From Freshmeat to Team Mate: An Introduction!

Hi There!
My name is Jessica...and until recently I was "Freshmeat."

The day I got my very own Derby gear -
I was SO excited to just try the skates on again!

For those of you who may not know, when you join a Roller Derby team, you start out as something called "Freshmeat." It's sort of like a probationary player.  The Freshmeat period allows you to get your feet wet in the world of roller derby. It's full of practices where you just try to remember with envy how well you USED to skate when you were a kid (or maybe that was just me, LOL) or you basically learn how to skate from scratch.

In Freshmeat training, you learn basics.  Real basics.
Here are some quick examples:
*how to do a derby stance
*how to skate forwards
*how to balance on one foot while on skates
*how to skate backwards
*how to turn around while skating

Then, once you've mastered all of your Freshmeat skills (and there's more...just wait and see!) you get to take your test for Level One. After you pass Level One on our team, you can officially be voted in as a full member of the organization, which is great!  I was voted in a few weeks ago after passing my Level One test...and now I'm working on my Level Two skills.

Sweaty from practice, but THRILLED with my
brand-new track jacket with my official name
and number on it! 

All in all, there are three levels of skills that you have to master before you can play in an official Derby game. This level testing is done for safety reasons.  It proves not only to your team, but to the other team, as well, that you can safely execute all the required skills that may be needed in a game.

 In this series, "From Freshmeat to Team Mate," I'm excited to share with you what I've done to this point to pass my Level One test and to hopefully continue as I get all the way through Level Three to become a competitive player on our team.  I'll be showing you different skills we learn and sharing some of my experiences. I hope you find Derby as fascinating and exciting as I do!!

- Jessica a.k.a. NIKKI TESLA #134
(oh, yeah, did I mention when you play Derby you get to pick a cool "Derby Name" to play under?  We have some great ones on our team... "Meryl Creep,"  "Haulin-Sass," "Astra Knot," or "Paleo Pixie." You can check out our player profiles over on the right sidebar --->)