Posts Tagged ‘la derby dolls’

Friday Protest, Saturday Roller Derby – What a Weekend

Wednesday, November 12th, 2008
Long Beach Prop 8 rally.  Broadway and Redondo Ave.Some things just deserve documentation, even if it's only a couple of lines. I couldn't pass up the opportunity to blog about two cool events from this weekend: the No on Prop 8 protest and the LA Derby Doll Championships. I was front and center for both and even if this blog is just for me, I don't want to let this weekend get lost in the flurry of activity. It just so happens that the Long Beach, No on Prop. 8 protest started a block from my house. How could I NOT show up? I was there at the beginning when a crowd of 2,000 people took over Broadway Ave. and marched westward shouting things like "Equal Rights" and "No on Hate." How could you be yes on hate? That's me in the pink jacket with my fist in the air. My husband got a lot of great photos that night. For more, see the entire photo gallery on LAist.com Krissy Krash and Roxy Cotton battle it out for 2008 LA Derby Doll ChampionshipI also had the honor of sitting front row at the LA Derby Dolls 2008 Championships. Everything I wanted to write about it is over at the LAist for all to read. While you're there, check out the complete photo gallery with some very cool roller derby photos. Here's a teaser that most will find irresistable. What, you haven't clicked yet?

Derby Dolls Unveil Their New Team – Varsity Brawlers

Monday, September 29th, 2008
LA Derby Dolls Varsity Brawlers If you've yet to experience the raw energy of roller derby you won't want to miss the bout between Varsity Brawlers and Fight Crew this weekend. Doll Factory doors open at 6:00 p.m. in Historic Filipino Town this Saturday, October 4. Be there for a historical evening and witness the Varsity Brawlers as they compete in their first public bout and take on seasoned Dolls, Fight Crew. This highlight video gives a tiny glimpse into the rush of roller derby but it just ain't a real Saturday night without a packed house of raging fans. Be one of them. Get your tickets today.

Get Ready for Some LA Derby Doll Action – September 13 at the Doll Factory

Friday, September 5th, 2008
The Derby Dolls are preparing to roll back into town and if you act fast, you might just be lucky enough to witness this historical event live and in person. The raucous meet-up will commence Saturday, September 13, 2008 at 6:00 p.m. Fight Crew will take on The Sirens. Both teams are prepared for victory only one team will have their dream realized. Who will it be? Get your tickets today and you'll be one of the first to know. This preview video should help you to get in the mood:

Empowering Women and Girls through Roller Derby

Sunday, July 20th, 2008
In sales trainings and motivational presentations, we often hear about the importance of teamwork and how athletics help to shape leaders. Movies like Coach Carter tell a story of how strong leadership can change the course of a young person's life. But it seems that girls and women are rarely encouraged to participate in competitive sports. In my opinion, the video below is a good demonstration of the lessons learned in roller derby. San Diego Derby Doll, Bonnie D. Stoir, breaks down the mechanics of a powerslide in clear, concise terms. She assumes the attitude that anyone who repeatedly practices the steps of a successful powerslide will eventually master it. This empowering message is a good demonstration of how we create our results based on our actions and how skills are acquired one step at a time. It also reinforces how our attitude determines our outcome. Learning lessons of persistence, patience and dedication in a sporty, fun and physical way is abundantly more interesting to me than sitting on an exercise bike or zoning out to T.V. on a treadmill. Sometimes I respond better to physically assaultive forms of communication like punk rock and roller derby. LA Derby Dolls Jr. Camp If you know a spunky, rambunctious, vivacious young girl who you want to help develop individuality and leadership skills, you might want to send her to Jr. Derby camp. This camp teaches teamwork and empowerment for girls 9-17 through the use of roller derby training and is hosted by the Los Angeles Derby Dolls. Camp is in session July 21-25th at the Doll Factory: 1910 W. Temple St. Los Angeles, CA 90026 For details about the Jr. Derby Camp, visit the Derby Dolls on the web at: http://derbydolls.com/la/derbydollcamp/

