My friend Paul (St. Paul Paul if you know him via Flickr, Preflash Gordon as he’s known in the derby world) has been photographing the North Star Roller Girls for some time now. He mentioned joining him once quite awhile back so when I found out there was a bout this past Saturday, I invited myself to come along.
Prior to attending, everything I knew about roller derby came from watching a season of Roller Girls on A&E, so I wasn’t quite sure what to expect. This bout was held in the basement of the Minneapolis Convention Center (derby in the Convention Center? Really? Yes, really.) This is flat-track derby so the rink just consists of a roped off track off the floor, with another track around the outside for the refs. You can purchase rink-side tickets and never was there a truer meaning of rink-side. You sit right on the floor at the edge of the track, complete with warnings about who may slide into you and where your drinks may go (straight into your lap if you are the gentleman sitting next to me). But man can you see action from there.
The four teams (Delta Delta Di, The Kilmore Girls, The Banger Sisters and the Violent Femmes) are made up of all types of girls. Big, little, some whom you likely wouldn’t dare cross in broad daylight and some who look like they’d spend their Saturday nights at home baking cookies. No cookie baking here, though. It’s a rough and tumble sport – plenty of knocking, banging, pushing and connecting solidly with a hard, concrete floor. It pained me every time one fell but they always popped right back up.
Overall, it was a great experience. The crowd was diverse and excited, the girls, although hardcore, were extremely appreciative to the attendants, it was all quite exciting to watch and I think I’ve almost figured out what the heck is going on. I’m sad that it was the semi-finals and there are no more local games this season but I’ll definitely be back next season!
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