Toronto Teams Go 6-0 at a Thrilling 2015 Quad City Chaos

Toronto proved to be ungracious hosts on the track, sweeping both the A and B-team portions of an extraordinarily exciting tournament.

The 2015 QCC featured incredibly close action, with an average differential of 36 points in the six D1 games. (Photo by Neil Gunner)

Early on in Toronto Roller Derby’s 6^th annual Quad City Chaos, the dominant narrative looked as if it would the upsets, but as they games progressed that story was tweaked and what emerged was a tournament dominated by parity, at least on the A-team level, with the average point-differential over the six-game round robin tournament being a measly 36 points, with most (if not all) of the games looking like they could have gone either way. The widest gap of the weekend was a 55-point Toronto win over Boston that was actually much closer than even the score would indicate, evidenced by the seven lead changes that occurred in the game (although they all did occur in the opening half). It was an extraordinary bit of scheduling for the organizers from Toronto Roller Derby, so much so that all of the teams can leave feeling pretty happy about their results.

DIVISION 1 GAMES

An expected CN Power rebuild looks more like a rebirth after a 3-0 weekend. (Photo by Neil Gunner)

One of the questions coming into the game was how a rebuilding Toronto roster would perform against three WFTDA D1 teams whose rosters remained relatively intact from the 2014 season; by the end of the weekend, it was clear that this CN Power team is going through a rebirth more than a rebuild: with a new jammer rotation and a completely new bench staff, Toronto actually looked reenergized and refocused after a somewhat bland 2014 season in which the team appeared to have plateaued. Bolstered by some experienced transfers and a core of internally developed skaters who represent the first wave of graduates of the B-team program, Toronto seems ready for a competitive push up the D1 rankings this season. It was the first time since 2012 (and only the second time ever) that 28^th ranked Toronto has gone 3-0 at their own tournament, holding their rankings against the Rideau Valley Vixens (39^th) and (29^th) Steel City, while upsetting 25^th ranked Boston.

Rideau Valley (1-2 on the weekend) also has to be incredibly happy with the results. With the same roster that brought them all the way to the WFTDA D2 championship last year, the Vixens continue to defy expectations and climb the ladder with a team whose core has been together for years now. The Ottawa-based team played above their rankings on the weekend, looking every-bit the equal to all of their opponents. Kicking off the tournament with a significant upset over Steel City, the Vixens gave Toronto all the hosts could handle on Saturday night in a game that featured an incredible eleven lead changes (including nine in the opening half), but as they did all weekend, Toronto seemed to get stronger deep into games and Rideau couldn’t replicate the upset they managed the last time the teams squared off at QCC 2013. The Vixens had a remarkably similar result against Boston, a game in which they could not maintain their intensity through to the end, but looked strong throughout.

Boston jammer Maya Mangleyou duels with Toronto’s Renny Rumble while Lil Paine looks on. (Photo by Neil Gunner)

Boston (2-1) had an up and down weekend. Although they went nose-to-nose with Toronto for the first half of their Saturday showdown, the hosts pulled ahead early in the second, and Boston simply could not catch them. But the loss seemed to charge the team up, and after a shaky start against Steel City, managed to pull ahead of Pittsburgh at the midway point of the first half and held off their opponents through to the end; it was a similar performance against Rideau Valley on Sunday.

Steel City (0-3) went winless on the weekend, although they certainly didn’t seem like a team defeated and led for portions of all of their games; the difference early on in the 2015 season seemed to be consistency and focus for this Steel Hurtin’ team that had a hard time maintaining momentum. In particular, Pittsburgh led for much of the second half against Toronto, but could not put the team away, and CN Power patiently held on, eventually blowing by Steel Hurtin’ over a dominant final five minutes.

Despite the results, all four teams leave the 2015 Quad City Chaos having certainly improved their position in the WFTDA’s ranking system, showing that despite some criticism to the contrary, all things being equal, the ranking system rewards close, evenly matched games.

REGULATION GAMES

Rideau Valley’s Sirens and Toronto’s Bay Street Bruisers faced off for the first time ever. (Photo by Joe Mac)

We didn’t see quite the parity in the B-team portion of the tournament, as the Bay Street Bruisers continued a three-year unbeaten streak (7-0) at the event with an at times dominant run through the competition (including a 250-point rout of the Steel Beamers). However, the hosts were certainly challenged against the B-Party, with Boston leading for the vast majority of the game, and virtually the whole second half. But they could not put the hosts away, with the Bruisers managing to stay within 20 for most of the game. And then in the final moments, they surged past their Boston counterparts for the most thrilling, not to mention closest, result of the weekend: a 4-point win that highlighted the perseverance of Toronto’s B-team.

THE PERFORMERS

Steel City’s Nick Rollfiliac (seen here staying a step ahead of Boston’s Ginger Kid) was named blocker MVP. (Photo by Joe Mac)

On a weekend where there was barely anything separating the competition on the track, choosing MVPs was a challenging feat that lead to some interesting (but certainly always deserving) choices. Both Toronto and Boston’s packs were dominant at times, and pulling one out of the cohesive units was impossible, so it was Steel City’s relentless Nick Rollfiliac who took the honours as A-team blocker MVP. Most of the jammers also had a hard time maintaining consistency over the course of the weekend, but in the end it was Soul Rekker’s tireless play over all three games that led to her selection of MVP. Boston B-Party blocker MC SlamHer took home MVP for the regulation portion along side Bruisers’ jammer Devochka who had three strong, clean and consistent games for the hosts.

THE PENALTIES

Early on in the tournament, during the first B-team game, there were over 100 penalties called, filling the board and leading to large stretches of chaos on the track. It became, momentarily, a thrilling anomaly, with pictures of the white board snapped and buzz spreading from the venue and onto social media; but then, it quickly became clear that this was actually going to be close to a norm for the weekend, and the giddy buzz dissipated. Not only that, there were murmurs on social media indicating that early in 2015 this is a trend certainly not limited to the Quad City Chaos.

I write this not as a criticism of the officiating (the ref crew was staffed with some of the finest, highest certified refs in the region), but just to point out the apparent disconnect between the way the game is being officiated right now and the way it is being played on the track; it was, for some, as fascinating as it was frustrating, but it is clear that something’s got to give. It is reminiscent of the way things were leading up to the elimination of minors.

In sports, the roles of the officials are generally to ensure safety and fairness; in roller derby there is also a third, punitive arm to officiating; however, we’ve started to move away from this (with the slight relaxing of inadvertent cutting penalties, for example), but there still seems to be genuine confusion at times on behalf of the skaters on impact assessment but also on failure to return/reform penalties that were often called in rapid-fire succession against multiple players simultaneously, making it challenging (and confusing) for skaters to quickly and clearly reform (for example, there were twenty two out of play penalties called in the Toronto vs. Steel City game (and 116 penalties in total), leading to multiple instances of only four, three, or even just two blockers on the track). Historically, the WFTDA has shown the willingness and ability to cautiously evolve over time, and certainly these issues will be resolved. But in a time when the new norm seems to be 80, 90, and even 100 penalties in a game, there is a conversation that needs to happen, and it should be a constructive one, because I think everyone (officials and skaters alike) would agree that the current norm is not sustainable.

Nonetheless, the consistency with which calls were made across teams and games did mean that the parity between the clubs still won out in the end, providing the spectators with thrilling games and narrow results despite of the steady stream of skaters to the penalty box.

WFTDA DIVISION 1 RESULTS

Steel City Roller Derby (Steel Hurtin’) (29^th) 142 vs. Rideau Valley Roller Girls (Vixens) (39^th) 165 (watch)

Boston Derby Dames (Boston Massacre) (25^th) 174 vs. Toronto Roller Derby (CN Power) (28^th) 229 (watch)

Boston 169 vs. Steel City 127 (watch)

Toronto 186 vs. Rideau Valley 154 (watch)

Boston 182 vs. Rideau Valley 159 (watch)

Toronto 235 vs. Steel City 191 (watch)

REGULATION RESULTS

Bay Street Bruisers 253 vs. Rideau Valley Sirens 144 (watch)

Bay Street Bruisers 184 vs. Boston B-Party 180 (watch)

Bay Street Bruisers 319 vs. Steel Beamers 69 (watch)

 

**The games were streamed live by layer9.ca, with Saturday night’s games and the final game on Sunday simulcast on WFTDA.TV. Watch the archives here.

