Rollergirls (maybe spoilers)

[cheesesteak]

C'mon, admit it. You TiVo'd Rollergirls on A&E. I actually wanted to see the roller derby action but the camera shots were so tight and the editiing was so choppy that it was hard to figure out what was going on. It was kinda funny that Venis Envy's (big) ass was hanging out for half the action. It was weird that they referred to the matches as "games". I don't know how choreographed this version of roller derby is but it seems to be a lot less violent than the "fake" roller derby of my youth. I'll try to watch another episode. I couldn't care less about the up close and personal background info on the skaters, boyfriends and moms.

[coolpenguin]

it's tivo'd but i haven't watched it yet. potential guilty pleasure or is it just too bad?

[Nfuego]

It was ok. I enjoyed it...I remember watching rollerderby when I was a kid, too.

I wonder why it is never on TV anymore. I did some internet searching and found many cities that have rollerderby teams. It would be fun to watch!

[Steveknj]

It was ok. I enjoyed it...I remember watching rollerderby when I was a kid, too.

I wonder why it is never on TV anymore. I did some internet searching and found many cities that have rollerderby teams. It would be fun to watch!

Roller Derby tried to make a comeback on one of the cable channels a few years ago (I want to say USA or Spike, but I don't recall). It was called something else...maybe Roller Games. It seemed they were trying to ride the popularity of the Pro Wrestling boom of a few years ago. It just didn't have the same spark that the old rollar derby of my youth had. Actually, I find that Pro Wrestling these days doesn't have the same spark that it did when I was a kid, when it was an underground sport. Anyway, I think the roller games flopped, and was gone pretty quickly. I would bet, if this show is a hit, it will make a comeback attempt.

Now if they could show the Raquel Welch Roller Derby movie (Kansas City Bomber) again, I'll be happy :)

[Rkkeller]

I too have a SL/SR for it but haven't watched it. I don't know if its an actual Rollerderby like in the olden days or its a sitcom with Roller Derby scenes in it. I guess I will have to watch to find out.


Rich

[YCantAngieRead]

I recorded it, but not because I wanted to see the rollerderby scenes. I like the documentaries like this on A&E, and this one seems like it could be cheese-alicious. :)

[jerobi]

I almost tivo'd it just for the roller derby bits, but I figured it would suck. Sounds like I wasn't wrong.

So, did the losing captain at least have to wrestle an alligator in the middle of the rink?

[KungFuCow]

This version of roller derby is 100% real. The outcome nor the game is not scripted in any way.

The sport is growing at a crazy rate. I was told that participation jumped from 10,000 to 30,000 in one year and every bout I have ever been to has been sold out. Capacity at the rink I go to is about 300-400 people. Larger venues around the country are selling out as well.. largest capacity Ive heard of is just over 1,000 but there are probably places that can accomodate more spectators.

I skate with some of the girls who do roller derby here locally and these girls train their butts off. In fact, one of the girls skated 30 miles with me on Saturday on roller skates, not inlines.. THAT is hardcore. They practice 4-5 times a week, including derby scrimages and speed practice. It's quite admirable to see the work ethic most of them have. I've been asked to both coach and referee but the amount of time and dedication you need to invest into this sport is just way too demanding to me.

[coolpenguin]

Watched it this afternoon, and I'll keep watching. Fun stuff.

I also remember the "revival" a few years ago. I think it was before the movie that came out...was it along the lines of the basketball played with trampolines?

[slydog75]

I watched this on my Zen Vision on my flight this morning. It was pretty entertaining and definetely not scripted (at least not the matches). I'll be keeping my Season Pass for now. Oh, and here is the website they kept showing during the show:

http://www.txrd.com/

[MasterOfPuppets]

I watched it...it was OK, but certainly nothing special...may watch it again if I can't find anything better...I was hoping for more cheesiness, instead of plans for TP'ing, and someone referring to "Lux" as an "idol"...
I used to watch Roller Games back in the day (back in the day meaning around the time of the American Gladiators heyday)...there was also another national roller derby broadcast on TNN (I think) more recently, which was really a pretty awful show, but hey...the name of that "league" isn't coming to mind...

[sallypnut]

I loved it. :o

Cheesy and fun, and those girls are TUFF!

[Steveknj]

I watched it and even despite the potential "eye candy" factor, I thought it was very boring. I don't know why I thought this was going to be a fictional show, but that explains why it seemed like an episode of COPS to me in the way it was filmed. So this is a real league? Hmmmmmm...I only watched the first 15 minutes before deleting it and the SP. Now that I know it's non-fiction, I might watch again as I thought it was very badly scripted...now I know why...

