July 2011 Featured League: Boston Derby Dames

The Boston Derby Dames have had to deal with practice space issues that are familiar to many roller derby leagues. Recently, they have been able to work with their city to resurrect a community asset, and earned themselves a new practice space in the process. In addition, they maintain a highly competitive WFTDA Charter team, the Boston Massacre, and three popular home teams. Read on to learn more about the Boston Derby Dames…

---

Location:
Our bouts are held in Shriner's Auditorium in Wilmington, MA, but we practice all over the Greater Boston area.

How does your season run?
We run February through September with one bout date each month. Each date is a double header. February through July are home team versus home team, plus sanctioned all star games. August is the playoffs and the first place team – that has a bye to the championship game – plays an expo against a visiting team. September is the championship game, and the third place team plays an expo.

Are you close to any other WFTDA leagues?
New Hampshire Roller Derby and Providence Roller Derby are within an hour from Boston. Maine Roller Derby and CT RollerGirls are two hours from Boston. Derby is growing in New England but our numbers don't hold a candle to places like California or the Pacific Northwest.

How many skaters/teams do you have?
We have between 60 and 70 skaters and five teams.

How is your league structured (home teams, travel team, management)?
We have three home teams: Cosmonaughties, Nutcrackers, and Wicked Pissahs. Any skater on a home team is eligible to skate with our b-team, Boston B-Party. Skaters on our travel team, Boston Massacre, can choose to skate only for the travel team, but are also welcome to skate with a home team. The business is an LLC with an executive board who oversee committee heads in game/officiating, business administration, and marketing areas.

BDD was one of the first WFTDA member leagues to offer their WFTDA Charter team skaters a "travel team only" option. Can you please explain how this works, what the rationale was for offering this option, and BDD's experience so far?
Members of our travel team have the option to play on a home team and the travel team (we call these dual-roster skaters) or to play exclusively on the travel team. Prior to this change, the Boston Massacre played only a handful of sanctioned bouts each year and wanted to become more competitive. Allowing travel team only lets the travel team have a more intense practice schedule, gel, manage burn out by having only one team’s worth of obligations, and focus on interleague games. At the same time, skaters on home teams are able to step up and become stars, and get more play time. The dual-roster option is available for skaters who want to still play on their home team, or may just be transitioning to the travel team, so aren't getting much bouting time yet. Hosting more interleague games has really helped the Massacre grow. Every time we bout we learn something new from our opponents as well as from our teammates. Being able to focus on just the travel team makes things more manageable mentally and time-wise for most of us. I think that's a feeling a lot of us old-timers share.

This change was part of a larger restructuring initiative to give all league members more play opportunities and improve everyone’s game experience. We felt we were all working too hard to run the league to play only a couple games a year. In addition to the travel team only option change, we also made all of our bout dates double headers. Massacre went from hosting one or two games each season to hosting six games. Home teams went from three to four games per team per season to six games. We also added a b-team that is playing upwards of eight games this season. We wanted to grow but adding a fourth home team wasn’t logistically feasible for us. Between removing the travel team only skaters and raising the cap on home teams, we added 17 women the first year after the restructuring.

So far, the change has been positive and we’re building on the league wide goals we’ve achieved for our skaters’ skills, play opportunities, and overall enjoyable experience. It’s not a structure that’s right for every league, but it’s good for us.

How many days a week do you practice?
Each skater has a league, team, b-team, and scrimmage practice available to them. Travel team skaters have an additional team practice. Because we stack them, it usually works out to three or four days each week.

Who is BDD's biggest rival? And have you had any outstanding, memorable moments against them when you bouted?
Although I'm not sure we feel like we have any "rivals", I think most people would say that it would be Charm City Roller Girls. Our crustacean hats look similar even though theirs is a crab and ours is a lobster. I can't think of one outstanding moment, but rather in general that our games are usually really close and competitive. We earned a trip to Nationals in the 3rd place game against them at Easterns 2009, and in turn they earned a trip in the same game in 2010. That's exciting, right?