Roller Derby Practice Pictures

Monday, July 7th, 2008
Gal VanIZed at Fresh Meat practiceSunday's from 6-8 p.m. is the time for L.A. Derby Dolls Fresh Meat practice. 15-30 women congregate in a warehouse to push each other to the limit both mentally and physically. We are prompted to go at our own pace but also to push ourselves past what we think is possible. This photo is a good milestone for me. It shows me doing crossovers in the turn and that was something I could not do when I first started. I was like a calf straight out of the horse. My legs felt gangly and out of control, my back was slumped, I could barely bend my knees to save my life. Now, I can skate the track with a little bit of skill. It feels good to improve and to have proof of it. I'd like to take this opportunity to let you know about Fresh Meat practices and the upcoming L.A. Derby Dolls Jr. Derby Camp. I will post a complete blog about Jr. Derby Camp tomorrow. Come back and see how you can help a young woman you love to build self-esteem, confidence and inner strength by sending her to jr. roller derby camp. Visit www.derbydolls.com for details. By the way, there is a complete photo gallery with lots of lovely fresh meat practice photos at www.letsgokings.com and also on Rinkrat's Flikr page.

Roller Derby: ‘Hot chicks kicking ass on wheels’

Monday, June 30th, 2008
I spent the weekend at a Roller Derby tournament in Los Angeles. I was surrounded by hot chicks who kick ass. How can that NOT have a positive influence on you? I didn't come up with the phrase 'It's hot chicks kicking ass on wheels'. That's the title of an article that appeared on L.A. Com earlier this week. But it's a great title and it pretty much describes how I feel about Rinkrat's LAist.com photo gallery from this weekend's roller derby tournament. I'm gonna post a few teasers here, but if you love derby like I love derby, you'll probably go to the gallery and look at each photo about 27 times each. (Click on photos to see a larger version). Kung Pow, LA Derby Doll is practically airborne Kung Pow Tina finally squeezes her way through the powerful blocking force of Team Awesome. The question is, will she fall or will she recover? Tara. Tough and nails, smooth as silk. Tara Armov of the L.A. Riettes Ellen Page cheers for Axles of Evil from the LA Derby Dolls I'm not a very observant star gazer but I can appreciate the publicity power of a well-known name, so I will go out of my way to blatantly use the name Ellen Page of Juno in my blog post and keywords. And it IS a pretty sweet picture of Ellen Page cheering for Axles of Evil don'tcha think? Why is she there you ask? Because if you haven't heard yet, she's starring in Drew Barrymore's directorial debut, Whip It along with Juliette Lewis (see below), Marcia Gay Harden, Kristen Wiig and Zoe Bell. This movie takes an up-close and personal look into the life of a derby girl and roller derby culture. When the Derby Dolls door staff saw Stephanie walk towards us in her Hot Dog on a Stick uniform, we burst into spontaneous applause. There really is nothing like a Hot Dog on a Stick at the Roller Derby Tournament. Don't forget the fresh squeezed lemonade. Juliette Lewis celebrates with Derby Dolls at the Doll Factory in Los Angeles, CA Hey look, it's Juliette Lewis (Natural Born Killers, Strange Days, Cape Fear) gettin' cozy with Derby Doll's: Suzy Snakeyes, V. Lee and Trixie Biscuit. Pretty in Stereo was a half-time band during the 2008 Battle on the Bank roller derby tournament. These were some rockin' young women AND for the first time ever at a live music event, the band members threw panties at the audience, not the other way around. So, I am literally wearing a pair of hot pink panties with a Pretty in Stereo logo on them as I blog. My hubby caught them for me :) Hey, wait a second I almost forgot, Burt Burcharah was there too! My hubby shot a photo of him with Derby Dolls co-founder, Demolicious (aka Rebecca Nimby).

