Wrecked Skates

This week, I spent some time working one-on-one with Jammers.  Unfortunately, pack strategy is encompassed in the vast majority of many training programs. Therefore, there are some basic Jammer strategies that are often overlooked.

There are several basic rules that I like to teach to Jammers. However, I am only going to hit on two of them today: “Be Wiggly” and “Be Versatile”. The biggest issue facing most new Jammers is that they “telegraph” their intentions. On any given scoring pass, they may be doing an excellent job of seeing the gaps when are about 15’ away from them. But what happens is they tend to skate straight towards that gap. This means that the pack skaters can tell where the Jammer intends to go a full 15’ before the Jammer makes it there. This gives the Blockers plenty of time to adjust and then, VOILA!, the Jammer is easily engaged and taken out of the play.

Here is a little playback of what goes on in your Opposing Blocker’s inner monologue when the above scenario is happening: “Here comes the Jammer, skating straight for the gap towards the outside.  I am correcting and closing that gap.  Awesome, the Jammer skated right into me and stood up. Now, I hit her in the chest.  Gee, thanks Jammer for setting yourself up to get hit in the chest.”  Blockers are evil!

The good news is that these newer Jammers are doing a great job of finding the open areas on the track prior to entering the pack. This is much preferred over hitting the back of the pack with no plan. But from here, you want to start training yourself into tricking the Opposing Blockers into KEEPING that area open. So, while you (the Jammer) may allow yourself to commit to an open lane mentally, your next step should be trying to make sure the Opposing Blockers don’t know what you committed too.

Here is where that first rule works its way in: “Be Wiggly”.  If you don’t want to telegraph your intentions to opposing skaters, you need to be able to move around. Keep them guessing about where you are going. Remember that if you are telegraphing your intentions, you aren’t really moving around, you are just skating straight for an opening.  A quick example is just a quick one-two move.  Let’s say you plan on passing the Opposing Blocker on the right:  As you approach the Blocker, don’t skate directly for that spot.  Instead, skate straight towards the Blocker and actually a little to her left to get her head turned that direction.  Just before you hit the Blocker, quickly lean left as though you were going to pass on the left (Move #1) to get the Blocker to commit this direction. Then, quickly juke to the right (Move #2) and hustle through your pass on that side.

This may seem like a simple idea, and it really is.  However, you are doing two very important things here. First, you are no longer making your intentions known 15’ before you actually do them.  This will increase the chances that the gap you were going to sneak through will still be open. Second, you are moving around as you pass, which makes you a much more difficult target to block or hit.

Moving beyond a simple one-two juke move, I want to hit on the second rule I mentioned: “Be Versatile”.  Specifically for this case, I am discussing the art of not doing the same thing every single time. If you consistently take the outside line every time you pass, players will pick up on that. If you attempt to draft on the other Jammer each time that you go into the pack, people will adjust their strategies just for you. Every skater will have certain moves which they feel make them a stronger skater; this is only natural.  However, you will still need to be proficient in other moves to adjust for different situations. Even better, you can keep your attacks mixed up so that the opposing players never really know what to expect and therefore can’t make adjustments.

So, if you are just starting to jam or if you have been jamming for years and are sick of feeling like an easy target, quit making yourself an easy target! Jammers skating in straight lines and doing the same move every time are easy targets for almost any Blocker. Keep those feet churning, keep that body moving and keep those blockers guessing!

A few of you may have noticed this phrase floating around in my e-mail signature lately.  Some of you may have even heard me say it directly to you.  And because some of you have asked what the hell I’m talking about, I thought I would take a minute to explain.

Several years ago, we played an away game and picked up the pet name “bitch face” for each other.  This phrase has spent the past several years evolving its meaning to be that, in the roller derby world, we often will lovingly refer to each other using derogatory phrases.  It’s awkward to see it written that way; having “lovingly” and “derogatory” being placed side by side. It even struck me a few months ago that it is weird to use that phrase with that meaning behind it. In fact, it is beyond weird, it’s just kind of dumb.

