Roller (re)Boot

In March 2020 you hosted an A/B/C-team triple header, one of your biggest events ever. Slap Dash: I can remember the build-up because Covid was something that people were beginning to talk about. We were excited that we actually got to play. I had been quite worried in the week running up to it. Block Horror: A rumour was going round on social media that we’d called it off. We were scrambling around replying to people: “No, no, it’s still happening!” Obviously at the time nobody appreciated how serious the situation with Covid was going to get, so we just pushed ahead with it.

Two weeks later everyday life shut down. Slap: We were both league directors at the time and were involved in the discussions about what next. What we were going to do? How were we going to keep things going? In the end a lot of those decisions were taken out of our hands when gyms and leisure centres closed and everything had to stop. A lot of other teams didn’t play at all in 2020, so we were lucky to have snuck our event in just before lockdown.

It was such a great game. It’s always exciting when they’re close. Of the three games, this is the one I feel we played our best derby as a team in. It was a hard game and we really pushed ourselves as a result. Whilst it’s gutting to lose by a single point, I was buzzing afterwards.

It was a great experience for all of us, players and bench crew, having a game being so close with really tight calls deciding each jam. We were 20-30 points up at one point then Kent suddenly pulled up and we were: Aaagh! We went into the final jam trailing by a couple of points and at the end it was a bit chaotic. No one was really sure who had won for a while! Just one week later you travelled to face Royal Windsor. You were expected to win by 30. You won by 150. Good game? We were shocked ourselves. It was a very different game to what we expected. One thing I liked about that game was that, because we had that points cushion, later on we could try out a few things we’ve been experimenting with in training. The sort of tactics you maybe wouldn’t risk in a closer game. We could also give more track time to our A/B crossover players. A lot of people came away feeling they’d got to do things they hadn’t before, which was nice.

What would you do if WFTDA made derby a sport played on pogo sticks not skates?

Deathblade (Brighton): After Googling pogo sticks I’d check if it’s April 1st. If not I would organise a WFTDA coup to bring back skates immediately. Sailor Scary (Marseille): I feel like apex jumps would be a lot more attainable but more dangerous. I won’t knock it before I try it, but I’m definitely more comfortable on skates as I can roll out of a stumble or fall. Getting back up on a pogo stick would be tricky. Knitphomaniac (Southampton): I have never successfully pogoed, so I’ll NSO this one!

What other derby names did you consider?

Could you tell us a little of your history?

MRDC was created in 2011. We are a co-ed club and the vast majority of our training sessions are co-ed. Our A-team (Bloody Skulls) are ranked 75th in Europe and involved in the National 1 French championship. Our B-team (Mars Invaders) are going strong and their last bouts were amazing. Both teams are for women, intersex women and gender expansive skaters. We also have a men and all gender team, the Chapacans. Most of them are involved in the Gerbes de Provence teams, alongside players from other South of France cities, playing in the Elite Men championship.

How were MRDC affected during the pandemic? In a way it had a positive impact for us. We had lost many experienced players before Covid and it was difficult for the club, especially for the Bloody Skulls. Covid saw a lot of people looking for a life change in a sunnier and breezier city. Many experienced and skilled skaters relocated to Marseille! The challenge was to create a united team with all these amazing skaters... and we’ve succeeded. Has a lot changed? Like others we had to adapt to the ever-changing health recommendations. We have always trained outside. What was a necessity turned into a blessing, since it was easier/quicker to restart training, including masked sessions in 33°C! We were lucky that 2022-2023 was quite normal for French teams. The national championships restarted and indoor games took place across the country.

A lot of things got cancelled, including the Rockers’ 10th anniversary event. Block: Yeah. Even though the March game was closest to our actual anniversary (Valentine’s Day) we didn’t want to use it as our official birthday event as it was against a challenge team not ranked opponents. We were planning a really big home game in the summer for our anniversary, but obviously that never happened. Slap: We had a few other things in the diary, including a trip to Scotland and a game overseas.

How long were you on hiatus? We came back to training in September 2020 when things started to open up again, but that didn’t last long. It was literally two weeks then back into lockdown. We also tried some outdoor fitness and experimented with Zoom workouts.

What, on skates holding a laptop in front of you? No! Not on skates thankfully... I think we got a bit frustrated. Everyone was in the same boat in the first lockdown. In the second, leisure centres took a lot longer than other places to reopen. We also had to follow governing body WFTDA’s official ‘Return To Skating’ policy. Since they have a primarily North American outlook, those guidelines didn’t necessarily fit the different Covid timelines (re restrictions etc) in the UK and elsewhere. We certainly followed their overall structure in terms of how many weeks we stuck to no contact and so on.

It was a safe way to reintroduce everyone to the sport. Some people hadn’t skated at all during the break. Whilst others had, there’s a big difference between skating on the seafront and having people flying into you in roller derby!

