Roller Derby. A full contact sport on roller skates. So welcome to day 4 of blogging every day for 21 days as I celebrate these athletes and encourage you to do the same.

As you likely know, the US Women’s Soccer team won yet another World Cup this year. And you may have noticed a surge in people wearing jerseys with the names of their favorite soccer players on the back. I was loving reading about this, watching the inspiring videos, seeing the photos, and feeling the feels.

Progress for women in sports, when most of us know that women have been doing amazing things as athletes for years but rarely getting the seat at the table or the spot on the television. So, I’m here to remind you that right in your own backyard, whether that backyard is Portland, Maine or any other city wherever you may live, there is likely this awesome sport happening where unpaid athletes train hard and dedicate hours of their time to play a sport on roller skates and you can go cheer them on.

And maybe one day we’ll see kids walking around wearing jerseys with the names of their favorite roller derby player….

The images seen here were all taken this winter at Happy Wheels Skate Center in Portland, Maine and feature members of Maine Roller Derby. You can find more info about the league here