Hey everyone, I know it has been a while since I've blogged, but life has been busy!

    As you may know, the whole college soccer thing ended up working out and i was able to have a second chance at pursuing my dream of playing soccer at a higher level. I was so incredibly lucky to be given the opportunity to pursue soccer again after two knee surgeries. It was such an amazing time, and i wouldnt have traded it for the world. Eventhough it meant putting roller derby on hold. I missed roller derby more than you can imagine, but soccer was always my first love and you have to jump on opportunities when they are presented, because you never know if they will happen again. And personally i didnt want to be wondering "What if?".

    Now that my last year of college soccer has come to an end (sad face), I am happy to say that roller derby has once again become the priority! A group of some of the provinces most talented skaters congregated at the Oil City Grindhouse this weekend in Edmonton for the Skatemare Before Christmas #5. I have to admit, after not skating since August I was pretty scared that I would strap on my skates and hit the floor in record time. After almost face planting into the garbage can in the changeroom (which no one saw thankfully), I felt comfortable again. It was great to see such amazing talent come out in the rookie game, and the support from their teammates as well. I know as a rookie you are just in love with the sport, everything about it. And to have the support of your teammates and the veterans on your team really means alot and pushes you to be the best you can be. I was skating in the intermediate game and was intimidated by a few big names skating alongside me.

    The amazing thing about roller derby is you seem to just get lost in the game and nothing else matters. You forget about the hundreds of people watching, your nerves are gone, and your focus shifts to your teammates and pushing yourself. The score of the game did not reflect the play at all, and i felt privelleged to be able to skate with some of those ladies, and meet new friends along the way! We then got to watch some of Alberta's (and Canada's) best play in the All-star game. It is amazing how much you can learn just from watching them skate. Its flawless. Maybe its just me, but i felt grateful to be able to skate alongside and chat with members of the team that will be representing our entire country this weekend in Toronto.
    Canada as a roller derby community is extremely lucky to have such great skaters represent us. I know I will be pushing myself to be able to try out for the next Team Canada, whether it is in the cards or not, i would love the opportunity. Until then, those of us that are stuck here will be huddling around our computers and televisions to watch these ladies kick some ass, and i wish them all the best. 

     So as many of you know, i have taken a break from roller derby to try my luck at getting back on the college soccer team. What alot of my derby friends dont know is what my life was like before derby. So i figured i would take the time to explain who i used to be, with the hop that it will help you understand the person i am now.

     Since age 5, all ive known is soccer. Indoor and outdoor every year. Medals and trophies accumulated in my room as a child. Its like i was born to play. As i got older, close friends started to not play anymore, said they just didnt like it anymore. Well for me, soccer wasnt just a sport, it was a way of life. I got to travel all over the country playing and having the time of my life. When i was in my senior year of high school (2007) I happened to play a great game, probably one of the best of my soccer career. As fate would have it, the top player on the other team happened to be the daughter of a scout for the Grande Prairie Regional College soccer team. He made a phone call at halftime and by the end of the game i had been invited to play on the college soccer team. This had always been a dream of mine. Eventhough it was too late to get into the nursing program, they helped me get into classes that would allow me to be accepted into the program the following year. The college season was amazing. Although i didnt play every game, as a 1st year player that is to be expected. I had a blast playing with some of the most talented players in the province. Then i got even better news. I had been offered the chance to represent Canada in a tournament in Czech Republic in the summer of 2008. We travelled to Germany, Austria, Hungary, and Czech Republic. I can easily say it was the best time of my life. I really felt like i could make a career out of playing the game i loved so much. I was also chosen as player of the game in a match against the top team in Prague, it was icing on the cake. I felt like i had learned so much and was ready to come back to my second season for the college team.

