Bengals “Jam” It Up in Roller Derby

On a hot July evening at Capell Park in Chubbuck, members of the Portneuf Valley Bruisers roller derby team get down to business. They grab brooms and sweep up tiny rocks and debris, prepping the cement rink for the night’s practice session.

Lee Ann Hancock coaches team mates through a jam — a two-minute session in a derby bout where blockers keep players called jammers from scoring points. 

“As blockers, we’re moving from the inside of the track, the middle and the outside to prevent the jammer from getting passed our hips and scoring,” she explains.

If you’re thinking derby bouts are staged slugfests with women scrapping on skates, think again.  Today’s derby is an international gender-inclusive sport, enjoying a global revival and renewed fan base. There are approximately 1,250 amateur leagues worldwide with an active campaign to get derby into the Olympic Games. And the derby revival has rolled into Bengal country.

Three Bruisers at tonight’s practice work at Idaho State University and a fourth is a graduate of the university’s sign language interpreting program. At least six more ISU graduates are on the team as well. “We’re like a family,” says Hancock, director of divisional marketing and communications for the Kasiska Division of Health Sciences.

The Portneuf Valley Bruisers started a decade ago and belong to the Women’s Flat Track Derby Association — the international governing body representing 460 leagues on six continents.

A Fusion of NASCAR and Rugby

For those new to roller derby, five skaters from each team take the track — four blockers and a jammer who wears a helmet cover with a star on it. Jammers start behind the pack and score a point for every opposing blocker they lap. Shoving, punching, kicking and head butting are not allowed, according to WFTDA rules.

The game requires skill, athleticism, communication and a well-executed strategy, says Hancock who has skated with the Bruisers for six seasons and also serves as a league referee.

“Imagine if NASCAR and rugby had a baby. That’s roller derby,” adds seasoned skater and ISU teammate Maggie Beason, referring to the finesse required to safely navigate obstacles while racing around a crowded track or through a pack on a congested field.

Team mate Emma Wood, an assistant dean in the College of Education, joined the Bruisers two years ago and looks forward to skating after a hectic day at the office.

“It’s a great way to recharge and refocus. It helps me be a much more rounded person,” she says.

Alumna Laurie Hunt, an education interpreter for the Pocatello/Chubbuck school district, is new to roller skating and joined the team last January.

“I’m what they call fresh meat,” she laughs.

Because roller derby is a contact sport, players are bound to incur their fair share of bumps and bruises. But thanks to protective gear and training, the risk of serious injury is minimal.

Hancock says the Bruisers are always looking for new players to join the team and people who have never skated are welcome. The season begins in spring and ends in early fall, and the Bruisers host a skate camp for beginners each year. That’s how Hunt got hooked.

“I fell in love with it. It was so much fun. Everyone is so kind and supportive,” she says.

Adding to the fun of roller derby is the opportunity for players to choose a skate name — a carryover from derby’s early days when bouts were more spectacle and entertainment than bona fide sport.

Skate names are often a pun on pop culture, a play on a skater’s real name or a nod to an attitude or vocation.

Lee Ann Hancock goes by Annimal, Maggie Beason is known as Beaston, the Ph.D.-carrying Emma Wood is Dr. Dilemma and Laurie Hunt is DeLauriean, a nod to the time-traveling DeLorean car machine in “Back to the Future.”

For the women, roller derby has instilled feelings of confidence and camaraderie that carry into everyday life — from the moment they lace up their skates, strap on their helmets and make that first revolution around a sleek flat track.

 “There is something very empowering about being powerful,” says Wood.

Chris Gabettas