STATION TO STATION!

Here are the essentials for each of the Fresh Meat testing stations.  If you have any questions about any of the stations, please comment here or email us.


JUMPS & FALLS
For falls remember: quick recovery, standing without using your hands (use your core!) and keep your arms and legs tucked in (no flailing or chicken arms).

• Single knee fall (both legs) (engage your core to stay stable)
• Double knee fall (A soft 'tap, tap' fall. ie. don't jump into it, slide into it!)
• Baseball slide (Stomach touches ground, hands tucked into fists (no fingers!))
• Single knee fall with a turn (Turns a full 180.  Then stands, turns in same direction, and resumes skating)
• Hopping & coasting (land on both feet during hopping, stay strong and stable)
• Jumping (start and finish with feet together, land on toes first, then heels - to help with stability and shock absorption)

PACK WORK
For pack work remember: communicate verbally and with body language, be a safe skater (no tripping or grabbing other skaters), and look around you - be aware on the track.

• Stopping as a pack
• Leaning 
• Clipping wheels
• Avoiding obstacles

BLOCKING
For blocking remember: safety first always!  Only give what you can take.  Stance - nice and low.  Follow through with your blocks.

• Booty blocking (think about your close proximity and peripheral vision)
• Hip checks (both sides, giving and receiving) (remember to use your 'gate stance' and find the 'sweet spot')
• Body checks (both sides, giving and receiving) (think about following through your block)
• Repeated contacted (the 'mouldy sandwich') (practise that solid stance and good recovery)

WHIPS & PUSHES
For whips and pushes remember: whips and pushes are about transferring power from one skater to another.  You need to be able to commit to your team-mate, even if that means stopping entirely.

• Pushing (giving and receiving) (coming in close, and then pushing out without unbalancing your team-mate or yourself)
• Hip whip (giving and receiving) (coming in close, taking your team-mates force, and then taking their spot on the track)
• Outside whip (giving and receiving) (use your whole body)
• Inside whip (giving) (remember to make a hole for your team-mate on the inside line, and then close the gap after them)

ENDURANCE
25 in 5!

BLOCKING 101

This silly cookie (or vegie, I suppose?) has forgotten her training notebook once again!  We do try to take lots and lots of notes during training so that we can give you all the details of what goes down at Fresh Meat training and I'll edit in those details once I retrieve my training notebook.  But for now... here are the essentials of Blocking 101!

Our trainers for Blocking 101 were Vaderella, Marshall Stacks, GoGo Fiasco and Blow Up Betty.

Offskates
We started training with some off skates blocking with a partner.  This included hip checks, booty blocking and body checks.

Hip checks
Things to remember include: stance (low and locked, with arms loose and relaxed), feet (in gait position) and finding that sweet spot!  Breathe!  Tenderise both sides equally.  And don't forget that recovery stance: stay low and reform that nice, strong derby stance as quickly as possible.

Booty blocking
Booty blocking - or 'positional blocking' - can be used to shepherd your opponent and, ultimately, take away her speed (as Vader says, "your arse is a sheep dog", so herd your opponent to where you want her to go!)  Keep your stance low with your butt out, and get used to those lateral butt movements (they look and feel weird, but are so effective!  Use your peripheral vision to keep an eye on your opponent - get comfortable looking around and knowing where she's going and where you're taking her.  Get close!  It is your close proximity that will direct her and take away her power - if you're a metre away your booty will have nothing to block!  We hope you've been practising your 'dirty toilet' hovering to build up those powerful legs and get you used to that low butt-out stance!

Body checks
Recently, ADRD has decided to replace shoulder checks with body checks.  Why?  Because they are more powerful and do less damage to you and your opponent.  Everybody wins!  Once again, remember your low derby stance and block horizontally (rather than diagonally) - it will help you to retain your stability and force.  What are those elbows doing?  Make sure they're out of the way!  Use 'hula arms' if it is most comfortable or effective for you.  Feel comfortable rotating your body and hitting with your 'bra fat' area (ie. back of shoulder / side of body) rather than the pointy end of your shoulder.  Then follow through, or block through your opponent.  It's kind of like kicking a ball - your leg doesn't stop once it reaches the ball, it follows through to reinforce where the ball is going.  Similarly, don't stop as soon as your body touches your opponent - block beyond the contact, and follow through to move her where you want her to go.  And always remember your recovery!  Reset your stance so that you can re-engage after the initial hit.  If you're standing up straight when you finish your block, you are a sitting (or standing) target for another blocker.  Stay low and stable!

