Holding Space with Magical Wheelism

Throughout last year, derby folks filled their downtime with baking, gardening, and other kinds of socially distance-friendly skating. April "Jumpy McGee" Fournier (Maine RD, Team Indigenous) decided to pursue a long-held interest: public office! Last summer, she entered the race for one of Portland, Maine's City Councilor At-Large seats. I caught up with Jumpy back then. I found out what a candidate's life is like, how derby's primed her for this new, exciting endeavor, and why we all need to do our part to create the world we want to see. {{Spoiler alert: Jumpy won!}} Enjoy!

Get to know macrame plant hanger maker extraordinaire Rachel Avenido (aka Ice of Minnesota Roller Derby) of Icy Knots on this latest episode of "Pop-Up Shopcast"!

In this episode of "Pop-up Shopcast," we catch up with Austin-based Sam Barks (aka Mixed Hues). The Detroit native tells all about her influences, mediums, and lets us know how the pandemic has been treating her.    

In this latest episode of "Pop-up Shopcast," maker Caesarea Hendrix (aka Legs of Minnesota Roller Derby) tells us all about her handmade stationery and skin care! FYI: the video of this interview is available on this pod's youtube and Insta pages. Enjoy!   

What's up, peeps! I'm super pumped to introduce POP-UP SHOPCAST, an informal chat series with Black, Indigenous &/or Skaters of Color with entrepreneurial endeavors be they full-fledged businesses or nascent Etsy side-hustles. I've been motivated by these makers in our midst for some time now and have wanted to big them up somehow. Last year, I compiled a BIPOC biz list and have refreshed it a few times. This "Pop-Up Shopcast" series is meant to bring that list to life, to have these folks tell us about their work in their own words. First up: Taco Bruiseday and Ratchet, the midbestern sister duo behind the roller derby subscription box Bout Betties, the roller derby cross-training service Roller Derby Athletics, and the soon-to-be-launched "Small Business Mullet," a podcast for small businesses. Enjoy!        

Today’s special guest is topical, timely as well as just plain awesome. Manila Ice of Minnesota Roller Derby and Team Philippines, is a U.S. Census enumerator, which means they visit far-flung areas in their home state and completes the census form with residents who have not been counted. In case you don’t know what the Census is, it’s a national count that takes place every 10 years of every child and adult who resides in the United States, regardless of immigration or economic status, or political affiliation. It is a count that is dictated by the U.S. Constitution and is in turn used to apportion how many seats your area gets in the House of Representatives, how much funding is disbursed. The population number of this Census will determine the Electoral College votes are apportioned to each state for 2024’s Presidential Election--so it’s super important. We’re nearing the deadline for responses to the United States Census. It was originally set for October 31 and then shortened a month by the executive branch of the federal government and set for September 30, but a federal judge last week restored the original deadline. In any case, if you haven’t done so, get it in as soon as you can. It takes 5 minutes. The link is below. Enjoy the convo with Ice, who knows their stuff. We also talked about identity and the mood and conversations that have taken place at MNRD since George Floyd’s murder in neighboring Minneapolis. EPISODE LINKS:US Census: https://my2020census.gov/ Holding Space with Magical Wheelism is available on all your favorite podcast outlets. Help support the pod grow by subscribing and sharing it with friends! Rating and reviewing on Apple Podcasts also helps others find us. Follow the pod @holdingspacewithmagicpod on IG and @ThisisHSMWPod on Twitter Music: ROFEU, "Midnight Lover" Cover photo: James Corbett www.epiclifeimages.com and Instagram @epiclifeimages (https://www.instagram.com/epiclifeimages/)

Today’s guest needs little to no introduction for followers of skater social media. Neon is the creator of the @BIPOCWhoSkate instagram, which has become a clubhouse of sorts--equal parts home, hang, and hub--of BIPOC skater-centric topics, issues, and images. Through BIPOCWhoSkate, Neon hosted or sponsored Spanish-language skater terms classes, Q&As, events, book and film discussions, fundraisers, takeovers, and more. IRL the LA native co-founded and built a skating collective in Madison, Wi, where she landed after attending college elsewhere in the state. She’s also an alum of Madison Roller Derby and Team IRN, and is avid park skater. 