**Toronto Roller Derby skater Pr’Editor provided game-by-game recaps for Derby Central all weekend. You can read her work here.

Quad City Chaos 2015 Preview

This marks the sixth edition of the two-day round robin tournament featuring four WFTDA Division 1 teams and three B-team games.

Since 2010, Toronto Roller Derby’s Quad City Chaos has been a launching point for the Canadian travel-team season, and while last year’s technically featured four WFTDA D1 teams for the first time (Bleeding Heartland had slipped out of the Top 40 just weeks before the tournament began), this year it is official: this will be a complete WFTDA D1 tournament. And it features four teams with a lot to prove.

Hosts Toronto, looking to get off the plateau they’ve found themselves on for the past year, welcome Rideau Valley back to the QCC for the fourth time and first since 2013, while the historic Boston Derby Dames and Pittsburgh’s Steel City Roller Derby make their QCC debuts, both having begun to develop histories with the tournament’s host. The 2014 QCC was arguably the most thrilling on record, but given the quality and the relatively close rankings of the combatants, this year’s could top even that.

Toronto Roller Derby: CN Power (28^th)

The hosts have not always fared well at QCC, and after going 3-0 in 2012, have managed only a 2-4 record at the event since then. Last year, they played in two of the most thrilling games in the tournament’s history, a 17-point loss to Montreal (which remains the closest a Canadian team has come to defeating the Skids in regulation/sanctioned play), followed by a 14-point defeat at the hands of Ohio. Overall, Toronto has a QCC record of 9-6.

Toronto also has some form of a relationship with all three combatants. Although they sport a 4-1 record against the Rideau Valley Vixens, their last meeting at QCC 2013 (and the only sanctioned bout between the two) ended with a 13-point Vixens’ upset. Last year, they squared off against Steel City twice, both outstanding games, with Steel Hurtin’ taking the regular season showdown by 20 before falling in the consolation round of the playoffs to Toronto by 14. Boston and Toronto have only faced each other once, in the 2013 playoffs, with Toronto scoring a miniscule 6-point win.

Toronto has had little action so far this season, with only a closed, unsanctioned win over Queen City under its belt. And it is a slightly rebuilt roster from the one that went 8-12 last season, most notably in the jammer rotation (and of the four QCC teams, it is certainly the roster with the most changes). Last year’s core playoff rotation will not be on the bench at QCC, whether due to unavailability (Kookie Doe) or retirement (Dusty, Motorhead Molly). But bolstered by some very experienced transfers and a returning blocking core, Toronto may be able to weather this rebuild.

Boston Derby Dames: Boston Massacre (25^th)

One of flat track’s most venerable teams, Boston returns this season with its 2014 playoff lineup virtually in tact (one noticeable absence is playoff track-time leader Vixen Ta Hitcha). Although first time QCCers, Boston has a long history in Canada, largely as long-time frenemies of Montreal, but they do potentially enter the tournament with revenge on their minds, having last met Toronto in the 2013 playoffs, losing a heartbreaker by only 6 points.

Boston had a tough 2014, going 2-7 in sanctioned play (4-7 overall), and a 2-2 playoff record saw them finish 7^th in their Division. They have never faced off against Rideau Valley and haven’t seen Steel City on the track since 2011, but with a roster full of holdovers led by veterans Maya Mangleyou (no stranger to Canadian fans as a key piece of Team Canada 2014), Shark Week, Ginger Kid and Lil’ Pain, Boston may be the team to watch at this year’s Quad City Chaos.

This weekend will mark the first action of the year for Boston.

Steel City Roller Derby: Steel Hurtin’ (29^th)

As with Boston, Steel City makes its Quad City Chaos debut with its 2014 roster largely unchanged (also like Boston, there is one noticeable absence, with playoff track-time leader Athena gone from Steel Hurtin’s lineup). Pittsburgh managed a decent 2014 going 7-7 on the season, which forced it into a tough Division Play-in game against Arizona that it lost narrowly. Its tight games against Toronto last season make that match-up intriguing, and with a consistent roster, they could have an edge.

Steel City kicked off its 2015 season with a 215-154 victory over 73^rd ranked Charlottesville Derby Dames, and as with Boston is led into battle by a very experienced core led by Team USA skater Snot Rocket Science, but also long-time double threat Hurricane Heather, jammer Leannibal Lector, and blockers Stark Raven and Ally McKill.

 

Rideau Valley Roller Girls: Vixens (39^th)

Last year’s darlings of Division 2, RVRG’s 2014 success means the road will be that much more challenging in 2015, but also has the potential to be considerably more rewarding. The Vixens tore up their Division 2 playoff tournament last season, crushing the competition in the early rounds before holding off Bear City in the final, in one of the more thrilling games of the season. They fell to Detroit in the D2 final, but the appearance at Champs was enough to vault them into Division 1 for the first time.

In 2015, the Vixens are looking to build off of their most successful season to date, one in which they compiled a 9-2 sanctioned record (10-2 overall) with losses only to Calgary (by 28 points) and Detroit in the D2 final. Similar to Steel City and Boston, The Vixens return with virtually the same lineup this season. And the question remains not how good the likes of Soul Rekker, Shania Pain (jammers), Murphy, Reyes, Brennan, Bottema, Sister Disaster and Rudolph will be, but how much the supporting cast rises up around them. This team’s been riding a short bench for a few years now, and will need to start building depth looking forward, so against the level of competition at QCC, the key could be in skaters like Melanie Austin, Lackey and Restless Rose.

This is the fourth QCC for the Vixens, and the first since 2013. They’ve compiled a career record of 3-6 at the tournament

B-Team Showdown

Since 2013, the Bay Street Bruisers have hosted B-team games along side their big sisters, and this season, that portion of the tournament has expanded to three games, showcasing the B-squads of each A-team participant. The Bruisers have yet to be defeated at the QCC, compiling a 4-0 record. However, this year’s competition could be the fiercest yet. While they have never faced Rideau Valley’s Sirens or the Boston B Party, they did managed a one-sided 288-97 victory over the Steel Beamers in Pittsburgh last season. But in B-team age, a year can be an eternity.

Neither the Beamers nor the B Party have seen competition yet this season, while the Bruisers are coming off of a tough 170-155 win over Royal City (Guelph’s WFTDA team), and the Sirens tasted defeat against Montreal’s Sexpos. While that initial track time may give the Canadian teams a slight edge, it probably won’t be enough to intimidate their American opponents.

**Action begins at 10:00 AM sharp on Saturday, March 21. Day and weekend passes are available; separate tickets for Saturday night’s double header are also available.

**Every moment of QCC 2015 will be boutcast live by layer9.ca, with Saturday night’s double header and Sunday’s final game simulcast on WFTDA.TV. Full viewing schedule is available here.

**Check out this QCC 2015 trailer (produced by Tiffany Beaudin):

 

Catch Up on the Past QCCs!

 

2011 Quad City Chaos Poster.

Quad City Chaos 2014

Quad City Chaos 2013

Quad City Chaos 2012

Quad City Chaos 2011

Quad City Chaos 2010

Canadian Power Rankings Preview

Captain Lou El Bammo, Dick Pounder, Dr. Jenny Fever, and the Derby Nerd return for another season of ranking the country’s top teams.

Montreal started at the top of the rankings and has never slipped (seen here in a 2013 game against Windy City). (Photo by Neil Gunner)

Last year, The Power Rankings crew was born out of a desire to provide subjective comparative analysis (based on objective observations, of course) of the top roller derby teams in Canada. So a quartet of derby nerds came together to hash out how the process would work, and what those rankings would look like. We’re back once again in 2014.

2014 was a fascinating year in roller derby in general and Canadian roller derby in particular. At the top, three Canadian teams qualified for WFTDA’s Division 1 playoffs and another made massive waves in the D-2 tournament. But what is most impressive for Canadian roller derby is the build up of the competitive base. All across the country, new teams are rising. Last year Calgary and Alliston, Ontario’s, Misfit Militia shot up the rankings, while old powers like Hammer City returned to competitive derby, all of this was played out in the Power Rankings. The goal of this exercise is not to replace the statistical ranking system, but to act as a parallel discussion of the excellent work done by Rollergirl.ca (in partnership with Flat Track Stats). But one of the advantages we have, is that we aren’t tied to statistics and we can take into account things like injury, personnel moves, home-track advantage, etc.

