Channel 69 News came out to one of our practices and did a piece on our league! Rockstar Roller Derby is making news with our decision to go old school, and do things a bit different. Check out the news article below to learn more, and visit here to watch the segment that aired!
LOWER POTTSGROVE TWP., Pa. – A local roller derby team has been practicing twice a week for the past seven years, but members say they’re tired of the rules, so now they’re going to follow their own.
“There’s a lot of skating and a lot of hitting,” said head coach Tamrin Jenison.
Rock Star Roller Derby International has started practicing and tryouts for the upcoming season at the Ringing Rocks Roller Rink in Lower Pottsgrove Township, which usually means explaining all of the tedious rules and penalties.
“They go around the circle and try and get past that wall, the blockers,” said Lisa Varley, the president of the team, “and the first around and they have to make a second round and that’s when they start getting points.”
But this season, they’re changing things up a lot. They’re throwing out their long list of rules and going old school.
“There might be a little bit of wrestling. There might be a little bit of hitting, you know, we might throw some bows,” said Varley.
The team’s new style of play will probably look something like a scene from the 2009 film “Whip It,” which shows players emulating old school roller derby techniques from the ’60s.
“I wanna make people be like, ‘Oh my God! Like what is going on here,'” said Jenison.
Since many teams in the area don’t play by these new, or old rules rather, players will mostly scrimmage themselves this season.
So far, 32 players are signed up, including newbie Jennifer Fry. She works in finance and is a mother of two teenagers.
“They all know that I do it,” said Fry. “They all think I’m crazy.”
But these ladies say what’s really crazy is life without roller derby.
“This just desire to be able to be venerable somewhere and then discover your strength within that venerability,” said Jenison.