(insert diamond-themed pun here)

So Former Fearless Leader lent me her Radar Diamond wheels.  (She had foot surgery last week and is off-skates for a little bit.)  She warned me that they were pretty old and worn down, but I was more interested in the whole aluminum hub thing.

They.  Are.  AWESOME.

Holy crow they are fabulous.  It took a while to get used to them (after a few laps my feet were killing me, and the my calves were a little stiff this AM), but they were soooo nice.  I felt stiff and stable and felt like I reacted quicker and all that.  I am gonna have to buy me a pair.  She said that ECE has lots of vendors there, so I might wait until then, but that's at the end of June two whole months away I DON'T WANNA WAIT THAT LONG.

Last night was scrimmage night.  The A team from last year is having a private scrimmage on Saturday as part of our league's WFTDA application, so they needed to practice against the rest of the league. Which is kind of annoying, since they're the best players and we're, well, not, but what're y'gonna do.

I hurt my foot a little when trying to take out Captainness Awesome on a hit, and everyone was like OMG TAKE YOUR SKATE OFF AND ELEVATE YOUR FOOT AND LET ME GET YOU SOME ICE.  I appreciated the concern, even if it was a little unwarranted.

HOT DERBY ACTION

Just in case you were curious, here's the highlight reel from the last bout:



(and that hit at the 1:03 mark? Where the chick hits the jammer, does a 360° [and stays in bounds while doing it]? C'est moi.)

okay

so Roy checked my pushup form last night and said it looked fine ("are you supposed to be doing it from your knees?"  "YES." "Oh, okay.")  So that's something.

I found a cool site yesterday, jog.fm.  You tell it how fast of a mile you want to run, or walk, or how many rotations per minute you want on a bike, and it'll give you a whole mess of songs that fit your BPM requirement.  As it happens, my bike requirement and my run requirement are the same (140 BPM), so I got a playlist for both. It's not foolproof (there is no circumstance under which I could ever see myself running to "Uptown Girl" that doesn't involve fire and brimstone and guys in red waving pointy pitchforks), but it had some great songs I hadn't considered ("Stand and Deliver" by Adam and the Ants? Brill-iant!).

I think I'm going to clean my bearings today.  I have to take them out anyway, so I can put them in Former Fearless Leader's wheels tomorrow (she has 7mm bearings so I gotta switch 'em so they fit on my 8mm axles).

wheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee

last night's practice was eh.   I hadn't skated or done anything in a week, and it showed.  My back started hurting, of all things - my back never hurts! - and I was paired with Coach Superstar on drills, which is the equivalent of "okay, let's have Michael Jordan go against that kid over there on the Junior Varsity basketball team who didn't get cut because they didn't have enough people to cut."

Anyway.  As I think I've mentioned before, travel team tryouts are May 19.  They told us the format of them last night: basically, at the team practice of that week (which will be Monday the 16th for me), we'll have the "fitness part", wherein we do pushups and situps and squats for a minute.  Then on Thursday, we'll have a speed trial (time for ten laps), half an hour scrimmage, and then the endurance trial (laps for ten minutes).

OH JOY.  Now I'm worried that I won't make the B team.

So I have three weeks to get my act together.  I'd been musing about doing the Hundred Pushups thing, so I tried the initial test this morning.  I was able to do eleven bent-knee ones (they'd better let us do bent-knee ones), but then I decided I probably didn't have proper form.  I'll have to ask Roy to watch me tonight.

Did I mention I'm going to ECE?  Well, I am.  I'm on the waitlist for one of the fun bouts (Crafters v. Bakers).  Our A team from last year got a spot in the serious bouts, and there was a "hey, if you register for ECE you might get a chance to skate with the A team" message on the league's board last night, but I probably won't be able to do that.

