Friday 31 August 2012

Live Roller Derby: Two weeks and counting...

I have never been to a roller derby bout.

I know. This is quite possibly a mortal sin. Especially as I’ve been training with Manchester Roller Derby for the past four months.

I could give my excuses and explain that I’m not often free on a Saturday, and I was ill one time, and double-booked another time. Or I could just tell you how excited I am that in just two weeks I will AT LAST be watching my first live roller derby bout!

Manchester Roller Derby are hosting an amazing double-header bout on Saturday 15th September. Yes, two bouts. The first sees MRD's Women's B team Phoenix Furies, skating against Furness Fire Crackers. And in the second bout, MRD's Men's team New Wheeled Order take on Lincolnshire Rolling Thunder.

Oh, I have so many reasons for being excited.

At last I’ll be able to witness first hand all the live jamming and blocking action. I mean, I’ve been to scrimmages, which are essentially practice bouts. I’ve watched and been a non-skating official at scrimmages. I've seen all the skills and techniques, the hard hits, penalties, falls, the fast jamming. But, I know from photographs, video clips, and talking to people in my league that bouts are a whole different experience.

My five reasons to be excited about seeing a live bout for the first time:

1. The Noisy Crowd
I can’t wait to be shouting, cheering and clapping along with more than two hundred other people. I want to hear the roar that Captain Malice from New Wheeled Order says you can hear on the track and from anywhere in the building whenever there is a big hit. I’m not sure whether I dare sit in the suicide seats right at the front. But I will be there, right in the middle shouting go, go, go!

2. The Skate Outs
I can’t wait to see the teams skating out, and hear their names introduced by the announcer. And some of my friends will be skating out, so I think I might yell until I’m hoarse when their skate names are called out. So many derby names are clever or funny plays on words or puns, and hearing those names over the PA, as the teams skate out… that’s got to be exciting… especially when they are names I know and love.

3. The Boutfits
Roller Derby is well-known for its amazing, alternative style. Personally I think it’s the coolest sport around. I love that each player can be an individual, as well as wearing team colours or patterns. All the face paint and war paint, the painted numbers on arms, the crazy socks, the hot pants, fishnets or patterned tights, the bandanas, the glitter and glam. And that’s just the girls...

4. The Derby
Of course, I’m there to watch the sport. I know how hard all the players train on their skills and endurance. I can’t wait to see it all put into action on the rink. Derby is so many things as a sport. It’s fast, skilful, tough, exciting, nerve-wracking, full-on contact. I can’t wait to watch the jammers racing round the track, the blockers trying to get in their way, assists breaking through so the jammer can whizz round again and score (hopefully many) points.

5. The Whole Event
Add to all the above... The stalls selling all kinds of cool (from jewellery to derby kit to cakes)... The fact that kids come along and get excited watching their mum, dad, big sister or brother playing derby and get high fives from all the players after each bout... All the derby love that fills the whole rink because people so genuinely LOVE playing, watching and talking about derby... And (hopefully) the after party

Sigh.

Two weeks and counting down...


Tickets are on sale now at only £7 if you book in advance (£6 concessions) or £10 on the door. Click here to buy tickets and/or RSVP on Facebook

Monday 13 August 2012

Many hands make light work

Roller derby is an all-consuming pastime, as anyone involved in its ‘extra-curricular’ activities will attest to, but it doesn’t have to be.

I’ve been a member of Manchester Roller Derby’s committee since it was born in May 2011, and acted in a similar capacity before its birth. As PR Manager, it has been my job to promote the club and its events, oversee the design of any publications, write press releases, develop and maintain relationships with media professionals, ensure consistency in branding, and oversee social network management and website design. Bit of a mouthful I know, and that’s not even all of it.

It all sounds a bit boring and corporate, but can be lots of fun and very satisfying. The main reason I do it is because I want to use the skills I possess to let everyone know about the club I love and am hugely proud to be a part of. The fruits of this labour have seen us featured on BBC Manchester Online, The Telegraph, Chimp Magazine and the Manchester Evening News.

