Roller Derby as Punchline

by em dash January 29, 2013 - 9:40pm

When I ran the PR committee for Gotham Girls Roller Derby, every few months I would get an email from a TV producer who had come up with the "brilliant" idea to put a reporter on skates as a gimmick for a segment about roller derby. Just as we can all recite "by day/by night" verbatim from memory by now, this feature rarely deviated from a pretty typical script. The league had done segments like that before, after we had lost our practice space and were desperate to get the attention of anyone who could help us find a new one. In 2008, it already felt old-hat. And in 2009, after we won the WFTDA championships (back then still called Nationals), it felt demeaning.

But when a popular New York TV station told us they had a brilliant idea (sigh), we said OK and gamely helped their slender-legged reporter muddle through on skates, letting her hit us without hitting back and barely even smirking when she fell down.

Her editor did a good job of cutting it so the reporter looked OK, but it was still plain to see that what the reporter was doing was not playing roller derby. Talented, trained athletes playing roller derby is fantastic to watch. Whatever you feel about the current ruleset, on the whole, the sport is still fast, dynamic, and hard-hitting. And that's something that gets completely lost when non-derby-players get on skates.

That's why I have a problem with things like The Bachelor co-opting our sport as a schtick. I'm sure that there were people out there who had never seen roller derby before who saw it on the show. But what did they see?

What is it that makes non-skaters try out roller derby, a dangerous contact sport on wheels, as a TV gag? I can't remember instances of dating shows having the contestants play full-contact football or rugby. So why is our sport fair game for this kind of treatment?

Maybe derby still has a whiff of the fake or WWE to it, in spite of all that the WFTDA and other governing bodies have done to legitimize the sport in the eyes of the public. Is it the sexiness? Or does a full-contact sport that's mostly played by women just not seem "real" or actually dangerous to most people?

In the grand scheme of things, the sport is still in its infancy. The fact that people are interested is something we should be thanking our lucky stars for, and I understand that. But the fact that mainstream media and entertainment channels are more interested in the "derby girls" phenomenon than what it is that derby girls actually DO--that's something I just can't make my peace with.

What do you think?

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Em Dash

Comments

Submitted by scheisse_minnelli on January 29, 2013 - 11:04pm

My league calls this style of reportage "two hapless jerks try roller derby" and have written media policy around letting people "try" roller derby. One of the reasons we did this is because a friend of mine in another New Zealand league was injured by a reporter during shooting; she ended up in a moon boot. It's a safety issue - we tell people they need to pass a skills assessment to be able to play and then allow giant buffoons to take flight off a jam line? The professionalism element is interesting too - seeing LADD and Gotham promote RDX as a top notch event, only to then roll around a studio with someone who could barely skate, was cringe-worthy at best.

Thanks for hitting the nail on the head with this one - I'm glad there are others out there who won't let their leagues be belittled by this type of reportage.

Submitted by TerrorByte on January 30, 2013 - 12:19am

Thank you Em Dash. I was so angry watching that clip last night; not because of the tired old "trying roller derby" angle, but more of the impression that women shouldn't be forced out of their comfort zones. It made me feel like the producers wanted to portray the image that women shouldn't be "tough" or that women worthy of The Bachelor SHOULDN'T be tough. Frankly, it made me sick.

Submitted by She-RARR on January 30, 2013 - 10:31am

Hey, so we have a local magazine in Sheffield, UK, that does a feature called "Exposed VS...." where writers from the magazine try stuff out against various people in the city every month. Stuff like challenging chefs to a cook off, taxi drivers to a go kart race.

We explained that we couldn't let them anywhere near the actual game without them having passed min skills. Having seen a bout before, they were pretty clear that they knew derby was a big deal in terms of skill etc.

We let them have a go on skates, taught them a few "staying off your ass" tips and let them get the taste of skates on their feet. We set up an onskates race so they could race each other, and then brought them into a bunch of offskates stuff that gave them a taster of the game. We did a fitness challenge, a wall breaking drill and played a few jams of "sock derby" so they could get a sense of the tactics, physicality and range of play in the game without putting themselves, and us, at risk.

