South Shore Roller Derby league growing every year
VALPARAISO, Ind. — Introducing the South Shore Roller Derby (SSRD), our local Roller Derby league, courtesy of league members Casanova Crush, Cassidee Jacobsen, and league president Ellen Kapitan (aka El Kapitan).
Roller Derby is a contact sport where two opposing teams with players on roller skates face off against each other in games made up of a series of 2 minute “jams” that make up two 30 minute halves. Each team fields five skaters, four blockers and a jammer. The jammer is the point scorer and gets one point per opposing blocker that she passes. Blockers simultaneously try to prohibit the opposing team’s jammer from gaining points by passing them as well as get their own jammer through the pack. After each jam, a different group of 5 skaters gets on the track and waits for the start of the next jam. Derby games, called bouts, also rely heavily on referees to make calls like high block, back block or a directional for example. Referees also work with non-skating officials to call times, track scores and track penalties. The sport is very physical, and scores can also vary tremendously. Some games stay in double digits, while others see scores above 300.
Founded in 2013 as the South Shore Roller Girls, the team joined the Women’s Flat Track Derby Association (WFTDA) in 2016. As a WFTDA member, they play sanctioned games that rank them within all the participating leagues. Currently there are over 300 leagues from all across the globe. In 2021 South Shore Roller Girls changed their name to South Shore Roller Derby in an effort to be more inclusive of the community they serve. Team member Casanova Crush’s favorite part about being on the team is the range of backgrounds and walks of life team members come from, drawn together by the love of derby! COVID forced the team and league to pause for over a year, but they got back on “track” in 2022 and successfully used the past season to rebuild, get their skates back on, and actively recruit. They now have the largest team they have ever had, bringing in 18 new skaters during spring recruitment and nearly doubling the team’s size. This has given them a lot of positive, motivating energy. Their 2022 home games in Crown Point and Valparaiso also saw record attendance. If you are interested in seeing roller derby in action, come to a game! SSRD’s 2023 home games are March 11 at Civic Center in Hammond, June 24 at Bull Dog Park in Crown Point, and September 16 at Urschel Pavilion in Valparaiso. If you are interested in learning more about playing roller derby, SSRD will hold recruitment events at New Vistas High School in Portage on February 14 and 21.
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