An Evening with the Windy City Rollers

When I was growing up and watching roller derby on television, I lumped it in with wrestling.  I knew the women were athletic and talented, but I also knew it wasn’t exactly true competition, although it was entertaining.  Recently, my JohngysBeat.com ace interviewer Scott Beatty and I attended a night at the Windy City Rollers and saw how much roller derby has changed.

Upon entering the UIC Pavilion, we were immediately met by press liaisons Dinah Party of the Fury and Mack Savage of the Manic Attackers.  They could not have been any nicer or more helpful.  With interviews set up for later, they told us to check out the playing area and enjoy the action.

We roamed all over the UIC, including right up to the track.  We talked to fans, officials and staffers.  We were very impressed with the enthusiasm, knowledge and helpfulness of everyone.  I admit, until now, I did not have a lot of knowledge about rules, scoring, the teams or much else.  I just knew I had interest.

The UIC was pretty packed with fans of all ages and they were really into the action once the games started.  There were special sections devoted to each team, but you could also sit wherever you wanted.

The night started with the announcer explaining the basic rules, accompanied by several players demonstrating.  How helpful and cool was that?!  This was a great way to help us novices.

The evening consisted of two matches.  In the first, the Fury beat Hell's Belles 255-184.  The Manic Attackers defeated the Double Crossers 241-88 in the second game.  At 2-0, the Fury is now in first place in the WCR home standings. 

At intermission, between the two games, players came out to the main area and met with fans for pictures, autographs or just to talk.  This was an incredible way to connect with old fans and cement relationships with new fans.  Unlike in some other sports, every player there was extremely fan (and press) friendly.

The game action was intense and the women really impressed us.  Their on rink shifts, lasting up to two minutes, must require excellent conditioning.

It is immediately clear that this is drastically different from roller derby of old.  The only really theatrical part is the name of each player.  We spent a good several minutes debating our favorite name.  Scott chose “Bork Bork Bork” and I leaned towards “Sara Problem.” 

These women practice and work out several times a week.  They are with Windy City Rollers because it is their passion (a recurring sentiment among the women). 

During the course of the evening, we had the chance to interview four of the women (one from each team).  In the accompanying videos, Minerva Damage, AliSin Chains, Janicide Joplin and Val Capone tell us a bit about themselves, along with explaining the rules and structure of the league.  All together, these four interviews present a good starter course for those who want to learn more about the Windy City Rollers or roller derby in general.

As you can tell, we had a fantastic time.  As I wrote my original team contact Jule B. Sorry (another great name), I will definitely be back, either for press coverage or just as a fan (or hopefully both).  I really encourage everyone to check out WindyCityRollers.com and to see them in person.