LYNDEN — In summer 2020, it seemed that everyone was buying a pair of roller skates and taking to the parks and the streets. The surge was largely due to TikTok influencers sharing carefree videos of themselves effortlessly rolling down palm tree-lined streets with calming music floating in the background. During the pandemic, roller skating also encouraged everyone to socialize outside.
However, that summer and the pandemic didn’t breed a surge for everyone in the roller-skating community. Namely, roller derby — an indoor full-contact sport on roller skates — and its robust community went mostly dormant.
“I wasn’t able to see my friends, and they’re really my family and my support system,” said Nona “Princess Rainbow Sparkle” Larson, a skater with the Bellingham Roller Betties.
Now with a drop in COVID-19 cases and widespread vaccines, roller derbies are, tentatively, returning to regular practices and putting some scrimmages on the books. Here in Whatcom County, the Bellingham Roller Betties have laced up their skates, secured their kneepads and returned to the Lynden Skateway.
“It feels really good,” Jeana “Wendy Belltolls” Couchman said. “I forgot how much work and commitment it is.”