I think lots of sports actually have a "ha ha, look at them have a go" for TV/media outlets. Stuff like sailing, surfing, windsurfing type things that most people don't normally come into contact with. As a new sport, it's still pretty exotic to lots of people. At the moment, 4.5 years into our league, we are drawing pretty good crowds to our bouts, but are still looking to get new people interested. It's difficult to do this in a way that balances "SRS SPORT that is also tonnes of fun" Ongoing battle I guess!

Submitted by Raw Heidi on January 30, 2013 - 10:56am

I have to admit I am bored to tears of the same requests and it is rare or else a very big broadcaster/news outlet/opportunity or an actual sports or fitness angle that will persuade the London Rollergirls to let journalists et al put on skates these days. I can't seem to watch the video of The Bachelor from this link but I know the show and I can't imagine it is pretty.
I struggle to make my peace with this too but that said, the journalist-on-skates has been important for us to spread the word over the years here in the UK too. Of course it feels old hat to us when we know the intricacies of the sport and the commitment and skill involved, but to a total newbie those segments can be an important step to even recognising that it something they can get involved with. In a world where women's sports receives such little press attention (certainly in the UK) it is gratifying to receive some when it is a look at the sport and not just the women playing it, but that fine line is such a hard one to get on the correct side of and you can't always trust those journos. In fact the one thing you can trust is that when they say they can rollerskate in a phone chat before they rock up to practice, they are definitely referring to their Fisher Price skates when they were 7.

Submitted by Throttle-her on January 30, 2013 - 11:22am

Roller derby has been creeping in to media lately, I read somewhere that it will next appear on an episode of Bones. Rat City just had a bit on a cooking competition show (and the arena they play in - wow!) I dislike the premise of The Bachelor, so no way I am watching it, but I definitely had mixed feelings about the possible outcomes.
A coworker, one I have talked to at length, mentioned to me that she watched The Bachelor last night. Now I had discussed all matters of roller derby, including an injury and workouts, to this person. It was not until that episode that she realized we weren't playing on rollerblades. She was intrigued and did not come away with a negative impression, except that it was "dangerous." (lol) It is also good that someone smacked their face trying to do it - I think in the end that emphasizes the high level of skill it takes to play, that you can't just put on gear and become a derby girl. Another coworker I barely talk to found reason to ask if I was back to practice and mentioned she "always wanted to go to one of those." So while it is uncomfortable to be the source of the punchline, quirk or special interest, it does start a dialogue and garner interest. It puts it in people's minds. And then like many of us, they finally find a reason to go to a bout, and a few of them fall in love with what they see, even if they are confused about what is going on. Then a few of them put skates on their feet too, and learn for themselves the work and dedication it takes. I am tired of the punchlines, but like many things in life, we can make good on it and turn it to something positive by keeping the dialogue open in these ways.

Submitted by DaveyBlockit on January 30, 2013 - 12:08pm

Did you watch the episode? The whole point was that not everyone can do it because it is a real sport.

Submitted by melligator on January 30, 2013 - 3:02pm

That was actually going to be my question - I'm wondering how many people getting aerated actually saw the footage and not just the premise in text.

Submitted by kcbomber on January 30, 2013 - 12:20pm

For better or worse, derby is still at a stage where awareness that we even exist is not pervasive. I just watched a tv recap of all the shows on Monday on a Hulu segment that included a clip of the derby stuff on The Bachelor. The recap hostess said something to the effect of "most of the contestants had never even heard of roller derby, nor has the rest of the world in general...". In one sentence, that lady reduced all the hours we've all put into the sport as an insignificant footnote.

Also, um, TV shows throw inexperienced, unskilled contestants on football fields, baseball diamonds, soccer fields, surfboards, boxing rings, etc. all the time. How many times have you seen some poor hapless schmuck on a reality show shoved into boxing gloves and asked to try and approximate a nuanced, complex & highly trained athletic event and then end up making it look nothing like what you'd see on pay per view. I do agree with you that the trope of putting newscasters on skates as a gimmick is getting very tired, but the error I see in your article is in thinking that derby is the only sport or pastime that has to put up with it.

