Leave It on the Track

Coming from Dutton Children’s Books / Penguin Random House in 2025

LEAVE IT ON THE TRACK was selected for Reese’s Book Club’s LitUp Fellowship in 2023.

content warnings: death of a parent, fire, panic attacks (on page), mention of suicide, anxiety, PTSD, condemned mention of transphobia in sports

Learn about roller derby

Roller derby is a fast-paced, full contact sport played on roller skates.

Roller derby is played in increments called jams. Each jam lasts up to two minutes.

Both teams field up to five skaters at the start of the jam. Four of these skaters are called blockers and one is called the jammer. The jammer wears a helmet cover with a star on it and scores points for the team. The blockers are playing both offense and defense at the same time and together, they make up the pack.

The two jammers start each jam behind the pack and must get through all of these skaters for an initial pass before they can begin to score points. When the initial pass is complete, a jammer scores one point for every opponent they pass with their hips.

The first jammer out of the pack legally is declared lead jammer, which means they can end the jam anytime they want before two minutes are up.

Sounds easy, right?

—WFTDA: Roller Derby 101

  • Definitely not! Roller derby is open to people of all genders, and there are different divisions and governing bodies to choose from.

    WFTDA (Women’s Flat Track Derby Association) is the biggest derby governing body. While it was traditionally founded by cis women, it has since expanded to include trans women, intersex folks, and gender expansive individuals. WFTDA leagues are open to all people who feel like it best represents their identity. There are many trans women and nonbinary people that skate with WFTDA leagues.

    MRDA (Men’s Roller Derby Association) is made up primarily of cis and trans men, but is considered open gender, and people of all gender identities are welcome.

    JRDA (Junior Roller Derby Association) is for athletes under age 18 and has divisions for women (which includes trans and nonbinary people) and open gender teams.

  • Yes, but almost all leagues have some kind of boot camp or training class that will teach you how to skate before you dive into scrimmaging. The basic skating skills you’ll need to start learning derby are crossovers, plow stops, turn around toe stops, backwards skating, and changing direction quickly.

    If you already have a skating background, inquire with your local league about their requirements for new skater training.

  • Yes! Many skaters (myself included) had never played a team sport (or any sport) before finding derby. People with a sports background might grasp certain skills faster than those without, but everyone learns at their own pace anyway. Don’t let that deter you.

  • Honestly, yes. It’s an intense full contact sport. Everybody gets bruises, velcro burns, and an occasional wheel in the ass. Some people will experience a more serious injury at some point in their derby career—broken ankles, dislocated shoulders, concussions, etc.

    When you start playing derby, you’ll learn how to fall safely to minimize potential for injury. You can do neck and ankle strengthening exercises at home to protect against concussions and breaks/sprains. The rules of roller derby are also very strict to protect skaters against serious injury.

    If you’re concerned about injury but still want to get involved, see if your local league has a training program for officials. You can officiate roller derby on skates as a referee, or off skates as a scorekeeper, penalty box timer, and more. Officials are always in high demand, and your local league will probably be thrilled to have you!