HRD All-Star Ninja Turtles vs. RWRG and LRG’s C Power 28.1.2012

Saturday 28th January 2012 – it’s going to be big! Royal Windsor Rollergirls are hosting a mini-tournament between with Royal Windsor Rollergirls,  London Rollergirls’ C-team, ‘Batter C Power’, and Helsinki Roller Derby’s All-Star Ninja Turtles.

London Rollergirls are the biggest and oldest roller derby league in the UK. Their new C-team, ‘Batter C Power’ – named after London’s iconic landmark, featuring a selection of skaters who have previously skated for LRG’s A-team, ‘London Brawling, their B-team, ‘Brawl Saints’, as well as new girls and seasoned regulars from their four intraleague house teams. We’re delighted to tempt them out of the big smoke to bout against us.

Windsor is thrilled to have the girls from Helsinki Roller Derby coming over – the third Scandinavian league to bout against RWRG. Eleven skaters from HRD recently took part at the Blood & Thunder Roller Derby World Cup in Toronto, joining up with their fellow Finns to form ‘Team Finland Roller Derby‘ – and coming in at a respectable fifth place at the World Cup.

HRD Queen B’s vs. Tenerife Roller Derby 4.2.2012

Mister and Miss, ladies and gentleman, aliens and humanoids!Yes, you all are in luck!

From the very first team in the Spanish Roller Derby league Tenerife Roller Derby arrives to your track:

THE FAST AND THE FURIOUS!

Tenerife Roller Derby vs. Helsinki Roller Derby Queen B´s
If you want some Derby holidays in the sun come to TENERIFE! Bring your parents, friends, and family!

WHEN?
The bout will take place in February 4th 2012, in the Pancho Camurria sports pavilion, in Santa Cruz of Tenerife, Street México – Barrio Buenos Aires.
Doors will be opened at 6pm.Bout will start at 7pm.
Roller skates, pretty rude girls, speed and strength! FUN IS GUARANTEED Y’ALL!

http://vimeo.com/34775907

Joulu tuli 9.12 Pasilassa, kun Helsinki Roller Derbyn Queen B´s pelasi ensimmäistä kertaa yhdessä Torttuina ja Tampere Rollin Ho’s ja Lahti Roller Derby muodostivat sekajoukkueen Pipareina.

Vaikka kyseessä oli perheelle ja kavereille tarkoitettu harjoitusottelu, oli tunnelma mielettömän jännittävä. Minulle, niinkuin monelle muullekkin, tämä oli ensimmäinen täyspitkä ottelu treenien ulkopuolella. Jo lämmitteleminen alkoi hyvässä fiiliksessä ystävysten eri kaupungeista nähdessään toisensa. Lämmittely suoritettiin yhdessä Tigre Forcen, torttujen bench managerin, johdolla.

Yksi derbyn hienouksista on se, että lajin harrastajat ovat keskenään hyvää pataa oli oma joukkue mikä tahansa. Kuitenkin alkuvihellyksen tullessa hurja keskittyminen vain omaan joukkueeseen ja päätetyihin taktiikoihin alkaa. Piparit saivat ensimmäisissä jameissa hieman etumatkaa, joka ikävä kyllä säilyi pelin loppuun asti. Torttujen peli alkoi kyllä kulkea hermostuneisuuden hieman laskiessa ja tilanne tuntui tiukalta koko pelin ajan. Pelin päätyttyä 64-101 Pipareille, jatkobileet alkoivat ja tanssilattialla oli tungosta. Pelin jälkeinen huuma ei selvästikkään ole keksitty juttu. Vaikka tappio tuli koko ilta oli aivan mieletön.

Molemmat joukkueet saivat arvokasta pelikokemusta ja oppia. Amppareille tämä oli erittäin tärkeä ottelu ennen Teneriffalle lähtöä, minne tottakai lähdetään voittamaan!

-Dollis

Kuvat: Juha Halmu

The event took place in Baltiska Hallen. The holy combination including the local supermarket (actually it’s a HYPER market, now that we’re in Sweden) and the Ibis hotel where all the league’s stayed at, pretty much equalled what many of us learned about the crime city of Malmö.

