A new name, a new sport, some new blisters

Just a short post and I doubt anybody will really care who's not me, but it felt time for a change of name, mission and picture. I've had this blog since January 2011 and in the last 18 months it's seen some huge changes. From "I'm losing weight and getting fit through derby" to "Derby is amazing and important but now I have goals beyond dress size" to "I've fallen and I can't get up" I've put it all on here. However, I always kept the name as I firmly believed that, even when recuperating in hospital after surgery, that derby genuinely did me good. Thing is, I'm now writing about things other than derby more often than I describe the world of flat track and it felt that the name was becoming something of a misnomer.

To the victor goes the high fives.

I chose "25 in 5 to 42.2" because in the beginning days of my blog I was obsessed with my performance in the WFTDA basic endurance test of 25 laps. I filled screeds of text on here, facebook and twitter about my latest attempt to get under 4 minutes (my current record is 4:06). With my shift to the famous marathon distance it felt like a fitting way to mark the transition. The photo is of, I think, the happiest moment in my entire derby career and possibly the moment when things changed for me. My team had just beaten their old rivals for the first time in history. It was a wonderful moment and I'm glad someone caught it on camera. With any luck I'll feel that elation again on the 28th October. It's a reminder of the best of the sport and just amazing playing and taking part in stuff like makes me feel.

I hope I don't alienate any readers who know this as a derby blog (though let's face it, if you did you'll be long gone by now!) and that you'll continue to read and support me on this. I'll still be skating and writing about it of course (since when did I ever stick to one topic) but this is too important a mission not to keep a journal.

And of course, thank you to everyone who takes the time to read this. I always think it's amazing when people come up to me and say they read it and talk about something I've written, or leave messages on facebook, twitter or (very rarely) the blog itself. Your support means a lot.

Bruja x