and stopped her by holding a strong four wall. It was a great strategy though, especially considering the pounding you took as a jammer trying to shimmy your way through the pack or sneak through on the inside line. The game experience is much different as a jammer than as a blocker. I remember coming up to the pack and analyzing where every player is, doing my best to be patient and wait for my blockers to create an opening, and knowing I better be ready for anything. As a blocker, you need to be ready for what the jammers or other blockers are throwing your way. I was hammered every time through as a jammer, but I impressed myself. I walked away with a few impressive bruises and some scrapes on the face, but Coach threw those jammer panties my way quite a few more times, which was quite the confidence booster! I may not have made lead jammer as often as I would have liked, but I remember thinking what awesome blockers we had and how that made my job as a jammer that much easier.
The game was close the entire second half, it came down to the last two jams to determine the winner. The score teetered back and forth between Sucias lead and Tall City as lead. Tensions were high, especially with the ejection of Hearno, who now holds the record for most ejections for CCD!! Tall City got a power jam and took full advantage by having their blockers slow the pace of the game in addition to some poor split pack calls, and even worse penalty calls. Tall City was now in the lead with a strong point margin. At one point, we started a jam with only one blocker and no jammer. We were all on the edge of our seats and rallied together because we knew we weren’t about to let this slip through our fingers. Despite one minor away from ejection, Barbie was in as a jammer and she worked her magic, accruing points then calling the jam. We were now back in the lead with just one jam left. Barbie showcased her knowledge of the game and athleticism by patiently waiting for a wide open pass through the pack, as did her blockers who held back the Tall City Jammer to zero points and we all watched the clock as it slowly ticked down to 0:00. Many tears fell after that final whistle. The tension was high as we all watched and waited for the final outcome. Now it was over and time for the celebration to begin! We were all pretty emotional as we walked away with another tally in the W column! I know I will never forget this bout and the high I got from that jammer line.
-Goldy Blocks #3brs
