Victorian Roller Derby League Bout 6 Season 2012

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Sat 13 Oct 2012

Victorian Roller Derby League Bout #6 Season 2012


So ever heard of Roller Derby? No? If you have, I'm guessing you're recalling that movie with Drew Barrymore called 'Whip It' where chics with attitude, on skates, wearing short skirts and fishnets punch each other in the face all in the name of the game?

I could see how that could be exciting.

But actually, real Roller Derby is a lot cooler. Most of the main elements were there in the 'Whip It' movie. Chics – tick. Attitude – tick. Skates – tick. Short skirts and fishnets – tick. Punching faces – untick. So punching in the face is not a legal block. BUT that doesn't mean that there isn't awesome smashy smashy and that people don't go down. Hard.

Roller Derby is a contact sport played by two teams of five members roller skating (quads) in the same direction around a flat track. The game is comprised of a series of 2 minute or less 'jams' in which a 'jammer' (they wear a star on their helmet) from each team tries to score points by passing the opposing players. The remaining blockers on the track play both offence (helping their jammer through the pack by smashy smashing opposing blockers) and defence (smashy smashing the opposing jammer and blockers) simultaneously…so it never seems to get boring.

Roller Derby has been around in Melbourne for about 6 years and it just keeps getting bigger and bigger with new leagues popping up every year. The biggest games (called 'bouts') in Melbourne are put on by Victorian Roller Derby League at the Flemington Showgrounds once a month pretty much all year round and can attract crowds of 3500 people, the average being about 2000 people. Victorian Roller Derby League have taken the 'Great Southern Slam' (Australian and NZ Competition) title two years running which means that they are the baddest ass league in the Southern Hemisphere so well worth a watch. Geelong, Bendigo, and Ballarat all have their own leagues and also regularly put on public bouts for people to go and watch. There are actually 14 leagues in Victoria, but only a small handful of those are at competing level.

Until you actually go and watch a bout, I don't think you can understand just how intense and physically demanding Roller Derby is as a sport. These women are actually elite athletes. It's a wonder it isn't a paid sport. They train 3-4 times a week for 2 hours in order to build strength and skills and practice strategy with their team mates. The leagues are also run by the skaters, and with an average of 150 skaters in each league, that can take a lot of energy and time. These girls obviously love the sport they play and it shows when you go to a bout and see them skate for thousands of screaming fans. Each skater has their own derby name. A few favourites are Sweet Fighter II, Skate Bush and Calamity Maim.

Roller Derby bouts seem to attract all types of people. I've seen kids and grandmas amongst the blue haired rockabilly's. It's a really cool atmos and just a really rad thing to say you've done on the weekend.

The next Roller Derby bout coming up in Melbourne is 'Victorian Roller Derby League's Bout 6' at the Flemington Showgrounds on Saturday 13 October 2012. Doors open 5pm. Tickets available through Moshtix for $20 or $25 at the door. Kids and health care card holders are $15

Check out the Roller Derby AU website here for upcoming bouts throughout Australia.

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!date 13/10/2012 -- 13/10/2012
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