I am not going to claim that I was innocent.  It was what we were all doing; it was the way things were and honestly the way things still are for many of us.  We all want to be part of what is going on and feel like we belong, and if this was the custom of the group, we would probably all follow.  It’s obviously not the language itself of which I am not fond; hell, I cuss as much as anybody else (sorry, Mom). And this trend isn’t just something found in ICTRG. A recent article posted on APnews.com discusses how using these derogatory “love” phrases is becoming less offensive these days. You can view this article here: http://m.apnews.com/ap/db_6775/contentdetail.htm?contentguid=oUWV3Jjo

Here is where my issue lies: Using a phrase like “bitch face” doesn’t represent how I feel about you. I can honestly say that about everyone that I know in the derby world. The truth is, we spend so much time together as a derby family that we really do start functioning like a family. All the good and bad things associated with being a family are present, both smiles and tears. The bottom line is that we are almost all here for the same fundamental reason: love.  We love this game and we love our derby family.  This love and passion has gotten into our bloodstream and we can’t get it out.  We all come here with love, but then inadvertently tear each other down as soon as we greet one another with “Hey there, bitch face!” This action really doesn’t make a whole lot of sense.

So, I know a bunch of you are saying, “Hey, Dude, you’re a huge smart ass.  How can you sit there and tell us not to tear each other down?” Yes, you are right, I am a huge smartass and I do often needle at people for a joke. Honestly, it’s a tough habit to break. To find another way to make people smile is not easy, but, I am working on it. If you haven’t heard my ever growing arsenal of bad jokes, it’s getting pretty badass.  So if you need a good laugh and groan at the same time or wanna make me smile, find a bad joke.  But really, the key here is that we are trying to trigger away from a smart ass derogatory greeting over to a “normal” greeting and good chuckle.

This was actually one of the origins of “Hugs, not hits.”  I didn’t want to continue with a conversation that would keep going down a smart ass track.  So, I just said “Hugs, not hits”, got a hug from a good friend, and nothing was lost.  Isn’t that what we were really trying to do? Make each other smile? The simple contact of an authentic hug or a pat on the back is amazingly powerful.  We spend so long beating up on each other on the track, it’s a good bet that we need to spend some time embracing each other off the track in a positive way.

Cheese and rice, I’m such a freakin’ hippy sometimes, right?  Yeah, I am.  But I would absolutely rather be thought of as bringing smiles and love than just referring to all my closest friends as “bitch faces”.  I know that most of us would.  We can’t continue greeting each other by tearing each other down.  We have to begin greeting each other with love and building things together.  So when you find yourself about to great members of your derby family, remember how your heart is in love with the same thing that they love.  That is a beautiful thing and more than likely so is the person with whom you share it.

Years ago, a friend of mine had a conversation with Coach Ice from the Kansas City Roller Warriors (KCRW). With KCRW being one of the best roller derby leagues of our region for years now, no opportunity to ask questions and take advice from their coaching staff should be ignored. Of all the things that he brought back, one statement has stuck with me, “Learn to skate”. This idea has been a fundamental building block for my trainings over the past few years.

Another former coach, that I had the pleasure of working with for several years, expounded upon this idea with a simple consistent statement, “Crawl. Walk. Run.” In everything we learn, there is always a natural progression which, when followed, will actually help us master the skill. I want to emphasize that phrase: “master the skill.” I am not talking about just being good at something; I am talking about mastering it. Every time you do it, you own that shit. Every time…without fail.

All of this is completely applicable to training skaters for roller derby. Crawl. Walk. Run. Just like Coach Ice said, “Learn to skate.” That is our crawl. It is boring. It is tedious. It is NOT PLAYING roller derby. There is the safety aspect of learning to skate before playing the game, which includes the minimum skills test. Safety is always key; however, I don’t want to fall back on that as to my reasoning for learning to skate first. Let’s look at an example to illustrate my point.

Executing a simple Frontal Block.  This is one of the most used and fundamental blocks used in roller derby.  The reason that I highlight this move is due to the form and skills required to do it well.  How long can you hold that Frontal Block posture and remain stable?  Are you able to hold this posture while quickly turning your head and scanning?  Are you able to very quickly cut left or right to keep in front of another skater?  All of these things are basic skating skills.  Posture, balance, strength, vision, and quickness.  If you are struggling with this skill, you will quickly become the weak link in a defensive wall.  This is a prime example of being unable to progress as a derby skater without mastering basic skating skills.

