Interview by Carolina Hernandez
Photography by Mara Lei Monteiro
Being a roller derby powerhouse wasn’t enough for Loren Mutch, she stepped into street and park and became a threat anywhere she laces up. One of the most fascinating skaters I’ve ever met, her brain genuinely deserves its own case study. So come with me as we dig into her mind, her years in the game, her evolution beyond derby, and some wild stories from her time on the Red Bull team.
It’s been a while since you visited. How is life? How is Portland?
It’s actually a gorgeous day today. It’s so nice out, I think I’m going to skate later.
Fuck yeah! Finally, it’s pretty rainy there, right?
Yeah.
When was the first time you watched skating and thought, Yeah, I want to do this?
Well, I grew up in skateparks with my dad and my uncle because my dad and my uncle were skateboarders and on the skate team. So, I was kind of always in that scene. And then, when I was 14, my sister’s friend’s mom was starting a roller derby league in Kitsap County, Washington, and I thought that sounded cool, and I thought I could do it. Even though I was the worst roller skater at every kid’s birthday party, for some reason, I thought I could do it. I just thought it was cool, and so I did. And then, after playing derby for years, I started dabbling in skateparks because I saw some other people doing it, too. And since my dad was a skateboarder, he would call roller skaters and bladers fruit booters.
Nooooo. No way!
My dad’s proud. He’s proud. It’s just that’s kind of how the culture was, you know.
That is so funny. Okay, so coming from roller derby, which is a sport known for its DIY culture. You know, the motto “for skaters, by skaters” and everything around it, how do you feel that shaped your experience with roller skating?
It’s interesting because when it comes to roller skating, it’s like I don’t know any other way. I mean, because when you play organized sports in school, it’s very much structured from the top down, and the coach tells you what to do and stuff. But with roller derby and roller skating, we really make it our own, and I don’t really know any other way. I think it’s pretty liberating to have that because we get to decide which direction we want to take it, and we have a lot more ownership and responsibility for how we push the sport forward.
Absolutely, I think we both had kind of a similar experience because we started roller derby when we were young. And I think just growing in our environment, surrounded by so many women and non-gender conforming people who are also super dedicated, and they have other jobs, and they come from all walks of life, I think it’s pretty interesting to have that friend group.
Yeah, especially starting young, it really teaches you valuable life lessons like how to work with a team and how to solve conflicts. And honestly, just having that tight community is really, it sounds dramatic to say, but life-saving. We need community; it’s so important.
I think especially with the DIY culture, you end up relying more on the people next to you rather than on outside structures, like you might in other sports. And I think that mindset really shaped this wave of roller skaters who came out of roller derby—they feel pretty different from the Covid skaters, or even the ones before us. Can you feel that difference too? From your perspective, what does that experience from roller derby bring to roller skating?
Yeah, I do see the difference, I can’t make assumptions. I think roller derby is so structured. We have practices at this day
and time, and a lot of teams will have an attendance policy and requirement. You have to put in volunteer hours, and you have to do these outside jobs for your team on top of training really hard. Maybe there are more rules in roller derby, and fewer rules in roller skating, or the rules in roller skating are just unspoken, but yeah, that’s part of it.
For some of our readers who might not know about roller derby—we’re not going to go deep into it—but you kind of have an alter ego when you play. What is your alter ego?
I guess it’s a little bit of an alter ego, but it is me at the same time. But yeah, when I play roller derby, I’m really, really confident. I think I’m able to be confident when I play in games because I know that I’ve come prepared with my training, and I know that I can rely on my teammates, and I know I have the receipts that I’ve done it before, so I can do it again. Also, sometimes you have to fake it till you make it, but it does make a difference. It’s a place where I feel really confident. I don’t always have that same confidence in other areas of my life. Sometimes I do, but I feel confident when I play roller derby. I’ve been playing for 18 years, so I know. Honestly, I’m ready for a little break from roller derby, and it’s not bad. I’m not sad about it. I know some of my teammates are a little sad, but it’s really time. I feel really proud of what I’ve accomplished in roller derby, and I feel proud of what I’ve done, and I hold myself to a certain standard when I’m on the team in terms of training and performance, and if I’m not going to train at that level, then I don’t want to. I think it’s time for a break. I’m really enjoying doing other things. I’m not saying I’ll never come back to derby, but it’s time for a break, and that’s okay.