the automatic music explosion

Sunday, June 1st, 2008
Max - Drummer from The Automatic Music ExplosionThis face demonstrates the excitement and carefree spirit of the automatic music explosion. I was working the guest list at last night's Derby Doll bout so I met the drummer, Max earlier in the night. He and his wife were so kind and patient. Eventually, I suited him and his entire band/guest list with purple arm bands so they could use the "staff" bathroom behind the stage. These guys travel in a pack and even have their own dancers who danced in the front of the group and later passed out buttons, stickers and tiny fliers listing upcoming gigs. Their flier also says: "We want to play at your high school." I would highly recommend that you hire this band if you need someone for a high school event. They are high energy and seem to pull on the best aspects of rock and roll from the 70's to current. I think this is a band parents and kids alike can enjoy. In fact, I just realized, they have a Ramones feel. Look at how many parents and kids love The Ramones equally today. But there is something about seeing bands like this when they are young, fresh and full of vinegar that is unparalleled. I saw The Ramones in the 80's and 90's which is quite different from what you'd see if they were all alive and together today. the automatic music explosion at the Doll Factory in Los AngelesGreat as they are, these pictures can't even begin to convey the excitement this musical group extracted from the crowd. The audience for this band was by far the largest, most energetic and enthusiastic I've ever seen at an LA Derby Doll bout. The group commanded attention and the intesity eminating from the stage captivated the audience. The singer, Jodie thrusted large, poster-sized signs above her head and engaged the crowd in activities such as bobbing ballons to each other overhead and screaming the numbers 1, 2, 3 and 4 and the words, "fight, fight, fight" at the top of our lungs. The show ended with the singer smashing her tamborine on the concrete floor. Anita Kill leaned over and yelled in my ear, "at least its cheaper than destroying a guitar." "Yeah", I screamed back. I was dancing the entire time. Laura Palm-her, who is evidently a friend of the band (and who I owe a kiss and a hug for hooking them up) was dancing on her skates with the singer. Several other Tough Cookies joined in the festivities. Now as far as pinning this group into a genre or category, I am struggling. Here are some of the things that stood out for me: Overall style and enthusiasm: Bay City Rollers, Mega City Four, White Stripes Lead guitar player's mannerisms and tight jeans: I was feelin' Robert Plant in Song Remains the Same.  Maybe some Rod Stewart or Iggy Pop as well Drummer's style: Iggy Pop, Paul Weller, The English Beat Singers passion and style: Sonic Youth, maybe Belinda Carlisle (from Go-Go's days), a little Yeah, Yeah, Yeah's action Bass player (Jeff): I guess I'm having difficulty with narrowing this one down. It seems like the bass was in the background. Matt (Vox/Guitar): I'm feelin' a little Patrick Mata meets Marilyn Manson (great energy this guy has) Last time I was this excited during a live music show: Ugly Duckling, Naked Raygun. In other words, the automatic music explosion are unique. Here are some of their song titles: Law of Attraction Roller Derby A Girl Like U You can listen to all of them at their MySpace page. Photos used in this blog are Get Gal VanIZed exclusives courtesy of rinkrat. To see more photos of this band and the Los Angeles Derby Dolls, visit rinkrat's flickr page or the exclusive photo gallery at letsgokings.com.

There’s So Much to Love about Roller Derby

Monday, May 5th, 2008
This Saturday night, May 3 I went to the Doll Factory to see the LA Derby Doll All-Stars play the San Diego Derby Dolls.  The game was exciting to be sure, lots of energy, lots of screaming and the fact that LA won by 115 points, well...that just leaves me speechless. I'll be honest, its not just the game or the rules or the uniforms that keep me going to roller derby, it's the people. Never will you find an assemblage of more cool people per square foot than you do when you enter the Doll Factory.  If your only exposure to LADD is that you heard about it from a friend, saw a video or read an article about them in the paper, I'm sure you could make all kinds of snap judgments and analyses of what you think roller derby is and what you think the people are like but until you set foot in the building and feel the energy first hand, you really don't know anything about what makes roller derby so cool. I just wanted to share a few of my favorite photos from the evening here.  I have more favorites on my Facebook page and you can see even more action by visiting the photo gallery at letsgokings.com.

Aunt Flo throws free tampons to the excited audience

Aunt Flo throws free tampons to the excited audience

P.I.T.A.

While the rest of the Dolls hold out their hands to "five" the crowd, P.I.T.A. keeps her hands on her hips and gives her ass for "fives" maintaining true form to her derby name.

Myna Threat supporters (mom and grandma?) wait to see if they won the raffle

Myna Threat supporters (mom and grandma?) wait in silent anticipation to see if they won the raffle. They just might be eligible for a skateboard without wheels or an oversized VANS (off the wall) tennis shoe.  

LA Derby Dolls Fearleader

LA Derby Dolls Fear Leader. Pink flower in her flowing blond hair, scowl on her face and skull belt buckle on her waist.

Dr. Rick celebrates his birthday with the LA Derby Dolls

Dr. Rick celebrates his birthday with the LA Derby Dolls

Mila Minute jams backwards

With an 80 point lead on the scoreboard, Mila decides to finish off the jam skating backwards. The crowd went wild, the screams were deafening.

Dolls jumpin' over Dolls, all in the name of Derby

Dolls jumpin' over Dolls, all in the name of Derby

This is how happy I am at the end of a bout.

Even though I arrived at 5:30 to work the guest list and stood on my feet for five or more hours, this is what I feel like after a Derby Doll bout: Charged.