“The Power Rankings are great at highlighting the failings of the statistical model that Flat Track Stats and Rollergirl.ca use to create their list,” agrees Captain Lou El Bammo, one of the founders of the Power Rankings.  “That model employs data from years gone by which allows for large fluctuations because it does not take into account current information that we use to make our decisions. The Power Rankings brings the human factor back into the process and I think we’ve shown, through 2013, that we can adapt more quickly than the other system can.”

Another founder, Dick Pounder, echoes that sentiment. “The rankings have the potential to create good debate outside of the statistical ranking system…and I think if we can get more people into the sports-mentality of looking at everything we look at, the discussion around the power rankings will become more interesting.”

Currently third in the rankings, read the recap of Terminal City’s 2013 Playoff game against New Hampshire by Danger (ismymiddlename) on Derby News Network. (Featuring photography by Tom Klubens)

One of the stories last year, and in Canadian derby since 2008, was Montreal’s reign at the top of the rankings. However, for the first time in years, both Terminal City and Toronto made up ground against the Skids. “We may see a battle among these three all year,” says Dick. “I think it’s only a matter of time before someone knocks Montreal from its perch in Canadian Derby,” says Dick.

Captain Lou is even more definitive in his predictions, “I expect to see the Skids slide in 2014, and we could see Toronto beating them once, if not twice, this year. My prediction is Toronto and possibly Terminal City finishing ahead of Montreal in the WFTDA standings by the time playoffs come around. We have seen the end of Canadian roller derby domination by Montreal.” Lou cites the losses of Bone Machine and Iron Wench as massive blows to the team. And although Terminal City also lost Beretta Lynch and Toronto Bambi, in both cases there are skaters ready to take over those roles, more so than in Montreal, where Wench had become such a key to the offense. Dr. Jenny Fever likes Terminal City’s chances as well, “What can I say but Terminal City AllStars? I know the training and passion that is driving them this year. Making it to the WFTDA Divisionals in Richmond, VA, last year was so inspiring, and I know that the All Stars want to hit the playoffs again, and win!”

There is consensus right now that the team to watch in Canadian flat track roller derby this year is Calgary. The CRDA All Stars have already made a big splash, wiping the track with their competition at the recent Wild West Showdown, destroying Dockyard (406-59), Ark Valley (264-105), and Slaughterhouse (223-92), to get their first WFTDA season off to a 3-0 start. On top of some impressive roster additions last year, a few more transfers from Oil City, Red Deer and Hammer City have bolstered their roster.

The Kootenay Kannibelles are another team that has the Rankings Crew intrigued. “I am very excited about the Kannibelles this season,” says Dr. Jenny Fever. “Having Bobb (AKA Berretta Lynch) back, even as a coach, is really going to help them.” Dr. J also likes what’s going on with the Mainland Misfits Anarchy Angels, who have added built a coaching staff that includes three members of Canada’s national men’s team.

On the other side of things, after some pretty significant roster and coaching changes due, largely, to retirements, the rankings crew thinks that perennial contenders the Red Deer Belladonnas will slide this season as they begin a potential rebuild, although Dr. Jenny does hold out hope for a return to form in the midst of the excitement surrounding their WFTDA Apprenticeship.

Toronto’s CN Power jumped up to 2nd in the Power Rankings to end 2013 (seen here in their season-opening win against Team Ontario). (Photo by Neil Gunner)

The story of 2014 though is clearly Canada’s continued infiltration of the WFTDA. Captain Lou points out that Canada now as 20 teams in the WFTDA (including 10 apprentice leagues). “I think we’ll continue to see those teams outperform the other leagues because of the level of competition available to them and the requirement to be more organized and focused that the WFTDA brings to a league,” he predicts. “I’m hoping we’ll see more leagues heading in that direction.”

Dick Pounder agrees, and likes that the WFTDA link is encouraging more east vs west competition. “We are seeing the start of east vs. west matchups this season and hopefully that will continue to happen more going forward. I am super excited about Maple Stir Up in Hammer City this year,” he says, referring to the all-Canadian WFTDA tournament scheduled for Hamilton this August (it will be the first all-Canadian WFTDA-sanctioned tournament after Quad City Chaos 2011 featured three full-member teams and on apprentice.)

“I’m also hoping that we’ll see more provincial All-Star teams form in 2014,” adds Captain Lou. “Alberta, Saskatchewan, Ontario, New Brunswick have all made the leap. I’ve witnessed the benefits that this process can bring to skaters and I think other provinces will too. With any luck, this will lead to a Canada Cup for Roller Derby in 2015!”  Team Ontario and Toronto’s CN Power played an exhibition game last month, and it lived up to all the hype, showcasing a phenomenal level of talent. The knowledge and experience share gained from these kinds of partnerships is undeniable.

“I find the increasing level of competitive teams on the world stage very exciting,” says Fever, alluding to Canada’s prominent place on that stage.  “I love that we have the training, dedication and drive to boost the sport. On the other hand, my favorite derby games to announce are the smaller, home team games where the teams are made of women who want to have a great time and play derby. Those crowds are always my favorite. They might not know all the rules, but they are having a great time enjoying a sport that we are so passionate about.”

****The first Canadian Power Rankings of 2014 will be released on April 1. Check here to see the final Canadian Power Rankings of 2013.

SKATERS TO WATCH

Here are five skaters who you may not have seen a lot of, but who the rankings crew thinks could turn some heads in Canadian derby this season.

Kris Myass: Jammer (Calgary Roller Derby Association)

Easy Break Oven: Jammer, Blocker (Calgary Roller Derby Association)

Fraxxure: Blocker (Tri-City Roller Girls)

Meow Wallace: Blocker (Tri-City Roller Girls)

Rainbow Fight: Jammer, Blocker (Toronto Roller Derby)

Quad City Chaos 2013: Preview

The 2013 Quad City Chaos is the 4th edition of the tournament.

It’s the end of March, which means it’s time for Toronto Roller Derby’s Quad City Chaos. For the first time in the tournament’s brief history, the fourth edition of the annual invitational will be a completely WFTDA sanctioned tournament—the first of its kind in Canada. While WFTDA teams have always been a part of the tournament (Hammer City and Montreal were both full WFTDA members at the first QCC in 2010, and last year three of the four teams were), the fact that this is a fully sanctioned tournament raises the profile of the event and makes it a more appealing destination. With four excellent teams at the top of their games, this year’s tournament should be the most competitive and exciting yet. Add to that the inclusion of ToRD’s second travel team, the Bay Street Bruisers, hosting two games of their own, and the tournament has an even greater depth of competition.

THE TOURNAMENT

The QCC is a two day, round robin tournament that was topped by host CN Power in 2012 (the hosts have a 7-2 lifetime record in the tournament), but was dominated by Montreal in the first two years, when the New Skids on the Block compiled a 6-0 record while outscoring the opposition a staggering 1455-222. Those first two years, coming as they did after flat track roller derby’s “Great Leap Forward” in 2009, proved important sharing grounds for Canada’s top travel teams. In 2010, Vancouver’s Terminal City All Stars finished last in the tournament (0-3), but used the event as a taking off point to become the dominant WFTDA Division One team they are now. Both the Tri-City Thunder (2011, 2012) and Hammer City Eh! Team (2010, 2012) have taken part in two tournaments, with the Thunder holding a 3-3 record and the Eh! Team sitting at 1-5.  Finally, Ottawa’s Rideau Valley Vixens (returning this year), have taken part in the last two tournaments. In 2011, they were in tough going 0-3, before going 1-2 last year including a thrilling, competitive loss against the Tri-City Thunder.

THE TEAMS

CN Power’s Betty Bomber. Artwork by Quick Draw (Adam Swinbourne)

CN Power (WFTDA Rank: 49^th)

The host CN Power have used this tournament as a spring board for their season since the inaugural event in 2010. Last year, the team went 9-2 in sanctioned play including 7-0 in tournament games (at QCC, ECDX and Brew Haha). With CN Power skaters pulled from home teams in 2013 and focusing exclusively on WFTDA play, expectations are higher than ever.

