EROC 2016

Me and Only talking about Team Structure at EROC 2016

I have been to EROC more than once, more than twice, more than trice... I've been to EROC a total of FOUR times, and there has been SIX EROC. I really love EROC, and this year I came to represent Track Advantage and to run two seminars, one by myself and one with Only.

It is so interesting to see how rollerderby in Europe is developing and growing, how we face new challanges and leave old ones behind us. I truly love to observe that we truly grow and are becoming a force to reckon. Everyone has worked so hard on making their leauges stronger and trying to figure things out. EROC is such a wonderful place where we all can meet and talk, get together and see that problems are easier to go trough and solve when you don't have to do it by yourself.

I am always happy to see so many of my friends and acctually realize what a positive influence rollerderby have had on my life. We all work towards the same goal, together to become something amazing and more organised, to take ownership of the sport we like.

The WFTDA discussions are always interesting, and we work towards a great goal, to be able to steer the sport towards the goals of what we want. And who are we, WE are every skater that stepped into a pair of derbyskates and fell in love. Driven by passion to create an inclusive and revolutionary sport, rollerderby is athletic and fun, it's friendship and togetherness, and all of this is something I fins at EROC, every year... and yeah, we are getting older... the parties are not as wild and we are happy to have it hat way. Well, at least I am, but yeah... of course I will drink some wineschorle... because its so tasty...

Back in Berlin

So really, I barley came home, touched down just to take off again. I'm back in Berlin to enjoy my Fourth EROC... The annual European Rollerderby Conference. This is the place where things happen, where Europe meet and greet... It never really feels like we get enough talk, I wish we had more time to hash this out, to understand each others struggles.

Rollerderby in Europe is in a constant growth, it pulsates and it becomes something we can be proud of knowing we been a part of forming! Go fast and push harder, turn left.

A free day in BERLIN

So on Monday I stayed in Berlin to just hang out with Titty and Anna, and sadly enough Titty got sick... so I had to hit town with Anna and Kosmic... and after almost carting Kosmic off to the wrong airport (Berlin has two main airports) it was just me and Anna running out and in in stores... I tried on hiiiigh heels and then we had some Aisian food before we headed home to Titty who was in bed with the flu. To make my life a little more exciting I missed my flight, since i for some crazy reason had looked on my arrival time in Stockholm and assumed it was my departure time from Berlin. So I had to spend some hard earned savings on a new ticket home, because staying another day was not an option, I had a late night date waiting in Stockholm and a job e next day that enable me to go on those travels...  

Best shoes EVER.... I did NOT buy them!

Say no more...

EROC day TWO

Titty, me, Kosmic and Bananna on our way to the venue

Another day of getting up early - even if it's technically my day off - yaya... When will I get to sleep in? Well, at least not when EROC is going on... and it's exciting enough for me to not mind getting up by the crack of dawn...

Breakfast with everyone before the first "class" that contained two hours of Bloody Mary going over the new rule-set with some Q & A. I enjoyed going thruogh it all, and I took notes in Swedish, thought it might make it more accessable for some of my skaters that are native Swedish. It's interesting when you think about it, how much easier lots of things are in your native languauge and that is also one of the things we touched upon during the weekend, the language barrier... In general Swedes are quite good in English, so we get around quite well, but it probably has to do with that nothing really gets translated ever, who really cares enought to translate something to such a small language as Swedish... There is about a maximum of ten million people speaking Swedish as a first language...
Ah, well.... that was off topic, but Bloody Mary did a great presentation on the new rule-set and gave us some pointers about things that are quite important not to miss out on.
Well, whatever is cleaver, after teh two hours of new rules I headed into a disskussiongroup with WFTDA reps and reps for National Organizations...

EROC ended as always with a HUGE discussion with ALL the attendees... and once again we ended up talking about WFTDA and our National Organizations. I had to stand up and do an impromptu presentation about the Swedish Skating Federation infront of over 100 ppl. Made me nervous...

After that we went and scrimmaged, and it was GREAT fun, black v.s white, and we were about 40 ppl on each team, so we ended up splitting our team to only play one half. I played the first half and got to play with Rotation and Mainey and also Sabo and Bunny from Copenhagen. So it was good times and fun, felt like it was well-deserved after 2 days off siting down... argh... it does seem like everyone are catching some sort of  sickness, Shevil was hiding at home all weekend, and that was sad, because she is one of my favorites... she did come out for dinner ... I am CROSSING my fingers I didn't catch the derbyonic pleauge...

Dinner was with some of my favorite Berliners and Americans and it was classy and vegetarian, I love eating out in Berlin, soooo many options! MMmmm... rollerderby and food.... life is not about to get much better! 

Last BIG discussion!

EROC day ONE

Me and Titty on our way to breakfast... it's dark outside and it's Saturday...

I love how EROC evolve each year... I am very happy to be a part of the ever growing European rollerderby scene. I am not sure how excited I am about getting up at 07.00 my days off work...

I came to represent Stockholm together with our new Chairperson/Leauge President Reddie and our most experienced referee Fluke, both are two people I respect and enjoy spending time with.

First day was getting up early and hurry to the breakfast, say hello to a bunch of people that I like to call my friends (that would be the people I hadn't seen the night before at the welcoming party). It's always nice to see how many we are that show up to shape the future of European Rollerderby...

