Freaking Roller Derby
Image by AFP/Getty Images via Daylife
I started writing about sports because I love talking about sports. I just never get sick of it. I love talking to random, average fans all over the place — at the hair salon, at the supermarket, at the local bar, over coffee. I feel like I can always learn something about a team, a player, or just the nature of what it means to be a fan, by opening myself up to that sort of conversation. Besides, I just get a charge out of it.
But you know what I really am tired of? Random people suggesting that I should write about roller derby. Yeah. Fucking roller derby. Oooh, that’s so edgey. What a super awesome idea! Why didn’t I think of that?
I don’t hate roller derby. Okay, maybe I do a little. But I write about sports, so I’m not sure why people always think that I should be covering roller derby. Yes, roller derby requires athletic ability. And yes participants often sustain bumps and bruises and injuries. But physical toughness and the mere risk of injuries do not a sport make. If that were so, riding in a car with my mother driving would be considered a sport.
No offense to all those alternative chicks into roller derby, all the Zooey Deschanel/Ellen Page wannabes and the Bettie Page worshippers, but roller derby is not a sport. It’s cool and everything, with the cool hair and cool make-up and all that stuff. I’m sure it’s fun, too, and I like fun. Really, I do.
But that’s not the point. The point is that I usually write about people like Sidney Crosby, Darrelle Revis and Maya Moore while roller derby has more in common with, say, Captain Lou Albano, the Iron Shiek and the Lady Gaga. It is performance and costume and atmospherics with athletic ability mixed in. Entertainment first, athletics second.
The attitude is what separates them, by oceans, in fact. While roller derby requires ironic distance, playing team sports requires whatever the precise opposite of ironic distance is. Heck, even just being a fan means that you don’t get to pose in a corner looking cool. Sports are actually the opposite of cool. Sports are stupid and silly; and smart, erudite people will no doubt sneer upon you for caring about them. Traveling around in a Winnebago to follow Alabama football is not smart or savvy or clever. But it’s the heart of sport, American style. And it is decidedly un-cool.
Which is why roller derby is sport for the PBR crowd.
Maybe the years I spent writing for an alternative news weekly got to me — if there was a phenomenon custom ordered for the pages of alternative news, it’s the roller derby revival. It’s just so hip and edgey. Hell, it’s beyond edgey, don’t you see? It’s roller derby, get it? It’s like meta-edgey, a commentary which is beyond even irony on, um, well on something. I’m sure of that.
It’s probably my fault. I’m sure this doesn’t happen to Bill Simmons or Sally Jenkins, but after all, I have opened myself up to this because over the years, I have been so willing to write atypical sports stories — ultra-marathoners, every day streak runners, a Division II football coach and stuff like that. Hell, I once wrote about a guy who went bow and arrow deer hunting in a very urban neighborhood. Not your typical lead sports stories, any of them, I know.
It’s all made worse by the fact that I’ve covered women’s football. I suppose for some people, women doing anything outside of the “normal” activities are all lumped into the same tiny compartment of their brains – roller derby = burlesque = women’s football. What I’ve written about is women playing FOOTBALL. Not WOMEN playing football. If that distinction is at all clear.
But do me a favor. If you meet me in a bar, I promise not to bore you with tales of high school basketball coaches or kayak masters, so long as you don’t suggest that I cover roller derby. I might even buy you a PBR if you’re nice.
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What kind of professional journalist puts the F word in her article?!?!……oooh, that’s so edgey.
Actually, you just DID write about roller derby and your commenters went ahead and finished the piece up for you. You didn’t even need to do any research!
So thanks! Those of us involved in the sport appreciate the exposure!
1. familiarize yerself with the rules: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GTi_AibOaso
2. watch this: http://www.derbynewsnetwork.com/live/bouts/2009/11/championship_bout
I played rugby for about 15 years. Now my knees hurt so I started playing derby. I also played basketball, volleyball, tennis and many, many other sports. Flat track derby is an interesting game. It’s the only game I have ever played that you play offense and defense at the exact same time.
I’m not so fond of all the hoopla surrounding the bouts, but I understand the need to earn money to pay the rink, etc. I would rather play in a rink with a couple of fans, but that’s how I felt about playing rugby too.
I would actually like to see more pick up roller derby games.
