Archive for February, 2010

February 28th, 2010 | Posted in Recap

WHEW!!! ARRG FINISHES UP BUSY FEBRUARY!

Public Comments on St. Louis’ Hottest Athletic Alternative

by The Grand Poobah

This was a relatively quiet week here at the news section. Considering all that’s been going on the first two months of 2010, a little break was well-welcomed.

It also gives us a chance to reflect on the momentum that the league has built in a relatively short amount of time.

After only three home bouts, our league attendance has seen unprecedented numbers. After our ARRG All-Star battle vs. Milwaukee on February 20, this year’s total attendance has exceeded 3,000 spectators. This number is especially rewarding considering the unknown variable associated with “travel bouts,” where the visiting team usually results in only a couple dozen strong.

Advance tickets sales have also exceeded prior numbers. It used to be in the past that the person who had potentially the easier workload on bout night was the individual in charge of “will call” tickets. That is no longer the case. Need a second opinion? Ask Stunt Devil blocker Deathica Steele, who had to transact order upon order of online ticket sales at the ARRG/Milwaukee bout.

This is encouraging for ARRG. With four more home interleague bouts, the local championship bout, one more All-Star match-up that features a double header, and a two-day mini-tournament scheduled for August, it is quite possible that ARRG’s attendance in 2010 could reach that magical “10,000″ mark.

10K in 2K10…who would have imagined that five years ago?

It’s a huge task – but we, thanks to your help, are up to the challenge. And we welcome every moment of it.

Besides, we’re used to being busy. In February alone – aside from three bouts – ARRG raised money at the St. Louis Walk for Wishes and shook cans for Heat Up-St. Louis. In other words, it was business as usual.

March will see a double-dip of derby action that will no doubt continue the trend. First, the ARRG All-Stars travel to Atlanta on March 13 to battle the Dirty South Derby Girls. Look for more on that match-up next Monday in the news section.

Then the following weekend in ARRG interleague action, defending champions the Stunt Devils return after a two-month layoff to battle the Smashinistas on Saturday, March 20 at the All-American Sports Mall.bout-matchup-320

Last bout, the Smashies almost pulled off the comeback against the M80s. The ladies in cammo acquired a veteran skater from Texas that made an immediate impact and a high-scoring jammer with spectacles brought an unexpected scoring pop. Look for the Pretty Princesses to have another trick up their sleeves heading into the 3/20 showdown.

The Stunts, meanwhile, coasted to their season opening win. With an already deep line-up filled with veterans, “Las Demonias Stunt” execute with one speed: full-throttle. I don’t anticpate anything less in three weeks.

Conversely, a Smashie win results in a three-way tie in the league.

So many “what if’s” will be answered…I can’t wait!

You and your friends will want to get there early. The night’s action has a special start time of 7 pm…and for good cause.

Prior to the ARRG interleague match-up, there’s the debut of The STLGatekeepers – St. Louis’ first-ever men’s flat track roller derby franchise – as they battle the Race City Rebels of Indianapolis, IN. Just like ARRG, the fellas have been just as active in promoting their sport – and fundraisers, such as THIS shindig this Saturday night at Lemmons in St. Louis.

I could go on and on (and stretch and stretch the word count of this column) with what one could expect for the humble cost of $10.

But you don’t need me to shill the product…although I will unashamed. You could spend a little bit of leisure time looking up “Arch Rival Roller Girls” in search engines to see fan reviews.

But a few words of advice, you’re probably better off searching the league’s full name rather than the acronym.

A Google search of “ARRG” resulted in an opening entry of – unfortunately – an amateur radio relay group based out of Portland, Oregon. And although one understands its relevance in the world of emergency communication, it’s still unusual to believe that ham radio still has an existence in the tech-savvy world we live in. Think about it, when’s the last time you went out and bought a manual typewriter, likewise used one?

By the way, the radio repeater on Portland’s South Saddle Mountain at 147.320 MHz is up and running quite splendidly.

But by even utilizing the league’s full name, the search for St. Louis derby reviews can be a bit of a challenge. A simple search of “Arch Rival Roller Girls” on Yahoo! netted 277,000 results. The further addition of the name “Enya Nightmare” onto that search funneled the entries down to only around 8,900.

So after a little Poobah sweat-equity, these recent blog testimonials from the Internetz will hopefully make you look forward to the 3/20 doubleheader – and tempt those that are straddling the fence…

“Action is non-stop once the game begins. Timeouts are short and play resumes quickly after each scoring period. I’m a bit fuzzy on all of the scoring rules, but with jammers and blockers and people being knocked flat, it’s a good time. Bonus: Signing language interpreters were provided.”

