Sports Illustrated

Chicago Fan’s Guide

The crowds at these roller derby events are not overly large, but what they lack in capacity, they more than make up for in fervor. Many paint their faces or wear skull masks in support of their favorite teams. Players are accessible for autographs before and after matches, but be aware that many stay in character.

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 Gapers Block

There Can Only Be One (2010 Champ, That Is)

This year's batch of Rollers came back from the last season leaner and meaner than ever before; the league as a whole upped the ante, practicing harder, smarter, and more often, and it definitely shows.

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 Chicago Now

Windy City Rollers Rock the House!

You still have time to catch the Windy City Rollers, as they'll host their Home Season Championship on June 5th as they battle for the Ivy Cup.  Tix can be purchased online for $20 and if you want to really get up and close you can get track tix for $35.

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The two teams spent the first 14 minutes in a defensive war, with the Fury setting the tone early. In the fifth jam, Sargentina put consecutive big hits on Crossers Donna Party and Sassy Squash; when Ska Face was sent to the box on a major, with help from Jackie Daniels and Go-Go Hatchet, Sargentina orchestrated a fierce penalty kill on Party’s powerjam. She would finish the game with an eye-popping 30 offensive/defensive actions and be just the second blocker this season to win HOWCOOL.COM Player-of-the-Game honors.

The Fury gave the Crossers a bit of their own medicine, winning the slow-down game that the Crossers used to grind down the Manics in February. The two teams started the 11th jam with the Crossers up just 12-9. Loka finally broke it open with a nine point jam against full-strength blocking, and teammate Ska Face followed with two grand slams in the 12th. Indy Cent picked up nine of her 23 points in the 14th, and two jams later Julia Rosenwinkel stormed out of the box with :55 left in the jam, leaving Adore and Red Zeppelin in her wake on the way to nine points.  Down just 37-33 with 2:15 left in the half, the Fury took lead jam on the last two rounds. Daniels ended the half on what has become her signature in this first WCR season since transferring from Grand Raggedy—the four-point hit-and-quit.

After half-time, despite some inspired play by Crosser blocker Karmageddon and Pivot/Jammer Nina Millimeter, the game never felt close. The Fury built a 34-point lead midway through the second half by controlling the pack; Hatchet, Adore, and Sargentina engineered walls of white up front, and Fury jammers Loka and Daniels played physical off the line against the Crossers’ leading scorer, Julia Rosenwinkel. The Crosser Captain, who seemed to wring just about everything possible from her injury-plagued team this season, went pointless on four of her last six jams against withering defense. Loka doubled Rosenwinkel in points, 41-19 to lead all WCR jammers at the end of the season with 273 points.

The Fury—with six top-shelf All-Stars on the roster—simply out-muscled the Crossers down the stretch and won pulling away. In a respectful gesture to players who saw little game play all year, Rosenwinkel emptied the Crosser bench in the last three jams; Tina Flay, Apple Hackintosh, Abbey, and Joanie Utah got a chance to absorb some hits from the Fury, who never let off the gas.

These two teams will line up for the third time this season and all the marbles on Championship Saturday, June 5^th. Think this one is all sewn up?  Just ask the Manic Attackers, who needed every second of their game to squeak past the winless Hell’s Belles on Saturday. In roller derby, anything can happen and probably will. See you there.

Metromix

Windy City Rollers

The Manic Attackers take on Hell’s Belles, and the Double Crossers face the Fury at this professional women’s roller derby league competition. The Revelettes go-go troupe performs. Doors open at 5 p.m. The first 300 attendees receive a keychain.

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Peter Coffinail

Tour de Pain: A Stroll Through the Roller Derby Community

Flying around somewhere in the ozone is the thought that women’s sports isn’t going to play second fiddle to a man’s world any more... In the capable hands of the Women’s Flat Track Derby Association or WFTDA, Roller Derby in the United States is on the rise and fulfilling the role as a validated women’s sport.