Jealous much? It’s okay I’m actually glad you don’t want to write about derby. We don’t need another narrow minded, ignorant fool like yourself following our SPORT. I guess if I looked like you do I’d be pretty pissed off at the world too.
Xoxo
you couldn’t be further off the mark with this judgment on roller derby. I know several ladies who have been involved with various local leagues since their inception, and they are some of the hardest working people I know, physically and otherwise. they built this sport from the ground up for themselves. there’s no money in it and most of these women work full time jobs in addition to practicing and the time they put in supporting the league.
if it’s popular with “the PBR crowd”, maybe its because it’s a sport that hasn’t been drowned in commercial sponsorships and is still about playing the game rather than catering to million-dollar egos. sure there are theatrics and personality, but the bouts themselves are real competition. These women train hard and they all want to win, it’s not just about putting on a show (though you’ll find the degree to which varies greatly among leagues)
You’ve heard a lot from the roller derby community already, but I’d still like to address the accusation of “ironic distance”. If anyone attempted to play roller derby while maintaining “ironic distance”, they would be summarily, and entirely unironically, crushed into the track by someone paying a lot more attention.
As you can probably tell by now – Us derby gals take our SPORT seriously. I think I was a personally offended at your declaration of derby not being a sport and let me tell you why . . . It’s not JUST that I have dedicated my life to this “thing” for the last 2 and half years. It’s not JUST that I have recently undergone ACL replacement surgery and endured 5 torturous months off skates for an injury I received playing derby. It’s that fact that of all the sports I have played in my almost 30 years, derby is the most legit. Yes it’s newer . . but what the heck is curling? or freestyle gymnastics? There is this little thing called WFTDA – I suggest you look it up.
We train our asses off, some of us cross train, diet, do everything we can to be in peek derby shape. I think it is beyond unfair of you to say this is not a sport. WHIP IT was not derby, it was Hollywood – the comparison would be like me saying Mickey Mouse was an actual rodent.
Oh and for the record the WFTDA nationals have gotten coverage one ESPN! HA!
I hope that our community outrage at your little post has been an eye opener – we take our shit seriously. almost as is it were a REAL sport or something . . .
I think in order to understand the “theatrics” of roller derby, you’ve got to look into the history. When the revival started with Bad Girl Good Woman in Austin in 2001, the girls were reluctant to even call their game roller derby–they called it roller derby entertainment because a) it wasn’t played on a traditional (at that time) banked track and b) the game and the girls’ skating skills had yet to be developed. The whole idea of the revival came from a dude who wanted to make it a circus sideshow, and that first incarnation of roller derby could hardly be called a sport.
Fast forward nine years. Skater names are, for the most part, vestiges of the entertainment era. Leagues are everywhere, and they are diverse in size and playing style. You’ve got leagues like HARD in Corpus Christi and TXRD in Austin who still adhere to certain tenets of entertainment like fighting and non-derby penalty faceoffs (even with the entertainment aspects, though, the games are still pretty brutal). Then there are leagues in the OSDA (Old School Derby Assn) who use their real names. Also in the community are the Renegade leagues who have no rule set but who play an amazing game that involves even more concentration and control than other types of derby. You’ve also got the WFTDA leagues whose travel teams bring the entertainment side to pretty much zero. They’re all sport. Even the handful of existing banked-track leagues have been playing more serious WFTDA-esque tournaments in the last few years.
You’re not the first person to have that perspective, and I’m sure you won’t be the last. One woman called us strippers on wheels. What’s funny about that particular comment is that back in the day we had a pudding-wrestling fundraiser that was rollergirls v. strippers. Believe me when I say the strippers backed out pretty damn quick and we ended up wrestling ourselves.
Jody,
You know, I think if I were to imagine your position—one where you have an intense love of SPORTS, cover what you love, and have people peppering you every once in awhile to cover some “new girl empowerment” sport—I’d probably make a face too… one of those “yeah right, I’m a purist” kind of faces.
A face like I might have made when my (now) coach approached me about playing derby. I was a rugby player. I’d played rugby ever since my freshman year in college when someone told me there was a sport I could play where I could be physical—my kind of sport. Before that I played soccer, softball and basketball. Yep, I’m just a jock. And now I’m a roller derby DORKWAD.
I love this shit. This morning I woke up sore from scrimmage practice yesterday and peeled the tape off my feet from where my blisters are; man does that make me smile. Dinner last night consisted of talking about team strategy, how our team’s “fresh meat” was coming along, and silly code things to yell during jams like “pancakes!” to throw the other teams, all over tacos and beer with many of my teammates.
