E: Where are you from?
V: I grew up in West Palm Beach Fl

E: What are your non-derby hobbies?
V: Bike riding, online poker, I love love love my dogs, and hanging out in my backyard.

E: Who do you skate for?
V: I skate with ACDG on the Block Steady Crew and I'm an alternate for ACDG's travel team

E: What position are you?
V: Mostly I am a blocker/pivot right now but I occasionally jam.

E: And you made the move from Austin to LA. Tell us how you ended up in Austin?
V: I moved to Austin after I graduated college with my boyfriend Palmer. We didn't
want to move to LA or NY, but we wanted to live somewhere we could find film work;
Austin seemed like the best choice.

E: When did you join derby and why?
V: I joined the TXRD Lonestar roller girls in 2004 after going to a bout and seeing
the Rhinestone Cowgirls skate against the Holy Rollers.They had a recruitment booth setup and I ended up getting drunk and my friends egged me into signing up for tryouts. The next day they called me up and told me when and where they were holding tryouts. I never had any interest in being involved in team sports until then, derby looked like so much fun I'd never seen anything like it, and I am so glad I did it.

E: How long have you been skating? What's your roller skating background?
V: I skated when I was a kid at the skating rink for birthdays and sometimes on the
weekend. When I was 10 I got my first pair of rollerblades, and my neighbor Jenny
and I would set up chairs and trash cans and try and jump over them. We would also make up synchronized dance routines on skates, and at 15 I started skating for exercise purposes. I stopped skating at around 18 and didn't put a pair of skates on again until I was 23 and tried out for derby.

E: What teams and leagues have you skated for and how long?
V: I skated with TXRD in Austin for about 4 years with the team the Putas Del Fuego, and just recently in January 08' started skating with ACDG in LA on the Block Steady Crew.

E: What was your teams theme and general attitude?
V: The Putas theme is bitches/whores from fire and the uniforms were black and red with flames. I was really really fortunate to be a part of the team, they were well
established and are actually friends. I had 2 different captains throughout the
years Holly Peno and Chola, and they both believed strongly in not only focusing on your skating skills but also worked really hard on team building. We spent a lot of quality time together doing team retreats and weekend trips. The Putas believe strongly in the family unit and being able to know each other off the track so we could trust each other on the track. That strategy worked really well and my
favorite derby memories so far have come from spending time with my team.

E: What were your feelings before and after the Rollergirls Show?
V: Before the show I was still so new and everyone pretty much seemed really excited and hopeful that it would be a success, so I was excited too. It seemed like fun and the Action Figure company who were talking with us were really really nice. They were respectful of our privacy, and the crew working on it were fun to get to know.
The show ended up coming out and it just didn't cut with the ratings so it was
canceled. Even though the series didn't last I'm glad that TXRD signed on. It didn't
really matter if people loved or hated the show because it at least got the sport
out there. I mostly hear positive feedback from skaters who watched it and were
nervous about getting involved in derby but the show gave them the confidence. Since then over a hundred leagues in the states and another handful across the world have sprung up. I'm not saying that it's all because of Rollergirls, but I think that it did help bring it to a lot of people who may not have otherwise known
about roller derby.

E: What was it like being a part of the cast? Did the camera crew follow you everywhere you went?
V: It was a little strange at first but after a month or so it didn't feel
uncomfortable at all. The cameras didn't follow us around all the time, they would
work with us and our schedules. The crew was all around the same ages as us and when the cameras were off we were able to build a relationship with them that made it a relaxing environment.

E: Didyour local community treat you differently?
Not that I noticed. I think both TXRD and TXRG already had a pretty solid fan base, so the people I ran into around town were all really nice. Although when we were shooting the Real World was shooting at the same time, and we got mixed up with them a couple times; that was always funny.

E: What did your family and friends think of the whole thing?
V: When I told my mom I was going to do it she was really nervous about it, I don't
think most people would be too excited if you tell them you've decided to be in a
reality show. Once I told my family we were not going to be voted off or be followed around all the time and I was really proud about what I was doing and the women that I was doing it with, they warmed up to the idea. After it aired my mom would have her girlfriends over to watch the show. I'm still not sure if she really understands derby since we live so far away, but I think she thought it was so crazy that her daughter was on TV.

E: Was the show an accurate representation of your league? The sport? the Culture?
V: For the most part I think the show was pretty accurate, but any reality show is
going to have some manipulation. Rather than just turning on a camera we were asked specific questions which are edited to create a story. Watching after being a part of the league it's hard to see from an outside perspective. I'm sure if I analyzed every scene I could pinpoint certain issues that are blown up bigger than they were and others that are down played, but it's really just reality TV. Love it or hate it, it got derby out to people who may not have otherwise known about it, and
inspired women to skate.

E: How has roller derby changed since you started?
V: When I first started skating with TXRD one of our trainers Greg was from the
original roller derby style. He encouraged us to incorporate planned plays into our
bouts, and we skated with really really lax rules. Skaters would take each other out
but cutting across the track and knocking the other jammer down if they had lead.
There were penalties that were given but they weren't as strict as they are now. The competition has increased so much since then within the league because of growth and experience, that the plays aren't done anymore.
The flat track leagues seem to of had the biggest change since the conception of
WFTDA. Now that there is a set of rules that all the WFTDA leagues skate by, the leagues from all over the country have had the opportunity to compete against one another.

E: Where do you think roller derby will be in 5 years?
V: I have no idea, but I hope that this resurgence of derby has longevity. Roller
derby started out as a sport for me, and I took it very seriously. I was so
interested in being a good skater that I didn't realize what kind of an impact it
would make in my life. I would hate to see it become exclusive, making it impossible for certain women to get involved. A lot of the skaters who are on teams right now wouldn't make the cut if we start to take ourselves too seriously. Besides that roller derby is it's own, it shouldn't have to conform to any type of standard. We should still skate hard and it should still be competitive, but any woman who is willing to try her hardest and gets out there should have the chance to grow through derby.

E: What caused you to move to LA?
V:I was offered a job and figured it was a good opportunity and took it.

E: What do you like about LA derby?
V: Since I had the opportunity with TXRD to skate against LADD, it was really nice to move somewhere I was already pretty close to a handful of the skaters.

E: What are the differences between flat and banked?
V: The corners seem to be the biggest difference. On the banked track when you go up high on the corners you will shoot out of it gaining speed and hopefully as a jammer speed past the blockers. On the flat, it seems like when I've gone into the corners and taken the outside there are three blockers that have cut off the path to the straightway since I'm used to being pulled into it. Also the banked track has
railing along the outside which puts a stop to a jammer and occasionally sends them flying through it off the track when they get blocked into it. In flat track you go
sailing out of bounds when you get blocked to the outside. There are differences to both but the majority of skaters can adapt to either if they put in the time to
adjust to the changes.

E: How has it been getting accustomed to the new rules?
V: Not as bad as I thought it would be. I think I'm a pretty clean skater but I'm used
to using my elbows which is not in the WFTDA rules. It's taken a couple months but I'm slowly getting used to the change.

E: Why did you choose to skate flat in a city that has both?
V: I had planned on continuing skating banked, but then I heard about ACDG's travel team. I'm not sure how many more seasons I have left in me, so I figured I'd take the opportunity now to travel and get to skate against different leagues. Hopefully in the future more banked track leagues will start up and that opportunity will be available no matter what you skate.

E: What are you looking forward to most this season?
V: Traveling with ACDG's travel team and getting to meet and skate against women from other leagues............ and after parties.