Yes, and I see myself so much in this answer as well. It’s crazy because the time I quit derby, I literally did it because you have this sense of responsibility with your friends and your teammates, and you’re like, they’re expecting me to do my best because they’re doing their best. At some point, I was like, I literally cannot even give myself my best.
Yeah, and we don’t have half-ass things.
For sure! Have you ever gone from an after-party straight to skating? Like, you go to an after-party after a roller derby game, you leave, and then go skate right away. Have you done that?
Yeah! One time was at RollerCon, which I guess is a lower stakes game. But right after a game at RollerCon, I went immediately to the skatepark. I guess that’s not that crazy. I think a lot of people do that at RollerCon. But at the World Cup, I’m the USA roller derby captain. We are in Austria for, you know, the biggest event that happens only every three years. And I had to take my chance to street skate in Austria because I’m not going to go all the way there and not skate. So, it was the day before the tournament started, I’m at the park in the streets skating with Mia, which maybe some people would say is risky because it’s before the tournament, but to me it was worth it. I’m not going to not skate.
Yeah, makes total sense. Lots of derby skaters quit ramp skating because of fear of getting injured. Have you had that feeling?
Yeah, before the pandemic, I would only park skate in the off-season because of that. But then, in the more recent years, it became the opposite, where I was afraid of getting hurt in roller derby, and I wouldn’t be able to street skate. Because both of them are dangerous.
You were afraid of both of them. You’re taking double the care.
I’ve had a few concussions in roller derby.
Dude, the thing with roller derby is that people think ramp skating or street skating is scarier, but you get to stop whenever you feel like, ‘Oh shit, I’m not doing this anymore,’ you know? With roller derby, you have people hitting you. It’s out of your control.
That’s the thing, you can’t control other people. You can’t control your opponent’s coming at you. So that part is sketchy, but you know, so is skating handrails. So, I don’t know. Like, what are we doing out here?
You’re literal muscle-mommy goals. So I want you to give some tips to those who want to lift heavy shit.
Well, training in the gym has really just become part of my lifestyle and my habits. I know that it’s uncomfortable, I guess, but I have just come to accept the suffering, and I can be comfortable being uncomfortable. I don’t know, I think it’s fun, and it really supports what we do on skates in terms of injury prevention and just being more powerful and explosive. I think it’s easy for me to stay in the gym because I enjoy it. So, I would say just find something that you like to do in the gym. You don’t have to do a bodybuilding program if you hate that. Try weightlifting, or rock climbing, or try hot yoga or something.
Anything, just do anything.
Find something that you actually enjoy, and then it’ll be a lot easier to make it a habit, I think. Because I really do enjoy weight lifting, and that just makes it easy to want to do.
What’s the heaviest thing you’ve lifted?
Well, one time I back squatted 120 kilos.
Damn, that’s two of me! I could be on each arm.
One time, I cleaned 85 kilos. I want to get back up there again.
Oh my god, you have the time now, I know you will. Okay, is there any street spot that scared the shit out of you?
There used to be this rail on Powell. It was like a roll-on rail, but it was like five-feet tall. That was back before I even did 50s on rails, so I was frontside sliding it. I ate shit, and I wasn’t happy with the clip technically. I mean, I did skate it, but I was shaking, and I did eat it. But I was really proud of that moment because I was so scared I was shaking, and after doing it, I just felt the adrenaline; it felt so good. The reward of facing your fears and doing something scary just felt really good. I think most people who are reading this can relate. We’ve all been really excited to do something, and we do it anyway. You jump, and you’re like, why am I jumping on this? Why am I doing this? What’s the point? What was the reason? [laughs]
Would you consider yourself a perfectionist, because I recall us skating and you being like no, no, no, we need to do this again.