Final words:
Know your limits - only give what you know you can take.  Don't be a dangerous blocker!  It is much more effective to block within your limits and stay stable and engaged, than to wipe out your opponent and fall down in the process!  We are all about safety, so if you give a block in an unsafe way (whether it be intentional or not) you will most likely be sent to the box or, worse, expelled from the game.

Lastly, if you'd like a refresher on those legal blocking zones, check out the WFTDA (Womens Flat Track Derby Association) rules:

More information here:

WFTDA Rules - Section 5 (blocking)

FRESH MEAT WEEK 2

Put on your red 'energy dome' hats and get ready to whip it, whip it good!

Last Thursday our skaters pushed and whipped their way through training with the masters of whips, Melvin Star and GoGo Fiasco, and the princesses of pushes, Moe Skeeto and Bride of Skatan.

PUSHES
Pushes are a really good way to send a blocker or jammer through or ahead of the pack.  Furthermore, they can be used to extend a block by pushing a team mate diagonally into an opposing blocker or jammer.  Here are some of the points Moe and Skato discussed:

Straight pushing:
+ Make sure you push your partner from her hips - a push too high or too low will inhibit her skating rather than assist it.
+ Remember that derby stance we keep writing about?  Yep, it's still important!  You both need to stay stable so make sure you're down low and you keep your knees bent.
+ Also remember that 'communication' thing we keep rattling on about?  You guessed it!  A gentle touch before the push will tell your partner that you're there and remind her to be ready for you.
+ Bring yourself in nice and close before pushing and then extend out through your arms - it will give you the maximum power transfer through your body and arms.
+ If you're being pushed, try to go straight into your cross-overs to power out of the push to make the most of the gift you're being given.

Sideways/diagonal pushing:
+ This is mostly used to extend your blocking length, or to help clear a path for your jammer.
+ It's up to you as to whether you keep your hands together on your partners hip, or spread them across her hip and upper arm, so long as you balance your weight across your hands so that you don't push too high or too low.


WHIPPING
Like pushing, whipping is a great way to help a jammer or blocker gain speed and get through the pack.  It can also be used to get a team mate in front of another skater.

Hip whips:
Hip whips can be used to get yourself around a team mate, as well as increase speed.
+ Touch first to let your team mate know you're there, then pull yourself around.
+ Don't pull your team mate down - instead, pull them straight toward you.
+ Like with pushing, come in close first in order to increase your power.
+ Don't be afraid to use some fore
+ Make sure you communicate what you are intending to do!

Outside arm whips:
+ You must feel confident giving each other your full weight
+ It's not about how big or small you are, but about using your core and your whole body to transfer energy
+ As the whipper, make sure you follow right through the whip (ie. don't stop half way) to give your whipee the option of where to let go
+ Think about: counter balance, stable feet and strong core
+ Use your hockey stop to transfer all your possible energy to your whipee - it's okay if you stop entirely
+ Remember to use closed fists (ie. not locking fingers)
+ Communicate!  Use your eyes and your voice to let your partner know what to expect, and when
+ Don't just move from the shoulder.  As GoGo says 'the arm is like the handle, but it is the body that gives the power'.
+ A whip will be most useful when going into or coming out of an apex

Inside arm whips:
Inside arm whips will not be as powerful as outside arm whips, but are useful in small spaces, or when you need to sneak a blocker or jammer through on the inside line.  There are two variations on the inside arm whip: first, using a locked (bent) left arm as a lever or, alternatively, pulling your partner through with your right arm and then giving them a little push with your left.
+ Remember that all skaters must stay inside the track lines!
+ Derby stance will always help you to stay stable.  As GoGo says, "you need to be as strong as you can be all the time".
+ Be ready!  As Skato says, "it's not very good etiquette in a game to say 'I wasn't ready'".
+ And, once again, remember to communicate your intentions!

Phew!  That's it for whipping and pushing!  Stay tuned for BLOCKING this Thursday!

