By Hayli Zuccola Holly Frazier Photography
Dressed in black and yellow; exuding confidence and a commanding presence; and absolute beasts on a pair of quad skates, members of the All City Rollers all gleaned interest in roller derby for various reasons, but one thing remains consistent: win or lose, derby has made an unmatched impact on all their lives. “Me and some friends went to a Gainesville bout, and I was like, ‘yeah, I want to do this; this is badass,’ for lack of a better term and so I started my roller skating journey pretty much shortly after that. I was encouraged to come to a practice and I kind of never looked back,” said Shanna Swiers, who initially skated in Gainesville before joining the All City Rollers in 2013. Shanna Swiers
Before derby, Shanna’s prior history with roller skating centered around school field trips or the occasional trek around the rink in high school, but training with the league in Gainesville was an entirely new feat. Keith Ridge Derby Photos
“It was grueling. I used parts of my body and muscles I didn’t even know I had and I basically relearned to skate and, they, I mean, they taught me everything—all the basics—so I went from a wall-clinger to I think now I can probably roller skate better than I can walk,” she said. Of course, being comfortable on skates is only half the battle of this intense sport. The premise of roller derby is that each game—or “bout” as they’re referred to in the league—is comprised of multiple mini games called “jams.” During the start of each jam, the designated jammer from each of the two participating teams— identified by a bright yellow star on their helmet—
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