Do you have any sister leagues you’d like to give a shout out to?
We sure do! Our sister leagues include Providence Roller Derby, Montréal Roller Derby, and Maine Roller Derby. Boston grew from Providence, as Sarah Doom founded PRD and then went on to aid Ivanna Clobber in founding Boston. Over the years, Boston has also helped the growth and development of our sisters to the north: Montréal and Maine. Much love and respect!

What are the individual challenges of your city?
Our big challenge is that our venue isn't accessible by public transportation and is actually not in Boston proper at all. Rather, it's 20 minutes north in a little town called Wilmington that many people haven't heard of. Being barely in the periphery of Boston makes it a challenge to keep crowds consistent throughout the season.

We understand that BDD is actively looking for new/additional practice space. Finding a good practice space that is affordable is difficult for many leagues. Can you talk about your needs, and what you feel makes a great practice space?
We wanted to have a permanent, private, practice space and have been actively looking for one, but the prices are just out of our range. Commercial and residential real estate in our area is astronomically expensive. Older buildings that could possibly be more affordable have support columns every 20 to 30 feet, so they aren't usable.

In 2009, we heard through the grapevine that the Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) was holding town hall meetings about revitalizing Cass Rink in the Roxbury neighborhood of Boston. The Cass Rink was an open-air ice skating rink that opened in 1968 and had been condemned for the past 20 years. Movement on the project was contingent on funding with a fast-approaching deadline and literally overnight, Governor Deval Patrick allocated $1,000,000 to seal the deal. (Thanks Deval!) Two of our skaters, Lil’ Paine and Speed Metal, have seats on the Friends of Melnea Cass Complex Executive Board and have been integral in every step of the process of bringing life back to this community asset.

The redeveloped Melnea A. Cass Recreation Complex is a $4.2M year round facility featuring an outdoor pool, indoor walking track, classrooms, and 24,000 square feet of multipurpose space with permanent lines for a WFTDA track, tennis, and indoor soccer. After years of looking for a home, we have helped create one, while nurturing our relationship with our city. We'll be partnering with the Cass to assist and develop programs and activities, and are delighted to support their promotion of fitness and a healthy lifestyle for the youth and families of the surrounding communities.

Who are some of your favorite sponsors?
We are excited about our new partnership with the proud WFTDA sponsor, Dr. Hauschka Skin Care. Many of our league members already use their products and we're very honored that they wanted to work with us. ZipCar is a great car share system that's expanding throughout the country, and we use ZipCars to carpool to away games. Bruised Boutique, owned by BDD skater Dee Stortion, is the largest brick and mortar derby store in the East. Kickass Cupcakes are the best cupcakes in the Boston area. Rocco's in Wilmington feeds our hungry skaters, refs, and volunteers after a long bout day. 


What are your biggest training challenges?
Before, one of our biggest challenges was practice space. We practiced in community center gyms, outdoor roller hockey rinks, indoor roller hockey rinks, tennis courts, our bouting facility, and a few roller skating rinks all over the Greater Boston area. All in all, we would practice at about ten different places throughout the year on every surface you could think of: asphalt, coated and uncoated concrete, multisport tile, outdoors in sweltering summer, open air in January, slick and dusty, ultra-grippy, completely not level (one straightaway is downhill, the other is uphill), and more. This challenge actually turned into one of our greatest strengths as we're able to adapt to any floor and most climate conditions.

Who are the best "behind the scenes" skaters who make your league run?
We definitely have some hustlers up here who keep things moving, and it’s not possible to name everyone so we'll mention just a few. Maude Forbid is always working to improve our business operations and seek out new opportunities. Bully Mia has an all business, results-not-reasons approach to bout production and always knows the plan. Intejill and Judge Whoppin’ Her have been crucial to reining in our ever growing ref crew. Shark Week took over as Head Coach before finishing her rookie season and has been developing the program to make us all better skaters.