Say HELLO to Chairman Red... (I wanna star calling her Mao for no reason at all)

The conference started with leagues being grouped together. According to when they were founded : veteran, intermediate and veteran. Since Stockholm was founded in 2007 we ended up in the veteran group, the discussion pretty much followed the theme of what EROC 2013 would be about - WFTDA membership, national organizations, growing and merby.

After that I spent a little time listening to the Social Network System that sponsor Berlin and how they structure their communication. It was quite interesting, but not really sure if Stockholm need another forum...

Bloody Mary doing simple math so we all can understand what she's talking about...

Bloody Mary held a WFTDA talk with member leagues and AP leagues, as usual it's interesting to hear what Bloody has to say since she's going in on her 11th season as a player and have worked with WFTDA since 2009.

Paying attention... 

In the end of the day I was starving and headed for dinner with Red and a bunch of mostly officials (I don't know how this happens all the time) and had AMAZING Pho! Best Pho since I left Seattle!

When finished with food I went over to Master Blasters store Quad and hung out , Stefanie Mainey was fitting people with atoms new boots, I tried them on and they were surprisingly comfortable. And then I went out for a bite with KidBlock and Mainey, before I headed home to Titty and Anna

EROC for the third time

So many things have happened the past two years... I had just lived in Europe for about a month when I was asked to come to the first EROC - and it has evolved so much... European derby that is... my German has just gotten a tad better and I've visited Berlin probably about 10 times the past two years... VIVA Berlin... I had a short time I really thougth I wanted to move there, I still might be harboring a secret dream about Berlin... but I love Stockholm and I am getting quite serious about Stockholm being my hometown.

Anna and Titty - my weekend hosts

I am staying with Titty Twista and her GF Anna and I'm psyked to get to spend some quality time with them, just chilling and talking... Maybe some drinks and good food! I've made so many good friends through derby, and I am truly thankful to this sport that has made such a great impact on my life! Last year I stayed with Rotation and Shevil and the year before with MasterBlaster, and I am truly excited to see them all! It will be quite amazing!

When I came to Europe we only had one WFTDA leauge - now we have several - we have so many that we can sit down and discuss at EROC. I am truly happy and excited that rollerderby is pushing forward and to be a part of this! An to all the people that are in derby that have challanged me to be a better player, coach, captain and person in general!

STRD finally got our WFTDA-patches

Time to go to practice... in the icebox

Team ''Haaaaappy Donuts''

Today me and Loony are leading practice in the ice-box that I just named our hall... We just got back from EROC late yesterday... and it was AWESOME to get to scrimmage in a heated hall... even if the floor was sliiiipery, but I got to skate a few jams with Heavy Rotation, who is one of my favorite Berlin skaters, so that was good. Actually her and Shevil are my favorite two Berlin people, and me and Loony always end up staying with them, I also got to share the white team with Team Scotland skater Crazylegs, and tyhat was also fun... I bought a pair of new ugly leggings in Berlin... I always do! And I think I will wear them tonight as my third layer in the ''icebox''.
I will later write a blog about EROC - but right now I have to run home! 

Refusing to be sick - usually means even more sick

 I have not been feeling well for quite a while, but there has just been to many things to do, so I just have ignored it, I usually do...
 I totally hate being sick - but after a month of feeling like shit I finally broke down... well to be honest, my dad actually got me a doctors appointment last Saturday... and yes... It was bronchitos and I got antibiotics.

I randomly started nosebleeding during the Stockholm Boot Camp I was coaching, and I probably should have slowed down a little... so now I'm slowed down a little bit... So doctor said NO training for at least 4-5 days. I was going to Tallin on Monday anyway and would have missed Monday practice anyway, but I feel much better today, so I'm gonna join practice, but take it easy, really easy.

And tomorrow I'll going toBerlin to attend EROC - me and Maloony, we are two of the six (4 players and 2 referees) people going to EROC to represent Stockholm Rollerderby, and I am really excited about it. It is going to be really nice to go somewhere and not be in charge and just chill and listen to other people.

I really love Berlin - and once again we will stay with Shevil and Rotation - two of my favorite derby people in Germany (yes, they will be features in Derby Perople I heart later on). They have the most awesome place in Friedrichschein, and I love haning out with them. If my German was better and I had a job, I would move to Berlin in a heartbeat. Instead I try to go there quite often, I think I went to Berlin about five times alst year, it was closer from Malmö, it only took six hours on a bus... perfect overnight trip.

My first European Scrimmage

(I'm white on the backline looking for the jammer.... suprise... suprise... )

I am no longer a European virgin, I now have been hit and hold in Europe, and I enjoyed it. I went to EROC and held a strategy workshop with Bloody Mary and held a workshop in advanced skating. It was amazing to see how many leauges there is in Europe there is, and how hard they work. I had the joy of skating for the white team, and we won... and as I said in my workshop winning is fun, but that was really not the most important of this scrimmage. I loved to skate next to a Finn, a Swede, a German and a French, whipping an ex-pat American, while being hit by a Belgian and a Britt.

It is hard to say where Europe will be in two years, but considering how much will and hard work there is here I hope for our own WFTDA tournament... Oh YEAH baby...

What makes Europe so interesting is all those women come together, speaking all those different languages, different cultural references and at the same time they are just you GOD OL' DERBY GIRL...

And a big thanks to the Berlin Bombshells for putting on this amazing event, making it possible for so many girls to get together and share that thing we like to call derby loooove...