The OC Roller Girls are ready for their annual ‘Love Hurts’ derby Saturday — and yes, they’ve all signed their waivers.
By Michael Miller Updated:
Genny Davis will be giddy with excitement when she hits the rink for the first time Saturday. With any luck, she’ll be conscious when she leaves.
The Orange Coast College student and professional dog walker recently joined the OC Roller Girls, a roller-derby league that competes twice a month, and the danger signals were there from the start. In one of the first games she attended, one player shattered her ankle and another injured her back. Her most recent practice scrimmage sent contestants home with an injured knee, a bruised tailbone and a split lip, at least.
Then there was the first practice she attended after joining the league, which officially bore the title Fresh Meat. Davis, a Laguna Beach resident, has no illusions about roller derby being a polite sport. But after four months of honing her skills and enjoying the Roller Girls’ camaraderie, she’s OK with taking a spill or two.
“I could barely skate at one point, and now I’m so much faster and so much stronger than I used to be four months ago,” said Davis, who plays blocker for the Back Bay Bombshells under the pseudonym Darla DeVill. “And that’s a great feeling. I’ve heard people talk about a runner’s high, but there’s a skater’s high, too.”
Starting a league from scratch
Saturday’s contest between two OC Roller Girls teams, the Bombshells and the Huntington Heartbreakers, is the league’s second home game of the year. Roller derby pits two teams of five against each other, with one player on each side, known as the jammer, trying to score points by skating past the four opposing blockers. The team with the most points at the final buzzer wins.
To those who play the sport, it’s a passion. But Heather Shelton, who founded Roller Girls in 2006, has more experience in the boardroom than on the rink.
A decade ago in Tuscon, Ariz., she was a fan of the local roller derby team, but couldn’t sign up because she was in graduate school and lacked health insurance. Upon moving to Orange County a few years back, she attended an L.A. Derby Dolls show and loved it — except for the commute.
“On the drive home, I figured, ‘I’ve got to do this myself,’” Shelton said.
While working by day as an administrator for Opera Pacific, the Long Beach resident obtained a business license and placed an ad on Craigslist seeking roller derby players and coaches. The league has now grown to nearly 100 members.
‘We do it all for love’
The rosters of the Roller Girls, who play home games at the Rinks in Huntington Beach, draw from a wide range of the community. The only requirements are that players be 18 or older and have health insurance. Upon signing up, members sign a waiver releasing the league from liability and join one of the committees — charity, ticket sales and so on — that run and promote the matches.
Philanthropy is a major part of Shelton’s organization, which she runs on top of her regular job for the nonprofit Breast Cancer Angels. The Roller Girls pick a charitable cause for each event, with $1 from each ticket Saturday going to the Assistance League of Fullerton. The title of the contest, in honor of Valentine’s Day, is Love Hurts.
Every month except July and December, the Roller Girls play one home game at the Rinks and one away game, often flying to other states to compete.
Players must pass a skills test and a written rules test to qualify for one of the teams. The matches are homemade affairs, as Shelton and the committees order T-shirts, line up chairs and even lug in portable toilets on occasion.
“We do it all for love,” Shelton said. “None of us get paid.”
A sorority for tough sisters
Davis, who found out two weeks ago that she was on the roster for “Love Hurts,” is heading toward her first match with a mix of joy and nerves. Since getting the news, she said, she’s been asking teammates to help her practice hitting and blocking — and studying on the side.
“I’ve been looking up YouTube videos, because I’m still getting the hang of the rules,” Davis said. “Once you’re in the game, it’s hard to remember everything because there’s so much going on.”
For all its rough-and-tumble nature, part of what players love about roller derby is the bonding.
Lycia Mick, a fellow Back Bay Bombshell who’s also making her debut Saturday, said her teammates were welcoming and encouraging during her first practice — at least, when they weren’t knocking her down.
“It’s a great team to be a part of,” said Mick, a manager for Disneyland Resort who has two teenage children.
The sport, Davis said, has allowed her to make friends with women her mother’s age, plus others of different cultures and economic backgrounds. It’s an unusual sisterhood, but Davis treasures the diversity.
“There’s got to be something in common among all of us, because we all chose this sport,” she said.
If You Go
What: The OC Roller Girls’ “Love Hurts” roller derby
Where: The Rinks, 5555 McFadden Ave., Huntington Beach
When: 7 p.m. Saturday
Tickets: $12 to $17
Information: (877) 623-3729 or www.ocrollergirls.com
