Roller Moms

Portrait of Lady Vengeance by Kat Deem

And finally, I bid adieu to my unseen classmates, my faceless professor and my semester of blogs and roller derby. I have enjoyed the adventure. No, I won’t be lacing up my skates, but I have gained both knowledge and appreciation for a provocative and unusual sport.

This week Sarah sent me a New York Times article about moms in roller derby. In addition to the Fitness, Social Interaction, Non-conformance and Alter Persona motivations I mentioned in earlier posts, the featured roller moms added another perspective. Moms always do.

Parenting can be all-consuming. This rough-and-tumble sport helps a mom to ---

• release the stress of raising children
• have time for self-reflection
• raise her self-esteem
• feel sexy

At the bout, the music is loud, lights flood the rink, the jammer breaks away from the pack and the crowd cheers her on. As Olivia Shootin’ John from the Texas Rollergirls put it ---

"I’m a mom, and I teach high school, but when I’m out there,
I’m a rock star!"

*****

Kathryn, thanks for the remarkable photos.

Sweet Charity

Roller Derby is a business. Each regular league meeting is chaired by the president, and within its organization are many committees. These volunteer staffers manage:

• Budget


• PR & Sponsorship


• Recruitment & Membership


• Web Design


• Skater Development …

But one of the more interesting and universal aspects of the roller derby business is its charitable giving. Real dollars are needed to rent rink time, purchase uniforms and manage events. Rink rates can exceed $100 per hour in some areas. To raise money, increase public awareness and attract potential recruits and sponsors, fundraising efforts are often tied to charity events.

During the month of April, here are just a few of derby’s benefit/fundraising events around the country:

• 3rd Annual DERBYTAUNT Ball 2007
  Just like a debutante coming-out party (well, sort of) the fresh meat, wearing the traditional white, will receive their team assignments. A $7 cover charge will buy food, drinks, music & dancing. And a portion of the proceeds goes to the New York City Alliance Against Rape.

• Bartending for Charity
  Not only are patrons served a drink by their favorite Rollergirls, but all of the tips plus 5% of the sales from this event are donated to Springboard for the Arts. Who’da thunk?

• Charity Bout in April
  In addition to their ticket purchase, spectators are asked to donate an item to support Coalition on Temporary Shelter. This month the suggested donations are children’s items: coloring book, children’s book, K-12 school supplies …

In fact, the list of all of the charities supported by just one league (Minnesota Rollergirls) is significant as well as heartwarming.

Carry on, my Derby Angels.

*****

Photo by the magnificent Kat Deem

Dissin' Derby

I’ll admit that I had never read or heard of local columnist Mike Seate of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, but I gotta hand it to him. The guy knows how to stir things up!

Recently, the Trib published Mr. Seate’s condescending editorial about roller derby. A few excerpts describe the sport as ---

“… so lowbrow a caveman would find it in bad taste” (imitating the Geico commercials)
“… dumb entertainment for people too dumb to even know they [are] being insulted”
“… aimed at an audience with three active brain cells”

The writer mockingly refers to derby as a “sport” [Seate’s quotation marks] and he asserts that “there is nothing vaguely athletic about [it].” There’s that protectionism again! Maybe Mr. Seate is a former jock, stuck in his old glory days. His Mr. T – like picture suggests that Mr. Seate could himself be a load on wheels, gasping for air after the first turn of the track.

And yet … indeed I do see booty blocking potential in him!

Mr. Seate references the days when roller derby embodied girls who “beat each other senseless” or “women who beat the snot out of other women,” but he never claims to have watched a recent bout.

Of course, he got what I suspect he was after --- reader reaction! This month Mike Seate published a follow-up column, detailing the response and having some fun with it too.

He claims his objections are less about violence than about sexual exploitation. He describes a horny male audience leering at “exposed female flesh” and likens derby to “Foxxy Boxxing” and “Nude Cole-Slaw Wrasslin.”

Never having seen either, I can’t say. I can only once again, go to the skaters themselves.

