Game day

And so much is going through my brain.  Not so much the game, since I really have no idea what to expect.   More about training,  about warm ups,  about how I eat and drink beforehand. 

One nice thing I recently noticed: my body is changing,  for the better.   I broke the 170 pound threshold.   And am generally tighter and more ready to move.  I have greater endurance.   We'll see how all that translates to performance.  

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Practice Tonight

In other words: I made it! Now what?

It was an interesting night of scrimmage.  I have some kind of a cold and was dripping snot. I also felt a little, generally, weak.  But I got through it, and I made some meaningful blocks, and I beat my way through the opposing line a few times.

Woot!

Here I am in my Dolls jersey.  I also got some stats from the KDC tourney, and they were pretty awesome.

I scored 79 points in the first game of the tournament (against WestCo) -- a Keystone Derby Conference (KDC) record.
I got lead 90% of the time -- also a KDC record.
I also made more call offs than anyone in the history of the KDC.

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It's on!

On the charter and playing 9/24!

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Consideration

I was invited, the day that I had to put down Edgar, to start practicing with the Dolls for consideration of being added to the charter.  Last night was my first night doing so, and I put in a solid night, though obviously I need to do better.

Good:
1. Basic technique.
2. Communication and learning.
3. Solid ploughs.
4. I am strong, and that strength carries me through a lot of challenging situations.

To work on:
1. Jamming was a tad uninspiring, and I took a lot of penalties.
2. I have a tendency to stand up in challenging situations, and that never ends well.
3. I have regressed a little in terms of using my agility.

We Lost Edgar.

It was sudden.  One day we went for a walk -- and the walk was good, but he was tired.  The next day he was more tired, and a few days after that he was struggling to breathe.  Cancer.  Nothing to be done.

It's hard coming home and not being greeted by him.  Not getting to enjoy his quiet confidence and aloof yet affectionate personality.  Now we only have one dog. It feels so odd.

Keystone Derby Championships

There are a lot of things I love about derby, and some things I don't.  Yesterday we traveled to the Keystone Derby Championships, in Mount Pleasant PA.

What I liked:
1. Derby community.
2. Fun.
3. The chance to play with a bunch of strong, growing women.
4. I had a great first game.  Took only one (stupid) penalty, but scored about half our overall points.

What I didn't like:
1. It's just frustrating feeling sort of in limbo, and there were decisions made all season not to play this team as a competitive team, or to communicate in ways that I would consider equitable and transparent.  I'd like to see all of that change, at least for me personally -- because my personal improvement is ultimately going to be tough if I can't play in an environment that observes best derby practices.
2. My second game wasn't as good.  More (stupid) penalties and fewer points, and I was tired.  Also, I ate too much acidic stuff, and my stomach was churning.
3. Injuries!  Not me, luckily, but one of the refs took a serious tumble.  Several skaters did, as well.

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Practice tonight

Need more control!  Otherwise good.

Additionally,  I started a new version of Dietbet.   It's called Stepbet.  To win,  I have to get around 12000 steps four days per week, and 15200 on two "stretch" days.   With Chris and I carpooling,  I now cap 12000 on most work days,  but I rarely meet the stretch threshold.   So,  good reminder to me to stay active and not be lazy when not on a practice or gym day.

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Sunday funday

All this before nap time.













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Under the Lights

This week has been interesting and frustrating.

Monday I had to skip practice because I had what I think must have had a migraine -- I had a huge aura around 3 or 4 p.m., and by 6 I was so sensitive to light and had an unbelievable headache and just could not do it.

Wednesday (last night) practice was at the YMCA in State College due to track resurfacing at Penn Skates.  I generally like being outside, though the Y is hell on skates. And also, it sometimes rains. Which it did last night about 1.5 hours into practice.

Good:
1. Jamming was solid, if uninspiring.
2. Blocking was also meh.
3. We did the Snot Rocket Science moving-people and collapsing-knees hits.  I enjoy those and have practiced them a lot, and though it's been a few months since I last recall doing them, they were still quite good and I was able to refine them further.

Bad:
1. Could have been smarter about how I practiced, particularly when blocking.
2. I haven't used some of my newest tricks in the last few practices.  I want to be more mindful of working on additional strategies and such, so that I don't lose them.