That being said, let’s learn to crawl.  For derby skaters, learning to crawl should mean learning the theoretical game.  For example: learning why a Push Block is often more effective than a massive Shoulder Check.  Or, learning why you need to call the jam when the opposing jammer is 20 feet behind you rather than pushing for all 4 points.  Even, learning why sometimes you need to speed up, and sometimes you need to slow down.  If you are reading this and are confused as to the “why” on any of these, understand further that there are probably 10 different reasons for each.

In order to understand these things, you need to watch derby, and watch it closely.  Equally as important, I advise that you watch footage of yourself if you play derby.  Derby skaters need to get past patting themselves on the back for knocking down an opposing blocker, especially if that massive hit also took them out of the pack, which then makes that skater became a free point for the opposing jammer.  Though there was a nice hit, overall it was a dumb play.  Get past the pride of juking past three opposing blockers for the 4 full points and realize that the opposing jammer also scored 4 points.  Nice moves, but a zero point differential doesn’t win games.

The next step is to take jogging and turn it into a run.  Put all of what has been learned together.  Strategies can’t be executed if the skaters cannot skate the maneuvers. The game cannot be mastered if the strategies aren’t understood.  And how can a person hope to truly understand the strategies if they don’t possess the skating skills required to execute them? So, the question that you need to ask yourself is, “Did I skip a step?”  The best athletes never stop working on the basics.  They also never stop looking at themselves for ways to improve.

Are you one of those skaters that has been skating for four years, but your lateral jumps are still stinky?  Maybe you’ve been skating for years and can’t do anything but put on big hits.  Where are you missing steps?  Always work on solidifying your skating skills and technique.  Always look at the way you are actually playing the game and seek to understand why you are struggling with certain aspects.  Keep getting hit in the chest? Keeping getting caught as the goat?  Keep finding yourself in the Penalty Box? For all of these things, you should probably take a look at what YOU are doing that is putting you in that situation.

If you are a new skater getting started, understand that it is much easier to learn this game if you have the fundamentals in place first. First, learn to skate. Second, learn the game. Third, play the game. We are all eager to play this game, and you will get there. But the second step won’t take hold if you don’t have a good first step. The more you skate, the faster you can crawl. The more derby you study, the faster you can walk. The more derby you play, the faster you can run.  But you can’t run before you crawl.

Additional personal thought for the day: No matter how annoying that aching pain in your hip is, you are still doing better than Peter Weller from the opening scene of Robocop.

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!   Just thought I would add a few more exclamation marks  !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

As many of you know, I have tried in the past to convince people of the overwhelming benefits of a hockey helmet compared to that of a standard “skate” helmet.  However, I was only marginally successful as the overwhelming majority of my customers were not convinced.  Well, based on some recent information provided to me, the protection difference between even the “best” skate helmet and a certified hockey helmet is far more than I had previously believed.  Therefore, as of this upcoming weekend I WILL NO LONGER SELL SKATE HELMETS WHICH DO NOT MEET THE SAME SAFETY RATINGS AS A HOCKEY HELMET.  So, if you want to buy something which doesn’t protect your brain half as well as a helmet intended for a contact sport, either buy it from me right now or go somewhere else.   But I’m not through… I will also be removing several other pieces of “protective equipment” which I am not entirely fond of.

Many people will believe that I am imposing my own personal agenda onto my customers.  I’m not even going to try to argue with anyone about it,  I don’t believe in these products, and I won’t sell them to you.  End of story.  As always, I will keep my prices as absolutely low as I can for my sponsored leagues, but there will still be a cost impact.  However, a little money is a small price to pay for equipment which will last longer and protect your brain better.  You’ve only got one brain, take care of it on the track!

Are you as excited as I am!!!?!???!! Probably not, because I just went pee a little bit thinking about it.  Its coming soon… very soon…

Actually, its here, I’m just keeping a tight fist around who can actually access things.  However, if you want to get started, you can goto the “stuff for sale” section and follow the link, or click here.

Let me know what isn’t working or what else you would like to see.  Slowly growing into the digital age here, so be patient!!!