Mayhem Shake Title Picture Up with Win over Queens

by Thomas Gerbasi

For the home teams of the Gotham Girls Roller Derby league, it’s a whole new world after the Manhattan Mayhem’s 192-187 victory over the Queens of Pain at John Jay College on June 11. Expected by many to pick up their second win of the season and sail into an August championship showdown with the unbeaten defending champions from Brooklyn, Queens instead met a team unwilling to see their dreams of a title end in June.

Now it’s all down to this Saturday’s Coney Island doubleheader to determine which teams move on to the title bout and which start focusing on next season. And Manhattan (1-1) and Queens (1-1) are both eager to get a win and make a statement.

PHOTO: DAVID DYTE

“I can't wait to play against Gridlock,” said Manhattan’s Em Dash of her squad’s showdown with the 0-2 Gridlock. “They're a team of really excellent skaters, many of whom are taller and bigger than my teammates, so it's always a really intensely physical game. That said, our jammers are used to being beaten up. Mayhem beats up our jammers every Sunday, and not a lot of people hit harder than Bonita, Violet, Sunny, and Roxy. And as you might have noticed, Cork Rebel was back on skates (on June 11), so with any luck we'll have our full team for the July 16 bout as well. It feels so much better to have our whole team skating.”

“The team is looking forward to skating against Brooklyn,” Queens jammer Shortstop said. “They beat us twice last year so we are looking to change that this time around. The game against Mayhem has made us even more hungry to take a win.”

Despite losing last season’s championship game to the Bombshells, Queens have been one of the most dominant teams in the league for a long time, and their season opening win over the Bronx only cemented that reputation. But the Mayhem, which lost a three-point heartbreaker to Brooklyn in their first bout of 2016, were ready for the challenge, with team MVP Dash thrilled about her squad’s performance.

“We played a calm, happy game and exhibited great teamwork,” she said. “Our jammers stayed focused and used incredible footwork to zip through tiny holes in Queens' defense. Overall, our team played one of the cleanest games I can remember; it's easier to play well when you have a full pack and a jammer on the track.”

And while a small difference of five jammer box trips to Queens’ seven, and 35 penalty box minutes to their opponent’s 42 may not sound like much, in a close game, it can speak volumes.

“I don't believe anything went wrong against Mayhem, but our penalty times are something we can improve for our Brooklyn game,” Shortstop said.

PHOTO: DAVID DYTE

Nip and tuck throughout, both teams let their offenses do the talking, leading to the highest scoring bout of the year thus far, with Queens MVP Shortstop leading the way with 102 points and Bruzin Brody putting up 63 points on the board.

The veteran Dash, who is approaching the one-year anniversary of the publication of Derby Life, a book readers have come to consider the flat track derby bible, chipped in 57 points, and she makes no bones about it – a high-scoring game is a lot more fun for the fans and the jammers.

“I cut my teeth on a version of derby that was a lot faster and more chaotic than the current version, so I love a fast pack and a bit of offense,” she said. “Juking around a talented blocker is one of the best feelings in the world.” 

Appropriately, it was Dash who was on the track for two pivotal jams in the second half, first scoring 14 points to turn a seven-point Queens lead into a seven-point advantage for her squad.

Then three jams later, Dash added 25 points in a single jam that put Manhattan up 148-121. Shortstop and Suzy Hotrod made a late surge for the ladies in black, but came up five points short, setting the stage for a photo finish in one of the most interesting seasons in GGRD history.

PHOTO: DAVID DYTE

QUEENS vs. MANHATTAN STATS

1 2 F

Queens 82 105 187

Manhattan 91 101 192

Queens MVP – Shortstop

Manhattan MVP – Em Dash

Leading Queens Scorers

Shortstop – 102 points (21 jams)

Suzy Hotrod – 60 points (16 jams)

Kitty Roadkill – 14 points (7 jams)

Leading Queens Blockers

Puss ‘n Glutes – 31 jams (+34)

Livvie Smalls – 29 jams (-24)

Chopstick Murphy – 26 jams (-14)

Leading Manhattan Scorers

Bruzin Brody – 63 points (14 jams)

Em Dash – 57 points (13 jams)

J Rod – 46 points (14 jams)

Tickets for the 7/16 doubleheader in Coney Island are available here.

Queens and Manhattan are Well Prepared for Their Saturday Night Showdown

By Thomas Gerbasi

Brooklyn and Manhattan always bring it, especially against each other. Queens is a ferocious machine on the flat track. And the Bronx refuses to go away without a fight. Yet despite all this goodness Gotham Girls Roller Derby league fans have seen thus far in 2016, there’s a feeling that given the stakes involved and the usual intensity from both teams, this Saturday’s bout between the Queens of Pain and the Manhattan Mayhem may just produce the best action of the year.