This season, CN Power is already off to a hot start, going 2-1 with one-sided wins over Fort Wayne and Killamazoo, and a well-fought loss to one of the top teams in the game, Naptown. CN Power has lost only to Montreal in the QCC, and this year, based on recent results, they enter as clear favourites in their games against Queen City (they’ve beaten them two in a row) and Rideau Valley (they have never lost to the Vixens); they are in tough against Ohio, the second highest ranked team to ever play in the tournament and a team that beat them by 100 points in their only meeting last year.

The Vixens’ Hanna Murphy (formerly known as Semi Precious). Artwork by Quick Draw (Adam Swinbourne)

The Rideau Valley Vixens  (WFTDA Rank: 71^st)

After competing in last year’s tournament as a WFTDA apprentice league, they burst onto the WFTDA scene in 2012. Going 7-6 overall and 4-2 in WFTDA sanctioned play, it was easily the busiest season for the Vixens and has undoubtedly brought them to another level in their play. Stacked with a formidable front line led by Team Canada skaters Hanna Murphy (formerly known as Semi Precious) in the pack and Soul Rekker on the jam line, they are backed up in the pack by 2012 breakout blocker Margaret Choke and veterans Sister Disaster and Da Big Block. But there is a rising crop of talent on the team as well. Potential triple threat Pix E. Cutz is a force, while Keuhl (AKA: Mudblood) Brennan (Eh Nihilator) and Rudolph (Frostbite Me) all emerged last year as key components of the team. This year keep an eye on newcomers The Warden (an emerging jammer with house league team, Riot Squad) and Eastern Block’her who skated last season with Capital City, a team that earned a solid reputation despite a last-place finish at last year’s RDAC Eastern Regionals.

The Vixens are 0-1 so far this year, kicking things off with a loss to Queen City. This weekend could be a challenge for the Vixens. They’ve split their only two games with the Furies, have never defeated CN Power, and Ohio will be the highest ranked WFTDA team they have faced since playing Montreal at QCC 2011. Nonetheless, the Vixens may have the least to lose and, therefore, the least amount of pressure.

The Lake Effect Furies (Queen City) (WFTDA Rank: 68^th)

LiBRAWLian of the Lake Effect Furies. Artwork by Quick Draw (AKA: Adam Swinbourne)

Queen City had an inconsistent 2012, going 8-8 overall and 7-8 in sanctioned play, but lost ground against opponents such as Toronto and Tri-City. Their inconsistency is best seen, perhaps, in their performances against the Vixens which included an 89-point loss at the end of last summer, compared to a 90-point victory to kick off this year: making their meeting this weekend a tie breaker of sorts, but also an interesting measure of which (if either) of those previous results is correct.

The Furies have a depth of talent on the bench. Offensively, Addy Rawl, who was a Team USA alternate at the World Cup and has continued to skate with the American National program, leads the attack. Furies rookie LiBRAWLian is a jammer to watch after an incredible breakout house league season in 2012. CU~T, Ivana LeiHerOut, Head Mistress, and Day TripHer supply veteran leadership in the packs. Melania Kosonovich returnd to Queen City this season after time away that included skating a season in Los Angeles.

The Furies are 2-0 so far in 2013 on strong victories over Rideau Valley and Black-N-Bluegrass, and look to continue that strong start against the stiff competition at QCC. They’ve lost two in a row against CN Power and have never faced Ohio.

Ohio’s Phoenix Bunz. Artwork by Quick Draw (AKA: Adam Swinbourne)

Ohio Roller Girls All Stars (WFTDA Rank: 23^rd)

The Ohio Roller Girls may be the hardest working team in the WFTDA. In 2012, they went a remarkable 20-2 before going 1-2 in the North Central playoffs, being eliminated by Naptown: No one in 2012, played more sanctioned games than the skaters from Columbus.

An original WFTDA member, Ohio earned a massive, well-deserved reputation last season gaining big victories over Madison, Brew City and Arch Rival to name a few, and went 2-0 on their first Canadian roadtrip (burning through southern Ontario in May of last year). Led by the incredible, multi-talented triple threat Pheonix Bunz (2012 North Central blocker MVP), the offense will also be paced by a solid jammer rotation of The Smacktivist, Kitty Liquorbottom and Hellionboi, all supremely talented and boasting lots of big-game experience. But there is considerable depth in the pack as well. Led by veteran blocker Amy Spears, the packs also boasts hard-hitting Bratislava Bruiser and positional maven Loraine Acid.

Ohio is already off to a fast start in 2013, boasting a 2-0 record after wins over Bleeding Heartland and Burning River. They enter the QCC as clear favourites. While they’ve only ever faced CN Power, they are (and have consistently been) ranked much higher than their three QCC opponents.

Bellefast of the Bay Street Bruisers. Artwork by Quick Draw (AKA: Adam Swinbourne)

B-TEAM SHOWDOWN

For the first time ever, the Quad City Chaos will also feature B-Team matchups.

First off, ToRD’s Bay Street Bruisers will take on Queen City’s Devil Dollies on Saturday. The Dollies, one of Queen City’s house league teams, has a long history in Canada, being one of only two US teams to play in the Beast of the East; they did so in 2008. The Bruisers then take on Ohio’s Gang Green on Sunday. This second showdown will be a rematch of the first ever Bruisers game last May, when the Ohio B-Team defeated the Toronto B-Team 173-109. It was the Bruisers only loss since being resurrected in 2012, and they will be out for revenge on Sunday.

All Games will be streamed live on Canuck Derby TV.

SCHEDULE:

Saturday, March 23^rd

10:00 AM: Lake Effect Furies (QCRG) vs. Rideau Valley Vixens

12:00 PM: CN Power (ToRD) vs. Ohio Roller Girls

2:00 PM: Bay Street Bruisers (ToRD) vs. Devil Dollies (QCRG)

5:00 PM:  Ohio Roller Girls vs. Rideau Valley Vixens

7:00 PM: CN Power vs. Lake Effect Furies

Sunday March 24^th

11:00 AM: Bay Street Bruisers vs. Gang Green (Ohio B)

1:00 PM:  Ohio Roller Girls vs. Lake Effect Furies

3:00 PM: CN Power vs. Rideau Valley Vixens

Quad City Chaos 2012 Recap (Part One): The Games

Despite big changes to the lineup, the Vixens continue to progress. (Photo by Greg Russell)

DAY ONE

Vixens (Rideau Valley Roller Girls) 84 vs. CN Power (Toronto Roller Derby) 197

The Rideau Valley Vixens came into this tournament in the midst of a mini-rebuild as the first true generational shift in the travel team occurs. With the loss or absence of key pack players and jammers,  the team could easily have crumbled under the pressure of playing their big sisters to the south: but instead, what has emerged from the Vixens’ minor overhaul is the emergence of a solid team with a ton of potential. As a travel team, the Vixens have always been defined by outstanding individual play, so it was a CN Power squad that was caught off guard. Tight walls controlled CN Power jammers on opening passes and allowed the impressive and growing number of Vixens’ jammers to get a significant amount of leads (Soul Rekker and Dee Dee Tee lead the rotation that also included Mudblood, Tarantulove, and Pix E Cutz). This kept things close, with CN Power holding on 83-48 at the half.

CN Power seemed to reel things in to kick off the second half and went on a 30-9 run in the first ten minutes to pad their lead and pull ahead of the upstart Vixens; a Soul Rekker 15-point pick up briefly brought Rideau Valley back into it, but a Betty Bomber 30-point power jam with only 13 minutes remaining increased the lead to 73 points and provided the padding that CN Power needed. Strong recycling from the Brim Stone/Panty Hoser duo, and continued impressive play from Aston Martini ensured the 113 point victory for CN Power, the narrowest margin in four meetings with the Vixens, a good sign for the Ottawa team.

Eh! Team (Hammer City Roller Girls) 31 vs. Thunder (Tri-City Roller Girls) 392

Freudian Whip has taken on a larger jamming role with the Thunder; Hammer City vet Miss Carriage returned to the track before re-injuring her collarbone. (Photo by Neil Gunner)

The second bout of the opening day of the 2012 Quad City Chaos was a display of textbook dominance from the Tri-City Thunder. Controlling every aspect of the bout over a majority of the first half, smothering pack defence, unstoppabably agile jamming (including a monster game from rookie Ova’ Kill—who was playing her first game and recorded 50 points in the first half alone), and overall track awareness saw the Thunder hold the Eh! Team off the board for the first 23 minutes (they lead 145-0 at that time). For the most part, Hammer tried to stem the flow by keeping their core of veterans in the key jammer-pivot roles. It was vet Bitchslap Barbie who finally pulled the first lead jammer and points for her team, and the insatiable Mean Little Mamma kept the momentum going. Down but not demoralized, the Eh! Team was looking at a 180-11 deficit at half.