[busyba]

It just didn't have the same spark that the old rollar derby of my youth had. Actually, I find that Pro Wrestling these days doesn't have the same spark that it did when I was a kid

I would posit that has less to do with the declining quality of the sports in question and more to do with you growing up. :D

[dirtypacman]

I thought it was done pretty bad but I can't help watching short skirts on wheels :)

I used to love RollerDerby from my youth.

[dtivouser]

This version of roller derby is 100% real. The outcome nor the game is not scripted in any way.

Do you know that for sure? After watching half an episode of Rollergirls, I came to the conclustion that this was a fictional reality show. All of the non-gaming stories seemed like a really bad soap opera. I didn't belive this was "reality" at all.

[Steveknj]

I would posit that has less to do with the declining quality of the sports in question and more to do with you growing up. :D

Probably both :)

[marrone]

Gender question here.

From the way this sport has been publicized over the past couple of decades, it really seems to focus a lot on women (though men play it too, as we all know). Why aren't women playing other high-contact sports as much (such as tackle football, lacrosse, hockey, boxing, wrestling (And even pro wrestling if ya wanna consider it a sport...each WWE show has one or MAYBE two women's events per night, which are, in general, more for sex appeal than actual wrestling like the guys do)...they play them, but you rarely get to see them)?

What makes Roller Derby different?

-Mike

[busyba]

Why aren't women playing other high-contact sports as much (such as tackle football, lacrosse, hockey, boxing, wrestling
[...snip...]
What makes Roller Derby different?
Ignoring for the moment as to whether or not RD is real, the major difference with regards to the high-contact nature of the sport is that in RD, when people make contact with each other, they are, for the most part both moving in the same direction, while in all the other sports they are mostly moving towards each other.

Moving towards each other greatly increases the force of the impact compared to moving in the same direction. The difference in relative velocities of the two RD bodies during contact is very low.


Now, I'm not arguing for or against women playing those sports, I'm just pointing out that RD is probably a much lower-impact sport than the others, despite all the contact.

[Rkkeller]

I finally watched it last night. I am mixed on my feelings for it. I will give it another episode and then see how I feel. The action scenes I enjoyed a lot, its the other stuff that I am unsure about.


Rich

[dirtypacman]

Do you know that for sure? After watching half an episode of Rollergirls, I came to the conclustion that this was a fictional reality show. All of the non-gaming stories seemed like a really bad soap opera. I didn't belive this was "reality" at all.


I agree --- outcome of the games are already known--- what happens in the ring is not. Very similar to wrestling.

[slydog75]

I doubt the games are rigged.. did you all check the website I linked to? www.txrd.com . Seems legit to me.

[KungFuCow]

Do you know that for sure? After watching half an episode of Rollergirls, I came to the conclustion that this was a fictional reality show. All of the non-gaming stories seemed like a really bad soap opera. I didn't belive this was "reality" at all.

The non gaming stuff, I cant say but I can tell you that the game itself is not scripted.

[KungFuCow]

Gender question here.

From the way this sport has been publicized over the past couple of decades, it really seems to focus a lot on women (though men play it too, as we all know). Why aren't women playing other high-contact sports as much (such as tackle football, lacrosse, hockey, boxing, wrestling (And even pro wrestling if ya wanna consider it a sport...each WWE show has one or MAYBE two women's events per night, which are, in general, more for sex appeal than actual wrestling like the guys do)...they play them, but you rarely get to see them)?

What makes Roller Derby different?

-Mike


Women do play lacrosse and box.

Roller Derby is a great spectator sport, tho. Once you learn the rules and understand how scoring works, it's pretty easy to follow and it's basically constant action. Plus, there isn't a men's version, at least not one that's got enough of a following to overshadow the women's version.

I dont think I'd like to play Rollerderby with men. Way too physical and with the size of the track they use, it would be ROUGH.. some of the women hit HARD.. I can only imagine how hard a man could hit and with the size of the track, people would constantly be knocked into the audience.

Something else to keep in mind is that MOST rollerderby isnt played on a banked track. Most of the time its on a rink floor with the track itself set up with rope lights and spectators sit within 7-8 feet of the track.

[Amnesia]

I actually liked the show a lot. I thought it was almost like ethnography---an immersion into the subculture. The show seemed a little strange though in that the cameraman(woman?) was totally and completely ignored, except for the talking to the camera stuff.

Yes, they certainly do that on Survivor and other pseudo-reality shows, but those are most games where the participants are told to ignore the camera. These were (supposedly) ordinary people and I thought they almost did too well at just going about their lives...

[northmoor]

I thought the first episode sucked. I was disappointed that there wasn't more actual roller derby action in it, and the little that was in it, was poorly shot (probably in keeping with the intent of the show).

It seemed to me like the show was more a reality or unscripted show about the lives of certain rollergirls, who weren't all that interesting.