Who are some of your star on-track skaters and why?
There have been several Boston skaters who have received nation attention. Boston fans know skaters Maura Buse and Claire D. Way as “the Tiny Twins”. Buse and Claire are both extremely agile on their skates and excel at blocking and jamming. Anna WrecksYa controls her opponents with her skillful booty blocking and side to side truffle shuffle. Lil' Paine, Derby News Network 2010 Rookie of the Year nominee, puts her soul out on the track when she jams for the Massacre with passion and determination. Bumpus (formerly Pina Collidah) consistently works to break up opposing team's walls and assist her jammer. LCD often looks like she has magnets in her butt when she booty blocks jammers and has remarkable track awareness. Sugar Hits can be best described as lithe in both stature and jamming style; she is fast and controlled.

You are hosting one of the WFTDA Officiating Clinics on July 16 and 17. What is it about the WFTDA Officiating Clinics that made BDD want to host? Please tell us a bit about the WFTDA Officiating Beginner Clinic, and who should attend?
Our ref crew has grown exponentially since December of 2010, and we'd love for them to have the opportunity to get training from the best of the best. The easiest way to ensure they'll have access to a WFTDA clinic is by bringing the clinic to us. Additionally, derby is picking up speed in New England, and the number of leagues we have in this area has nearly doubled in the last year. We want to bring this opportunity to our new neighbors, which will help their leagues grow as well.

Who are BDD’s unsung stripe- and pink-wearing heroes and heroines?
We're very proud of our officials this year for tackling this confusing sport, being motivated to learn, and working with the changes to the structure of our referee committee. They each bring something to the table for the crew, the league, and our business and we are excited to watch their development.

The Boston Derby Dames have been ranked in the top five of the WFTDA Eastern Region since 2008. To what do you attribute your consistently high ranking?
Over the seasons, Massacre has always had tough defense and a group of diverse jammers. Each year we try to improve our training program; based on what we are seeing in derby and our own experiences. As one of the original WFTDA member leagues, Boston always strives to stay current. In 2007, we attended the first Eastern Regionals tournament and were eliminated in an over time game against Detroit Derby Girls. This tough loss gave Boston the hunger to push harder and train more efficiently.

Every season we like to play a mix of opponents from our own region as well as out of region teams. Playing teams with varying skill levels, strengths, and styles helps us to be able to put a finger on the pulse of what is happening in derby by the time we arrive at the East Region Playoff Tournament. Every single team has something different and unique to offer to the sport, so playing a good mix of teams is a great way to learn through experience. Re-playing the same team over and over again (we play Philly Roller Girls every April) can also have the benefit of measuring our performance. 
 


Speedy Dan, our speed coach, has also played a huge role in our consistency and development as better roller skaters. He is invaluable to our team and league as a whole. His practices are pretty awful and mentally taxing, but the pay off is worth it.

In 2011, the Boston Massacre roster has looked quite different than the previous few seasons. How is BDD dealing with skater turnover on the Massacre? How has this affected the season so far? Do you have any predictions for the remainder of 2011?
Season to season the Massacre has experienced turnover. During this season, we have lost the services of some of our more well known skaters. In looking to the future, the Massacre now has more team members than ever before. Now that we have more skaters training at the travel team level, transitioning from year to year should become more seamless. Having a roster that has changed so much throughout the season has challenged us to be more dynamic as a team. 
 


This season the Massacre skates forward without long time Massacre mainstays Krushpuppy, Shellby Shattered and Harlot Fevah. Krushpuppy scored many Massacre points with her powerful jamming style, blocking her way through packs and playing tough jammer defense. Shellby Shattered is a legendary blocker, whose intensity and blocking style helped put the Boston Massacre on the derby map. Harlot Fevah delivered pounding hits to opponents, while being an anchor for her own jammers.

We're also pressing on without Killary Clinton, a new addition in 2010 whose speed and endurance is inspiring, and Britknee Breaker, the otter-loving, cancer-killing, chanting-her-name-will-make-you-win-a-game, superhuman. (If you see her, say hello. It'll change your life.)

