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Get away

Soul 'n' roll

By DALIA WHEATT
Published October 20, 2005

TAMPA - They go by nicknames like Munchie, Slick Rick and Average White Girl. They were skating long before Roll Bounce made it cool, and they'll keep skating long after the movie has been forgotten.

Each Sunday night, about 125 adults congregate at United Skates of America in Tampa for Soul Roll, an 18-and-older roller skating session. While the DJ spins classics like Kool & the Gang's Hollywood Swinging and Michael Jackson's Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough, the skaters show off moves that would be impressive enough on solid ground, let alone on eight wheels.

Some come from as far as Orlando for the weekly event, which began nearly six years ago.

By day, they are an unassuming group. Their median age bracket is 35 to 45. Some are parents; many hold white-collar jobs.

New Port Richey resident Joey Curtis, 32, is a fifth-grade teacher. At first glance, her blond hair and bookish glasses make her an unlikely Soul Roll participant. But with swift steps and a signature spin called "pearlin'," Curtis has earned her props in the rink.

"I get from a crowd like tonight, "You skate pretty good for a white girl,' " said Curtis, whose skating name is J.C.

Clad in a T-shirt that reads "It's not the skates, it's the skillz," Curtis spends much of the session at center rink with a group of women in orange and white jerseys who call themselves Step n' Style. The group joins up during Soul Roll to synchronize its moves. It's like a Greek step show on wheels.

Regular Soul Roll attendees don't just skate together within these walls. The Fabulous Eight, a group of men now 15 skaters strong, travels to Atlanta every Labor Day weekend for a national party known as Skate Jam. Many Soul Rollers have criss-crossed the country. They say national skating parties are like family reunions.

The skating rink is a sanctuary to many of the regulars, according to Saletta Coleman, online production manager for www.getyoursk8on.com "For a lot of us, once you start, you can't function during the week without it. It's your sanity during the week," said Coleman, 28.

After the three-hour event, which ends at midnight, regulars are known to shoot the breeze in the parking lot until 3 a.m. And Coleman, a.k.a. Pilot Girl, is right there with them.

"A lot of friends call it their church," she said. "It's where they feel the most free."

Soul Roll is 9 p.m.-midnight Sundays at United Skates of America, 5121 N Armenia Ave., Tampa; $6 admission includes regular skate rental. Call 813 876-5826 or go to www.usa-skating.com

[Last modified October 19, 2005, 10:43:05]