Prelude to Fresh Meat Week 2

Whip it... and push it real good!

Devo - Whip It

Salt-n-Pepa - Push It

FRESH MEAT WEEK 1

Last week marked our final week of Raw Meat, culminating in a testing night that demonstrated all of the development and challenges that skaters had overcome throughout the previous month.  Some Freshies came dressed for the occasion - with a spattering of face paint and sparkly pants to mark the celebration of five weeks of challenging endurance, developing skills and new friendships.  Sadly, last week we also had to say goodbye to some of our Freshies.  However, we hope that the journey is still but young for all of the skaters that came on board for the Raw Meat program, and that we may see you again, whether it's at Raw Meat next year, skating with another league, or just hitting some of those outdoor tracks over summer.

The first week of Fresh Meat was presented by D'Juana Fightme, Jetfire and Rolla Junky, with the assistance of Hit Girl and our ADRD crew.

FALLS (presented by D'Juana Fightme)
D'Juana Fightme (Juju) led skaters through an introduction to falls and jumps, including the single knee fall, double knee fall, baseball slide and single knee fall with a turn.  The following are some of the points we heard Juju make:

Single knee falls:
+ Fall small, safe and controlled.
+ Keep that core nice and strong for stability.
+ Make sure you can do these falls on both legs!  Both will be tested and, besides, when you're on the track you'll have to be able to just go down whichever works for the situation - you can't ask that blocker to make sure she comes from a particular angle just so you can fall on your chosen leg!
+ No hands!  Push back up through your core.  Using hands to stand up again should be avoided at all costs.  If you absolutely must, push off your knee.

Double knee falls:
+ These are generally only used as an emergency fall.
+ Don't fall on both knees at once - it can potentially injure your knees and back.  Instead, lead with one leg first to create a 'tap, tap' rhythm.
+ Lean back into that air guitar pose!  It'll prevent you from falling flat on your face!

Baseball slide:
+ Think about being long and thin - the aim is to take up the least amount of lateral space as possible.
+ A bit of speed helps to keep a flow of movement through this fall.

Single knee fall with a turn:
+ This fall is super important for setting yourself up to skate off in the right direction as quickly as posible.
+ Use your core to turn, or your back foot as a kind of rudder.
+ Don't let your slide get wide - keep your legs together.
+ Really try and work on that quick recovery - get back up as quickly as possible.

HOPPING AND JUMPING (presented by D'Juana Fightme & Rolla Junky)
+ Hopping and jumping is important for being able to avoid obstacles - on the track you need to be able to hop hands, legs, heads and people, so it's important for both safety and agility.
+ When jumping, its better to look up - not at your feet.
+ Keep your knees bent for more control and stability.
+ Keep your elbows in and your core engaged.
+ Your jumps should be nice and quiet, with your toes touching the ground before your heels - this minimises impact through your knees and back.
+ Think about your timing - you reach maximum height in the middle of your jump, so work out how far before an object you need to 'take off'.

PACK WORK (presented by Jetfire)
Jetfire took skaters through an introduction to pack work, including keeping a nice, tight communicating pack, leaning against other skaters, clipping wheels while skating, looking around while skating and avoiding moving and stationary obstacles on the track.

+ Pack work is all about control and communication.
+ Think about 'pack politics' - your physical and verbal communication must be respectful and understandable.
+ Remember that touch can often be the best communicator - use gentle touches on your team mates hips to indicate your movement through the pack.
+ Sticky feet!  Your feet must stay on the ground at all times!  If not, you could get penalised for tripping.
+ Fall small - keep your arms and legs in, and stay down until it's safe to return to the game.
+ Fall alone - it can be really instinctual to grab at something when you fall.  You need to break that habit right now!
+ Remember that derby stance - stay low and loose.  Don't stiffen your arms - let them hang naturally nice and close in front of your body.
+ Learn to feel comfortable looking around - you will end up spending most of your track time looking behind and around you.
+ Talk talk talk!  Communicate the obstacles you see on the track, or movements you make through the pack.

Well, hopefully that gives you a few things to think about during the week.  Welcome to Fresh Meat and congratulations for making it through your first night of "no more personal space"!

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Raw Meat - the dress rehearsal!