Windy City Rollers announcer and coach Jumping Spider talk all about the 10-part ESPN/Netflix basketball doc THE LAST DANCE  about Michael Jordan and the ’98 Chicago Bulls' final quest for their sixth and final NBA Championship. Ourconvo went everywhere from my unresolved animus as a New York Knicks fan, who were routinely antagonized by his Bulls, to the parallels and differences between roller derby and basketball. Warning: Spider and I go into spoilers but I think it’s an enjoyable listen whether or not you’ve watched the doc.   **** Holding Space with Magical Wheelism is now available on Apple, Spotify, Google Play, and Youtube. Help the pod grow by subscribing and sharing it with friends! Rating and reviewing on Apple Podcasts also helps others find us. Follow the pod on Instagram at @holdingspacewithmagicpod.   Cover photo: James Corbett www.epiclifeimages.com and Instagram: @epiclifeimages (https://www.instagram.com/epiclifeimages/) Music: Puzzle by Roa https://soundcloud.com/roa_music1031 Creative Commons — Attribution 3.0 Unported — CC BY 3.0 Free Download / Stream: https://bit.ly/al-puzzle Music promoted by Audio Library https://youtu.be/-ttCBruXsjo  

On today’s episode, we have Windy City Rollers’ Jumping Spider. We had a nice chat a few months back all about his five years announcing and coach. You can also catch Jumping on WARR Media (weareregalradio.com). *** Holding Space with Magical Wheelism is available on all your favorite podcast outlets. Help support the pod grow by subscribing and sharing it with friends! Rating and reviewing on Apple Podcasts also helps others find us. Follow the pod @holdingspacewithmagicpod on IG. Music: ROFEU, "Midnight Lover" Cover photo: James Corbett www.epiclifeimages.com and Instagram @epiclifeimages (https://www.instagram.com/epiclifeimages/)  

What does a musical-turned-film cultural phenomenon about the US founding father Alexander Hamilton performed by a majority POC cast have to do with roller skating? Nothing but for the fact that many skaters are huge HAM fans. (Not to mention there's also a decent-sized Venn diagram overlap between musical theater nerds and derby peeps.) So listen to Coco, Punkie, Scarbs, and PEGGY--err, Magic--dissect why HAMILTON is so special, important and, at times, problematic. And yet we'll never be able to say no to this (musical)! 

Kaio-kensi is a trained neuroscientist who also happens to jam for Montreal Roller Derby’s charter squad New Skids. And while the competitive season is kaput. Her interest and passion for brain safety is a boon for us all, and we should always listen whenever she feels like speaking about the dome from the dome. Especially all y’all newbies who be on your TikToks and your instas sans protective gear!  When she agreed to come on to talk brain safety accessibility in our sport, I had no idea that I’d be meeting an athlete who would travel about five hours back and forth to derby--even to a practice that started at 7:45AM, 11 out of 12 months a year--y’all, that’s love--and whose backstory illustrates that she’s always been the drummer and marcher of her own beat. Enjoy!  EPISODE LINKSKaio-kensi’s Tiktok on Helmet Use“Fresh Avo ca do” vine (RIP Vine!) Show Credits:Music: ROFEU, "Midnight Lover" Cover photo: James Corbett www.epiclifeimages.com and Instagram @epiclifeimages (https://www.instagram.com/epiclifeimages/) Holding Space with Magical Wheelism is available on all your favorite podcast outlets. Help support the pod grow by subscribing and sharing it with friends! Rating and reviewing on Apple Podcasts also helps others find us. Follow the pod @holdingspacewithmagicpod on IG.

