Excellent talk with Bonnie. I feel the same way she feels about derby. We’ll miss you in SoCal, love.

I’ve got a few things to add to the discussion of this episode. Bonnie mentioned a coach that helped train the LA Derby Dolls in their early days. That coach is Brian Gallagher, also known as Coach Blade. I bring this up because he is currently training skaters in a new banked track league in Oxnard, CA, the Sugartown Rollergirls. As I understand it, Sugartown is almost done getting their banked track together. After OCRG gets their track up, there will be no less than four banked track leagues in SoCal. Be jealous.

What’s more, Sugartown is starting to recruit men. Not for reffing or volunteering, but for skating on teams and playing the game legit. This means that Sugartown will soon have the first and only men’s banked track league in the world that I am aware of. I’m going to start doing fresh meat with them in the new year, so I am BEYOND stoked to not only start playing derby, but do it on the banked track. Holy shit. HOLY SHIT.

Oh, and back in episode 33, at the beginning of the show when you folks got that call about finding motivation to skate from Heather? She’s my best friend, and is already training with Sugartown. If things go the way I want I’ll be skating with her, being coached by the same guy who coached the budding LA Derby Dolls.

The bigger the derby world gets, the smaller it gets.

That is one of the few photos of Bonnie D. Stroir I have seen where she is not smiling

Thanks Tara for filling in for me! I’m getting a bit addicted to the 4loko…SIKE. I could never get enough of the yumminess that is 4loko. And yes, I am saving a few for the boys in February, don’t worry!

Nice work Derby Deeds. I’m down for Christmas Banked track action next year. I’ll bring the 4loko.

SHARKASAURUS FOR LIFE!

Thank you so much for the Bonnie interview. Personally, I skate for the Sac City Rollers, a flat track league here in Sacramento. Even though flat track is all I know of derby, I have to agree with Bonnie. I believe that when roller derby goes pro – and it will – it will start with the banked track for no other reason but the production value. But, we all should keep in mind that what’s good for banked is good for flat, and vice versa. It’s all progress for the sport as a whole, and it is truly exciting! I so look forward to the future of Roller Derby!

Much love,

Magnolia

we???? obsessed with Derby? NOooooooooooooo
HAHAHAHAHAH

only 24/7!

cant wait to have Bonnie here and
againnnnnn
thanks to everyone that is helping Brazilian Derby!!!!!

Hola gang! On behalf of Portland Men’s Roller Derby, I wanted to thank you all for the mention of this most recent episode. I’m unsure if it had been included by Capt. Obvious but our league is gunning to complete the requirements to join the MDC. Last week’s scrimmage w/ Lane County Concussion was both leagues’ first step towards this goal. We’re working on next scrimmaging Puget Sound Outcast Derby and competing at Wild West Showdown! See you there!

An extra long edition of Derby Deeds! I loved the discussion about the DNN poll & the interview with Bonnie. I know she is going to bring good things to Humboldt she she starts skating there.
But as I was sitting here in Friday listening to the podcast, about half way thru I was thinking maybe Pitch It should change his name to Bitch It! I swear I never thought he was going to stop. Now I love a good banked track game. I watch all the LADD/SDDD bouts that get broadcast. I even was watching the DD’s Championship during the middle of a WFTDA graduation party. While everyone else was drinking, dancing, getting all crazy I was watching the bout with a line of adult drinks & a laptop in front of me. Passing up celebrating finally making your goal after 4 long years of hard work to watch a banked track game shows either you love derby in 3D or you’re a litte nuts. That said there is no way I would pick just ANY banked track bout over a good flat track bout. Be honest Pitch It, you wouldn’t either. Just taking at random, if you had a choice at the same time of watching Reno Rollergirls vs Grand Strand Roller Girls on the bank or RMRG vs Philly in a flat track bout, there is no way you would watch the banked bout. Or at least no sane person who didn’t have a vested interest in the one of the two banked track teams would. In reverse, I wouldn’t watch Hellions of Troy vs Mission City if I could watch LADD vs TXRD on the bank in a WORD rules bout.* I love flat track because that is what my league does and there are so many amazing skaters & amazing teams out there. I loved banked track because it’s derby but different from what I see all the time. Plus there aren’t 600 leagues doing it so each bout feels like it’s a bit special. Most people (myself included) are going to watch the best bout, not just a bout that sticks to our prefered way of playing even if that bout isn’t going to be a high caliber affair.

As for Sharkey’s pic. I don’t know if I would have put it in either. But one reason he might have (and like you I haven’t talked to him) is the response it got when he posted it on Flickr. It got a lot of positive comments and a lot of favorites from other derby photographers. Sometimes a great photo isn’t about having everything in focus, great depth of field or the other things that you hear makes a great image. Sometimes it is just a little luck & the feeling it brings out when you look at it. “Cool! Neat! Wow! How the &$^% did she do that? Go Tanny!” Any of those seem like they fit that picture? It is just a nifty picture and I would have put it in the top 10 of the year if only because it just has that “It” factor. I fairness though I voted for Axle’s “Shadow Ref” pic as the best of the year.

OK, that’s all. I’ll be waiting to see if I end up with one less friend on Facebook now.

*BTW, the teams I picked for the “not as good bouts” were done at random from teams that are not as well known in their respective style of play as others. I have not seen any of them in action. They could be just starting out or they could be the next Oly Rollers waiting to shock the derby world.

Vicorp :
Be honest Pitch It, you wouldn’t either. Just taking at random, if you had a choice at the same time of watching Reno Rollergirls vs Grand Strand Roller Girls on the bank or RMRG vs Philly in a flat track bout, there is no way you would watch the banked bout. Or at least no sane person who didn’t have a vested interest in the one of the two banked track teams would. In reverse, I wouldn’t watch Hellions of Troy vs Mission City if I could watch LADD vs TXRD on the bank in a WORD rules bout.

Sorry Vicorp, I thought I was clear on that point. I too would pick the best team match up. The point that I was trying to make is that if all things are equal, people would rather watch and/or play banked.
You aren’t losing my friendship. I am glad to have smart, knowledgeable people to talk roller derby with.
Yeah, I get to play the part of the asshole on the show. You would be surprised how much activity me being a dickhead stirs up. Problem is that I am willing to be honest on that level and some people don’t like it. I still respect that shit out of our listeners, like you, who understand that differing opinions make the world go round.

Hahahaha… “Bitchit”… that’s pretty funny! Way to take that criticism and spin it into awesome Pitchit!

Really? White Snake is lame. Stick with AC-DC. (WFT is Warrant?)