Skaters came out in style this week for the Raw Meat dress rehearsal.  Face paint, sparkles and spandex were the themes of the night, proving that derby girls and guys can make even the most nerve-wracking of tests a fun and colourful event!  After a brief warm up from the rainbow and ballet themed 3 Veg, skaters regrouped into the eight colour teams delegated in the first week of Raw Meat.  Each group moved between the four testing stations and four wait stations, brushing up on skills and asking last-minute questions of the trusty trainers and helpers.  Marshall Stacks led stepping and weaving drills, while Bam Bam Belial led t-stops and snow plows and Rolla Junky took skaters through stride, coasting and cross overs.  The 3 Veg cheered on skaters pushing through 1 minute and 5 minute endurance drills.

We were so, so, so impressed by what we saw this week - not just on the track, but also in the cheering and discussions with ADRD league helpers taking place on the sidelines.  We hope you all had a good chance to speak with trainers and helpers and nut out all the last-minute skills and techniques you wanted to go through.  If there is anything that you are still unsure of, please email us or reply here to start a discussion.

Remember that what we are looking for at the Raw Meat test is safety first.  In other words, for example, are you sturdy enough on skates to be prepared to hit and be hit by other skaters without risking injury during Fresh Meat?  Or will you be able to stop safely when you are skating in a pack?  That means that you don't necessarily need to be the fastest, the strongest, or the most experienced skater to pass Raw Meat - you just need to be safe enough that we can feel confident knocking you around during Fresh Meat!

The Raw Meat test will run exactly as it did in the dress rehearsal.  So if you didn't cover a skill last week (eg. backwards skating through cones) then we wont be testing you on it this week!  We wont be throwing in any random, crazy skills just to trick you - promise!  The only difference is that we will be down-scaling to six groups so that you don't have to wait around at the wait stations as much.  That means that you may be with a different group of skaters than who you went through the dress rehearsal with.

We will be giving out results on the night (probably outside, so bring a jumper!) and then heading to the Wheaty for a well-deserved celebration/commiseration beverage.  So make sure you book those child/dog/hamster sitters for an extra hour because we want you at our beer-drinking table!

Happy skating and see you all for Raw Meat celebrations on Thursday!

With love from the 3 Veg ( Honey Carrots/Hell Grazer, Minty Peas/Wolfe Whistle and Creamy Mash/Silk Spectre)
xox

Raw Meat Week 3

Raw Meat Week 3 was brought to you by the Skato & Moe Show, Team Stacks/Mel/Gatey and a whole bunch of sweaty freshies!

Warm Up

For Week 3 warm up Bride of Skatan & Moe Skeeto had us rolling in circles before launching into a quick game of stuck in the mud that involved team air punching to release a 'stuck' skater.  We then went on a journey with a team of air hostesses who had skaters shuffling left, right, jumping and stopping on their synchronised signals.  Warm up finished with five minutes of those endurance laps that you all love to hate!

Stride

Training was led by Marshall Stacks, Melvin Star and Gateway Girl.  Melvin Star had us skating in sweet synchronicity with a series of laps skated in a 4-skater snake, focusing on long, even strides that were nice and deep, without kicking or losing rhythm.

Stopping

Marshall Stacks introduced us to a fight-to-the-death battle of 'Princess of the Rink', making skaters t-stop and snow plow on whistle blasts, and eliminating the slowest stoppers until only one skater remained.  Remember that, like derby, your beautiful snow plough (or hip check or block) means nothing if you go out of bounds!  Those lines are there for a reason, so try to stick with them!

Hints:

For the snow plow, Marshall Stacks recommends we "sit down into the saddle!" - bend your knees and sit down into the stop.

For the T-stop, Melvin Star says that "it's all about the back two wheels [of the back skate]" - don't let your back ankle twist or bend, or you risk serious, painful and derby-ending injury!

Riding the Track

Can I say that you all looked ridiculously good riding the track this week!  Skaters made like a rectangle and embarked on a quick game of derby high-five around the track, thinking about cross-overs and nice, long strides along the straightaways.  Why?  Because good stride and good sense riding the track will save you time and consume less energy!  And that can make all the difference in those endurance laps, not to mention the difference between a good jam and a bad jam!

