Facebook and Social Networking - and your team's reputation
What is your team's reputation? How do you know? What builds it?
Your fans, sponsors and opposing teams build your reputation with the video, pictures, write-ups, reviews they put up. Your league members build it by what they post on faceboo, myspace, twitter, ping, and the rest of the social networking sites. Your referees and visiting referees and volunteers build it based on what they say about you after a bout.
Your own league members build it with their actions and posting online while representing your league. So when are you representing your league?
Anytime you are using your derby name, wearing a derby logo, are known as a member of your league, you are representing your league. Why is it important to leave people with good feelings about you? Because if they like you, they will like your league, and liking your league equals either: The new fan that spends on merch and tells their friends and brings more new fans, the sponsor that wants to partner with you and promote you or give you money or gifts, or someone that might want to join your league as a skater or ref.
What does that mean? It means: 1) Don't edit video's or photos to make another team look really bad if they lost to you. There is no reason for that. They played hard and did their best, and you won. You may not win next time, because they may have learned a lot from you, so stay professional and friendly. I've moved to 3 derby cities in 3 years. I trained with all 3, played with 2. If I had bad blood because of something I did, and then tried to join, do you think I would have been welcomed to train with those teams and been chosen to play? No. The person you hate today may be your teammate tomorrow. I know we gossip, but do it in private.
2) Be a good winner. The other team played hard, gave you those bruises you are sportin and maybe just had a bad night. Cheer for yourselves, and then cheer for them. They just got defeated. Make sure they know you appreciate them playing and what you learned from them. Don't hole up in team groups, mix it up with the visiting team and make some new friends!
3) Be a good loser. You just played an awesome game of roller derby and if you lost, you know when you review, you'll see why and it won't happen again, so there's no reason to beat yourselves up about it, and no reason to be unhappy. Stay positive! Make friends with the team that beat you. That girl that knocked you down all night might be able to teach you how she did it.
4) If a fight happens, get over it. Don't go away mad, as they say. What happened on the track was a track thing. Off the track, we all play roller derby and we're all strong women. Sometimes tempers flare. Accept or give an apology when you have gone too far and let it go.
5) Remember, you never know who's watching, and everything you do and say as a player, member, volunteer, coach, representative of your league reflects on your league.
Did you post a comment about someone sucking? Maybe your league has worked for months to setup a sponsorship that you don't know about, you write a bad thing about that company not knowing, you could lose your league a really good opportunity. Maybe you make a team member mad who then shares with her league, and now your team has a cancelled game for the next season. They refuse to play you because you were an ass. You start a fight, or play dirty, and the league never plays you again because it sucked. You don't make sure they have fun, hate your city, they never want to come back.
So step away from the facebook and twitter posts for a second and think about what you are doing. Are you inciting positivity and roller derby promotion, or are you being a douchebag? Are you putting up a photo or video to show an awesome strategy, hit or pack move, or are you promoting the drama of that fight that broke out, or to point out a flaw in the other team? You represent your league as a member of it, so make sure what you put out into the world is what you want the world to remember when they see your next event poster.
If you are in the Toronto/Ontario area, or can logon to http://www.640toronto.com/ at 3:30 PM EST - do it. And listen to an interview featuring Splat Benetar of GTAR (Greater Toronto Area Rollergirls) from Toronto, ON , Thane Burnett from the Toronto Sun, and the Edmonton Oil City Roller girls on the Adler Show.
While you wait, you guys know I shy away from being a stats whore. I'm not a referee, I have no dreams of becoming a WFTDA-announcer - if you knew me, you'd agree with my Canadian-ized Southern Accent and fast talking voice being kinda off for being heard over airways.... I leave that to those silky-voiced men out there and to real derby-luvvers and stats-keepers like my former hero Hurt Reynolds formerly of havederbywilltravel.com and Justice Feelgood and their friends at DNN .
But, thanks to DNN and LeadJammer, we get to watch boutcasts now of WFTDA bouts. And if you're a rollergirl, rollerguy or roller derby fan, last night, you were online and watching the Four Corner Feud tourny. At 11:30 PM EST, the first half of the final game was almost over, and I had to call it a night, but it was clear who would win. Denver's Mile High Club was tearing up the track.
Good tourny to watch, good plays, good hits, some good jammers - I would comment on some fun stuff I saw, but I am sure you all saw it already... ;)
Anyhoo, you don't need another write-up. You can replay the boutcast Here, or just check out a writeup like this one.
OMG! January is over! I can't believe how time is flying. It's been over 4 months since I became a non-smoking rollergirl-to-be-again, and a month since I re-committed myself to training for 2009.
I've lost 2-3 inches from my waistline, and 3 from my hips, and can jog again without shin pain.... so I'm ready to go back to skating if I can find some wood or concrete to put my wheels on under all this ice and snow! I'll know within a week if I get my new apartment in London, ON, and I'm waiting for some news from FCDG on particulars like, What minimum skill levels do I have to pass to play in April? What days are practices? How much are dues? You know, all that kinda need to know, but organizational info about a new league...
Hey I may already know roller derby, but I'll be a rookie in FCDG, so I'm getting to have a new derby experience this year! My previous rookie year was with MTLRD when we were all rookies together. I am so proud that I was part of the first season of MTLRD and that they are the first Canadian Roller Derby league to officially become a WFTDA league. If other Canadian teams want to join, what's holding them up? I'll see if I can find out!
Well, let's not dwell on me all damn day - you need to get to doing derby stuff, so here's the current Facebook Event listing for you - Yes, I know you are all on Facebook.... But PING.FM is the best for status updates everywhere at once!
