December Skater of the Month: Lish D Lish

Alicia, or Lish D Lish, is a jammer for the Dire Skates. Lish has been with the team for four years-- her dedication to the team evidenced by her time with the team and her amazing performance every time she hits the track.


Lish is one of our star jammers and one of our most recognizable players not only because of her seemingly natural ability as a skater and jammer, but because of her her obvious love of the game. She is always willing to take pictures with her fans after the game, showing off the smile that rarely seems to leave her face.


If you were at our game against A-Town on November 15th, you saw all of this in action. Lish played her heart out just as she always does!


Instead of telling you about her skills, I will let others explain how valuable she is to the team.




Our coach, the Golfather, had to this to say:

Alicia, or, as everyone in the local derby community knows her as, Lish D Lish is a great skater and is improving every time that she laces up her skates. She listens well and takes what us coaches tell her to heart. For those who were at the November game, Lish probably played her best overall game. We had to control her emotions a few times, but that just shows that she has the heart for the game and wants to do her best. She has also had to overcome a few injuries. With a few added tools to her game she could be a huge threat on the jammer line for us.

Stubborn Itch, Lish's derby wife said this:

What can I say? If some of you didn't know, Lish is my derby wife and always will be no matter what. Not only my derby wife but, dancing partner, close friend, and side kick. When Lish first came to the team, I remember her try-outs were very impressive! You could tell she was a skater! During try-outs she didn't show any shyness. It was all confidence and determination. She is a people-person, dedicated, very tough, and a confident woman. Lish is always wearing a smile even on her worst days. I knew we would hit it off because she has those outbursts sometimes. That told me she is as real as real can get. No cover up on who she is really is. Her skating skills have always been extremely excellent, but if you know derby, we all know that derby is a different style from casual skating. With that being said, since on the team Lish's skating skills have gotten even better. I will let you all in on a little secret that even Lish didn't know. Lots of us know how ridiculously fast Lish is. Well, being able to skate with her on the track during practices has helped me achieve a goal that I set for myself. I set the goal that I would be as fast as her one day! Not sure that I have completely accomplished her speed yet, but I have achieved it to the point I am happy with myself and she is all the one to thank for that. So I personally want to thank her for that! Lots of people and new skaters look up to her for her skating skills, dedication, determination, toughness, confidence, and always wearing a beautiful smile on her face. Congratulations on working hard enough to get noticed to be the team's skater of the month!

I'm so very proud of you and keep up the good work! I love you!

Shelby, Lish's sister, added this:

I am proud of Alicia. She has came so far in her skating career. She is the Michael Jordan of this game. It is amazing being a twin with Alicia because together we can do anything. There have been many times when Alicia's fans have come up to me asking for an autograph. I smile and tell them "I am not Alicia, but I will tell her you said hi." The street goes both ways people come up to Alicia and able her about fixing automobiles and riding a motorcycle. She kindly apologizes and says, "No, I am not Shelby, but I will tell her you said hi." I am proud of Alicia and I believe that the rest of the family is also. Keep it up, Alicia.!

Maniac Jack, added this about her derby sister:

jam skating might be her groove, but she has fast moves on the flat track. Over the years of skating with Lish one things comes to mind: she always has a smile on her face. And she is one hell of a jammer. Okay, that was two. There is more--Lish might be little, but she is mighty. Even in practice she will take a beating and come back for more. To end this I have to say I have never been more excited than when I saw her hip check the other jammer during our last bout. Thanks for being my teammate and derby sister!

Here are a few photos from our bout against A-Town that show Lish in action, but you can check out more photos here:

Thanks for all you do, Lish!

Vet Profile: Stubborn Itch

Name: Stubborn Itch

Number: 1019 

Position: Jammer and Blocker, but mostly a Jammer.

Signature Move: I guess power pushing my opponents forward or skating really fast.

Tell us about your non derby self: I work at Whirlpool in the paint department and paint the blenders or mixers that might sit on your counter. I have one child who is my world and I live in Piqua, Ohio with my very supporting boyfriend and two German Shepherds. If I'm not doing roller derby I'm working and coming home to spend the rest of my day with our two girls (dogs) and Bryan. When it's nice out I like to cook on the grill.

Why did you join roller derby?: I was playing softball with a girl who was once on the team and she convinced me to come and try out. When I was younger I used to go to the skate all the time and always got in the races, but just casually skating and derby skating are way two different things. But yeah, when I use to skate at my younger ages I was a pretty good skater then.

What is your favorite part of roller derby?: The exercise, muscle, and endurance that I have gained from this sport. I also have gained a lot of friends during the 4 years I have been doing this and that's really important. Most of all my dad passed away in December of 2012 and he was so proud of the fact he had a daughter in roller derby. So now when I skate I always have him on my mind and tell myself I have so skate for him as if he is watching from above, rooting me on. I skate the way I do because I was always taught by him to always do my best and never give up. That's why I push myself to be a better skater each time I skate. 

What is your roller derby goal: I have several goals. I don't pick out all the good I have done after each match. I try to pick out all the things I did wrong so I can set those as my goals and try to conquer those goals just to make more to conquer. I have tried to make my name and number known to the crowd and to other teams that we may play. Anyhow, I feel I'm constantly setting goals to better myself as a team player and an individual skater. 

What do you hope The Dire Skates can do for Richmond?: I hope we can show people what all Richmond really does have to offer and that there are still good things that do happen for those whom are not so fortunate. I hope we can also as a team give back to the community and help in any way that we can.

What are you skating on right now?: The flooring that we skate on is two totally different floors. One has me using the hardest wheels I have in my derby bag which I think are 93's which means it's a very nice sticky floor. The other floor has me skating with my Poison 88's, which means it's a very slick floor and I need stickier wheels to get some grip. My skates that I have are Vanilla's.

If you could skate anywhere, where would it be and why?: On a regular basis outside of practices and matches I would like to skate outside and around town. I have a dog that learns trick and is easily to train that my goal is to eventually to train her to pull or walk with me while I skate around town. Skating outside gives you great practice as far as being able to stay on your skates and balance. Those rocks can be very tricky sometimes! As far as some famous place I really don't have a particular place because I love to skate and I don't care where it is.

If you could have a famous person skate for Dire who would it be and why?: I would want it to be PINK the singer! she just looks as if she would be one tough skater and she seems as if she isn't afraid to go out of her comfort zone. I think she would be a fun person to hang with and skate with. Plus she could sing to us while we skate! lol! 

Tell us one thing you want us to know about you: I am a hard shell on the outside, but I have a heart of gold on the inside. I will always go out of my way to do anything for animals and children. I use to work with Autistic, Downs, and Multiple Disability children for 3 years. And I spoil my dogs like they are my children. Oh, and I'm really dedicated to my team because I drive and hour to go to practices and an hour back so that is a two hour round trip. I do what I need to do for my team! 

Tell us one thing about another skater: Lish D Lish is the true meaning of a strong woman and not to mention I'm glad to call her my derby wife!