Weaving

Marshall Stacks began our weaving session with an eyes-closed minute of zen, asking skaters to silently rock as far forward and back as possible until we found our true centre of balance (yes, we saw some of you fall over - but at least you pushed yourself to your limit!) - this centre of balance is different for everybody, so it's important that you find the stance that works best for you, your height, weight and ability.  With our new found balance we ventured out amongst the cones, weaving on one foot (agh!), both feet, and in big slaloms across the track.

When weaving, remember to turn with your knees and think about your hips.  For wide slaloms across the track, Marshall Stacks recommends using a bit of 'sticky feet' if you start to run out of power.  Melvin Star spoke about skating with your legs apart - like scissors - to create a kind of carving motion across the track.  Lead with the left leg to go left, and with the right leg to go right.

10 Minute Masterclass

Training finished with a series of stations set up to allow skaters to concentrate on the one skill that they want to improve.  For t-stops, remember: knees bent, weight to the back leg.  At the weaving station, Bride of Skatan reminded skaters that the movement came more from the hips - keep the top half straight, weight on the heels, and point with your knees and toes.  At the snow plow station D'Juana Fightme recommended to "really squeeze your glutes!"  Phew, what a lot to get through in one training session!

Cool down & stretch

After a long training session we shook out all the 'serious' and reclaimed the 'silly' with a game of Follow The Leader that had skaters roof punching and mexican waving amongst a mash-up of manic moves.  Marshall Stacks brought us the "After School Special" during cool down, giving us the "honest truth" that being a derby mum "is shit".  She asked skaters: Do you have a support group who will look after your kids and a partner that will accept being your 'derby widow'?  ADRD has a minimum training requirement, with no allowances to parents, workers or those with other commitments.  "The pay off", she says, "is that my kids think I'm a rock star!"  You will find yourself amongst a beautiful sisterhood of derby aunties, and your children will have a mum that is contented and independent. Furthermore, they will learn to respect strong independent women, and will learn all about appropriate hitting (as opposed to inappropriate aggression).  But you will need to weigh up the pros and cons of being a derby mumma - make sure that you have balance in your life; at the end of the day, derby isn't everything and your family life, work life and sanity is important too!

Final words
Gateway Girl: "Your fiding the track looked f*@#ing amazing!"

Marshall Stacks: "That's the most improvement I've seen in an hour!"

So see you all next week for the final dress rehearsal for Raw Meat!  Happy skating!

Raw Meat Week 2

(also known as "Shit: don't eat it, do it")

Week 2 saw our derby stadium graced by some lovely ladies with many, many, many years experience on skates.  Old but not out, the Nannas (Flo, Gerty, Agnes and Hazel) led us all in some warm up drills that proved to be useful both on the track and in the kitchen.  These included:

+ Putting the scones in the oven (getting low, using your knees, and keeping your back straight so you don't fall in!)
+ While you're nice and low, wiggling around like there's a spunky person behind you (and being aware of the insides and outsides of your feet when you lean left and right).
+ Crossing your legs back and forth to keep the wee in!
+ And don't forget those celebratory roof punches!

While the Nannas went off to make a cuppa, Rolla Junky and Tricksey Belt'em led us for the rest of the training session.  They had skaters hitting the wall (literally!) with stationary snow ploughs, before practising t-stops across the stadium.

They then took slaloms and weaving to a new level, with skaters weaving between cones on one foot, carving with both feet, and skating backwards.  Junky reminded skaters to stay in a low derby stance, "like you're doing a shit" otherwise "you'll eat shit" when you fall on your arse!  Nanna Hazel reflected on her many decades of life experience, stating that "you take baby steps in life... and in derby", reminding skaters to take small steps (literally).  Tricksey extended our ability to carve (weaving leading with one foot) by explaining how trucks work and helping skaters to adjust their own trucks (remember to read Foxy's post to fix your own!).

We then moved on to cross-overs, for which Tricksey taught us the importance of good cross-overs to maintain and quickly build speed, as well as get out of tight spots in the pack.  We started by pushing with the outside leg alone, with "no cheating or there'll be smack down!" before moving on to exaggerated cross-overs and, finally, full cross-overs on the track.

