1. At first, you're going to feel very lost and confused about EVERYTHING. Sometimes the vets will think that you understand everything (but you don't), it's okay. Just go with it and fake it, and ask a vet or someone who's been there longer.
2. You will get hurt. I'm no pro by any means, but if I had to guess I'd say that your tailbone will be the first to go. For some it's the knees, for me it was the elbow. Regardless, just accept the fact that you'll hurt something. But somehow you'll get better and your body will help you NOT hurt yourself- but that takes time.
3. When you think that you're in skater position, you can probably get lower. Do this. My first bout I THOUGHT that I was skating low and I kept getting knocked over. Once I squatted SO much lower than was comfortable for me: I wasn't getting knocked over anymore. This will also prevent some of those potential early injuries.
4. It will take you a LONG time to really grasp the logistics of the game. For a lot of girls they aren't strong skaters in the first place so they've got that going on, and the fact that they have to play both offense and defense at the same time. Don't think that you'll never grasp it- you will. The learning curve SUCKS- but it will be worth it after a few months.
5. When you do endurance, try to push through the pain. Derby is hard and you will get hurt, so try to push through instead of sitting down because your muscles hurt. You're not going to die. Many times I've said to myself in my head "Screw this! I don't want to do this that bad!" But, that wasn't true and I was SO proud of myself when I pushed through the 2 minute squats (or whatever it was).
6. Semi-vets are your best source of support because they want to help you. They feel very special when you ask them questions and they will probably be more willing to help than the vets. The vets are very busy being awesome (there's absolutely NO sarcasm there- seriously) and they have their sort of "inner circle" that's hard to penetrate sometimes. The semi-vets are very willing to help. AND I know you've heard that phrase "if you teach something then you have really learned it". That applies here.
7. You can always cry when you get home. I remember coming home and feeling so disappointed in myself for not doing as well as I wanted, and that's okay. I still get frustrated and that's only normal. It means that you really want to play the sport well- NOT just wear the tights and socks and call yourself a rollergirl. So, go with it. It will take time and you WILL get frustrated.
8. You will get yelled at- don't take it personal. This may be easier for girls who have played sports before, but if you haven't: know that you will get yelled at for all of the wrong things that you do. However, the girls are not yelling at you because you suck- they're yelling at you 1) because it's loud, 2) because it's fast-paced, 3) because some girls are just like that. Leave it on the track and don't worry about it. They don't hate you- it's not about you, it's about letting you know what you did wrong in the moment.
9. The nervous feeling that you have when you go to practice WILL go away. Derby has it's own levels. There's the kiddie pool where you learn the very basics like skating, knee stops, stopping, etc. After you ace that you feel good and so you move up into being able to scrimmage. This makes you feel crappy again because you're back to sucking again. Once you finally feel comfortable putting it all together it's time to take your skills test. Once you pass you're allowed to practice with the "big girls". This makes you feel crappy because you're back to sucking AGAIN. This sucking will last longer than the first round because it will take you longer to start mastering things. Once you feel comfortable you'll play your first bout. This will make you fee crappy because you're back to sucking again. It's a cycle that you'll live through. And when you come out of each round you'll be a better player. Understand the levels and you'll feel less crappy.
10. Your first few bouts will be completely chaotic. People will throw tons of advice at you on that day and they're trying to help, but really it's just making you question everything that you know about your beloved sport. Just smile and nod and don't let it make you more nervous than you already are. It's just like you practice it. However, you WILL get hit harder than you're expecting. And you will NOT understand everything that's going on because your adrenaline is pumping. Just try to get through the movements and the more bouts you do will allow you to understand better.
10 1/2. It's not about being aggressive. I'm sure that aggression helps, but this is where I was mistaken. I thought that I had to get/be angry to play derby and that couldn't be further from the truth. You won't become a better hitter by getting angry, in fact it may make you a worse hitter. You'll become a better hitter by understand who you need to hit and why. I remember asking a vet about how to get more aggressive and she quickly told me that that's not what it was about. So I began to think more about my focus in the game. Once I knew who I needed to hit and why, I stopped thinking that I had to become an angry person. I just became more passionate about wanting my "team" to win, and that's what drives me to hit: not aggression.