One thing about this Hammer City team, they never stop fighting even in the face of major odds (they entered the tournament on a 16 game WFTDA losing streak). Lead by the unceasing play of Barbie, Mama and Miss Carriage, the new generation of Hammer City skaters slowly began to mark their presence, and led by a similarly unceasing Lorazeslam and a smart on-track leader in Whacks Poetic, the likes of Zoe Disco, Oh! Henry, Peppermental and Skarla provide a solid group around which to build.  In the end they had no answers for the Thunder who skated away with an impressive 361 point victory.

 *Watch the archived boutcast.

Breakout Vixens jammer Tarantulove mixes it up with Whacks Poetic, one of the key members of the next generation of Hammer City skaters. (Photo by Greg Russell)

Eh! Team (HCRG) 75 vs. Vixens (RVRG) 248

The Rideau Valley Vixens continued their exceptional play. Hammer City, who seemed to be learning and adapting on the fly all weekend, came out with a grinding defensive start that had the Vixens on the defensive as well, and their walls were up for the challenge. While Hammer’s defense was tightening up, they still struggled to generate offense (they were lacking a little toughness in on the track with Judge Jodie and Mama taking this one off). New Vixens’ jammer Tarantulove –who was out there for RVRG’s opening jam—would have a big game for the Vixens who would dominate the first five minutes before Eh! Team vet JJ Bladez finally nabbed a lead and picked up four points to make it 26-4, five minutes in. Once on the scoreboard, the Eh! Team stepped it up, and a Miss Carriage power jam had them clawing back into it. Despite being pulled into Hammer’s hard-hitting, high risk style, fantastic blocking in this one from Screaming Meanie Massacre (who has stepped into a bigger role on the team) and the vastly improved Margaret Choke (who was reliable defensively all weekend), kept the Vixens in control, and they eventually began to slowly pull ahead, leading 147-41 at half.

In the second half, Rideau Valley tightened things up and with less penalties were able to pull away (they took a lot of counter-clockwise blocking penalties in the first). Frostbite Me continued her excellent play in the pack while Tarantulove continued with her best game of the tournament closing out the game with a big jam to end an impressive, one-sided Vixens’ 173 point victory. Nonetheless, the Eh! Team had to be content with their 75 point offensive output in the game.

Brim Stone leads a CN Power wall to hold off Ova' Kill (who had a very impressive rookie debut). (Photo by Greg Russell)

Thunder (TCRG) 107 vs. CN Power (ToRD) 141

The marquee matchup of the 2012 Quad City Chaos was at prime time on Saturday night, and with these two ranked 16^th (Thunder) and 17^th (CN Power) in the WFTDA’s North Central Region, this one was about much more than a potential QCC tournament victory.  This was the third meeting in the last 15 months, and a tie breaker as they split the previous meetings. While this matchup is no longer as much about differing styles as it once was, Thunder still prefers a much slower, deliberate game than CN Power who still doesn’t seem to mind getting involved in a faster shoot out. Nonetheless it was a complete stalemate in the opening jams as both teams proceeded cautiously, almost respectfully. They traded leads throughout the first five minutes until a CN Power power jam (skated by Bambi, who’d never faced Thunder before) with a 4-3 pack advantage gave them a lead (21-3) that they would never relinquish. They settled in to this one and at one point increased the lead to 60-9 with only 12 minutes left. But the Thunder fought back hard at the end of the first and wrestled momentum away, outscoring CN Power 37-3 in the final 12 minutes to pull close, 63-46 at the half.

Super Thunder blocker Bareleigh Legal attempts to hunt down CN Power's Defecaitlin. (Photo by Greg Russell)

This bout was typified by wide swings in momentum, and CN Power came out calm and collected to start the second and was able to quickly get back into it. Penalties played a big role in this one: while Toronto had a steady stream of blockers heading to the pack giving Thunder dangerous pack advantages, Toronto’s jammers managed to remain clean, and the power jams made a big difference. But CN Power also showed their depth in all positions. Experienced jammer Candy Crossbones seemed to revel in the physical game played by the Thunder, and Betty Bomber and Aston Martini both had strong games in the pack. For the Thunder, sin-e-star and BareLeigh Legal were their usual lethal selves but Sofanda Beatin has really stepped up her game and was a huge presence all weekend for Tri-City. Rookie Ova Kill also continued to impress against experienced opponents. Defecaitlin closed out the bout with an important lead jam on the final jam, as CN Power held on for the very important victory.

*Watch the archived boutcast.

DAY TWO

Despite leading for much of the game, in the end the experience of players like sin-e-star and Sofanda Beatin was too much for the Vixens. (Photo by Greg Russell)

Vixens (RVRG) 168 vs. Thunder (TCRG) 202

In what was the second-place game at the tournament, Thunder came in as huge favourites, but as they did all weekend, the Vixens impressed with their steady team play. From the very opening jam, this one was a thriller. Tri City controlled things early as Sofanda Beatin was a one-women wall constantly recycling the Vixens’ jammers. They quickly built an 18 point lead before the very athletic Mudblood, who has emerged as a key player on the Vixens whether in the pack or jamming, finally got her team on the board, but the Thunder were still in control, 18-4 five minutes in. Potentially still suffering from the previous night’s emotional bout against CN Power, Thunder was not their usual dominant selves and seemed easily distracted as an excited Rideau Valley team kept pushing. Some strong offensive blocking from transfer Eh-Nihlator helped Soul Rekker pick up 18 and begin a thrilling run that saw RVRG inch ever closer, down two, 32-30 halfway through the first.  They took their first lead 46-44 with 10 left in the half. Mudblood and Ova’ Kill had some fantastic battles in the half, but the Vixens completely took over (leading to some desperate, undisciplined play from the Thunder) and only a big final-jam pick up from Konky had Tri-City still in it, down 74-63 at half.

The Vixens managed to hold on to the lead for the first fifteen minutes of the second, but as the tension rose, the experience of the Thunder shone through, and small errors plagued the Vixens. The power jams started going Thunder’s way and when they took a 132-125 lead halfway through the second, it was clear that momentum had firmly shifted. Leigh-zzie Borden (who had a breakout tournament at QCC ’11) closed out the game with a power jam with only 3 minutes left that put it out of reach and guaranteed the Thunder a second place finish at the Quad City Chaos.

CN Power's Aston Martini was dominant at times during the tournament. (Photo by Neil Gunner)

Eh! Team (HCRG) 55 vs. CN Power (ToRD) 408

CN Power closed out the tournament with one of their greatest offensive performances ever, breaking the 400-point barrier for the first time and building up their largest margin of victory ever.  But no one would have guessed that score after the first five minutes of the bout when Hammer City put forward their best sustained effort of the tournament. Catching the hosts completely off guard, the Eh! Team took their first lead on a Lorazeslam jam (8-7) four minutes in. (It took them 20 minutes to score against the Thunder the day before.) It was a slightly different look from the CN Power offense (Rebel Rock-It played big minutes with the star and looked great in the scrum starts) and Eh! Team had their top roster who are playing very well together (*tragically, veteran leader Miss Carriage rebroke her collar bone the day before and was unable to play). It was only a Defecaitlain power jam 8 minutes that gave CN Power a definitive lead (44-12). Led by strong pack play from Whacks Poetic and Oh! Henry, consistent jamming from JJ Bladez, Lorazelslam and Mean Little Mama kept Hammer on the board, but CN Power comfortably increased their lead to 208-31 at the half.

The second half brought much the same from both teams; increasingly good play from the young, inexperienced Eh! Team skaters, and a relentless push forward from CN Power who never once took their foot off the gas ( Defecaitlin recorded a rare 39 point jam on a remarkable 8 scoring passes at one point). Mean Little Mama ran into some more undisciplined play as jammer for the Eh! Team, which truly sealed the deal for the hosts who did everything right in the second half on their way to the 353 point victory and top spot at the 2012 Quad City Chaos.

