The North Coast Nightmares Roller Derby team is currently recruiting new members through its annual ‘Fresh Meat’ program this month by offering to teach the basics of skating to anyone interested in the game.
“Every year to try to encourage new people into the team, we teach people how to skate in a very gentle, non-contact way,” says Laura Haley, team member. “We educate you how to stop properly, how to start and we also give you loaner gear so you don’t have to invest in a whole bunch of gear when you’re just coming in to try it out.”
Roller derby has been emerging as a popular contact sport throughout Canada and in various parts of the world — making a retro comeback from its 1960’s popularity.
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The sport is played by two teams that roller skate around a track counter-clockwise where the objective is to have the designated ‘jammer’ skater score as many points as they can by lapping members of the opposing team. It has since been reinvented by adding more rules and precautions to make it safer for its participants. It’s recognized nowadays as a competitive sport, with even ESPN airing final games on its channel.
“What people may be used to seeing is the 60s/70s (version) where there was a bunch of women with not much protective gear on TV and they would throw each other around,” says Haley. “You’re less likely to get injured now.”
For Haley, she says that she joined the roller derby team when there was no women’s rugby team in Terrace but wanted to play a contact sport. Never having roller skated before, she was able to learn everything from attending the fresh meat program and with the help of other members.
“It’s a very inclusive sport, we welcome all types, all ages, all genders…the community across the province, even the country, is just incredible so you start playing dollar derby and make all these friends all over the place.”
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Nikita Spencer-Neyens, one of the new fresh meat recruits, says she wanted to join the team to become stronger and to also take part of all the travelling that the North Coast Nightmares does for their competitions across the province.
So far, she only has one bruise and says that “the pain has been worth it.”
Hayley says that after the training if anyone wants to continue playing roller derby or just likes roller skating, then they take it up a notch and teach them everything else they need to know about the game. They offer three practice sessions a week.
In order to compete, all members must pass the Women’s Flat Track Roller Derby Associations (WFTDA) minimum skills requirements.
“We have a really good coach, a positive attitude in our team, an easily accessible practice space (and) it’s inexpensive,” says Hayley. “It looks really aggressive and scary, but it’s not… it’s an outlet, so when you come to practice - your mind is 100 per cent on skating.”
natalia@terracestandard.com
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