Today, January 31 at 6:45pmOttawa's first ROLLER DERBY GAME!!!!!!! Game at 7:30pm EST - The ByTown Blackhearts (Ottawa, ON) vs the Montreal Sexpos (MTLRD's B-Team - Montreal, QC) I would so be going if I had a car! 6 hours drive, who cares?! I like those Ottawa girls, but I have to be all pro-MTLRD for this one, Let's GO Sexpos!
Tomorrow, February 1 at 12:00pmRoller Derby at the Coliseum! Mad Rollin' Dolls in Madison, WI host the Quad Squad vs. Reservoir Dolls and The Chicago Outfit vs. Unholy Rollers The Mad Rollin' Dolls always put on good derby events!
Tomorrow, February 1 at 2:00pmPublic Skate Ottawa Roller Derby is hosting a public skate on inlines or renting out quads to try tomorrow in Ottawa. Sounds like a fun day of skatin' to music.
Out in Western Canada, you can get tickets now to see Oil City versus the LA Derby Dolls in Feb! Visit Oil City for more info. I wish I could see this one!
Have a happy derby weekend, everybody, and please ....check out your local derby events tonight! Later! - Nia
This comic sprang forth because I was hunting through the WFTDA Rulebook for the rules around carrying weapons, foreign objects, or other costumey things while playing. There is no rule! Shouldn't there be?
When Rowdy Roughrider joined our league late last year I knew she was one to watch out for. She is the epitome of a pack-blocker. Great form, a solid hit and the ability to take a hit like it's water rolling off her back. A passionate athlete, Rowdy always brings her game, she takes the game seriously and can be seriously hard on herself if a jam doesn't go as planned. She has proven herself as a force on the track and it's with great honor that I present her as the SC rollergirl of the week. Derby Name: Rowdy Roughrider Number: 00 Team(s): Beach Flat Betties, New All star Position(s) : Blocker Hometown: SC
How did you learn about roller derby and how did you get started? I had a derby intervention. I walked into my house to find Yo on my couch with a try out application in hand. She knew I would love derby and she was RIGHT.
Why do you play roller derby? Derby is my outlet. A way for me to be a part of something that is bigger than me. Derby is mine and mine alone.
What are your favorite two things about playing roller derby? Being able to be Rowdy and express myself ( the crazy hit a bitch side of me). Having a group of women (sisters) as a support group. Experiencing life through the eyes of women of all walks of life. It is amazing. How did you get your derby name? I played softball for 12 years and my nickname was Rowdy Routley. I knew I wanted to incorporate Rowdy into derby someway. I figured Roughrider said it all and duhh Derby is Rowdy. What roller derby skates and gear do you use? What skates make you drool? I have Vandals with Omega wheels ( yummy) I really want to get PowerDyne ReactorAluminum Plates. What makes makes me drool.......................2008 Riedell Black Widow Derby Skates
What else, besides play, do you do for your league? I am a member of the fabulous Merchandise committee. What was your worst injury from roller derby so far? I had a slight tear and bruising of my left ACL. Not to mention all my lovely bruises. :)
How hard is it for you to balance your derby and real life responsibilities? Well I am a mother of three. It is tough balancing family life and derby. What does not kill me for dam sure makes me stronger. My Girls love to come out and watch mommy. Plus I am raising three future derby girls. Where do you see the sport of roller derby in 5 years? I see X Games, I see myself coaching my girls and watching them kick ass all around the track :P
What is your theme song? Journey "Don't stop believing" What's your dream roller derby vacation/travel/trip? ummm Northwestern Knockdown Nationals baby!!! I will be there
What has been your best roller derby moment this season/ever? Making the All Star team my first year. Pulling off a solid hit on the opposing jammer causing her to go down in the last game of the season.
Ann Calvello was a derby queen and was punk rock before it was trendy and cool to be punk rock... and Joan Weston was like scary mean... kickin ass! Yeah, okay, so they trained to know what to do and how to hit and how to fall and maybe how to be showy -come'on, they were on TV and look at the crowds! They played to their characterizations and personalities...
How do we get people back into roller derby like that? Where all the leagues will sell out all the venues for every game and suddenly we'll all have lots of sponsors and plenty of practice space and time....don't we all want to be full time rollergirls? Okay, as I said on facebook today when I proposed a SW Ontario convoy to GMDD Skills Clinic in November, with skating at every pit stop and a mass border crossing of rollergirls... I dream big sometimes.
Ok, about Ann, I know it's been a long time since we lost her, but you know sometimes I troll around youtube and old news posts and I couldn't resist sharing one I am sure you've all seen before....
Note, although I am a rollergirl, I could go for a fru fru roller dance gig anytime too LMAO
This week I am very proud to present Heather Headlockleer as the SC rollergirl of the week. Heather is not only my derby wife but one of my best friends. She was one of the first girls I met and skated with when I was waiting to tryout for SCRG two summers ago. It was sorta destiny from the start. My Dad came with me to open skate and took one look at Heather ripping it up on the floor and said, "make friends with her, she'll show you what you need to learn. She's got it." and he could not have been more right.
Not only did Heather show me fundamentals like falls and slides, she was a huge support system for me in the early days (and still now). I have had the opportunity to watch her blossom into one of our star jammers and I continue to stand in awe of her skating abilities and phenomenal speed.
Number: 9 Team(s): Lost Girls, All-Stars Position(s) : Jammer, Blocker Hometown: Santa Cruz - born and raised.
How did you learn about roller derby and how did you get started?
I can't remember how I actually first learned about Roller Derby.... I remember always "knowing" about the old-school type since I was a young girl. I got started like a lot of us in Santa Cruz - I saw a flier, heard about a team forming through friends, went to check it out and fell in love! Love at first sight!
Why do you play roller derby?
Roller Derby has changed my life...