Aside from these personal reasons, Roller derby is forever validated as a sport, in my mind, because it demands of its participants what athletes at many pro levels do: constant mental and physical preparation, consistent strength and endurance training, proper diet etc. I put in 6-7 hours on skates a week, as well as cross training off skates regularly. I have to remember to stretch every day and drink lots of water (and not the kind with flavor and zero calories say the experts I make myself listen to).
Most importantly, the sport I play is a sport because of all the heart that comes to the game. If there is one single reason roller derby has grown from the possibility of being a “fad” sport to the rolling ball of fury it is today, it’s because of all the belief its members have put into it. The derby community is only gaining steam, just a few short years into the sport’s re-birth into the modern day. A growing derby community has come to mean fiercer competition, better game regulations, and COVERAGE (which, incidentally, is how I became such a derby dork). Just check out http://www.derbynewsnetwork.com and you’ll see that there are scores posted after every weekend, bout recaps, pictures, rankings, and links to other derby sites. Too many of roller derby’s participants and fans have grown this sport for it to die. And trust me, we spend much more of our money on our gear and dues than on our clothes.
So, Jody, I invite you to go to a bout and let go your sporty machismo (it took me about 2 jams into a Carolina Rollergirls bout). Grab a beverage, sit your ass trackside close to the pivot line so you can see the “real” on everyone’s faces as they take the line, and relax. You will be among plenty of sports fans.
Dear Jody,
At first I was enraged by your slander of the SPORT I train 6 days a week for. I am a former NCAA D1 athlete and member of the U.S. Olympic Development Program for mens soccer. After I realized that you are a sports writer and not an athlete I let my frustrations go and moved on to stage two of my daily workout. I train just as hard to keep up with my derby teammates(both male and female) as I did in my prime as a Soccer player. Before I get ahead of myself you do consider Soccer a sport right?
I find it discouraging that you have formulated your opinion of our SPORT based on a very limited aspect of the entertainment we as athletes provide. My team and the team I coach skate just as hard at an empty venue as we do at a sold out venue. We do not validate ourselves through fan approval or sports writers. This SPORT has more personality than any of the others I have participated in and it is very discouraging that you (being an educated and talented sports writer) fail to appreciate that fact.
I invite you to watch this video—>http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TafdADZyeSQ
This video was created by one of the newest teams to enter the fastest growing SPORT in America. If you can watch this video and say that Roller Derby is not a SPORT than you are truly naive and I challenge your definition of the word SPORT.
-Crashanova
There is nothing humorous about being unprofessional, poorly informed and uninteresting… one can only imagine you opened this can of worms so that you can get derby girls to give you the time of day… are you lonely, Jody?…you’d get better results with being respectful and supportive, you are coming across as sad and desperate, major turn off… I am officially bored with you… good day, madam…
Fact – You received over 3800 views from “not” writing about roller derby compared to your impressive usual of 110 or less.
Fact – Roller Derby is the fastest growing female sport in the world.
Fact – Since it’s rebirth in 2003, there are now over 17000 roller derby players and approx. 450 leagues world wide.
Fact – Roller Derby is the only sport in the world (that I know of) where you play offense and defense at the same time.
Fact – Roller Derby is the only sport without a male predecessor. We get to make it whatever we want! Strong women, strong athletes, playing an excessively competitive, fast and hard hitting sport and we get to look like women while we play. …not women dressed in lingerie to be an eye candy half time show for buzzed men watching the Super Bowl.
No, we are not on TV…yet! Just hold onto your words sister. Modern roller derby is only 6-7 years old. Name another sport with the growth, media awareness and attraction to participate by athletes that we have experienced. Show me another sport that is this young with a building fan base like ours. Show me another amateur, grass roots sport, run by volunteers that sells out 1500, 2000, 4000+ seat events on a regular basis.
We don’t need you to write about us. Just stop. Stop now. We’ll take our Ellen, Oprah, Carson Daily, local media appearances and growing and adoring fan base who gets the sport any day over your usual readers of 110 or less.
You stick to women’s football and we’ll stick to growing the most amazing women’s sport ever created. A sport that celebrates female athletes in all shapes and sizes, that creates community, and that will build generations of confident women.
It looks as though the phone lines are lit up. Congratulations.