“If men really want to see me skate around in a short skirt and block other women, I’m happy to take their 15 bucks and move along, spending my time and energy putting on a good bout for those who can really appreciate the athletics of the event. I think, though, that these dudes are going to walk away from a bout genuinely surprised at how athletic and tough I am. And I also think that women who come to the bout are going to leave with a pretty renewed understanding of just how tough women can be, and just how much women can accomplish in community.”

- Tammy Oler (Diamond Lil), Bitch magazine 2005

*****

Photo courtesy of Kat Deem. View her gallery for additional derby photos.

Day Jobs & Motivations of the Derby Queens

Who are you when you are not on the rink?

And what motivated you to join a roller derby league?

(Is this your banker?)

I posed these two questions to several skaters at the East Coast Derby Extravaganza a few weeks ago and to a few skaters online. Their answers convinced me that it’s impossible to pigeonhole them.

In any given bout, the pack of skaters may include ---

• Production Studio Coordinator


• Investment Broker


• Medical Office Manager


• University Student Advisor


• Business Administrator


• Kid’s Playroom Director


• Art, Music, Elementary or High School Teacher


• Videographer (allegedly porn, but unsubstantiated)


• ER Nurse


• Lots of students (both undergrad and grad)

Sometimes the skater’s name reflected her occupation. For example, the nurse was Shenita Stretcher … and there was of course Teacher A. Lesson.

*****

And what brought them in to the sport? These answers varied too, but some common themes emerged --- Social interaction, exercise, non-conformance.

Belle N. Somebashin saw an outlet:

"I originally joined derby because I was looking for some type of female intermural sport to get involved in. I grew up roller skating, have a martial arts background, am now a 'retired' hardcore kid from the 90's, and love tattoos, so derby seemed like the perfect option. Plus I love the duality of my life - SOOOO far removed from the high-net worth individuals I deal with at work all day."

Diamond Lil of the Denver Roller Girls spoke of female energy:

"There aren't many aggressive/extreme sports out there for women, so a lot of women gravitate towards [derby] because it's finally a chance to realize a lot of energy."

Jenna Jamitin of the Ironbound Maidens said:

"I live alone and work in the city, so I was looking for a way to meet new people. I wanted some social interaction."

Well, okay ... but why not a book club?

"Growing up near the ocean, I did in-line skating as a kid, and have surfed all my life. I miss those things. Roller derby seemed like the perfect answer."

The competitive Lady Vengeance identified with the feminist image of a strong woman. In college, the former cheerleader used to talk about forming a stunt squad.

"Practicing at least three times a week keeps me in shape. I've made new friends, and I embrace the competition."

All that skating is certainly good exercise. As Philadelphia’s Erin Go Braless put it:

"This workout's a lot more exciting than the gym!"

*****

Photo by the talented Kat Deem

Sport? Entertainment? Activity?

Is Roller Derby a Sport? Is it Entertainment? Is it an Activity? The answer is yes.

Sport
Many years ago, when both of my daughters were high school cheerleaders, the school board, the athletic department and the school administration each took time to consider how to classify cheerleading. Some area schools categorized cheerleading as a sport, and others as an activity.

And this mattered because…?

Apparently, funding for high school sports came from a different pocket, qualified for different allowances and fell under different policy restrictions than the funding for high school activities.

In addition, there was the prestige factor. In the high school pecking order, jocks, both male and female, were often regarded as a cut above those students involved in clubs and activities. The football team – athletes dedicated to practice, teamwork and discipline – brought in the paying fans, whereas the cheerleaders – dedicated to similar ideals – were the added fluff.

Many years later, I hear the same argument about roller derby. The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language defines sport as a “specific diversion, usually involving physical exercise and having a set form and body of rules; a game.” Is NASCAR a sport?

Activity
An activity is a “specified form of supervised action or field of action, especially one in the area of recreation.” Then what about (non-competitive) swimming? Activity is as broad-ranging as hopscotch, parajumping and historical re-enactment. Roller Derby is action-packed, and according to the skaters, it is also therapeutic and recreational.