I play for my team-mates, I play for the exercise, I play for the rush I get when I step onto the track, I play for the love of the sport in general, I play for selfish reasons like hearing the crowd cheer your name or making your family proud, and I play for selfless reasons like being a healthy role model for girls and giving back to the community. The intensity of the sport and the reasons why I play are to hard to encompass in a single paragraph.
What are your favorite two things about playing roller derby?
The gals I play with- The gals I play against.
How did you get your derby name?
I made a list of names, brainstormed, and posted some on the msg. boards for others to choose which one fit me best- I think Robin actually ended up suggesting it.
I was looking for a name that fit the "you don't have to be ugly to be tough" motto. ;)ha ha!
What roller derby skates and gear do you use? What skates make you drool?
I use Wicked skates and Omega wheels, bullet pads, SC helmet... but I have to admit I am drooling over Lulu's custom skates!! She turned it up a notch with those.
What else, besides play, do you do for your league? I am a Derby ambassador (DAM) and work on the PR committee.
What was your worst injury from roller derby so far?
hmmmm- My first broken nose and the pain of a severely fucked up tailbone are a tie.
How hard is it for you to balance your derby and real life responsibilities?
Freaking impossible- but somehow I do it.
Where do you see the sport of roller derby in 5 years?
Hopefully at the X games, on ESPN, more television broadcast with a more legitimized public opinion of the sport.
What is your theme song?
tbd. :(
What's your dream roller derby vacation/travel/trip?
Travel across the united states with a couple SCRGs- visit every team- practice with them- drink their beer.
What has been your best roller derby moment this season/ever?
The last period of the Inland Empire bout. Scoring enough points to tie the game and then enough points to win the game. AND how could I forget the dog pile that came after- I almost suffocated, but it was beautiful. One big SCRG embrace with my little legs sticking out from the very bottom:)
This is our wedding picture from RollerCon last summer...
A really good read, and a hard time getting into roller derby, that is all worth it...
I just read an amazing article by a writer that tried out for the Minnesota Roller Girls. Wow. Not only a good read, but an amazing tale of heartbreak and pain, work and sweat for fresh meat girls with the dream of playing roller derby.
As a player that started out as one of the "Come one, Come All" girls, the last or next to last member to join Les Contrabanditas in Montreal in 2006, I didn't have the experience of having to train like a madwoman for months and then have to try out in front of a league and screaming coaches to see if I made the cut. And then being sent home because I sucked more than half the other girls, and am not worthy to play for the team.
If I had, I probably wouldn't have done it. Why? I was never into sports or doing anything in front of people I didn' t know before roller derby. I was too shy, too reserved, too scared... it was roller derby that made me willing to wear a short skirt, to skate in front of people and try to jump, fall, hit, move, skate faster, get up and sweat with confidence and even...glee. After Les Filles started up, and La Racaille, our 2008 recruitment in Montreal before I left was more organized, with training, boot camps, draft picks and all that, but I don't think we told any girls no, and I don't think anyone was turned away..."until next year's tryouts" except for those that were just learning to skate and could not safely stay up yet.
I am so hard on myself that I doubt I would make it onto a team like MN if I were to go to tryouts, even if I were to go after the next 8 months in the gym I am spending, after over a year playing and training in Montreal behind me, because I would have to compete against all these skaters that I would think were better than me, and that would probably be better than me, with the huge insurgence of true, hardcore, Olympic-gold, hyper-competitive athletes that are getting into roller derby.
And having never had that All-Star player, winning jammer, award-winning blocker experience, I have no personal grounds to build my rollergirl confidence. Roller derby still seems to welcome women of all shapes, sizes, and backgrounds, but I think I am correct in that we're hearing the first groans of a labor pain, that will birth a new era of today's roller derby, that will make it start feeling more and more like all the mainstream sports I never joined.
I hope I'm wrong. I hope that if I am right, I'll be happy for roller derby. I hope if it does, that we keep some grass roots, amateur-style, come one and all, we love roller derby leagues that maybe become the farm teams for all the high rollers. I could train on a farm team until I'm good enough for the big leagues., sure I could!
When I decided to leave Montreal, for a quieter, more English existance, I thought that it would only be a new place. I would join up - very happily - with the Hammer City Rollergirls, work the new job, and life would go on. Weeee!
Instead, the 1 1/2 hour one way commute between Hamilton, ON and my work place means up at 5:30 AM, home at 7 PM, to bed by 10 or 11 and so the wheel turns. I don't own a car, and being a walker, skater, biker, on bus takes a little more time than driving would. And it's not quite as easy to skate or bike everywhere as you might think, with roads not being setup to allow for safe bike travel. Anyhoo, so roller derby has become a past-time, and not a career lately.
Last night, I went out to talk roller derby and what I was going to do with HCRG League President, Staplehead. Between the pint of beer, the sampler snack platter, and news about Chainsaw's pregnancy - she's ready to pop!, somewhere in there I realized that I don't know what I am going to do. I can move closer to my current office in the spring and see if the GTA Rollergirls are recruiting, I can transfer to my company's satellite office in London, Ontario and see if the Forest City derby girls are recruiting, or I can stay in Hamilton, so close and yet so far from playing for HCRG.
Technically, if I am willing to be tired, I can probably start practicing the GTA Rollergirls now in the off-season - cart my gear, gym bag, briefcase and shoes on practice day on two buses to work. Or, with HCRG, at least on Sunday evenings. But trying to restart my derby career is hard, when I don't know where my alter ego is landing. Is it fair to practice with a league that I won't play for and be able to work for?
Why does life have to get in the way of roller derby? Well, if it were popular enough to be a job, I probably wouldn't be on a team anyway, so I'll count my blessings that I learned how to play, have the will to keep trying, and love it enough to stay in it when I can't actually play.
