Kay Johnson, aka A-Kay 47, is soon going to see greater danger than she finds on the D.C. Rollergirls’ flat track. As a member of the U.S. Coast Guard, she is bound for pre-deployment training in Port Smith, Virginia, where she will be stationed until she departs in April for Bahrain. There she will serve on a patrol boat, protecting oil platforms and other sites off the coast of Bahrain and Kuwait from suicide bombers and other threats.

Johnson will soon have a host of new responsibilities providing security in Bahrain — but she hopes she doesn’t have to leave her A-Kay 47 persona behind.

“I saw on the Sin City Skates site that there’s a team in Iraq,” said Johnson — referring to the Divas of Dirt, a derby team comprised of U.S. military women stationed in Iraq. (Hardcore.) “It’s a little further than where I’m going to be, but I’ll definitely check it out.”

A-Kay 47 was honored by the D.C. Rollergirls following her final game as a pivot on the Cherry Blossom Bombshells. She said she’ll miss the female camaraderie most, as it is difficult to come by in the armed forces. No doubt she’s also going to miss hurtin’s the likes of which the Bombshells put on the Harrisonburg Rocktown Rollers on Saturday.