Fresh from their success at the ECDX tournament in Philadelphia last year, Auld Reekie Roller Girls’ very own Twisted Thistles have been invited to play in ‘The Big O’, a major derby tournament held annually on the West Coast of the USA. This year it’s taking place on 2 – 4th May, and Auld Reekie will be winging their way to take on some of the finest teams in America!

The Big O, hosted by the Emerald City Roller Girls of Eugene, Oregon, is an annual flat track roller derby invitational tournament featuring women’s, men’s and junior roller derby. Established in 2012, last year’s tournament featured teams travelling from as far afield as Australia, Canada and the UK. A WFTDA (Women’s Flat Track Derby Association) approved event, the scores will influence Auld Reekie’s place in the global rankings. Currently ranked number 3 in Europe and 103 in the world, this tournament will be a vital opportunity for Auld Reekie to take on some of the USA’s toughest teams, gain some valuable experience and raise their profile in the worldwide roller derby community.

The bouts will be streamed live on the internet, meaning Auld Reekie’s loyal supporters can cheer their team from afar, and Scotland can get behind one of their most successful sporting exports.

Auld Reekie took the USA by storm at ECDX this year, winning all three of their sanctioned bouts and coming out of the blue to surprise the American roller derby community with their success. Can they do it again in 2014 and – along with Glasgow Roller Derby – raise Scotland’s profile as a major presence in the international roller derby scene?

Want to support your local team and help Auld Reekie get to America? We can’t do it without you! Chuck us a couple of quid at the following link: http://arrg.co.uk/sponsors/donate/

Are you a derby skater who is aiming high and wants to improve their skills? Want to play in America yourself some day? Some of Auld Reekie’s finest skaters will be coaching at the ‘School of ARRG Knocks 2 – Even ARRGER!!!’ roller derby bootcamp in Edinburgh on Saturday 23rd November. Take advantage of the expertise on offer and come along!
School of ARRG Knocks 2 – Even ARRGer!

 

Refs/NSO’s get your Off Skates tickets NOW!

We still have a batch of Off Skates Officials tickets available for refs and NSO’s who want to come be involved, and learn more about the official side of Roller Derby!

You will get:
A morning observer ticket to the boot camp sessions and Attendance at the skater off-skates sessions.

Plus: Work with experienced ARRG officials & NSO’s to take part in facilitated sessions for bout preparation.

Including:
Evals – why and how they work.
Scoreboards – and how to work them.
A chance to try out 2 positions in the graduation bout .
Feedback / Q&A afterwards.

Get your off skates tickets here:
Tickets

This months featured skater is none other than the fabulous Mallory Powers.

Powers is one of the longer standing members of ARRG and is not only a great skater, but also an experienced line up manager and puts her skills to use when playing for the Cannon Belles travel team.
Mallory Powers will be off to Amsterdam to skate with The Cannon Belles for their first European game – they have an undefeated record in 2013 – can they hold this title and end the year on a high? We will let you know!

Home Team Affiliation: After 2 years on Skatefast Club, I’m now a proud Leithal Weapon!

Joined ARRG in: 2009

Favourite position to play: I love love love blocking! I love the strategy and team play when in the pack and feel I’m strongest there – and there’s always something new to work on. I am trying to work on my skill and confidence with jamming as well and have surprised myself by quite enjoying it!

Best ARRG memory: There are so many! There have been lots of fun road trips with both the Thistles and the Belles, and getting to play Montreal’s New Skids at the Jack Kane Centre was pretty cool/surreal. Also after I broke my leg the Thistles wrote my name on their bellies in Helsinki and then stood the wrong way round so it said !!!SREWOP – that brought a wee tear to my eye (of laughter, obviously).

Favourite after skate drink/snack: Um…I would like to say coconut water and raw tuna but in reality it’s more likely to be a glass of wine and a massive bag of salty snacks

Worst Derby injury: I’ve had some spectacular bruises, but by far the worst injury was breaking my leg! A spiral fracture to my left tibia meant surgery and metal work and a long recovery. My leg will always be a bit gammy now and I dropped quite a bit in skill level but I’m just trying to slowly build up my strength and not be too hard on myself. Much worse things happen.

Best Derby advice: I’ve really struggled with this, but the best advice is to try not to compare yourself to others: everyone has different strengths and styles, everyone takes a different amount of time to develop, and everyone’s life/derby balance is different. Just train as hard as you can at practice, set yourself regular small goals, and celebrate when you achieve them. And make sure you’re enjoying it – otherwise what’s the point?!
Any funny/embarrassing derby stories? Lucy of London Roller Girls fame once took a whip off me and pulled down my shorts, tights and pants during a bout. On the crowd side of the track. But generally I’m the least glamorous or graceful skater ever so I had to get over the embarrassment thing quite early on!

Derby Hero: ARRG is so well run at the moment it’s beautiful, and everyone who contributes to that is a hero. That it’s just a bunch of pals making all this stuff happen is mind-blowing! Sid (VeloSidy) is a total hero to me as well – she’s an amazing hard-working skater, has been in pretty much every Thistles bout ever, she does tonnes for the league, she’s super supportive of other people, and she is endlessly enthusiastic about the sport. She sums up what derby is all about!

What do you do outside of derby: job wise I have a couple of different roles in community food: I work with volunteers at Broomhouse Health Strategy Group to deliver services set up to improve people’s health and well-being, and I coordinate the activities of the Food for Thought Forum in Pilton. I also work freelance as a cookery tutor. Other than that I watch a lot of American crime drama, bake cakes, crochet small round things, read any books available, hang out with my family, and make pathetic attempts at exercise. I’m also just embarking on Project Allotment which may well render all previous items void.

Fun fact about you: I had fun once. It was awful.