THE OFFICIAL MAGAZINE OF THE WOMEN’S FLAT TRACK DERBY ASSOCIATION (WFTDA) VOLUME 1, ISSUE 1, FALL 2008
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GOLF TOURNAMENT what you’ll need A willing golf course to team up with – if you can’t secure one, try a bowling or mini-golf tournament (or any other creative and competitive idea you can put together). Just like the Casino Night event, you’ll want to gather a good number of prizes to give to tournament winners. who can help out Advertising is important, while pre-registration and
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sponsorship participation before the event rolls around are
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also huge to ensure success.
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how to pull it off
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A tournament involves a great deal of planning. Sponsorship
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participation before the event rolls around are also huge
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to ensure success. Think of all the extra ways you can make cash on top of the registration fees – concessions
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(if the venue allows), raffles, mulligans, rollergirl ride-alongs in golf carts, merchandise, etc.
The key to any good fundraiser is careful planning and participation from league members. The more volunteers you can snag to help out and the more you can spread the word about your event, the higher your success rate will be. Think of your league’s events as almost as important as your bouts – no money = no skate! Lastly, and probably most importantly, try to focus on a select number of events during your season. A few large money-makers mean you can dedicate more time to planning and can likely gather more help from others, while numerous little events can quickly cause burnout and may not be worth your time.
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health and fitness
women athletes and knee problems B U N N I C U L A , P R OV I D E N C E R O L L E R D E R B Y
I flew through the air after being slammed from behind by a fellow skater and landed hard on both my knees. A few gasps were heard from the sidelines and an immediate “Are you ok?!” I stood up, a little stunned, but seemed fine. I skated the rest of practice and went home. My knee felt a little strange but nothing seemed serious. The next morning, I woke up and rolled to lift my legs out of bed, only to experience an excruciating pain in my knee – this was the beginning of my knee injuries. I foolishly didn’t see a doctor – I sat it out, skated it out and went to regionals with my team. I couldn’t bend my knee all the way but I could play, so I did. For many skaters, this initial injury period is where they make a crucial mistake of not taking the time to let their body heal. All it takes is one more minor fall on both knees to aggravate an existing or untreated injury. If I had gone to the doctor before the second fall, they probably would have said I had a sprained my PCL (posterior cruciate
ligament – one of four ligaments that help control movement in your knee). After my second fall, the MRI showed that I had a slightly torn PCL. Although a minor injury, it was quite painful to move – I was barely able to walk and I was off skates for over two months. Unfortunately, this is not the only knee injury I’ve had while skating. I came back to derby strong at first, and I began researching knee health and how to take care of one’s body so as to avoid experiencing knee problems. During the first game of Providence’s home season, however, I took one hit and as I fell to the ground my right knee popped, and this pop was loud. I ruptured my ACL (anterior cruciate ligament). how does an ACL injury occur? The ACL is located in the middle of the knee. This is one of four crucial ligaments in the knee that helps to control the movement of the knee and leg.
Sports like soccer, basketball and roller derby involve a movement known as “cutting” – a rapid decrease in motion followed by a sudden change in direction. This motion is used when changing direction quickly, two-stepping, avoiding a hit, etc. This type of motion along with any rapid twisting of the knee can cause an ACL to rupture. are female athletes more prone to knee injuries than male athletes? Women are playing sports now more than ever and the intensity in which women play has definitely increased, leading to more female athletes with knee injuries. Speaking specifically about knee ligament injuries, studies show that athletic women are more prone to causing damage to their ligaments and especially to their ACL. Statistics show that many more ACL injuries occur in women than men – they are between two to eight times more likely to occur amongst females. JonRosePhotography.com
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down almost all the way by hand, the nylon is gone and you need to replace them. They are CHEAP and it sucks to have a wheel fly off during a game, so check them periodically! Other parts that need semi-regular replacing are the bushings and pivot points. When my pivot cup went the first time, I found out the hard way because I suddenly couldn’t skate – just step WHAM, pick myself up, step WHAM! If your pivot cup looks fine, it probably is. Bushings are even easier to assess because they’re so visible. When they start to look squished, replace them. Those are the major bits that need looking after. It’s not a bad idea to go over your skates before you bout, just to make sure everything is in adjustment and nothing needs replacing. Man, it is hard to write an article about gear maintenance and make it sound sexy! So enjoy the corny diagram and I’ll see ya at the next bout!!
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wftda
Women’s Flat Track Derby Association (WFTDA) – real. strong. athletic. revolutionary. what it is and why it rocks M I S S J A N E R E D R U M , F O RT WAY N E D E R B Y G I R L S
As many of you know, the WFTDA is the national governing body of women’s flat track roller derby. It was founded in 2004 and serves to promote and foster our sport by facilitating the development of athletic ability, sportswomanship and goodwill among member leagues. In layman’s terms, this means we are here to help grow the sport of flat track roller derby and women’s flat track derby leagues nationwide. We offer rookie support and mentoring, which is easily accessible to aspiring WFTDA leagues by emailing rookie_leagues@wftda.com. So why should you aspire to join
WFTDA?