When you see your local bout, I have a few suggestions. Call in advance for a press pass. Rather than hire a photog, arrange to get photos from the league’s professionals who know how to shoot derby. Your photo quality will be far better. You should be able to get at least two or three quality SI style action shots, hard hits with skates in the air and limbs flying. A photog not familiar with derby will muff it.
Make sure the league knows that you are a neophyte so that they can assign you a “Native Guide” to explain the rules and strategy. And never, ever try to ask a question mid-jam – it will be ignored. Don’t let this upset you.
It’s a fast sport, stupid fast, faster than basketball and more violent than ice hockey, and if you blink you will miss it. You have thirty whole seconds – an eternity – between jams to get your head around the previous play and query your Native Guide.
Most of all, have fun.
willycallit1, I will call in advance and ask for a guide. Thanks for the tips.
In response to another comment. See in context »I disagree. Roller derby is as much a non-pro sport as non-pro hockey, soccer, tennis, etc. Not sure what your aversion is, maybe you don’t like it when girls play? or when girls play and wear makeup? I don’t care for the tattoos and makeup myself, but looking beyond that, it’s athletic and an organized sport.
So, when are you going to actually get on skates and try and handle yourself through three or four practices with one of your local leagues? After logging in 150 lap warmups and exhausting drills, I lost 45 pounds and can out play my teenagers in many of their activities. Not a sport? Okay.Sure. And I would also like to point out there are eccentric, overthe top personalities in EVERY sport…. just because roller derby attracts more of them, it doesn’t automatically disqualify the game and the training we do , as a sport. You have no logic. Just a blog. Have fun with that- I am off to the skate park this weekend with the fifth of my six kids, and you are sitting on your ass.
I will not repeat what has been said here already, but writing about any sport that you haven’t seen if stupid. Not doing a google search before stating that ESPN wouldn’t cover derby is silly. Isn’t doing a little research first part of being a journalist?
Here is a PDF link to the Rat City Roller girls in ESPN from 2005.
http://www.ratcityrollergirls.com/images/press/pdf/ESPN_article.pdf
In 2008 Roller Derby was on Sports Center.
http://blog.nola.com/flattrackfever/2008/05/roller_derby_on_espns_sportsce.html
Meghan Smith / Ida Slapter
http://blog.profoto-usa.com/?p=899
well if nothing else perhaps the responses here will to make you challenge some of your [false]preconceptions about roller derby and its fanbase. i sincerely wish you would see fit to write about your actual roller derby experience, as opposed to your preconceived notions. i completely understand that RD isn’t for everyone, but i only respect the opinions of those whose opinions are educated.
Jody,
Thank you for your willingness to reconsider.
Unfortunately our sport is plagued with misconceptions and stereotypes. Part of it is because it had its origins in camp and sure, we still incorporate some of the elements in the modern incarnation (names, outfits, etc.) But make no mistake–this is 6-10 hours a week on skates training, equal time off skates training, brutal injuries, and fierce competition. This is a sport.
I had my own doubts when I started roller derby. I am a multi-sport athlete (volleyball, softball, competitive kickboxing), gym rat, and certified personal trainer, so when I first started and noticed girls coming to practice with makeup on, I scowled inwardly–what kind of sport is this? But when those same girls knocked me into next Tuesday during a drill, I came to realize that this is the glory of roller derby: it DEFIES stereotypes. It spits in the face of sociocultural norms not only of “this is what an athlete is supposed to be,” but “this is what a woman is supposed to be.”
As the blogger for my league, the Silicon Valley Roller Girls, I’ve written some specific articles to address some misconceptions about derby that you may find interesting. You can also check out our Hall of Pain to see what kind of injuries we suffer for our sport.
http://svrollergirls.wordpress.com/2010/01/02/live-learn-lessons-from-the-2009-roller-derby-season/
http://svrollergirls.wordpress.com/2009/10/07/roller-derby-how-to-get-started/
http://svrollergirls.wordpress.com/roller-derby-a-glossary/
I encourage you to challenge your own stereotypes and attend a bout with an open mind. You just might like it. Heck, you just might end up on skates yourself someday. And if not…well, someone else can cover that beat.
Thanks,
Retox Fox, 90 Proof
SVRG
retofox,
I will go to the Bout in Pgh. in March with an open mind. I hope I like it. I also hope I don’t need a bodyguard after this little dust-up.
