Hello, World! It's Great to Meet You!

Hello, world! It's great to meet you! Welcome to Watch Emma Skate, where you will get to hear about my experiences entering the world of roller derby as well as all the other majestical things that I do in my daily life. What other majestical things, you ask? Well, food. I love food, no I adore food! I love cooking and baking and even more so do I enjoy making healthy, delicious recipes for my friends and family. So you'll get to read about some of those little yummies as well. Since the majority of this blog will have to do with roller derby and roller skating, I figured I would start off with a post that every person looking to start skating should read about: GEAR.

The #1 thing a person should have if they are serious about skating is protective gear. Please do not be overconfident that you will not fall down, because you will, and it will hurt, and that is what protective gear is for. There are some staples that you should acquire before you start skating:

1) Knee Pads
Knee pads are arguably the most important piece of protective gear you will invest in, so don't be stingy, you only have one pair of knees, so protect them well! There are a number of different brands such as Scabs, Triple 8, but 187 Pros that are reportedly very popular and durable. These tend to run from around $70-$90.

2) Elbow Pads
Like all other padding, elbow pads MUST fit properly. Some good brands for these are Protec, Triple 8, Scabs and 187. These typically fun around $20-$30.

3) Wrist Guards
Wrist guards take a lot of abuse: falling, sweating, clapping high-fiving, they take it all. Protec, Triple 8, and 187 are good brands to choose from. Wrist guards will typically run around $16-$20.

4) Helmet
Just like when riding a bike, you must protect your head! Only a standard bike helmet will NOT cut it for roller derby. Buy a dedicated skateboard/hockey helmet! Some good brands for this are Triple 8 and Protec. I have a Triple 8 that I use for roller skating, as well as for biking.

5) Mouth Guards
There are a bunch of different options for these including the standard boil-and-bite that you can purchase from any sporting goods store, the gel mouth guards, and the fitted mouth guards that can be made by your dentist. All of these vary in things like durability and insurance so think hard before you commit to one simply because it may be the cheapest. The boil-and-bites and gels run around $8-$13 and the fitted ones are obviously more expensive.

6) Skates
Really? You need roller skates to play roller derby? Yes, yes you do. Not roller blades, roller skates! If you are just starting out, your local rink probably rents out skates. But if you are like me and aren't a big fan of feet funk, then investing in your own pair of skates might be for you. New skates will typically start from around $150 upwards depending on the brand of skate you choose and the different wheels, bearings, and plates that come with them. Riedells, Antiks, and Sure-Grips are the big names that come to mind right now, but again, personal preference and budget definitely be a part of that decision. If you don't have big budget, buying second hand is always an option. Check with your local roller derby league, there are always girls looking to sell or get rid of old gear.

There are number of other things like shin guards, butt pads, knee gaskets and a bunch of other goodies that you can invest in, but make sure you get these things first!

Wherever you are, there are bound to be some great local derby stores with friendly employees who will be thrilled to help you get started. I would highly recommend visiting such places and getting properly fitted for all your gear instead of blindly buying them off the internet. Not only will this insure that you get the right gear in the right sizes that you need, many of the employees themselves are or were roller derby girls/boys themselves and can be a great resource for advice as well.

I hope this has helped! The first thing I did when I started skating was invest in some good gear, because, not only was I safer, I felt safer. I wasn't as afraid of falling, which let's face it, happens a lot. It just makes the whole learning process a lot easier when you have gear that you can trust. If you have any questions, suggestions or things that you could like to add, sound off below!

Thanks for reading, until next time.....Watch Emma Skate...with Protective Gear! :)