Members of the South East Sask. Roller Derby Association's Junior Coaler Rollers were able to learn from a professional on Friday at the Bienfait Memorial Arena.
Lucy Croysdill, who competes under the name Luludemon and is a coach for Terminal City Roller Derby in Vancouver, offered instruction to the Coaler Rollers. Croysdill also has experience playing for Team Canada.
"She spent three hours in the morning with our new skaters and our younger skaters, working on the basics of skating and building their technique, and then she has been with us for four hours in the afternoon to work on a few advanced skills and a little bit of strategy, and a little bit of how we can improve our game play for this season," said Lorelei Lachambre, who is one of the coaches for the Coaler Rollers.
Luludemon said they discussed jamming skills and offensive and defensive strategies, to help the Coaler Rollers be ready for their first game of the season.
"Something we've been really working on today has been organized and co-ordinated teamwork strategies," said Luludemon. "We've been taking the time to work together, come up with a plan and execute on a plan. I think that's an important skill in roller derby and life."
She admits she did not expect the Coaler Rollers to be so far advanced in their abilities. They have some excellent skaters, and that's a testament to the coaches and their efforts to train the skaters.
"I'm very impressed with their understanding of the game, which is really high, especially with them being juniors," said Luludemon. "Although sometimes it's easier to coach juniors than it is to coach adults. I coach a lot of adults, and sometimes their brains are too full to get new stuff in."
Luludemon is a professional roller derby instructor who travels around and offers instruction to athletes. She loves how roller derby is a sport that offers a lot of camaraderie, and has a lot of really strong women.
Lachambre said it is very important for the Coaler Rollers to hear from someone with that much experience, and to know that they're doing a lot of the right things. But she recognizes they still have room for improvement.
"I think it will have a huge impact on our game play, and (it will help) to be inspired," said Lachambre. "To have such a role model here to learn from is very inspirational, and will really push people to do better."
The Coaler Rollers took a lot of notes, and will employ a lot of the information from Luludemon into their practices, which should translate to improved game play this season.