“I’ve been wanting to check out the Arch Rival Roller Girls for a few years now. They are my new heroes. I wish I had the wheels (note: what i really want to say is b*lls) to do that!”

“I am in awe of these women; they are incredible athletes. Not only can they skate at a 5 lap/55 second pace, they have the skills, focus and strength it takes to stay upright amidst blocks, grabs and pushes during each jam.”

“These ladies can skate like pros…they skate fast and hard. I’m pretty sure they have all mastered the art of mental toughness as well as being in great shape. Get out and support these women at their next bout, it’s an action packed sporting event you won’t want to miss!”

“The Arch Rival Roller Girls – these ladies kick some a** on roller skates. Lots of fun and well worth the $10 ticket price.”

“I took the president of my company to (an ARRG) roller derby bout. He had a really terrific time, and he even plans to make it to future events.”

“On Saturday night we ventured out into the cold winter night in search of excitement. We found the excitement we were looking for in the form of the Arch Rival Roller Girls. Though no one in our unit had much knowledge of the history or regulations of Roller Derby we were quite pleased to experience this fun, fast paced, and at times befuddling sport. The venue was nice, the presentation of the sport was quite polished and included jeer leaders, mascots, and a very well done and helpful play by play.” (Poobah’s Note: No, that did not come from my momma…Shaddap!)

“These girls put the power in girl power. I’m so impressed (and a little scared). Roller derby is a tough sport, definitely not for the faint of heart.”

“It’s no longer a spectacle to watch a bunch of fully-grown women skating in circles while they try to knock each other out of the way…It’s a true sporting event.”

“It seems that everybody comes out for these competitions. Young, old. Conservative, Liberal. It’s nice to see people of all walks of life coming out to watch a fun, fast-paced, action-packed event.”

And perhaps the most-unconventional write-up…

“Mustached Americans dig chicks. We especially dig chicks that dig mustaches. And chicks on wheels who dig mustaches — Good Lord! One group of hot, dirty, and relatively delicious chicks who have great appreciation for people of Mustached American descent is the The Smashinistas, a team in the St. Louis based all-female roller derby league ARRG. They are such lovers of the “lip sweater” that the team quasi-mascot is a mustache — Smashie Stachie. That does not suck. “

So put it all together: two bouts for the price of one, free admission for the kiddos under 10, an after-party upstairs at The Upper Deck for those 21 and over, plus the usual array of contest, raffles and the sharing of derby goodwill amongst us all…what more could one ask for?

Is this what March Madness is supposed to be all about?standings-after-two-for-march-columns

When not lamenting on the USA’s 3-2 OT loss in the men’s hockey gold medal game at the Winter Olympics, The Grand Poobah and Hells LaBelle are bout announcers for the 2010 season of the Arch Rival Roller Girls. Check back in this section on Mondays for the latest in ARRG news and information.

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February 21st, 2010 | Posted in Bouts

ARRG ALL-STARS LEFT BRUISED BY BREW CITY

MILWAUKEE’S VOLTAGE SPARKS WIN – LOCALS DROP TO 1-1

by The Grand Poobah

(ST. LOUIS, MO) In a battle of unbeatens, a jammer in gold left ARRG Nation in a state of shock.

Brew Citys High D. Voltage

High D. Voltage

Thanks to a 50+ point performance by jammer High D. Voltage, the Brew City Bruisers defeated the Arch Rival Roller Girls’ All-Stars 120-65 in WFTDA-sanctioned action Saturday night in front of 900 at the All-American Sports Mall.

Heading into the bout, both squads had posted lopsided victories in their respective season openers. ARRG was looking to carry the momentum from last week’s 172-92 win over Memphis into Saturday’s clash. A second consecutive win against a solid opponent from the Midwest would get the locals off to a flying start early in 2010.

The Bruisers, however, were able to shut the door on the ladies in pink from the onset. Their main mission was to take control of the contest by focusing their attention on ARRG jammer Artemischief, last year’s league scoring champion.

A defensive plan of attack was in the mindset of Brew City – silencing one of ARRG’s most prolific scorers could potentially provide the catalyst for a victory.

“We knew that Artemischief is a really dangerous jammer,” Voltage said following the win. “We knew that we needed to shut her down in order to be successful. No hard feelings, nothing personal, but that’s what we did.”

Indeed. The Bruisers held Artemischief to 12 points for the evening and effectively left the pink and black attack reeling against the ropes all bout long.

