New pads!

Got new knee pads (Destroyer pros) which I absolutely love. They stay put and the cushioning is great and I hardly think about them when I skate. Not too bulky (like I found the 187 pros) and with lots more padding (than the Pro-tecs). Speaking of knees and falling, I am quite pleased with myself because on this weeks practices, when I have fallen, I've done really great landings without really thinking about it. Like some sort of muscle memory that is finally there. Knowing I can fall properlymakes me feels safer and makes me dare more.

(Never mind the fact that during this wek I have also fallen flat on my butt...from standing still..... Oh man. Ouch.)

TRY OUTS!

Woke up this morning feeling pretty nervous! Finally time for try outs! The girls started off by showing us some excercises; falling, skating in a pack and jamming which was a lot of fun to watch. Then we got to skate! I must say it felt good that I had practised a bit before and I felt quite safe and steady on my skates. Me and a friend skated around for about half an hour, tried to do some cross-overs and practised falling which was a lot of fun. Everyone was sooo friendly and sweet and I'm going to my first real practice on Tuesday. Very exciting!

I tried on some different pads today as well; Protec and Destroyer. At first I liked the Protec ones; quite snug, not too bulky and they felt nice to land on. But after trying the Destroyers I wasn't so sure anymore - they are a lot bigger but also felt a lot softer to land on. I want to try Triple8's as well before I make up my mind. And in case I go for Destroyer's I want them in black, which means ordering from the US, cause I can't find black ones in any UK shop. Bah. Oh, but  did manage to sell the 187 pro knee caps that were too small for me so yay!

Three things that are making me happy

The other day I met up with one of the local derby girls because she wanted to try on the pads I bought that didn't fit me. Unfortunately they didn't fit her either so I couldn't sell them, but it didn't really matter because she was soooo nice. We talked a bit about gear and the team and the upcoming try outs and when we parted she said she thought I would fit perfectly with the team... I don't need to say how happy that made me, right?! :D If all derby girls are as nice as the ones I've met so far, then this is going top be the best thing I've ever done!!

Speaking of try outs, I'm going to try out a new parking garage tonight with a friend of mine who is also really keen on starting. It'll be her first time and my third so I'm not expecting it to be very pretty, hehe. I think it might be a good spot though; indoors, heated (!), large areas and smooooth surface. When I was there the other night there was also classical music playing... Not sure if that'll get us in the right mood...

Aaaaand tomorrow I'm going to Stockholm to watch a bout. Cougar Sluts vs Brass Knuckle Harlots. Very excited!

Butt-sweat

So happy right now! A friend of mine came over for dinner and then we headed down to school so I could practice a bit. Pretty sure the janitor wouldn't approve but daaamn that floor was nice to skate on! So smooth compared to the asphalt from my first time. It was almost too smooth though, my wheels didn't really grip very well. I can't wait to try out the floor where we will be practicing, I wonder what it's like.

My friend was an excellent coach and we practiced skating, stopping, getting upp from sitting on one knee, pushing with my toestops and we also tried him gently tackling me while I was just rolling, to see how it felt. All in all we were there for about an hour.

Oh and I tried out my 'tailsaver' (a tailbone pad) for the first time. Didn't fall on my butt so I don't know if it works, but I feel less scared of falling which I hope leads to me daring to go faster. It was so warm though, I sweated right through my tights! :D

AAAAHHHH!

On my way home from uni I was so tired I was almost hoping my gear wouldn't arrive today. But when I came home and found a note from the postman I got so excited I could hardly contain myself. Must've looked quite silly standing in line at the post office with a huuuge smile on my face...

I was so nervous when I unpacked the box, but the roller skates fit! But my pads didn't... As I mentioned, I ordered the 187 killer pro pads and they feel very clumsy and large, even though they're too small in circumference. So I will try to sell or exchange them and probably pick another brand. Perhaps the ones designed for derby? If anyone has suggestions they are very welcome!

So my initial reactions are that 

1. Holy crap this is difficult

2. The skates are so heavy, I had no idea!

Order update

Well, at least I got an email from them today saying that the helmet I had selected was out of stock. I might have asked them to hurry up in my reply....hehe. So hopefully they'll ship it out tomorrow. Seriously, these days of waiting... longest days ever.

Send. My. Stuff. Now.

"Order processing"

WHAT DOES IT EVEN MEAN? Just pack the gear and ship it!

Kind regards,
girl who's checked her order status 20 times in the last 48 hours...

Fighting my way through the gear jungle

For once I wasn't all sensible. I decided to buy gear before I've ever tried standing on a pair of skates. And how easy is that? Not easy at all, I can tell you this much. I've spent HOURS researching pros and cons with all the different brands of skates and pads. At first I wanted a pair of pink & black Anarchys (cause they look awesome) but as I did some more reading I realized they're probably not very good. So instead I went for the Riedell R3's which seem lika good beginner skate. I also decided on the long gumball toe stops.

So this past Sunday I sat down to order. I wanted to order from the Swedish shop but as they haven't replied to any of my emails I was afraid the shipping would take for ever. And I didn't want to order from the US as I've heard several horror stories about the insane amounts you have to pay to get it through customs. A friend of mine in Norway hade to pay 650 NOK! Oh the horror. So I decided to go for an English shop. I spent about 2 hours trying to find a bloody shop that had all the gear I wanted which seemed IMPOSSIBLE! I didn't know whether to laugh or cry. Finally I got a tip about Kickflipboards where they sell rookie packages.

I decided to upgrade on the pads as I really want to be well protected. (When I showed some friends today I realized I must've had a complete brain snap as that package was one of the most expensive ones. What was I thinking!?) Anyways, I went for the 187 pro-pads as I read somewhere that it was like "falling on kittens" - hehe. I've been told that the wheels on the R3:s suck, but I figure I gotta find out what kind of surface I'll be practicing on before I buy new ones.

It got....pretty pricey. But hopefully totally worth it. Now I'll just have to wait and see and hope everything fits!