Rand, Erica. Red Nails, Black Skates: Gender Cash and
Pleasure on and off the Ice. Duke University Press, 2012
264 pages
In her study on figure skating, gender, class, race and
risk, Erica Rand writes, “Do you know what can happen when you put knives on
your feet and hurl yourself around backward into the air to land on the mere
tip of just one of those blades? It’s called perilous, baby, and it’s a risk I
choose every day” This is an apt way of exemplifying how Rand breaks stereotypes
that envelope figure-skating in gender-based constructs.
These constructs don’t
fit into simple or stable categories. As Rand writes, “Nor do apparently simple
categories always have simple criteria. What exactly, for instance, is that
crazy combination of balletic aristocrat and child-beauty-pageant trampiness
that characterizes many figure skating costumes for girls and women?” Rand’s
exploration of skating outfits transcends just fashion talk and hits on tough
topics like transgender identity and socially reinforced norms within the field
of skating.
In Red Nails, Black Skates, Rand explores the intricate and
interwoven roles of class, race, and gender among other hot topics such as
sexuality, pleasure and risk. She goes beyond the figure skating world to also
explore issues of gender and class in women’s hockey and the growing sport of
roller derby. At one point she spends
time practicing with the women’s hockey team, noting her discomfort at the
masculine uniforms that other hockey players thrived in.
Written in clear and accessible prose, Rand clearly outlines
her purpose of the field research she participates in. The stories are exciting
and enjoyable to read in themselves and Rand’s accompanying critical analysis
sheds light on a corner of gender and sport ripe for further exploration.
Rand explores her own transformation through skating
writing, “It transformed my athletic life, my work life, my social life, and,
less directly, my erotic life. It increasingly determined my longrange plans as
well as my daily and weekly schedules, which I came to arrange around available
ice time and other physical activities…” This personal disclosure helps readers
connect with Rand beyond social criticism at a level that is both vulnerable
and human. This well-rounded text is a fantastic read for anyone interested in
gender and sports.
4 darts out of 5
Bookshelf Project Status: KEEP
