By Raquel Zaldivar

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For members of Chicago’s Windy City Rollers—an all-female roller derby team formed in 2005—there’s more to the sport than skating and blocking on the flat track. The more than two-dozen women athletes on the squad also find a place to call home.

One skater named Shake n Bake (team members prefer to be called by their derby names), is starting her second season with Windy City. When she first joined the team, she knew she liked the physicality of the sport. Soon after riding on the track for the first time, she also found confidence, and built a growing network of friends.