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ChiIL Mama

Windy City Rollers Fun: Sagezilla and Du-Jay Go VIP for May Day

The kids had fun with the masked manic, and Mya Ssault still gamely smiled and posed for pixs after getting smashed in the face.

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photo by Gil Leora

UPDATED! The Fury stormed into Chicago’s UIC Pavilion on Saturday night aboard a 3-game winning streak. The orange crush devastated Hell’s Belles by 97 in February, jumping past 100 points in the third jam of the second half, and conventional wisdom expected the Belles to collapse like a Louisiana levee in this game, too.   But Belle captains Shocka Conduit and Hermione Danger changed up the game plan; 6 of the least experienced Belles who dressed for the game played in a minimal amount of jams, and the Belles came at the Fury hard with 3 jammers in heavy rotation.   The teams’ two veteran captains squared off in the game’s last jam with the Belles well within striking distance, but when it was over the Fury had iced a 125-110 win and a place in the Ivy King Cup championship game on June 5th. 

 Danger--playing her first game since an injury sidelined her for the April bout--took advantage of a major penalty on the Fury jammer in the third, pushing the Belles to their biggest lead of the season, 21-0. Fury jammers took the next four lead jams, however, including Kola Loka’s ten-point run in the seventh.  After that, Conduit, Danger, and second-year stand-out Deb Autry jammed exclusively for the Belles, and the three of them kept team red in it until the last jam of the half.  With just 30 seconds left, and up by just 12, Tori Adore and Ivy Sedation  held up Danger, allowing Fury jammer Ska Face to bolt around the outside and into the lead. The Belles were caught in perhaps the biggest pack mismatch of the game, and when Danger was sent off for cutting the track, Ska Face cut up Belle blocking for 15 points to put the Fury up 69-45 at the half. 

 Kids from School of Rock, Chicago, took over jamming at halftime, rocking an appreciative crowd with early MTV hits. As one astute observer pointed out, it may have been the first time in roller derby history that Mötley Crüe and Skid Row have been heard back-to-back at a bout. School of Rock played several sets with varying line-ups, prompting really painful-looking air guitar from some, uh, well-meaning skaters.

 Hell’s Belles put up 10 points in the first two jams of the second half, and the two teams traded punches until two huge jams on either side of an Official time out.  Loka scored 20 of her 68 total in the seventh as Sonya Mouthshut, Dee Monica, and Tori Adore opened big splits.  Then in the eighth, with the Fury penalty box packed full, Deb Autry put up 17 of her 42, cutting the Fury lead to 22.  Autry benefitted from Fury penalties on her two biggest jams by scoring 2 ghosts points in each.
 
The Belles fell into penalty trouble midway through the second half; Ska, Loka, and Jackie Daniels sliced and diced their way to a 115-73 lead with 14 minutes left. Shocka Conduit rallied the Belles with a 20-point twelfth that may have been the most interesting jam of the night. Ska Face was sent off for cutting the track, but missed the box twice, extending the Belle advantage. Conduit put a highlight reel move on Ivy Sedation and then coaxed Take-Out Box outside the engagement zone before allowing her a hit, leaching another major out of the Fury. The two teams scored just 16 points over the next 8 minutes. With Pominatrix, Bloody Elle, and Mya Ssault playing over their heads in the pack, the Belles scored 12 of those and might have had more save stout defensive play from the Fury’s Adore, Sedation, and Sargentina, who the fans voted blocker of the game. Those three, along with Dee Monica and Mouthshut, picked up for three Fury veterans who did not dress for the game—Go-Go Hatchet, Juana Rumbel, and Red Zeppelin.

 Down 12 with 55 seconds to go, the Belles looked like believers; their pack was at full strength.  Conduit, with 3 minors, called her own number to jam against Loka for the game. When Conduit cut the track in an effort to take lead jam, Loka floated around behind the pack, killing the game clock and much of the jam clock, forcing Conduit to exit the box and race up behind her before calling it. 

