Roller Derby Chronicles: A Family Affair
Hello! My name is Rocket!
I dedicate this blog post to my beloved parents!
I’m not one to believe that destiny is written in stone, but it almost feels as if I was fated to play roller derby. The seeds of this flowering future were planted long ago in a completely different country. My father grew up in Colombia and was always an avid roller skater. His first set of skates were a brand named Hudora that he surreptitiously “borrowed” from his oldest brother. Though the metal skates with leather straps were the type that could be adjusted to be longer or shorter and were strapped to one’s shoes, my father started skating at such a young age that even on the smallest setting his toes did not reach the end of the skate. Determined to roll around the neighborhood, he would find something to wrap around his shoes to secure them. My uncle still recounts how my father found so much joy in whipping around the neighborhood for hours on his borrowed skates.
(The now vintage Hudora roller skates of yesteryear.)
This passion for roller skating did not fade when my father immigrated to the United States at the age of 17. He continued to roller skate. I can only imagine my teenage dad roller skating at some groovy rink in 1970s New Jersey, his long hair and bell bottoms probably flapping in the wind while listening to funky tunes.
(My dad in the 1970s. Looks like he’s holding a cell phone, right?)
Though my father grew up, married my mother, and started a family (beginning with me), he continued to roller skate. Skating became a family event. Saturday skating sessions were sacred in our family. Some of my earliest memories include going to a skating rink near Woodbridge, New Jersey in the 1980s with my parents, uncles, and cousins. My first pair of quads was the ubiquitous Fisher Price plastic skate - the ones that were adjustable and whose wheels made such an annoying clacking sound. When we moved to Central Jersey, we continued attending skating sessions at the now defunct Evesham skating rink.
(My cousin and mother holding my hands.)
To say my father was a good skater is an understatement. Being a good dancer, as most Colombians are, it is not surprising that my father could jam (dance) skate. My father would skate with perfect fluidity; his movements timed to the rhythm of the music in the darkend skating rink, alight with multicolored strobes and sometimes even a disco ball. My father was also a super fast skater. During the skating session when the DJ would break the music for races among the patrons, either my father or my uncle would win the 18 and over races. When they were pitted against each other, my cousins and I would cheer our on respective fathers, but our family would always win.
My father taught me the fundamentals of roller skating. He instructed me on how to backwards skate, how to flip stop, and even how to gain speed with a cross over. Because of him, I was nimble on my skates and very fast! My cousin and I would always win the races. Since she is only one month older than me, we’d always be in the same race. Ultimately we became so well known for our speed that the DJ had us start a few feet behind the starting line and the other competitors. We would still win. Our victory spoils included a small slice of pizza and a pepsi. When we were older, my father would take us to the skating sessions on Friday nights where there were fewer little kids, more jam skating, and strobe lights. Even now, when I haer a popular tune often played at the Evesham rink in the 90s, like “Pump Up the Jam”, I’m instantly transported to those memories. Skating at the rink was always something I looked forward to growing up.
(One of my first roller skating lessons with my dad.)
As was inevitable, I grew up and responsibilities took hold of my life. I hung up my skates when I went off to college in Philly to focus on my career. Though I admit to buying a pair of roller blades one year in college (I know we all do crazy things in college), I quickly realized that I disliked blades and they ended up collecting dust in my parents’ garage. After college, I went to law school in Washington DC, married the man of my dreams, passed the bar in Maryland, moved across the country to Idaho, and then passed the bar in Idaho. In Idaho I did what any young lawyer would do, I became an associate attorney and threw myself into work life. I found my passion defending immigrants in removal (colloquially known as “deportation”) proceedings and in helping families navigate the complicated immigration process. It’s so much harder than just “why don’t they just get in line,” but that’s a story for another blog. I eventually established my own law firm in 2010 and started to have children. My husband and I have two beautiful daughters, who are ages 10 and 12, as of this writing.
Juggling work and family life was tough and I made little time for myself. My husband was the one who realized that I needed to do some self-care. He had heard of a roller derby team in Boise. I did some research and found a Boise team, but sadly they were not recruiting at the time. I then discovered another, smaller team: the Beet City Bombers.
I dusted off my old skates from high school and went to the roller drome where a few Beet City Bomber members were going to be skating before their practice. I nervously introduced myself and they welcomed me with open arms in 2015. I have been a proud Beet City Bomber ever since.
(My roller skates from high school.)
Being a part of the Beet City Bombers and the roller derby community has made me feel like I found another facet of myself. Roller derby combines my love of skating with my competitive nature. I have always loved a challenge and working hard to achieve a goal - it is a trait my immigrant parents instilled in me by their example.
Derby is the perfect catalyst for self discovery. It is an accepting community that brings together people from different backgrounds in a mutual love of a very unique sport. Derby also allows you to choose a nom de guerre, adopt a persona almost like a superhero, dress in fun outfits for derby bouts (aka “boutfits”), and even wear creative make up for bouts. It is a highly physical activity, demanding 100% of the participants, while also finding a place for every body. It is a place to learn new skills and realize that with hard work and effort, you can achieve what you did not believe possible. Who would have thought that I would start to play a contact sport at 33 years of age and that nine years later, at age 42, I would be in the best physical shape of my life and STILL be playing roller derby?! Being a part of this team makes me want to achieve not just for my own personal growth, but for the betterment of the team and community as a whole. When we do well in a bout, we all celebrate that victory. We celebrate each other and boost each other up. Roller derby empowers.
Best of all is that roller skating and roller derby continues to be a family activity for me. After I started playing derby, my dad and my uncle were inspired to buy themselves a new pair of roller skates and to start skating again! Although my parents still live in New Jersey, they never miss a streamed BCB bout. I even discovered that my husband, also a product of the 1980s, can skate. My husband’s cousin, Hailes Yeah, started playing roller derby at BCB. My husband’s brother ended up marrying a derby girl! Derby has clearly embedded itself in the very fabric of my family.
And much like my father, I made sure to teach my children how to roller skate. Their first quad skates were also a Fisher Price pair - this time colored blue with a “Frozen” theme. When they were about six and eight years old, my girls were inspired to follow in my footsteps (*wheel steps). They joined a local junor’s roller derby team - the Renegades. My oldest, Slay Voorhees, has become a sharp, strategic blocker whose dexterity on her skates far surpasses mine at her age. My youngest, Blueberry Slam Cakes, is a bubbly crowd pleaser, always smiling or posing in some form of wheeled pirouette for the photographer. I’m proud to see how they have progressed - they keep improving with every year of play. Whether they take a break from roller derby in the future to focus on their careers or not, I know that they have already learned important lessons in pushing themselves towards difficult to achieve goals. Seeing how my girls have succeeded is all that a parent could ever want - I am a very proud derby mom. And it all started with a little boy in Colombia stealing his big brother’s skates. iGracias Papito!
Rocket