OH - another thing - last night at the very end of practice we were doing core work, and we had to do this - thing- where we started in a plank, and then had to get up on our hands, and then back down on our elbows, and repeat that as many times as we could.  I couldn't do one.  I'd get one hand in place, and all my weight would be on the elbow that was still down, and I couldn't figure out how to transfer the weight so that I could get that hand in place.  It was frustrating, but I suppose I have a new goal or something.

(Former) Fearless Leader is going to lend me her wheels on Thursday - she has Radar Diamonds, which I'm eager to try.  I'm always on the search for bigger and better and shinier and HEY NEW TOY, and she and Captainness Awesome both gave them a glowing recommendation.  They're narrow aluminum hub wheels, which will be interesting to try (I've only used nylon hub wheels).

:)

so I just got a DVD copy of the Sunday bout.  Not only was my super big nice, awesome, clean, knock the jammer down and way the fuck out hit captured on video, it warranted a super-slo-mo instant replay!  Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!

bouty bout bout bout bout

so yeah!  There was a bout yesterday.  Our league's first Sunday one.  Attendance-wise it wasn't as great as our usual Saturday night soirees, but it was a lot better attended than I thought it would be.

So, we won! YAY UNDEFEATED SO FAR FOR THE SEASON KNOCK ON WOOD!  I had a few nice, awesome, clean (though I was convinced after each of them I'd hear the ref whistle telling me I'd done something wrong), knock the jammer down and way the fuck out hits that had my teammates freaking out on the bench. There's just something so....satisfying...about seeing the jammer come up, going "Nope.  Not on MY watch" and running into her at full speed.  (What's even more satisfying? Doing that, hearing the jammer get pissed off at you, and then doing it again.)

Since the league has a rule that if one team is leading by more than 30 points, you have to shake up your lineups, we had a few non-jammers jam, yours truly included.  While my trip with the star went as well as it usually does (not very), two of my teammates not only got lead jam, but scored grand slams!  (Yay for opposing jammers in the penalty box and blockers who can hold a pack to a near stand-still!)
 It wasn't a total runaway, though.  We almost lost our way during the second half and the other team got to within 16 points of us.  (There were a lot of penalties on both sides.  One or two skaters on both teams came very close to being ejected.)  But we calmed down, got them to play our game, and we won 112 to 65.

I need to work on playing offensively (or is it defensively? I can never keep track), though.  I do a pretty good job (if I do say so myself) at blocking the jammer, either through walls, positional blocking or nice, awesome, clean, knock the jammer down and way the fuck out hits, but when it comes to helping my jammer through, I'm kinda like "um....yeah, you're on your own on this one."  What ends up happening is I end up next to an opposing blocker who is next to my jammer - I can't hit that opposing blocker 'cause that'll just send her into my jammer.  I know that I'm supposed to try to get up in front of that blocker and sheriff her back, but that doesn't always happen.  Either that or I'm so focused on staying in the front of the pack and keeping up there (so as I do not get swarmed and held back) that I can't go back and help my jammer through.  Must work on that.

sigh

miserable scrimmage last night.  I was all over the place, accomplished nothing but getting in my jammer's way repeatedly, the two times I jammed I cut the track in really, really, really (really) stupid ways and got sent to the penalty box both times, it was just depressing. 

I'm usually not a "blame the equipment" kinda person (mostly because I am a "well, you just suck" kinda person), but I think maybe I loosened my trucks a little too much.  So I cranked 'em back. (I did replace my insoles, though, and that really helped a lot.)

eep

So last night one of my newer teammates, who moved up from Fresh Meat about six weeks ago and who was rostered for Sunday's bout, broke her tibia and fibula during a drill last night. 

We've had a few major injuries like that, of the "oh-crap-we-gotta-get-an-ambulance-here-NOW" variety, but this was the first one I've actually been at the practice for.  It was freaky.  But she was a real hard-core trooper and didn't freak out (I probably would've. I *know* I would've).