Rolla Junky and Tricksey Belt'em finished the session by extending our understanding of riding the track.  Junky reminded us of the importance of awareness and getting used to looking behind and around you.  Remember to turn your shoulders and point to where you want to go.  The trainers challenged us to count how many cross-overs we can do while riding the track and Tricksey pointed out that short strides take much more energy, while long strides give more speed with less effort.

We finished the session with those wonderful endurance laps that all skaters come to love.  But remember: while it's good to get your speed on during those endurance laps, most of derby has very little to do with skating fast!  It can be really hard to skate well when there are lots of people on the track.  But if you can stay on the track, really work on how you can skate slow, skate safely, avoid other skaters, and really refine your technique, you'll be well set for skating effectively in a pack!

Enjoy, and see you all on Thursday!

Silks / Creamy Mash
xox

Injury prevention

Some notes from Stoj'n'Weave...

 

Warm up properly; if you find that you get 'shin splints', cramps, headaches, asthma, or feel like you're trying to 'catch up' during the warm up then get here 10 minutes earlier and do a walk around the oval/car park, some stair climbs in the foyer for a few minutes. An off skates warm up can make a world of difference to some people.

 

Balance your exercise for posture and sanity.  You need to counteract all that time spent in derby stance during normal day living - use weights, body weight exercise and a lot of stretching through the chest.

 

Areas to avoid making too flexible = shoulder girdle and cankles.

 

Core work....I'm a little 'funny' on this one...crunches and ab work lying down is very um...it's not up with the times really and the only time we would use our abs lying down is in bed...or getting up off the floor in one big effort rather than repetition of using hip flexors...so take every opportunity you can to incorporate core work that involves you standing or kneeling, basically not lying on your back like a la cocaracha!

 

Go to bed before midnight! This is something I struggled with when doing the derby..bit amped after training...eating dinner late...going to bed after midnight...= bad bad bad!

 

Post training meal needs to be high in protein and still have some carbs in them for recovery.

 

Recovery. The same workout should not be repeated back to back. Cross training is the best way to avoid injury.

Raw Meat Week 1

Oh my goodness, what a big start to Raw Meat 2011! I hope you all enjoyed getting to know each other as much as we enjoyed getting to meet all of you. In the excitement and nervousness of things it’s easy to forget exactly what happened. So here is a reminder:

Hell Grazer (aka Honey Carrots) welcomed all the skaters and went through basic house rules.

Team Vain (Vaderella and Brain of Morbius) graced us with their lycra unitard and velvet-endowed presence, taking skaters through a series of warm up drills that included skating in groups of particular numbers (ie. Groups of 5) and making letters in a synchronised skate group.

Violent Krumble, GoGo Fiasco and Bam Bam Belial were our head trainers for the night. They covered: 

Stride – skating on one foot, skating low, staying in derby stance, touching lines on the ground while skating, falling safely (“like a rag doll”) and not grabbing other skaters when falling (“fall alone”). Remember: bend your knees and keep your head up.

Cross-overs – pushing with one foot at a time, then exaggerating the pushing motion and, finally, doing complete crossovers. Remember: push with both feet and make your cross-overs nice and deep.

Riding the track –moving in a rectangular shape around the track, coming out wide on the straightaway and cutting in tight across the apex. Remember: turn with the shoulders, look around the track, and communicate when you’re overtaking on the inside or outside.

T-stops and snow-ploughs – practicing stopping at each cone laid out on the track. Remember: for t-stops lean on the back foot and keep feet close together. For snow ploughs use pigeon toes, bend your knees, and dig your heels in.

Weaving – weaving through lines of cones, and doing small weaves (slaloms) on the track. Remember: use your knees to direct where you want to go.

As a cool down, the 3 veg led skaters on a quick round of ‘keys in the bowl’. This involved skaters pairing up and getting to know one another and then introducing their partners to another couple, and so on.

Finally, Stoj’n’Weave (with the vocal assistance of Hell Grazer and Wolfe Whistle) took skaters through a stretch – her wise words on stretching will be covered in the next post!

Phew! That’s it for Week 1! What part of training did you enjoy most?  And what would you like to see more time given to?  Let us know!