Sunday afternoon I was searching for a DVD to watch/ have on in the background while I cleaned out my closet. My hands instantly went to the top left corner of my DVD library, landing directly on Rollergirls.
I thought to myself, do I dare? I have seen every episode at least four times and it's seems a little beyond being a guilty pleasure at this point. I negotiated with myself and settled on watching the forth disk, which only contains two episodes.
As the theme song started playing and the familiar faces of the TXRD girls rolled across my screen, I started to reflect on what an amazing and unbelievable year and a half it has been.
I, like so many girls who now play this sport, had never really been exposed to derby before that show. From the first episode I was hooked. It was like a giant light went on inside me and I knew I wanted to, and had to do that. I started researching close-by leagues, but nothing was close enough to consider participating in. After a little more then a year a league was founded in SC and I never hesitated or looked back. I knew that derby was went for me and I was destined to be a Santa Cruz Rollergirl.
In the last year I felt like a force woke-up inside me. I never considered myself an athlete before, and certainly not a competitor. But now I proudly wear both those tags clearly displaied on my metaphorical shirt. The closeness I have felt with my team and the time spent on and off the track has been nothing short of amazing.
I really felt like the universe came full circle for me when I was at RollerCon last August. I ended up getting separated from my girls and some how ended up at the Vagine Regime suite party. I went out on the balcony to try and bum a cigarette from someone (nasty habit I know) and who would you guess was out there chatting? Two of my favorite TXRD girls, Venis Envy and Smarty Pants.
I'm pretty sure most peops who stay up on their derby news know Venis is currently skating for ACDG. Regardless, there they were, and there I was. Smarty introduced herself to me and asked what league I played for. I played it cool, which if you knew me, you would know I never play it cool, I am incapable of playing it cool, I don't even know how to play it cool. But I did, and there I was having casual conversation with two of the very girls that inspired me to play this sport.
Sitting down and watching Rollergirls last weekend took on a whole new nostalgic meaning for me. I have that now. Roller derby used to be something I wanted to do and now it's something I am. After I was done watching the couple episodes I had allotted myself I returned the DVD set to the shelf. I have a feeling it may be the last time I watch them . . . at least for a while. My Rollergirl story is happening now and it's shaping up to be a great one.
The Big news over at the Derby News Network and in WFTDA realm, of course, is the Fall Brawl tomorrow down in Ft Wayne. Hammer City is on the Non-WFTDA line-up. I hope to get word on how they do after.
In other derby news, The Sault rollergirls in Northern Ontario are looking for new practice space - icing down all the arenas for hockey is a Canadian rite of passage as the cold bite of fall hits the wind, but for derby leagues all over Canada and the northern US, it means a hunt for an indoor place to practice in the winter. How can you come out swinging in the spring for your season, if you can't skate for 7 months of the year? Good luck to them, and if you're in that area and know of a place, Please contact Elora Nelson at (705) 253-2044 or email purple__mascara@hotmail.com check the website: http://www.saultrollergirls.com/
Next week, MTLRD New Skidz on the Block will be taking on the Brooklyn Bombshells down in Gotham City. If you're on Facebook, Here is the event page. If not, brownpapertickets has tickets, or check out the Gotham Girls site. I haven't heard from Georgia W Tush since she went out on tour with the band, but I hope she's playing and let's us know how that one goes.
Way out in October, watch for a Skate of the Dead, hosted by the Forest City Roller Girls in London, ON. The facebook event says it's October 18. The Forest City Roller Girls website is under construction, so I'm looking out for this league, as they have been playing hard for their first season in 2008. Next year should rock in Ontario and Canada with all the leagues coming up.
In Nia Capps news, I'm in the gym 5 days, count that again, 5 days per week for a 45 minute workout every lunch hour, and I'm skating on the weekends (or if rainy, hiking). I am on an 8 month journey to hit the GTA Rollergirls in April when I get ready to slide a little back east into Mississauga and Toronto area, ready to kick ass. Hopefully, I'll still get to a couple of practices with HCRG in the interim, or with GTA. Slapallonia may hook me up.
Everything is going great. Ok ok, so I had a bad reaction to some Novocaine after a dentist visit yesterday and today I am resting because my face is numb and tingly and I'm nauseated. But shut up, I am doing AWESOME!
In Derby Luv news, I have a new short sleeved Derby Luv T-shirt, along with a long-sleeved Derby Luv T-Shirt on their way to keep me Derby Luv style for my around towns, and a big shout out and thanks to everyone that has decided to wear their Derby Luv this year!
On my project list I have a product review for some derby-inspired toys, and I'm waiting to see if I can get an interview with the derby girl that won $35k on a game show. Do you know what I am talking about? Hmmm, a derby trivia quiz for your weekend!
Oh yeah, and a fellow Southern Belle, an Atlanta Rollergirl was chosen as a skater for "Whip It!" - a body double stunt woman skater I should say, as a body double for Eve. That is awesome! I wonder who I could body double for... hmmmm Wynona Judd? Screw that, by April it'll be for Xena. ;)
"Am I the only one looking forward to Juno getting taken out by “The Bride” on wheels?"
- Haven McCord
No Haven, you are not.
Perusing roller derby news is always a treat for me. There are new leagues still popping up in cities across the globe, and media catches on to startup leagues in their areas, the stories are always similiar, but different. Each league has a different challenge... space to train and play is the biggest, enough players, refs and support, and sponsors probably ranks second. What I noticed with my searches this week is that there are leagues operating almost everywhere now. But not here in Mississauga - but that may change. There are the new GTARDS (Greater Toronto Area Roller Derby). I've met the founder of this new league recently at the HCRG Eh! vs ToRD CN Power game, and their logo kicks... I'll try to grab it off Facebook for you.