Estrogeena Davis lifting people up

The whole weekend included 6 bouts, and Helsinki Roller Derby was included in 3 of them. The second game of the whole tournament brought together HRD and Stockholm Roller Derby. This was one of the most wanted re-matches the audience was expecting for this tournament. HRD and STRD had encountered in October 2010 and HRD had won the bout with only 6 points (92-86), and STRD’s team had inadequate crew – HRD’s Tigre Force and Lizz Troublegum actually played againts their own team, to patch up our opponents line-ups. This time both teams were fully manned (well, wo-manned) and carefully trained, and after a feisty fight, Helsinki triumphed with 141 points against Stockholms 77 points. And we can’t wait for another re-match!

There's a chance that certain someone got a low block major right after this photo was shot...

The weekend had just begun… On Sunday, Helsinki was in for two other bouts, and the morning was kicked off with the long waited bout between two Helsinki leagues, your very own HRD and Kallio Rolling Rainbow. Kallio got the lead jammer in the first jam, so when the first score was declared, Kallio had lead in points. Our Green Team soon catched up, and turtles controlled the bout to the very end. The battle for our beloved home town was full of temper and drama, and the bout schedule had to be delayed for one full hour due to the time it took for these two teams to finally get closure. The final score was 217-57 for Helsinki!

KRR's MVP Udre commiting succesful sideways blocking to Bambi Crushbone

The final bout was between Helsinki and Malmö, and it’s fair to say, it was the most waited bout, at least when it comes to the turtles. HRD All-Stars were anxious to find out how the bout against Malmö would turn out, after all, the founders of SwedeVix Skate Shop both played for this team. Soon after the first whistle Helsinki realised that they had to change all the strategies they had been focusing on the previous games, Malmö soon grabbed the lead and didn’t let slip for one second. Mad Maloonys beautiful smile soon pervaded to the faces of all the Crime City Rollers, when they smashed the winning high scores of the whole tournament, leaving Helsinki Roller Derby to the second place with 211 against 76 points.

Mad Maloony sure had many reasons to smile

All in all, after winning two bouts and meeting their true match in the last bout, the whole weekend was triumphant. Every single player was pushed to their own limit. The best closure we could ever had, was when Suvi Hokkari was declared Most Valuable Player, receiving her title with a shiner. Good times.

Suvi Hokkari, HRD's MVP and Flippin' Lori Meyers are going for the sandwich with KRR's PolygAmy Winehouse

Helsinki Roller Derby’s final scores of that awesome weekend:
Stockholm-Helsinki 77-141
Helsinki-Kallio 217-57
Crime City-Helsinki 211-71

Photos: Helsinki Roller Derby in the Battle of the Nordic Light, Malmö

Photos:Marko Niemelä/Shutterpunk

Hurtta Lottas captain Suvi Hokkari bidding farewell to Saturday Fight Fever jammer Estrogeena Davis

HRD’s home teams are both extremely equal teams, which of course quarantees exciting bout night for the audience too. Mad Fist Myra and Kati Kyyrö were returned to their original SFF team, as well as Trixie GrandBang was borrowed to the Hurttas. League founder and Hurtta Lotta bench manager for Fool Fighters, Estrogeena Davis, was also playing this time for SFF and everybody was very excited for having this lovely woman on our track once again. On the bout day, we learned that SFF was suffering from some injuries, but with all of these strong, beautiful women around us, SFF decided not to care, not to be scared, and head for battle, chin up!

This time the ref team got enforcements from Kallio Rolling Rainbow, Lahti Roller Derby and Stockholm Roller Derby. In the picture you can see STRD's Fluke Skywalker counting Kata Strofi's points.

First period went smoothly, and SFF treated their guest team Hurtta Lottas with all the cold revenge they had coming their way. And managed to get a point difference around 20 pts. With teams as equal as this, it was superior task. When Hurttas returned from the intermissions, they had such fury pulsing through their fur, all SFF’s work went to ruins. When the final score was declared, it showed that Hurttas had won with 92 against 86.

Former SFF skater Chrissee Rascal was the bench manager for Hurtta Lottas for "30 seconds to jam"

In other words, the Fighters were once again enpowered and unable to steal that first price, the Golden Skate, from it’s rightful owners for the Season #1. Hurtta Lottas remained undefeated, just like they promised. Helsinki Roller Derby is anxiously waiting the our Season #2, when it’s once again time for re-match.

