POWERGRAMS

27 in my department and felt out of place. I needed something to do. I read on Facebook that the team was looking for new members. And since I had been a good skater as a kid, I just went." Brown grew up rollerblading with friends. She bought her first pair of Rollerblades at age 7, using money she received for Christmas and her birthday. Brown soon found that skating on four wheels instead of two was an adjustment. She spent the first four months learning to skate fast and take hits before she decided roller derby was for her. "You have to do 28 laps in 5 minutes just to get on the team," said Brown. "That means you are hitting a full lap every 10 to 20 seconds. The fastest I have skated is 31 laps in 5 minutes, and I thought I was going to die. It's a lot harder than it sounds." Keeping in shape for the team is a daily process, Brown said. She often practices speedskating with her teammates at area skate parks, attends yoga class twice a week and works out with a personal trainer. Brown gets added exercise by walking her dogs, Zeus and Echo, along with dogs she fosters through the Greater Birmingham Humane Society. Brown said she is having fun on the team, but she has learned some important life lessons. "It's the first time I wasn't good at something," said Brown, noting that she never had to study hard in school and finished college in 2-1/2 years. "I have learned to have fun, while watching other women who are way better than me. I have realized that I want them to be better because I will need them when I'm out there on the track." Brown said the players may seem like a bunch of "tough girls." But off the track, they are simply women from all walks of life who share a passion for skating. "There is a lot of camaraderie," Brown said. "I don't mean just within our team. Everybody who plays roller derby knows everybody who plays roller derby. People really care about each other."

• Cover