CRRG's Rockabelle On Her First Bench Coaching Experience.

Cedar Rapids Rollergirl jammer/blocker Rockabelle made her bench coaching debut Saturday night for the CRRG Bombshell Cartel against the Mahaska Mayhem. She is the author of this piece, which gives a bit of insight into the thoughts of a Derby girl confronting coaching for the first time. Rockabelle is the author of this piece.

Have you ever watched the MTV series called ‘If You Really Knew Me?’ It profiles high school students who are brought in to a ‘Challenge Day’ where they are pushed outside of their comfort zones to be taught many, many lessons about themselves. The leaders of the day compare their comfort zones to about a 2’ x 2’ square box.

Well, if you really knew me…..you’d know that my comfort zone is on a 148.5’ x 236.5’ oval track, in the middle of a pack, with lots of hard-hitting action. I was pulled out of this comfort zone (okay, maybe it was more of a gentle coercing) by the beautiful ladies of the Bombshell Cartel last night as they took on the Mahaska Mayhem on their home turf.

I started playing roller derby in the fall of 2008. I’ve been bench coached more times than I can remember. I knew what I liked in a bench coach and how I prepared for a game so I’d be a master at this right away without nerves or anything. Right?!

Getting ready to head out for Oskaloosa was the first time I felt the tables turn. My husband is a ref and I got to stand there and watch him put his (larger than life) gear back into the back of my truck while my gear bag stayed tucked away in the comforts of my home. He looked at me and said, ‘How weird does this feel?!’ It felt pretty different, but I shook it off as I also hadn’t been experiencing any of the bout day jitters that I normally get and hadn’t yet hunkered down in my pre-bout routine to start mentally preparing myself like I normally do.

After arriving at Oskaloosa's local skating rink - Spinnin' Wheels - I realized I hadn’t talked to my co-bench coach, AJ Renegade, about our strategy and how we’d run the bench. AJ and I met and talked about our roles – both being new to the bench coaching world, neither of us was sure how the night would turn out. We decided that I would watch the action, call plays and coach the players on what they did right or what to work harder on next time. All the while, AJ would organize the squads.

We had this down! I had my role, AJ had her role, the Bombshell ladies were warming up on the track and I suddenly experienced the awkward feeling of not knowing what to do next. Do I stand here and watch them warm up? I had already gotten their numbers on their arms. AJ stocked the bench with more water. Do we discuss plays? Strategies? It was quite odd not having eight wheels underneath me and being on the track chatting it up with the opposing team as we prepared to go head-to-head in derby battle!

I thought, no! Just chill out, be there for the girls if they need anything and just revel in the fact that your nerves aren’t………crap. There they are. The nerves set in. I couldn’t believe it! I mean, I wasn’t about to take on a newer team – a team that has been steadily getting better and better, harder hitting and was out to capture their first win! No. I wasn’t.

However, I was there to be a fearless leader to the Bombshell girls that wanted to steal that win from them. I was there to help the two girls who were bouting for the first time. I was there to help call the plays and keep the team working as a cohesive unit. I was there to spread the knowledge I’ve received as a Helldorado and pass that knowledge along to our Bombshell ladies. I had a lot of responsibility on my shoulders. No less responsibility than the ladies on the track had. It just came in a completely different form.

The introductions were done. The Star Spangled Banner was complete. Now was time for the action to start. If you really knew me…..you’d know that I had an absolute blast bench coaching this amazing team. You’d know that I was impressed with how I kept my cool, coached the newer girls, and praised everyone for the great things I saw on the track. You’d know that I was pushed way outside of my comfort zone and learned many lessons about myself. And you’d know that although these ladies didn’t bring a win home for Cedar Rapids, I am incredibly proud of how these newer girls played and cannot WAIT to get an opportunity to bench coach again in the future.