Entertainment
Entertainment is subjective, defined as such by the spectator. To entertain is to “hold the attention of; to amuse.” To the right audience, even a good sneeze might qualify as entertainment!

At the derby rink, I never saw so many individuals under one roof who could each singlehandedly capture your attention. Put them in fishnets, then put them in motion, and voila! Entertainment enough to charge admission and keep the crowd coming back for more.

***

Tough young women involved in Sport/Activity/Entertainment and wearing miniskirts --- Roll them all together and you get phenomenon.

Trivia - Ready for Jeopardy?

Somewhere in my research, I read that Basketball is one of only two genuine American sports (i.e. created in the U.S. – and not adapted from another culture).

The other is Roller Derby.

Philly Weekend in Pictures

1. The Family Vengeance --- Mama V and Papa V with Lady Vengeance before the bout.
















2. Rising temps caused large sheets of ice and snow to slide off the roof!


Consequently, everyone was forced to use a small side entrance and to move their parked cars away from the front of the building.

3. Lady V's first warm-up helped minimize her butterflies.












4. Sawbonz and Jenna von Fury flex and pose before the bout.

















5. Comaraderie --- The Garden State Roller Girls travel team enjoy a laugh together.












6. Round 'n' round 'n' round ...













7. The ref signals a "lead jammer."













8. Jeerleaders' silly antics: A monkey chases a banana, presumably for the younger spectators in the crowd! With such an edgy rep, the sport surprisingly strives to be family-friendly.















9. Get your derby merchandise!

The usual --- tee shirts, mugs, boxers

The unusual --- crocheted ovaries & vagina (not shown)

10. Proof of I.D. required for the beer tent --- I am indeed over 21.












11. High tech meets low tech. Fans cheer their support, while displaying both handmade and custom-designed, computer-generated signs!
















12. After the bout, Lady Vengeance is rosy-cheeked, a little sweaty and disappointed that her team lost .... but she's still smilin'!

Philly Weekend - Overview

The day after a nor'easter blew across the New England coast, my husband and I headed to Philadelphia to witness the Roller Derby East Coast Extravaganza. We no sooner pulled into the hotel's still-icy parking lot than we saw them --- the derby skaters.

Lots of black ... tattoos ... a rainbow of hair colors ... fishnets ... young.

Never once did we confuse them with the wedding reception guests, or with the national guard who also inhabited the hotel ... each cluster group separate and readily identifiable.

At the sportsplex, three rinks served as the arena where nearly thirty teams from across the country came to compete. Teams from Las Vegas, New Orleans, Chicago, Denver, New York, Detroit, Raleigh, Pittsburgh ... all converged for this 2-day event. Many had stories of delayed flights and wild rides through snow.

The traveling team of Pittsburgh's Steel City Derby Demons was not only scheduled to compete in Philly on Sunday afternoon, but some of their members had skated in Pittsburgh the night before. Sharon Fluids (ugh) of the Hot Metal Hellions told me that some of the team finished their bout in Harmarville on Saturday night, then packed into cars and headed east, arriving at the hotel about 4:00 AM.

Ah, to have such energy!

And you could feel the energy in the rink too! Flamboyant announcers called the bouts on loudspeakers to crowd-filled bleachers. Whistles to start the jams and buzzers to end the periods blended with loud pulsing music, blasted throughout the arena. The throbbing beat put me in mind of the Boom-Boom Sound by Moving to France.

Concession stands, program sales, raffle ticket sellers roving the bleachers, a beer tent, merchandise tables and "jeerleaders" added to the carnival-like atmosphere, but the skaters were the stars.

For two days, just as Jim Croce promised, they went round 'n' round 'n' round 'n' round ...

But they also stopped and started ... switched out players between jams ... packed tight ... blocked hard ... weaved deftly ... tumbled and recovered ... sped around the track ... sweat ... and were occasionally sentenced to the sin bin (penalty box). What a workout!

