Kent teacher to bruising blocker: McDowell mixes it up in roller derby

By day, Nicolle McDowell is a math teacher and yearbook advisor at Mattson Middle School.

By night, the Kent teacher leaves sweet “Nicolle” behind and embodies her alter ego, Narca-Lexie, a bruising blocker for the Toxic 253 roller derby team.

McDowell (inset photo) routinely makes the evening drive from her Covington home to the Tacoma skating rink, shedding formal wear to don a helmet, pads and skates.

It didn’t take long for McDowell to get hooked on a fast-pace, physical game. She began skating in her youth but revisited the rink when a friend invited her to a roller derby bout in Tacoma. McDowell soon was swerving and skating alongside other Toxic ladies at the Rollin’ 253 Skate Center in Fircrest.

“When I got into it, I just wanted to do something fun,” said McDowell, who joined the lineup last August and has been a regular ever since. “I’ve never felt exercised like this. I’ve never sweat like this in my life. I feel healthy.”

The name Narca-Lexie came from something relevant to her life. Being narcoleptic, McDowell turned her condition into a rough-and-tough roller derby personality, complete with starry knee-high socks, blue hair and glittery leggings, telling her opponents “I can knock you out.”

That’s one reason why McDowell enjoys the game and why most spectators watch. She likes being able to hit people.

The diminutive McDowell absorbs her share of bruises and scrapes from being thrown by her teammates into other players in order to block the jammer, the position on the team that scores the points. But she doesn’t shy away from the pain. It’s expected in this sport and something she chats about with her students after class.

“If I was worried about getting hurt, this wouldn’t be the thing I’d join,” McDowell said. “I love to come to work because my kids think I’m bizarre. (They) love to see when I have bruises (and) hear my stories about how I got hurt.”

McDowell, who is training to become a jammer, brings energy and grit to the team, a mixture of women of all ages and abilities. They invite players from all skill sets to skate with them.

While the team does not promote violence on the track, roller derby is a full-contact sport. And for Adrienne Connolly-Poe – assistant coach and fellow skater from Covington – the hitting, falling and bashing isn’t something negative but rather just another aspect to the sport. It definitely defines her style of play.

“I’m Veronica Vicious,” she said. “Hardcore, hard hitting, threat to the other team – my name fits me because I’m aggressive.”

Connolly-Poe doesn’t consider roller derby vicious unless people consider getting tackled on the football field violent, too. She says that some teams stage fights and rig matches, but everything Toxic 253 does is real, including the injuries.

“I’ve seen people break ankles, knees, collarbones, elbows …” she said.

Even now, Connolly-Poe broke her ankle during a scrimmage match and has to take a break from skating for a while.

Getting hurt just comes with the sport, even when you’ve got years of experience, McDowell said. And Connolly-Poe explained it’s a part of the culture. The game builds friendship and camaraderie.

“We’re a social network for sure,” she said.

Connolly-Poe, one of the original Rat City Roller Girls, has seen a lot of changes to the sport in the nine years she’s skated and coached roller derby in the Pacific Northwest. But one consistency, she says, is the interest this region has shown in the sport, more so compared to other parts of the country.

“It’s big here,” she said. “We have so many leagues, it’s insane. There’s more here than anywhere else.”

So it comes as no surprise to McDowell that her 6-year-old daughter wants to join the Cleanup Crew of the 7-17 junior league to be a “roller brat” when she’s old enough.

McDowell loves the team aspect surrounding Toxic 253 as opposed to other teams, feeling the bond between her and the other women.

“The thing about my team … there’s great sportsmanship,” McDowell said. “It’s a really good team because they work to make everyone feel good about themselves.”