How did you first learn about Derby?
In Dec of 2006, my dear friend called me and asked if I was interested in checking out a practice with her and another friend. My first experience watching these impressively strong women was awesome and I knew I would join right away.  We began thinking up our derby names that night and we soon became Collinwood Thunder, Gonnolea and Slaughterama Mama. Thunder and I began in season I with Lea hot on our tails in season II.

What was your favorite travel team bout?
We were still quite new when Detroit spanked us so graciously back in 2008. We learned a lot from those girls and they wiped the floor with us like true ladies. So fun!

How did you feel seeing yourself on the Sk8intheface header the first time?
I basically felt lucky to have been caught in a shot with all of the super players that are also included on the header. Every time I see it I feel humbled and flattered! It gives me the right to tell my grandma that I’m awesome.

What is the feeling of having your son and husband in the stands?
It would have been impossible for me to have ever imagined that I would receive the kind of support that I get from my “guys.” There are my biggest fans as well as my toughest critics. On top of making it to nearly every game, my son has endured countless hours of practice like a trooper.

Do you enjoy travel team bouts of interleague bouts better?
That is a tough question to answer because they are hard to compare. Travel bouts allow for the opportunity to meet fantastic skaters from all over the country as well as experience cities I may never have visited otherwise. The high level of competition brings on a healthy blend of anxiety and adrenaline all topped off by awesome hotel room shenanigans. On the other hand, I miss my family when I am away, even for just a night or two and bouts at home seem to be more fun. Here at home when we are on our turf, we get to play against our best friends and see all of the Cleveland fans. If there is one thing I have learned, Cleveland derby is like no other. Interleague wins in my book.

You have a remarkable fan base at my work, any words for your loving fans?
You sure know how to pick ‘em! Who knew I had fans!?!

What has been the worst injury that you have obtained from derby?
Are you trying to jinx me? In three seasons, the worst injury I ever received was when I jumped over the dance floor railing at the Garage bar like Daivd Lee Roth at an after party and twisted my ankle. That is what they call a “sammich” move.

What is the best part of derby in your opinion?
Learning what my body is capable of alongside of other women who are also learning what their bodies are capable of.

What has been your greatest achievement so far?
Heck, I have to say it: 3peat! Sorry, guys. Gotta gloat…

What are your 2010 derby goals?
I am looking forward to getting back on skates as soon as possible. This season I am going to be a Bench-bomber. Steve and I are expecting! There will be a little Slaughter in late July.

What skates are you currently using?
Minx 965s. They took a while to break in but I like ‘em.

Who do you miss that no longer skates for the league?
Obviously Collinwood Thunder and the Bombers we have lost along the way (Twiste’r, Deliliah…) But also skaters from season I such as Skellawhore, She-Rages and LaLa…

What are your thoughts in regards to the growth of this sport since you first started?
Who knew there would be “Talk derby to me” tee shirts at Spencer’s?!?

What hobbies do you have other than derby?
As if there was time for anything else! I am a graduate student planning to finish in May, and a mom/stepmom. The husband and I are remodeling our house, I guess that counts. I like snuggling with my dogs and dreaming about I will do with all of my spare time once I graduate.

What has derby done for you as an individual?
I try not to get emotional when I discuss the enormous impact that derby has made on me personally. Believe it or not, I was quite shy and reserved in my past life. I had never played sports and basically stuck to things I was already good at like reading and loafing. This sport and these girls helped me learn to push myself and I saw results that I could never have dreamed of. If I can line up on that pivot line in front of all those people and go head to head with the amazing athletes that I skate with, I know that I can do anything. Aside from motherhood, becoming a part of BRRG has been the single most life changing event I have ever experienced because of the confidence I have gained.

I almost let this one slip away from me (mad props to Take Out), tomorrow’s bout is destined to be an exciting one. Both our All-Stars and are Hazmat Crew are heading out to Indiana to teach Naptown a thing or two about derby. I never take any bout lightly, I always view the match-ups and see what I can garner. Naptown Roller Girls are WFTDA ranked as 12th in between Ohio Roller Girls and Fort Wayne Roller Girls. This makes them are strong contender with a lot to prove on the track. However, I have so much respect for my girls and I know what they can accomplish; each game we play I feel we become stronger, smarter, and better as a team. This is an away game so you are always subject to referees that sometimes, whether on purpose or not, judge things in favor of their home team. You have to be careful and play squeaky clean. This is the last game of 2009 for us, and if I can have one thing for Christmas, it is to have two wins on December 5th. I have faith in you girls, I know you can do this.
Unfortunately, Turn Two will not be able to head down to the bout for a few reasons; First, today is WC’s birthday, he is the big 18, Second tomorrow we have class that will not end until 4 which means that we would never make it on time, and last, the newest Turn Two boy Dexter is still learning how not to piss on my floor.

