T is for Teammates

Before joining my roller derby team last year, I had never played a team sport. I'd never played any sport, actually. I started running in my late 20's and that was the most athletic I'd ever been. I joined the team for several reasons but mostly to enrich my life and give myself something to strive for that wasn't job related. In just a few months, these ladies became more important to me than I ever could have imagined. In case you wouldn't have guessed, roller derby is pretty tough. I knew I could do it, but I was in my 30's when I joined and had never roller skated before. I was "behind the curve" a bit. It took me longer to pass the skills test than most other girls and I was really hard on myself. Without the support from my teammates (both physical and emotional), I might not have stuck it out. I know it may be hard to believe since we all hit each other on a regular basis, but there's not a single lady on this team who hasn't shown me kindness. There's a pretty wide range of personality types and lifestyles but when we come together with our skates on, we blend together pretty darn well. When we practice we knock each other down and yell at each other but we also cheer each other on. I've never experienced anything like it. I truly love these women and my life is better because of the things I've learned from skating with them.

This photo was taken on a morning in March when it was about 27 degrees out! One of our teammates is a photographer (Bellissimo Photography) and toughed it out with us to get some awesome shots for our promotional material. 

*I know I only referred to ladies in this post,  so I want to clarify: we do have three male referees on our team and they are stellar guys!