Sunday night I witnessed some of the most entertaining Roller Derby I’ve ever seen: the 2007 CT Roller Girls Championship. The Iron Angels met the Widowmakers for one final showdown. Hundreds of fans came to show their support and the ring was overflowing with excitement - the Iron Angles had come back from a 0-2 season start, the Widowmakers had endured consistent success throughout the season. This would be one for the history books.

The girls came out sporting new uniforms: The Iron angels in short gray military skirts, the Widowmakers in short black and purple skirts - fishnets optional.

The bout started in the typical fashion: introductions, intense rock music, and a derby how to. Once the formalities were out of the way, the girls got down to business.

Iron Angel Pearl Jammer and Widowmaker Black Cherry started the bout. Both teams were putting their best out front. Pearl was followed by Pam Terror… Black Cherry by Slick Shoes. The Angels took an early, dominating lead. Despite this, Black Cherry continued to inspire awe with her ability to drop her shoulder and lurch into her opponents. Some say her shoulder is extremely sharp, and judging by the force with which the Iron Angels were hitting the floor, I would believe them.

The Widowmakers fell into a bit of trouble at the end of the first period - widowmakers were getting hurt. Black Cherry took a fall - she winced getting up - but she still continued skating for the rest of the jam. When the whistle blew she noticeably slowed and collapsed in front of her team’s bench. Her ankle was shot. She would need some rest time before coming back out to Jam.

Roller Girls wait for the jam to Start

The second period started much like the first with Pearl, Pam Terror, and Dead End Allie dominating the jams. The Widowmakers sent in Miz Con SepJen to pull in points for their team. At one point as Miz flew around the ring she slammed into an Iron Angel and went careening out of the ring and straight into a referee. The ref, Johnny Arson, was thrown backwards over the penalty bench where he buckled into a heap on the floor. The crowd exploded in cheers.

The score after the second period.

The Widowmakers were trailing heavily… but something changed in the third period. Suddenly the mood was a bit more vicious and more playful at the same time. Widowmaker Peekaboom was aggressive like I’ve never seen. Girls were getting smashed out of the ring left and right. At one point the fans pulled back in fear as lead jammer Pyroclastic Pistol was clobbered by the rejuvenated Black Cherry and rolled violently out of the ring into the crowd… all the while tapping her hips repeatedly to strategically end the jam.

Band KissKiss performs at the Intermission. Note the sweet Les Paul guitar.

The Widowmakers continued to struggle against the Angels. The girls in black and purple were working a few new strategies mainly… hold back Angel Pearl Jammer. Pearl was cleaning up. She’d averaged about 35 points or so per game for the season, and Sunday night was no different. Two thirds of the way through the third period Widowmaker Miz Con SepJen got in front of Pearl and skated with a wide stance, swerving slightly, keeping Pearl at bay. After some success she even began to taunt Pearl, shaking her booty mockingly in Pearl’s face. The crowd cheered.

But Pearl proved patient. She waited, and waited, and in a manner that us mortals will never understand, Pearl was suddenly in a full sprint! She snaked through her opponents as if it were child’s play. Pearl can skate. That’s for certain.

When the final buzzer rang the Iron Angels had 110 points to the Widowmaker’s 46.

The Iron Angels Won! The Iron Angels are the 2007 CT Roller Derby Champions!!

(photo by Slim Fast/Megan Moss Freeman)

As the team gathered for their photos with the Roller Cup (and the CT roller girl cheerleaders shown in front), the MC’s asked who would be the MVP. All at once the girls started chanting “PEARL PEARL PEARL PEARL!”

The cup was passed to Pearl Jammer who raised it high above her head. The applause from the crowd was deafening.
It was a powerful moment of Derby.

The Iron Angels did indeed dominate. Pearl, Dead End Allie, and Pam Terror were the top scoring jammers with 35, 24, and 20 points respectively. Pearl’s dominance was further evident in that she pulled off lead jammer status in 11 of the 15 bouts in which she jammed (amazing!). Miz Con SepJen and Black Cherry were the high scorers for the Widowmakers and Peekaboom won the ‘most aggressive’ award with an amazing 8 trips to the penalty box. EIGHT!

Yes, Sunday night was some of the best Derby I’ve witnessed. But the end of the season doesn’t mean the end of the entertainment. On December 9th the Long Island Roller Rebels will be coming to CT to feel the wrath of the CT Roller Girls Stepford Sabotage.

Let me know if you’d like to come! It’s going to be amazing.

hey guys!

Things have been really interesting. Work is plowing forward like a steamroller. It’s aggressive and each week has me with a to-do list that rivals the Iliad in its monstrosity. Home life has been mostly guitar and school work. I need to jump back on the fitness train with kung fu, climbing, and lifting. Unfortunately classes have also been heavy. I have a bunch of papers that I need to write within the next two weeks and it’ll probably end up getting messy.

The fun side of life has also been super. This past weekend was great. After all sorts of classes, I hit up Irene’s party dressed up as nunchucks

There was also some sick roller derby which will be recapped in the features section either later tonight or tomorrow.

“In Economics they say there’s no such thing as a free lunch. But sometimes you may not realize you have a lunch. or you’re throwing your lunch away. When you can reclaim that lunch… it looks and feels a lot like a free lunch.”

Jim Stodder