Think about it. Queens looked championship-bound given their opening win over the Gridlock, and Manhattan may have lost on the scoreboard to the Bombshells in their first game of the season, but that three-point defeat didn’t stop anyone from looking at them as one of the best teams in the league. And now they meet, with Queens a win away from clinching a championship rematch with Brooklyn in August, and Manhattan hungry to keep their title dreams alive, something that can only happen with a victory. It’s high noon at John Jay College in NYC this weekend, and both teams know it.

“We always expect that kind of (intense game) from Manhattan,” said Queens’ Erin Watershow. “They’ve always been a really strong and tough team, and whenever we play them, at least the past few years, it’s always been an intense and tough game.”

PHOTO: DAVID DYTE

Adding to the intensity is the reality that with each team only getting three home games, one loss can be critical. It’s not the ideal situation, but it’s one every team has to deal with.

“This is my ninth full season with Gotham, so I’m certainly used to it by now,” said Manhattan’s Em Dash. “But I wish we got a chance to play each other more. We scrimmage once a week, we practice three to four times a week, and only getting a chance to put it all on the line three times is hard. I would love to play every team a bunch of times all season long, but it’s just not practical. So you do what you can, you bring a hundred percent to every single game, and it is what it is.”

PHOTO: DAVID DYTE

That’s the bad news for local derby fans. The good news is that with so much on the line every night, each bout takes on a championship feel. It’s not like major league baseball, where each team has 162 games to play with. This is like combat sports, where a fighter has eight weeks of training to perform on one night. You either get it right or you don’t. If you do, the glory is yours. You don’t, and it’s a long wait for a shot at redemption.

“Especially because I’ve jammed a lot for Mayhem, the idea that you have one night to show everything you’ve worked for and show what your team can do can be really hard,” Dash explains. “So the thing that has made the biggest difference in my game is building up mental skills, focusing on the moment I’m in and just letting go of anything that’s come before, whether it’s losing the previous game by three points or the last jam we didn’t get lead. Everything that’s happened already is gone; all we have is the next moment. And I think that’s the only way to succeed in a season that has so few opportunities to show what you’re made of. It’s just focusing on every moment and making the most of each moment you have.”

This is the beauty of derby. It’s not a bunch of skaters racing around a track hitting each other. It’s so much more than that. In a lot of ways, it’s a chess match on eight wheels, with every skater forced to not just deal with the physicality of the sport, but the strategy, the reality of playing offense and defense at the same time, and doing it all while on skates.

“It’s hard to put a number on it, but this is an incredibly mental game,” Dash said. “And once you develop certain baseline skills, what separates a pretty good player from a phenomenal player, like a Bonnie Thunders, is your knowledge of the game, your ability to put that knowledge into action while people are hitting you, knocking you down and chasing you around the track. And it’s also your ability to reset, shake off a bad jam and focus on what’s coming next. All of those mental skills are critical.”

PHOTO: DAVID DYTE

But perhaps the most important mental skill is making sure that your eyes are focused on what’s in front of you and not what may be down the road. That goes for every sport, and while Erin admits that she and her team are gunning for a rematch with Brooklyn in August, there may not be an August if they don’t get the job done this weekend.

“I would say we’re definitely thinking about Brooklyn because we know that they’re going to be at Champs, but we’re definitely more focused on the game right now,” Erin said. “The focus since we played the Bronx has been on Manhattan. We haven’t talked about Brooklyn too much because Manhattan’s a really tough team and we are by no means underestimating them at all.”

That may be the biggest key to the dominance of a Queens team that has been near or at the top of the league for years, regardless of team turnover.

“Something I know from my experiences in derby, not just with Queens, but in general, is that I think you should never go into a bout expecting to win,” Erin said. “Never take your opponents for granted, even if you’re really confident that you’re the stronger team. Don’t underestimate them. And I would also say that Queens really prides itself on how hard we work and how many hours we put in. Our land drills are really hard and intense, and our team’s attendance is always very high. We’re very dedicated, and that is also one of the secrets to Queens’ success, even with all the internal personnel changes.”

PHOTO: DAVID DYTE

So who wins the mental battle? Does Manhattan’s camaraderie on and off the track put them back in the championship race, or will Queens continue to take out all comers on their way to another title bout? This one may just come down to who is willing to dig down deep and win a dogfight. But then again, both of these teams are down for a good ol’ fashioned throwdown.