Lío es un patinador de Monterrey, México. Platicamos todo sobre su experiencia en el derby y las rampas. También hablamos sobre el lenguaje y los términos con el cual una persona LGBTQIA + se autoidentifica y como el significado toma diferente sentido en México a la comparación que los Estados etc. Disfrute mucho mi charla con Lío y espero que también les guste. Show Credits:Music: ROFEU, "Midnight Lover" Cover photo: James Corbett www.epiclifeimages.com and Instagram @epiclifeimages (https://www.instagram.com/epiclifeimages/) Holding Space with Magical Wheelism is available on all your favorite podcast outlets. Help support the pod grow by subscribing and sharing it with friends! Rating and reviewing on Apple Podcasts also helps others find us. Follow the pod @holdingspacewithmagicpod on IG.

TJ “Scarbie Doll” Edwards is the rare example of a skater whose retirement accomplishments might eclipse her skating career. In 2011, Scarbie founded the Black Roller Derby Network, which today comprises nearly 1200 members. She is also the (literal) face of Team Side Eye, one half of BRDN’s annual Rollercon showcase bout. In non-derby life, TJ is a mom, an advocate for autism acceptance, and a published author.  Today, Scarbie inaugurates The First Lineup, a new periodic feature on Holding Space that highlights retired trailblazing derby skaters of color. She is also the first participant in a new brand-new segment called “Show ‘N’ Tell.” Wanna know more? Guess you’ll just have to listen. Enjoy!  EPISODE LINKSThe Graveyards on Sunset: Outrageous Hotel Stories from the Third Shift [E-book] by TJ Edwards EPISODE MVP: Black Diaspora Roller Derby [IG] [Facebook] *** Show Credits:Music: ROFEU, "Midnight Lover" Cover photo: James Corbett www.epiclifeimages.com and Instagram @epiclifeimages (https://www.instagram.com/epiclifeimages/) Holding Space with Magical Wheelism is available on all your favorite podcast outlets. Help support the pod grow by subscribing and sharing it with friends! Rating and reviewing on Apple Podcasts also helps others find us. Follow the pod @holdingspacewithmagicpod on IG.

Today’s guest, fitness coach and writer Octopus Prime announced earlier this year the winding down of Iron Octopus Fitness, her online fitness and coaching business for roller derby skaters. For the uninitiated, Prime’s work is anti-racist and rooted in body acceptance. I was an admirer and follower of hers for some time before becoming a client, and when I started this podcast she was the first person I told. Being such a supportive, anti-racist, all-bodies-accepting ally in the roller derby universe, from the jump I knew I wanted to invite Prime on the pod. We kicked around some ideas. Then it occurred to me: it’d be really interesting to conduct a quasi-exit interview with Prime. So ya girl pulled up the article “10 Most Important Interview Questions You Should Ask Employees Who Are Leaving (And Why!)” from Zenefits dot com and “The 37 Best Tarot Questions” according to Reddit like some new-age HR director and got to work. Enjoy!

Minnesota Roller Derby's Hurtrude Stein reflects on the road back to gameplay post-pregnancy and also shares what she holds as her post-pandemic derby visions for herself and the collective. The 10-year vet also translates some of her namesake Gertrude Stein’s sage words into derby wisdom.  But before we begin, I just want to wish all the mothers--in every sense of the word--in skating, derby, and the world a wonderful day. You keep the world on its axis. You are the trucks to our wheels. You are awesome.   

Last Wednesday, @BIPOCWhoSkate and @HoldingSpacewithMagicPod hosted a discussion about the film UNITED SKATES on Instagram Live. The 2018 documentary, which is currently viewable for free on HBO dot com & Hulu, chronicles the place of rollerskating rinks in African-American culture. Here's a slightly edited version of that discussion. (NOW with 50% less cat meows and zero buffering internet connections!) Enjoy!

Today’s guest Amz Collado, the one-woman powerhouse behind Butter Roll, a New York City-based POC-centered rollerskating social enterprise. As a creative endeavor, Butter Roll is one part memory and one part imagination. The name alone feels quintessentially NYC and evocative of the sleekest rink skating. Incorporating skater-curated playlists, women of color filmmaking opportunities, bygone skate images and education, as well as skate events, Butter Roll approaches rollerskating and jam skate culture as multi-disciplinary and, above all, for the people. 