Yes, there were some injuries during the 2-day event. I saw skaters on crutches, one in a wheelchair and a few with ice packs. Fortunately, there were medical personnel onsite. In fact, Indiana's Hoosier Mama (say it out loud) assured me, "EMT's love this gig!"

And of course spending time, meeting friends & teammates, sharing interests, and hugging my daughter is all good for this mother's soul.

Tattos 2

I take it back!

When it comes to tattoos, I would put a group of derby chicks up against the biker babes any day!

At a gathering of derby teams from across the nation this weekend in Philly, I saw more body art than I ever imagined. In fact, one pick-up bout was billed as the Tats vs. Non-Tats. My incredulous reaction was, "Are there even enough non-tats here to field a team?"

But guess what, my little butterfly maidens? In the end ...

THE NON-TATS WON!

Tattoos

Tattoo Who?

That's the teasing question above a changing set of tattoo images, challenging the viewer to identify the rollergirl to whom it belongs. This quiz appears on the official site of the Rat City Rollergirls (Seattle Washington). But like a multiple choice test where all the answers are right, turns out these colorful images are all inked onto one woman!

So is there disproportiately more ink in the world of roller derby? Well, maybe. A quick roller derby web tour does reveal some marked women, but it's hard to say how they measure up to, say, a group of biker babes.

A tattoo site claims that roller derby women not only have a "taste for blood, but many have a taste for high quality tattoo work." A feature article by Dale Rio in Skin & Ink webzine agrees and offers this philosophy:

As an underground sport, roller derby tends to attract not only accomplished skaters, but girls who haven't necessarily skated since they were kids and are attracted to the rough and sexy image of the sport. Where else can you get a serious workout, rough up a bunch of your closest friends and look hot while doing it? With such a draw, it's not surprising that a lot of the girls are tattooed...

The article includes some impressive, if not scary, tattoo photos.

Will someone explain to me the appeal of the tattoo? To call attention? To rebel? To be different? But tattoos are now so common. Shaved heads, spiked hair, wild hair dyes - all are temporary and can be changed with a new mood. But tattoos (and piercings) are so permanent.

Yes, I know. Body art is a century-old practice. Warriors of many cultures painted themselves before battle. The Egyptians applied permanent eye make-up.

But when I see a cute little butterfly tattooed onto a flat tight abdomen, I can't help but imagine its monstrous & distorted wingspan when that belly is nine months pregnant. Or how will that sexy rose on the breast look years from now surrounded by stretch marks? These are mom thoughts.

I understand the desire to decorate ourselves. Clothing and jewelry work well for that. Permanent tattoos just make it so difficult if ever a time comes to re-decorate!

***
Photo by Kat Deem

Skating Skills

So what does a skater have to know before flying around the rink amidst a pack of fierce competitors, each one on eight wheels?

Well, the scoring objectives, of course. And the rules. But for sheer survival, she had better know how to skate!

Before entering into WFTDA-sanctioned Inter-League Competition, each skater must meet designated minimum skill requirements (initially and then annually). These requirements fall into six categories:

1. Basic Skating Skills
2. Falls
3. Balance / Agility
4. Skating with Others
5. Blocking
6. Rules

Knowledge of the rules is tested with a written exam. But the rest of the skills test is administered in the rink in skating gear.

Proficiency in the basic skills includes proper skating posture, stride, crossovers, speed, endurance, and stops. The skater must complete 5 laps around a WFTDA regulation track in a minute or less. To demonstrate stamina, she must also skate 20 laps within 5 minutes.

... let me catch my breath ...

She must perform “one-foot glides with each foot for the length of the straightaway with good balance,” and “move easily and fluidly from one side of the skating rink to the other.” It sounds like grace in motion.

But a clue that it’s not ALL about grace is the required ability to fall "safely, accurately, and naturally…” – I think that I could fall naturally – “… with quick recovery.”

Oh.