We have a club filled to the brim with talented individuals from all walks of life. We do what we do with minimal funding and outside support. Everyone who works to make the club the best it can be is a volunteer driven purely by passion and belief. Many of the volunteers in committee roles have been involved in some capacity since they started skating at MRD.

It can be easy to criticise how things are done, but it is important to remember that the people involved in the running of your roller derby club generally aren’t professional managers and are doing the best they can with the skills and resources they have. It is so difficult to make fair decisions that affect 80+ individuals with such colourful personalities and strong opinions as roller derby seems to attract! You will never please everyone.


As a skater for MRD’s A-team, the Checkerbroads, I will admit that my involvement in the adminstrative side of roller derby has on occasion affected my mental state when I should be focusing purely on skating, tactics and working with my team - whether it’s focusing on the wording of a release that needs to be written and sent out rather than a specific drill, or separating myself from various aspects of bout preparation in order to focus on the bout in hand. I guess this is an inevitable side-effect of not being ‘just a skater’, but it is beneficial to have more of a rotation of those involved and those not, like many clubs do these days.

Everyone at MRD has a life outside of roller derby. My life outside currently involves working long and/or late shifts at a shop (with the week’s rota decided a couple of days before if we’re lucky), practicing with my band, nights out for gigs, looking after my two kitties, weekly fitness classes and seeing my derby widow whenever our timetables allow. Some people have kids, work 12-hour shifts in stressful jobs, are carers, have Masters and PhDs to work on or have other important commitments. Despite these commitments, you will still find these people offering hours of their time and effort to help the club grow. This isn’t something that will happen of its own accord.

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: ‘We have a club filled to the brim with talented individuals from all walks of life.’ If you skate for us and have the skills, time and enthusiasm (or any of these things) – speak up! MRD has so many great ideas, but not always the manpower to make them happen. If we had people coming up with ideas and then going ahead and making these things happen, well… the sky would be the limit!

This is a call to arms. Don’t just skate for your roller derby club, own a part of it.
Much love,
Kate Push #11

MRD tearing it up. All images by our official photographer Shirlaine Forrest.

Getting involved...
MRD member? Get involved! Below is a brief description of each area and its current key contact.

  • Bouts (Cecil B. Demented) - Event management for our home bouts, also works hard to ensure our away bouts run smoothly. Works closely with PR and finance.
  • Training (Vic Tori Bee) - Our training taskforce. Concerned with all aspects of training - from session plans to recruitment to ensuring our floor-time is efficiently used. Works closely with secretary and PR.
  • Secretary (Jowanna Clout) - The backbone of everything at MRD. Arranges committee meetings, takes minutes, records training attendance, collects subs, looks after club documents/policies, insurance and much more.
  • Officials (Skabarella) - Our group of incredible referees and NSOs. MRD is very proud to be able to field our own dedicated officials team - both for home and for away games (not just for our own club either!). Also arranges training for budding refs/NSOs and works alongside PR to promote recruitment of officials.
  • Treasury (Ma Rollin' Munster) - For the accountants in town, or anyone who likes numbers. Makes sure our outgoings don't exceed our incomings, keeps lots of records and works out how we can turn a profit! Works closely with merch and our secretary.
  • Merchandise (Skulldozer) -Involves research of new items, evaluation of current stock, writing merch reports, looking after the online shop, selling advertisements in home bout programmes and stalls at bouts. Works closely with PR and MRD's sponsors.
  • Fundraising (Kerried Alive) - Looks into any grants we may be eligible for, applies for funding, arranges fundraising events. Works closely with PR and treasury.
  • PR (Kate Push) - All about shouting about our club and raising its profile. This involves writing/sending out press releases, arranging all promotion for home bouts and other events and looking after our website and social media presence. Works closely with fundraising and merchandise.