I kept it in the back of my mind as something we could do when the weather was "crap", but unfortunately for us, the weather so far in NYC had not been that bad, so it was now my birthday (April 30) and we had still yet to do it. Bryan had asked me in the weeks leading up to my birthday what I had wanted to do I decided "Roller Derby".
So Mum, Bryan and myself headed off to Brooklyn for a night of fun and action supporting our local girls "Manhattan Mayham". Tickets were cheap $19 per adult.
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| There are our girls (and the two male coaches) - "Manhattan Mayhem" |
Now if you have seen the movie that Drew Barrymore directed "Whip It", it looks like one big "girly bash'em up fest on roller skates" but there are rules and skill required for the sport.
Summary
The objectives of roller derby are relatively simple. Each team fields a single point scoring skater ("Jammer") whose object is to lap as many opposing skaters as they can.
The remaining skaters who aren't scoring points work both on offense and defense at the same time -- to block the opposing Jammer and to clear a path for their own Jammer.
Rules and Scoring
- Each team fields five players at a time.
- Out of those five players, four are BLOCKERS and one is the JAMMER (point scorer).
- The four blockers from each team line up together and form a PACK, while the two jammers line up 30 feet behind.
- The skater wearing the star on her helmet is the jammer. The skater wearing the stripe on her helmet is called the PIVOT. The pivot is the pack leader and defensive play caller, similar to football's middle linebacker position.
- On the first whistle (1 short blast), the pack begins moving. On the second whistle (2 short blasts), the jammers take off.
- On the first lap, the jammers earn no points, but the first jammer to legally pass each blocker on the opposing team and clear the pack is called LEAD JAMMER. You can tell if a skater is the Lead Jammer by looking at her designated jammer ref. He will point to the jammer and hold up an “L”. The Lead Jammer reserves the right to strategically end the jam before the two minutes are completed by repeatedly gesturing with her hands on her hips. If both jammers commit fouls on their first lap, there is no Lead Jammer in that jam and it will run for the full 2 minutes.
- Jammers lose Lead Jammer status if they are sent to the penalty box during the jam.
- After a jammer completes her initial lap, she scores 1 point for each opposing skater she passes.
- Jammers automatically score points against opposing skaters serving in the penalty box.
- Jammer referees hold up fingers at the conclusion of each lap for points just earned.
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| Manhattan Mayhem coming on to the rink. |
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| Our opposing team "The Bronx Gridlock" coming onto the rink. |
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| A "jam" - A two minute play |
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| Some of the girls from the "Bronx Gridlock" team take a tumble. |
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| Our girls celebrating their win at the end of the night. |
When we were reading through the Derby program before the derby began we were amazed at the different types of women that were competing in the sport - lawyers through to artists, but what was great were their derby names for example, "Puss n Glutes", "Sexy Sladie", "Fisti Cuffs".
By the end of the night, my throat had gone hoarse from shouting out encouragement to the team. All three of us laughed and really enjoyed the tournament.
After we left the derby we had all worked up an appetite so we walked up "Juniors". A famous Brooklyn diner, known for their cheese cake. And let me just say the cheesecake was really yummy. It was a great way to end a day of celebrating my birthday.
