War of the Roses Photos ....

Check out Freddie Fraggles' photos from War of the Roses - Rainy City Roller Girls vs Leeds Roller Dolls - at the weekend.

WFTDA Rule Change may affect your numbers ...

December 1st marks an update in the Women's Flat Track Derby Association (WFTDA) Rules.

For full details on the changes, check out the WFTDA News Page, but one key change has derby girls around the world panicking.

From December 1st, 2009, uniform numbers of officially rostered WFTDA skaters must contain at least one number, and while they may contain letters, the combination of numbers or numbers and letters cannot exceed four digits.  For example XIX is no longer allowed, but X1X would be allowed.

There is some question as to how much this change will affect UK Leagues, as only London Rollergirls are currently affiliated members of the WFTDA, as mentioned last month when they were awarded Apprentice Program status.

But it's definitely something to keep in mind ....

Jet Stepper #83

Carnival of the Strange Round-Up

Saturday 21st November 2009 saw Lincolnshire Bombers host the Carnival of the Strange! 


Doors opened at 1pm, and Newark Show Ground looked like you had just fallen down the rabbit hole and ended up in Wonderland. The children’s area was filled with all the retro kiddie treats we loved from our own childhoods - face painting, hook a dook, hoopla and giant size confectionary. This was a true Roller Derby celebration with acts, performers, burlesque, bands and stalls with allsorts of skating goodies plus the highlight of the day live Roller Derby Action!

The two teams were made up with skaters from across the country - Lincolnshire Bombers, Auld Reekie Roller Girls, Central City Roller Girls, Glasgow Roller Girls, Leeds Roller Dolls, Middlesbrough Milk Rollers, Sheffield Steel Rollergirls, Rainy City Roller Girls, Rebellion Roller Girls and Royal Windsor Rollergirls!

Considering these player had little time to practice together, they kept their eyes on the prize and pushed forward in unity. Jammers took off from the line like they were shot from a cannon, and there was some spectacular blocking going on, which cleared the way for Jammers to skip through the pack time and time again. The girls gave 100% and were unyielding in there task to become “Queen of the Carnival”. 


 “The Children of the Damned” were triumphant, managing to improve dramatically on their first half lead with final scores of


Children of the Damned 196 : Las Ninas Muertas 63    


MVP Children of the Damned - CCR's Hustle'her

May-Q Dizzy

Scotland's Spills & Boom Weekend of Roller Derby Romance

A WHOLE VALENTINE'S WEEKEND OF AMAZING ROLLER DERBY ACTION !!!!!

Saturday the 13th February 2010 Glasgow Rollergirls presents:

***WITHERING HITS*****

GRG v. LRR

Time: 1 - 4 pm

Place: Glasgow Arc Sports Centre

Price: TBC

Afterparty: TBC

Sunday the 14th February 2010 Auld Reekie Rollergirls presents:

***JAILHOUSE BLOCK***

ARRG v. LRD

Time: TBC

Place: Meadowbank Stadium Edinburgh

Price: TBC

Afterparty: TBC

Write the dates for this smashing weekend in your diaries!

An Elvis impersonator will be on hand on the sunday to marry you and your derby wife!

FACEBOOK LINK

Love Smack!

Valentine's Day looks like it's gonna be busy weekend in the UK Roller Derby Calendar!
First GRG and LRR announced Withering Hits (formally CasaBlockYa), and now Lincolnshire Bombers have announced a Valentine's bout against Middlesbrough Milk Rollers.

Who? Lincolnshire Bombers vs Middlesbrough Milk Rollers

When? Saturday February 13th, 2pm - 5pm

Where? Newark Showground

Tickets - Will be available Early January

More Info - FACEBOOK / www.lincolnshire-bombers.com

Middlesbrough Milk Rollers vs Sheffield Steel Roller Girls - Round Up

A round up of the recent closed bout between Middlesbrough Milk Rollers and Sheffield Steel Roller Girls.

At the Rainbow Centre in Middlesbrough on a Saturday afternoon the more sedate martial arts and children’s trampoline parties gave way to a fierce roller derby duel! 

After a nervous wait while the track was laid (in super quick time I might add!) the teams were given chance to warm themselves up. The Middlesbrough girls demonstrated the joy of plyometric stretches (and cod liver oil, these girls are brave!) whilst Sheffield opted for a more traditional skate-based warm up. Both sides were ready, and shouts of “MMR!” and “SSRG!” were heard as each team tried to psych out the other.

The game was close the whole way through, with no more than 30 points between each side. For the most part Sheffield led and they fought hard and fast to keep this distance from the Milk Rollers. 

Parma Violence became Sheffield’s first injury victim with a badly twisted knee, putting them one down against the local side. Strong jamming was the order of the day with Skate Crasher, Rio de Jam Hero and Mia Malice all scoring high for Sheffield and Toxic Pink Stuff, Lou Ella D’Kill, Rita Von Sleaze and Oompa-Thump-Ya fighting hard for Middlesbrough in return.