I hope she can get back soon.  We've had skaters who were back on skates in 6 months and it looked like they never missed a day; we've had skaters who are nowhere near where they were and it's been over a year.

Knock on wood, I hope that never happens to me.  (I did end up with a bruise the size of a half-dollar on my shin, along with a big streak of rink rash.  Not sure when that happened, though.)

So other than that, it was a good practice.  I got partnered up with Captainness Awesome on a "one-on-one" drill (if you're in front, you keep the other person behind you.  If you're in back, you try and get to the front.)  We switched positions several times during the drill, which felt good. 

I think I tightened my trucks too much on Sunday, because my shins are a bit uncomfortable this AM.  I also need to do something about my insoles - I bought new gel ones, and they keep shifting and bunching up in my one skate.  I need to either (a) get some sort of tape so that they don't budge or (b) go back and buy a pair like the ones I had before, that didn't budge.

BOUT WEEK BOUT WEEK WAHOO

(except the bout is on Sunday, which is a little odd, but we'll deal.)

Lineups were posed yesterday - five of them, and just about everyone is in two (myself included).  So that's cool.  I know that I'm supposed to be all "it's all for the team and the team is what matters", but c'mon.  I'm me.  I'm going to be going over those lineups with a fine-toothed comb, counting how many times I'm in and how many times everyone else is in.  (I mean, I know and get and understand that it's all for the team and the team is what matters and that there's no "I" in "team" or whatnot, but there *is* a scrambled "me" in "team.")

ANYWAY.

I'm not as GAH MY LEGS as I usually am on Monday mornings.  Progress, I think.  I hope.  Maverick made me do a burpee this morning to show him that I could do one.  I may need to retaliate later. (He *claims* that he did one last night, but I didn't see it.)

I skated a bit at yesterday's practice and had to tighten my trucks a bit.  It was a little wibbly-wobbly-timey-wimey during a few of the turns.  Now I'm back to "hm I don't notice a difference".

OH!  I forgot to mention.  Backstory: I collect old toasters (which are on display in our kitchen) and old typewriters (which are on display in our attic, because, well, old typewriters are big).  Roy is on this CLEAN ALL THE THINGS IN THE ATTIC kick and had me go through some stuff up there, one thing of which was one of the old carrying cases for one of the typewriters - a big square box.  Well...

Pretty neat, if I do say so myself.  (I've always been told you shouldn't store your skates and your pads in the same bag, since the sweat from the pads can rust out your bearings.  Plus it's a cool old square box perfect for affixing stickers upon.  The only downside is that it's a bit bulky, and I have to find a different bag for my pads now, but IT'S COOL LOOKING AND THAT'S ALL THAT MATTERS.)

So that's where we are.

(oh, and one more thing.  I cross-stitched this onto the corner of my uniform jersey.)

I hate metallic floss and will never do it again.

water is wet, fire is hot, sunday practices suck

So today's lesson in frustration involved lots of running between cones and burpees and pushups and situps and air squats and other lovely things and by lovely I mean horrible.

Then we had to do some thing where it was like: start on your hands and feet, like a downward-facing dog, except your knees are bent.   Then you had to pretend there was a fence in front of you that you had to go beneath, so you had to swoop your torso down "under the fence" and end up in a cobra pose.  It was very impossible and I couldn't do it and I think this is the point when I called Anton Apolo OhHELLno a jerk.  (Not to his face or anything like that; just in my head.)

My knee from when I hit it last Monday is still bothering me when it touches the ground (which it did a lot today, as when I do burpees I tend to slam my knees down). So that hurt.  OW.

It's Thursday, Thursday....just call me Rebeca Not-Quite-Black

So yesterday I went to the gym, hopped on the treadmill and did another 12 minute mile.  Yay! (I take victories wherever I can get 'em.)  The only ill effects I had were the fact that my mouth got crazy dry and my calf muscles started to ache after a while.  I think if I actually stretch beforehand, I should be ok.