We are looking forward to what is yet to come in 2011. Each day we get stronger and learn something new about ourselves and the sport we love. The chemistry of our newest team is flowing, and our bonds and on track telepathy are getting tapped into. By the time Eastern Regional Playoffs roll around we will be firing on all cylinders.

This season, BDD's Boston Massacre has some long distance travel planned, with a three-bout trip to the Pacific Northwest. How does your league plan ahead for long trips? What advice do you have for other leagues who want to travel to other regions?
Somehow our team doesn't currently have any parents on it, and I think that helps with keeping schedules a little bit more flexible. Our b-team, the Boston B-Party, is traveling more this year than it ever has, and the Massacre is playing three away weekends (Maine, ECDX 2011, and a Pacific Northwest multibout weekend hosted by Rose City Rollers). Our biggest non-tournament travel will be to Portland this August. What is helping make this trip, and any away game, possible is communication. Our PNW swing (Rat City Rollergirls/Rose City Rollers/Jet City Rollergirls, August 12-14) has been in the making since last year. Our leadership team has kept us in the loop every step of the way with dates, opponents, costs, and fundraising expectations. Similarly, B-Party only plays away games and has most of their season scheduled almost a year in advance as well. Planning as early as possible and keeping the lines of communication and expectations very clear, helps everyone make smart decisions and know if and how they can be involved. It’s always a good idea to plan travel as a group if/when possible. Get your cartographer to scope out the destination for basic necessities as well as places to get a taste of the local culture.

You play your bouts at the Shriner's Auditorium in Wilmington, MA and are known for having a fun and affordable family friendly atmosphere. How did you come to bout at Shriner's Auditorium, and how has the relationship helped your team/league grow? What is the average size of your crowds at the Shriner's Auditorium?
BDD's first bouts were planned for a gymnasium at Massachusetts College of Art in Boston. Soon after the sold out debut expo in March 2006, an inspector shut down the building and the season was put on hold. Serendipitously, one of the Shriners saw Rollergirls on A&E, and contacted Gotham Girls Roller Derby about hosting their bouts at the Shriner's Auditorium in Wilmington, MA. Gotham in turn referred them to us and we've been there ever since. Our bouts sell out (1,300+) from February until May, fall off a bit in the summer (500 to 1,000), and pick back up in September. The venue provides us with an intimate but higher production value experience, which we think is unique. The venue offers stadium style bleachers on either straightaway which allow the much sought after view of being very close to the track, and having the front row be high enough to look down on the track. Our after party is onsite, which is a benefit for visitors as there are no bars within walking distance.

BDD is widely known for its commitment to being "pantsless". Please tell us about the origins of this commitment, and what it means to the Boston Derby Dames.
The Boston Massacre became the Pantless Militia in 2006. The Massacre theme was Colonial America and with that came the minutemen-inspired uniforms. These uniforms were vests that closed with velcro and revealed the skater's back side. Massacre skaters wore ruffle butt shorts to complete the minutemen look. We were the first team in derby to embrace the ruffle shorts and often lovingly referred to them as our “speed ruffles”. We began to promote ourselves as the Pantless Militia, as wearing no pants gave us great pride. 
 


As the years have passed by and derby continues to evolve and re-define itself, so has the Massacre uniform. Most of the team is still pantless and many have moved to athletic pants. The ruffles are all but forgotten except by Anna "I'll give you my ruffles when you peel them off my cold, dead booty" Wrecksya.

Do you have a special message to your fans?
KEEP! ON! CHANT! ING! Clap! Clap! Clapclapclap!

---

Would your league like to be the WFTDA Featured League of the month? Have you had an extraordinarily successful season that you'd like to share with the wftda.com fans? If you are a full WFTDA member league and have the authorization to speak on behalf of your league, we'd love to hear from you! Please contact webmaster@wftda.com