Sheffield came back strong from the half time break, putting on two or three really strong jams and establishing more of a lead. Middlesbrough in return worked harder to even the scores. Two further injuries in the second half (Rio De Jam Hero, SSRG twisting her ankle and an unknown MMR skater falling foul of a top down Jam Sandwich) didn’t keep either side down and both sides worked hard to keep themselves in the game. 

Final scores on the doors were 111 to Sheffield with a close 83 to Middlesbrough. An excellent game fought well on both sides. 

Special mentions of course to our lovely LRD guest skaters Nuclear Missile and X Con Vick who joined Sheffield, and Toxic Pink Stuff and Chernobelle skating for Middlesbrough, good job ladies!

Magic 8-Brawl #7

Leeds Roller Dolls

Dolly Rockit Rollers Need a Home!!

Leicester's Dolly Rockit Rollers are in need of a space to train in.  If you know of a sports centre, hanger, or other place in the Leicester area where they'd be able to practice, please email The Round-Up Bout at roundupbout@hotmail.com and I'll pass on details to Slamabama and Nitro Noush

Jet Stepper

War of The Roses Round-Up

Saturday saw the first open bout to ever take place in Manchester -

Rainy City Rollergirls versus Leeds Rotten Rollers, in the War of The Roses, and Jessica Mooney was there to watch it go down!

I was very excited about this bout. I knew was going to be good because I knew it would be close. I'd seen RCRG play at Roll Britannia and I was really impressed by their skill despite being less than a year old at the time. LRD have been bouting for a while but have really come into their own in the last few months as shown in their Northern EXPosure win in September.

The bout started with Bruise Em' Banshee (LRD) and Missy Rascal (RCRG) lined up on the jam line. It went off with a bang as Missy gained lead jammer and Banshee was sent off on her initial pass for cutting track. Rainy City showed their prowess in the pack and sent Missy round to gain the first points of the game. The next Jam was Feral Fairy and X Con Vick. It was nice to see Vick as a jammer and although she skated well, Feral gained lead, picked up some points and called the jam quickly. Two jams in and the score was 14-0 to RCRG.

Leeds sent in Gorgon Roller to jam and Dee-Mise went in for Rainy . Dee-Mise got sent to the box and Gorgon picked up the Rotten Rollers first points. She called it off and let Banshee go in for a Power Jam. Banshee gained two scoring passes for Leeds and then called it as Dee-Mise made her way back onto the track. Leeds were back in the game and both teams became aware that they were in for a fight.  The power went back and forth for the first half with someone sent to the penalty box in nearly every jam. Rushin' Doll had a great jam and got a good few points for Leeds with two scoring passes. Then Missy stepped up to the line against Doll-ce Vita. Doll-ce was sent off on her initial pass but then was sent off again almost as soon as she stepped on the track. Missy gained lead and whizzed through the pack with what seemed like ease. Rainy City's pack did a great job of slowing right down and displayed excellent teamwork that allowed Missy to gain four Grand Slams. It was a very impressive 20 point jam!

It all got very exciting. Rainy were in the lead but each team was adjusting and the crowd could really feel that this bout was just getting started. Iceberg set off to jam with Gorgon in the box but was sent off for an illegal procedure when a ref spotted that she hadn't got a star on her helmet cover because it was in-side-out. Easy mistake to make but it cost her one minute in the box. Although Gorgon was a lone jammer Rainy held her back well and used some great waterfalling techniques to keep her from breaking the pack .

It was 2 on 2 on the track. Rushin' and Vick versus Rogue Doll and Feral Fairy. Missy and Banshee were up against each other jamming but Missy took lead. At this point in the game X Con Vick went down while checking, and she went down hard. She was very calm about the whole thing and seemed to politely motion that she was injured and couldn't get up. It was all very civilized and she seemed not to be in too much pain. Turns out she'd fractured her leg in two places! She is definitely tough so I've no doubt she'll be back skating soon.

The Jam started over with Chernobelle replacing Vick and Missy gained lead jammer again. She scored some precious points and called it quickly. At one point Rushin' jammed against Feral  (I did really enjoy when these two jammed against each other) and although Feral gained lead, Rushin' stayed behind her and as they were making their scoring pass Rushin' downed Feral and raced through the pack forcing Feral to call the Jam and scoring Leeds a few much needed points.