Submitted by Tara Armov on January 30, 2013 - 1:54pm

"Also, um, TV shows throw inexperienced, unskilled contestants on football fields, baseball diamonds, soccer fields, surfboards, boxing rings, etc. all the time. How many times have you seen some poor hapless schmuck on a reality show shoved into boxing gloves and asked to try and approximate a nuanced, complex & highly trained athletic event and then end up making it look nothing like what you'd see on pay per view. I do agree with you that the trope of putting newscasters on skates as a gimmick is getting very tired, but the error I see in your article is in thinking that derby is the only sport or pastime that has to put up with it."

THIS.

We put a lot of time, effort, money, blood, sweat and tears into our sport. Just like athletes from other sports who get featured on goofy game shows or show premises. To even be on the collective consciousness' radar to be featured on ANY show is a step up from where derby was ten years ago.

I really wish current derby would relax a little bit and have some freakin' fun with all this work we're doing. Just because we want the sport to succeed doesn't mean we can't take a little brevity along with it. The Bachelor is a crappy show under ANY circumstances, no matter what sport they feature. That doesn't really reflect on what we're doing. No, really, it doesn't. The sport lived through an episode of, "Rock of Love", for heaven's sake! Learn to laugh at yourself as well as the general public's attempts to figure out what the hell we're doing...we'll all be a lot happier as a result.

Submitted by Throttle-her on January 30, 2013 - 2:31pm

"The Bachelor is a crappy show under ANY circumstances, no matter what sport they feature."

Submitted by WindyMan on January 30, 2013 - 2:10pm

"The recap hostess said something to the effect of 'most of
the contestants had never even heard of roller derby, nor has
the rest of the world in general...'. In one sentence, that lady
reduced all the hours we've all put into the sport as an
insignificant footnote."

But it's 100% true that the contestants and the rest of the world in general don't really know about roller derby, isn't it? It's a given that everyone that plays and/or organizes sports put in many hours of hard work to do so. Taken that for granted, why should roller derby get any preferential treatment when so few people watch and play it at the moment, compared to other sports?

Submitted by kcbomber on January 30, 2013 - 4:31pm

Perhaps I didn't state that well, but my point was that part of the article is about awareness and the quality of coverage, but that for all that we think of what we've put into our sport, it can still be dismissed so easily in a news segment as an also ran. Perspective was the point.

Submitted by ThighVoltage on January 30, 2013 - 5:25pm

Your comment about the treatment of other sports it has given me pause for thought - i've managed media for my league in the past and my day job is also in PR and sometimes we do just have to suck it up and accept that any publicity is better than none.

However, I do think that derby has been around for long enough that we need to start thinking long and hard about what we want to say to our audience and indeed who we want to our audience to be..

In terms of boxing, football, soccer etc my argument would be that those sports were well established and respected long before reality TV came along and are already considered legitimate sports so the whole premise is different - people understand football and so can laugh at hapless jerks attempting and failing; whereas with roller derby, the the hapless jerks perpetuate the idea that roller derby is dangerous/violent/sexy/fake.

The struggle for legitimisation is an ongoing discussion but we need to be careful about our complaints about not being taken seriously - thinking beyond the simple opportunities for publicity and into what we want to achieve through that publicity.

(Worth noting that I am slightly embarrassed that this comes up under my former derby name given that I now skate under my own name).

Submitted by MonaMour on January 30, 2013 - 12:40pm

I just can't believe a producer would think it was in any way advisable to put a girl who can't even stand up on roller skates on a bank track and tell her to play the game. That's totally absurd, and completely dangerous.

I can barely even stand to watch it anymore. Not to mention that while they outfitted the girls on the Bachelor in Iron Doll unis, they accessorized with thigh high fishnets and garter belts. WTF?!

On the flip side, Bunheads (the ABC Family show) is doing an episode on roller derby, but that's because one of the teen stars actually already plays for the LADD Junior League. So I'm excited to see that. Hopefully it'll be a little bit more legit.

Submitted by melligator on January 30, 2013 - 3:01pm

They didn't play a game - they actually saw that was a bit too ambitious and ended up having a little casual fun skate. As for getting up on the bank - we all had a first time and it looked a lot like that for many of us. All I saw was some people trying out something new - they found it difficult and a bit scary and I didn't notice any commentary about the sport or its participants that made me uncomfortable.

I actually saw Bunheads too and thought it the less realistic portrayal of the two. The fully made-up and prime-time-sassy 'trainer' with her tough advice was sillier than the whole Bachelor segment.