2. You will get hurt. I'm no pro by any means, but if I had to guess I'd say that your tailbone will be the first to go. For some it's the knees, for me it was the elbow. Regardless, just accept the fact that you'll hurt something. But somehow you'll get better and your body will help you NOT hurt yourself- but that takes time.
3. When you think that you're in skater position, you can probably get lower. Do this. My first bout I THOUGHT that I was skating low and I kept getting knocked over. Once I squatted SO much lower than was comfortable for me: I wasn't getting knocked over anymore. This will also prevent some of those potential early injuries.
4. It will take you a LONG time to really grasp the logistics of the game. For a lot of girls they aren't strong skaters in the first place so they've got that going on, and the fact that they have to play both offense and defense at the same time. Don't think that you'll never grasp it- you will. The learning curve SUCKS- but it will be worth it after a few months.
5. When you do endurance, try to push through the pain. Derby is hard and you will get hurt, so try to push through instead of sitting down because your muscles hurt. You're not going to die. Many times I've said to myself in my head "Screw this! I don't want to do this that bad!" But, that wasn't true and I was SO proud of myself when I pushed through the 2 minute squats (or whatever it was).
6. Semi-vets are your best source of support because they want to help you. They feel very special when you ask them questions and they will probably be more willing to help than the vets. The vets are very busy being awesome (there's absolutely NO sarcasm there- seriously) and they have their sort of "inner circle" that's hard to penetrate sometimes. The semi-vets are very willing to help. AND I know you've heard that phrase "if you teach something then you have really learned it". That applies here.
7. You can always cry when you get home. I remember coming home and feeling so disappointed in myself for not doing as well as I wanted, and that's okay. I still get frustrated and that's only normal. It means that you really want to play the sport well- NOT just wear the tights and socks and call yourself a rollergirl. So, go with it. It will take time and you WILL get frustrated.
8. You will get yelled at- don't take it personal. This may be easier for girls who have played sports before, but if you haven't: know that you will get yelled at for all of the wrong things that you do. However, the girls are not yelling at you because you suck- they're yelling at you 1) because it's loud, 2) because it's fast-paced, 3) because some girls are just like that. Leave it on the track and don't worry about it. They don't hate you- it's not about you, it's about letting you know what you did wrong in the moment.
9. The nervous feeling that you have when you go to practice WILL go away. Derby has it's own levels. There's the kiddie pool where you learn the very basics like skating, knee stops, stopping, etc. After you ace that you feel good and so you move up into being able to scrimmage. This makes you feel crappy again because you're back to sucking again. Once you finally feel comfortable putting it all together it's time to take your skills test. Once you pass you're allowed to practice with the "big girls". This makes you feel crappy because you're back to sucking AGAIN. This sucking will last longer than the first round because it will take you longer to start mastering things. Once you feel comfortable you'll play your first bout. This will make you fee crappy because you're back to sucking again. It's a cycle that you'll live through. And when you come out of each round you'll be a better player. Understand the levels and you'll feel less crappy.
10. Your first few bouts will be completely chaotic. People will throw tons of advice at you on that day and they're trying to help, but really it's just making you question everything that you know about your beloved sport. Just smile and nod and don't let it make you more nervous than you already are. It's just like you practice it. However, you WILL get hit harder than you're expecting. And you will NOT understand everything that's going on because your adrenaline is pumping. Just try to get through the movements and the more bouts you do will allow you to understand better.
10 1/2. It's not about being aggressive. I'm sure that aggression helps, but this is where I was mistaken. I thought that I had to get/be angry to play derby and that couldn't be further from the truth. You won't become a better hitter by getting angry, in fact it may make you a worse hitter. You'll become a better hitter by understand who you need to hit and why. I remember asking a vet about how to get more aggressive and she quickly told me that that's not what it was about. So I began to think more about my focus in the game. Once I knew who I needed to hit and why, I stopped thinking that I had to become an angry person. I just became more passionate about wanting my "team" to win, and that's what drives me to hit: not aggression.
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