butt pads

hey all,

This is my first post. I am fresh meat with the SINtral Valley Derby Girls. I am tall and lean. I have long legs and although I am very fit, I am totally new to skating. I am falling a lot! I have sustained serious injuries (sprained ankle at my first practice...yep...I'm a clutz!) but keep trucking on. I am...let's say...a little lean in the posterior regions:) I need some butt pads, and I am not embarrassed to admit it! I am loosing my confindence because of the serious butt pain that I now endure when I fall (I did some damage back there I guess). I ordered some derby butt pads, and they were totally flimsy and useless. The ones that look like they may help are really for dudes and are totally hideous (I know that sounds lame, but hey...I want to look feminine). I am thinking of getting the sleek, lycra McDavid's and adapting them with some hard shell plating of my own.....has anyone else dealt with this issue successfully? I would be very grateful to any advice:) I wish I had natural cushion back there.

-Red Skare

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Permalink Reply by Detta Walker on April 9, 2009 at 11:48am: After one of my team mates actually fractured her tail bone (yikes!) she started stuffing a piece of a very padded yoga mat down her spanks... I know it sounds funny, and it does kinda look funny, but a skirt covers it up and her butt is loving the extra padding!

Detta; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Trina on April 9, 2009 at 11:59am: I was figuring that some smart Derby chick had done something home made like this and made it work! I am totally going to try that out! Thanks...I'm just returning these other pricey "Derby Pads"....

Red Skare; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Viva La Trouble on April 11, 2009 at 5:41pm: You could try snow boarding butt pads! The worked for me whe I first started. I used them for practice! They come in different sizes too!; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Scarlet GoDancin on April 13, 2009 at 4:08pm: Hey!

Check out the last two items on this website: http://sincityskates.com/2nd/protective/addl_torso.html

(One girl on our league loves the Ass Gaskets!)

Good luck!

Scarlet GoDancin
www.NEORollerDerby.com; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Lizbeth Von Lush on April 14, 2009 at 1:51pm: I havent used it.. but I've seen the tailbone protector that pro designed makes.. it looks nifty. I saw a girl in the Big Easy Rollergirls skating with one on. Sorry I can't be of much help.. but just wanted to point that out in case you havent seen it.

http://www.prodesigned.com/details/accessories_tailbone.html; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Anne Zysk on April 26, 2009 at 6:09pm: Hey Trina,

I too am a clutzsy newbie. My first skate practice, I broke my wrist in the bathroom! I have the McDavid shorts! They are freakin awesome! So worth every penny... www.xsportsprotective.com has free shipping and their prices are pretty in-line with everyone else's.

I have had many a great fall in my shorts. I'm a big girl and I fall a lot! Not so much as a bruise! I feel at one of our newbie practices on our concrete practice fall, I took down one of the vets with me, I popped right back up and asked her if she was okay. (she responded 'are YOU okay' it was really funny) So far as the extra padding, I haven't needed it. The shorts are very discreet and they look just like bike shorts! I wear them under skirts.

I also have the protective bra. It is worth the money, especially when I am impersonating superman. (with out success) It protects the girls but does give the mono-boob sport's bra effect.

Hope this helps!
Suki Tawdry; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Trina on April 26, 2009 at 9:29pm: Hey everyone...

Thanks so much for all of your replies:)

I really loved the admission from Suki about breaking her wrist at her first practice:) I know it hurt, but it felt good to see someone else share their clutzy story!

so I was gonna get the McDavid's, but I ended up taking Detta's advice. I bought some tight girddly underwear and shoved a thick piece of floor padding cut into a v shaped down my back side. Its the stuff that I used to pad my toddler's play area with...ya know the square shaped foam pads that fit together like puzzle pieces??? anyways, it works!

My coach suggested snow boarding shorts though like Viva did. So...it sounds like there's a few different things we can try.

Not falling though is key:) I don't fall as much anymore, but the butt damage is still healing (I have no idea what I damaged back there:) It just takes one fall without padding to send me back to butt pain hell again.:) It'll heal eventually:)

I love Roller Derby though!! Thank you to everyone who got it off the ground and who keeps it rockin'!!!!

-Red Skare; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Nasty Sinatra on April 29, 2009 at 9:29am: Have you been taught correct falling technique? The art of it all is how you fall, when it can be controlled. That could be harder for you since you are tall, and you have a lot more distance between your butt and the ground. Bending at your knees will help keep you closer to the ground and steady your position. Also if you are bending at the knees you are less likely to fall back on your butt. As for butt pads, a lot of girls in my league don't come to practice without them. I don't they they are truly necessary outside of bouting/scrimmage practice. That's the time when those uncontrollable ass-backwards falls occur most. The butt pads are a good idea, but falling technique is the sure bet to preventing those injuries.

Nasty Sinatra; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Marie Lopez on April 29, 2009 at 4:00pm: I only wish I were not so vain when I first started. "YOU GOTTA LOOK HOT" when youre skating. Well, I fractured my tailbone and the Dr. suggests I have it removed. No way. So now I am the team manager. I would do almost anything to skate again.

So... be safe... find your pads... learn to fall correctly.. leave Cute and Hot for your face, not your azz! ;0); ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Trina on April 29, 2009 at 4:34pm: Thank you so much for this reply. I am so sorry that you were so terribly injured. I agree, that safety is more important than being cute. I skate around with a huge floor pad shoved down my pants, but I think now that the tailbone protector (the small and discreet one) might be better.

I will pass this info onto our skaters.

-Red Skare; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Grand Poobah on May 29, 2009 at 1:51am: Damned right.

IMO some kind of ass-pads or tail bone saver ought to be required equipment, just like kneepads, elbow pads and wrist guards.; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by I.R Dastardly Esq on May 7, 2009 at 9:16am: Good to see that you resolved your issue. For future readers several girls on my team are of your dimensions and a fair number have said to hell with it and rock the triple eight bumsaver from sin city at practice. When it's just your girls who cares if you look like the starting winger for the Canucks. That seems to have solved most of those issues, barring the occasional unlucky fall that seems to miss all the pads. They tend to just risk it at bouts though.

I tell ya, tall and skinny seems to be the absolute wost dimensions for derby, you can cover a lot of track quickly but you'd better learn to fall and skate low.; ▶ Reply to This