[SnakeEyes]

I know people in Austin, have seen the TXRD. It is legit. The shots are hard, the falls can be rough, and injuries do happen and the girls are very emotional. The game doesn't need to be scripted because of the structure of the game itself, so long as teams can skate, can make a hit and have competitive people.

They are one of the few banked track leagues left. If there were a men's league I'd play but it would certainly require a larger track and though I like the banked track look I think men would have to play on a non-banked track to minimize injury. I wish there were at least a league here in town to watch.

[SnakeEyes]

Now, I'm not arguing for or against women playing those sports, I'm just pointing out that RD is probably a much lower-impact sport than the others, despite all the contact.

This is true to a degree, it depends on where and how the impact occurs. If it's blockers in the pack it's going to be lower impact. A blocker that's behind a slower pack, or just hanging behind, can put an ugly hit on a jammer cruising toward the pack.

IMO, the falls are the bigger problem

[JFriday]

I thought it was funny that one of the teams names was the Putahs which means bitch, whore or the F-word in spanish.

[busyba]

Even funnier, the full name of the team is "Putahs Del Fuego", which I think means "Whores of Fire". They might want to have their GYN take a look at that. :D

[Amnesia]

Even funnier, the full name of the team is "Putahs Del Fuego", which I think means "Whores of Fire". They might want to have their GYN take a look at that. :D
No 'h'.

It's Putas del Fuego (http://www.txrd.com/putas/).

[slydog75]

I thought it was funny that one of the teams names was the Putahs which means bitch, whore or the F-word in spanish.

I thought it was funny when the one woman's little girl says something about Putas and her Mom says "Where did you hear that word, I tried to keep it from you' yet all of her teammates are running around the house repeating it constantly.

[Waldorf]

Why aren't women playing other high-contact sports as much (such as tackle football, lacrosse, hockey, boxing, wrestling (And even pro wrestling if ya wanna consider it a sport...each WWE show has one or MAYBE two women's events per night, which are, in general, more for sex appeal than actual wrestling like the guys do)...they play them, but you rarely get to see them)?

What makes Roller Derby different?

-Mike

Dallas Diamonds, baby! back to back 2004 - 2005 national champs!

Dallas Diamonds (http://www.dallasdiamondsfootball.com/)

Look out for some of those lineman (linewomen?)... meow! ;)

[Mr. Pink]

Do you know that for sure? After watching half an episode of Rollergirls, I came to the conclustion that this was a fictional reality show. All of the non-gaming stories seemed like a really bad soap opera. I didn't belive this was "reality" at all.

This isn't in regards to the show, but, mainly informational for those questioning the sport, it's 'realness', and other random facts about Roller Derby.

There is a newly organized group called WFTDA - Women's Flat Track Derby Association. The mission of the WFTDA is to promote and foster the sport of women's flat-track roller derby by facilitating the development of athletic ability, sportswomanship, and goodwill among member leagues. The governing philosophy is, "by the skaters, for the skaters." Women skaters are primary owners, managers, and operators of each member league and of the coalition. The operational tasks of the coalition are to set standards for rules, seasons, and safety, and to determine guidelines for the presentations of the national and international athletic competitions of member leagues. All member leagues have a voice in the decision-making process, and agree to comply with the governing body's policies.

Next month, the USA will see it's first interstate Roller Derby Invitational with 20 teams from across the country competing in this real and action packed sport. Search for Dust Devil 2006.

Want to see for yourself our very real this sport is? With over 40 cities having flat track roller derby, and more sprouting, check to see if there are events near you - Do a search for US Rollergirls, and check their website for local teams.

And, last year in Las Vegas, was the first annual RollerCon.

Enjoy.
Mr. Pink, Head Referee, Gotham Girls Roller Derby, NYC

[dtivouser]

This isn't in regards to the show, but, mainly informational for those questioning the sport, it's 'realness', and other random facts about Roller Derby.


I didn't mean to imply that the games are scripted. I really wouldn't know (and don't think I care! ;-)

Nonetheless, the material outside of the games, such as the girls partying or TP'ing the other teams' houses, seemed very poorly scripted to me. I didn't believe those stories at all.

[Mr. Pink]

Gotcha! :)

[SnakeEyes]

There is nothing in Central Iowa, been wanting one to start up here for awhile. Though I prefer to watch banked track.

Though I am sure you'd like to be spared yet another flat vs banked arguement.

[Rkkeller]

I still have a SP for this but I really did not care for the last episode and FF and skipped a lot of it. The "Clownsnack" episode I did enjoy but I am taking the show episode by episode and soon my delete my SP.

I am far from perfect but how can you get together so many athletic women and hardly have any good looking ones ?

[SnakeEyes]

They have started up the 2006 Lonestar season and so far the Rollergirls production crew has not been around.