Jack Attack er en av trenerne vi hadde gleden av å ha på besøk i Oslo under bootcampen. Hun spiller på A-laget til London Rockin’ Rollers, samt Englands landslag. Det var en fullstappet treningshelg, men vi fikk tid til en liten prat.

 

 

What attracted you to roller derby?

The tough image and cool names.

Did you have any previous experience in roller skating?

Only when i was a kid.

You have skated with a lot of teams, what are the differences and similarities between the teams from different areas and countries?

The similarities are that all the same type of person is attracted to the sport and all the people involved have so much passion and heart for the sport once they are involved. Even if they can’t skate. The only differences are the accents and languages in my opinion!

How has derby affected your life?

 It has affected my life in SO many ways. Physically I am a lot fitter. Mentally I am a lot stronger. I have so many friends now and we are all passionate about the same thing even though we are all so different. I have a lot more drive and ambition than I had before and definitely no more spare time for anything else!

What’s your favorite position on the team? Why?

 If you mean in the actual game: Then Jamming is my favorite. Because I don’t have to keep so up to date with all the tactics and rules. I just have to keep skating and score points. If you mean on a non skating capacity: I enjoy coaching the newer skaters. I get a great sense of achievement from seeing them as fresh meat «wobbly» skaters and helping to develop them into derby girls that play for the travel team!

What do you think of how Derby is growing, the underground aspect vs. the more commercial?

This is a double edged sword for me. I want to see the sport I love grow and evolve but I don’t want it to be corrupted by money and power (like football/soccer). Let’s hope as it grows it can stay owned by the skaters that do it!