A skater is required to maneuver through 10 cones, placed 6 feet apart, covering both straightaways and turns. She “squats and coasts” and “squats and propels” again on both the straightaways and the turns.

In skating with others, the skater is tested on whips, pushes, pacing (“varies speed while being sandwiched between 2 skaters, maintaining an arm’s length distance without falling, tripping, overtaking or running into another skater”), weaving, leaning, bumping … You get the idea.

Blocking skills require the ability to take hits and check as well as perform “with good posture and without loss of balance or focus” body blocks, frontal blocks and stall blocks.

The final - and perhaps most important - requirement for a derby skater is not tested until later. It's not tested on paper, and it's not really tested in the rink. The test may come on a chiropractor's table, or while soaking sore muscles in a hot bath, or when applying ice to welts and bruises. The ones who pass it are those who return to the rink for more. The test is passion.

Ladies and gentlemen, let’s take our hats off to the certified athletes in the roller derby rink!

****

Photo by Kat Deem

Team Names & Uniforms

What do you want to be for Halloween? Adult women are answering that question with their choice of team names and uniforms, and it isn’t even October!

Each derby team differentiates itself with its team name and corresponding uniform. Like the individual skaters’ names, the team names reveal a similarly violent or sexy image along with some tongue-in-cheek humor. The uniforms are a visual extension of the team name, further carrying the theme.

And stereotypes abound!

These are just a few examples of the growing number of teams around the country, and a description of thier uniforms:

Austin Roller Moms League
The Domestic Divas - June Cleaver Gone Bad, 50's- style mamas, pink bowling shirts & hotpants

Texas Roller Girls League
The Hell Marys - Naughty Catholic schoolgirls in black & red plaid

Arizona Derby Dames League
The Bombshells - 1940’s pin-up girls & WWII bomber girls

B.ay A.rea D.erby Girls League
The San Francisco Shevil Dead - Army of skating zombies

Minnesota Roller Girls League
The Garda Belts - Irish cops

Dominion Derby Girls League
The Dirty Diesel Darlins - Sweet southern “shine- runnin” gas station attendents

Boston Derby Dames League
The Nutcrackers - Ballet school rejects in black & pink tutus

From gangsters (Split Lip Sallies) to assassins (Double Crossers, Chicago) to pirate wenches (Surly Girlies, AZ) to geishas (my favorite – the Sake Tuyas, Atlanta) to cave girls (Neander Dolls, NV) to nuns (Sisters of No Mercy, Salt Lake) to cowgirls (Honkey Tonk Heartbreakers, TX) and outlaws (Saddletramps, Tucson) … everybody’s dressing up!

Here in Pittsburgh, we have:

• The Bitch Doctors, “curse-weilding voo-doo dolls in black, white and red”
  
• The Hot Metal Hellions, “futuristic replicant assassins (Blade Runner) in black, neon green & silver”


• The Slumber Party Slashers, “horror movie-style bad girls with a thirst for murder in pink, purple and silver”


• The Wrecking Dolls, “blue-collar darlings of demolition in blue & orange”
  

Some names poke fun at themselves, like the Tru$t Fund Terror$ from LA, described as "rich bitch daddy's girls." I wonder ... do they wear tiaras?

And, groan! I can only imagine the uniforms of Harrisburg’s Nuclear Knockouts, who dress like “Three Mile Island workers.”

The names may make you chuckle or groan, but if these characters show up at your door for a treat, better give it to them!

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For more images, visit Kat Deem's gallery of the Garden State Roller Girls

Team descriptions obtained from the National Registry

For more league names, visit Wikipedia or the Women's Flat Track Derby Association's growing list of members.

Roller Derby in the Media

And why shouldn’t the girls have fun skating derby? Everyone else has fun with it!

Ever since its resurging popularity in the 1960’s and 70’s, roller derby has been the subject or setting in various forms of media.

