Who the hell are the London Roller Girls?

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Hot on the heels of a hugely successful resurgence in the United States, the London Roller Girls (LRG) are the first league to bring the new revival of Women’s flat-track roller derby to the UK.

Since our first practice in April of 2006 we have worked hard to bring the grass roots, DIY roller derby to a country largely unfamiliar with it. Through word of mouth promotion, publicity, and fund-raiser events we are proving just how much fun this unique, full-contact sport can be!

The London Roller Girls are a diverse collection of women from different corners of the globe & varied backgrounds. You don’t have to be a tattooed punk-rock chick, or a tanned & athletic sports fanatic, but both girls fit perfectly into the league

We train twice weekly and these sessions are open to any girl 18 years and over who is enthusiastic and has the willingness to learn the game.Training is held in inner East London, on Tuesday evenings and Saturday afternoons (see our website for more details: http://www.londonrollergirls.com/training/) both can be attended on a pay as you go basis at £5 per skate session, or through full membership of £30 dues per month.

Your first session is free!

We also have a limited number of unisex positions, such as referee’s (on and off skates), scorekeepers, announcers, coaches, and general all-hands helpers available.

Many of us didn’t have a clue about Roller Derby until we joined so we’re happy to help teach anyone how to play. It’s the perfect way to have fun and get in shape for women of all different backgrounds, whether you are an accomplished skater or have never done so before. We have girls join up frequently who have little or no skating experience and it’s amazing to see them progress from roller cub to super vixen on wheels!

Most women are tougher than they know, and skating with the LRG is a great way to find this out for yourself!

A roller derby bout is a series of races (called ‘jams’) between two teams of five players. Each team has a jammer, who scores points, three blockers, who try to stop the other team’s jammer and help their own jammer forward, plus a pivot who acts as a pace setter to control the speed of the pack.

Each race is called a jam and lasts up to two minutes. At the referee’s first whistle, the pivots and blockers start to skate around the track in a designated formation. At the second whistle, the jammers have to catch up to the pack, dodge, duck & block their way through to skate past the pivots at the front. No points are scored during the first lap, but the first jammer to make it through is declared lead jammer and scores points for each opposing team member she passes on subsequent laps.

For videos of the roller girls in action, handy FAQ’s plus a whole lot of very helpful information, check out:
www.londonrollergirls.com and www.myspace.com/londonrollergirls

Author: Lady Frankenstein

Photograpghy: Al Overdrive