Anyway, I heard tell of a tournament GTARD is putting on in August for the fresh meat rookie teams cranked up and ready to go. I'll have more info available soon I hope.
I need to find some time to see what else is up in roller derby this week, so if anyone has anything they want me to go ferret up info on, just let me know!
Well, let's move away froom serious competition for a moment, and take a look at some fun stuff! There is a review of "Xanadu" on DVD from the Washington Post, and just looking at the pictures jogs my foggy memory of seeing this when I was a kid, on TV - or was it at the drive-in with my sister?
I learned to roller skate at the local skating rink in Forest City, NC when I was about 4 or 5 years old. The building was turned into a dance hall/bar in later years, and the rink moved down the road, but I have memories of being 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 going to the skating rink on weekend afternoons, and sometimes in the evenings, to my older sister's chagrin as I tagged along. I remember skating under the disco ball, with the laser lights all over the wood floor (I think it was wood then) and learning to skate faster, go backwards, slalom, spin and dance on rented quad skates that at that time, were in good repair and were the only kind you could get.
I skated to "YMCA", "I wish they all could be Carolina girls" , "You dropped the bomb on me" , "Beat It" and all sorts of disco and early 80's tunes.
I skated every weekend until I was about 12 when for Christmas, what I wanted was my own pair of speed skates. By then I had skated at skating rinks in every city we had moved to across NC and was back in Forest City. the new skating rink was larger, with smooth concrete floors, and older girls would fly around on a speed track during a section of the nightly skate... and I wanted to do that. So off I went on my first pair of speed skates, white with pink wheels.
I got faster, but never had a friend that wanted to skate like me, and never thought to ask for help or a coach. So I learned by myself and loved it. Skating as fast as you can to Bon Jovi when you are 13 and "Shot through the Heart" is blaring is just awesome.
All night skates 7 PM to 7 AM were a trip, and I grew up on those skates. Once I skated down a one block steep hill on the street, I fell at the bottom when I panicked when I heard a car coming over the hill to intercept me (no way I was stopping at that speed) and I bounced and slid across the road backwards on my rear. The car did hit me, but only the wheels of my skates and it spun me around as it flew by, never braking, and my friends shrieked in horror from the grass beside the road. I dunno what happend when I got a car and turned 16 and started running around all teenage crazy... but my skates got put away and lost.
Now I have two pairs in a skate bag with all my roller derby gear, waiting for me to pick them back up and get back on wheels. For now, I am going to start concentrating on Derby Luv, and I'll be ready to train as a rookie fresh meat player in the fall to start over from scratch.
So for this weekend? HCRG is hosting a charity event "Schoolyard Scramble". The entire league, names drawn out of a hat for instant team split up, and scrimmage! For info visit the website, or check your facebook and myspace for Hammer City Roller girls. I think this is a really fun idea, and I look forward to hearing if Jet Girl takes my advice and starts a game of Red Rover, Red Rover in the pack.
What games/events are you going to? Let me know and tell us about them! info @ derbyluv.com!
So I am all settled into Hammer City (Hamilton) Ontario. I finally bumped into Staplehead, Hammer City Rollergirls' League President yesterday, and I may get to finally strap my skates back on for the first time since straining a calf muscle in late March or so. (Sunday for a 4 hour practice) - Yay! Skates! But I'm nervous a bit. I know two months is a long time off-skate, maybe I will suck and make a bad first impression... or maybe I'll be fine and then may feel bad if I can't work out a schedule to make the weekday practices... either way, I may be down trodden. I'll keep you posted as I try to revive my roller derby career now that my relocation is done.
In the meantime, I have not given up on roller derby at all, and I hope you haven't given up on Derby Luv. I have been perusing news, like this article that revisits "Hell On Wheels" at austin360.com and did you hear that The Death Row Dames in Hamilton won over Ottawa Roller Derby on May 24th? That's what I heard! And Saskatoon got it's first taste of roller derby when The Hell's Belles and Bridge City Bombshells played to a sold out crowd this past weekend.
I've talked to Hammer City folks, and hear there is a game coming up with the Steel Town Tank Girls vs The London Thrashers next week (jun 7). (more details when I have them). In Toronto, the TORD is playing on the same date, The Death Track Dolls take on the Bay Street Bruisers.
And there is "Skate Through This" a double header in Montreal on June 14th. Les Filles du Roi will be going up against Boston B-Party and La Racaille against the Charm City B-Team. Also on the 14th: Calgary's CRDA Hellion Rebellion Travel Team vs. Victoria's Eves of Destruction, in Victoria, BC.
Lots of summer derby fun for everyone! Stay tuned, I'm back and ready to bring you some more roller derby news!
"The theme of this season is 'Fresh Meat,' " says the MILFinator, aka Ursula Allison, a league organizer and member of the Hard Knockers. "We have a lot of new girls this year -- interest just keeps on growing.."
MESQUITE , TX . (March 13, 2008) - It's Time to Bring Conspiracy Back to the Track!
Trigger Mortis has alerted me that ACRD is starting their 2008 season on March 29, the same day MTL Roller Derby kicks of their season with their travel team, The New Skidz on the Block, taking on the Dutchland Rollers in Lancaster, PA.
ACRD says: The spunky skaters of Assassination City Roller Derby will roll out their first bout of 2008 with the season opener on Saturday, March 29.
The girls will host their neighbors to the north, the Victory Dolls of Oklahoma, in the first game of the night, aptly named "Victory or Death." In this competition, which kicks off at 7 p.m., seasoned skaters of both leagues’ interleague travel teams will duke it out.