This episode is dedicated to language and vision. I can’t think of a better time to converse with humans who relish in creating and speaking through visual language. Sam Barks is a full-time artist based in Austin, Texas. A former roller derby player who retired in 2016, the Detroit-native now street and ramp skates. Momo Fett currently skates for Darkside Roller Derby and the Casi Muertas skate crew of Costa Rica. They were also part of Team Costa Rica at the 2018 World Cup.  Our world could use some new ideas and images to take root, and I can’t wait for y’all to hear Momo and Sam speak for themselves on what and who their art speaks to. We had dope conversations that rolled through power, privilege, life, death, and representation. **** Holding Space with Magical Wheelism is now available on Apple, Spotify, Google Play, and Youtube. Help support the pod grow by subscribing and sharing it with friends! Rating and reviewing on Apple Podcasts also helps others find us. Follow us on @HoldingSpacewithMagicPod on Instagram. Music: Sunsearcher, "Latin Rhythm" Song interlude: “Costa Rica” by Slynk Cover photo: James Corbett www.epiclifeimages.com and Instagram @epiclifeimages (https://www.instagram.com/epiclifeimages/)

CoCo Butther of San Fernando Valley Roller Derby needs no introduction partly because she’s such a mainstay in skaterly environs online and IRL, and also because I just want y’all to listen to CoCo herself, who is passionate about BIPOC visibility and inclusion.  I’m confident everyone will find a piece of CoCo’s experience resonant though--be it skating her way through small, medium, and large leagues in search of a space that fits best, or coming out, or dealing with the bitterness and sweetness of being a Black skater in roller derby. Enjoy!

It’s time for TV Club! On this very first edition of TV Club, pod guests Queen Loseyateefa and Purple Reina have returned to discuss the Netflix sensation “Cheer.” The regal ones and I unpacked why watching a documentary about an insular, misunderstood sport practiced predominantly by women and queer-identified athletes in search of structure and community felt a little like looking in the mirror to the online roller derby community. Warning: This is a spoiler-full special, so if you haven’t watched it, come back in six hours after you’ve finished your homework!

In the 2019 WFTDA postseason playoffs, the wider roller derby universe witnessed the power and ability of Argentinean roller derby. Buenos Aires’s  2 x 4 became the first South American team to qualify for and compete at Champs. Sailor City, also from Argentina’s capital city, won the Continental Cup East tournament.  It was also arguably the first time the derby community learned of economic hardships faced by Latin American derby athletes, whose monthly salaries and national currencies are a fraction of their US and European counterparts.    But what might’ve been lost at the time was that 2x4 and Sailor City’s successes were the tip of an iceberg hinting at a whole glacier brimming with derby passion, activity, and accomplishment. Today’s guest, Maki Antoinette, Head Non-Skating Official for Sailor, fills in some of that obscured context. Maki has been involved in Argentinean roller derby for most of its existence and in addition to her NSO activity, she is also the South American chair for the Roller Derby World Cup. So sit back and enjoy.   EPISODE LINKS:  Oficiales de Roller Derby Argentina: https://twitter.com/SomosORDA Sailor City Roller Derby’s Go Fund Me: https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-sailor-city-to-travel