I feel like yes and no. I’m not going to beat myself up if I don’t do it perfectly, but at the same time, I do have a standard for how I want it to be done. I want to do the trick a certain way. I want it to look clean. I want it to be fast. And I will do it over and over again until I get it that way. But at the same time, if I don’t get it that day, I have to come back. I’m not going to beat myself up over that because it’s just part of the process. And you have to do it because you love it. One of the things I wanted to say about both roller derby and roller skating: you’ve got to do it for the love of it. I think our community is tight in a way that we all know each other or know of each other. You cannot skate for the sponsors, the fans, the views, or the likes. You’re going to end up hating it. You just have to do it for the love of it.
Yeah, I think this is a common feeling from skaters that came early in, say, 2014, that was our time. No brands, no sponsors, barely any gear. CIB was all the way in New Zealand, so even getting stuff was tough. We kept skating because it was never about material rewards, just how it feels. So don’t do it for the sponsorships, my people! That said, I’m always proud to say you’re the only quad skater ever sponsored by Red Bull—huge. What was that fear test they had you do, and what was it like being on the team?
I was with Red Bull for six years. I think a lot changed after Covid, but it was cool. I got to meet a lot of people behind the scenes and a lot of athletes, and there were a lot of resources for us. We did some testing, and there was one week called “Performing Under Pressure,” where we did all kinds of crazy stuff. We got blindfolded and put in a kiddie pool, and they dumped rats all over us. They woke us up at 3 a.m. and we swam out to the middle of the ocean in the dark. We also had to do stand-up comedy—that is scary.
The scariest thing you have ever done in your life.
Oh my god, yeah, that is.
Yeah, so funny. Those are literal nightmares. I remember the first time we skated together. One of the first tricks you did was at this shitty DIY… well, not shitty, but kind of in La Francia. The coping was so destroyed that we were like, “No, you’re not touching the coping,” and you still tried and did a cartwheel on the first day. That was wild.
I did a very slow cartwheel. Everyone was really encouraging, though I couldn’t, they weren’t going to let me not do it. Everyone was like, ‘Yeah, do it, do it, do it.” And I was like, “OK.”
You’re like, “OK, fuck it, I have to now.” I think that’s a trick that most people will relate roller skating to. How did you learn it?
I really wanted to. I did a little bit of gymnastics and cheerleading. It’s fun, there’s definitely a technique to it. Personally, I’m more rewarded by other types of tricks, but it’s just fun.
Just being upside down?
Yeah.
I remember you telling me that you really like rails. Is it still your favorite thing to skate?
My goal is to skate bigger rails in the streets. I like street skating because, is there a better sound than that crunchy ASMR sound of your trucks on a crusty concrete? There’s no better feeling. It’s just fun to skate things that aren’t meant to be skated. Everyone knows that already. I’m not saying anything new, but I think it’s really hard to do it and feel comfy on it. And I think if you can have a moment where you feel flowy and comfortable in the streets, that feels really good.
Yeah, that’s pretty cool. I liked what you were saying earlier about feeling comfortable with being uncomfortable—that unsettling feeling. I think that’s why skaters like you learn so much. You’re not afraid of being uncomfortable; you see it as a sign that you’re doing something new, that you’re growing.
Yeah, that’s kind of how I feel. Whether it’s a gym workout, derby, or skating in the streets, I know that for the next 30 minutes I’m going to suffer a little bit, but that’s fine with me.
So, was there any sketchy experience you recall while skating the streets?
