The Dishonour Rollers will be taking part in Canberra’s biggest battle in 100 years SKATE-TURION hosted by CRDL. Hope to see you there!
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Roll back to the 80s!
Saturday 29 June is going to be a totally awesome ride to that most tubular of decades, the 1980s.
That’s right, get out your fluoro lycra, Varsity Derby League is hosting a THE SKEIGHTIES roller disco at Tuggeranong Basketball Stadium at 6 pm on 29 June. Roller and inline skaters of all ages are invited to skate the dance floor to the 80s’ greatest hits.
Stay tuned for more information!
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A fresh look for fresh meat
For the first time, men in the ACT region will be able to train to play on a roller derby team of their own—not just as referees. From this month, Varsity Derby League (VDL), a Canberra-based flat track roller derby league, will start training men as well as women to play the fast and exciting contact sport of roller derby.
Potential new players—“fresh meat”—are invited to attend one or more free intake sessions on 12, 14 and 19 May 2013 to be held at Woden. The sessions are open to women and men over the age of 18. No previous skating experience is necessary, just a willingness to put in the work it takes to be a roller derby player.
“We’re really excited about this new member intake,” said Jill Wright (AKA Red Hot Jillie Pepper), VDL president. “We knew lots of local blokes had gotten together on their own for scrimmages and training, so the league decided forming a men’s team would be a great opportunity for both us and them.”
While predominantly a women’s sport, men’s derby teams and leagues have increased in number over the past few years. “Merby”, as it’s sometimes called, is played on the same track with the same rules.
VDL is also seeking new members and volunteers to train as on-skates referees and non-skating officials. People who can’t or don’t want to participate as contact sport players can be involved with roller derby in this way.
The first free intake session will be held at 2.45 pm on Sunday 12 May at the Woden Indoor Basketball Courts, 13 Irving Street, Philip. New players will need quad roller skates suitable for derby (not figure skates) and protective gear – knee, elbow and wrist pads plus a helmet and mouth guard. Some equipment other than mouthguards may be available to borrow.
In other news, we have dates for wicked awesome bouts for the rest of 2013:
13 July – VDL vs South West Sydney Rockets
3 August – VDL vs Wagga Derby Dolls
26 October – VDL vs South Side Derby Dolls (Sydney)
Lurby,
~Cin-Switch
Saturday 20th Bout Cancelled
The sadness is great, but the bout scheduled for Saturday the 20th of April has been cancelled, due to circumstances beyond our control.
Our other two bout dates are still current, so keep an eye out for more information on some super fantastical Derby to come!
In other news, check out this cool article from the point of view of one of our very own VDL Fresh Meat Skaters: http://www.rollerderbyau.net/2013/04/through-the-eyes-of-a-freshie/
Lurby,
Cin-Switch
Gloria Sass – Fresh meat intake 2013
When I began skating I had Rumpire take me down to the lake and push me because I refused to move. I am proud to say that our new skaters are doing much better than I did and I believe that one day, these new skaters are going to be a force to reckon with.
January 2013 marks the beginning of the Varsity Derby League Fresh Meat intake and we are proud to welcome at least 20 new skaters into our Derby family.
WE LOVE FRESH MEAT!
This year also marks a new way of training our fresh meat: all new skaters attend an 8 week Fresh Meat bootcamp held by our trainers before integrating into the regular league training sessions. Our first session of our pilot freshie course saw 19 new skaters come and share their love of derby. The purpose of these sessions is to give new skaters the basic abilities to enhance their skating skills before joining our more advanced training sessions. Joining a league of skilled skaters can be intimidating and we aim to give our new skaters the confidence they need to not only take on roller derby or the league, but we want to give them the confidence to take on the world.
Our fresh meat makes me so proud, I feel like proud mama Sass.
