Ladies on Skates

Rolling With Tacoma’s Dockyard Derby Dames

PLAYING BY THE RULES Each team has five skaters on the track — one pivot, three blockers and a jammer. The pivot sets the pace of the pack, which is made up of the blockers. The jammers start behind the pack and score points by passing opposing team members. The match is split into two periods, and each period contains several “jams.” A jam may last a few seconds to two minutes, depending on the action.    A jam starts when the referee blows the whistle. The pivots and blockers start skating, and the pack must always stay within 20 feet of each other. Then the whistle blows again, and the jammers attempt to make it through the pack and become “lead jammer,” scoring a point for each opposing team member passed. The team with the most points at the end of the second period wins.  » Dockyard Derby Dames

For most, the words “roller derby” evokes mental images of the campy, objectifying, dramatized fad from last century. The term has been around for about 100 years, although the derby heyday was from the 1950s-70s, primarily because it was a spectacle of fabricated, pseudo-athletic hijinks similar to pro wrestling.

But modern roller derby ditches the renaissance act and instead boasts community-centric leagues and a vibrant and diverse look loosely based upon a punk aesthetic.  And it’s building a staggering national momentum. This grassroots derby craze elicited a local manifestation that thrives upon athleticism, teamwork and a community rich with culture and camaraderie. Meet the Dockyard Derby Dames, some of the South Sound’s fiercest wheeled tempests around.

 “It is the best hobby ever, extremely addicting and entirely empowering. Many roller girls claim that roller derby has changed their lives. For me personally, it has put me in the best physical shape of my life, has given me a whole group of new friends, and also given me a stronger sense of self-confidence on and off the court,” said Lisa “Paula Bunian” Huguely, co-captain of the league champion Trampires.

The Dockyard Derby Dames (DyDD) was formed in 2005 by a band of local ladies with varying levels of experience. As the women became better skaters and closer friends, the derby revival rubbed off on them, prompting the formation of Tacoma’s original all-female flat track roller derby league.

 “(The league founders) trained hard to build skills as skaters,” says Melanie “Rita Beat-a Maid” Robinson, co-captain of The Femme Fiannas. “Then they had to work to build up DyDD as an organization capable of handling all of the league’s business: putting on large-scale events, being active and involved in our community, promoting events, fundraising, developing an all-star team, traveling to away games, recruiting new skaters, refs and coaches.”

Their hard work paid off. The league now boasts four fully-functioning teams, packs Tacoma’s Soccer Center for matches (called bouts), and has become a local sensation. The league is governed entirely by members, paid for by monthly dues, sponsorships and ticket sales, and provides the hardest-hitting sports action Tacoma has to offer. The contact and competition between the dames is ferocious.

The bouts mesh a frenzy of sports action with a diverse atmosphere of wholesome counter-culture that attracts a dizzying assortment of Puget Sound residents. Veteran fans come equipped with lawn chairs and blankets, and sit as close as possible to the track, risking a player landing in their lap. Others observe the action from the bird’s-eye perspective of the beer garden, sipping two-dollar tallboys. Many simply meander through the festival, soaking in some of the best people watching south of Seattle’s Pike Place Market.     

Whatever a fan’s perspective may be, a derby bout is a sensory overload, and once the booming announcements commence and the men who rarely succeed at being humorous finish introducing their respective teams, the action begins.

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