At half time the score was RCRG 78- LRD 57

Both teams sent out their big guns for the first Jam of the second half. Two strong packs and two strong jammers. LRD showed they weren't out of the game yet. Rushin' blazed through the pack ahead of Missy and raced around for three scoring passes. Then Toxic came out with Feral on the jam line. Feral was sent to the box on her initial pass and Toxic gained some LRD pointage. Banshee had a clear run jamming, as Feral was in the box. Rainy City were doing well but leeds had clearly regrouped and were sending out more effective line-ups . Leeds were also gaining confidence and seemed more like their playful selfs as Rigor Morris danced at pyscho Delia at the pivot line. Pyscho wasn't intimidated but the crowd was entertained and it was good to see the ladies having a good time on the track. Banshee racked up more points and the

Rotten Rollers took lead 100-83.

Gorgon lined up to jam but after an official time out Banshee had to put her jammer cover back on and head to the box. Apparently a penalty needed to be served, so Missy jammed unopposed and gained two scoring passes. She called it as Banshee re-entered the track. Rushin' and Feral jammed with Feral gaining lead but calling it as she entered her first scoring pass. She gained a point but called it as both teams were trying to keep the point margin in their favour, as they were all to aware that that clock was counting down rapidly.

17 minutes to go and RCRG were in the lead again with 112-107. Both teams started to play very defensively with Leeds making good walls at the front and Rainy giving some very big hits to jammers. Banshee and Missy lined up again and Missy flew through the pack. She looked as if she was about to get lead but as she dashed past the last line of defense she slowed down. She knew what was coming and as she looked at the ref he confirmed, she had cut the track, and she was off to the box. Banshee jammed unopposed and the Rotten Rollers were back in the lead 132- 126

Leeds really needed to keep that lead. Gorgon had her strongest Jam of the game against Missy and Rushin' scored one point against, a hot on her tails, Mookchop . As Toxic lined up for the last Jam against Missy I was on the edge of my seat. Rainy City were behind but Missy had been jamming amazingly throughout and if anyone could pull it off it would be her. No sooner had the whistle blown though and Missy was in the box! RCRG played defensively and were determined Toxic would put no more points on the board. Dee-Mise keep her back for an impressively long time and when she did get by Sinthia Pain and Belle-Istic were their to knock her back again. Toxic finally broke through the pack with 2 seconds to spare. She called it off and Leeds leapt out onto the track to celebrate.

Rainy City Rollergirls  127- LRD Rotten Rollers 138 

MVP

Bruise em' Banshee (LRD)

Belle-Istic (RCRG)

Notable blockers were Demi lition and Rigor Morris for LRD and Toxic (and I always though she was only a jammer!) was very impressive in the pack. LRD had good team work and to be honest it difficult to pick out the *star* players in such a great team. They are all exceptionally strong skaters and they have a huge pool of talent as illustrated by the fact that lots of amazing LRD ladies weren't even playing! I believe it was Devil Rae's first bout and she did great. Jerry Attric and Rosewhip were the Rotten Roller bench managers and they were as calm and organized as always.

On Rainy City's side Sui-Cider and Correctional Felicity were bench managing. In the pack Rogue Doll, Belle-Istic and Dee-Mise really showed their skills. Rainy City had a lot of confidence and were very tactical in their game play. They adapted well to different situations and really worked to control the pack. They have a really strong team of big hitters and it really felt like they trusted each other on the track. They started and ended the game as an strong force and it was fun to watch them splat the Jammers. When Rainy City hit, they hit hard.

Rainy City hosted a fierce bout and I will definitely be in line for the re-match!

Jessica Mooney

Withering Hits!

Who? Glasgow Roller Girls vs London Rockin' Rollers

When? Saturday February 13th 2010, 1pm - 4 pm

Where? The Arc Sports Centre, Glasgow

Glasgow Roller Girls  presents a Valentine's weekend themed Roller Derby bout against London Rockin' Rollers

GRG and LRR have met a couple of times before and GRG have come out on top both times, but LRR have been training hard and are fresh out of a well deserved win against Birmingham Blitz Dames (BBD), so this promises to be a good fight!

Come along and see the action - there'll also be the usual merch, raffles, food and fun to keep even those with the shortest attention span entertained!

CCR's Slay Belles vs MMR

Who? Central City Rollergirls' Slay Belles vs Middlesbrough Milk Rollers

When? Sunday December 13th

Where? Cocks Moors Woods Leisure Centre, Kings Heath, Birmingham

How much? £5

How do I get a ticket? ASK A FRIENDLY ROLLERGIRL (Closed Bout)

Rainy City Rollergirls on Manchester News's A-Z of Sport

Also check out the ACCOMPANYING ARTICLE in the paper, well done on the coverage girls!

M.U.R.D.A. - The First Public UK Men's Bout

Photo by Adam Rhodes Photography

“I did everything by the seat of my pants, that’s why I got hurt so much” Evel Knievel

When MURDA got together at The Carnival of the Strange to compete in the first-ever men’s public bout in the UK, it was truly MURDER!!