With their 55-point win, Brew City improves to 2-0 in the early stages of the 2010 season, while ARRG drops to 1-1.

Milwaukee’s best on quads proved that they were well-deserving of their current placement within the Top 25 of Derby News Network’s recent power rankings, as they quickly dashed out to a huge lead in the early stages of the bout and never looked back.

The Bruisers drew first blood on ARRG as Voltage’s 10-point opening jam quickly hushed the locals. Another two-pointer by Voltage gave Brew City a 12-1 lead five minutes into the bout.

ARRG answered back with a three-point jam by Artemischief to cut the lead to 12-4.

And then Brew City “rolled out the barrels” and flattened ARRG. A 22-0 run by the Bruisers – thanks to jams by Voltage, Carrie A. Hacksaw, Skittle and Rhoda Ruin – extended Milwaukee’s lead to 34-4 with 16:36 left in the first half.

Brew City’s multi-faceted attack was punctuated by Voltage’s seven lead jams in the first half, which equaled ARRG’s total amount of lead jams combined.

And as the bout progressed, many in the audience wondered if ARRG was ever going to make a comeback. A first-half-ending 13-point jam by ARRG’s Enya Nightmare gave fans a glimmer of hope, which cut the gap to 59-25 at the halftime break.

ARRG approached the second half with a different philosophy based on what had transpired in the opening frame – rather than going with an “all or nothing” approach to scoring, the missive was to whittle away at the Brew City lead with quick scoring pops.

It was a strategy that paid off early in the second half. Five consecutive scoring jams by ARRG – two by Nightmare and solo efforts by Artemischief, Starry Starry Fight and South City Shiner – resulted in 17-0 run for the ladies in pink, which cut the gap to 65-43 with 18:20 remaining.

And then Brew City decided that enough was enough. Voltage’s 11-point jam with 15:30 left led to another bout-changing momentum shift, which saw the Bruisers get back on track offensively and extend their lead to 78-44.

Milwaukee kept the pace rolling down the stretch, outscoring ARRG 35-11 in the bout’s final nine minutes. Voltage put an exclamation point on the evening with a 15-point jam to conclude the bout, and to maintain her team’s undefeated record. Voltage led the Bruisers with 55 points.

Enya Nightmare scored a team-high 23 points for ARRG, who return to travel team action on Saturday, March 13 against The Dirty South Derby Girls in Atlanta, GA.

SATURDAY NOTES FROM THE POOBAH

- Once again, women’s flat track roller derby proves that its one of the hottest tickets in town to get, as our crowd of 900 Saturday night was one of the largest in ARRG’s history for All-Star bouts at the All-American Sports Mall. This pushes our total attendance for 2010 near 3,000 after only three bouts. We can’t thank you – a member of the ARRG-loving public – enough for your continued support this season.

- Following the bout, MVPs (or perhaps I should say MVSs – as in Most Valuable Skaters) for each team were selected by the opposing team. The Arch Rival Roller Girls selected Brew City’s High D. Voltage as their top player, while the Bruisers selected blocker Eli Wallop as ARRG’s MVP.

- For a majority of the skaters in ARRG’s All-Star line-up, this was their third consecutive weekend of hard-hitting action. A small bout break until mid-March might just be what the doctor ordered. But as ARRG Nation is well aware, these ladies essentially have two speeds – on and off. You can expect these athletes to still have the same intensity and desire as they prepare for a road battle against Atlanta on March 13 before interleague play continues with a very important Stunt Devil/Smashinista match-up on March 20.

- Much thanks goes to my boutcast partner on Saturday night, three-time ARRG All-Star Overland Offender. The recently retired blocker brought her expert knowledge of the sport to the fans by providing plenty of background information on Brew City and some of the rules pertaining to WFTDA-sanctioned bouts. Her help was most appreciated. You can expect more of ARRG’s athletes to provide commentary as the season progresses.

- A special “thank you” goes out to the Twin City Derby Girls of Champaign, IL who attended the bout.  Only a few months into their existence, this derby-passionate group of skaters used Saturday’s WFTDA-sanctioned bout to find out more about the “ins, outs and arounds” of the sport. Anyone who was around in ARRG’s infancy knows first-hand the challenges that face a newly-formed league. As one Twin City skater noted during the evening “We’re learning so much. We’re just like sponges.” We wish them the best of luck as they continue down their journey and we look forward to seeing them in the future. And when you ladies have your inaugural bout, you can expect some of ARRG Nation to come out and support you.

- Saturday morning, ARRG participated in the fifth annual St. Louis Walk For Wishes at West County Center. Thanks to those who contributed, as ARRG raised $450 for the Make A Wish Foundation.