* Watch the archived boutcast.

***All the WFTDA action was streamed live on Canuck Derby TV. Check the archives if you missed it. The non-sanctioned games will be available on Layer 9.

***On Thursday the recap continues with The Commentary.

2012 Quad City Chaos Preview: Part Two (The Teams)

Toronto Roller Derby’s third annual Quad City Chaos will play out at the Bunker in Downsview Park this weekend. This four-team invitational will feature the top teams in Ontario with CN Power, Tri-City Thunder, Rideau Valley Vixens and Hammer City Eh! Team facing off in a two-day round-robin tournament.

CN Power's Nasher the Smasher by Adam Swinbourne.

THE HOST

CN Power has fared well in the first two installments of the Quad City Chaos finishing in second place both times. They enter this year’s Quad City Chaos on a roll dating back to the end of last season. Although the team split its final road trip of 2011, the loss came to Indianapolis’s Naptown Roller Girls, one of the top teams in the game, and the value of the experience gained was immediate as they crushed Louisville’s Derby City Rollergirls on the same trip. Things have looked good so far in 2012, as CN Power has recorded big wins over Fort Wayne and Roc City (Rochester, NY). Part of the reason for the sudden surge in power has a lot to do with the increasing depth of the Toronto Roller Derby League and the ever-deepening pool from which to draw. Led by CN Power veterans Brim Stone, Tara Part, Nasher the Smasher and Lady Gagya, skaters like Panty Hoser and Aston Martini have stepped up in a big way recently to provide the depth that the team needs for success. Dyna Hurtcha, Betty Bomber and BruiseBerry Pie provide the team with versatile skaters who are capable of playing any position, and the offense remains firmly anchored by the impressive rotation of Bambi, Candy Crossbones and Defecaitlin (Rebel Rock-It has also been somewhat of a revelation since she joined the rotation as well). This weekend could provide a big coming out party for returning skater Mia Culprit, while one of ToRD’s breakout 2011 skaters Marmighty will be making her debut.

CN Power kicks things off against the Vixens on Saturday morning (12:00 PM), a team that they have controlled well in their previous three meetings over the past two seasons. While they will face a far different (and more experienced) Eh! Team roster to deal with on Sunday (4:00 PM) than they did in the fall, the stiffest test for the hosts will come from their WFTDA North Central rivals the Tri-City Thunder on Saturday night (7:00 PM). These teams have split their previous two meetings, although they have not met since last year’s Quad City Chaos.

CN Power Roster: Aston Martini 510hp, Bambi 33, Betty Bomber 23, Brim Stone (C) 21:8, BruiseBerry Pie 31, Candy Crossbones 2020, Defecaitlin 2, Dyna Hurtcha 21, Lady Gag Ya (C) 212db, Marmighty 41, Mega Mouth 26, Mia Culprit 22, Nasher the Smasher 2×4 Panty Hoser 99, Rebel Rock-it 7, Santa Muerte 111, Tara Part L7.

Thunder's Anita Martini by Adam Swinbourne

THE CHALLENGE

The Tri-City Thunder return to the QCC for the second year in a row. Last year, a 14-point loss in the final game of the tournament to CN Power was all that kept them from a second place finish. Currently ranked 16^th in the WFTDA’s North Central Region (one spot above CN Power), the team has lost some key players from last year’s impressive WFTDA season, but have filled those roles with skaters from their increasingly deep system. Former fresh meat team the TKOs has seen Fox Smoulder, Rain Blows Brite and Low Blow Lois all graduate to the travel team, but vets like Sofanda Beatin’ and Konky also have been brought in to fill gaps and provide depth. But this team is still anchored by a solid, impressive core of vets. sin-e-star, Bareleigh Legal and Anita Martini are workhorses in the pack and are smart, solid positional blockers. Relentless jammer Motorhead Molly also remains the core of the team’s offense, while Leigh-zzie Borden had a breakout 2011 that saw her become a key component to this team (actually at last year’s Quad City Chaos, Leigh-zzie emerged as a key piece of the jammer rotation).

The Thunder has never faced the Eh! Team in official bouting action but defeated the Vixens last year at the QCC (109-84), and while they will look to have dominant performances against them both at this tournament, their eyes have to be clearly set on CN Power. At the end of 2010, the Thunder handled CN Power in a shocking, one-sided 72 point victory that inadvertently sent CN Power on the path that they are on today. Last year when they faced off, the teams were literally neck-and-neck. While the Thunder is currently ranked above CN Power in the WFTDA, a look at their last two shared opponents may actually give the host team the edge. CN Power easily handled Roc City in their home debut, while the Thunder struggled at times against the Roc Stars before pulling away in the end. Previously, the Thunder lost to Queen City’s Lake Effect Furies, while CN Power narrowly defeated the Furies. Nonetheless, both teams have gained immeasurable experience over the past year, and this showdown has all the makings of a classic.

Thunder Roster: Evil Liza 0, Low Blow Lois 8, Anita Martini 9, Ova’Kill 11, Rain Blows Brite 13, Cleothrashya 15, Bareleigh Legal 18, Lippy Wrongstockings 19, Freudian Whip 22, Suzy Slam 33, Leigh-zzie Borden 40, Stacie Jones 101, Motorhead Molly 204, sin-e-star 306, Sofanda Beatin’ 420, Wanda Wreckya 502, Fox Smoulder 1013, Konky 2000, Preying Man Tease 6T9.

Eh! Team's Bitchslap Barbie by Adam Swinbourne

THE RETURN

The Hammer City Eh! Team returns to Quad City Chaos, looking to return to the form that saw them pick up third place at that first tournament, defeating Terminal City on the final bout of the weekend. Much has changed in the two years since that first Quad City Chaos, and the Hammer City Eh! Team went through a bit of a rebuild that has seen them through to this season. After losing to Montreal that weekend by 182 points, the Eh! Team has lost13 WFTDA bouts in a row. Only five skaters remain on the roster from that group, and that includes Mean Little Mama and Judge Jodie who actually skated for the Hamilton Harlots last season (the other returning skaters are Bitchslap Barbie, Little Red Rollerhood and Miss Carriage). Lorazeslam, ZoeDisco, and Bam Bam Bigelow all picked up valuable experience playing for the Eh! Team last season, while Whacks Poetic, Dark Passion Play and Scooby Doom were key pieces of the Harlots.

While the Eh! Team will be in tough against the Thunder and CN Power (CN Power beat a short-handed Eh! Team 277-22 in October, a game that saw Zoe Disco, Whacks Poetic and Oh! Henry gain valuable experience), they could challenge the Rideau Valley Vixens (who have had a similar, though not quite as deep, roster turnover as the Eh! Team previously went through). The Eh! Team has that experienced core of the on-track leaders Barbie and Miss Carriage, the fearless, hard hitting Mean Little Mama and the feisty Judge Jodie (not to mention the speedy JJ Bladez who began her career in Toronto in 2007 with the D-VAS) that has seen it all in this sport and should bring a quiet confidence to the track.

Eh! Team Roster: Mean Little Mama 0, JJ Bladez 5, Little Red Rollerhood 7, Dark Passion Play 11, Bam Bam Bigelow 26, Miss Carriage 45, Judge Jodie 67, Whacks Poetic 86, Lorazeslam 88, Bitchslap Barbie 98, Skarla 100, Lucky Lady Pearl 333, Marmageddon 412, Bean Stalker 511, Peppermental 613, Wild Rice 795, ZoeDisco 911, Oh!Henry 5150, Daisy Dynamite AK47, Scooby Doom K9

The Vixen's Dee Dee Tee by Adam Swinbourne

THE APPRENTICE

The Rideau Valley Vixens are on the verge of completely their WFTDA Apprenticeship and commencing play in the competitive WFDTA. Since forming for the 2010 season, the Vixens saw two years of steady growth that saw them travel through the North Eastern United States in search of challenges. At the same time, they continued to develop their two home teams, the Riot Squad and the Slaughter Daughters (who won the 2011 Beast of the East). The depth of their league will certainly be tested this year as big losses of key players on the roster will need to be  filled. From the roster that competed hard at last year’s Quad City Chaos, key pack pieces Slavic Slayer, Surgical Strike and Assassinista have transferred to Montreal, while Ripper A. Part (who had a break out tournament in 2010) and Sister Disaster (a key piece in the pack) will not be with the team either. While they retain a strong core led by Semi Precious and Da Big Block in the pack and Dee Dee Tee and Soul Rekker on the jam line, they’ll need fresh faces like Mudblood, Pretty Pants, Chakra Rocker and Pix E. Cutz to step it up if they hope to remain at the competitive level they’d reached.

