Brighton Rockers Fresh Meat - #1 Got Glutes?
To answer my own question, no, I do not have glutes. Well, not by roller derby standards anyway. A sport unknown to me until I was bought a ticket to watch the Brighton Rockers take on Leeds Roller Dolls back in September 2013, roller derby is seriously reshaping my life. And in the best ways possible.
It was love at first sight. When the final whistle blew at that fateful bout, I was hooked. A few days later, I had invested in some Riedell R3 skates. Problem was, I had never worn wheels on my feet before, not even as a fearless child. But this is just one of the ways roller derby is reshaping my life. After receiving my skates in what can only be described as the most memorable postman moment ever (and I didn't even have to invite him in!) I put them on in the comfort of my armchair and said, loud and proud: "you WILL be a swell skater". And so the personal challenges - mental and physical - began.
Many weekly skate lessons, roller discos and free skates later, I am happy to report that I reached my first goal: progress from Bambi on ice skating ability to casually comfortable on wheels skating ability before the Brighton Rockers Fresh Meat intake. I am currently 4 weeks into the Fresh Meat course and it's fun, tough and challenging. One thing that is emphasised in this course is that everyone learns at different paces, but with a pinch of dedication and a positive attitude, everyone can succeed, and you'll sure notice the benefits.
Throughout the remaining weeks of the Brighton Rockers Fresh Meat course I'll be blogging about the mental and physical challenges of building the minimal skill set required to pass Fresh Meat, and how the sheer enthusiasm and friendliness of the league makes this the best personal challenge I have ever set myself. One of my current weaknesses is not getting the proper derby stance and form down. This is partly due to my current glutes rating: Gluteus Minimus. Homework: SQUATS!
RAWK!