Punk of Arizona Roller Derby, talks about self-publishing her first book last fall. The poetry memoir, The After Life, explores grief after the loss of a loved one. She recounts how roller derby aided in her healing and writing, reads a poem for us, and much, much more.  And... skater and announcer Rosetta Stone of Sacramento Roller Derby, shares her favorite books of 2019 and talks about what it’s like to have Aspergers and play roller derby.    Rosetta Stone’s Five Favorite Books of 2019 List:Invisible WomenBraiding SweetgrassSemiosisThis is How You Lose the Time WarThe Seven Necessary Sins for Women and Girls Magic’s Four Favorite Books of 2019: The Body is Not An ApologyLead from the Outside The Body Keeps ScoreMake Ideas Happen EPISODE LINKS: The After Life by Lexi Locket: https://www.amazon.com/After-Life-Lexi-Locket/dp/169814170X/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=the+after+life+lexi+locket&qid=1580083612&sr=8-1 That’s my Jam youtube link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_do-VRz7os4 Lexi’s poetry page: http://instagram.com/poetrywithlexi ****Holding Space with Magical Wheelism is now available on Apple, Spotify, Google Play, and Youtube. Help support the pod grow by subscribing and sharing it with friends! Rating and reviewing on Apple Podcasts also helps others find us. The pod is @holdingspacewithmagicpod on Instagram. Music: Sunsearcher, "Latin Rhythm" Song interlude: “Book Me 2 Flirt” by Max McFerren Cover photo: James Corbett www.epiclifeimages.com and Instagram @epiclifeimages (https://www.instagram.com/epiclifeimages/)  

Time to look ahead! Welcome to the 2020 Questions Buffet -- the chill, pressure-free questions for 2020 discussion hosted by special guest Purple Reina (Tucson Roller Derby) and your host-est with the enough-sest!  EPISODE LINKS:Therapy for Black Girls - Session 136: 20 Questions for 2020 Holding Space with Magical Wheelism is available on all your favorite podcast outlets. Help support the pod grow by subscribing and sharing it with friends! Rating and reviewing on Apple Podcasts also helps others find us. The podcast is @holdingspacewithmagicpod on IG and I'm @modega_cat on IG and Twitter. Music: Sunsearcher, "Latin Rhythm"; Silent Partner, “Get Back” Cover photo: James Corbett www.epiclifeimages.com and Instagram @epiclifeimages (https://www.instagram.com/epiclifeimages/)

Purple Reina and I recap 2019’s moments and highlights in derby and skating. 

Atlanta Roller Derby's Queen Loseyateefa is rounding her 15th year in roller derby. We chat about her year as captain of the charter team, how she plans to challenge herself in 2020 (hint: she's joining a neighboring team), and the realities of leading a racially diverse roller derby squad. PLUS: We debuted two new segments -- "Ancient Derby Proverbs" and the gameshow that's sweeping the nation "Who Said Dat: Maim vs Mane."  EPISODE LINKS: "Systemic Racism in Roller Derby" by Queen Loseyateefa  - The Derby Apex: https://thederbyapex.com/systemic-racism-in-roller-derby-queen-loseyateefa-9baa17806f2d?gi=e1d268325ada

Hola hola, mi gente! La invitada de hoy, Ayudante de Satán, juega con River City Rollers en Richmond, Virginia y anteriormente Bogotá Bone Breakers en su país natal Colombia. Como jugadora de derby que ha jugado tanto en América Latina como en los Estados Unidos su punto de vista me intrigó. Sin mencionar que ser inmigrante latinx en 2019 en el sur me hizo aún más curiosa por tener su perspectiva sobre cosas que iban desde la historia personal de derby hasta su historia de inmigración. Pero mis preguntas van más allá de la política. Satán también es una panadera talentosa, una pasión que descubrió al tratar de recaudar fondos para el derby. Busquen su trabajo en “Satan’s Bakery” en Instagram. Y también podrán encontrarla en el Team Virginia All Stars en el torneo estatal Battle of the All-Stars (BOTAS) en febrero 2020.

Philly Roller Derby blocker Little Loca recounts the Pennsylvania team’s meteoric rise in the WFTDA rankings from 24th place in November 2018 to its current 8th place standing in the world and return to Champs after five years. Hear how Philly got its groove back, the insights Loca’s gleaned from 10 seasons of roller derby, and how she made it through a 70-hour-a-week nursing school program, postseason-bound charter team gameplay, and a concussion that sidelined her right before playoffs.  Phelicia “Phe” Wright was one of three skaters who figured prominently in 2018’s UNITED SKATES, a documentary on the significance of roller-skating rinks to African American culture. The Los Angeles native chats all about the film’s making, reception, and impact one year in. EPISODE LINKS:Little Loca: https://twitter.com/littleloca66 Phelicia Wright: https://pheliciawright.com/Skate Groove: http://skategroove.com/ ****Holding Space with Magical Wheelism is available on all your favorite podcast outlets. Help support the pod grow by subscribing and sharing it with friends! Rating and reviewing on Apple Podcasts also helps others find us. The podcast is @holdingspacewithmagicpod on IG and I'm @modega_cat on IG and Twitter. Music: Sunsearcher, "Latin Rhythm"; Silent Partner, “Get Back” Cover photo: James Corbett www.epiclifeimages.com and Instagram @epiclifeimages (https://www.instagram.com/epiclifeimages/)