The Grand Poobah and Hells LaBelle are bout announcers for the 2010 season of the Arch Rival Roller Girls. Check back in this section on Mondays for the latest in ARRG news and information.

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February 14th, 2010 | Posted in Bouts, Recap

ARRG ALL-STARS WIN 2010 OPENER!!!

100+ Second Half Points vs. Memphis Lead To Dominating Victory

by The Grand Poobah – Bout statistics provided by Memphis Roller Derby

The 2o1o opener for the ARRG Travel Team sent a potential message to the other WFTDA teams lined up to take on the ladies in pink and black this season.

Perhaps the message reads like this: “We’re here and get out of our way….”

A second half explosion of offense helped the ARRG All-Stars dominate Memphis 172-92 in WFDTA-sanctioned action Saturday night at Funquest in Collierville, TN.

ARRG was able to gain an early lead in the first half, but the pesky Hustlin’ Rollers kept pace. ARRG took a 64-50 lead into the halftime break.

A quick 10-2 run by Memphis cut ARRG’s lead to 66-60 with 25:20 remaining.

Then, ARRG turned on the jets. The “pink and black attack” outscored the Rollers 108-32 for the remainder of the bout, which included a 28-2 ARRG run in the last five minutes.

Milwaukees Brewcity Bruisers

Milwaukee's Brewcity Bruisers

With the win, ARRG (1-0) carries momentum back home to square off against Milwaukee’s Brewcity Buisers (1-0) in a WFTDA-sanctioned bout this Saturday at the All-American Sports Mall (11133 Lindbergh Business Ct., St. Louis, MO). Doors open at 7 pm. Bout time is 8 pm.

The Brewcity Bruisers - 7th place finishers at the WFTDA North Central Regionals in 2009 – began their 2010 campaign with a 137-35 win over Ft. Wayne on January 9.

These two teams are familiar with each other – ARRG bested Brewcity 81-70 last year in All-Star action. And with the added incentive of the Bruisers’ #23 position in the most recent Derby News Network Power Rankings dangling in front of them, ARRG would love nothing more than to up their record to 2-0 in front of a huge home crowd.

milwaukee

And here’s an incentive for you – a member of the ARRG-loving public. We’re offering a discount rate on tickets if you bring a party of 15 or more. Check the main page of archrivalrollersgirls.com for e-mail information – and find out how your large group can get $2 off each ticket, a savings of 20% for your group.

Let’s do the math…for your group of 15, you can get a ticket for $8 apiece, which equals a savings of $30 for your group. Or $40 for your group of 20. And so on.

We’ll have all the regular goodness that you’ve come to expect from ARRG that you experienced at our first two sold-out bouts of 2010: high-impact action, contests, raffles, guest rollergirl commentary, post-bout afterparty at the Upper Deck and other odds-and-ends.

There seems to be one thing we have to add to the list: an ARRG All-Star win. We’ll see you there.

The Grand Poobah and Hells LaBelle are bout announcers for the 2010 season of the Arch Rival Roller Girls. Check back in this section on Mondays for the latest in ARRG news and information…even on Presidents Day.

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February 7th, 2010 | Posted in Bouts, Recap

M-80s USE MULTIPLE ATTACKS TO TOP SMASHIES

Black Market Baby and Veterans Pace Ladies In Red To 87-71 Win

by The Grand Poobah

(ST. LOUIS, MO) In a night where numerous pre-bout roster changes involving veteran skaters were made, it was a first-year sparkplug that made the definitive impact on the outcome.

Paced by a personal best of 25 points, rookie Black Market Baby led the charge of the M-80s in their 87-71 win over the Smashinistas in interleague action Saturday night at the All-American Sports Mall in front of 1,000 people.

In late-breaking pre-bout news last week, both teams added firepower to their arsenal. The Smashinistas acquired Texan MVP Downtown Dallis to compliment their roster, while the ARRG Board of Directors allowed the M-80s to “unretire” the recently retired The Siege for one bout due to a depleted roster.

But even with these pre-bout bombshells, the rookie in red served as the catalyst for the M-80s, who improved their record to 1-1.

“We worked really hard together (tonight) and played a solid bout,” said Black Market Baby after the battle. “It’s what we had to do.”

And perhaps BMB’s last sentence crystallized the philosophy of the M-80s heading into Saturday’s match-up. It’s not what they wanted to do, it’s what they HAD to do.

Going into the second bout of the season, the M-80s couldn’t afford another loss after a season opening defeat to reigning league champion the Stunt Devils. And with the absence of Keligula, Enya Nightmare and Madam Moonstruck in their line-up, an “L” in the column would have put the firecrackers on quads behind the proverbial 8-ball in 2010.

But it didn’t take long for the legacy team of ARRG to show their dominance, as four consecutive lead jams by the M-80s set the template for an early first half lead.

After a 6-point jam by veteran by Joanie Rollmoan, the M-80s thumped the unsuspecting Smashies, thanks to a 14-point jam by Joltin’ Josie, which gave the firecrackers a 20-0 lead five minutes into the bout.

A quick 4-point punch by M-80s co-captain Nikki Vixxen – which upped the score to 24-0 – was followed by the jam that rookies dream of.

With 21:30 left in the first half, Black Market Baby barrelled her way to the lead jammer position, and with help from blockers Ana Warpath and the Siege, posted a 14-point jam to extend the M-80s lead to 38-4.

The credit for the rookie’s big score? “My f****ng blockers!” said BMB, referring to the girls upfront.

The dominance continued for the M-80s in the first half, who posted 12 lead jams in comparison to the Smashies five. Rollmoan’s nine point jam with 2:15 remaining in the first half, followed by four-point jams by BMB and Josie gave the M-80s a lopsided 63-32 halftime lead.

The Smashies, licking their wounds during the intermission, needed to refocus and regroup in the locker room. Strategies were discussed and skates were altered to better suit the surface of the All-American Sports Mall.

“We had a big group hug and a team-bonding chat,” said Smashinistas co-captain Punches Pileup. “We came back out and were ready to bring it back.”

Yet to the dismay of the Smashie contingent, the beginning of the second half bared resemblance to the sluggish start, as a 10-point score from the M-80s by first-time jammer Ana Warpath extended the lead to 73-32 with 26:15 remaining.

And some critics would have dismissed the bout right there…..yet something amazing happened – as things often do in ARRG – as the second half progressed.

With 17:00 remaining, three consecutive lead jams by the Smashies – a seven-point score by Pileup and back-to-back eight-point tallies by The Educator and Downtown Dallis – began the comeback that the M-80s, and most of those in attendance, were not expecting.

In fact, there was very little, if any scoring, for the remainder of the game for the M-80s. And a huge shift of momentum swung the way to the girls clad in cammo.

Another eight-point jam by The Educator and a trifecta of five-pointers by Dallis, Pileup and Educator cut the gap to 87-67 with 7:14 remaining.

A jam by the M-80s Vixxen – which resulted in no points for the ladies in red – was followed by another Pileup lead jam. The bespectacled pretty princess’ four-pointer cut the gap to 87-71.

Then came the drama…

The Smashies’ Dallis, who had been held at bay in the first half by the M-80 veteran blockers, zoomed out to the lead jammer position with under two minutes remaining. And it appeared that the Texan MVP would round out a historical comeback with a double-digit jam. However, a tangle of the quads with the opposition sent the blonde bomber tumbling to the track…and dashed the hopes of a Smashinista bout two victory.

Time still remained on the bout clock for one final jam, but Vixxen’s sprint to the front of the pack to become lead jammer sealed the victory for the M-80s, who evened their 2010 record in the must-win scenario.

“The last few weeks have been some of the most tumultuous in my M-80s career,”said Vixxen afterwards. “I am so proud of every one of my players tonight. We all came together. This feels really good.”

The feeling was especially memorable for the M-80 rookies that experienced their first taste of flat-track victory in 2010.

“Oh my god, it feels really awesome,” said Black Market Baby. “Amazing, it’s really amazing. I can’t believe this happened.”

“We’ve got a lot of new girls this year and they are so excited to be playing,” added M-80s veteran Ana Warpath. “The victory proves that they can do it – and nothing will stop them.”

That same rookie excitement was also found in the six Smashie newcomers. Playing in front of a large crowd in a competitive battle brought out career experiences normally not found in practice.

“Our rookies really shined bright tonight,”said Smashinistas co-captain Punches Pileup, who led all scorers on the evening with 28 points. “They’ve been working their a**es off. So we were pleased with the way they played tonight.”

And in the end, one has to respect the resiliency of the Smashies to make the bout close down the stretch, considering they were being outscored by a ratio of 2-1 at the halftime break.

“Next time we’re gonna be more prepared and take the bull by the horns in the first half,” said Pileup. “We really hit our stride in the second half, so were just going to have to get our engines revved a little bit earlier.”