Submitted by MOAB43 on January 30, 2013 - 2:16pm

Great article. I am torn on these types of news pieces. As much as I don't like that when they cover other sports, they never don the gear, but always seem to want to when they cover derby....but we also tell people....every person we meet our own "derby story"...how we started just like them, struggled, fought, learned and finally overcame every obstacle and became awesome.....and "Anyone can do this...you just have to work for it!" .....we tell everyone. There is a place for them in Derbyworld....it's not an exclusive club for only former trackstars and ball players (although they are plentiful and welcome too) it is the sport for the never before athlete--- like me. Like so many derby players in my league, and leagues worldwide. Sure...it's probably easier for those women with previous sports experience....but that is part of the story too...ANYone can do this, should do this....So why NOT a bobbleheaded newsgirl?

Submitted by vodkatoxic on January 30, 2013 - 2:57pm

I'm kind of surprised by a lot of these comments. I'm the current head of PR for LA Derby Dolls. When we get these types of requests, I work closely with our president, Demolicious and other members of our executive board to make sure the coverage still keeps the integrity and athleticism of the sport in tact. For example, when we were approached by Bones, before we agreed to anything, we were allowed to read the script and make changes. We completely gutted the whole script, had our own skaters as the stunt actors/skaters to make sure it was as close to the real thing when they represented the sport.

As far as The Bachelor, as someone mentioned above, you obviously didn't WATCH the episode. They NEVER ended up trying to play the game because it was too hard! We had our own LADD trainers that tried to help them but it was determined it was not safe so they did a "free skate" showing that this is not a sport to mess with if you aren't properly skilled. In the show's previous episodes, they have shown contestants competing in volleyball, etc. As Tara mentioned above, these kind of shows and news stories happen in ALL SPORTS - like Biggest Loser showing contestants playing football with NFL players, etc. Why do we think that Roller Derby is any better than the NFL or any other sport? We all want to build this sport bigger and if we can get coverage on NATIONAL television, why the hell not? It was NEVER shown as a joke and Derby Dolls ALWAYS make sure we have the sport portrayed in a positive, non scripted, athletic, empowerment of women in everything we do. I am constantly turning down national coverage that wants cover the "sexy women in short skirts" angle. I just turned down a national show on a very popular cable network because of that.

If anyone has any questions they want to direct to me privately, feel free to email me at [email protected].

Submitted by rockawaybeatch on January 30, 2013 - 3:26pm

Personally, I think that the sport came off pretty well, that LADD seemed to do a good job of keeping the focus on athleticism, and that this kind of exposure to a national audience is probably more helpful than harmful at this point. This kind of segment is standard on this show; one season they did Muy Thai, and someone got a concussion. I think in deciding not to play, the segment reinforced the idea that roller derby is an athletic endeavor that would be dangerous to throw folks into. Fishnets on the girls? Meh; they didn't look all that different from many local teams.

Submitted by Hurt Reynolds on January 31, 2013 - 4:41pm

http://youtu.be/rljhshFYRJw

I'm not passing judgment. I do think though, that it's important that we all, each of us, make sure to look on ourselves with honest eyes and be clear on what we choose to do and why we choose to do it.

Submitted by giadelosmuertos on February 4, 2013 - 7:00pm

...there weren't any rules about the HR not getting down on coaches after the game. :D :D

Submitted by Hurt Reynolds on February 5, 2013 - 1:36pm

... FROM THE HEADLINES!

Submitted by PeytonSlamming on January 30, 2013 - 3:32pm

I had a writer (our former PR person) approach me and ask for an "angle." For our league, one thing stands out - our girls train HARD and not only get exposure to our locally-owned fitness outlets (Crossfit, etc), but also our city/state tends to not fare so hot on those lists of fit cities or fit states. I feel like our league is on the forefront of that. So far, I haven't seen it. I serve as PR/Media Relations Chair and I constantly get, "why can't you get the media to come cover our bouts?" Short answer - people do (unfortunately) still have the "old school" on their minds. Granted, we've had some coups (getting on the top news/talk radio station in the market and getting on the front page of the sports section of the paper), but it's going to take time (just in general). Because we aren't paid athletes, I don't think the media necessary understands just how hard the sport is and the fact that many skaters TRAIN like pro athletes (AND still hold full-time jobs or are Moms or students). Keep pushing, fellow derby PR peeps - Rome was not built in a day.