• In 1972, Raquel Welch starred in the feature film Kansas City Bomber. The dramatic quality is debatable, but the skaters’ low-cut skin-tight uniforms coupled with the pulling and grabbing of women on wheels certainly caught the viewers’ attention. Does anyone even remember that Jody Foster was in that one too?
• In 2005, A&E helped to spark a new popularity with its documentary, “Rollergirls,” tracking the revival of roller derby in Austin TX.
• Paramount Pictures and MTV Films are currently planning a comedy film (as yet untitled) about women's roller derby.
• But my favorite is a song called “Roller Derby Queen” – music and lyrics by Jim Croce, included in his 1974 album of greatest hits, Photographs and Memories. I love it!

Roller Derby Queen
By Jim Croce

Gonna tell you a story that you won’t believe

But I fell in love last friday evenin’

With a girl I saw on a bar room t.v. screen

Well I was just gettin’ ready to get my hat

When she caught my eye and I put it back

And I ordered myself a couple o’ more shots and beers

The night that I fell in love with a roller derby queen

Round and round, oh round and round

The meanest hunk o’ woman

That anybody ever seen

Down in the arena

She was five foot six and two fifteen

A bleached-blonde mama

With a streak of mean

She knew how to knuckle

And she knew how to scuffle and fight

And the roller derby program said

That she was built like a ’fridgerator with a head

Her fans call her Tuffy

But all her buddies called her Spike

You know that I fell in love with a roller derby queen

Round and round, oh round and round

The meanest hunk o’ woman

That anybody ever seen

Down in the arena

Round and round, go round and round

Round and round, go round and round

Round and round

Well I could not help it

But to fall in love

With this heavy-duty woman

I been speakin’ of

Things looked kind of bad

Until the day she skated into my life

Well she might be nasty

She might be fat

But I never met a person

Who would tell her that

She’s my big blonde bomber

My heavy handed hackensack mama

You know that I fell in love with a roller derby queen

Round and round, oh round and round

The meanest hunk o’ woman

That anybody ever seen

Down in the arena

Round and round, go round and round

Round and round, go round and round

Round and round

East Coast Derby Extravaganza

Photo by Kat Deem

New derby skaters, and new teams in a league, are both referred to as “fresh meat.” Pittsburgh has four such roller derby teams –

The Wrecking Dolls, the Hot Metal Hellions, the Bitch Doctors and the Slumber Party Slashers.

After recruiting, organizing and practicing for more than nine months, the fledgling Steel City Derby Demons League hosted its first exhibition on January 27 at Harmarville’s BladeRunners rink. My daughter’s team, the Jersey City Bridge & Pummel Girls, has practiced even longer but has yet to skate in an official bout.

I wanted to watch these local teams skate. Then I could experience this phenomenon called derby culture. I wanted to see for myself the degree of skill, camp, and risk that goes into an event. And I could at least imagine my Lady Vengeance out there among the pack.

A good front-end publicity campaign got the word out. (Or is the public really so hungry for roller derby entertainment?) In January local media – including Pittsburgh’s City Paper, the Post Gazette’s Weekend Magazine and the Valley News Dispatch – all ran feature stories on the new league and its scheduled exhibition.

Even so, when I tried to buy tickets online I was surprised to learn that the event was sold out.

SOLD OUT!

Not ready to push and shove my ticketless way into BladeRunners, even in roller derby spirit, I decided to wait until Steel City League’s next scheduled event on March 17.

Meanwhile, the Philly Roller Girls League is hosting an East Coast Extravaganza at 2 rinks in Philadelphia’s Sportsplex next month.

“Two Full Days of Hard Hitting Derby Action!” promises the promo. “Twenty+ Leagues from East of the Mississippi!”

And here’s the kicker (for me, at least) – one of the scheduled fresh meat teams is the Jersey City Bridge and Pummel Girls.

The derby debut of Lady Vengeance will take place in Philly next month.

And Mama Vengeance plans to be in the stands. Look out Philly, here come the FORCES OF VENGEANCE!

Skater Identities - What's in a Name?