Currently 57 member leagues strong, WFTDA offers many benefits to its members, including but not limited to:
• Voting rights and the ability to influence the development of the sport
• Tournament organization and eligibility • National rankings
• Access to experienced and established leagues for information sharing, advice and answers • National competition and organization without compromising leagues’ DIY ethics • Access to a standardized set of rules to make bouts between leagues in different states not only possible, but uniform and exciting
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• The right to display WFTDA logo and statement of affiliation on website and team uniforms • Inclusion in WFTDA media, marketing merchandise, website and sponsorship materials • Access to the WFTDA message board
events bouting venue: Portland Expo Center. Take one 20,000-ish square foot concrete box, bring in eight 12-tier bleachers, a concert-caliber light and sound rig, sport court, gaffer’s tape, food and beer. Add rollergirls. Bring to a simmer with a marching band and possibly bagpipes. after party: Probably at Bossanova, but pay attention to the program and announcers and follow the crowd. If you are so inclined: drink hard alcohol first, then switch cleanly to beer and do not look back. Aim for one cup of water with every single drink – you will thank me. And for god’s sake, eat something first! after after party: The festivities will almost certainly migrate to one of Portland’s many, many strip clubs. Reasonably priced drinks will continue to be served there. Likewise, rest assured that the derby girls will continue to run the show; maladjusted guys should call it a night before this stage. after after after party: You’ll want to double-check, but if I know Portland, it’ll surely be at the extremely party-friendly Jupiter Hotel, which is also where you want to stay if you want to be at the center of the action – or stay far away from if you expect to sleep! The hotel’s registration page offers such optional enhancements as bicycle rental, a pet welcome
kit, and the Spartacus Naughty Kit, so you know you’ve come to the right place.
climate & clothing Although it almost never rains heavily – most Portland natives don’t bother with umbrellas – it will be damp and sprinkly all the time. Please, psychologically prepare yourself for the fact that you may not see the sun the entire weekend – the northwest has incredibly beautiful summers, but the tradeoff is several months of drab, gloomy suicide season. It’ll probably be in the 50s, so you won’t need a heavy coat, but a light jacket or a hoodie is a good idea. Plan to layer, because it’ll get pretty warm in the bout and social venues.
getting around For an American city of its size, Portland has remarkably good public transportation. Depending where you stay, you can totally get away with taking TriMet’s Max light rail from the airport, to your hotel, and directly to the Expo Center for all the events. The after party location will be perhaps a mile’s walk – no problem with a gaggle of derby people, but you can also line up good bus connections if you’d rather not hoof it. Radio Cab is the taxi of choice; call 503-227-1212.
maslov’s hierarchy food: You will not find a more vegan-friendly town than Portland, but I loves me some
bacon so you’re on your own navigating those options. Late night dining options include the Doug Fir Lounge, open until 2:30 a.m. and adjacent to the Jupiter Hotel; if that’s not late enough for you, the Montage and the Original Hotcake and Steak House are other night owl options.
Northwest Knockdown NorthwestKnockdown.com Where to go for all your basic Nationals needs – ticket purchasing info, schedules, and even a little more info on the lovely city of Portland.
Portland Expo Center ExpoCenter.org 2060 North Marine Drive Portland, OR 97217 503-736-5200 Details on the Northwest Knockdown’s venue.
shelter: If you don’t want to soak in the Jupiter Hotel scene, but you want something other than the generic conglomco hotel experience, treat yourself to a stay at a McMenamin’s hotel. The local brewpub institution has demonstrated a real knack for repurposing storied older buildings into unique lodgings, with locations right in town as well as further out in the scenic Columbia Gorge. For hostels and other options, refer to the Northwest Knockdown website.
Jupiter Hotel JupiterHotel.com 800 E. Burnside Portland, OR 97214 503-230-9200 Ultra-hip Portland boutique hotel and a safe bet for post-game party action.
TriMet TriMet.org 503-238-7433 Portland’s public transportation system.
Radio Cab RadioCab.net 503-227-1212 Reliable cab company of choice.
Doug Fir Lounge
drinkin’: Beer at the Expo Center, full bar at the after party. Last call is at 2 a.m. – you’ve got until 2:30 to drink up before they kick you out. Beer and wine are available from any grocery or convenience store, but you can only buy bottles of the hard stuff from state liquor stores – they close early, so plan ahead! Portland is also a microbrew hub, so if you haven’t surrendered yourself completely to the simplicity of PBR, there’s much beer to explore here.
DougFirLounge.com 830 E. Burnside Portland, OR 97214 503-231-9663 Located on the Jupiter Hotel property, offering late night dining (open 7 a.m. to 2:30 a.m. daily) and live music.
Montage Restaurant MontagePortland.com 301 SE Morrison St. Portland, OR 97214 503-234-1324 Another recommended dining option with late night hours (dinner is available from 6 p.m. to 4 a.m. on Friday and Saturdays).
McMenamins McMenamins.com Unique hotels located throughout Portland and the surrounding area.
State of Oregon Liquor Control Commission Oregon.gov/OLCC The skinny on liquor laws – stock up if you plan on boozin’ late!
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10/ .0- , + / , .10/ * ’) ( ( .' - ( (
Northwest Knockdown . ' 1+ National Championship The country’s top 8 roller derby teams duking it out for the national title.
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Portland Expo Center November 14-16 *
Co-hosted by the Rose City Rollers and the Rat City Rollergirls For ticket information, go to
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