Submitted by squeaky_frommage on January 30, 2013 - 3:58pm

In small media markets, derby leagues can't be overly picky about the type of requests they accept because there simply aren't enough outlets to begin with. "Derby girl for a day" features can be very beneficial in such markets, especially when the skaters who interact with the journalists effectively convey that roller derby is a legitimate sport that requires a lot of dedication and hard work. It also helps to remember that, more often than not, small-market outlets are more interested in the human interest angle of roller derby. This angle is how the sport has been able to grow to the point where some leagues *can* pick and choose the stories they agree to do.

That being said, there is a difference between female journalists wanting to try it out and reality TV actresses-slash-contestants who are forced into the situation by some idiot producer whose sole goal is to be as sensational as possible. And of course, the editing job had a lot to do with how awful and schtick-y it was. "Oh noes, the girl who lied about having played before face-planted on the track! Cue the ominous music!!" Had a derby person (or knowledgeable fan) been in charge of the final cut, I'm betting there would have been some footage of the two LADD reps rolling their eyes and trying not to laugh.

The one decent part of the segment involved a contestant whose left arm was amputated above her elbow. She was having a harder time getting up than the others and almost threw in the towel, but decided to keep trying with some encouragement. That's the one aspect of the whole thing that rings true to our sport - the notion that everyone can play derby on *some* level (recreational, WFTDA, etc.) if they want it enough to keep trying. Unfortunately, fans of the show likely have forgotten that part already.

Submitted by Film Fatale on January 30, 2013 - 4:57pm

"there is a difference between female journalists wanting to try it out and reality TV actresses-slash-contestants who are forced into the situation by some idiot producer whose sole goal is to be as sensational as possible. And of course, the editing job had a lot to do with how awful and schtick-y it was. "Oh noes, the girl who lied about having played before face-planted on the track! Cue the ominous music!!" Had a derby person (or knowledgeable fan) been in charge of the final cut, I'm betting there would have been some footage of the two LADD reps rolling their eyes and trying not to laugh."

As a "derby person" and reality tv editor, this a very narrow, oversimplified way of looking at the segment. For all we know the "idiot producer" could be a knowledgable fan or even a skater who wanted to highlight the sport or show something that requires more skill, thinking, or even female bonding than a lot of the other activities these dating shows feature. As for the editing and music, if they hadn't focused on someone actually getting hurt and another cast member doubting her physical abilities and pushing through them, but instead just shown the casual skating, a barebones game with their limited skills, or worse, the women cattily trying to injure their competitors, would that have been any more accurate a portrayal of what actually goes into the sport? I don't think so. That would've rang false to everyone in the derby community watching. Finally, there are so many crew members involved in making any reality show, from preproduction, to shooting, to editing, to the network execs, all of whom have opinions and some of whom you have to listen to more than others, that it's ridiculous to think there is one right way to portray any segment. The way a show ends up at broadcast after several months of editing and notes many not have any resemblance to what was originally planned.

Aside from the reality tv aspect, I really disagree that showing the LADD reps laughing and rolling their eyes at the cast would've been good for anyone. People watching the show who might consider checking out a bout or even joining a fresh meat team could be so easily turned off by an air of exclusivity or condescension. Instead, the part where trainer Janis Choplin tells a fallen cast member "Get back up. It's okay, I did that all the time when I was starting." shows the kind of encouragement, determination, tough love, and skill progression that is way more authentic and appealing than laughing at someone trying something new.

Submitted by Raw Heidi on January 30, 2013 - 5:56pm

Wish I could actually view the clip that I judged in my previous comment without even watching! I don't like the concept of The Bachelor and I'm snotty about reality TV because I make reality TV, I'm also a big fan. Reality TV in the right hands can be entertaining, non sensational and educational. But sometimes you never know til too late whether you're in the right hands or not and that's either a gamble or an educated risk. I expect I would've made the same decision that Vodka Toxic made with the same caveats despite not being a fan of the show, it's not all about me (unfortunately). Bring on the national TV coverage, on our own terms! Still commenting on a segment I haven't even seen! Dammit!

