I've been Mommy, Wife, Housekeeper, Maid, Nurse, Tutor, Taxi, Chef, Errand Girl, and Business Owner.
(That last one has taken up a lot of my extra mental storage and "spare" time, what ever that is. )
Business Owner?! You're probably thinking, "How out of touch have I been with Liz?" Or "What have you got yourself in to now?!"
Really, just roller derby.
Remember two whole posts ago, when I talked about starting the Blacksnake Roller Girls? Well, it took off, a lot, and I can now call it officially my business. This also means, that if it tanks ever, than I will cry, a lot.
Let me summarize. Enough girls were interested and had enough practices in, that we were able to schedule our first game for April 28th. I expected 500 people. 1500 people were in attendance! I was to the moon with excitement! It made money, rather than lost money. It was an edge of your seat, exciting game! It was the best night of derby, EVER!
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| Neat fact, that's my silhouette. |
I helped create the logo with the awesome talents of Edith Myfist, one of my teammates from Dead Girl Derby.
Then we were in parades, and people started recognizing us.
We were able to play against Dead Girl Derby teams in June (that's when this whole thing became officially mine!), July, and August. Each game we made money, which we promptly spent on advertising for the next game. DGD skaters were jealous of our arena, and our fan turn-out. It felt pretty good!
September, we decided to have our two house teams play against each other, Frankly, we had been creamed all season by the more experienced DGD skaters, and felt it would be a better game for the fans to watch. Boy was it! It was an intense, lead switching game! First, the Vixens were in the lead at the beginning of the first quarter, then the Janes took the lead (I'm a Jane), then we were tied in the 4th quarter, then finally the Vixens took the lead and won by 6 points. Oh my goodness was it a great game! Such a good game, that no one Jane felt that they lost, and no one Vixen wasn't grateful to the Janes for laying it all out on the track!
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| This wasn't everyone, but most of us, excited after a hard fought game! |
It has been an excellent season. I am sad to have this season be over, and knowing that we won't have a game in that arena until next spring, is a tough pill to swallow. I am grateful that I don't have to stress over, the arena being paid, contracts signed, ordering and selling tickets, collecting ticket money, making sure insurance paperwork for the games is in order, that we have enough refs, etc. I'm also excited to see the new recruits coming in October (we are hoping to add two more teams, which means we need about 35 more girls).
I never would have guessed, that when I first stepped in to a dimly lit rink to check out the new roller derby league practicing in Liberty, Missouri, that in just a few short years, I'd be running my own league! I've had some amazing people step up and help out, take over responsibilities, just because they love this sport as much as I do. I can not express how much your efforts and investment into this sport means to me! I have made some wonderful new friends, that don't live hours away from me!
I haven't made a dime yet, because I've invested every bit back in to making this league more well known, more visible, and bigger, better for the skaters. (It's nice not having to drive an hour to practice, and I do get the perk of not paying dues.) Some day, though, I'll get a paycheck, but right now, my best paycheck is seeing other women, like me, who have found something they never knew they were missing out on, and now can't imagine being without. Women who had forgotten who they were, or that they even needed some "me" time, and now have more confidence and are happier. Right now, I can see the fruit of my actions, and how those actions have brought joy to others, and because (get ready for some BIG news) I love to make others happy, that brings ME immense happiness!
