GAME ON: Armidale Roller Derby’s Miss Fitzs, left, and Mary Floggins are prepared to get their game on on Saturday night at UNE for Thunderbout. Photo: James Brooks
TICKETS are flying out the door for Armidale’s first roller derby extravaganza, an event described as “fast, furious and saucy action on wheels”.
Up to 50 skaters will thunder wild and free around the University of New England’s flat track on Saturday night, so Thunderbout is bound to live up to its name.
Armidale Roller Derby president Emily Stocker, aka Busty Gutz, said a night featuring three 30-minute periods of competition was about “giving people as much derby as possible”.
Ms Stocker said there were a few must-see skaters from Queensland, including Annabelle Lecter, SassNBite and the lady with the moniker Debbie Does D-Block.
“She is the type of girl who will put on a show for the punters, saucy as, quite a personality,” Ms Stocker said.
She said spectators could expect to see some “supreme athletes” in action, although she will be watching from the sidelines.
“Yeah, I’ve got a broken leg from training,” she said.
“This is definitely not a sport for the faint-hearted.
“Roller derby is a full-contact, serious athletic pursuit.”
Armidale has just joined more than 1250 amateur roller derby leagues around the world, in a resurgence of the sport, which has been around since the 1940s.
The league now has more than 70 members and is growing by the day.
Ms Stocker said a full-on derby bout had to be seen to be believed.
“It really is a sport like no other,” she said.
“Where else could you expect to see fishnets, makeup and roller skates combined?”
Thunderbout will be held on Saturday at Sport UNE.