“There’s just something really rewarding and exciting about a really hard and tough game,” Erin said. “Even if you don’t win, you can be proud of the way that you played. Blowouts in derby are great if you’re winning, but it’s not nearly as rewarding in the end. So as much as it’s emotionally stressful for me, I would still prefer a close game. It’s more fun to play and it’s more fun to watch.”

Tickets available here.

Slaydie Returns to Give Brooklyn Boost in Win over Gridlock

By Thomas Gerbasi

She’s back. Making her first start of 2016, Gotham Girls Roller Derby All-Star Sexy Slaydie made an intimidating Brooklyn Bombshells team even scarier on May 7, as she helped lead the defending GGRD champions to a 178-118 win over the Bronx Gridlock at John Jay College in Manhattan.

“It was thrilling,” Slaydie said of her return. “I have been on the injury list since WFTDA Championships last November, so it felt great to compete in front of our fans again. I missed skating against Manhattan, which was a super close and physical game.”

Slaydie and her Bombshell teammates may meet the Mayhem again should Manhattan win their next two bouts and find their way into August’s championship game. But first, Brooklyn took another step toward becoming the first GGRD home team to repeat as champions since 2010 by beating the last team to achieve that feat in the Gridlock.

PHOTO: DAVID DYTE

Back then, the Gridlock was a well-oiled machine with a veteran core of skaters (Bonnie Thunders, Kandy Kakes, Beatrix Slaughter, Ginger Snap among them) that had years to gel and become a formidable unit. Today’s Gridlock has not been that fortunate, with turnover and injuries hitting them harder than their league mates. 

“Our strategy has a lot of moving parts and we just need more time to integrate everyone into a cohesive machine,” team MVP Rude McSlamahan said after the bout. “Bronx has had to rebuild for the past few seasons and it shows, compared to other teams that have had longer to gel, especially on bout day.”

PHOTO: DAVID DYTE

That hasn’t stopped the cabbies from lacing up their skates and showing up to play on bout night. Yet despite keeping it close early, the blocking of Slaydie and company held the Bronx jammers in check while opening up lanes for Miss Tea Maven to put up a game high 139 points. 

“Our goals were figuring out how to crack Bronx's solid defensive walls and combat their jam-start offense,” Slaydie said. “We made some key adjustments last minute that helped us. Bronx's walls are so solid and intimidating. We were hoping we could go in to this game matching that slowness and control.”

PHOTO: DAVID DYTE

By halftime, Brooklyn had a 74-52 lead, with Bronx clearly within striking distance, but 28 and 30-point jams by Maven early in the second half turned a 92-62 advantage into a 150-74 tally that sealed the deal for the Bombshells, who have their eyes on August, but aren’t losing sight on the rest of the league gunning for them.

“All four teams, Manhattan, Queens, Bronx and Brooklyn are playing great derby this year,” Slaydie said. “There's a lot of new talent in this season's draft picks and I can't wait to see how teams continually improve until Champs. I think as the season heats up, the games will be even more exciting, and the Bombshells are gunning for that championship trophy again.”

The Gridlock, still seeking their first win in two years, will not be content to go quietly into the off-season. Now it’s time to play spoiler, and they can do that with a win over the Mayhem in Coney Island on July 16. It’s about expected to be a physical one. 

PHOTO: DAVID DYTE

“Fans should look forward to a blocker battle, as neither team has a starting all-star jammer on their roster, but blockers instead,” Rude said. “Mayhem is known to be a hard blocking team, but Bronx has a lot of size to counter it.”

They have plenty of motivation too. 

“Bronx hasn't had a win since 2014, so what more motivation could there be?” Rude asked. “I feel like the team is in a good place. The vibes in the locker room after the Brooklyn bout were positive and we’re looking forward to the next matchup against Mayhem and even into next season.”

BROOKLYN vs. BRONX STATS

                           1         2        F

Brooklyn     74   104 178                                           

Bronx      52       66 118

Brooklyn MVP – Sexy Slaydie

Bronx MVP – Rude McSlamahan

Leading Brooklyn Scorers

Miss Tea Maven – 139 points (20 jams)

D.A.R.Y.L. – 20 points (13 jams)

BlueJ – 16 points (5 jams)

Leading Brooklyn Blockers

Sexy Slaydie – 29 jams (+79)

Lady Fingers – 23 jams (+44)

ShadowboxHER – 21 jams (+57)

Leading Bronx Scorers

Kate Sera Sera – 55 points (14 jams)

Big Banger – 35 points (14 jams)

Massacre Marie – 25 points (12 jams)

Leading Bronx Blockers

Davey Blockit – 22 jams (-86)

Cherry Napalm – 21 jams (-21)

Fast and Luce – 19 jams (-51)

Brooklyn Penalties

Minutes in Box: 27 Jammer Box Trips: 6

Bronx Penalties

Minutes in Box: 34 Jammer Box Trips: 5

Stats compiled via Rinxter

The Bronx has 60 Minutes to Turn It All Around Against Defending Champs

 By Thomas Gerbasi

The blessing and the curse of the Gotham Girls Roller Derby league home season will be on full display this Saturday when the defending champion Brooklyn Bombshells face the Bronx Gridlock at John Jay College in Manhattan.