So when exactly did the A-team resume a full weekly training schedule? July 2021. So a gap of around a year and a quarter. Then a similar gap until our first open door game, away to London Brawl Saints in September 2022.

A lot of our readers might not go to away games so perhaps a quick recap... Whilst today is your return to track in Sussex, you had three road trips late last year. Starting with a modest loss (stats nerds expected Brawl Saints to win by three times as much) at Tottenham Green Leisure Centre, arguably the Wembley of roller derby. I was absolutely buzzing after that game. Like you say we did so much better than expected. We’re aware that (like all leagues) London Roller Derby has changed as a result of the pandemic, so score predictions maybe don’t hold the sway they used to, but that result was a massive confidence boost for us. I remember them being very strong and physical. We had to adapt our tactics during the game to compensate for that. I was very nervous before the game. I think we showed on the day how hard we’ve worked to come back as team after the Covid break. It was nice to see our hard work pay off. Though it was a loss, it felt like a win. One thing I didn’t like about the game was they had a popcorn machine right by the track. Oh yeah. Ugh. It stank the place out.

At the end of November you faced Kent in Herne Bay. Due to a train strike we at BRATS missed that one. Thank goodness it wasn’t the closest game in Rockers history!

Moving on to today’s home return. Any thoughts on the A-team versus Marseille?

We don’t know a lot about MRDC specifically. We’ve played quite a few French teams in the past and they generally tend to be both fast and strong, so it should be a challenge which is what we want. In 2023 we’ve been working a lot on strategy and we’re in slightly different pack formations to last year. Letting people try out these different things in front a big home crowd will be great experience. Defensive play has evolved across derby in general. Before we started it was all about the four-wall. For most of our time playing it has been a three-wall tactic. Now in the post-pandemic era a lot of teams have started incorporating more paired work. Switching back and forth between a three and pairs seems to be the way the game is going now, so that’s something to look out for.

What about the return of the Rockerbillies against Southampton? They’ve been working so hard in training and it’s awesome to have a new set of skaters putting their all into derby. Brighton’s B-team have essentially started from scratch post-Covid. There are maybe four players who were with us before the pandemic. The rest are brand new. I saw them play a closed door and was blown away. Their pack awareness and offence, things that often take a while to build up as a new team, are spot on. They’ve also given so much energy to the league. Their passion and enthusiasm has been a real boost to skaters like us who have been here for a while. Basically, they’re amazing!

First Team Results

(games since the last issue)

Deathblade: The only one I can remember was Glitter Bomb. Because I went through a glitter phase, but who hasn’t? Sailor Scary: Hell Razor with the number 7734. I’m still considering changing to Cunning Linguist or Stabatha Cleaver. Knitphomaniac: None. It took me four hours on Google before I found a good enough knitting pun and decided it was the one.

How many sets of derby wheels have you gone through so far? Funny you ask! I’ve just changed my wheels for the first time since joining the Rockers. Let’s just say not changing my wheels was great for building my endurance. Skating since 2008, four or five sets of derby wheels. I currently use Gentry by Anabolix. I have my fun in black Luminous outdoor wheels, my skate park wheels are Anabolix 101a and I trail skate in 110mm inline wheels. Only three... but so many more sets of bearings!

If roller skating created energy like wind turbines, how would you use yours? In this economy? I’d power my home and try not to pay half my salary on utility bills! Wow. That’s a concept. Why isn’t this being done already? In a week of skating I could generate enough energy to take a scooter ride to the beach and back. I’d skate even more if it powered things! I’m an environmental scientist at heart, so I’d find a way of harnessing it to save the planet.

Where without a derby team would you like to start one? There should be a roller derby team everywhere. Marseille doesn’t have a junior team, so I’d like to start one of those there. Antarctica because I’m a giant Polar Exploration nerd and I would like to go there. The practicalities of roller derby on ice TBD.

Which fictional world would you most like to skate through? Ursula Le Guin’s Anarres. Less for the sights, more for the anarchist utopia vibes. Pandora from Avatar at night. I’d need luminous outdoor tires (that don’t exist) for wheels as it’s not paved. That world is so beautiful with its illumination and peaceful animals passing by. Well, until one of those black jaguar thingies comes out... then I’ll skate quickly away. Narnia for the snow and ice!

What is your top sporting achievement outside of derby? I did 400m running at school. Won a gold medal once. Nothing particularly exciting. Skydiving and tunnel flying. I love the sport of flight (body flight, canopy flight) as having that lift and freedom from the ground is liberating. Climbing Scafell Pike.

Why is derby is so big in France? France kind of had a strong skate culture but women were not always welcome. So the rise of roller derby in the 2010s must have resonated with a lot a people. Moreover, French clubs really try to minimize the sport’s cost for their skaters. I can’t think of a club which has monthly fees. Skaters pay about €150 for the full year and that’s it. It helps that most training spaces can be rented for free. Clubs also help players by contributing to travel expenses.