The second game of the night, "Battle to the Death," will feature skaters from Assassination City , the Oklahoma Victory Dolls and two Texas leagues, Piney Woods Roller Derby and the East Texas Bombers.
The event promises all the wickedness on wheels you remember from last year, complete with beatings, bloody noses, beer-can pyramids and bands. It also brings a lineup of new faces – check out rising stars Mona Bruiser and Olive Illegal – as well as a new season schedule and a new venue.
Assassination City events will be held every third Saturday night through September at Dad’s Broadway Skateland, 3022 Moon Dr., in Mesquite. Find a complete schedule online at http://www.acderby.com. Events are BYOB, no glass.
Tickets for each bout are $12 in advance or $15 at the door. Kids under 10 get in free. Buy tickets in advance from the league’s web site or at the following locations: CD World, Dad’s Broadway Skateland, Doublewide Bar, Pluckers, Absinthe Lounge, and Skatebus Skateshop.
And don't forget our Day of the Dead themed prebout party March 22 at the Doublewide Bar, 3510 Commerce in Dallas, and our killer after-bout parties are always held at Lee Harvey's, 1807 Gould in Dallas, where you can hang with all the derby girls!
Women's Roller derby, the nation’s fastest-growing sport, combines speed, action, aggression and feminine grace. Assassination City went from a dream to a Dallas destination in 2005. The member-owned league is part of the Women’s Flat Track Derby Association.
Thanks, Trigger! It is nice to know Roller derby is gearing up and rolling for another year. MTLRD will be hosting the Beast of the East Tournament, the First Eastern Canadian Roller Derby Tournament with 16 teams from across eastern Canada and the US, and we're all in a flurry of roller derby right now. I hope I can make it to Rollercon this year to meet everyone!
...the Seattle Rust Riot roller derby tournament at Magnuson Park in Seattle. The all-day, single-elimination event featured the Rat City Rollergirls' Rain of Terror from Seattle, the Jet City Rollergirls from Everett, the Lava City Roller Dolls from Bend, Ore., the Lilac City Rollergirls from Spokane, the Oly Rollers from Olympia, the Rose City Rollers from Portland, the Slaughter County Roller Vixens from Bremerton and the Treasure Valley Rollergirls from Boise, Idaho. (February 02, 2008)
My mom wouldn't let me play outside when I was kid. I couldn't go snowboarding till I was 18, and every skateboard I ever brought into the house always mysteriously disappeared. So I may have been a little accident-prone, but I also had an overly protective Jewish mother whose goal in life was to keep me in one piece. So how the heck was I going to tell my mother I was trying-out for roller derby?
My Dad's only comment when I was showing him clips on youtube.com was, "so. . . where's the ball?" His eyebrows furrowed, expressing genuine confusion. Surprisingly he was totally into to it. He loved the name I had chosen, and professed himself a die-hard fan of the sport.
Most girls I know who skate have similar reactions from their parents. They are either curious as to when the ball comes into play or they agonize over the potential reality of serious injury.
When I did finally tell my mother, she had a hard time understanding why I would want to do this. Why would I want to put myself in harms-way? What could I tell her? That I had this insatiable need to get my ass beat and to kick-ass. What was she going to do? Ground me? Take away my skates? Forbid me from ever seeing my derby-sisters again? Then it dawned on me . . . I'm not 14 years old and this is not like the time she took my rollerblades away. I'm a 26 year-old woman and live 4 hours from my hometown, so it's not like I wasn't going to play if she disapproved.
I had built a very large mountain out of a very small molehill. It was the guilt. Knowing that if I never told her I would feel guilty for keeping something from my mother, and if I did tell her I could potentially risk her disapproval and therefore forever live my life secretly burdened by guilt.
What is up with this power my mother wields over me? Any Jewish kid will tell you that we have been culturally conditioned to be compliant. When one steps outside that realm, a little dark cloud starts to form over your head and slowly churns it self into a full blown thunderstorm I like to call guilt. I digress.
I felt like I was coming out of the closet but instead of professing my love for another woman, I was confessing my devotion for my roller skates. She's come to accept it more then I thought she would. Of course she has yet to see the game played, and more importantly me in the game. Surprisingly she does really like some of the strings that come attached to derby. You know, cool names, cute outfits, getting to hang out with your girlfriends four nights a week. The perks.
I could easily understand any parents concerns about their adult children taking up an extreme sport. It's not like I'm playing Crockett, I'm knocking bitches around and getting my ass handed to me on a regular basis. It's fair to say I am not the first rollergirl who felt like I had to out myself to my family.
Becoming a rollergirl really is a change of lifestyle. I was essentially telling my parents, you may have thought that I was like this, but I'm really like that. In some weird way roller derby kind of helped my parents understand me, and in some ways helped me understand myself. I am ruff and tumble, I like to physically challenge myself and push my own limits. This is who I am and this is my life . . . on skates.
The rollergirls of Maine Roller Derby are having a fundraiser, and I was proud to be asked if they could use the Derby Luv original arwork, now used on our wallpaper, as art on their flyer. Good luck with the fundraiser, MRD and I am glad you are reading Derby Luv!
Estro Jen took some time to sit down with Georgia W Tush and tell us about VIa Derby and her involvement with Roller Derby. Did you know you can pass 9 Roller Derby Leagues in an hour drive in California? How about that Estro Jen founded Via Derby, and also is into training skaters, fundraising for leagues and promoting Roller Derby as a whole to the entire world?
I just finished watching a piece on CBC Sunday about Roller Derby. They were present at the Chicks Ahoy vs Gore Gore Championship game in Toronto. It was a great piece and look at roller derby, and they talked alot to G-Force, a Chicks Ahoy jammer that I met at one of our MTL Roller Derby games last year. Toronto is the largest league in Canada (and maybe North America) with 6 teams.