Derby Portrait by Kat Deem

Even from a young age, we all enjoy taking on an occasional alter-persona. Pull out the Monopoly board and you’ll hear, “I want to be the racecar … the silver thimble … the top hat!” Nobody ever wants to be the old shoe.

It’s the same for the lead in a school play or the faceless blogger. Whether we’re getting dressed for a costume party or the prom, whether we are sitting among strangers at a bar or out driving with the top down, it’s fun to slip out of our own skins to become somebody else for a little while.

In roller derby, each new skater has the opportunity to take on a new name and accompanying persona. What an outlet for self-expression!

In fact, the names are highly contested. All the names of derby skaters, past and present, are recorded in a master roster. Officially registered names are protected against newcomers choosing to skate under the same or similar ones. Nearly 7,000 names are recorded in this growing national registry.

Once registered and approved, the skater’s name is her copyright and trademark, and no one else can own it.

Often her new persona is an animated extension of her off-rink personality. The names reflect the tongue-in-cheek image of today’s roller derby. They are usually puns or plays on words, often with references to celebrities, movie stars or the seductive pin-up girls of a previous generation. Other popular choices are empowering names to play this empowering sport.

My own sweet film-loving Lady Vengeance chose her name from the title character of an obscure Korean revenge film by director Chan Wook Park – Sympathy for Lady Vengeance.

A few clever examples of derby names –

Vamp
Rita Slayworth … Betty Rage … Rolletta Lynn … Betty D Bombshell … Trophy Wife … Tallulah Breakhead … Faye Breakaway … Raquel Squelch … Classy Chasis ...

Camp
Cheap Skate … Surly Temple … Viagra Falls … Tequila Mockingbird … Poison I.V. … Ivana Killeau … Foxy Contin

Tough as Nails
Zilla D Killa … Yanita Beating … Donna Matrix … Baby Ruthless … Roxy Balboa … Smack N Decker … Whiskey Dixie … Whipher Snapher … Tornado Allie … Octopushy … Slappa Ho

Speed
Suzy Hotrod … Greta Turbo … Speed Razor … Shutter Speed … Mila Minute …

Royalty
Trauma Queen … Queen of Hurts …Queen Chaos …Princess Die …Princess of Wails … Lady MacDeath …

Even (predominantly male) referees have their rink names –
Bust’er Cheatin … B.O. Hazard … Penalty Pimp …

And why not? It’s fun! Admit it – aren’t you already thinking up a few names of your own by now?

The roller derby women are an imaginative group. Pull out the game of Clue, and I’ll bet they all want to be Miss Scarlett

…in the rink

…with the brass knuckles.

What IS Roller Derby Anyway?

Like many sports, Roller Derby has evolved over time …

• 1930’s – Roller derby began as a form of contest entertainment, an energetic alternative to the dull dance marathon
• 1950’s – Professional touring leagues of skating men and women competed before stadium crowds around the U.S.
• 1960’s – Televised bouts of female skaters gained popularity, but transformed the sport into scripted bawdy entertainment, the female equivalent of studio wrestling
• 1970’s – Public interest declined as derby ceased to be “real”
• 2005 – Rollergirls, A&E’s reality TV show, featured a women’s roller derby league in Austin, Texas, daring to be taken seriously

Today roller derby is a fast-growing sport. Two teams comprised of female roller skaters put on helmets and pads, skate around an oval track (flat or banked) and compete for points in a series of jams, constrained only by the time limits of two 30-minute periods.

Currently, roller derby has enjoyed a resurgence of popularity in both active participation and public spectatorship. New leagues continue to emerge across the country.

To understand this sport

• with room for women of all shapes, ages and sizes
• where the players don’t fit the traditional concept of athlete
• where “booty-blocking” is a tactical term, and
• which perpetuates an ironic clash of female aggression, sisterhood and campy humor

… it helps to first understand the game.

Okay, let’s talk technical for a minute.

Two teams, five skaters each: 4 blockers and 1 jammer.

