That’s a line from the movie “Whip it” the source of my inspiration for attending my first roller derby. Going to one had been on my list for a few years. When a friend told me about an upcoming bout she wanted to go to, I knew my time had come. We had no idea what to expect. Both of our closest encounters came from watching the movie about a girl who follows her dream to be a derby girl.
The whole concept really intrigued me because;
- I’m not a good skater. I typically hold onto my husband’s arm with a death grip anytime we have ice-skated because he played hockey in high school. It works well. I hold on to him and he moves me around the circle unharmed.
- I’ve never been in a physical fight. I was never the girl growing up who went to blows over drama.
So submerging myself in a culture that was really so opposite of me was very intriguing. The crowd was a variety. Some were rough around the edges, some families, and other just average looking Joe’s with the same curiosity that we had. One of the main event players, ”Rosie Root Canal” had a daughter in the audience. It was so wild to watch a mom with her face painted like “The Joker- from Batman” skate around in warm ups and give her daughter big hugs.
The first bout had girls in the skimpier outfits duking it out on the floor. It took me a long time to figure out the scoring system. The home team lost their matches but it was still very exciting to watch. It was fun to read the clever names each player came up with for the back of their jersey.
The second match was the main event. Ironically the outfits were less crazy and skimpy which was fine by me. Unfortunately, the home team lost their match as well.
It was so impressive to watch women who could skate and play a game with the aggression of defensive linebackers at the same time.
During one of the breaks the announcers mentioned derby open training for anyone interested in checking it out. Which will lead me to my next post.
If you have ever wanted to check out a roller derby try Derby Roster. This site will find you one anywhere in the world. Local GR residents try Grand Raggedy Roller Girls.