In any event, it’ll be an adventure and I actually am really looking forward to it at this point. Y’all certainly are very passionate about it.
My skating days are far, far behind me. Unless I want to experience rhinoplasty. Which I don’t.
JD
In response to another comment. See in context »I hope you’re going to the PGH/Detroit match up on 3/27… that is going to be a great bout. I really wish I could make it up for that one!
In response to another comment. See in context »No, indeed, Ma’am, you will not need a bodyguard. I can not venture to speak for the skaters at your local league but if anything I would venture that you will be treated like visiting royalty.
We are well aware of the sport’s sterotypical, Hollywood-driven image and we’re about as uncomfortable with it as you are – some more than others – even more so since there is some small kernel of truth behind the stereotypes.
There are fishnets, funny pseudonyms, and violence, yes indeed. To me they are part of the fun of the modern RD movement but from your position seven leagues away I don’t blame you for focusing on this. What you dislike isn’t what the sport is about.
That you are willing to give RD a fair chance speaks volumes to your integrity and why, after your rather critical article, I predict that you will be treated very well.
If you still dislike RD after seeing a bout, well, that’s okay. No one will criticize you for that. It is not a sport to everyone’s taste, but at least your future comments will be based on informed opinion.
Mike “Willy Callit” Harris
In response to another comment. See in context »(no league affiliation)
Seattle WA
“I always thought that it was hard to participate in roller derby. But it’s hard to be a dancer, too. I have a good friend, modern dancer, who is one of the toughest women I know. She performs through all kinds of injuries and aches and pains. What she does is both physically and mentally hard and no doubt, harder than playing certain sports. But I could never write about what she does. I’d just be terrible. Kinda like sending the restaurant reviewer to a Pirates game.”
So basically, you are admitting that you do not know a damn thing about this SPORT.
“I won’t promise I will write about it” Yes, PLEASE DON’T. If you can not take the time to research your subject, you really shouldn’t be writing about it.
If I had a dime for every wanna-be “journalist” making lame personal assessments of derby, based off of basically how they perceive it, not because they have actually taken ANY amount of time to investigate further- I would be rich.
You should really hold yourself to some level of professionalism, even a little teeny bit.
There is so much strategy involved in derby – you are playing offense and defense at the same time. I played many team sports, none have I worked so hard for or dedicated so much time to as derby. I think I speak for the masses when I request that instead of slamming something you have absolutely zero experience in that you have never even witnessed- keep your opinions to your private life or a personal blog. You have no idea how comments like this hurt our sport because it’s people like you who refuse to have an open mind and a willingness to try something new out that are blackening the name of a sport we all work so hard to get recognized.
This isn’t your mom’s roller derby, we’re not the bay city rollers with staged antics. So what if we wear what we want and OMG MAKEUP!!! That DOES NOT take away the fact that we practice 4 times a week, or pay out of our pocket to travel, or dedicate every resource we have to our own leagues as well as governing bodies, meanwhile getting paid ZILCH.
You have no idea the amount of camaraderie, hard work, brutal practice sessions (and no, not just knocking each other down, we work out just the same as any other sport would, except mainly on skates). Would you consider hockey or speed skating a “sport”?
Ugh. I am just so sick of people “writing” about derby with out ANY research.
Do us a favor and write about what you KNOW or at the very least what you want to know more about. The derby world thanks you.
WEll what is a ’sport’ really? According to Hemmingway, “There are only three sports: bullfighting, motor racing, and mountaineering; all the rest are merely games.” His philosophy was for an activity to be truly sporting, a real risk of death had to exist. A modern definition of ’sport’ is: ‘An activity involving physical exertion and skill that is governed by a set of rules or customs and often undertaken competitively’. I think fans of any mainstream sport today (football, hockey, baseball, tennis, etc.) would agree that this definition is true. So what about roller derby? Lets break it down:
1. An activity involving physical exertion:
Check! WFTDA minimum skills require things like skating 5 laps in 1 minute, falling and getting up in 3 seconds, and skating 25 laps in 5 minutes (plus many other requirements). If Jody tried this, she would find that quite alot of physical exertion, stamina, aerobic and anaerobic fitness is required.
