Throngs...(A large, densely packed crowd of people or animals: "he pushed his way through the throng") not thongs, so get your head out of the gutter or these ladies will slap you silly! They say that three times is the charm and this past Saturday night was my third "experience" with Ladies Roller Derby. The first was watching Kansas City Bombers starring the one and only Raquel Welch as a kid. The second was meeting a girl working at a gin tasting that was in a league in another state.
The game takes place on a basketball-sized court where the players have to skate (on old school roller skates) around and around a pretty tight track. They go by names like Suzy Hotrod, Hyper Lynch, Bimbo Slice and Fisti Cuffs. From what I could figure out two players race each other, which in roller derby means they need to break through the rest of the opposing team trying to block them. Once they make it around once a ref follows them over a two-minute period to make as many rounds as they can while being blocked, hip-checked, pushed, pulled, etc.
The game is split into two halves (there is a halftime show believe it or not – Swing Dancers). The first was kinda slow and it wasn't as aggressive as I expected (wanted). The second half was another story. The home team Manhattan Mayhem was down and came out swinging against the Queens of Pain. Alas it was to be the Queens night.
Now one of the best parts of this event as you may imagine was the crowd. It varied from the fans, friends & lovers of the players to their families that included kids and gentlemen with Roller Derby Dad t-shirts. As tattooed as the players were the crowd was a bit more. They were rather colorful as well personality wise i.e. shouting out at one point to the Queens of Pain "Get back on the 7!!!" They really seemed into it and my friends and I got caught up in it when it picked up the second half. Make no mistake. These ladies are athletes and good ones. Suzy Hotrod was a standout and would give most men a run for their money if not an outright beating on most fields of play. For something different and fun check out the upcoming schedule on the Gotham Girls website.
Of special note, do not show up at the event "heavy." You have to go through metal detectors and a slew of well-armed officers. Not for nothing, but who goes to see Ladies Roller Derby "heavy" in the first place?
Manhattan Mayhem plays at the Hunter College Sport Complex on 68th St. and Lexington Ave.
The game takes place on a basketball-sized court where the players have to skate (on old school roller skates) around and around a pretty tight track. They go by names like Suzy Hotrod, Hyper Lynch, Bimbo Slice and Fisti Cuffs. From what I could figure out two players race each other, which in roller derby means they need to break through the rest of the opposing team trying to block them. Once they make it around once a ref follows them over a two-minute period to make as many rounds as they can while being blocked, hip-checked, pushed, pulled, etc.
The game is split into two halves (there is a halftime show believe it or not – Swing Dancers). The first was kinda slow and it wasn't as aggressive as I expected (wanted). The second half was another story. The home team Manhattan Mayhem was down and came out swinging against the Queens of Pain. Alas it was to be the Queens night.
Now one of the best parts of this event as you may imagine was the crowd. It varied from the fans, friends & lovers of the players to their families that included kids and gentlemen with Roller Derby Dad t-shirts. As tattooed as the players were the crowd was a bit more. They were rather colorful as well personality wise i.e. shouting out at one point to the Queens of Pain "Get back on the 7!!!" They really seemed into it and my friends and I got caught up in it when it picked up the second half. Make no mistake. These ladies are athletes and good ones. Suzy Hotrod was a standout and would give most men a run for their money if not an outright beating on most fields of play. For something different and fun check out the upcoming schedule on the Gotham Girls website.
Of special note, do not show up at the event "heavy." You have to go through metal detectors and a slew of well-armed officers. Not for nothing, but who goes to see Ladies Roller Derby "heavy" in the first place?
Manhattan Mayhem plays at the Hunter College Sport Complex on 68th St. and Lexington Ave.
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