10 things to make you a better skater really quickly.

So you’re just starting roller derby and you want to not look like a newbie, here’s a quick list of things to try to make you a better skater really quickly!

1. Get lower!!! Bending from your waist isn’t getting lower, bend your knees to lower your center of gravity and make you far more stable.

2. Buy your own kit. The hand me down skates and the crusty old pads are great if you don’t want to spend a lot of money before committing to roller derby, but they’re old and tired and for the most part not built for derby. Getting you’re own gear will be comfier and allow you to skate in something that gives you proper support and is built for the sport.

3. Change your bearings and your wheels. So package skates tend to have the cheapest wheels on them and usually rubbish bearings. If you change them out for something with a little more quality to them you can see a world of difference.

4. Read through your skills book. If you’re trying to pass your min skills and aren’t getting through it easily, read through it to see exactly what’s expected off you and maybe get an advanced skater to show you what you need to do.

5. Try learning and partnering up with different people each week. People learn different things from different people so if you aren’t getting the skill with one person see how someone else does it and see if that helps.

6. Learn the rules. If you know what’s going on, on the track then you can do something about it rather then standing there looking clueless.

7. Watch a few more games. Seeing how teams are putting the stuff you’re learning at training into context. It makes you see why things like derby stance or plows stops are soooooooooo important in game play.

8. Watch videos on YouTube. So there are some great skaters on YouTube that have channels that show off a lot of different skills and explain things really well, try subscribing to a couple of them and see if you can bring what they have to offer into training.

9. Ask a friend to explain what they’re doing. If you see someone being superspecialawesome and want to give what they are doing a go then just ask them and I’m sure they’ll break it down for you and help you out.

10. Just have fun. You’re not gonna learn and get better without putting in 10,000 hours so may as well be the best 10,000 hours of your life with great friends that make you want to come to training and be the best skater you can be.

Hope this has been super helpful to you and good luck becoming the most awesome skater!