 This was the game Belles fans had been waiting for. In the last minute a roster full of rookies, many of whom sacrificed precious playing time for the chance to see the team within striking distance at the end, sat on the edge of their seats with All-Star on All-Star for the win. But as has been the case so often this season, there was just too much Kola Loka, who walked away with HOWCOOL.COM Player-of-the-Game honors. 

 The Fury will finish the regular season on May 22nd against the Double Crossers in a preview of the Ivy King Cup Championship game. The Belles, likely feeling closer than they have all year to their first win, will close the season against the Manic Attackers.

Univision

Lánzate a jugar Roller Derby

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Stockyard

Talk Derby to Me

These ruthless rollers, these terminators in tutus, achieved the fiercest display of athletic prowess in booty shorts and fishnets that I have ever witnessed... There is not the slightest hint of jade coloring the skaters, quite unlike their professional athletic counterparts. Such commitment in the absence of pay can only be attributed to a fierce love of the sport.

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Make it Better

Windy City Rollers Makes a Great Girlfriends' Night Out

Looking for a break from wine tastings and book club get-togethers? Feed your wild side with a trip downtown to watch a few of your North Shore neighbors on wheels with the Windy City Rollers.

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In the early going on Sunday night at the UIC Pavilion, The Fury looked like it might hang more points on the overmatched Hell’s Belles than the Double Crossers did in January. The old coaching axiom proved out, however—a young team grows most between the first and second games. No doubt the Belles lost big, 162-65, but the Red Rookies are skating in the right direction heading toward the mid-point of the season.

The Belles spent the night trying to adjust to Orange speed. Fury ace Kola Loka, something like the Wayne Gretzky of roller derby, lapped the Belles three times on the first jam before Belle captain Shocka Conduit could threaten the back of the pack. The Belles started the third jam down 18-0, and when Hermione Danger was sent off for a cutting-the-track major, Conduit tried to slow things down. But rookie Belle blockers had trouble moving laterally at the slow pace, and Jackie Daniels quickly rang up another 15 for the Fury.

Down 33-0, at the start of the fourth, February poster girl Zombea Arthur, who was brutalized by the Crossers in January, shook loose on the first of her four lead jams to pick up the opening Belle points. The Belles rallied again near the middle of the first half, scoring 28 on four consecutive lead jams. In the tenth, a major penalty on Fury blocker Tori Adore and a fourth minor on her teammate Juana Rumbel gave Deb Autry an easy line to lead jammer status; Pominatrix and Mya Ssault pestered Red Zeppelin  into her fourth minor, and Conduit picked up her 14th point of the jam on a slick move that left Jackie Daniels blocking air. Autry pulled the Belles within 18 on a third consecutive power jam in the twelfth.

Enter Loka. The Belles had no answer for number 911, who would go on to put up 57 points on 12 jams that yielded just six Belle points. Interleague transfer players Daniels (44) and Ska Face (41) accounted for most of the Fury’s other points. Zeppelin, Go-Go Hatchet, and Tori Adore doled out the bruises for The Fury, with a noticeably improved Ivy Sedation pitching in on defense.

With the score 75-39, and Conduit looking capable of exploiting seams in the Fury defense, it still looked like a game at the start of the second half. The Fury went on a 37-0 run across the first five jams, however, and simply racked points, yeoman-like, to the final whistle. Each team gave fans reason to stick around; Daniels and Loka combined on a star pass in the thirteenth jam, the latter going on defense for perhaps the only time of the night to hold up Pominatrix. The feisty Belles never quit.  Danger bounced up after being leveled by Zeppelin to score two grand slams in the ninth jam. And Arthur—using nifty footwork, speed changes, and upper-body fakes to offset her diminutive stature—seemed to show measureable progress with each jam. Overall, the Belles demonstrated much better team play in the pack. Ssault, who is stepping into an anchor role on defense, registered 14 defensive actions, looking particularly strong when playing alongside Pominatrix and veteran Gotham transfer Dinah Party, who played just one jam in the second half before leaving with a sore back.