For the past few weeks, numerous people-led revolutionary uprisings have taken place in several countries across the globe, including in Chile and Lebanon. Folks have been taking to the streets often with nothing more chants, signs, pots, and pans. Their demands? Better living conditions, an end to inequality and state corruption, and host of other issues.  As protests escalated, skaters took to social media to share first-hand accounts of their countries’ plight with the world. I was fortunate to speak with skaters Barbara of Las Cabras Rollerskate and Metropolitan Roller Derby, and Kenny of Brussels Roller Derby, who were on the ground in Chile and Lebanon--about all the protests, what the media is and isn’t covering, as well as the connections between skating and social consciousness. First up is my Spanish-language interview with Barbara (translated transcript link below). Kenny’s interview, which is in English, starts at around the 17th minute. EPISODE LINKS: Barbara's interview in English: http://tiny.cc/Cabras Musical Interlude: "My Life" by Jay Someday (https://soundcloud.com/jaysomeday) Photo credits: IG: Bosque.lluvioso; Joyce Goethals; NSP 189  **** Holding Space with Magical Wheelism is now available on Apple, Spotify, Google Play, and Youtube. Help support the pod grow by subscribing and sharing it with friends! Rating and reviewing on Apple Podcasts also helps others find us. Follow the pod on Instagram at @holdingspacewithmagicpod. Music: Sunsearcher, "Latin Rhythm"  Cover photo: James Corbett www.epiclifeimages.com and Instagram @epiclifeimages (https://www.instagram.com/epiclifeimages/)  

Team Indigenous Rising and Jewish Roller Derby claim space for just, inclusive, and expansive redefinitions to conventional team formation. At the Women’s Flat Track Derby Association’s Championships next month, these two teams will be taking the track for a monumental exhibition bout titled “We Are Nation.” In this episode, I speak with Jumpy McGee, co-founder of Team Indigenous Rising Roller Derby, and Tiggz, co-founder of Jewish Roller Derby all about it, as well as the importance of keeping history alive and present, and working towards roller derby that lives up to its revolutionary moniker. EPISODE LINKS: Team Indigenous Rising Roller Derby: https://www.facebook.com/teamindigenousrollerderby/ Jewish Roller Derby: https://www.facebook.com/jewishrollerderby/ WFTDA We Are Nation page: https://wftda.com/team-indigenous-vs-jewish-roller-derby-at-2019-wftda-championships/ We Are Nation’s Strong Athletic joint fundraiser: https://strongathletic.com/strong-athletic-line/we-are-nation-shirts/ **** Holding Space with Magical Wheelism is now available on Apple, Spotify, Google Play, and Youtube. Help the pod grow by subscribing and sharing it with friends! Rating and reviewing on Apple Podcasts also helps others find us. Follow the pod on Instagram at @holdingspacewithmagicpod.   Music: Sunsearcher, "Latin Rhythm"  Cover photo: James Corbett www.epiclifeimages.com and Instagram @epiclifeimages (https://www.instagram.com/epiclifeimages/)    