As always please be safe, have fun, and most of all stomp some Naptown skaters!

…..And this one is actually good looking! As you may know by now Turn 2 has been starting a small army, many of the newest soldiers are on the front lines ready to heckle at a moments notice. This week a new Turn 2 boy has emerged, wait for it………..my son! Though we may differ on opinions, he may pee on my floor, I still love him and you should all as well! Meet the newest Turn 2 Boy…… Dexter!

I just wanted to share my experience from Black and Blue 4 being a part of the blue team. I enjoyed every minute of it, it was soo amazing! As a bench manager, I sucked; I pretty much did the same thing that I do when I am at my seat, yell my freakin head off and swing my hands like a maniac. But I am pretty sure that is why I was asked to do it! I wish I could have been more effective at it, but hey it was my first time! Anyway, I had the chance to view a great deal of skaters that I normally do not have my eye on, see their quirks and understand (and sometimes not understand ) their decisions on the track. I spent the majority of my time ensuring that we received all our points that we scored. Not always did it go my way, but in no way did I feel that there was any bias in the decisions made. The first half was incredible I was on cloud 9, my team was racking up points and shutting down jammers. By half time I was dancing like I had never danced before! I remember finally looking at the stands at half time and saying “Holy Shit, there is a lot of people here”! As I watched the insanity known as Full Contact Musical Chairs, I could not believe the roars from the crowd, it was soo loud! And once again I placed my musical chairs bet,(mumbling obscenities under my breath at Magic) and lost.
The second half started up with me back on cloud 9, this is when I made the mistake of smack talking Ida Bitter on the Jam line, bad, bad, bad idea; number one - I love Bitter so it is hard for me to do, number two - when that girl get some wind in her sails nothing can stop her! Regardless, I cannot express how proud I was of my team, win or lose everyone played so well, it almost makes you cry (but I am no wimp; except when watching the notebook, then I am a total wimp)! It was so great to be a part of something so amazing; don’t get me wrong I love being a fan, but just this once it was nice to be something more. With the final jam being the deciding factor to the game, I couldn’t help but think about how if this was someones first time seeing derby, they have got to be in total amazement! Speaking of which, I had to teach my class the day after the bout and I had two new students; one of them kept awkwardly staring at me (I assumed it was because I am a young instructor) then he says “were you at Roller Derby yesterday” to which I reply “Hell Yeah!”. It turns out one of his friends had won tickets to the bout, so he was invited, he said it was some of the craziest stuff he had ever seen! Will be seeing him in March!
I just wanted to say thank you to everyone on the blue team, I love you all, you freaking kicked ass out there!

As couples go, Melanie Root and Justin Haas are the perfect match.

“I like that he basically loves me for me and I can be my goofy self,” she said. “And he’s my best friend.”

“She’s the most caring person I’ve ever met,” said Haas. “She always puts everyone else before herself.”

Especially him. Root is giving up the sport she loves for Haas.

“I know that she hates when I bring up that she’s saving my life,” he said, “but she is.”

Read the rest of the article here.

Pain Austen, you no longer need to hit the refresh button! Before I get into the brutality, I want to say how much fun I had!  RE and I were starting to go crazy without some derby to watch. He had a better seat by the blue team and I was glad to see him coach them to victory.  I thought it was awesome that this bout supported charities like toys for tots and coats for kids. I would also like to thank the marines for coming out and obviously enjoying themselves. At times they were screaming louder than the players.  When I looked at the rosters, I really didn’t know who was going to take the victory. This bout left heads turning, bodies leaning, and mouths screaming!
The bout had a strong start from team black. The way they were skating, I knew right away that team blue had a lot of work to do. At midpoint through the first half, team blue started to make its comeback with Ivanna Destroya and Stroker Ace scoring an insane amount of points. Killustrator did an awesome job playing all kinds of different positions! Team blue scored so many points from passing black players in the penalty box. This killed team black and by half time, team blue was ahead 55 -36.
Half time proved to be entertaining as usual. A round of musical chairs on skates will always leave smiles on faces. Recent friends became enemies and some of those enemies became murderers.  I was very disappointed to see Mad Chatter leave because I had money on her.  Magic Lee and I picked number 12 at that point and she proved to be victorious. The fresh meat this year looked feisty but we shall see how they play with the teams!
The second half was breathtaking indeed. Ida Bitter, CoCo Sparks, Finnish-Her, Punk’d Pixie, Skank Williams are a few to mention. I was very impressed by Skank Williams and Punk’d Pixie on the jam line. They made short work of the wall setup by team blue. I thought both teams did a very good job keeping the blockers in line. Halochic always does a great job in the pack but she must have been extremely angry Saturday night. I’ve never seen her lay out so many skaters. I’m sure Pretty Scarrie feels differently, but it was exciting to see her upside down due to a tremendous hit from Halo. The pivots did a very good job speeding up and slowing down the pack. The teams took full advantage of this strategy which in my opinion, kept the scores close. The tables were turned at the end of the bout with many penalties from team blue, and team black caught up. I’m just glad our poll happened to be right on the money with the final score 89 - 90 BLUE! You sure don’t see that every day!
I would also like to say congratulations to Dita Von B for hitting someone else and to the sign guy for showing up. Sign guy, I can see your leave of absence left your signs in a pitiful state but I can’t wait to see what you bring to the 2010 season!

