In a spirited match on a muggy Saturday afternoon at Skateland of Richmond, 13 July 2013, the ladies from Mother State Roller Derby (out of Richmond, Virginia) hosted the Little City Rollergirls (out of Johnson City, Tennessee).
This was my first roller derby experience, and I have to say I was blown away by the level of competition, intensity, fitness, and training that the women from both teams exhibited.
For those of you who may be new to roller derby, like me, here’s my perhaps inexact and simplified description of how roller derby works:
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Each team plays five members at a time skating around a track—one is a “jammer” and four are “blockers”. The jammer is the one who can score points for the team—they wear a helmet with a star on it. Note that different people can be the jammer at different times. The helmets of the blockers are plain.
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The bout is played in two 30-minute periods.
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Points are scored during “jams”, lasting up to two minutes at a time. During a jam, the jammer must first break out in front of the pack, circle all the way around the track and catch up to the pack, THEN one point is scored for each member of the opposing team that jammer passes. Essentially points are scored when a team’s jammer laps opposing team members.
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The blockers on the jammer’s team try to assist their jammer by clearing the way through the pack so she can break through, while trying to prevent the other team’s jammer from passing them.
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Some body contact is allowed, though some types of blocks and maneuvers can result in a player being sent to the penalty box.
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As a result of some penalty call, end of a jam, or other event, the refs can whistle a halt to play—the teams reset at the starting line and then play begins again.
I’ve got a video of most of the first half below, so you can try to look for each team’s jammer as she tries to break through the pack and then lap opposing players. You can also look for the blockers as they either try to assist the jammer (same team) or prevent the jammer from lapping them (opposing team).
Before the bout began, both teams warmed up on the track. This level of skill, coordination, and athleticism doesn’t come without high levels of training and a fierce dedication to the team.
Here, Mother State Roller Derby practices a jumping drill:
And here’s a pic of both teams right before the match:
I found out that in roller derby, there is no such thing as a dull moment. The action is fast and intense for all of the 60 minutes of play:
Of course, in the heat of battle, sometimes players do something that get them sent to the penalty box:
In the end, Mother State Roller Derby came out on top:
And here’s a group pic of both teams after the bout:
Congrats to both teams for a well-played match!
And here’s a link to the video showing most of the first half of the match between Mother State Roller Derby and Little City Rollergirls, with some pre- and post- bout footage as well: