Topic: Roller Derby is all kinds of awesome

[WindyMan]

When I was a kid, I remember watching all kinds of roller derby games on the TV.  I loved auto racing, speedskating, and hockey.  Roller derby is a wonderful combination of all three, wherein crazies on roller skates run around a banked track trying to lap each other to score points.  How awesome is it?  First, watch this:

http://youtube.com/watch?v=DvtrA6XKmA8

This is what roller derby pretty much looks like these days.  All-women teams compete on either banked or flat tracks and has quite a big following.  There are large organized leagues of banked-track teams in Texas and Los Angeles, and every year the two meet up to skate against each other.  I've been to a few L.A. events, and I have to say that they are quite awesome.

Oh, but it gets better!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IRKh-o8K_jM
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=9047267300732959645

Rollerjam was an attempt at a mainstream revival of roller derby on national TV.  What made it awesome was that everyone used inline skates (instead of quads which roller derby traditionally uses) which meant skaters, particularly the men, went around the track fast.  I mean, dangerously, awesomely fast.  What sucked about it is that it slowly turned into a wrestling off-shoot with crappy storylines, fake fights, and a total disregard for the competition on the track.  I lament the loss of this.

However, I don't mind thing getting a comeback:

http://www.rollergames.com/

This was a one-year roller derby mutation in the early 80s.  You can tell that by watching the videos further down this page.  (I recommend watching video 4 and the last video.)  It had a figure-8 track, a grossly banked "Wall of Death," a ramp, and an alligator pit.  Yes, an alligator pit.  How could you not watch that?  Apparently, the producer of that original series is putting together a new modern version of Rollergames for the Internet, due out later this year (hence the website).  Awesome.

By the way, this series was 80's enough to get an NES game made, which was terrible.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=E5CP--BWVkc

And finally...

http://youtube.com/watch?v=WFK8P1SU_pg

This was a Japanese version of traditional roller derby that was called "Roller game."  This is roller derby at its most awesome.  Nothing is scripted, and there's no fake-ass fighting.  What it is, is full-contact balls-to-the-wall awesome.  Just watch the video!  The skaters are decked out in hockey pads and the lead skater is wearing a full-face helmet.  And they needed it!  How can you see that and not think roller derby is the best thing ever?

I love roller derby.  That is all.

[ShyGuy]

There is a local roller girl league called Lilac City Girls. I don't get it.

[NuclearSpeed]

the only one on tv I remember seeing was the one with the figure eight. it was great fun to watch with the skaters coming off the jump to land on the other skaters.

[animecyberrat]

When I read the title I was thinking Roller Disco and got worried about Windy man.