Okay, let me tell you the story behind this photo with the Steel Bridge in the background. If you’re in Portland and you drive around, you’ve probably seen this little DIY spot. It’s on the side of the highway, going from I-5 South to 84 East. It’s literally on the on-ramp, and there are these little DIY quarters somebody put there. I’ve been wanting to skate it for so long, but it is literally on the side of the highway. Mara Lei and I planned to go right at sunrise on a Sunday since there’s less traffic. We picked sunrise because right now the sun sets at 5 p.m., so that wasn’t going to work. We pulled up at 7 a.m. It was still kind of dark. It was 27°F and freezing outside. It’s so gorgeous because you can see the river and the whole city in the background. Even though it’s this sketchy little spot, it looks incredible. I started warming up while we figured out the shot. We were just getting into it when a cop showed up. I don’t know if people called it in, saying someone was on the side of the freeway. The cop said he’d been getting phone calls and that I couldn’t be there. I asked if I could get 20 more minutes. He said he didn’t have 20 minutes. I said OK, 10 minutes, and he said I could have five minutes and that he would stay to make sure we left. So, I started skating, just reps, reps, reps. Eventually, the cop said, “I’m pretty sure you got the shot,” and I said, “I hope so.” He followed me for a while after we left, which was sketchy. But it was worth it. It’s a sick shot, and I don’t know if I could go back. If I did, and the same cop showed up, it probably wouldn’t be good.
Which wild animal matches your skate personality?
I don’t know, I want to say the same as my zodiac sign. I’m a Taurus and I feel like I’m very determined and stable. With roller derby, I’m really fast, and with street skating, I’ve been told that I look stable. I don’t know, maybe a bull because I’m determined and stable, but I want to be a black lab like my dog, Spike. I see the agility, and I think she’s very playful and very focused on the ball.
I see the bull in you. You know that funny cartoon thing where they wave a red flag, and the bull gets super hyper-focused? That’s you. You’re someone who locks in and stays completely focused on the goal all the time.
Yeah, once I get it on something, you can’t tell me anything.
What is something you would like to see more of in roller skating at this point?
Just fun. I think that there’s so much shit going on in the world right now that maybe this is an unpopular opinion to have, but I think we need to lighten up a little bit. We need to have fun because I’m telling you right now, I will stand outside of the ICE facility and harass every ICE agent and protest every day. But when we go skating, we have to have fun with each other. And that’s not to say that there won’t be hard moments. And that’s not to say that there won’t be tough conversations in roller skating, too. It’s just that we got to have a little fun. Come on. We got to lighten up. We got to have fun. We gotta support each other, be there for each other or lift each other, and I do see that in roller skating, but there’s always room for more fun. I think another thing is, I do see queer representation in skating, too, but I think there’s still room for more of that as well. I mean, as a queer person, I think there’s so much more to my identity than just my sexuality. Like, there’s so much more to a person, like we have so many dimensions. And then at the same time, representation is so important. It’s so important to see people who look like you and identify with you out there, so I love my gay girlies.
We need to make you a T-shirt that says: “I Love My Gay Girlies,” please. You have the sickest T-shirt collection.
Cmon! I have a shirt that says: “I’m not a gynecologist, but I’ll take a look”
I remember that one! Tell me about another fun T-shirt you have… I know you’ve got some of the crazy ones, but I can only remember one. If you were to make a T-shirt right now with a fun, catchy phrase, what would it be?
Busco para novia Latina
Done, next time you pull up here, I’m going to get you that T-shirt.
How’s my grammar?
It’s good
Would you say ‘estoy buscando’ or ‘busco’?
I mean, if it’s a T-shirt, I would just go straight forward, so Busco novia Latina.Okay, so after a long time of begging you to come and visit me again, you came to Colombia after you went to Mexico for this event. How was the experience of visiting these two places and skating there?
Dude, I love it so much, and it’s like there really should be more eyes on the skaters in Colombia and in all of Latin America because there’s some bad asses down there, and the people have been super nice, the skating is badass, the parks are sick, the spots are sick, and the food is good. So, 10/10 for me, and I’m coming back, always.
Waiting for it. We’ll get you matching T-shirts to get you some baddies on the way. I love you so much, Amiga. Is there anything else you would like to talk about?
I think, okay, there’s one thing. So, I’ve been sitting on some clips for a long time, and they need to come out. My goal is to have a mini edit out when this magazine comes out.
I’m excited about it; you’ve been waiting for it for a while.
Dude, I just got to make it happen. So, when this magazine comes out, I’m going to have a mini edit, MINI, okay, you guys?! Don’t get your expectations too high; it’s just going to be a mini.