Tonight is Roy's last Thursday night bowling for the season.  Yaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay!  I can start going to scrimmage night again on a regular basis!  Yaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay!  (At least until September when his season starts up again! Booooooooooooooooooooooooooo!)  I just hope that it doesn't turn into a "I can attend Thursday practices now, so I won't go on Sunday anymore."  As much as I really do not like Sunday practices, I do need them.

YAY FOR PACKAGES

A new helmet with pads inside it that aren't sliding all over the place!
New cushions for my trucks!
New wrist guards that aren't completely shredded that I need to keep together with duct tape!
New shoelaces that aren't a bitch to get through the eyelets!

YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY!

So Sunday (the next time I will be skating) will be an experiment on how loose/tight I need my trucks to be.  It was interesting to see just how dirty and squished and hard the original cushions were.  (The new ones looked like big orange gummy LifeSavers....mmm.....gummy LifeSavers.)

Not much else is new in the Land of Chalk Drawings.  Starting to plan for ECE (I signed up for two challenge bouts, lefties v. righties and crafters v. bakers, but did it kinda late in the game and am only an alternate, but even if I don't end up skating it'll still be fun).  There is a Sonic in Philadelphia, so I am going to force at least one trip there.  We've got a bout two weeks from Sunday, eek, so we have to get ready for that.

once again, GAH MY LEGS

so all did not go well and my package should be arriving today.  Ah well.

Last night I wore new tights to practice, and they compressed my legs again so that my kneepads slid.  First fall of the night, they slip and I land ON MY ACTUAL KNEE.  Ow!  I ended up having to sit out of most of one drill with an icepack on my knee, and I've got a big ugly bruise on my kneecap now.  Fortunately I won't be skating again until Sunday, so there's time for it to heal.

ZOMG I forgot to mention the most amazing use for Greek yogurt yet.  My brother-in-law suggested adding sugar free/fat free pudding mix.  One of those little packages to 16 ounces of vanilla yogurt.  Add it a little bit at a time and stir, it ends up the consistency of mousse and IS THE MOST WONDERFUL THING EVAR.

May 7th is tryouts for the travel teams.  (Our season is running differently this time around - first half of the season is home teams, second half is travel teams.)  There's going to be one tryout for both the A team and the B team, and I have been told that the results will not be announced at the tryouts, so there will be no repeat of last year's crapitude. 

So I'll be trying out.  A team is out of my reach, but I'm fairly confident I'll get a spot on the B team roster.  I love away games.

Monday

As I said in my facebook status this morning, GAAAAAAAAAAAAAH MY LEGS.

It was (relatively) nice out yesterday afternoon, so when I got home from practice I hung my pads outside on the line to air out.  Cut to this morning, when Roy reminds me that I left them outside all night and it rained.  Oops!  I stuck them on the clothesline in the basement with the fan on HIGH pointed at them.  I figure if they're not dry by the time I get home from work I'll put 'em in the dryer on no heat and see how they do.

If all goes well, I should be getting my package from Sin City Skates today.  New helmet, new cushions for my trucks and new wrist guards.  I have to see if the chick who painted the crown on my previous helmet can do it again or not. :)

Former Fearless Leader had ordered a bunch of recaps from the knee pad company, but they sent her the wrong ones, so she gave a set to me.  So now I have recaps.  Yay!  They are very slick, which is nice for the "drop down on one knee and pop up real quick" drills we had to do yesterday.  I'm sure in a matter of time they'll roughen up and I'll be back to TRUDGE TRUDGE GUH again.

Anyway, after the Death Paces portion of practice, we did some skating drills, one of which involved snaking through a paceline, which we haven't done in, like, forever.  It brought back memories of when we used to have to skate in this rec center about 45 minutes out of town and it was unheated so I'd wear my leather trenchcoat during the warmup.  Anyway, there were about 30 people at practice yesterday so the paceline was almost as long as the entire track.