And Then Some

10 min warm up
Stretch
4x 6 Divebomb push ups
4x 6 45 degree Burpee
4x 25 meter lunges
4x 6 squat to overhead press
4x 6 pull ups (lat pulls if you can't do pull ups)
4x 15 floor bridges
4x 15 superman
5 min cool down
Stretch

I have recently been listening to a lot of Ani DiFranco, possibly because of her unbelievably straight forward delivery or her overt way of speaking her mind. I am not exactly sure but I imagine if she ever decided to don a pair of skates rather than an acoustic guitar she would be more than a handful to deal with in a pack. Her song 32 flavors sums up almost perfectly many of the women that, to me, epitomize my definition of the broad term "roller girls". These women are multi-faceted, intriguing, strong, stubborn, sensitive, caring, generally intelligent, fun loving, occasionally nasty, and entirely individual by and large. Working with roller girls has been an experience all it's own. I have learned the following three pieces of information that I will share here for any other people who share my outside perspective and are looking for some insight.

1. Lipstick, lip gloss, and eye make-up are almost as important as skates themselves and certainly more important than clip boards, stretching, or any other track side accessory. After all, what good is doing an amazing job if you aren't going to look amazing doing it?

2. Women, roller girls included, are far more disgusting in their behavior, specifically in the locker room, than any males that I have had the honor of spending time with. I believe that this is because women are completely open about everything and I do mean everything. Women will go into grotesque detail over anything that may be going on, whereas men may let some things go unsaid with an understanding nod or grunt. After awhile, you hardly even notice what gets said and the shock value wears off, but initially it was quite a learning curve!

3. Women are much better at executing a strategy, a play, or any other fundamental process than their male counter parts. Guys have to add their own style to everything, more often than not to their own detriment and that of the integrity of the teams play. Girls, on the other hand, will go out and play exactly as they have planned. In some sports, I believe this makes women a little less exciting to watch but in roller derby it is what makes the game incredible. A good team (and their are many) can go out and run a game plan to the nth degree, working as a single unit and demolishing any competition in their way. Trust me when I say that women work together a whole lot better this way than men.

These are a few very generalized statements that I have found to be true more often than not. I could be wrong but these certainly have held valuable lessons for me, though I am no closer to understanding women than any other man could ever be. Being a man, I wouldn't admit if I was wrong anyway. I just hope that these women keep being amazing and then some!

Enjoy!

J