Submitted by Jackie1021 on January 30, 2013 - 6:08pm

The argument about balancing the sport versus lifestyle aspects (which do as much as any news report to form public perceptions of derby) isn't new. But think about the sports out there that involve wearing wheels or blades on feet or involve all women competitors, and then ask yourself how many times you see those sports outside the Olympics. Would beach volleyball get prime time Olympic coverage if the women didn't compete in bikinis? Would Apollo Anton Ohno have been able to convert his short track skating career into anything that paid the bills if he didn't have actor-like good looks? And has Bones or CSI yet slated an episode around roller dance (actually, CSI has been around forever, so maybe it has)? There are very few sports with the kind of ongoing media interest roller derby seems to aspire to. That derby has the public awareness it does owes a lot to its willingness to embrace its silly side. Take that away and you'll be competing for interest with sports like short track speed skating and women's team volleyball. And while there may be some who would prefer to sacrifice public awareness for more emphasis on the athleticism, I don't think that is yet the majority view.

Something else to think about is that believing an inexperienced person trying roller derby on television makes the sport looks silly ignores the reality that many derby skaters started their journey in the same way. For interested newcomers, inexperience on skates doesn't necessarily make the sport look silly. Rather, it makes it look accessible.

Submitted by Evil_E on January 30, 2013 - 6:15pm

As the person who was the head of PR for the LA Derby Dolls when the league started in 2003 and has gone through many derby media explosions over the years I just wanted to add a little history. Derby has fought to establish itself as a reborn sport and in the years I did head PR for the Dolls I had to explain over and over: it's not scripted, it's all women, there's no wrestling, there's no ball, there's no alligator pit... I could go on. I said no to a lot of requests as we were getting established. The problem was that there is a lot of filming in Los Angeles (duh) and back then we weren't the only game in town, there were the old school derby skaters. Whether they were having games or not they had a track and skaters and they were skating a game we were trying to distance ourselves from. So when a TV producer decided they wanted to do something roller derby-esque we had the option to do it ourselves and try to make it the best representation we could or let it go to the old school league. We worked really hard to establish ourselves as the go-to league with filming and with media. Getting KTLA to promote one of our games over an old school game was a huge victory that personally took me a lot of persuasion and went against years of their history.

It's been a learning process and we have made some mistakes and had some cringe worthy moments. But we have also made steady progress in changing how roller derby is portrayed on TV and film. (Note: If you didn't like 'Whip It' you should have heard about the film another studio was competing to make. Luckily 'Whip It' got of the ground first and the other film died.) Even with the old school league now out of the picture for filming at this time, we still take these TV opportunities to have a hand in how roller derby is shown. I think it's our history that has made us open to using TV as a way to further the image of derby instead of just saying no. And certainly if the L.A. Derby Dolls say no, a production company has the option to find another way to get what they want. Example: we declined to rent our track to an adult film company when they did RollerDollz, so they rented a rink and did a casting call for skaters. And trust me, we could have used the money. Our rent is expensive.

This year will mark a decade for me as part of the Dolls. Over the years I have seen so much progress in how derby is shown in the media that I can only say I am really hopeful about what it will look like in another decade. We will still make mistakes, but we will grow because when we fall down we get back up. I'm sure 10 years ago 'The Bachelor' wouldn't have ended in a free skate, it would have ended in a big brawl between all the girls in the middle of the track. The question is when you have a PR opportunity, what do you do with it? It's a challenge all leagues face: How do you balance giving a TV producer what they need while advancing the sport. We have come a long way already and with the hard work and dedication that is put into the sport the media coverage will continue to get better. We work really hard to educate anyone who contacts us about what the sport is. I have a tremendous amount of respect for all those involved which makes me wish we'd get there faster, but it's already improving.

Submitted by Spookster on January 31, 2013 - 12:47am

10 years in TV production, including sports, news and now sports news. AMA
(Spoiler: the answer will almost always be "news is dumb.")