More Photos on HRD’s Facebook Page

Photos:Marko Niemelä/ Shutterpunk

As an Apprentice affiliate of the WFTDA, Helsinki Roller Derby joins the ranks of more than 100 all-female, skater-owned-and-operated leagues worldwide that have united to lead the growing sport of women’s flat track roller derby.

WFTDA apprentice leagues are matched with veteran member leagues who guide them in the processes and requirements necessary to become a full member of the Association.  Additionally, the mentor offers advice and information related to the management and development of the apprentice league.  WFTDA Apprentice leagues are considered “pre-members” of the WFTDA and have access to many of the resources and benefits of full WFTDA membership.

Read more about the WFTDA Apprentice Membership Program and its new additions! Congratulations to one and all from Helsinki Roller Derby!
The WFTDA accepted 15 new leagues in July 2011, bringing the total to 72 women’s flat track roller derby leagues now enrolled in WFTDA Apprenticeship.

Myrsky ja Mylväys - Sturm und Drang

Helsinki Roller Derby played their 3rd game of season #1 against Stuttgart Valley Rollergirlz’s (who were, just FYI, the winners of German Championship 2010) on Saturday the 11th of June. Most of the german players were the most talented skaters in SVRG, so you can imagine Pasila sports hall was filled with storm and stress more than ever before, when HRD’s very own All Stars-team was finally released on the track.

Day’s bout was unique in many ways. It wasn’t just the first bout of the actual All Stars-team, but also a rematch for Finland’s and Germany’s first bout. I’m of course talking about Feuertaufe, a bout played in Stuttgart on the 8th of May 2010, where the recent HellCity Rollers travelled to play the first game in HRD’s history.

Also the ref team got enforcements from the German team. SVRG's Old Maverick.

The word “feuertaufe” means “baptism by fire”, which according to Wikipedia is “the common vernacular to describe anyone doing something “the hard way” for the first time, particularly if training is necessarily insufficient to fully prepare one for the experience (as is the case with battle).” The description couldn’t have fit better, when HRD encountered with one of Stuttgart’s finest players, having been practicing and skating for an under a year at that time.

Both teams has grown and evolved humongously, and this time it was the Finns turn to treat their German guests. And let’s just say that if Young Werther could have been present, he wouldn’t have lasted for a half a jam!

SVRG's Matadora stuck behind HRD wall

On the first period Helsinki dominated the game and gained quite a difference in points. HRD All Stars, that had been training for this game for weeks, controlled almost every jam, earning lead jammer after lead jammer, while their blockers made sure that SVRG didn’t earn any points within the last ten or so minutes of the period. When the half time was reached, the score board notified that Helsinki was leading with 64 points against Stuttgart’s 30 points.

Noxious Angel jamming

But, as we all well know, in roller derby the points are made in just seconds and even the most humongous predominance could turn to defeat. One of the most glorious moments of the second period for SVRG was when Noxious Angel was declared lead jammer, and made 24 points for her team in one jam. Regardless of Trixie GrandBang’s, Bambi Crushbone’s and Kata Strofi’s wondrous compensating, Stuttgart caught on with their strategies so well, that when it was time for the last jam, Helsinki was leading with only 3 points. Noxious Angel was jamming again in the last jam, earned lead jammer and skated the last crucial points. Stuttgart won the game with 108 points against Helsinki’s 105 points.

After a bout such as this one, it’s very difficult to feel like a loser. Stuttgart won the points, but Helsinki exceeded herself multiple ways, proving that despite of all things, HRD is playing the most dizzying and most ambitious roller derby Finland has to offer at the moment.

More photos on Facebook

Photos:Marko Niemelä

Whatever is your sport, roller derby, roller blading, skate boarding, Overboard has the paddings you need. They have incredible service and know-how, and we’re very honored to have them as our sponsor.

Photo: Miika Karttunen

Helsinki Roller Derby was there for Saturday and Sunday, hanging among tattooed people and answering questions that the curious might have , but first and foremost making sure that the hardworking, incredibly talented tattoo artists always had cool refreshments on their hands. That we ensured by rolling with our service cart with skates on and with a twinkle in our eyes, it’s fair to say we were a sight for a sore eye.
Photos: Joanna Tzortzis

I joined Helsinki Roller Derby (HRD) as a skater last November. As the former goddess of the non-athletic, I could’ve never imagined to be so excited about competing after just five months of practice, but like our very own Suvi Hokkari said, the will to eat grows by eating. After out previous minimum skills testing day on the 11th of March, our league was blessed with an excessive amount of talented skaters and on the 23th it was time to take our new phalanx and head to Lahti, Finland’s rising roller derby city!

Lahti Roller Derby (LRD), eshtablished in the summer of 2010, met us on the Jalkaranta school gymnasium , where we dragged our inexperienced and beautiful bones before mid day on Sunday. Accomplishment itself. The days teams were assembled from both the Helsinki and Lahti players. Lizz Troublegum (HRD) took care of our last minute practice before the players moved under Tigre Forces, our bench manager for the day, steel wing.

Now, let’s play some roller derby! Us visitors glanced at out fellows in faith with eyes wide open. The scrimmage was the first one for the most of us, myself included. The situation was the same for Lahti skaters as well, so our scrimmage was really a touching moment in both leagues histories. Feet started to warm up and tension relieved between us skaters. We’re bot in the same boat here.
It’s sort of hard so say anything about the game itself. We were all excited very excited, and even though we had both strong and safe teams, we tried to focus on game strategies rather than to the most brutal sort of tackling. At least to my own horror, we discovered after the game, that there was a video camera in the corner – so there would be evidence of our doings! First the idea of watching the tape was frightening, but it wasn’t that bad… Best way to be discuss and really learn about the game, is to watch yourself on video. The pictures tell more than a thousand words.

In the honor of this first scrimmage I even got to sit in the penalty box, only for one minute thought. Watching those events leading to it from the tape makes my insides burn. We only had our own jammer in the game, so I made the opponent a huge favor by tackling an opposing blocker on my jammer. I rewind the tape back and forth and I try to figure out what made me do it, but I can’t figure it out… We all collapsed to the ground, the penalty was ”elbows”, but Panda (Pandora Pandamonium, one of the attending HRD referees) might as well screamed at me ”Dynamina, I’ve never seen a moron like you in my entire life, go home and cry in to your pillow!”. That kind of stuff is so ridiculous to watch, that there’s nothing else to be done but laugh at it. Sometimes I guess you just forget your IQ on the bottom of your training bag when you put on skates!

Well, we all make mistakes, and among us newbies we all had time to really take our lessons. Nobody becomes a better skater while sitting on the bench. Underestimating yourself never does you any favors. Let’s just take a look at my own achievements. For some mystical reason I fell down right after the starting whistle of the last jam – like I said, for now apparent reason, nobody hit me or anything, and it also took me a really long time to get up. My insides twist and burst into flames when I watch it on tape. Like HRD referee Fat Rat rephrased after we headed to a near by pizza parlor in the centrum of Lahti to celebrate, a mistake like that is like biting in to a piece of pepper in the back of your mouth after a meal – no matter how good the food was, it ruins everything.
But let’s forget the pepper and focus on the meal for a moment… The Lahti scrimmage was absolutely the best skating experience I have so far. It was really refreshing to head to another city to play, with completely new people. Our combining factor, the love for roller derby, is a wonderful thing, that extends across the country. Who knows, it might not be long before us at the moment ”new skaters” get to learn what the world wide love for this sport feels like, when our trips stretch further and further every time.

HRD skaters, you know who you are… but a thank you is well reserved also by Amy the RipHer, Foxy Shady, Calvina Clovn, Bunsky Bunny, Mimi Van Detta, Lady Killer Bee, Hazel Divine, Bellydonna Loller, Dropkick Macy, Aliena Snakebite, Vanilla Balls, Gracey Fitch, Annie Moanroe, Miss Rhage, Red Dead Delahaye, Rose McGoGo and Bree Wonder Vamp! This trip really shouts out for a re-match! Lahti Roller Derby rock on!

Photos: Juha Halmu & Ilari Nurmi