The blessing? In a three-game season, any team can salvage everything with one key victory. In the case of the Gridlock, who have not won a game since May of 2014, a win over the Bombshells erases that past and puts them in contention for the championship game in August. It’s a fact not lost on the cabbies.

As for Brooklyn, who conversely have not lost since July of 2014, a defeat this weekend puts them at 1-1 and all of a sudden it’s a race to see who competes for the Golden Skate trophy this summer. That’s the curse.

But no matter which side of the equation you’re on, there’s a bout to be played, and the veterans of the Gridlock have made it clear to their newcomers that they need to play this one like it’s for all the marbles. Because it may very well be.

“I think they all realize how important it is (to win) and I think in our practices the other teams are noticing that we’re really working together,” said Bronx vet Davey Blockit. “Hopefully, they’re scared of us and we can prove it on Saturday that we’ll be the team to beat. If we’re not playing in the championship game at the end of the season, that’s our own fault because we have really amazing skaters on our team. We probably have the most skill on our team collectively, so if we can just figure out how to work together on the track during a high-pressure situation like a close game, then there’s no reason we can’t win by at least 50 points.”

PHOTO: DAVID DYTE

The Gridlock are a team whose record doesn’t reflect their talent level. Even their season opening loss to the Queens of Pain on April 9 was closer than the 200-159 score would indicate, making it a positive start to the season, even if that doesn’t show up in the win column.

"We had a lot of new players in the draft, and that was our first chance to see how well we worked together,” Davey said. “This was our first test, and we didn’t skate too bad. It was a close game for the most part. I felt like looking at the stats, we should have won. We had some things we did wrong that I felt cost us the game as far as strategy and when to call it and how to manipulate the clock, but we really worked with our jammers to stay out of the penalty box. We only had 10 jammer penalties the whole game, which sounds like a lot, but not compared to 20 in previous games, and we cut down our penalties as a whole as a team, which is good. Plus, we’re working on a new wall that none of the other teams are doing and I felt like that was working well. So there were a lot of positives that came out of it.”

As for the Bombshells, they kept their winning streak going against the Manhattan Mayhem in March, eking out a 161-158 nod in another classic battle between the two rivals. It was the type of grueling bout that reminded the ladies in blue that when you’re the champions, everyone will be bringing their “A” game when the whistle blows.

“It was obviously a very challenging game, but Brooklyn is great about staying strong mentally and staying really focused, and our leadership has been wonderful about keeping the team held together,” said Bombshell veteran D.A.R.Y.L. “So that was good test for our team and it was a great stepping stone. Because it was so difficult, it forces us to not just walk into anything like it’s going to be super easy. We know that every game is going to be challenging, so it’s good for us to have that under our belt moving forward.”

A former member of the Mayhem, D.A.R.Y.L. returned to the league this year and was drafted onto the Bombshells, which provided its own set of challenges as she played against several players who she shared the track with for two seasons. But with that done for the moment, it should be smooth skating this Saturday and beyond.

“Personally, I think that it’s easier for me to play any team that isn’t my old home team,” she laughs. “The last game was definitely the most mentally challenging game I’ve ever had. So I think anything other than that is a little easier for sure. But with that said, as a team we always approach it as it’s going to be a challenge regardless, and we need to give it our all, no matter what. So we need to be as prepared as we can to withstand the penalties or any other things that get thrown at us and really play our best game.”

PHOTO: DAVID DYTE

And D.A.R.Y.L. and her teammates have kept a collective eye on the Gridlock, so if the Bronx hopes to catch Brooklyn napping, that’s probably not going to happen.

“We get to skate with the other members of the team, whether it’s on travel teams or league skills night,” she said. “So we see what each individual skater is like on any given practice night. But it’s always good to keep an eye out for what the team looks like together, and at least half of any team is watching the other team’s game and keeping an eye on what they’re looking like. This year they do look really strong and they do have a good fighting chance to do well this season.”

