Twin Valleys Roller Derby hosted my wife's league Mother State Roller Derby last weekend.

Here are a few opening photos.
TVRD warming up. This is the sport, miles of smiles.



Head Reff Shorty Du Wop. Ran one of the best games I have ever watched. 12 years in the Marines probably had something to do with it.



Those smiles from earlier, well, they last until Casey hits you.



TVRD trying to catch MSRD's Jammer. (13 in black)



MSRD's Garris Clearing the TVRD pack


MSRD's Towner (13) Busting through TVRD's Tripod wall



My Wife (26 Black) Chasing down TVRD Jammer 625


TVRD 625 makes it out first.


My wife is right behind


MSRD Garris Beats out TVRD 214




This is how a Jam starts, in a scrum

There was a roller derby club in the Independence Day Parade in D.C. When I was young, The sport was televised regularly on a local channel. Is it gaining in popularity again?

Wftda is womens flat track derby. A modern version of the game. Less overhead, easier clubs and leagues to set up.
Just about 500 leagues world wide. With most leagues having at least an A and B team, some having 3 or 4 teams.

Looks like an interesting day. I’ve never seen roller derby or understand how it is played. Looks pretty interesting though.

I post forum photos at ~640 x 480.

Your first photo at 2048 × 1365 takes scrolling 2 1/2 screen widths on my 15" laptop at my preferred screen resolution.

But maybe it's just Me?

My youngest daughter gave roller derby a try about 10 years ago in Johnson City, TN...she said it was great fun (until it wasn't...5' 10" and 115 lbs. )...my wife and I drove up for a couple of matches...we found it enjoyable entertainment with moments of excitement till my lanky daughter (a good skater though) got took out and ended up at the ER (she skated well, but didn't hit the floor quite as well as she (we) would have liked). But she made a lot of friends with good memories from the experience...well, maybe not the crutches for two weeks ...but she's no worse for wear today ...your post took me back in time

The basics of roller derby


Points (Jammer point is no longer valid)



Track



There is another vid out there, but it pulls in banked tracks which is not WFTDA roller derby.

While they are smiles most of the time, it can be interesting to watch when the odd elbow lands.


Plenty of apex jumps to get around blockers.


Most leagues practice about 4 hours a wheek ontop of their normal conditioning workouts. My wife's league is at 10-12 hours a week, with her work outs taking up another 3 hours, and her foot work (time on skates) about another 2.5 to 3 hours.

MSRD has 10 players. Most leagues come to a game with 20-25 players. Endurance is what MSRD is known for. Long hard games.

Here is a recent East Coast Derby X (ECDX ) game from last weekend.

Roller Derby was big in Chicago and was televised on local TV. The Bay Bombers and the Windy City Rollers. In those days there seemed to be a lot of showmanship going on and there were regular fist fights similar to WWE. The sport took quite a bit of conditioning and skill and was interesting to watch even without the fights. I remember Kansas City Bombers with Racquel Welch. Good to hear it is still going.

modern derby has little to do with the late 50's through the late 90's touring troupes. Besides the banked track, most of those were better described as entertainment troupes, like WWF,WWE.

Modern Flat track Derby is set up so that a team can sprout with very little overhead, Simply needing a wood, polished concrete,sport deck large enough to tape off the track.

There are standards set out by the governing body that every participant in a scrimmage or bout must pass. Standards for protective gear, insurance coverage etc. There are procedures in place for injuries and code of conduct violations. All in all, it is a very fast growing sport, starting in 2004, with 463 current member leagues on 6 continents, https://wftda.com/wftda-leagues/

Hey thanks for the update. I noticed all the protective gear they were wearing. Sounds like a great sport.