Anonymous asked: Re: the shoulder support, I dislocated my shoulder back in July, then had surgery in October. In the interim (still playing derby, of course), I found the Bauerfeind Omotrain shoulder support. LOVED it. It was much less obstructive than other braces appeared to be and was super supportive. Of course, it's going to matter what kind of support you need, but I loved it. Supportsusa has good info on it.

Awesome, thank you for the info!! My shoulder’s feeling somewhat better, but I might invest in the support anyway.

(via Can you finish a #LincecumSpecial at In-N-Out Burger?on Twitpic)

Three Double-Doubles, two orders of fries, and a chocolate-strawberry milkshake. 3,100 calories in one go. This is how scrawny Tim Lincecum beefed up (literally) in the ‘11 offseason.

I would be lying if I said I hadn’t considered it.

Awesome. Go buy it from Skate-Ink.com!

Back in season! That means twice a week I’m getting up at 6:30 for a 7 am workout, Mondays and Fridays.

Of course as I’m making breakfast and having tea and checking the internets before working out, I’m like, why do I not always get up at 6:30?

Because I really, really love sleeping.

Also, it’s pouring rain outside, and I had to make my bed while it was still warm. And yesterday I went out in the rain during the NFC Championship game to go get KT Tape because I can’t skate without it. (I made it home in the third quarter.)

The things we do for derby!

I AM NOT A COACH OR A TRAINER.

You are welcome to ask me questions, but the best person to ask is always going to be the person who can see what you are doing and give you the advice (and encouragement!) you need in person.

Do not be embarrassed, do not be scared, do not be nervous to ask for help. Your coaches are there to help you become a better skater. Asking for help is not a weakness, especially in derby, especially when you’re new. It’s how you learn, and it’s how the coaches learn that you’re serious about wanting to improve.

Practice is the time to mess up, to fall, to keep working on that nagging little thing. Bounce back up and try again. There is no shame in falling, that is why we have protective gear.

Someone somewhere (I’m sure I have it in my Tumblr likes somewhere) said, “I don’t practice until I get it right, I practice until I *don’t get it wrong*.”

I know that I am super-shy and nervous and I hate admitting that I suck at some skill or the other, but I do. Everyone has their weak points, and those are the things you have to work harder on and ask for help when you need it.

Anonymous asked: Can you give me some tips to stop flailing on tstops? I find that I feel like I have to put my arms out to balance myself while stoping. Also, I can't figure out the baseball slide. My legs just don't want to go into the 4. Am I supposed to slide on my hip, or on the back of my legs?

So… you guys all realize that I’m totally not a trainer or a coach, right? I like answering questions, but I really don’t know all the answers, especially when it comes to technique-y stuff.

Please please please don’t be afraid to ask your coaches or your trainers for help, because they can see what you’re actually doing and give you pointers in person.

I would say just keep practicing for t-stops — you’ll find that you have one side that’s stronger than the other (for me it’s right-foot-back). It’s one of those skills that is hard to stick at first, but then you figure out the little things that make it work. Your coaches will help you!

For the baseball slide, man, I have not done one in a long time (but will probably be doing them tomorrow!), but again, you’ll probably find you have one leg that goes down into the knee faster (mine is my left), and then you basically sit with one knee tucked under you and the other leg straight out. (I just got down on the carpet and practiced.)

I would not slide on the hip or on the back of your legs, that is a good way to get a nasty friction burn. It’s more of a knee-slide-into-a-sit, then you pop up quickly.

lady-hellraiser asked: No matter how many times I attempt to do it... I really can't derby stop or skate with a running start. Any tips, apart from gritting my teeth together and expecting another fall?

When you say “derby stop”, do you mean a…

t-stop?

plow stop?

turnaround toe stop?

hockey stop?

I’m still terrible at the turnaround toe stop and the hockey stop; those aren’t on WFTDA Minimum Skills but are still really vital to playing derby.

For a running start, are you running on your toe stops or have you tried the duck walk/run?

If you’re trying to run on your toe stops, you may have your toe stops up too high — you want to have them mounted low enough so that when you’re on your toes, you can fit about two to three fingers between the bottom of your back wheels and the ground. Think about running in 2-3” heels, not en pointe.

Also, you might have really slippery or really small toe stops. Get ‘em as big as you can get so you have more surface area to run on.

With the duck walk, you can start slowly (toes pointed out, picking up your feet, not rolling) and build up to speed. Ditto for the toe stop run — you can start slow and work your way up once you feel more confident moving around on your toe stops.

blessthismessinsidemysoul asked: Hi I'm getting into derby and i can't skate, lame i know but can i skate in my house and learn that way? I have tile flooring

You can, but be very, very careful — I nearly brained myself slipping in the kitchen (I slipped backwards and could have hit the back of my head on my kitchen counter, and because I was inside, obviously I wasn’t wearing my helmet).

We often say “wear your skates around the house to break them in and get used to them”, but that’s more about getting used to the weight of skates on your feet and breaking the leather in. You’ll really need more open space.

I would say it’s better to learn to skate in a parking lot — do you know of any office buildings that close down on the weekends? Or a school parking lot? Any parking lot where there’s not a lot of cars. (Wear all your safety gear!)

…a shoulder wrap/brace that they like? (mylifeintraffic, I’m looking at you!)

I fell on my left shoulder back in October and it’s still a little bit tweaky (I went for a hit, my feet went out from under me, I pinned my left arm under myself, and then I got sent to the box for a low block to add insult to injury).

I’ll probably just end up KT-taping it, but I’m curious all the same.

mariatatuada asked: Fuuuuu, I meant to ask you, in that same Ask, which derby Tumblrs you find worthy of following. Sorry...I'm quite forgetful. :)

For photos/inspiration/funnies/news etc. -

- whatwouldsuzyhotroddo

- levarhurtin (B.ay A.rea D.erby Girls league photographer)

- nocklebeast (also a B.ay A.rea D.erby Girls photographer; his home league is Santa Cruz)

- skateinspired

- freshmeatotter and fuckyeahrollerderbyotter

- wftda

- psychobabbleiswatchingyou