It was that same feeling of edgy anticipation that Hays County Assistant District Attorney Heather Youree got before going to trial. She knew she had done everything she could to prepare and was ready to do battle -- physically, mentally, even spiritually. She paced back and forth, mulling over the game plan, strategizing in her mind how she could win.
But there was only one thing that could release the flow of nervous energy building within her. No, it wasn't the calming sound of her own voice, asking those first few questions to potential jurors during voir dire.
Rather, for Youree, it was the shrill sound of the referee's whistle, urging her to skate her heart out, as she engaged her alter ego in a rough-and-tumble bout of amateur roller derby in San Antonio's Alamo City Rollergirls league.
"Whether it's a trial or a bout, that kind of nervous energy is very helpful," says Youree, who on game days morphs into her derby persona, Electra Cuter, a co-captain for the Dragon Divas. "It gets me to the point where I am feeling, "OK, I'm ready to kick ass.'"
Also ready to kick ass on Aug. 20 were San Marcos, Texas, criminal defense attorney and Dragon Divas co-captain Cathy Compton, aka Nita Spankin, and Bexar County Assistant District Attorney Anna Lisa Garcia, aka Hot Purrsuit, a member of the Violations team. With their 4-1 record, the Violations were in first place and had clinched a playoff berth for the September title bout that would determine the league's first champion.