So what exactly constitutes a ’sport’? The famous Hemmingway-esque definition: “There are only three sports: bullfighting, motor racing, and mountaineering; all the rest are merely games”. This philosophy suggests that ’sport’ must included a real risk of death – which isn’t really apparent in most popular sports today. A more modern, conventional definition of sport is “An activity involving physical exertion and skill that is governed by a set of rules or customs and often undertaken competitively” (straight from the dictionary). I think most fans of conventional sports like hockey, baseball, football, etc. would agree that definition fits activities considered ’sport’. So what about roller derby? Lets break it down:
1. “An activity involving physical exertion and skill”:
-Check! The WFTDA minimum skills requirements include things like skating 5 laps in 1 minute, skating 25 laps in 5 minutes, getting up from a fall in 3 seconds; Jammers are required to sprint continuously for 2 minutes, while maneuvering to avoid other players. Physical exertion occurs; stamina, good cardio, and strength are required. And roller-skating well requires skill; blocking, hitting, agility, all require skill.
2″….. that is governed by a set of rules or customs”:
-Check! Roller derby is governed by a well organised and established set of rules. see: http://wftda.com/
Penalties are called when rules are broken.
3″…..and often undertaken competitively”:
-Check! Roller derby bouts take place all the time all over the states, Canada, and internationally. In these bouts, 2 teams play against each other, and the team with the most points at the end wins – yes, it’s competitive!
To say Roller Derby is not a sport is purely ignorant, given the conventional definition of what sport is. It’s quite surprising, and a little embarrassing that a so-called ’sports writer’ was unaware of the definition of sport (does a ‘writer’ not possess a dictionary?). I would suggest that Jody not only attend a game, but a practice as well, to see for herself that it meets all the criteria of the definition of sport. Its fine if you don’t like roller derby; it’s not a sport that interests everyone (just like baseball and NASCAR, for example, doesn’t interest everyone) either. If you don’t want to write about it, don’t. But be aware that you will be missing out on an opportunity to expose yourself (and your sponsors/advertisers) to a new and expanding demographic. Saying it isn’t a ’sport’ is a cheap shot; and saying all participants are ‘Ellen Page wannabes’ is like saying all baseball players are Kevin Costner wannabes. I don’t think any of the roller derby players I know have the ultimate goal of starring in an academy award winning film about teen pregnancy!! Ridiculous.
Hey Jody,
As a self-identified nerd I take offense to this article in two ways. (1)It evaluates derby based on a very limited introduction to a few people who play the sport (2) by someone who has not played or watched the game and does not understand the rules and strategy.
I can understand having a hate-on for people who have a surfer-like attitude towards Roller Derby (i.e., exclusionary/elitist crap, I hate that). But believe me….I am definitely not cool and I friggin’ love derby. I love setting up a powerful pack of blockers that communicates well and has good strategies for blocking opposing jammers and getting their own jammer through the pack. Also, derby is one of the only team sports I know in which a single player has to play offense and defense at the SAME TIME! I switched over to derby from amateur boxing after a few injuries caused me to have to stop sparing.
I would suggest you not just watch derby but also play it! It will help you gain a better understanding of the game in a shorter period of time.
Sincerely,
Honey-Marie de la Giroday
[Derby name: GIRO 9.81m/(s)^2]
Co-captain of the Hart Breakers
Rated PG Rollerderby League
http://ratedpgrollergirls.blogspot.com/
Prince George, British Columbia, Canada
On March 9th, 2010, the Oly Rollers were honored on the floor of the the Washington State Senate by 36th District Senator Jeanne Kohl-Welles for National Girls & Women in Sports Day. In Resolution 8715 the Senator congratulated Oly on winning the 2009 WFTDA Championship and on having an undefeated season.
Just a follow up, Did you make it to the bout?
I did not. It conflicted with March Madness, just about the busiest weekend of the year for me. I am looking at the schedule and it looks like the first bout I can make it to is the June 19th bout versus Cleveland. I was hoping to make it earlier, but I am working on a larger project with the Pittsburgh Passion women’s football team and I will be with them on April 3rd, April 17th, May 15th and June 5th — all home dates for the Steel City women. So, if the Passion does not make the IWFL playoffs, I will be free and clear on June 19th. I am putting it in my calendar NOW. I’d love a guide, so if anybody wants to volunteer, I’ll be glad to have an insider’s view.
I would be more than happy to! I will check back in June.
In response to another comment. See in context »Hey Jody, if you’re coming out tomorrow just ask for BB Basher at the door. I’ll be more than happy to guide you through the first game and answer any questions you have.
