Roller Derby is a dangerous sport. There’s no bones about it. Skaters are hurling themselves at each other full speed on quads trying to knock the other down. Sometimes, people get hurt. Sometimes it isn’t even the intended target that gets hurt, it’s the skater next to her… or the skater initiating the block… or the referee on the other side of the track boundary.
One of the reasons I chose to not become a competitive skater is because of the potential injury factor. Just this season we’ve had skaters with knee injuries, ankles, a blood-clot because of a mis-diagnosed fracture… since I've been involved with the league there are have been concussions, broken bones, black eyes, injured backs… a gamut of hurt.
However, the referees are not immune to this… the risk is just a little bit less. One of the Refs in Buffalo (Anita Doobie) was off-skates because of what I believe was a back injury, another Buffalo Ref (90°Johnson) because of injured ribs. REFLMAO (our Head Ref ) was off skates because of a sprain that happened during practice (and we weren't even on skates at the time). We had a scare at scrimmage last week because another Ref (Walter Ego) took a skate to the face and ended up face down on the track and not moving for a few seconds.
People get hurt. The injuries are real. The pain is real. I was reminded in the last few weeks that I still stand every chance of getting hurt… sometimes you just can’t dodge that skater who whiffed her intended target and ends up barreling right into you. Or the jammer that gets blocked out of bounds and ends up sweeping your feet out from under you. Or your own clumsiness when you wheel-lock yourself and end up face-planting in Turn 3.
So much is going on during a bout (and even during a scrimmage). Our job is to keep people safe… skaters, Officials, spectators, everyone… the rules are designed to keep game play safe. But Injury is inevitable… injury happens.
I won’t lie to you. I’m still skating in “careful” mode. I still allow myself to fall out of position if I’m along the wall between Turns 2 & 3 and see a block about to happen. I still take my eyes off the track to avoid the coaches in the ref lane or the skaters exiting the penalty box. I still drift past my desired stopping point rather than trying to “stop on a dime,” over-balance, and fall. I’m sure with time and confidence I’ll be a little less “careful,” but the self-preservation streak runs wide and it may be some time before I learn how to be “reckless” – well, maybe ok... not reckless... more like “daring.” But hey, I'm on skates... right? If I really wanted to play it safe, I could have just stayed in the Penalty Box... or in the stands as a spectator. Gimme time...
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