My favorite part though was seeing my teammates, Bon-Bon Scott and Trash N Smash as well as our head ref Null PTR Ref, in the crowd. MTLRD is awesome, and I was happy with the CBC look at roller derby....
The shots of the game were cool and I hope to see mre press like this across Canada in 2008.
Good for CBC for taking a look at roller derby and that was great press for TORD. Way to go!
Wow! Thanksgiving with the family, shopping and Roller Derby.. what a non-restful, but totally awesome Thanksgiving vacation to North Carolina!
I've got some images and video to share, but I can give you a brief synopsis of my practice with the Blue Ridge Rollergirls.... Let's just say that their brawny Coach, Mike, and their Blue Ridge Mountain Bruiser (that's what I am calling them) girls were awesome! As friendly as can be, but as tough and fast on their shiny glass-polished cement floor as you can imagine. Those pyramid rest period scissor kicks and banana peels, those suicides that went on forever... and that drag line.... AWESOME!
The Blue Ridge Rollergirls say they have finished their first season as well, and it could have been better. It seems even my home state that still has roller rinks around, places to play are still hard to find. They ended up at a community center, couldn't sell beer, and were not allowed to book enough in advance to promote their games more than a couple weeks in advance. Come On - support your local roller derby if you're in Western NC and get out to Asheville to see them next time around!
That sucks! My dream is for every league to have their own home space where we can all practice as much as we can in dry and warm places, and we can all have our events and games in the same space... how awesome would that be?
So on the plane I go in an hour, with my sore stomach muscles, sore back and in shape and tight legs... Roller Derby Hurts, but I LOVE ROLLER DERBY!
Thnks to Chell-O Shooter, Coach Mike, Give Em Hella, Axe, Ace, and all the girls I may have forgotten the names to write down at BRRG for having me out to practice. If you ever wanna visit Montreal, just let me know!
This weekend and Planning for US Thanksgiving Weekend!
I can't believe US Thanksgiving is just a week away - less than that actually... I'll be heading south for the event, but I'll go into that in a bit. First off, just let me say that Roller Derby seasons everywhere winding down, while others, like MTLRD have just recruited, are recruiting, and are in training for the start of next season. In the next two weeks, we have 3 championships, and that's just what I have in my inboxes on Facebook and Myspace on a quick scan. I don't catch all of them, and I feel terrible about that...
Here goes: Saturday Nov 17th (that's tomorrow) TORD has a Championship game with the Gore Gore Rollergirls against the Chicks Ahoy. I think my teammate Trash 'N Smash and friends will be there - that means maybe Georgia W Tush if I know my captain and co-captain. Those carless of us are stuck with waiting to hear the scoop... If you're in or near TO or can get there... go see the TORD girls kick ass! It's at RINX at 65 Orfus Road in Toronto. Oh and check out the Roller Suicide fundraiser for TORD at Fable House in Toronto on Sunday.
If you are already south of the US/Canada Border, you can also catch an eciting championship bout between the Queens of Pain and the Bronx Gridlock for the Gotham Girls Roller Derby on the same night.
Next weekend, after stuffing yourself on Turkey on Thursday and shopping derby-style on Black Friday, you can catch The Holy Rolling Empire event with the Arch Rival Rollergirls M-80s and the Smashinistas fighting for the 2007 ARRG Championship Cup! That's on the 24th at the All-American Sports Mall in St Louis, MO.
And there's some events I am too late to post, sorry everyone!, and more to post for early December. But for now, I'll let you know that on Wednesday, Nov 21, Nia Capps with gear in her suitcase will be headed from Montreal to North Carolina. And, The BlueRidge Rollergirls of Asheville, NC (really close to my hometown and where I will be) have been nice enough to have me at their Thanksgiving weekend practice on Saturday morning. Thanks, Shoot Her! I'll see how many BRRG girls I can introduce you to, and what info I can bring back... hopefully blogging in the airports and during my visit some too...
In the meantime, I am nursing an injury from Tuesday's league practice and not doing a good job of it. RICE, NIA, RICE... I took a fall onto my left hip.. and continued skating and thought nothing of it. 3 full days later and tough no hematoma big blue bloody looking bruise is forming, my hip is still swollen up in a lump, achy, and it hurts to put all my weight onmy left leg at an angle out from my body, or to go up stairs with it. I think I know how old people break their hips now... gravity + slipping + falling hard = OW!
But hey, it's all in a derby day's work, right?! I hope Santa brings me some new wheels for Christmas that are grippier and more stable on our wood practice floors. I think wearing my Blue Demons for miles and miles of asphalt all spring and summer have made them still good for outside, but maybe not too grippy anymore on wood...
Found on HaveDerbyWillTravel - I love Hurt Reynolds for his inside scoops, and check out the embeddable derby promo for your own site if you have one!
MavTV WFTDA broadcasts begin tonight Written by Hurt Reynolds
Saturday, 20 October 2007
The long wait for televised flat track derby sportscasting ends tonight, per this derby blogger news flash from the WFTDA:
Mav TV airs the first episode of Heartland Havoc tonight!This week's episode will be the full- length first game of Heartland Havoc, Windy City vs. Atlanta!
Episodes are an hour and a half long, and will air weekly, in order of the tournament games, at the following times: Orig. airs will be Saturdays beginning 10/20, 10/27, 11/6, etc. at 11:00pm.
Re-airs will be Sunday (lt. Sat. night) at 1:30am Mon. at noon and Mon. at 5:00pm
And check out HaveDerbyWillTravel for instructions on how to watch episodes! ) -xxxooo Mercy Less, Duke City Derby, Marketing/PR Chair, WFTDA
All times are Eastern.