In response to another comment. See in context »Just wondering if she ever made it to a bout?
In response to another comment. See in context »i just want to acknowledge that roller derby IS infact a sport. i believe that before you talk about how it isnt a sport and all the other complete nonsense you just stated in this, you need to get yourself onto some skates, come to a practice with me, and see just how much it “isnt a sport”
this article was pointless, and you just set yourself up for fights with derby girls like me who read this article all over the world.
your a good writer, but this article was terrible.
sorry.
it does speak volumes for espn to show a spelling bee.
It’s cool to see you opened up to this a bit.
just wanted to add… Today, sports ARE all about making money for the corporations that support them and get them televised. commercials, team logos on hats and shirts. scrolling adds on the bottom of the screen. no one watches a televised sport unless there is carnage or dismemberment. and no one will support a sport that no on will watch or spend money on to see. sports worth hiring a writer for have to be popular like top 40 music, or beer pong. unfortunately wwe is a sport that is televised and heavily promoted even though it’s generally fake. there is some form of athleticism but mostly drenched in adds and fake moves. I am not a fan, that is just an example. The entertainment value is a huge factor here.
I really don’t like basketball and follow only 1 collage football team. baseball , golf, poker, ect. ect. run of the mill high salary entertainment sports are not in my interests. I hate bottom lines and multi million dollar athletes designed to sell tickets.
I would think you like these sport because you get paid to cover them based on their relevant popularity. you want people to read your articles and the “general public” stressing the general here, will read your articles. and you get paid. no doubt you love your job.
all sports are designed to be entertaining and competitive. it gives the fans and the players something to do. roller derby is for sure entertaining with the production and glam but very competitive with points to be scored and strategies to be unfolded, just like any other sport that you might cover. however, not cool enough yet to be televised or written about with respect on the mainstream format. soon…
poker and spelling bee’s are lacking in the entertainment category mostly, yet we see them on espn. why?
lastly, we all know hollywood embellishes on EVERYTHING. Therefore, possibly being the source of your frustration and misguidance.
I hope you are entertained at the derby when you find time to break away from the norm.
I have to say thank you for writing this article. While i have always had an interest in Derby since a young age, some 15 years ago, i find myself becoming more and more irritated with the pop culture Derby scene. While I don’t pretend that Roller Derby doesn’t require athletics, I also don’t pretend it’s a challenging sport, especially flat track derby. I am so tired of the hipster scene coming from all the women that went out and saw Drew Barrymore in Whip It and became inspired to become a Derby Girl. It’s a stupid craze, particularly in my town where people actually think they’re gonna go somewhere with it. In reality however it’s just a bunch of girls that wanted to start a derby league just so they could go to the bar and tell people that they were Roller Girls and put pictures of themselves skating around on Facebook, it was a bragging right, and people bought into it. They’ve had no real bouts, try outs or any other skills. If i’m gonna watch a sport i want to watch something because of the athleticism, not because of the cute outfits. If I was looking for cute outfits then i’d just watch Lingerie Football, at least those women are sexy and womanly. If I wanted to watch women beat each other up I would just watch professional wrestling where, sad to say, it requires more athletic ability and talent then Roller Derby, while being decidedly more attractive. Hopefully this silly fad will die back down soon.
Sorry to see you missed the March bout.
Think about checking out WFTDA Eastern Regionals in White Plains, NY in September 2010. (You’re in the NE USA, right?) http://www.derbyintheburbs.com/
Please do go to a bout, and give derby a chance. Regionals will be really exciting, and you’ll get to watch derby at a high level of play.
March was a complete mess – NCAA basketball both men’s and women’s brackets – kept me fairly insane.
In response to another comment. See in context »I wanted to go to a bout (it is bout, yes?) in June, but I ended up traveling with sort of emergency family business.
However, I haven’t forgotten about y’all and I do intend to go out and watch for myself. I really do.
Just wondering if you’ve made it out to a bout yet? WFTDA (www.wftda.com) teams are in the midst of Regional Tournament Season and worth a look. Might be worth checking out http://www.derbynewsnetwork.com to get some perspective.