Liann “L-Dubz” Wadewitz skates in Gotham Girls Roller Derby’s rec league program and is on-skates official in the league. She works in TV, plays the violin in a local queer-friendly orchestra, and recently rode 480km (nearly 300 miles) on horseback in an endurance race through Mongolia’s Gobi Desert. All that AND she has enough time to make her own kombucha -- WUT?! EPISODE LINKS: Gobi Desert Cup: https://www.gobidesertcup.com Queer Urban Orchestra: https://www.queerurbanorchestra.org/ ****Special thanks to Liann, the Gobi Desert Cup, and Queer Urban Orchestra (QUO). The outro music is a piece of Johannes Brahms' Symphony No. 1 excerpted from QUO’s May 30, 2015 concert Music That Leaps Off the Page: Inspiration. Holding Space with Magical Wheelism is now available on Apple, Spotify, Google Play, and Youtube. Help support the pod grow by subscribing and sharing it with friends! Rating and reviewing on Apple Podcasts also helps others find us. I am @modega_cat on Instagram and Twitter. Music: Sunsearcher, "Latin Rhythm"  Cover photo: James Corbett www.epiclifeimages.com and Instagram @epiclifeimages (https://www.instagram.com/epiclifeimages/)

Modern roller derby's cult classic Whip It is 10 years old today. In honor of this auspicious occasion, I am joined by skater and noted man-bun connoisseur, Curly Fry, on a rewatch of Drew Barrymore's 2009 film. We talked about Whip It's significance within derby and the teen movie genre, how well the movie and its depiction of derby have aged, and imagined what a 2019 reboot might include.  **** Holding Space with Magical Wheelism is now available on Apple, Spotify, Google Play, and Youtube. Help support the pod grow by subscribing and sharing it with friends! Rating and reviewing on Apple Podcasts also helps others find us. I am @modega_cat on Instagram and Twitter. Music: Sunsearcher, "Latin Rhythm"  Cover photo: James Corbett www.epiclifeimages.com and Instagram @epiclifeimages (https://www.instagram.com/epiclifeimages/)

On this episode, we chat with Adrienne Cooper, a first-time entrepreneur, about reimagining the roller rink model and transforming it into Moonlight Roller Lounge, a 21-and-over skating venue set to open in Chattanooga, Tennessee in 2020. EPISODE LINKS: Moonlight Roller Lounge: https://moonlightrollerlounge.com/ Moonlight’s Kickstarter: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/rollerrevival/moonlight-roller-lounge-join-the-roller-revival **** Holding Space with Magical Wheelism is now available on Apple, Spotify, Google Play, and Youtube. Help support the pod grow by subscribing and sharing it with friends! Rating and reviewing the pod on Apple Podcasts helps others find us. You can find me as @modega_cat on Instagram and Twitter. Send emails or voice memos to magicalwheelismderby@gmail.com. Music: Sunsearcher, "Latin Rhythm"  Cover photo: James Corbett www.epiclifeimages.com and Instagram @epiclifeimages (https://www.instagram.com/epiclifeimages/). 

In this first episode of Holding Space with Magical Wheelism, Magic chats with skaters Skate Wytch (@skatexwytch), Courtney Shove (@fat_girl_has_moxi) and Sam Barks (@mixed_hues) about Roll Call, a three-day Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC) skater gathering held in Richmond, Virginia in early August. The inaugural event was attended by skaters from across the country and featured expert-led skating workshops, screenings, and discussions on BIPOC issues within skating.  **** Music: Sunsearcher, "Latin Rhythm"  Cover photo: James Corbett www.epiclifeimages.com and Instagram @epiclifeimages (https://www.instagram.com/epiclifeimages/).

In roller derby, holding space is an empowering, often intimidating, act of strength and strategy for one's self and/or teammates. Holding Space (the podcast) clears the floor for conversations that touch upon race, class, identity, and privilege to amplify stories, build community, and make more human connections in the skate world. Expect lots of smart, dope skate people musing about life on- and off- eight wheels and silliness (can’t forget the silly!) that you never knew you needed and won’t be able to live without.  *** This inaugural episode delves into the motivation and backstory that led to the creation of Holding Space with Magical Wheelism.  **** Music: Sunsearcher, "Latin Rhythm"  Cover photo: James Corbett www.epiclifeimages.com and Instagram @epiclifeimages (https://www.instagram.com/epiclifeimages/).