Crossing the Pond: The Sioux Falls Roller Dollz in London

By Julia Wild

Like all great adventures, this one began with a few drinks in Las Vegas.

Betsy Wrecksie, Julia Wild and Pain Maker were chosen to represent the Sioux Falls Roller Dollz at the 2011 Fab-Con in Las Vegas where they happened to meet MetalliKat from the London Roller Girls. Over lunch, the four discussed the challenges of fundraising to cover travel expenses for away bouts. Though the SFRD had not traveled to other countries to play, they often had to cover several thousand miles to play competitive teams in their region. And so, the question finally came up: if SFRD works that hard to travel that far, why not just up and go to London?

The idea festered the entire weekend and when the four parted ways at the end of the conference, the whole notion was still nothing more than a “let’s see what happens.” LRG had had many teams make empty promises before, so it seemed like at least a pleasant idea to part with. Little did Metallikat realize just how serious the SFRD were about going across the ocean.

After the board’s approval and the support of the league, SFRD hit the ground running hard that summer to begin fundraising for their goal of $13,000. Skaters were required to cover a portion of their airline ticket but the remaining balance for the trip was to be covered by the league’s fundraising efforts. Sponsors, special merchandise sales, fundraisers and donations helped the team to make their final goal. A roster of 13 skaters and two refs started packing for the longest/shortest international trip of their lives!

One thing that the SFRD has learned from their domestic travel experience is to get as much “bang out of your buck” as possible, and so instead of planning for the one bout for their weekend in London, the team packed the weekend with three! Friday would be the first bout of the weekend against the Lincolnshire Bombers. Day two would be London followed by an afternoon bout in Birmingham against the Central City Roller Girls on Sunday.

The team flew out from Sioux Falls Wednesday afternoon and landed in London Thursday at lunchtime: this was to be the only “free day” for exploration and whatever touristy things skaters chose to do. The league rented three rooms at a hostel in Shepherd’s Bush near an Underground station, making it ideal for skaters to explore the city and return to the “home base” fast.

Friday, the team left London by coach to head to Lincolnshire. Due to traffic, the trip took an agonizing 4 hours to arrive at the venue. The Lincolnshire Bombers are a newer league, formed in 2008, and have recently joined WFTDA as an apprentice league. SFRD beat the Bombers 313 to 28 and left with hugs and some great goodie bags!

Saturday, SFRD played the rival that inspired this grand adventure: the London Rollergirls. After their stand-out playing at Eastern Regionals, the Dollz knew they would be facing a formidable opponent. Though the LRG were hugs and cheers off the track, they were all business on the track. Their expert blockers created amazing walls, snaring the SFRD jammers time and time again and stopping any effort to gain points. Though the bout ended in a 19 to 307 loss for the Dollz, just like any defeat, the bout has given the team great strategies and areas for improvement in the 2012 season.

Sunday finally rolled around, and though the team was feeling tired between jet-lag and two days of bouting, there was little sign of it on the track against the Central City Roller Girls. The CCR team was fast and agile but the Dollz kept solid control of the pack, effectively containing the CCR blockers and attaining lead jammer status for the SFRD jammer the majority of the bout. With the final score of 190 to 62, SFRD could celebrate the end of their weekend with another victory.

Monday morning, the team flew home from Heathrow, and aside from a few TSA agents who had the misfortune of opening the most rotten-smelling skate bags in the world, everyone returned home tired and proud of their big weekend in the UK.