Zebra Cakes and Other Nuances

“That was a bad call.”

You can not go to a scrimmage or a bout without hearing those words come out of someone’s mouth.

Today I would like to talk about why I feel every derby skater should ref at least once. Just once. (More would be better.) On the soap box today. /cough

Refs are not punching bags. They work really hard to learn rules, learn to skate, breathe with a whistle in their mouth without making noise (DO NOT SNEEZE). They get very little recognition, yet are on their feet the most during the bout.

I know at times people feel the refs are biased. “Why aren’t they giving penalties to the other team?” “Why are they picking on me?” I promise you that this is not the case. Refs can only call what they see.

Even with the freshest of eyes the refs are looking at 20 skates, 20 hands, 20 forearms, and 20 elbows (assuming full pack). This doesn’t even cover things like shoulders into face, railroading, out of bounds, out of play, the list goes on. The refs are not looking at you. They are looking with soft eyes for illegal maneuvers. I don’t look at certain people because they are notorious for elbowing others. I look at the elbow and see who it’s attached to—it might be you…again.

To fully understand what a ref sees, or doesn’t see, you should really check it out for yourself. You’re not looking for your favorite skaters; you’re not watching your favorite team. You’re looking at 10 different skaters all doing their own thing, and trying to make sure everything is executed in a proper manner. I’m sorry I did not see Skater A touch Opposing Skater B—my eyes were at the back of the pack (several feet away) for that millisecond.

Penalties happen in a split second. I’m not saying that you can get away with penalties, or that you should try to get away with them. I’m also not justifying a blatant no call for an elbow to the face. I just want there to be some understanding. I’m not picking on you or your team. I’m not blatantly shrugging off penalties by certain players. I only call what I see (No, I’m not blind).

It's not fun to feel like this after a scrimmage/bout:

(Photo from weebls-stuff Kenya Believe It video. Totally hilarious.)

As Trixie Horror once said, if you’re upset about a penalty that you don’t think you should have gotten, just remember all those other times you SHOULD have gotten a penalty and didn’t.

 

If you have some suggestions about how to make it better, that’s awesome! I would implore you to make sure you’ve thought about them rationally—not in a penalty-induced rage. Think about the logistics of reffing, and how hard it actually is. If you think you can do lots to better the ref crew, strap on your skates and put those stripes on!

Until such time though, I strongly urge you to try it just once to see what it’s like. Or even if you’re not on the ref crew—watch a scrimmage as if you were a ref. It’s not about picking on certain players or favoring teams, it’s about reffing a fluid and consistent bout from start to finish.

Put on zee stripes. Enjoy the zebra jokes. Appreciate the zeebs. Come at the game with a different perspective. Hell…it might even make you a better skater.

Stripey-Stripes and Happy Skating!

Bitter Sweets <3

 Looking all official and stuff. I point at people sometimes.

(Photo by Kate Wood Raclin)

Drama Llama

I thought a lot about how I wanted to start this particular blog. I wrote a bunch of stuff and erased it. It all felt too stuffy. Here’s the deal: you joined a league, there’s a lot of people, a lot of personalities—there’s going to be drama.

Some people are drama queens; we know this. But then there’s the worst kind of drama. Drama within your own posse. Even worse—unintentional drama within your own posse (Yes, posse. I know it’s no longer 1996, thank you).

Unintentional drama creates the worst rifts. If it was drama for the sake of drama it can almost be brushed off. “OMG _____ is such a drama queen. WHATEVER.” Moving on. But, you can’t do that with unintentional drama. Someone said or did something over there that offended someone else without meaning to. *Insert drama

Nobody really knows how to deal with this drama. It stays on the down low until it explodes into a fiery wave of doom. Everyone is on the defensive side, and someone else is always to blame.

THIS ACCOMPLISHES NOTHING.

Everyone suffers as a consequence. Headstrong players appear stubborn and mean. Quiet players seem inconsolable. The drama continues to spin.

Recognize different personalities. Some people are sensitive, quiet, and reserved. Others are loquacious, opinionated, and have strong personalities. None of these traits are negative qualities; they just butt heads sometimes (making people buttheads---see what I did there?).

By being a bit more sensitive toward other people, you’ll pick up on emotions and tension quicker than someone with the “What the F ever” attitude. Nip the problem quickly before it creates a gap between a larger group of skaters, which could cause even bigger problems for the longevity and reputation of your league. Plus, no one wants their team to be associated with unnecessary drama.

Be a tad sensitive.

Understand that someone else will perceive situations differently than you.

Know that your actions and words have consequences.

Don’t be the drama llama.

Work quickly to shut down the drama before it creates larger issues.

Resolve the issue. Apologize for any misunderstandings—even if your words were misconstrued. “I’m sorry; I didn’t mean for X to sound like Y.” (Damn those Ys!!!)

Most of all: appreciate your teammates, your leaguemates, your coaches, your NSOs, your refs. Without them there would be no derby. They all work so the derbies can happen. That means YOU get to play. So shut down the drama, turn left, work hard.

Happy Skating!

Bitter Sweets <3

 Much like this wheel bruise, the Drama Llama leaves its mark.

You'll forget the pain until it *subtly* reminds you occasionally.

How long will it last this time?

(Photo by me. Ouchies, my thigh.)