Having been on media committees/ THE media committee itself, of two different leagues in their infancy, one WFTDA and one rec, sometimes you have to take what you can get just to let people know you're around. Unfortunately that includes reporter-on-skates stories-- the trick is treating derby as a sport at all times instead of just letting them doodle around in skates and pads. When a reporter is making a story a lot of times they'll already have it written out in their head-- they just need to get you to fill in the sound bites. It's up to you to change the direction of the story. Always speak of derby as a sport, always make the danger known. Make them sit on the side while you do a few no-holding-back jams. NO TUTUS.

Tailor your list of media contacts-- neato community volunteer press releases go to news desks, bout press releases go to sports reporters. Don't mix the two. Inundate sports reporters with your bout press releases. And I know I'm a thief of joy, but use your real name/ a professional email address when sending these things. I don't expect anyone in the TV biz to take Spookster seriously-- if I knew nothing of derby after the 70s, I wouldn't take Spookster seriously either. Cue the derby names argument.

Make sure your league has an advertising budget and use it effectively. My favorite part of driving into Philly is the big, beautiful billboards that make derby look and feel like the real deal.

If you have the resources, televise your bouts. Not many of us have this luxury, but the equipment is getting cheaper and more accessible every year, and cable access channels usually have enormous blocks of time to fill. If you can somehow manage to do this, it's gold.

Basically, take the stupid fluff pieces when you're starting off, but start being picky as soon as you can. Treat it like a real sport as much as you can, especially when there's a camera around.

Submitted by Scandalous on January 31, 2013 - 11:06pm

Circle jerkers beware, this is not what a lot of people may want to necessarily hear-

Here goes: Do you want a real reason as to why mainstream press does articles like that? Well, part of the reason could be for "strategy" decisions over the past year plus. You see, once upon a time I got upset about these types of "standardized" viewpoints about the sport... about how much they didn't see the amount of work that went into training and how much guts went with all the glory and the checking and the bruises... but, well then as the years progressed (as I've been a volunteer for LADD for several years and been actively watching/present/wanting to play since the days when Bonnie D was still forming her -now older-league down in San Diego) that disappeared more and more. I noticed how in my early days working and bidding stories for major local online news outlets here in LA how difficult it was to get much more than after game coverage to even be CONSIDERED. Know that once upon a time, these members of the press (albeit fewer and farther in between and less and less now) are your gold.

So why do people seem to put the same angle? Well let's face it-on the track I saw less and less actual skating. The game became boring. All those videos and press doing things mentioned in the article were more and more spot on from outside the box. Why is anyone REALLY surprised here?

@Raw Heidi mentioned sensationalism- at least that would be something more than watching a few ladies in cutesy outfits and fishnets rolling around at a snails pace around a track. But hey, what do reality tv people know right? I mean they want to watch something INTERESTING. They want some sort of conflict. (Perhaps they should do a behind the scenes and then they'd have a TON of usable content.. but I digress)

Let's also look at the numbers. How much has audience attendance dipped since more teams started doing this "strategy" instead of (as I like to call it) skating the f*&k up? Do you really want to see more people coming out to the games beyond those loyal fans that have been coming for years? (Those fans have been dropping with the "strategy" games because no amount of awesome vendors/after party/half time show is going to keep them when players are creeping around at a snails pace on skates) How about you start showing them something more than that. How about YOU reach out to those members of the media and give them something to actually be interested in? Something MORE. Something that, once upon a time, I know existed within derby.

You mentioned "full contact" sport. The last game I attended I was bored and nearly left a quarter into the game because of the absolute lack of ANY contact present it seemed. Hell there wasn't much skating either. Derby was fun a long time ago. It's sad that hasn't been that fun in such a long time.

@Film Fatale mentions that some of the condescending comments from refs and other members might be a turn off for potential aspiring fans... it's the friggin truth. The amount of pure cattiness and elitism that goes on both off and on the scenes is disgusting. It makes someone wonder why anyone should even bother- from fans to volunteers to...

It's something that has crossed my mind at numerous instances throughout the years. It's part of why I have stopped volunteering as much. Of why when I was offered a position to write about derby constantly I declined. It was boring and the magic has been gone for awhile. Nonetheless the friends that I have made through it and those little moments peppered around (more sparingly than when I started becoming active) are why I keep trying. I want to believe so badly that what I saw all those years ago still exists. And then this crap repeats itself again.

But yet again I repeat why people are surprised that this is going on?

