Yes, so that title is a triumph of SEO. But also, true! Here’s a list of great things sure to light up the eyes of any derby girl/guy/prefer not say.

If you need to get presents for someone who has been bitten by the skating bug, rejoice! Skaters need lots of stuff, it comes at a ton of price points, and, as you may have noticed, skaters can be…how shall we say…a teesy bit obsessive. So, no need for variety! Buy her a whole whack of skate toys, most of which can be ordered from the interwebs, in the comfort of your comfy things, and you are golden, my friend.

For everything skate related: Rollergirl.ca

Rollergirl.ca is based in Vancouver, but it’s also the best online source of roller skate and roller derby gear. Rollergirl.ca carries everything a roller skater, roller derby player, or aggressive skating enthusiast could possibly want, from gorgeous custom skates to stocking stuffers like laces, hockey tape and socks. They carry roller skates and accessories for men, women and children. They’ve even made things exceptionally easy for you this year with roller derby gift boxes at $20, $50 and $100. Done and done.

For stocking stuffers, they have small accessories for $10 or less, and if you are feeling spendy, custom roller skates can be $500-$1000. If you are buying for someone who wants to start roller skating or roller derby but doesn’t have any gear yet, fresh meat packages range from $287 to $425. Fresh meat packages include all the gear needed to start skating. Rollergirl also carries junior derby and ref-in-a-box packages.

The staff at Rollergirl know their stuff, and they won’t sell anything they haven’t personally tested and believe to be awesome. They also have some of the best customer service you will find anywhere. If you are not amazed by how knowledgeable and helpful they are, I’ll eat my wrist guard.

If you are not sure what to roller skate gift to get, just drop in, call or send an email to Rollergirl. They’ll know how to blow her socks off, guaranteed.

And don’t worry. If you are reading this on December 24, they have gift certificates!

Contact Rollergirl:
Web: www.rollergirl.ca
604-708-8602
1-866-900-ROLL (7655)
Store:
185 East 11th Avenue
Vancouver, BC, Canada
V5T 2C1
Hours:
Wed – Sun
11am – 6pm

For Roller Derby Apparel: Pivot Star

Pivotstar’s Xmas T-shirt!

Pivot Star is another great Vancouver company. Pivotstar makes shorts, hoodies and t-shirts just for roller derby. This Christmas, they even have a Christmas-theme roller skate t-shirt! They also have a bunch of special Xmas combos at a nice discount. And, just in case you’ve left things a teensy bit late, they do have gift certificates.

Luludemon, the owner and designer of Pivot Star, is a Terminal City Roller Girl All-Star, coaches with Camp Pivotstar, and personally scored more points against Team USA as a skater for Canada at the 2012 Roller Derby World Cup than any other player in the world. It’s safe to say she knows her stuff. She’s also an extremely nice person (off the track, that is). Awesome apparel, local company, sweet owner: Pivot Star is just good stuff all around.

If you’ve been around roller derby girls for more than 10 minutes, especially in Vancouver, you’ve probably seen some of her hoodies and shorts. They are extremely soft, comfortable and longwearing.

Pivot Star clothing is also available from Rollergirl, and many other retail establishments across Canada and the US.

Contact Pivot Star:
Web: pivotstar.com

For Roller Skate Toe Guards: Baby Bitch

These are custom Baby Bitch Toe Guards after a few months of derby practice on asphalt.

Derby is tough on skates, especially if her league ever practices outside or on asphalt. Custom toe guards protect skates and add style.

Baby Bitch creates extremely tough leather toe guards that protect skates from wear and tear. This is especially important for skaters who practice on asphalt. They have fun designs, and will create custom pattern for skaters. Their customer service is excellent, too. Depending on when you read this, it may be getting a bit late to order these toe guards for Christmas, but just write your derby girl a nice letter promising custom guards, and tell her you wanted to make sure she got the perfect design for her.

Derby Vixen also makes adorable looking guards. I don’t have personal experience with this vender, but these guards are really, really cute. Derby Vixen also offers gift certificates.

For last minute derby girl presents: Big box stores

Supporting local, independent businesses is massively important, but sometimes (like 8 PM on Christmas Eve), that’s just not going to happen. If you don’t think an email in-box full of gift certificates is quite going to cut it, never fear. You have options. Here are a few things that any skater would be pleased to have that you can pick up at any Canadian Tire, Walmart, or other big-box store.

Hockey Tape (bonus points for fun colours): Derby is hard on skates, and derby plays go through rolls and rolls of hockey tape. Get the fun colours, if you can, but even black will do in a pinch.

Skate laces: You can never have too many spare sets of laces. Just make sure you get her laces in a. her favourite colour, or b. her team colour. Do not get her laces in her rival team’s colours. That will just end badly for you.

Epsom salts: Full contact sport = lots of Epsom. Buy the big bag. If you want to pretend you didn’t just grab it from Costco, also pick up a big glass jar, and pour it into that before you wrap it. If you wanted to go all Martha on it, you could also throw in some dried lavender and tie it up all pretty-like with some ribbon (or new skate laces! Pretty and functional!).

Orange safety cones: Just trust me on this. Buy her sets of 12, in a few sizes if they have them. There’s all sorts of fun to be had with orange safety cones. No, really.

For when money just won’t do: Make Yourself Useful!

Whether you are broke, or you are trying to cut down on waste this Christmas, you don’t have to spend money to delight the derby fanatic in your life. At least, you shouldn’t have to spend money. It’s worth a shot, at any rate.

Wash her gear: You may have noticed that derby gear is painfully stinky. Give that gear a good rinse with a good grace, and you’ll earn many points. Just don’t wash it right before she has practice. Egads. That wouldn’t be good at all.

Cook her something: If she skates for a league, she probably has practice one-three times a week, plus committee meetings, plus cross-training. That doesn’t leave a lot of time for cooking and cleaning. Make a nice batch of something healthy and put in the freezer for her.

Give her a massage: Derby is a full-contact sport, and she’s likely to have all sorts of tight spots. I’m going to just stop right there, but you get the idea.