Testosterone and adrenaline was surging from the start. BANG! Blocking straight off the line, skating fast and hard with an unforgiving attitude. These gents left all manners at the door (and maybe their rule books too!)

This was truly a marvel to behold, with hard hits, tactical plays and an immense amount of teamwork. There were some of the most insane take-outs ever seen, and Blockers punched holes for their Jammers with force, allowing the Jammers to hop through the pack at speed.

A misplaced block saw the White Jammer smash into the back of the pack at high speed, causing the entire pack to fall like pins at a bowling alley.
Allowing Deadly Nedly (Black Jammer) the opportunity for some show boating, leaping the flattened players and pick up the full compliment of points in one move.

Teams Black and White battled it out on the track and the scoreboard, with scores staying within 10 points of each other for the majority of the bout, with the final victory going to Team Black 163 to 144.

These boys showed that they are made of the right stuff and ‘Merby’ is going to be a big hit!
Special mentions go first to Deadly Nedly whose blatant disregard for the rules won him ‘Penalty King’, but whose agility and speed also saw him contribute tremendously to Team Black’s score,
and pick up Team Black’s MVP. 
And also to Team White’s MVP Barry Fight.

I don’t think I’ll be the only one queuing up for tickets for MURDA’s next bout.

May-Q Dizzy 

War of the Roses Reminder

Leeds Roller Dolls' Rotten Rollers vs Rainy City Roller Girls

THIS SATURDAY (28th November)

3pm to 5.30 pm

Armitage Sports Centre
Moseley Road
Fallowfield
Manchester
M14 6HE

A bout NOT to be missed. On their home turf the fearless Rainy City Rollergirls are going to take on Leeds Roller Dolls, Rotten Rollers!

Tickets are now on sale now at www.rcrg.co.uk or by email info@rcrg.co.uk
Adult £6, Concession £4 and under 5s free!!!

There will be an after party straight after the bout at The Gin Club in Fallowfield just a few mins walk from the Armitage Center at 310 Wilmslow Rd, Fallowfield, M14 6XQ

Fightmare Before Christmas Video

Check out this vid from LRR vs BBD's Fightmare Before Christmas, care of Daryl Seeley

Pics up from the Carnival of the Strange!

This pic by Juliet N Hyde

Not sure if it was ironic ... but Carnival of the Strange on Saturday was home to the UK's first open Men's Derby (or Merby) bout!
MURDA - the Men's UK Roller Derby Association - split into two teams, for an extremely close bout - final score
Team White 144 : Team Black 163

Well done boys, write-up to come ... but for now, check out the pics, care of Jason Ruffell.

Don't worry, we haven't forgotten the main event, with a heap of guest skaters from all across the country -
Children of the Damned  196 : Las Ninas Muertas 63

Pics from the girls' bout can be seen HERE also by Jason.

If you fancy doing a write-up of either bout, please contact Jet HERE, or on Facebook, or email roundupbout@hotmail.com

Fightmare Before Christmas ....

Scores on the doors from yesterday's bout ....

London Rockin' Rollers - 179  :  Birmingham Blitz Dames - 61

Congrats LRR .... write-up to follow soon

Show some love for the Glasgow Roller Girls ....

We all saw earlier this month what the power of the Roller Derby community can do, with LRG's awesome win in the British Airways Great Britons competition ....

so let's use our community powers again! Glasgow Roller Girls have got a brand new fan page on Facebook, and have set themselves the challenge of reaching 666 Members by Xmas ....
here at The Round-Up Bout I reckon we can go even better than that.

To date there are 574 Fans ... let's see how quickly we can get them past 1000!

CLICK HERE to become a fan if you haven't already

Jet Stepper xx

The Round-Up Bout TWITTER!

Remember to sign up to the brand new Round-Up Bout TWITTER!  You'll be the first to know of all the latest gossip in the UK Roller Derby scene, and linking up will make sure Jet Stepper keeps up to date with all your derby news too!

Go to : http://twitter.com/RoundUp_Bout

London Rollergirls join the WFTDA

This month London Rollergirls became the first ever league outside of North America to be accepted into the Women's Flat Track Derby Association.  
The girls have joined the WFTDA as Apprentice Program participants, and will be working within the organisation to achieve full membership in the coming months.

"WFTDA is delighted to begin collaborating with overseas leagues," says Juliana Gonzales, Executive Director for the Women's Flat Track Derby Association. "We have a lot to learn from each other, and we're excited to see the strength of the flat-track derby community expand its reach outside North America."

Formed in 2004, the Women's Flat Track Derby Association is comprised of 78 full members and 24 Apprentice Program participants.  The WFTDA anticipates an influx of overseas applicants in the coming months.

Happy 2nd Birthday CCR!!

Central City Rollergirls celebrated two highly successful years last night with a 
Birthday Bash in Birmingham 

Congratulations girls!! xxx