The winless Hell’s Belles line up in March against the Manic Attackers. Perennial doormats in the Cicero years before winning the Ivy King Cup in 2009, the Manics are 1-1 and searching their roster for a fourth jammer. The Belles are hanging loose and hanging together. Both teams want to take a win into the season’s second half.

Questions answered.

On Saturday, January 30^th , a tighter, more focused Double Crossers team steamrolled Hell’s Bells 171-48 and the Manics tamped down The Fury 101-83. A crowd reported by Derby News Network at 3,977—the largest to watch modern roller derby in Chicago—began rising into the UIC Pavilion’s upper deck before the 6:00 p.m. start.

Double Crossers vs. Hell’s Belles

Perhaps not since the summer of 1998, when the six-time champion Chicago Bulls splintered in the off-season, has Chicago sports seen a red and black transition like Hell’s Belles are going through now. Just this past June 20^th, the Belles were tied with the Manic Attackers in the Ivy King Cup championship game with eleven minutes to play, scrapping for their second consecutive league crown. But gone now are a who’s who of  past stars—Megan Formor, Varla Vendetta, Belle Diablo and Athena DeCrime. On Saturday night, the Belles managed just 17 offensive blocks and 1.41 points per jam in the 123-point loss.

The Crossers broke out to an 18-0 lead, showing dominant blocking at the front of the pack that would hamper the Belles all night. In the bout’s fifth jam, Loco Chanel  held up Crosser jammer Reina Chaos, positioning Deb Autry to cruise when Georgia on Yer Behind was sent off with a major. Autry circled for 14 points, but the red and black would not be in it again. Two jams later, the Belles set up camp in the sin bin, where they would spend a remarkable 46 team minutes. Indycent rang up 15 point while Chanel circled the track waiting for a seat to open up in the box. Led by Chanel’s 20 total penalties and eight minutes in the box, HB repeatedly put itself at disadvantage with elbow and forearm play.

The first half ended with the Crossers up 86-28, both teams giving way to half-time favorite the Power of Cheer, who appear to have spent the off-season muscling up. Mattrick Swayze and crew ripped through its most dynamic and athletic set to date; more power, less cheer, but great fun as usual.

The second half picked up where the first left off. In the fourth jam, with the Crossers up by 61, jammer Nina Millimeter went on defense, picking at Belle rookie Zombea Arthur like a tiger barb right off the jam whistle. Two jams later, just seven minutes into the second half, the Crossers slipped over the century mark as Georgia on Yer Behind, Donna Party and crew repeatedly slammed the door on Belle jammers. The crowd stayed with the Belles, however, erupting into a roar when Autry and Shocka Conduit took lead in the seventh and twelfth jams. Down but not out, the Belles sent Gotham Girls Roller Derby (New York) transfer Dinah Party to the line in the final jam and its least experienced rookies into the pack. Party juked her way to lead jammer. She put zero points on the board but scored big with her struggling teammates by sucking pro-Belles cheers out of the crowd.

It was likely a career night for several Crossers. Five different silent assassins, led by Julia Rosenwinkel, Nina Millimeter and Indycent, racked up double-digit jams. Rosenwinkel, the Crosser captain, looks considerably faster and stronger than she did in 2009 and led all scorers with 50, a remarkable 8.33 points per jam.

One had to feel for Shocka Conduit, the league’s 2009 point champion and now the Belles' sole travel-team member. Conduit drew heavy attention all night from Crosser blocking; she had just 9 points and too few assists from a roster including seven skaters playing their first bout—Arthur, Brawla Poundstone, Payne D. Spencer, Pominatrix, Sue Perduper and Nancy Pagan, who made the most of her opportunity by blind-siding Crosser veteran Donna Party to the Skate Court late in the second half. Deb Autry, one of last year’s early draftees, appears to have made great strides during the off-season. Zombea Arthur, although she did not score in six attempts, skated opportunistically and will find holes as the Belles' blocking improves. The Belles' other heavy-rotation jammer, Hermione Danger, who has both burst and heart, must cut penalty minutes to help on offense. With the vastly improved Fury on the schedule in just three weeks, the young Belles will need to grow up fast.

