Editorial
Front Page - Friday, April 30, 2010
Rough and tough Roller Girls lace up for first home “bout” of year
Erica Tuggle
The Chattanooga Roller Girls have officially been on the loop since Summer of 2008, but are gathering speed and fans quickly with an upcoming “bout” set for May 15th. Approximately 40 girls are involved with the team as skaters, referees and non-skating positions.
- Erica Tuggle
Around and around they go, and where they wipe out no one knows. The Chattanooga Roller Girls are practicing furiously in preparation for their May 15 bout at the Chattanooga Convention Center, which will feature these skating darlings in their skirts and tattoos as they battle the Columbia Quad-Squad.
The basis of a typical roller derby game, or bout, is simple. Each team has one “jammer,” three blockers and a special blocker called a “pivot.” When the whistle blows, the jammers race to overtake the blockers (who were given a head start), lap them to become the head jammer and then earn points for each player they successfully lap. The difficulty here is the sturdy blockers, who try to squeeze out, bump and otherwise obstruct the opposing jammer from scoring points while simultaneously trying to help their jammer forward.
This leads to the rough play the sport is infamous for.
Devin “Delia Pain” Gobble, head of public relations for the CRG, says people are surprised to learn that the CRG is also a business, complete with board meetings and community service requirements for each girl on the team.
“Even though we are not out here to make money, we have to keep some money to keep us going and give back to the community,” she says. “We have to be very business minded and keep our stuff in order. Every skater has to be on a committee, but some of us eat, sleep and breathe derby.”
The girls of derby have day jobs to maintain was well. They are servers, accountants, businesswomen, students, mothers, wives and a few are registered nurses, which come in handy for the falls.
When the team began in the summer of 2008, the idea was to bring something to Chattanooga that was for women and by women, she says. It was a slow start until March of last year, when the board was formed and the bylaws were enforced. In December, they introduced themselves to Chattanooga with a sold out game, bringing in 1,000 fans that cleaned out the entire supply of Pabst’s Blue Ribbon beer from the concessions.
Gobble says she knows people are surprised at the changes the sport has undergone since its peak popularity in the ’70s.
“The roots are still here,” she says. “But people were surprised we weren’t fighting, and there was no blood.”
She says many of the things shown in the movies about derby are illegal.
“You can’t elbow, clothesline or punch. You fight and you’re going to get kicked out of the game; it’s likely you’ll get kicked out of your league.”
That is not to say this isn’t a rough sport, she quickly amends. The falls, crashes and spills bring the blood that is seen on the rink, and any Roller Girl can show you wince-worthy bruises.
This year, the team hopes to expand even more so that inner league play can be had throughout the year in addition to the away games they play now. Gobble says their acceptance into the apprentice program of the Women’s Flat Track Derby Association, the governing body that makes their sport legitimate, is a step toward showing they are “not just girls playing dress up and smacking each other on skates.”
The costumes and the derby names are also a unique part
of the sport that allows them
to express their individuality,
she says.
“For me, it’s like I become another person when I’m out there,” she says. “By day, I’m a professional and not violent at all, but on the track, I’m Delia Pain, and I’m going to whoop your butt. You get to really express who you are while you play a sport you love and feel good about yourself.”
Skater Violet Heartbreaker says she never played sports before joining the CRG.
“I found a sport where I could actually not sit on the bench, and that was pretty awesome for me,” she says.
Shove Missile F1-11 says she likes the fact that everyone has something in common they love.
“We hit each other, but root each other on, too. I think if it weren’t for roller derby, some girls, like Delia, wouldn’t hang out with us girls who are all tattoo-ed up. It gives you ... different perspective on different people.”
The women all agree that the best and worst part about the sport is its exhausting nature. Corn-Smut, who has been with the CRG since day one, especially feels the exhaustion factor as she works on an organic farm, by day and laces up by night for practices.
She says she started derby life because she thought it would be cool to wear cute clothes.
“Now that is the furthest thing from my mind. I didn’t know I was so competitive,” she says with an astonished air.
To buy tickets to the May 15 bout, visit www.chattanoogarollergirls.com.
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