Roller derby gives Sumner moms a chance to blow off steam
Jun 18 2008
Everyone has their own recipe for stress relief.
For the ladies of the Dockyard Derby Dames roller derby squad it’s a combination of the bumps, bruises and tumbling falls they take as they skate that provides relief.
Most of the girls – including Sumner moms Sarah Lynch and Melanie Robinson – are raising families and holding down day jobs. But they also harbor a hunger for the serene brutality that comes with their weekend roller derby bouts, where anything is possible in a physically demanding league comprised of four teams battling for state supremacy and bragging rights.
The sport itself involves two teams of skaters, rolling in formation around a track as they try to score points by passing the opposing team.
Skaters, with positions such as blockers, jammers and pivots, try to stop the opposing team from scoring by physically denying them egress through bodily contact.
The Tacoma league is made up of the Hellbound Homewreckers, Femme Fiannas, Marauding Mollys and Trampires and competes at the Tacoma Soccer Center.
Lynch, whose derby name is “Cookies,” grew up speed skating in Puyallup and Sumner, eventually finding her spot with the Homewreckers nearly two years ago in her first roller derby stint.
Playing for the Dockyard Derby Dames brought Lynch back to her childhood when she laced on the skates for the first time.
Her derby number is OU812, which actually originates from classic rock band Van Halen’s eighth album released in 1988 and not related to her derby name. Lynch said the name itself came courtesy of a friend.
Lynch said she gets especially motivated for bouts with squads from neighboring regions.
This past Saturday, the Homewreckers faced the Lilac City Roller Girls from Spokane in a bout hosted by the Marauding Mollys.
Femme Fianna also faced the Trampires in the third bout of the season.
“I wouldn’t say we go easy on each other when we play internally, but it’s way more competitive when you bring in an outside team. They want to win,” Lynch said. “It’s talked about more in the derby community among other roller derby leagues in the area, so that definitely motivates you and pumps you up.”
For Robinson, whose derby handle is “Rita Beata Maid,” it’s just her first year in derby. She said she tried out for the Dockyard Derby Dames this past November and is now the co-captain of the Femme Fianna squad.
Robinson found satisfaction with the active lifestyle that comes with the sport, which pushes her to stay physically fit. Robinson, a Sumner native, also found the sport to be a good match with her aggressive persona.
“It was amazing just to see the physical prowess of the women out there,” Robinson said. “I’ve always been kind of rough and tumble, and it captures the imagination. It’s like no other sport.”
Robinson took careful consideration when choosing a skate name, which she compared to picking a wedding dress. For inspiration she looked to one of her favorite bands, the Beatles. Her love of the song “Lovely Rita Meter Maid,” led to a catchy derby name when announcers introduce her at bouts.
“It had a ring to it,” Robinson said. “I felt at home with a little bit of a tough name and being called Rita didn’t sound too bad.”
Kyndall “Vitamin V” Bayard never conjured the idea that she would compete in such a league until this past December at a Christmas party. Bayard has lived in Auburn for several years and skated since adolescence. The league scrimmages at the Auburn Skate Connection, where Bayard has known the rink owner for as long as she’s been skating. But it was her children’s skating coach who sparked the interest into roller derby.
The introduction led to a tryout this past February, but Bayard still doubted whether she was cut out to take her skating potential to a new level. She knew a number of skaters in the more violent league in Seattle (known as Rat City), but her skepticism vanished the second she practiced and connected with a flurry of new friends and teammates on the Hellbound Homewreckers.
“It wasn’t my thing,” Bayard said of her first impression. “I got there and the girls were super great, I’ve made so many new friends and the league is just awesome, and I love it.”
Bayard works in a pharmacy at a local Auburn hospital while raising three children. The pharmacy uses “Vitamin V” as codename for the drug known as Viagra, and her number is 12 inches, thus her official skate name was assigned in the good humor attached to the blue pill.
Bayard’s children attend each bout, and think the world of their mother and the sport.
“My kids love it,” Bayard said. “They think it’s the coolest thing ever.”
Kassandra “Franky Bones” McElwain has been a part of the league since its creation three years ago and has been skating for 17 years. Her mom previously worked for a company that owned the TLC Family Skating Center in Kent, so McElwain took advantage of the access by skating for hours at a time.
McElwain, who grew up in Covington and now lives in Bonney Lake, competes for the Mollys and received her nickname from her husband’s military friends.
She said she was able to find solace at the rink when her husband spent a year in Iraq..
She said she was teased by others for having an infatuation with roller skating, but couldn’t care less.
Her long tenure with roller skating eventually led to her the roller derby.
“I know I’ve been skating for this long for something, so I may as well put it to good use,” McElwain said. “I found my niche, it was like a match made in heaven.”
The Dockyard Derby Dames are in their second season. Each squad sends its top derby stars to represent the Dockyard Derby Dames on July 12 in San Diego, California. The four teams within the league also have at least one Saturday per month where they compete at home.
The Dockyard Derby Dames’ next bout is July 26 at the Soccer Center in Tacoma, with the fifth bout following on August 23.
Tryouts for the roller derby league will take place on June 22 at the Auburn Skate Connection.
For more information visit their Web site at www.dockyardderbydames.com.
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