Final score: Double Crossers 171, Hell's Belles 48

Manic Attackers vs. The Fury

In the off-season, roller girls take up a second sport—drafting players for the new season. How it works is all guess-work for the outsider, but there are clearly winners and losers. Just ask Hell’s Belles. And in a year like this one, when so many four-year players chose home-league retirement, the stakes were sky-high. The Fury came away from the draft season with two huge scores, increasing team speed exponentially with the return of Kola Loka and the acquisition of Grand Rapids transplant Jackie Daniels. On paper, their match-up with the Manic Attackers looked like it could be a preview of the 2010 Ivy King Cup. But the Manics, last year’s champs, equaled Fury speed, decisively won the penalty battle, and looked long on endurance in their 101-83 win.

The Fury’s Loka and game MVP Beth Amphetamine of the Manics put on a speed clinic, lining up against each other with some regularity throughout the night. Amphetamine scored just 19 points in the game, but played a crucial role in neutralizing Loka’s velocity. The two skated to a 0-0 draw on the first jam, but the Manics opened a 19-6 lead after the first ten minutes. Loka finally got loose in the game’s eighth jam and scored her first four points. With the score 19-11 and 17:50 left in the first half, the next jam ended with Jackie Daniels putting her shoulder just under Wreck N Shrew’s chin. The game stopped while Wreck thought about getting up, and though she went on to score the Manics’ final points, she could be seen after the game with an ice bag fashionably draped over her right collarbone.

The Manics opened up a 17-point lead, but The Fury began to chip away during a furious thirteenth set. Loka picked up lead jammer and then traded short penalty stints with Amphetamine, who shot out of the box and appeared to be headed for a scoring pass when Daniels and Go-Go Hatchet snagged her in a perfectly executed sandwich. Loka took advantage of a dispersed pack and cut the lead by four.  Daniels registered six on a pretty run with three minutes left, and in the half’s final jam, Loka burst past Fury blockers like they were moving backwards, taking lead jammer in turn two. The half ended with the Manics leading 39-33.

The Fury kept up the pressure as the second half began, and in the fourth jam, Daniels executed a deft cut to take advantage of a block on Amy Nonamey and momentarily take the lead away.  Mo Vengeance was able to hit her scoring pass, however, and end the jam with the Manics still in control, 46-43. Nonamey—who in just her second full season is emerging as one of the league’s most fearsome hitters—found redemption two jams later by crushing Ska Face, ending her ten-point jam. Loka would tie the score at 55, and then Hatchet later at 64, but The Fury would not lead again.

In the twelfth jam, Ruth Enasia, who led all scorers with 48, ducked under Sonya Mouthshut while Di Richmond and Wreck N Shrew tied up The Fury’s Shannanigan to open up a ten-point lead.

Discipline served the Manics well over the next ten minutes of play as Fury skaters were waved into the penalty box. Daniels and Loka were each sent off while jamming inside the eight-minute mark, and the Manics stretched their lead to 29. Loka, however, never looked spent, and if her year-long leave has had a negative impact, it will take interleague play to prove it. With 2:49 left in the game, she ran down the lead jammer, Enasia, forcing her to call it off. And then, albeit against the light end of the Manic bench, she put up 15 of her 31 points on the final jam, her 18^th of the night.

Final score: Manic Attackers 101, The Fury 83

The Manic Attackers will square off against the Double Crossers on February 21^st, while The Fury will face a scrappy Hell’s Belles squad with nothing to lose. Will that be a great time? Four thousand people can’t be wrong.

The Windy City Rollers' August 29 bout will be an exciting one! In addition to our fearsome WCR All-Stars' bout against the Charm City All-Stars. I talked with skaters from both teams, and this time featured some of the 2009 WCR All-Star rookies. Avoid lines at the door and get your tickets in advance at http://windycityrollers.com/tickets/default.aspx. Come early to see the Chicago debut of our junior travel team, the Second Wind!