Oh, Ogden, UT. How I always miss visiting you. NOT! The bars close at 1am. The mountains are on the wrong side. Not to mention the breathtakingly beautiful scenic drive through the middle of Wyoming is anything but breathtaking or beautiful. Even so, every year we make the pilgrimage to the great state of Utah to play the Junction City Roller Girls. It’s a great chance to spend time with our teammates and have fun on the last travel bout of the season, and the Junction City Roller Girls are a formidable opponent. I won’t go through the gory details of the trip, but I will share a few good morsels with you.
On the Road Again
The trip there is always full of new things. Everyone’s amped about the trip, the energy is high, and without fail we learn so many little tidbits about each other. It’s really nice to learn more about the ladies that you’re skating with. Did you know that Double D-struction is planning on roasting an entire pig for her birthday? Or that CeCE She-bash’ya wants to raise her own chickens? Or that Pootie Tang loves to implement graffiti in her graphic design? I didn’t, but what else are you going to talk about on your way through a high-altitude desert covert in a thick layer of dirt (no offense, Wyoming, but let’s face it. You’re a very dirty state). Despite the lack of visual stimulation there are at least some cool things about Wyoming. Such as:
- Gas stations so big you could survive there for years during the zombie apocalypse.
- Cool rock formations.
- It’s fine cuisine.
We are a Family
When we’re on a trip we do everything together – eat, sleep, drive. laugh, and play derby- really everything. We basically just swarm around town in a huge dust cloud causing destructions wherever we go, and since we’re wearing our derby swag people tend to take notice. “Oh, did you see those girls this morning? They were all wearing black jackets and singing show tunes.”
Why yes! That’s us! Booty blocking in public! And during this special trip, 98 Pounds of Steel made the devastating mistake (although I supported it) of getting Ms. Eerie Bizness a toy microphone that echoes her voice. Disney classics rained down from the sky! Katy Perry songs melted our minds! And she sang, at the top of her lungs, at every restaurant, with absolutely no shame. I will not be able to rip the memory of the Hercules opening song out of my mind for as long as I live.
Bouting is Hard
We took the journey to Ogden, UT to play the Junction City Roller Girls; a tough team that hits hard and plays a great game. Although we held out own for a while, ultimately the Junction City Roller Girls figured out how to bust through our walls and we lost the bout. Feeling dejected, I thought about all of the things I needed to work on. You need to skate faster, Skank! Get lower! Get on your toe-stops more! Stop the jammer, don’t just slow her down! I was beating myself up about how I should have played a better game for my teammates, when something clicked in my head. Instead of thinking about what I did wrong, I started thinking about how proud I was of so many of my teammates. Pootie Tang was an excellent jammer who was tired and out of breath, but she showed courage by continuing to jam her heart out. 98 Pounds of Steel was the only one who didn’t go to the penalty box. Agent Cox Moulder played for almost the entire bout- not resting in between jams but staying and playing while the rest of us were tired. Princess of Wails landed some great hits that sent people flying! Ms. Eerie Bizness was the hoppiest jammer with the fanciest footwork, and every one of my teammates showed class and poise in a tough situation. I had so many reasons to be proud of my teammates that day, and that’s why I love traveling with my team. Win or lose – we leave it all on the track.
Cheers,
The Original Skankster