Although the Vixens had an excellent showing against the Thunder at last year’s QCC, they may be in tough to replicate that feat. Also, against CN Power, the Vixens actually took a step back in their last bout: after a hard-fought 116 point loss at last year’s QCC, they fell back to lose by 130 points this past fall. They will need big performances from veterans and rookies alike to stop the slide. One game to keep an eye on is the Eh! Team matchup (Saturday, 5:00 PM). Both teams have comparatively inexperienced teams built around solid veteran cores and both will be hungry for a victory, it could be an opportunity for the Vixens to pick up a big victory over a WFTDA team to give them some momentum for 2012.

Vixens Roster: Drunky Brewster 3, Pix E. Cutz 9, Chakra Rocker 11, Blackout Susan 13, Margaret Choke 26, Frostbite Me 40, Eh-Nihilator 49, Soul Rekker 55, Pretty Pants 69, Dee Dee Tee 74, Screaming Meanie Massacre 77, Tarantulove 130, Mudblood 278, Da Big Block 454, Semi Precious 10 KT

*Tickets are available online or at a number of Toronto Retailers.

**Tune in to Canuck Derby TV for live streaming of all the sanctioned action.

***Read Part One for complete schedule and a bit of tournament history.

2012 Season Preview: CN Power

CN Power 2012

2011: A LOOK BACK

CN Power completed its apprenticeship and kicked off life as a member of the WFTDA’s North Central Region in 2011, making a commitment to compete. And it was a successful initial foray into the highest levels of competitive flat track roller derby. The team kicked off 2011 with a preview of things to come  when they crushed WFTDA team Killamazoo Derby Darlins 197-35 in a February home game (Killamazoo was ranked 19^th in the North Central at that time). CN Power completed its apprenticeship when it hosted Montreal’s New Skids on the Blocks, Tri-City Thunder and the Rideau Valley Vixens at the second annual Quad City Chaos, going 2-1 with victories over Thunder (112-98) and Vixens (156-40) to finish second in the round robin tournament for the second year in a row.

CN Power overwhelmed a short handed Eh! Team in October. (Photo by Neil Gunner)

After acceptance into the WFTDA at the end of the summer, the Toronto all stars continued to dominate the lower levels of the North Central completing a home-and-home sweep of Killamazoo (220-76) before destroying traditional rivals from Hammer City, the Eh! Team (277-22). The team stepped up the competition in the fall facing a considerable challenge in Grand Raggidy (ranked 11^th), losing 148-68 in Grand Rapids. CN Power got back on a winning streak with a hard-fought 139-129 victory over Queen City’s Lake Effect Furies (14^th in the Eastern Region) and Rideau Valley’s Vixens.

In December, CN Power faced its stiffest challenge ever against Naptown. (Photo by Michael Guio)

CN Power closed out 2011 on a Midwest road trip that saw them face off against North Central powerhouse Naptown (falling mightily 266-67) before taking out their frustrations on Louisville’s Derby City Rollergirls 295-28. All in all, going 9-3 on its first full season with a set roster and after gaining admittance to the WFTDA, it was an impressive year for a team that previous to this had never played more than seven bouts in a season (in 2010, after only four in 2009 and one in 2008).

For a complete list of scores and results, click here.

Mia Culprit returns to CN Power. She was part of the first ever CN Power team that challenged the Eh! Team in 2008. (Photo by Derek Lang)

2012: LOOKING FORWARD

After a series of makeshift rosters suffered crushing losses to end 2010, CN Power reorganized and restructured and 2011 was the first year try outs lead to a set roster. In 2012 the competitive structure remains and three new skaters have been added to the team. League veteran and current member of the Smoke City Betties Mia Culprit returns to CN Power (she was part of the first ever CN Power lineup in 2008) adding power and depth to the pack, which will also be bolstered by the arrival of Chicks Ahoy! member Marmighty, who turned some heads with her league play in 2011. And finally 2011 rookie of the year Kookie Doe (also of the Chicks Ahoy!) rounds out the additions and adds depth to the jammer rotation. Lady Gagya joins Brim Stone as co-captains for 2012.

CN Power already has a steady and consistent flow of competition lined up for 2012 with spring bouts scheduled against Queen City’s Lake Effect Furies and a March 3^rd home debut against Rochester New York’s Roc City All Stars. They also have two tournaments lined up: along with hosting the third annual Quad City Chaos (March 31-April 1), they will also take part in the Midwest Brewhaha in Milwaukee, Wisconsin (June 2-3).

Fort Wayne is CN Power's first opponent in 2012.

CN Power kicks off 2012 this Saturday with a critical road game showdown against Fort Wayne in Indiana.  The Fort Wayne Derby Girls are a historic flat track team, playing in the WFTDA since 2007. They were also involved in some of the sport’s earliest cross-border showdowns in their dealings with the Hammer City Eh! Team.  Currently they are ranked 14^th in the North Central, but climbed as high as 12^th in 2011 (they went 5-6 in WFTDA action in 2011, facing off against some of the toughest competition in the region). They played their first bout of 2012 on January 21^st with a definitive 204-80 win against 23^rd ranked NEO Roller Derby (Akron, Ohio).

You can catch all the action live from Fort Wayne on the Derby News Network beginning at 6:00 PM eastern.

2011 Team Stats Highlights

• Over a grueling twelve-game schedule, Nasher the Smasher (49%), Brim Stone (44%) and Tara Part (42%) were on the track for over 40% of CN Power’s jams (triple threat Dyna Hurtcha was on for 37%). Defecaitlin was the busiest jammer, jamming for 24% of CN Power’s jams.
• Nasher led the team in blocks and knockdowns, while tied with Mega Bouche for assists.
• Defecaitlin  led the team in scoring with 445 points (49 points per game, 3.83 points per jam). Dyna Hurtcha (340) and Candy Crossbones (314) also scored over 300 points on the season. Despite appearing in only three games, Bambi managed to score 149 points (49.7 points per game).
•  Defecailtin also led the team in jammer +/- (+213) and lead % (59%).
• Given her amount of track time, it’s no surprise that Nasher racked up the most penalties (43 minors, 21 majors for 27 minutes).  Dyna Hurtcha (22) and Mega Bouche (20) also registered at least 20 minutes in penalties.

ROSTER

Nasher the Smasher spent more time on the track in 2011 that any other CN Power skater. (Photo by Kevin Konnyu)

Aston Martini 510hp (Blocker)

Bambi 33 (Jammer)

Betty Bomber 23 (Blocker, Jammer)

Brim Stone (C) 21:8 (Pivot, Blocker, Jammer)

Bruiseberry Pie 31 (Blocker, Jammer)

Candy Crossbones 2020 (Jammer)

Defecaitlin 2  (Jammer)

Dyna Hurtcha 21 (Blocker, Jammer)

Hurlin Wall 89 (Blocker)

Jubilee 27 (Blocker)

Kookie Doe 807 (Jammer)

Lady Gag Ya (C) 212db (Blocker)

Marmighty 41 (Blocker)

Lady Gagya joins Brim Stone as CN Power co-captain in 2012. (photo by Kevin Konnyu)

Mega Mouth 26 (Blocker, Pivot)

Mia Culprit 22 (Blocker)

Nasher the Smasher 2×4 (Blocker, Pivot)

Panty Hoser 99 (Blocker, Pivot)

Rebel Rock-it 7 (Pivot, Blocker, Jammer)

Santa Muerte 111 (Blocker, Jammer)

Tara Part L7 (Pivot, Blocker)

MANAGERS:  

The Rev. Ramirez

Sonic Doom

The Derby Nerd

Nerd Meat Part 9: Taking the Test

Nerd Meat: The Nerd Does Derby

Part 9: Taking the Test

ToRD recently graduated from the WFTDA Apprenticeship. CN Power will now compete in the North Central Region. (Photo by Kevin Konnyu)

Four months of falls, bruises, breaks, triumphs and frustrations, and ToRD’s latest fresh meat group has come to the end of the track. Our numbers have dwindled from 90+ to about 40, as those who underestimated the physicality and dedication that the sport requires have pulled away. There’s nothing left to do to prepare, and WFTDA’s minimum skills test is now upon us. Over the months there have been obvious divisions in abilities and talent. Many will pass the test, but some will not. Those who do will move on to ToRD’s farm team, the DVAS, where once again there will be divisions in talent, and eventually the top skaters in my fresh meat group will enter the draft and become chosen by one of Toronto’s four home teams. A few then will begin to train even harder, peering hopefully to CN Power, Toronto’s travel team, which recently graduated to full WFTDA status and will be competing in the North Central Region. For a select few, that is the ultimate goal.