Interleague play continues for ARRG on Saturday, March 20 as the Smashinistas (0-1) battle defending league champion The Stunt Devils (1-0) at the All-American Sports Mall (11133 Lindbergh Business Court, St. Louis, MO).box-score-two2

UNOFFICIAL SCORING: M-80s – Black Market Baby 25, Joanie Rollmoan 24, Ana Warpath 18, Nikki Vixxen 9, Joltin’ Josie 9, Cherry Chernobyl 4 Smashinistas – Punches Pileup 28, The Educator 25, Downtown Dallis 22, Eli Wallop 4

Saturday notes from the Poobah:

- Another fantastic crowd of 1,000 came to watch bout two of the ARRG 2010 season. Pre-bout online tickets sales were three times the amount the league normally gets and an informal poll prior to the bout suggested that we had a record number of first-timers in attendance. On behalf of ARRG Nation, I want to thank each and every one of you for your continued patronage and support.

- We once again thank our media affiliates for continuing to spread the good word of ARRG to the masses in February, including KTVI-TV, KSDK-TV, KFNS-AM and Metromix. Your help is greatly appreciated!

- Another huge raffle drawing took place at halftime. As noted at derby bouts, ARRG is working in conjunction with Youth In Need during the 2010 season in an effort to raise $3,500 for the St. Charles-based non-for-profit. Also, don’t forget that ARRG is assembling walkers and donations for the upcoming Walk for Wishes charity walk on Saturday, February 20. Find out more about ARRG’s team, and it’s quest to raise $1,500 for the Make-A-Wish Foundation, right here!

- Scratches for bout two included Keligula (physician’s orders), Madam Moonstruck (physician’s orders) and Enya Nightmare (game suspension) for the M-80s.standings-after-two

2010 ARRG ALL-STARS DEBUT IN MEMPHO THIS SATURDAY!

Memphis, Tennessee is famous (and rightly so) for its barbecue (Rendezvous & Corky’s), its placement in the lexicon of music history (Sun Records & Stax Records) and its world-renowned tourist attractions (Graceland & The National Civil Rights Museum).

But outside of professional wrestler Jerry “The King” Lawler and the AAA affiliate of the St. Louis Cardinals, there’s not much history to Memphis athletics….(sorry Memphians, your NBA franchise was a hand-me-down from Vancouver and don’t get me started on the XFL).

However, a group of 40 Memphis skaters have been working hard the last four years to re-write that history.

Memphis' Rollin' Dolls

Memphis' Hustlin' Rollers

In January 2006, a trio of women through grass-roots efforts launched Memphis Roller Derby, which in short time has blossomed to a three-team league complete with a travelling all-star team that made it to its first-ever WFTDA post-season tournament in 2009 (sound familiar, ARRG fans?)

The Hustlin’ Rollers, MRD’s travelling team, finished 2009 with a ninth-place showing at the South Central Regionals in September.

And it only seems apropos that ARRG’s All Stars (sixth at the WFTDA North Central Regionals in 2009) would begin its 2010 campaign on Valentine’s eve facing a league that has travelled down a similar journey.

ARRG (0-0) faces Memphis (1-1) in travel team action this Saturday, February 13 at Funquest (440 Highway 72, Collierville, TN).  The ARRG/Rollers match-up is part of a two-bout doubleheader.  The other bout features Memphis Roller Derby interleague play as the Angles of Death face the Women of Mass Destruction.  Doors open at 5 pm.  Bouts start at 6 pm.

ARRG All Star Co-Captains South City Shiner and Keligua return to the fold in the jammer position, alongside returnees Starry Starry Fight, Artemischief and Enya Nightmare. Eli Wallop, Grave Danger, Joanie Rollmoan return to the blocker spots, while Mayor Francis Slayer returns at pivot. Added depth to the ARRG All-Stars comes in the form of Danika Doom, The Educator, Smarty McFly, Nikki Vixxen, Domme E Nation, Punches Pileup and Jack U Up.

Memphis All-Star Tenacious B

Memphis' Tenacious B

The Hustlin’ Rollers have already competed in two high-scoring bouts in 2010, each with varying results. MRD notched a 170-126 road win over the NWA Killbillies on January 23, but stumbled in an 151-35 pummeling by Naptown (Indianapolis) this past Saturday. Saturday’s match-up vs. ARRG will be Memphis’ second consecutive weekend of travel team action. The ladies in maroon, yellow and black have a multi-dimensional attack, fueled by jammers Tenacious B and Lil’ Cinner, with help from fellow powderkegs Brooken Bones and Cat Claus.