In response to another comment. See in context »How about thinking beyond stereotypes and blanket statements for a moment? Today’s flat-track roller derby isn’t the WWF version you see played out on TV. It is in fact a real sport that takes some serious hard work, endurance, athleticism, and talent. The women come from all walks of life and don’t fit your mold. Yes, it’s more fun and has some ‘hipper’ elements than other sports, but maybe you should go see a real game with some professional WFTDA-ranked teams before you consider putting roller derby in the ‘not a sport’ column. It certainly does not belong there.
http://usarollersports.org/news/2010/12/22/firs-recognizes-roller-derby/40199?ngb_id=5
During the central committee meeting, USA Roller Sports gave a presentation on the rapidly growing sport of roller derby and requested that FIRS recognize derby as another one of the federations’ disciplines. USA Roller Sports (USARS) is pleased to announce that their request was granted and roller derby is now an official discipline of FIRS- one step closer to the Olympic movement!
Have you been yet?
“Entertainment first, athletics second” is way off. I am 40 and have been active in sports most of my life. I have played almost every sport available, many of them in some sort of competetive nature. I now play roller derby. I have never been with a more committed group of athletes, both men and women. We train, and we train hard. This is serious, it’s real, and it is real tough. As a bonus, it’s entertaining. I highly recommend you take up all of the offers to go watch. I would’nt want you to miss the boat on this amazing and entertaining SPORT.
P.S. you might want to open up your sport viewing schedule a bit, derby is addictive. You may find an overwhelming desire to watch your favorite jammers again and again.
Oddly enough, I somehow found this article when googling for makeup tutorials on how to cover up my massive bruises from derby.
You have an interesting perspective on this, and yup, you have every right to dislike an activity. (I live in Texas and hate football with a passion. Sets me up for a world of trouble here. Instead, I’m a diehard hockey fan.) I do have to disagree with the sentiment
that this isn’t a sport, though.
Let me first say that I have never seen Whip It (or any other derby related movie), and knew nothing about how roller derby worked until a few weeks ago when a coworker invited me to a new league being established near me. I’ve known a few girls in the past who were involved in it, but had never attended a bout. I agreed to go with my friend because it seemed like something physical and potentially fun.
I went to my first practice barely being able to stand on my lousy rented skates. Few weeks down the road, I’m zooming around the track on my own skates, pads and am getting my ass kicked by the drills at practice. Also, I have no desire to drink PBR. I’m more of a dark beer or IPA kind of lady. And Hipsters? I stay far away from them as possible. Haven’t seen any in my league. I don’t think they’d last long, considering they would be more interested in posing for photos or doing XYZ activity “ironically”. Bettie Paige? Played out. Overused. Also, she couldn’t perform worth shit. (But she was cute, yeah?)
Now for the nitpicky part:
Sport:
Noun
1.
an athletic activity requiring skill or physical prowess and often of a competitive nature, as racing, baseball, tennis, golf, bowling, wrestling, boxing, hunting, fishing, etc.
(courtesy of dictionary.com)
Roller Derby:
*athletic activity? Check.
*physical prowess? Check.
* Competitive nature? Check.
Sport? Yes. It’s simple, see?
I played a variety of sports in my younger days and fail to see how Derby wouldn’t qualify. Seems no different than the drills, practice and competition of anything else I’ve participated in or watched. *shrug* Just my (probably unwanted…haha) two cents.
I am late to the party, but I am coming from a different place…..My father invented Roller Derby in 1935, I promoted it from 1959 to 1973. Yes, it was an exhibition, but with tremendous athleticism. The following was tremendous, 110 TV station network, crowds of up to 50,000. And my father was the most disappointed that he could never see it be a legitimate game. He was especially upset when rollergames, a totally perverted copy of the game came into being. He died in 1978, planning to open a training school in Montreal for full legitimate Roller Derby. Today’s game started in Austin, Texas, in 2002 on an amateur basis and today there are 1051 LEAGUES in 36 countries, with men, women, and juniors competing in a fully legitimate game that has empowered women worldwide. (see http://www.derbyrosterdotcom) Because it is all amateur and primarily skater-owned, it does not get the publicity that other sports do. And there are different ruling bodies, and though it is primarily flat track, there are also banked track leagues. The national flat track Championships are this November in Denver; there is a World Cup in Toronto this December with teams from 13 nations on hand. and all the leagues are committed to community service. There are no more dedicated, purely amateur athletes anywhere in the world. I love them all…….”The Commissioner” (my unofficial title). And by the way, the USARS is setting up a program to apply for the Olympics.
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