{"id":4683,"date":"2019-09-30T21:06:00","date_gmt":"2019-09-30T21:06:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/f8explorer.com\/?p=4683"},"modified":"2023-07-22T21:19:58","modified_gmt":"2023-07-22T21:19:58","slug":"rocktown-rollers-nerd-returns-to-organized-chaos","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/f8explorer.com\/index.php\/2019\/09\/30\/rocktown-rollers-nerd-returns-to-organized-chaos\/","title":{"rendered":"Rocktown Rollers&#8217; &#8216;Nerd&#8217; Returns To &#8216;Organized Chaos&#8217;"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong><em>Audio story by Mike Tripp for WMRA (NPR) radio.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It\u2019s been 11 years since the Rocktown Rollers brought the sport of roller derby to Harrisonburg. &nbsp;WMRA\u2019s Mike Tripp recently visited with a couple of the team\u2019s players, one a veteran returning from an injury and the other relatively new to the team.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-audio\"><audio controls src=\"https:\/\/f8explorer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/ROCKTOWN-ROLLERS-MAIN-TRACK-FINAL3.wav\"><\/audio><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity is-style-dots\"\/>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1760\" height=\"1374\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/f8explorer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/download-15.webp?resize=1760%2C1374&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-4684\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em>(Photo by Mike Tripp)<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">EVENT ANNOUNCER: She keeps it one hundred. Your captain \u2026 number 100 \u2026 Revenga d\u2019Nerd!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">[Crowd cheers]<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"alignright size-large is-resized\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/f8explorer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/download-16.jpg?resize=590%2C431\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-4685\" width=\"590\" height=\"431\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/f8explorer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/download-16.jpg?resize=1024%2C747&amp;ssl=1 1024w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/f8explorer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/download-16.jpg?resize=300%2C219&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/f8explorer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/download-16.jpg?resize=768%2C560&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/f8explorer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/download-16.jpg?resize=1536%2C1121&amp;ssl=1 1536w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/f8explorer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/download-16.jpg?resize=70%2C51&amp;ssl=1 70w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/f8explorer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/download-16.jpg?w=1760&amp;ssl=1 1760w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 590px) 100vw, 590px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em>Revenga d&#8217;Nerd (center) warms up as she skates around the rink at the start of practice at Funky&#8217;s Skate Center. Known off the track as Nickie Gauthier-Martin, she teaches English as a second language at a local high school. (Photo by Mike Tripp)<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">NERD: Revenga d\u2019Nerd! Because I\u2019m a nerd! Off the track and on the track!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Nickie Gauthier-Martin loves her derby name. It represents who she is. It represents her journey with&nbsp;<a href=\"http:\/\/www.rocktownrollers.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Harrisonburg\u2019s Rocktown Rollers<\/a>. For her it means \u2026 developing strength, endurance, having fun and establishing life-long friendships. But her preference is the shortened form of the name \u2026 Nerd.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">NERD: I originally became interested in roller derby when a friend of mine made friends with a roller derby team in North Carolina.&nbsp; I became a little obsessed, and then I decided when I finish graduate school I was going to move to North Carolina to be on this roller derby team.&nbsp; But by the time I finished my graduate studies, there were two teams actually in the area &#8212; one in Harrisonburg and one in Charlottesville. So, I joined the Harrisonburg team which is the Rocktown Rollers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">[Sounds from the bout.]<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">She lived her dream for several years, competing alongside her teammates \u2026 her friends. &nbsp;But then she got hurt.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large is-resized\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/f8explorer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/download-17-936x1024.jpg?resize=702%2C768&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-4686\" width=\"702\" height=\"768\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/f8explorer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/download-17.jpg?resize=936%2C1024&amp;ssl=1 936w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/f8explorer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/download-17.jpg?resize=274%2C300&amp;ssl=1 274w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/f8explorer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/download-17.jpg?resize=768%2C840&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/f8explorer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/download-17.jpg?resize=1404%2C1536&amp;ssl=1 1404w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/f8explorer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/download-17.jpg?resize=64%2C70&amp;ssl=1 64w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/f8explorer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/download-17.jpg?w=1760&amp;ssl=1 1760w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 702px) 100vw, 702px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em>Katherine Chaos (right), aka. Katherine Bray, of the Rocktown Rollers goes down during a bout against SuperNOVAs, at Funky&#8217;s Skate Center in Harrisonburg in September. (Photo by Mike Tripp)<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">NERD: Oh man! That injury was terrible! So I\u2019m wrapping up my tenth year of roller derby and this was my first major injury that took me out. It was unfortunate that it was the first five minutes of our first game of this season, and I just took a big hit. And I fell weird, and I shattered my fibula. It broke in three places, and I could not have any weight bearing for two months.&nbsp; And after that I walked in a boot.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And that\u2019s when, she says, the team really came through for her.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">NERD:&nbsp; Nobody emotionally prepared me for that, but the league was awesome. It comes down to community. They didn\u2019t let me stay down very long. They brought me food. They did my laundry. They vacuumed my carpets. They visited me. They sent me funny videos. They did everything they could to keep me up and keep me included. And I did. Even though I couldn\u2019t walk I \u2026 [becomes choked up with tears] \u2026 I came back. \u2026 I came back to practice. It was really nice. Even though I couldn\u2019t skate, I would just come to practice and sit in the middle and have hand weights. And I would just exercise and be a part of the team. It was really special.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So she waited. Not always patiently, but she waited. And then, September 14<sup>th<\/sup>\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">NERD: Well \u2026 After seven months, I skate with my team again, and they\u2019re my family.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So what is roller derby? It\u2019s more that ladies just skating in a circling pushing and shoving.