A solid road win for the ladies in black and pink will set the stage for a competitive 2010, which will see ARRG battle the Brew City Bruisers from Milwaukee on Saturday, February 20 at the All-American Sports Mall.

archie-in-vette2Helpful Travel Hints from ARRG’s mascot, Archie – fresh off a spin in a Corvette at the 2010 St. Louis Auto Show.  Click on the picture of WMC-TV’s Chief Meteorologist (and longtime Memphis Rasslin’ Announcer!) Dave Brown for your Memphis Pinpoint Weather Forecast.

The Grand Poobah and Hells LaBelle are bout announcers for the 2010 Season of the Arch Rival Roller Girls. Check back in this section on Mondays for the latest ARRG news, information…..and out-of-town weather forecasts.

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February 3rd, 2010 | Posted in Bouts

BREAKING NEWS: BOTH TEAMS DROP LATE ROSTER BOMBSHELLS FOR SATURDAY’S BOUT!

Retired ARRG Legend The Siege Re-laces Quads For M-80s

Smashies Adds MVP Jammer From Texas To Full-Time Line-Up

by Hells LaBelle

There are a couple developments in this Saturday’s bout between the M-80s and the Smashinistas that have recently surfaced.

#1. The Smashinistas have added another new face to their roster for this Saturday’s bout. Saturday Night will see the debut of Downtown Dallis in a camouflage uniform. While this will be her first appearance in front of a crowd at the All-American Sports Mall, Dallis is no stranger to Women’s Flat Track Roller Derby.

Dallis comes to ARRG as a former member of the Assassination City Roller Girls (in Dallas, Texas)… and a well decorated one at that. Just a couple weeks ago, Downtown Dallis took home 4 awards at the 2009 A-C Rollergirls Black and Blue Award Ceremony in Dallas:

Downtown Dallis

Texan MVP Downtown Dallis Debuts For Smashies

The Most Athletic Body Award

The Hottest of the Hot Fan’s Choice Award

Favorite A-C Rollergirl Fans Choice Award

…and the most coveted, the 2009 A-C Rollergirl Most Valuable Player Award.

Now, I have seen Dallis skate at Travel Team practices with the Arch Rival Rollergirls and to me, she appears to have the speed and track-vision of a jammer, coupled with the toughness and edginess of a blocker. This adds yet another valuable jammer to a roster that used to consistently only use two jammers for the majority of any given bout.

I think the Smashies are a good fit for Dallis and the Pretty Princesses will welcome her with open arms.

But don’t take it from me… here’s her former profile from the Assassination City Rollergirl website, and I quote:

“With her Texas hair, sparkling doe eyes, and killer smile, she deceives her opponents into believing her sweet Southern demeanor follows her onto the rink. Mastering her inherited mastermind and sharp-shooting skills, she brings on a holy terror like a tragedy waiting to happen. She may be a girl you can bring home to mama, just as long as she’s not on skates!”

Retired All-Star The Siege Makes One Bout Return

Retired All-Star The Siege Makes One Bout Return

#2. Enya Nightmare is, indeed, suspended for this bout for her actions at the last bout.

The Board of Directors has decided that since the team itself has a roster with already depleting numbers, they will allow currently retired, former M-80 captain and former All-Star, The Siege, to skate with the M-80s for this bout against the Smashinistas.

I know this will allow the M-80s a bit of a sigh of relief, seeing as how the Siege is a skater of unprecedented talent.  She was a member of the Travel Team All-Stars for 3 seasons, and adds experience as a former captain of the M-80s to the roster as well.

Siege is one of the league’s more well-known skaters for her versatility.  When called upon, Siege can jam for her team, and always pose a grand slam threat, or she can come in as a blocker and really wreak havoc on the other team’s front line.  Adding the services of a seasoned veteran like Siege really edges the sting of the suspension of one of the M-80s more vocal leaders.

And who knows??? Maybe being back on the track is just the kind of thing that can coax a skater like Siege out of retirement?… I’ll say this much, if Siege has been getting restless in retirement, this will be a nice outlet for her to get her fix and help her inch closer to a decision one way or another. Either way, it will be fun as an announcer to see her back on the track one more time.

I’ll see you there!

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February 2nd, 2010 | Posted in Bouts

M-80s/Smashies Battle This Saturday Night!!!

ARRG’s Legacy Teams Aim For First 2010 Victoryfeb-bout

by Hells LaBelle

Bout One of the Arch Rival Roller Girls’ 2010 season had it all…

- A raucous crowd of over a thousand

- 228 total points scored

- One Roller Girl with over 80-points as a jammer

- Big Collisions

- Screaming Jeerleaders

- Adrenaline

- Tempers flaring

And when it was all said and done, it was the defending ARRG Champion, the Stunt Devils, that emerged with a 52-point victory in the rematch of last season’s championship.

