Dolls ready for first bout
It’s been a long time coming, but the Tournament City Derby Dolls (TCDD) are now just days away from their first official bout.
The Dolls are hosting a Lumby squad — the Redneck Daisies — at 7 p.m. on May 7 at the Tournament Capital Centre (TCC).
“The planning has been so crazy for it,” said blocker Cristina Ostapovitch, who morphs into her alter-ego, Acid Doll, when she is on the flat-track.
“I’m just looking forward to it arriving and just being able to play.
“Win or lose, it’s going to be a show.”
The team has been working toward its first bout since forming in late August, when captain Jo LeFlufy split from the city’s other roller derby outfit — the Kamloops Roller Derby Association — and formed the Derby Dolls.
“We don’t care if we win or lose, we just want to introduce Kamloops to the sport of roller derby,” said LeFlufy, who’s derby moniker is Fifi 4x4.
“A lot of people have no idea, they think it’s a lot of punching each other and tripping each other.”
LeFlufy’s team has about 31 members, 17 of whom are sanctioned by the Canadian Women’s Roller Derby Association (CWRDA) to compete in bouts.
Staci Grant, also known as Comin’n-Hot, is looking forward to performing in front of friends and family, who will have access to a beer garden on bout night at the TCC.
“The crazy intense rush that you get . . . I’ve played sports my whole life and I’ve never felt anything like when you play derby,” Grant said.
Tournament City Derby Dolls is actually the name of a league registered with the CWRDA.
Ostapovitch said the plan is to recruit enough players to have multiple teams within the league.
For now, the team name will be the same as the league’s name and the Dolls will play squads from other Interior cities.
Derby teams in Armstrong, Kelowna, Williams Lake and Enderby are all potential Dolls’ opponents.
Armstrong, which is home to the Raggedy Rollers, is considered the derby capital of the Okanagan, mostly because the Hassen Arena is an ideal spot for derby.
The Derby Dolls want to steal Armstrong’s thunder, but that’s tough to do because they don’t have a permanent practice and game facililty.
“We want to be derby central, but we need a home,” Ostapovitch said.
The Dolls have practised at pretty much every arena and school under Kamloops’ sun.
Ostapovitch said an ideal location for the Dolls would be an open warehouse with a smooth concrete floor.
Anyone in the city who might be able to help can contact the Dolls through their website, tcdd.ca.
That website is also the best way for newcomers to get in touch with the team.
The Dolls host “fresh meat” practices for girls who want to give the sport a try on Friday nights from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. at the Tk’emlups Indian Band gymnasium.
Tickets for the May 7 bout cost $10 and can be bought at On the Rocks or at The Ruby Room. They will also be on sale at the door for $12.
Kids five and under get in free. The doors open at 6 p.m.
The Derby Dolls’ May 7 bout roster
Celeste Imus (Celestial Beatings), Cristina Ostapovitch (Acid Doll), Dana Kushner (Purple Kush), Jo LeFlufy (Fifi 4x4), Kristin Nowicki (Suzy Bruisemaker), Lyndsey Curnow (Big Wang Theory), Lynn Gottfriedson (Boffa-lic-ious), Maggie Van Cott (Gonzofast), Melanie Atwater (Asylum Alice), Staci Grant (Comin’n-Hot), Yvonne Dmyterko (Yvonne the Terrible), Sharleen Warner Van Vliet (Extreme Takeover), Bonnie Fleming (Cheeky BonBon) and Kim Emsley-Leik (Foxie McMuff).
Roller derby, the basics
Two teams of five players — one jammer (scorer), three blockers (defence) and a pivot — race counter-clockwise on a flat-surface circuit track.
Rounds, or jams, last two minutes. Jammers must first pass the opposing team’s entire pack.
After doing so, jammers earn single points every time they pass an opposing team member. Whichever squad outscores the other, wins.
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