“Psst! Check it out, but don't stare: I think our office manager is sporting a black eye.”
Did the executive assistant in your office just walk past with a limp? You probably weren’t hallucinating. She might have been “skating in a bout” last night.
Yes, roller derby, the sport with a checkered past, likened to professional wrestling, is back with a vengeance – along with some unlikely fans and participants.
Call it a resurgence, an arrival or even a “Mainstream Renaissance.” Just don’t call it lip service. Thanks to the success of the A&E television series Rollergirls and Juno actress Ellen Page’s turn as a derby queen in the film Whip It, roller derby has resurfaced as viable pop culture commodity, and a new generation of cleverly-nicknamed skaters are catapulting the sport back to the future.
Leading the Midwest offensive are Cleveland’s Burning River Roller Girls, who celebrate their new season this Saturday, March 13 at their new home, the Wolstein Center at Cleveland State University.
That’s right, folks. Cue the flashpots: Roller derby has officially graduated to the arena circuit.
They’re Gonna Party Like it’s 1969…
“Most people still carry the stigma that roller derby is like it was in the 1950s, either really fake like professional wrestling, or brutal towards women,” says Burning River Roller Girl rookie Carol Harnett (aka June Cleavage). Even she cops to having what she calls “Laverne flashbacks” after attending a bout for the first time a few years ago.
“But I learned quickly when I joined a [recreation center] league that derby is much more involved than it looks to the average fan,” says Harnett. “It’s a great emotional release to strap on the skates. Derby is not what you might think. It’s great physical stress relief, and it’s all about sportsmanship, camaraderie and team spirit.”
Stepping up to a big league in a big venue doesn't trigger butterflies for Harnett. “I don’t tend to get nervous in public,” she adds with a laugh. “But I suspect that when the vets out there start yelling ‘Hit somebody!’ then it might become a little nerve-racking.”
Harnett assists unemployed Clevelanders as a career manager at a local employment agency by day. Only a couple of her co-workers know that she’s a member of the BRRG’s “Hard Knockers” skate squad by night. “I work in a building where no one knows,” Harnett chuckles. “Bet they might be surprised!”
We’re looking for women who are over 21 and have health insurance
“You’ve Come a Long Way, Baby…”
Though the official “roll off into obscurity” date varies by historian, most date roller derby’s death knell by the popularity of Virginia Slims cigarettes, and the ceremonial unfurling of Farrah Fawcett posters by pre-pubescent boys in 1976. At that point, the sport christened by Chicago native Leo “Bromo” Seltzer in 1911 had enjoyed nearly 20 years of peak popularity, albeit with some bumps along the way.
Seltzer’s “Transcontinental Roller Derby” featured both men’s and women’s teams that rotated periods during a bout, but by the 1950s, roller derby was a sport dominated by women, with leagues stretching across America. It peaked in popularity with 1972's Kansas City Bomber, which starred sexpot Racquel Welch, and 1975 sci-fi flick, Rollerball.
By the time roller derby was featured on the TV sitcom Laverne & Shirley, roller derby was seen as a gauche, chauvinist exhibition for lowbrows, as outmoded as Laverne’s poodle skirt.
With Ronald Reagan’s presidency in 1981, Americans had moved on to new obsessions like Journey, Tron, Rubik’s Cube and Pac-Man. But like all of those pop culture obsessions, roller derby has made a modern comeback, too. The menagerie of 50s kitsch, 70s sensationalism and the rockabilly-goth, pin-up swagger of the Suicide Girls has struck a chord with fans, breathing new life into the world of “jammers,” “blockers” and “pivots.”
Today, there are dozens of new leagues and hundreds of teams competing through the Women’s Flat-Track Derby Association, which the BRRG is a part of. The WFTDA’s marketing motto reads: “Real. Strong. Athletic. Revolutionary.” Anyone who has seen a BRRG bout would agree with such descriptors.
“You’ve Got Health Insurance, Right?”
An executive assistant for an insurance company, BRRG skater Lindsay Chapman (aka Coco Sparx) shares a similar story to Harnett about her co-workers. “The people who do know I skate… they think it’s hilarious,” she laughs. “I get asked about it a lot.” Chapman “caught derby fever” after she received a message through her MySpace page looking for roller derby competitors.
“I got a random message saying, ‘We’re looking for women who are over 21 and have health insurance’,” says Chapman. “I did, and I’ve been in love with derby ever since.”
Chapman has played team sports since she was in kindergarten, but suggests she struggled to find a sport “where women are competitive at really high levels. There aren’t really that many options: it’s either professional or recreational sport.”
The camaraderie and friendship Chapman found in fellow skaters came as a bit of a surprise. “The friendships that I’ve built through Burning River Roller Girls… these women are amazing,” she says.” I’ve met a lot of really incredible people who I might not have met otherwise. When I got married, two of my bridesmaids were skaters from the league.”
She also dispels the notion that roller derby contact is always as brutal and painful as it appears, suggesting that curious onlookers should try it. “I’ve played contact sports and never really got hurt. It’s rough and tough, but not at all that different,” Chapman says. “Roller derby builds up your core strengths, including abs, which are essential for balance in this sport, like nothing else.”
Pay to Play
Like the balance needed for roller derby, an equally level-headed approach to its economics is required. There’s no “league minimum” contract, no players’ association, no contract negotiations or agents involved in the BRRG version of arena sports. Aside from a brawny time commitment, these skatin’ ladies all fork out the dough to cross-check each other in a bout, too.
“All of us are so passionate about this sport, we actually pay to play,” veteran skater and BRRG PR/advertising director Kelli Pilch-Habel (aka Death Proof) offers, adding that most leagues operate in this manner. “This is a skater-owned, skater-operated league, which counts on ticket sales to help it continue. We pay for practice facilities, bout facilities, advertising… it all takes up a lot of time, but the dedication that all these women show is absolutely remarkable,” she adds.
“So, you get what you give in return.”
“Hello, Cleveland!”
OK, so the flashpots were a bit of a joke. However, packing arenas like Journey used to is anything but funny. “We love the fact that we’re at the Wolstein Center this year,” says Pilch-Habel. “In order for our league to grow, we needed a place that would accommodate more fans.
“It’s really wonderful and we’re fortunate. Roller derby is still considered entertainment more than sport because of the memories of old style roller derby. But a venue like this… it lends us credibility. We have the opportunity to show people that roller derby is much different than its perceived.”
The seeds of the move from local recreation centers to the Wolstein were planted through a “mutual admiration society connection,” says Pilch-Habel. “Some reps at the Wolstein happened to be at one of our last bouts, and they were very into what we were doing.”
The dialogue took off from there. After setting up a November 2009 benefit bout at Wolstein—the “Black & Blue 4: Whip it Good!” exhibition benefitted Toys for Tots and Coats for Kids)—negotiations turned to the Wolstein Center hosting a whole season.
“They were very accommodating to our needs,” says Pilch-Habel. “This is our new home and it really feels like it, too. Our fans will be really happy about seating, concessions… and the legitimacy of [moving] into larger venue is invaluable. This will be the first experience for a lot of people who attend our bouts, and we’re really excited at what we can offer to them here.”
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