If the Stunts were out to send a message to the city that their title last year was not a fluke – mission accomplished! They worked very well together. The Stunt Devils seemed to have the luxury of a long bench and a deep roster of talented skaters for the first time in their existence.

One of the league’s highest scorers as a jammer, South City Shiner, didn’t take the track as a jammer until the second half last month. That shows you how much depth the Stunts have.

Newcomers Morgan La Faetal, Baretta Michaels and Whip Scream but saw significant time on the track as jammers and both looked great. Domme E. Nation made a great debut as a vicious hitter. And Starry Starry Fight stole the show with an 83-point performance.

The M-80s (0-1) looked good at times and never lost their good spirits on the bench. They constantly shouted encouragement to the skaters on the track and made sure they kept their chins held high despite the game getting further and further out of their reach.

They did so without the services of one of the league’s fastest jammers, Keligula. Had Keligula been in the game, I’m not saying the outcome would have been different, but the dynamic of the bout itself certainly would have been different.

The M-80s Keligula

The M-80's Keligula

Keligula is a pure scorer. She’s always a threat when she jams. The complexion would have been different if suddenly you throw and impact player like the into the mix.

Now, I THINK she will be back in the line-up for this bout, but it looks like the M-80s lose another impact player for a game in Enya Nightmare. It appears as though Nightmare will probably have to sit this game out as punishment for throwing a kick at an opposing player during last month’s bout. Enya Nightmare did a significant amount of jamming for the M-80s and is one of their best leaders, so missing her will be crucial.

The M-80s will need the rest of their already shortened roster to step up in her absence and get the job done. They certainly are capable, after witnessing the debut of Black Market Baby as a jammer. BMB had a solid first game. Nikki Vixen also served some jamtime for the M-80s.

The rest of the M-80 newcomers looked to get more and more comfortable out on the track as the game progressed. They have the first bout under their belts now, so the butterflies in the stomach shouldn’t be a factor heading into their second bout this Saturday.

Some skaters that just may experience said butterflies or pre-bout nervous jitters are the rookies on the Smashinistas. They have yet to play in a regular season bout, but that ends this Saturday. I spoke with a few of the new skaters at ARRG Trivia Night and the St. Louis Auto Show and let me tell ya, they have been chomping at the bit to get out there in actual game play.

And this is a VERY New-Look Smashinista Team. By my count, six of their twelve skaters are rookies. The Smashinistas bid farewell to two of the most talented jammers in the league in Jenny Bonebreak and Chokehold Chanel No.5.

So who will fill in those shoes…or, skates, I should say.

The Smashinitas Punches Pileup

The Smashinistas' Punches Pileup

On any given night Choke and Bonebreak were capable of scoring 40 or more points each. The Smashies will have to find that scoring from other skaters now. Eli Wallop and Punches Pileup take over duties as Captains of the Pretty Pretty Princesses.

They still have plenty of experience in the line-up in The Educator, Polka Dot, Davey Blockit, and Shillelagh Spillblood. You can expect to see Punches, Educator, Beatn-Chix Kiddo, BOOM BOOM Pow, and Jean Slay to handle most of the jamming duties.

That is a much higher number of jammers than the Smashies used to throw out on any given night. The team used to just send Bonebreak and Choke every other jam with a mix of one or two girls in there to give them a break.

The Smashinistas are the only team left in the St. Louis local league that doesn’t have a local championship. And believe me, they do NOT enjoy ownership of that distinction. They are hungry for a title and will look to come out of the gate swinging and swinging hard.

I think the M-80s and Smashies are very evenly matched at all positions. Both teams have good jamming speed, good size at blocker and pivot, and good leadership. This could very easily turn into one of those games that could come down to the very final jam.

I look forward to seeing how the M-80s bounce back from a season-opening loss. It will be interesting to see what offensive sets the new-look Smashinistas come out and run. Come on out Saturday night and see the two teams that both have one thing on their minds: Dethroning the Stunt Devils.

I’ll see you there!

they-said-feb2

NEXT MONDAY IN THE NEWS SECTION: Find out which team got the “W” this weekend. PLUS, the ARRG Travelling All-Stars begin the 2010 season with a road trip to Memphis. We’ll preview the locals and their opposition!

new-standfings-after-1

Hells LaBelle and The Grand Poobah are bout announcers for the 2010 season of the Arch Rival Rollergirls. Check back in this section on Monday’s for the latest in ARRG News and Information.

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