Blocker
At the first whistle, the eight blockers start to skate counter-clockwise in a pack. Among these is each team’s special blocker, called a pivot, who sets the pace. The pivot is identified by the stripe on her helmet.

The blockers have two jobs – block the opposing jammer, and clear a path for their own jammer. Blockers can assist their jammer by “whipping” her ahead in the pack.

Jammer
A second whistle launches the two competing jammers, who chase the pack. The first jammer to legally make it through the pack is now the lead jammer. Only she has the right to call off the jam at any time, a strategic move. You can tell the jammer – she’s the one with the star on her helmet (kind of like Dr. Suess’ Sneetches).

Scoring
The jammers are the point-scorers. Scoring begins only after the jammers complete their first lap through the pack, lap around and enter the pack for the second time. One point is scored for each opposing blocker passed by the inbound jammer. Jammers may lap the pack as many times as possible until the jam is over, its conclusion signaled either by the lead jammer or after two minutes. The team with the most points wins.

Rules, Refs and Penalties
Legal blocks use body, torso, shoulders and rear end. Illegal blocks include tripping, grabbing and pushing. A blocker may chase after a breakaway jammer, but it is illegal to block or assist when more than 20 feet from the pack. Penalties are charged for illegal blocking, fighting or exhibiting unsportsmanlike conduct.

Skating referees control the game by tracking the time and enforcing the rules.

Added Intensity

• Power play (major offenders must sit out for one minute of play)
• Overtime (tie-breaker decided with a full-length 2-minute jam)
• Role exchange (a jammer may strategically trade roles with her pivot by exchanging helmet covers during the jam)
• Post-jam challenge (a penalty) may result in more points being scored

And these ladies can skate! So what if a blocker weighs 200 pounds! She’s jostling for position within a pack of women on wheels, plowing at high speed around a track.

And so what if the jammer weighs 90 pounds! She’s weaving and bobbing, shooting through sudden holes in this rolling mass so that she can lap around to do it again.

So now we are ready to roll …

Lady Vengeance

Twenty-six years ago, I gave birth to Lady Vengeance.

I did not realize this at the time, of course. Even the doctor confirmed only a healthy baby girl weighing in at 7 pounds, 5 ounces. We parents gave our newborn the biblical name of Sarah. As precious and extraordinary as our daughter was to us, hindsight reveals her very normal and unremarkable childhood development.

Oh, there were some clues:

• the intentionally mismatched socks at ten
• the self-pierced tongue in high school
• in college the short spiked hair dyed the color of Bazooka bubblegum
• the grad school decision to study film in (where else?) the city that never sleeps

But from behind this vibrantly perplexing exterior shined an intelligent, fun-loving, spiritual, sensitive and compassionate young lady.

I guess I wasn’t all that surprised when Sarah called to say that she had signed up for a women’s roller derby league. It seemed healthier than her relationship with the graffiti artist! To try out, she certified that she has health insurance. Yikes! She invested in pads and skating equipment. She learned how to fall. She learned more sophisticated maneuvers, and then again how to fall. She practiced after a full day's work, outdoors and indoors, finally returning home at midnight. After many practices Sarah, like all the others, had to pass a skills test. But after all of this, my daughter is now officially a Jersey City Bridge & Pummel Girl in the Garden State Rollergirls League of the Womens Flat Track Derby Association.

And they all know her as Lady Vengeance.

So it is with curiosity and a desire for continued involvement in my distant daughter’s interests that I dedicate my blog to the exploration of roller derby. I want to understand this sport with its tough and independent feminine image, and its contradicting exploitative attire. I want to learn the league structure and the rules of the game: the scoring, the positions, the contest. What makes a good skater? I want a glimpse into the type of girl eager to deck an opponent one night, then in sisterly solidarity spearhead a food drive or a cancer walk. And where do all those paying fans come from?

Join me for a skate into derby culture. I write with a parental perspective. How could I do otherwise? After all, I am Mama Vengeance.

Start of My Blog Adventure

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