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">NERD: Ok, the sport of roller derby is a 60-minute game and two 30-minute halves. Each team has 15 skaters, and they field five skaters at a time on the track.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">One skater from each team \u2026 identified by a star on the helmet \u2026 is designated jammer for that team. She is the one who scores the points.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large is-resized\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/f8explorer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/download-18-1024x788.jpg?resize=768%2C591&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-4687\" width=\"768\" height=\"591\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/f8explorer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/download-18.jpg?resize=1024%2C788&amp;ssl=1 1024w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/f8explorer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/download-18.jpg?resize=300%2C231&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/f8explorer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/download-18.jpg?resize=768%2C591&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/f8explorer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/download-18.jpg?resize=1536%2C1182&amp;ssl=1 1536w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/f8explorer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/download-18.jpg?resize=70%2C54&amp;ssl=1 70w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/f8explorer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/download-18.jpg?w=1760&amp;ssl=1 1760w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em>Revenga d&#8217;Nerd and Katherine Chaos slap hands with fans as the Rocktown Rollers skate around the rink following their bout against the SuperNOVAs. (Photo by Mike Tripp)<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">NERD: There\u2019s no ball in the game. &nbsp;You can maybe envision that person as a ball if it helps you think of the points.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The other four skaters are blockers, playing both offense and defense at the same time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">NERD: Once each jammer gets through the pack of blockers the first time, then that jammer scores one point for each opposing blocker she passes in a two-minute period.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">First person through the pack is designated as lead jammer, and this person can actually end the two-minute period, otherwise called a \u201cjam,\u201d early should she choose.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">NERD: But otherwise it goes two minutes and they try to score as many points as they can by passing through as many times as they can.&nbsp; Really, it\u2019s easy to consider the jammers the star of the game, but there\u2019s incredible talent in a defensive and an offensive line. \u2026 It\u2019s just chaos. It\u2019s chaos. But the more you play, it becomes organized chaos.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">[Natural sounds from the bout]<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Speaking of chaos, meet Katherine Bray. She\u2019s one of the newer members of the team.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large is-resized\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/f8explorer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/download-19-1024x753.jpg?resize=768%2C565&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-4688\" width=\"768\" height=\"565\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/f8explorer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/download-19.jpg?resize=1024%2C753&amp;ssl=1 1024w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/f8explorer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/download-19.jpg?resize=300%2C221&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/f8explorer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/download-19.jpg?resize=768%2C565&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/f8explorer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/download-19.jpg?resize=1536%2C1129&amp;ssl=1 1536w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/f8explorer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/download-19.jpg?resize=70%2C51&amp;ssl=1 70w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/f8explorer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/download-19.jpg?w=1760&amp;ssl=1 1760w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em>Katherine Chaos makes her way through the pack as jammer for her team during a bout against SuperNOVAs. (Photo by Mike Tripp)<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">KATHERINE CHAOS: My name is Katherine Chaos, and I started this in January. And everyone I know was extremely surprised, but here I am. I had to start from scratch really. I skated a lot growing up, but it had been years and years since I had been on anything with wheels. So basically, they trained me again from the start. For me, the hardest part is being able to stay focused when you\u2019re out there. There is so much going on around you and there are people moving all over the place. You know, it\u2019s really, really hard. It definitely feels like draining sometimes to push through people or to be constantly going and trying to stop somebody. But at the end of it, you\u2019re still standing up, you\u2019ve made it and you feel good.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">NERD: I wouldn\u2019t say everybody can do roller derby, but most people can. I think we make it as possible as possible. It\u2019s a dangerous sport. Yes, it\u2019s aggressive, but we give people the skills they need to be able to play and enjoy it and be safe. And that\u2019s coming from the woman who just broke her leg, so \u2026 you know \u2026 just come play and have fun.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">EVENT ANNOUNCER: Alright! That was a roller derby bout, I\u2019d say!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Audio story by Mike Tripp for WMRA (NPR) radio. It\u2019s been 11 years since the Rocktown Rollers brought the sport of roller derby to Harrisonburg. &nbsp;WMRA\u2019s Mike Tripp recently visited with a couple of the team\u2019s players, one a veteran returning from an injury and the other relatively new to the team. EVENT ANNOUNCER: She [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4686,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"nf_dc_page":"","om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[69],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4683","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-audio-stories"],"acf":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/f8explorer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/download-17.jpg?fit=1760%2C1926&ssl=1","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/f8explorer.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4683","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/f8explorer.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/f8explorer.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/f8explorer.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/f8explorer.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4683"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/f8explorer.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4683\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4690,"href":"https:\/\/f8explorer.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4683\/revisions\/4690"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/f8explorer.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4686"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/f8explorer.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4683"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/f8explorer.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4683"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/f8explorer.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4683"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}