Skate Tech 101

So you're about to start Raw Meat (exciting!) and there's already a bunch of stuff to worry about. Basic skate maintenance is one more thing, but it really can give you a shortcut to improving as a skater. Your skate set-up can really make a difference to your technique. There's some basic stuff about skates that makes a huge difference early on, but you'll also need to know it for the rest of your skating life.

The Anatomy of a Derby Skate

It all begins with the anatomy of the derby skate, so check this diagram, thanks to Ivanna Spankin:

http://www.sincityskates.com/images/random/sincity_derby_diagram.pdf

When you buy a pair of skates, unless they've been made specifically for you, or some clever derby girl has owned them before you, they will come pre-assembled from a skate manufacturer. More often than not, there's some stuff that needs tweaking. Skates usually come with a basic tool, or you can get one for around $15 from any skate shop.

Adjust Your Trucks

A common problem is having trucks that are too loose or too tight.

When you lean to one side, your trucks lean with you, and that makes the two wheels on that side curve into a small arc, and you turn. If your trucks are too tight, the wheels won't move and it will be really, really hard to turn corners.

But the trade-off is that loose trucks are harder to balance on, so you also don't want them too loose until you're comfortable with your balance on skates.

(If you're really interested, these skate geeks wrote an article that explains it in more detail:

http://quadskating.com/skates/roller-skate-trucks.htm )

If you flip your skate over, one truck is the short metal bit you can see running across the skate between the two front wheels and the other truck runs between the two back wheels. You adjust your trucks by tightening or loosening the large nut in the centre, which is called the action nut. Use a skate tool or wrench to adjust your trucks.

Which way do you turn the nut?

Anti-clockwise loosens, clockwise tightens. I remember it using Rosie the Riveter's old mnemonic: Lefty Loosey - Righty Tighty

Only adjust the nut one quarter turn at a time, and then forcibly wiggle the wheels back and forth to check how much the trucks are moving, and maybe adjust another quarter turn, and so on. You want them to move with a little bit of pushing effort. Try skating on them once you've adjusted them a little bit, and adjust further if you need, but don't loosen them too much all at once!

Also, your trucks will gradually get looser over time by themselves, as you skate on them.

Check Your Wheels

Next thing with factory-fresh skates is to check your wheels. Too loose and they'll fall off; too tight and you are gonna be working a whole lot harder to get anywhere. Check them all, because they are likely to all be set differently. (Gah!) You want your wheels to spin freely without rattling on their axles. Use a skate tool to adjust them. A good way to adjust them is to gradually tighten them to the point where they only just won't turn, and then loosen them off a quarter or a half turn of the axle nut until they spin without stopping for a long time.

Make sure all eight wheels are set to pretty much the same looseness.

This video shows you how to check your wheels:

Laces

A super common complaint for skaters with new skates is numb feet. Some of it's getting used to skates and building up strange little unused muscles and learning balance, but some of it can be helped.

Some people (me included) like their skates loose around their toes to beat numb-foot (I just made that term up) but tight around the top for a more stable, secure feel.

You can simply skip a couple of holes near the toes and start lacing from the third or fourth hole up.

Or you can lace the first few holes up, then skip a few, then lace the top ones.

Or you can double-lace. To double-lace, get two shorter pairs of laces. Lace halfway up each boot using the first pair. Then lace the top half using the second pair. That way, you can have one tension in the bottom half, for your toes to wriggle freely, and a different, tighter, tension up the top.

Which lets you worry about skating instead of the pain in your toes.

That's it for now... see you on the track. x

Cheap skate!

So you want some more skate time? Drag the family along! We just found this awesome Living Social deal for the Blackwood Rec Centre. There's only two days left, so get on it!

Family Roller Skating Pass

FRESH MEAT REGISTRATION

A very big THANK YOU to everyone who has registered their interest in joining our Wonderful League. It was great to meet so many of you at the info night and we look forward to meeting more of you on 06th October.

So what did we discuss at the info night again?

We went though the dates of Raw and Fresh Meat:

Week 1 - 06 October 7:30 – 9:30 pm to Week 10 -08 December 7:30 – 9:30 pm at Parks Rec Centre.

You must be 18 or over to participate as a member of Adelaide Roller Derby.