     During pre-season training, i blew out my knee in a goalie drill and eventhough i tried to play through the pain, i wouldnt be able to play at the standard set for college athletes. My world as i knew it, was crushed. Who would i be if i wasnt a soccer player? Its all i had ever known. Later that year i had my first knee surgery to attempt to fix it so i could play again. The surgery was unsuccessful and actually did some extra damage that left me with no feeling in the skin of my right knee. This sent me into a downward spiral and a dark time in my life. I know it sounds like such a superficial problem compared to the issues some people have, however it was a huge loss of something that was incredibly important to me and who i was as a person. A year went by and my knee seemed to be getting worse. I gained about 30lbs and was a completely different person. I didnt really know how to function without a team.

     In the summer of 2010 i had a friend from Newfoundland (Rainbow Fight) come out to Edmonton for a roller derby bootcamp. At the time io had no idea what roller derby was but she encouraged me to come watch her play in one of her games. Within 10 minutes of watching, i was hooked. I knew this sport would pick up my pieces and put them back together. It would probably also break those pieces at one point or another but that didnt matter, i wanted in. Now because my knee was still not that great, i had to take it easy. I knew i had another surgery booked in the following spring but i needed something to keep me sane. Roller derby was my saviour. I met girls that would become closer than my family, and i fell in love with the sport. Fast forward to after my knee surgery in June 2011 and my knee is all healed up. After 2 years of contsant pain, i was on track to being the athlete i used to be. I had become a better roller derby player than i had ever expected to be, thanks to the coaching of some of the most amazing women i know. 

        Then, i get an interesting message from someone i used to play on the college team with. She asked how my knee was and if i wanted the opplrtunity to try out for the team again. UMM.. HELL YEAH!!! So with a grin on my face and butterflies in my stomach, i accept and prepare myself to move back to GP early. As i thought about it more and more, i realized that not only did i have to give up roller derby, but how would i deal with things if my knee wasnt up to playing soccer again. Was i willing to put myself through that? So i sought out the advice of my family, and by family i mean my team and some close friends in other leagues. They all said the same thing, Go for it, you'll be great. True friends. I am so blessed to have them in my life. So, with a few days notice, i packed up my life and said goodbye to my friends in the hopes of getting back what i had lost 2 years ago. It starts today. I plan on giving it everything ive got, because second chances rarely ever come around and i plan on making the absolute most of the one ive been given.
So this is where i dust off the old jersey,

-T-Frecks 

Hello blog universe!

So ive decided to start a blog. Its going to be raw, its going to have horrible punctuation, and it may not even have full sentences. There have been a few people that have inspired me to start blogging, alot of whom are derby girls, because hey, derby girls are f*cking rockstars.

So, i suppose as a first post, i should talk about the sport that saved my life. No really.. it did. Those of you who know my past know that finding roller derby changed my life. Its the only sport I have ever found where you can be tall, short, fat, skinny, black, brown, purple, and your team will still love you. Unless you are a total douche..

When you join roller derby, you arent just joining a team, youre joining a family. And not just any family, a mafia type group of girls that are only one call away if you need help rolling up a body in a rug. These girls smash bitches with you on the track and would back you up off that track as well. They hold up your hair while youre puking your face off at the afterparty, and save you from going home with someone when the ugly lights come on in the bar when you inevitably shut it down at the afterparty. Your new family isnt confined to just your team either. You find that after playing bouts, you make new friends instantly with girls in other leagues, no matter what age. 

I have played sports since the age of 5, and never in my life have i felt as welcome in a group of girls as i have with roller derby. Yes, there are going to be assholes, but on the plus side, you can knock them on their ass and hey, its practice! Roller derby seems to be its own culture, and if you have ever been to Rollercon, you will agree with me on this one. Walking down the vegas strip with a bunch of tough looking, tattooed girls, people just know you play roller derby, and you are respected. I encourage everyone to go out and give roller derby a try, but know this, you will make an ass of yourself atleast once. You will laugh, you will cry, you will yell at someone (probably a zebra), you may puke the first time you try your 25 in 5, you may break bones (on or off the track) and you may hate yourself the day after an afterparty,but you will feel at home and you will love every minute of it.

Until next time,
Peace, Love, and Roller Derby

T-Frecks <3