MavTV will broadcast every bout from the 2007 WFTDA East Regional and Championship Tournaments, one per week, in the same order the bouts were played in. Yes, that was a preposition I ended that sentence with.
Roller Derby - Insult sent to Derby Luv Myspace by those to get no press because I refuse to name them
On Oct 25th, I received the below hate mail on my myspace - I just got it. The person that did this has no presence on myspace or anywhere else so far, but I wanted to share it in case they have spammed you too, and let you know my thoughts.
"Dearest Derby Luv - I'd like you to take a moment and just realize how ridiculous and anti-feminist roller derby is for the modern female. If roller derby is primarily about playing with sexual norms and doing some kind of Suicide Girls type performance with a little bit of violence added in for spice, then we should stop pretending it's feminist and empowering...and let us not forget the about cankle ratio per roller girl. "
Anyone that can believe this has never been through a grueling 3 hour derby practice training, pushed themselves to meet minimum skill requirements as a rookie, or nursed the bruises and injuries we've all gotten from our sport. They don't know the hours we put in to learn how to play, to improve our play, and the dedication it takes to keep skating and training with bleeding sores from skates, and blisters and shin splints. Don't forget the sprained shoulders, hematomas, knee injuries, broken bones, dislocated ankles, busted faces... the times when you play a game on 10 or less players and skate every 2 minute jam for a period...
And frankly, it is feministic and empowering too... becoming an athlete, getting in shape, knowing I can take hits and give them... being sure of myself, and also becoming comfortable enough in my skin to wear a short skirt and fishnets in public? Roller Derby is the best thing to happen to me, and I know there wouldn't be so many leagues operating, and so many fans if it weren't true for others. I'm ashamed I wasted time to even respond.
Okay, I'll admit it. Surfing through EBay for hard to find roller derby merchandise probably isn't a very productive use of my time, but I did manage to find some oddities:
Rollercon 2007 - Roller Derby on the Streets of Vegas
Since I was personally unable to attend Rollercon this year, I was curious to find out if the roller derby community was uploading videos of their Las Vegas roller derby experiences -- and I was not disappointed!
The immense popularity of roller derby, the crash-and-bash women's sport, and jam skating, a form of freestyle that incorporates breakdancing, hip hop, and gymnastics, have reinvigorated interest in old-fashioned quad skating. Youth birthday parties are also a big hit, in some cases comprising 50 percent of a rink's business.
Undoubtedly, though, rink operators say the current boom will never rival the period from 1975 to 1981. During what's known as the "golden era" of skating, the number of rinks nearly doubled, jumping from 1,200 to 2,200 nationwide...
Maybe the current revival won't match the golden era of roller skating, but rink operators can't be complaining too much about the extra coinage in their pockets!
Roller Skating Round-Up: Fuel Power, Girl Power, The 80's
Some fuel-powered roller skates, which have the ability to reach speeds of over 20 miles per hour, have been impounded by athorities in the U.K. Who needs fuel? The way some jammers skate, you'd think they already had jets strapped to their feet.
Hell City Hooligans helped me out with the list of recruiting Co-ED OSDA leagues:
Men and Women Skaters Needed! Also refs! North East Pennsylvania Diamond City Death Kings NEPA's 1st and only Mens Roller Derby Team is now recruiting skaters. All you need is skates, pads and guts. Come and attend an open practice see what you are missing out on. Practices are Monday 8-10pm Wednesday 9-11pm
Philadelphia / Bucks County / Southwest Jersey She Devils Roller Derby wants you! Everyone 18 and over is encourage to play! We have spots on our women's teams and men's team. Come out to a practice. Practices are Monday 9-11pm and Wednesday 9-11pm at Jamz in Philadelphia. hellcityhooligans.com shedevilsrollerderby.com
Richmond Area Virginia Men's Roller Derby Are you ready, Richmond? The Richmond Derby Demons are recruiting for an all-male roller derby team. Must be 18 or old and use quad skates. No derby experience necessary. Will train. (We are also recruiting for our women's team!)
Yep, it's true. A musical on the stage, all about Roller Derby
On the road in 1972, the action packed, rough and tumble world of Roller Derby grabs the spotlight, when a brash young rookie from New York City's mean streets takes on the sport's beloved but aging star in a battle royal for the right to be crowned the reigning Roller Derby Queen. Promoted by the game's wheeler dealer manager, the pair tears up the track, rockin' and rollin' with the ten decidedly colorful gals and guys on their team, famous to TV fans across America as the world champion Bombers.
"After writing a column last week about the roller derby revisionist movement, I received several hundred e-mails alerting me to the following facts: I am, at once, gay, overweight, effeminate, lacking moral fiber, old, cynical, a sissy, anti-American, rich, snobbish, black and unable to appreciate "the fastest-growing, grassroots sport in the World!" ...
But after a few minutes, all I could see rolling around in the slaw were well-intentioned young women, following a very bad trend for the benefit of a bunch of horny guys.
If that's the definition of sport, I'll take a job as a "referee" at a pillow fight. "...
Mike Seate got a lot of slack on his bashing of roller derby, but he still seems to think that the fact that we might wear fishnets and mini skirts or short shorts, may appear sexy as opposed to sporty, and might do silly things as penalty killers is lame. Oh well, we can't win them all, and we aren't going to have every person love roller derby... and I guess some guys like roller derby cause women are sexy to them, while women and girls love it because it's tough girls kicking ass and taking names and being athletic. I guess Mr. Seate just doesn't get that the costumes and names are done in fun, with whimsical ways to let a woman depart from her normal society-induced girly things into a tough heroine super-hero ass kicker on wheels for the entertainment of those watching the sport.
