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Published: April 24th 2012
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Gracie and I awoke to a gorgeous warm day and rented a car. We drove to Durham, NH to see roller derby: Rochester NY's
Roc Stars vs New Hampshire’s Skate Free or Die. Brianne skates for the Roc Stars, and this would be the first bout I’d see her in. Her skating name is Harriet Beecher Ass, but she’s known to teammates as Beecher. (Her son Kiernan’s “skater” name is Son of a Beecher.)
Gracie navigated well, and even sang some of my favorite songs, so the trip went quickly, and we made it to the UNH campus arena in plenty of time. The bout was exciting and frustrating to watch. I was impressed at Brianne’s nerve and physicality; I see how growing up with older brothers prepared her for this sport. I flinched every time a woman fell, and wanted to give the refs a piece of my Mad Mama mind when they sent my baby girl -- quite unfairly, of course -- to the penalty box. Gracie ran the merch table just like she did when she lived in Rochester, and seemed very happy about it.
I had trouble taking pictures of the fast-moving game
and was disappointed when they came out without any hint of all the drama we witnessed, but that’s how it is with old-person reflexes. Roc Stars lost—the final score was 134-132. If the game had ended 3 seconds earlier, they would have won.
We skipped the second bout, which involved the B teams for both leagues, and the afterparty, returning to the hotel room that the three of us and another skater shared. I drove around looking for a place that sold lobster rolls – there was no way I was leaving this New England seafood mecca without one. I did find a place still open, and the lobster roll was everything I could have hoped for. I ate it without a thought of taking a picture of it. But trust me: it was gorgeous!
Back in the hotel room, we laughed at videos Brie has of the kids, and we wished so much that they could have been there as well, but it would have been a hellish weekend for them with two 8-hour car rides in two days. So we settled for the videos. They’re getting so big, and so full of personality, and now Kiernan
is reading! It’s amazing, and I miss them so much. Gracie will get to see them over the next two weeks after I leave NYC, so that’s something. But the chance to spend this time with both my daughters was a joyful gift that I’ll always remember and appreciate.
The next day we checked out of the hotel and returned to UNH for a private bout with Vermont. The Roc Stars won, but I don’t know whether or not it counts toward their standing. We hung around a bit longer, then said our good-byes. Gracie and I left for NYC, and Brie and her team drove back to Rochester.
Sunday was 30 degrees cooler than the previous day, and it poured the whole trip back. Luckily, the car we rented had fast and powerful wipers, or we would have been in trouble with all the trucks on the road. One more lobster roll before leaving New England was important, and a little seafood bar in Haverhill, MA did the trick. Again, I didn't take a photo. Sorry. You deserve better.
Driving back to the city was a trip of memories, passing the exits to Boston and Hartford;
Windsor Locks, where I worked for a week every few months in the early 1980s; Middletown, where I attended a Writers Conference at Wesleyan one summer; Long Wharf Theater, where I attended performances when I was writing music and theater reviews; Yale; Bridgeport, Stamford, all those little seaside towns on Long Island Sound we passed on trips between New London, where Ron and I lived, and NYC, where our families lived, so many years ago. I’m glad I got to drive those roads again, even through the pelting rain. We got back to Astoria safely, and fell into our beds as the rain continued unabated.
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Gracie
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Note: Rochester's roller derby league, ROC City Roller Derby, can be found at rocderby.com . Thanks for keeping up with our adventures!