EDITOR’S NOTE: Karen Donovan is an Indiana native who now resides in Cleveland with her husband, Mike. A substitute teacher, she is a new skater in a roller-derby league called the Cleveland Burning River Roller Girls. She recently spoke with staff writer Sam Kusic about the league and her interest in the sport.

Question: How did you ever decide that roller derby was the thing for you?
Answer: While I was living in South Carolina, I knew I was going to be moving up to Cleveland, so I got online to see if there any roller rinks in the Cleveland area. And that’s when I came across the Web site for the Cleveland Burning River Roller Girls. I thought they looked really cool, and I couldn’t wait to seem them. When we moved, we went to see them play. And they had these fliers that they were looking for recruits.

Read the rest here.

OK So here it is, BB4 ripe and ready for some utter brutality. I can not tell how how excited I am for this bout, I needs me some derby action, it has been waay too long! This is a tough bout for each team, the deck has been evenly split. I am curious to know if the same rule is in effect for All-Stars as last year; I hope not but can understand if so. Really I just want maximum excitement for anyone making this there first bout! So just remember this is only for charity, MURDER EACH OTHER OUT THERE!!! I just want to see some action! Shocker, if you feel like making another illegal hit, and sending someone my way, I will not be mad! ;)  It is time to show Cleveland and the Wolfstein Center just what BRRG is all about! I am very happy to see that Ida Bitter and Dita Von B. are on separate teams, those two tear into each other! Stroker and Soulie on the same team =’s No Snowboarding…YES!!  As always I will not be choosing who I will cheer for, that will be decided by all of you. However, if anyone has any insight on who I should place my money on in the full contact musical chairs, last time I lost my pants off!

SO here is the layout.
Team Black: skating for
Captains: Bettie Shocker and Olive Bruises
Amstel Standin’
CoCo Sparks
Damegerous
Demolition Diva
Ida Bitter
Finnish-Her
Gonnolea
Gorgon Girl
Grave Dancer
Slambassador
Halochic
Holly Huntress
Margarita Mayhem
Mommy’s Little Monster
Morbid Cherub
Punk’d Pixie
Skank Williams
Vix Smackey
Stealth Bomber
Thrash_HER
x-tron-x

Team Blue: skating for
Captains: Paddie Wacked, Xrayted
Bamm B Hunt-Her
Concrete Blondie
Candy Snatcher
Check Republic
Chelle Shock
Dagney Taghurt
Death Proof
Ivanna Destroya
Dita Von B.
Killustrator
Knoxious Mallory
LeBrawl James
Magic Lee Malicious
Rainbow Fright
Pretty Scarrie
Slaughterama Mama
Soul Eater
Stroker Ace
Syren Van Dahl
Vendetta Farfalle

What an amazing time we had at the awards banquet! It started out a little rocky with my woman cussing out Rev. Jim for stealing her parking spot! I must say being waited on hand and foot by fresh meat always makes for excitement! Sorry to the girls I kept changing my name, I couldn’t help it! Anyways, the food was delicious (especially those bacon wrapped water chestnuts, that person is an artist) Red-Stripe is always a welcome treat, I loves some of that! So I would love to have posted some pictures but unfortunately Mr. Camera W.C. ( should stand for What Camera?, as are picture dept. is totally lame (I am working to change that too)) got about two pictures before the batteries died. If anyone would like to submit pictures please email me relewis@sk8intheface.com

And now to the Awards…

Most Improved:

Margarita Mayhem!
Gorgon Girl
Death Proof

Hardest Practice leader:

Ida Bitter!
Mommy’s Lil Monster
Primp Daddy

Most Dedicated:

Chelle-Shock
Primp Daddy
Stealth Bomber!

Sweetest Roller Girl:

Gorgon Girl!
Paddiewhacked
Punk’d Pixie

Meanest Roller Girl:

Ivanna Destroya
Morbid Cherub
Prettie Scarrie!