We talked about Raw and Fresh Meat not only being a way to get into the league, but a way to get to know yourself, to push yourself, be inspired to be the most awesome you possible, to make new friends and to ROLLERSKATE - THE MOST FUN THING IN THE WORLD

Numbers will be limited (NO - we still don't know how many) but you wont know if you can make it if you don't try!

We went though what to expect during Raw and Fresh Meat and what to expect once you make it in including

All the good stuff:
Community – 100 ppl in a new family.
local, national, international connections and friends
Fitness
Loss of inhibitions, growth of confidence
Skills through committees, training, first aid, organising events, publicity etc –all supported and where appropriate, funded by the league.
Afterparties
Karaoke
Opportunities to travel and represent the league
Fun. So. Much. Fun.

But you need to be committed:

Skaters are currently required to attend a minimum 6 training sessions per month (currently Mondays and Thursdays), may also be required to make team trainings also.
Referees and Officials are currently required to make 4 training sessions per month as well as extra team sessions also.
Once a month at least, you will attend a committee meeting which will involve work outside of that time.
Add the ever tempting social activities and you may find derby in your life 6/7 days a week.

Cost - you will spend at least $500 over the year to participate in the league – not including skates, equipment, beer and presents for Wolfey . . .

Personal Risk and Injury – It can and does happen. We encourage all members to have health insurance or at the very least, current ambulance cover and ensure you have thought about how you will manage your life if you break an arm or leg?

So you still want to be a Skater or Official?

THATS EXCELLENT!

To register, email adrdfreshies@gmail.com, with the following added to the title –

YOUR NAME and either SKATER or OFFICIAL

EG:

ADRD Fresh Meat Registration MARY SMITH, SKATER

Or

ADRD Fresh Meat Registration MARY SMITH, OFFICIAL

WE WILL CONFIRM YOUR REGISTRATION BY EMAILING YOU THE PAPERWORK YOU WILL NEED TO COMPLETE AND BRING WITH YOU TO YOUR FIRST SESSION. COMPLETE THE PAPERWORK OR YOU WILL NOT BE ABLE TO PARTICIPATE : )

There is a cap on numbers, and we apologize in advance if we hit capacity.

We really are looking forward to having a great FUN 10 weeks with you all.

LoveBumps,

Honey Carrots (Hell Grazer) , Creamy Mash (Silk Spectre) & Minty Peas (Wolfe Whistle)
YOUR 3 VEG FRESH MEAT CO-ORDINATORS.

Happy skating!

It's beautiful skating weather outside! That means it's perfect timing to hit some of those scenic tracks! We've been skating along the Semaphore foreshore. Where have you been?

p.s. - remember those outdoor wheels! They're softer, so they deflect stones and provide shock absorption over rough surfaces.

(p.p.s. - this photo is from previous outdoor adventures. For demonstration purposes only!)

REGISTRATION CLOSED FOR INFO NIGHT

We are now at capacity for the Fresh Meat info night! Thank you to those that have registered, and we look forward to meeting you on Tuesday. However, registration for the info night is NOT registration for fresh meat! So if you missed the info night don't fear - you can still register for fresh meat. But remember that places for fresh meat will be limited, so get in early - and don't say we didn't warn you!

Stay tuned for more information!

FRESH MEAT 2011 IS COMING!

So you're interested in skating with Adelaide Roller Derby? The 'Raw' and 'Fresh Meat' intake for ADRD's 2012 season will begin in late 2011. During this time, participants will be trained in skating skills, fitness and the rules of Roller Derby. To learn about the 2011 intake and register your interest in Raw Meat, come along to the fresh meat info night.

FRESH MEAT INFO NIGHT

When: Tuesday 16th August, 2011

Where: The Wheatsheaf Hotel

Time: 7pm

Register by emailing adrdfreshies@gmail.com

In the subject line: Fresh Meat Info Night, YOUR NAME and either SKATER or OFFICIAL

Numbers are limited due to capacity so you must register to attend and it’s first in, best dressed. You will receive a reply email in due course if your registration is successful.

THIS IS NOT REGISTRATION FOR FRESHMEAT – for further info keep an eye on our website and facebook page. NUMBERS FOR FRESHMEAT WILL ALSO BE LIMITED AND REQUIRE REGISTRATION!

If you’re interested in learning about the process or getting some tips and tricks, you can check out ourFresh Meat Blog from 2010!