As long as it’s not at the Bombshells’ expense. The Gridlock take an opposing view, and they’re gearing up to not just end Brooklyn’s winning streak, but to start their own. And that would be a pretty impressive feather in the helmet of this yellow and black-clad crew.

“It would mean that all of our hard work finally paid off,” said Davey.

Tickets for Saturday's bout available here.

Queens Shows They’re Ready for the Future…and Present…with win over Gridlock

By Thomas Gerbasi

PHOTO: DAVID DYTE

Winless since May of 2014, the Bronx Gridlock pulled out all the stops in search of victory against the Queens of Pain on April 9 at John Jay College in New York City. From fast packs to star passes and everything in between, the cabbies battled for the win, only to see Queens break open a close game in the second half and come out on top, 200-159.

“We wanted it so bad,” said Gridlock MVP Big Banger, who logged a team-high 61 points. We felt strong in practice, we practiced all the situations that we could think of - we practiced star passes, power jam offense and defense, when Queens would do this and when Queens would do that. We were really ready, and I think we did awesome. I'm really proud of how we did.”

There was no shame in their effort, with seven first-half lead changes keeping fans on the edge of their seats and the Bronx in prime position to pull off the upset over their opponents, who have appeared in the last three GGRD championship games, winning one title. 

But it seemed like every time the Gridlock would pull ahead, Queens All-Star ShortStop would toe the jammer line, and with moves that made her look like Allen Iverson on skates, she would weave through the pack and put up monster numbers. The result was a game high 96 points for the Australia native. And while veteran superstar Suzy Hotrod and team MVP Puss ‘n Glutes still led the way for the team, the emergence of ShortStop and players like Kitty Roadkill, Chopstick Murphy and Livvie Smalls let the league know that despite retirements and the usual league turnover, Queens is still a top gun ready to make a title run once more.

“I think one of Queens' strengths is that we took this crop of new girls and we said that they'd fit in as a part of the team from Day One and they did,” said Glutes. “Honestly, I've never felt a stronger bond in this group. Having Scars return, and having Alli and Bollocks and Lynx there on the bench just makes it feel like old Queens. We're just doing the same old thing but with a whole new crop.”

PHOTO: DAVID DYTE

A back-and-forth battle between Suzy and Banger at the end of the half resulted in a jam that produced 34 combined points, but it was Queens going into the locker room with a 16-point advantage, 100-84. The Gridlock would cut that lead to 12 on the first jam of the second half, but that’s as close as they would get, as Queens steadily kept the pressure on, capitalized on mistakes, and pulled away down the stretch. Yet despite the final score, this was no cakewalk for Queens.

“It's no fun to play a game that isn't hard, and Bronx is an incredible team,” said Glutes. “They have so many new skaters and so many old skaters that really work their asses off, and they played an incredibly strong and powerful game. They have size, they have strength, they have speed and power and we were working from Day One to be able to counter that and we hope that we're able to continue streaking through the rest of the season in the same way.”

It wasn’t a win for the Gridlock, but it was something to build on as they await their May 7 meeting with the defending champion Brooklyn Bombshells at John Jay. “I feel we did great at holding some of their really strong jammers a lot of the time,” Banger said. “We knew going into it that Shortstop is phenomenal and Suzy Hotrod is phenomenal and that we would be going against them a lot and we exhausted them. They hated being behind our walls a lot of that time, and we're really proud about that and it's a good step to build off of.”

PHOTO: DAVID DYTE

So what should Gotham fans expect on May 7? 

“A win by at least...some points,” she said. “More than one. (Laughs) We're gonna win.”

BRONX vs. QUEENS STATS

                           1         2        F

Bronx     84   75 159                                           

Queens     100    100 200

Bronx MVP – Big Banger

Queens MVP – Puss ‘n Glutes

Leading Bronx Scorers

Big Banger – 61 points (12 jams)

Kate Sera Sera – 39 points (9 jams)

Legs // Cite – 36 points (9 jams)

Leading Bronx Blockers

Fast and Luce – 23 jams (-24)

Caf Fiend – 22 jams (-16)

Cherry Napalm – 21 jams (+5)

Leading Queens Scorers

ShortStop – 96 points (15 jams)

Suzy Hotrod – 68 points (14 jams)

Kitty Roadkill – 19 points (4 jams)

Leading Queens Blockers

Puss ‘n Glutes – 24 jams (+52)

Chopstick Murphy – 21 jams (+8)

Livvie Smalls – 17 jams (+3)

Bronx Penalties

Minutes in Box: 35 Jammer Box Trips: 10

Queens Penalties

Minutes in Box: 36 Jammer Box Trips: 10