One really good example of some awesome coverage on REAL derby was the episode on CMT/MTV's Made. It showed some awesome positive points of nitty gritty derby. It honestly gave me hope that that spark that once drew me to the sport in the first place was still there.

People easily forget how big derby was back in the day. My parents don't really understand why I've gone for several years but my GRANDPARENTS totally get it. It's probably because (even if the inevitable cattiness that is present in ANYTHING that involves groups of females) it was a lot more fun to go and be around people. Saying that derby is "still in its infancy" is not accurate in the slightest. It's had at very minimal, a couple of iterations. The most recent ones haven't really held enough of a draw for people to give a crap beyond what's out there. If you don't like being the "punchline" you're faced with two options: 1)don't go to games/don't play or 2)do something about it to change their minds... perhaps skate the f*&k up and stop being so damn catty and snobby.

/rant off

Submitted by Stab_7 on February 1, 2013 - 12:07pm

"The last game I attended I was bored and nearly left a quarter into the game because of the absolute lack of ANY contact present it seemed. Hell there wasn't much skating either. Derby was fun a long time ago. It's sad that hasn't been that fun in such a long time."

Um, did you watch ANY of Championshsips this past year? No contact?! I don't know who you are watching but the teams I watch have plenty of fast paced, and hard hitting action.

Submitted by Angela Slamsbury on February 1, 2013 - 12:11pm

I think this dude's misogyny totally negates everything he says. Now if you excuse me, I'm going to have a drama-filled catfight with some other ladies, because that's what happens when you get a bunch of women together.

Submitted by Tara Armov on February 2, 2013 - 6:58pm

Did Scandalous say they were at WFTDA Champs? No. They seemed to be talking about a game local to them, I'm guessing.

And they do have a point that scrum starts and passive offense aka the Sausage aka BORRRRRRRRRRRINGGGGGGGG, and therefore it's more difficult to get outsiders invested in a sport that claims to be "full-contact" when there's a lot of the opposite of full-contact going on. If you can't get your friends to show up to a game due to a lack of skating, it's absolutely ridiculous to expect the media to give a single solitary flying fig about it, either. So when the media DOES feature derby, maybe we should all be a little more introspective when we think they don't get it "right". Are they getting it wrong(which certainly happens...hello, CSI), or are the participants showing the wrong angle of the whole picture?

Also, I've come to the conclusion that derby participants are the sports equivalent to new converts of a fundamentalist religious group. There's a lot of talking about how dedicated they are, a lot of sign-holding, and whole helluva lot of contempt for outside opinions and stubborness, which turns off the outsiders and therefore keeps the group on the fringes. That's where modern derby is right now.

Submitted by Spookster on February 1, 2013 - 9:02pm

Stolen from reddit

http://www.examiner.com/article/roller-derby-injury-on-abc-show-the-bach...

Submitted by Hale Yeah on February 1, 2013 - 9:10pm

There are a lot of derby leagues out there with different goals. Some are happy skating for fun and wearing fishnets. They like dressing up and playing up the fun side of derby. There are some teams looking to skate, compete, and win - without any whiff of theatrics. Most teams are in the twain. The sport I think is still too broad in the types of leagues out there to have a one-size-fits-all media plan.

Last year, Yahoo!'s "Puck Daddy" hockey blog had a laugh riot of a few Los Angeles news organizations - who put up the wrong logo for the LA Kings, screwed up names of the players, and more. If the 2nd largest media market in the USA can't even pay attention enough to the 4th largest sport, I think we're all going to have to lower our hopes for reporting on derby for a little while.

The treatments might be repetitive, the over-used catch-phrases and puns may make your groan, but if it gets people interested and have their minds open to the sport, it might be worth it.

But like I said earlier, there are a lot of different leagues out there, and a lot of different goals...

Submitted by marqueedesquad on February 4, 2013 - 10:04am

Just as some bear the point of view that the sport would benefit from rejecting it's current incarnations that are part of it's inevitable evolution, still others recognize the importance of self-identifying when we have over immersed ourselves, become burn-out, and have lost all objectivity. Something tells me that current derby strategy in tournament gameplay has very little to do with the idea of using roller derby as an eye candy/ conflict tool on a reality show.