Best Butt:

Coco Sparks!
Primp Daddy
Syren Van Dahl

Rockin Rack:

Death Proof
Dita Von B.
Olive Bruises!
Vix Smackey

Greatest Gams:

Bambi Hunter
Ivanna Destroya
Rogue Cheddar
Soul Eater!

Derby Crush:

Ida Bitter
The Killustrator!
Professor Booty
Rogue Cheddar

Most Dedicated Referee:

Oliver Pist!
Algebro
Quagmire
Ruby Bruiseday
Scissor Lick
Schwo
Sweater Boy

Most Sportsman like from a Ref:

Oliver Pist
Algebro!
Quagmire
Ruby Bruiseday
Scissor Lick
Schwo
Sweater Boy

Mvp Blocker:

Halochic
Professor Booty!
Prettie Scarrie

Mvp Jammer:

Ida Bitter!
Eva Lucien
Finnish-Her
Punk’d Pixie

Mvp Pivot:

Ida Bitter
Ivanna Destroya!
Prettie Scarrie
Soul Eater

Mvp Triple Threat:

Ida Bitter
Prettie Scarrie
Professor Booty!
Stroker Ace

Mvp Rookie:

Chelle-Shock
Finnish-Her!
Gorgon Girl
Take-Out

Derby Queen 2009:

Mommy’s Lil Monster!
The Killustrator
All of the Rolling Pin-ups

I think some others, I was drunk!

Now for some other memorial awards!

Team MVP:

The Killustrator

Finnish Her

Ida Bitter

Eva Lucien

Under-Cover Hooter:
Rainbow FrightThe KillustratorChelle-ShockGonnohleaRogue CheddarVendetta FarfalleSkank WilliamsFinnish-HerCandy SnatcherProfessor Booty Eva LucienLebrawl JamesMagic Lee MaliciousStroker AceCoco SparksIvanna DestroyaMorbid CherubTurn 2 Boys (hell Yeah)Finnish-Him

Rank and Stank Award:

Miss Congeniality:

VD Award:

Best Belcher:
Mommy’s lil Monster

Best Dancer:

Best Ass Crack:

I got hoes in area codes:

Rippin award:

Bachlorette Award:

Sheriff Award:

Best Bruise:

Most Kind, Selfless, and Brave

Cougar Award:

Most Experienced:

Hide your Food award

Pittle Award:

180 Award:

Best Surviving Couple:

Derby Widow:

Roller Derby changed my life! I know everyone says that and I know it might sound cliche but sometime that’s the best way to describe it. It’s hasn’t just changed my life for the better, it’s changed my life permanently.

Before Derby I was cautious, I did what I was told and I was the “nice” girl. I thought of everyone before myself. I didn’t take risks. (unless you count the 4 tattoos!) I was comfortable being average and ordinary. I had graduated from college and had to become an adult with a “real job” and real bills.

I found out about roller derby by watching the A&E show about TX and started Googling..I found BRRG and decided to join! My parents were not supportive, my friends thought I was crazy but it was something I WANTED to do! I decided to get my gear and show up! My parents are now very supportive and come to every game! They were just worried I would get hurt…which I have but they realize it’s what I love to do so they “get it”

I didn’t know anyone, In fact the 1st person to talk to me was Morbid and she was super sweet and welcoming (weird right!?) I hadn’t skated since middle school and back then I spent most of my time picking up guys in the snack bar and when I was skating I couldn’t stop so I would just skate into the wall!

Roller Derby made me push myself. I was a sad little skater and if it wasn’t for the encouragement of Scarrie and Stroker I might have given up. I learned that I can lose a little bit of control and fly around the corners..I learned that I could stop without running into walls! I learned how to play the game and work with a team. I pushed myself even when I felt like I was the slowest person and the worst hitter. I asked questions and was determined to try my best.

Derby gave me confidence, and the realization that I am strong..All these years of feeling average and ordinary made me blind to the fact that I could do amazing things if I put in some effort and determination.

Derby also gave me the love of my life. I can’t thank the lovely Vix Smackey enough. She introduced me to Fritz. Smackey, Dagney and I were in the car at NEO and she all of a sudden blurted out “I have a guy for you” We met, became inseparable and soon after got married! I didn’t think I would find someone as amazing as him and I never would have if I didn’t join derby!

All in all derby has made me realize that going though life without a passion is no way to live. I have something that I love doing and I am starting to get pretty decent at it! I have learned that being strong doesn’t mean just physically but mentally too. I have a team and a league that I respect so much and that supports me. Derby means the world to me. I am so lucky to be a part of this and sometimes I pinch myself and realize I am a Roller Girl! The nice girl can kick your ass…with a smile of course

xoxo
Margarita Mayhem