Right now, you could almost say that Canada is going through its own fresh meat program in WFTDA. Currently there are five full Canadian WFTDA members (Montreal, Hamilton, Tri-City Thunder, Vancouver and Toronto), while one, Rideau Valley, is completing its apprenticeship. But just as every fresh meat group has that superstar who is obviously way better than everyone else (a figure skater or hockey player usually), Montreal is very much at the top of the class in Canada.

ToRD and Tri-City (competing here at QCC 2011) are two of Canada's five full WFTDA leagues.

It was in that all-important roller derby year of 2009 when WFTDA finally expanded beyond the American borders to Canada as both the Hammer City Roller Girls and Montreal Roller Derby were admitted into the mix. While Hammer City had produced many of Canada’s firsts, Montreal would finally take part in an important one: on May 2, 2009, in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, Montreal would face Harrisburg Area Roller Derby in the first sanctioned WFTDA bout featuring Canadian and American teams. Montreal would lose that game, and many more in a busy 2009 that saw them go 2-6 and travel as far as Nashville, with 100-point losses not being unusual. But far from being deterred, the losses pushed the Skids to improve, and they sopped up the strategies they encountered.

Montreal's New Skids on the Block entered the 2010 Quad City Chaos on a roll. (Photo by Derek Lang)

In Canada at the time, there wasn’t much inter-city competition in a broad sense of the term, and the general consensus was that the top travel teams in Canada were on a fairly even keel. Early in 2010 ToRD invited the top four teams in the country to compete in a two day round-robin tournament, the Quad City Chaos. The host CN Power would take part along with Canada’s two WFTDA teams (Montreal’s New Skids on the Block and Hammer City’s Eh! Team), with Vancouver’s Terminal City All Stars rounding it out. Vancouver was clearly the top team from the west, and they’d also defeated the Skids at 2008’s Derby Night in Canada. They flew east with high expectations, some western observers were adamant that Terminal City would take the tournament.

Undeterred by the losing record in 2009, Montreal kicked off 2010 with away games against Charm City (Baltimore) and Tucson, two of the most historic flat track leagues in America. While Charm City predictably stomped them (like Montreal, they too were quick to adapt to the pace and isolation strategies coming out of the west), Montreal nearly pulled off a big upset over Tucson, falling by just 9. It was a turning point for Montreal, and they’d remain on the road to record four straight sanctioned victories before heading into the QCC weekend, pulling into Toronto with buzz just beginning to generate around this squad and how quickly they were adapting to the new look flat-track game (one of those victories was a decisive 187-83 victory over Arizona, another historic team and original WFTDA member). They’d passed the test, to say the least.

Montreal sent a clear message when they shocked Hammer City 208-26 in March 2010. (Photo by Derek Lang)

Montreal put to rest any doubts of their talent when the Skids and the Eh! Team kicked off QCC weekend with a sanctioned bout. At their last meeting, in 2008, Montreal had barely won a defensive showdown 58-49. By March 2010 though, the Skids were a different sort of beast all together, and they crushed Hammer City 208-26 to send a clear message to the teams in the tournament and Canadian roller derby in general. They easily won that inaugural QCC (and this year’s version as well) and no Canadian team has even come close to them since.

Montreal would go on to have a breakout 2010, finishing 11-5 and setting another historic precedent by finishing 6^th in the Eastern Region to become the first non-US team to qualify for the WFTDA playoffs where they’d be eliminated by Boston in the Eastern quarterfinals.

The rest of the country is left to chase Montreal, and try to chip away at the separation that currently exists. A league’s ability to compete will be determined, in large part, by how well it prepares its new skaters for the rigorous determination that making it to the top level of competitive flat track roller derby requires: this process begins in fresh meat. And in Toronto anyway, fresh meat is now just the first step toward making it into the league, a league that clearly has its competitive sights set high.

But as Montreal showed, to get to the top you have to start at the bottom, and although a skater has to train for four months just to get to this point, the bottom is actually the WFTDA minimum skills test. Only after passing that all-important obstacle does the journey really begin.

*** Check out this excellent documentary, Hangin’ Tough on the  rise of Montreal’s New Skids on the Block

Nerd Meat Part 5: Opening the Doors

Nerd Meat: The Nerd Does Derby

Part 5: Opening the Doors

During our second day of scrimmaging, the two guys involved in ref training were pulled to act as on-skates officials. When I wasn’t pulled with them, the remaining skaters I haven’t yet met were really starting to wonder what I was doing there. So while once again fielding questions about my purpose at fresh meat, I had a moment of slight confusion myself: what was my role within this group of women? I knew, literally, why I was there (to get a better understanding of the sport), but I finally realized that a lot of the women weren’t sure how to interact with me, and I, them.

ToRD hosted the second annual Quad City Chaos on March 26 and 27 at the Hangar. (photography by Derek Lang)

I have really enjoyed the loco scrimmaging we’ve been doing, settling into a pivot role on the track in most cases, but that doesn’t really explain anything about my role in the group. I’ve had the time to think about this a lot more lately because we had a week off from training due to the Quad City Chaos tournament. For the second year in a row les grand étoiles from Montreal swept in and delivered their own unique lesson in how to play flat track roller derby. It was an extraordinary display of the game, proof that—at its best—the sport has reached that important point in its competitive evolution where the top teams in the game playing at their absolute best are capable of attaining a certain level of competitive beauty—there is a flow and continuity to the play that is mesmerizing to watch because of how effortless it appears, and how that level of flawlessness highlights both the nuances of the natural flow of the game and the contrived sophistication of the strategies that have evolved.

It was the kind of display of athleticism and preparedness that leads people to call even a fairly primitive sport like soccer, “The Beautiful Game.”

A lot of Canadian flat track "firsts" go through Hammer City, including the first WFTDA travel team, the Eh! Team.

Another reason that it was so amazing to watch Montreal perform the way they did at the QCC, was because it has only been four years since every team in Canada was more or less on equal footing, with Hammer City always a few steps ahead. They were trailblazers for the sport in this country, particularly here in the east. Although teams in other cities were skating and even scrimmaging, it was those Hammer City rollergirls who helped lead the growth of the sport in this country. If 2006 was the year everyone learned the sport from the skating on up to league organization, 2007 was the year the doors of flat track roller derby opened for the Canadian public.

The Betties D-Day had a profound effect on roller derby in Toronto, inspiring a roller derby merger in the city: the four teams that had formed out of the Toronto Terrors (Chicks Ahoy!, Death Track Dolls, D-VAS and Bay Street Bruisers) joined the Smoke City Betties and their new off-shoot team the Gore-Gore Rollergirls to form ToRD, the Toronto Roller Derby League. At the same time, in Quebec, the Montreal skaters had headed home from the tourney to form Montreal’s first team, Les Contrabanditas. In February, 2007, Les Contrabanditas hosted ToRD’s newly formed Gore-Gore Rollergirls in a closed bout (a nail biter that would be won by the Montreal team on the last jam), to begin an amazing year of roller derby in Canada.

Les Contrabanditas team photo that accompanied an article in Montreal's Mirror, discussing the first bout between Montreal and Toronto teams (February 24, 2007).

But if there is one month in Canada’s flat track history that will go down as being a turning point, it will be May, 2007. On May 5^th, at the Royal City Curling Club in Vancouver, the Terminal City Rollergirls would host a Red vs. Black scrimmage, beginning what would quickly become one of the most successful leagues in Canadian roller derby. Exactly one week later, on May 12^th, Hammer City would kick off its first full season, and a few weeks later at the George Bell Arena in Toronto, ToRD would host a day of scrimmages open only to friends and family that acted as a dry run for their first season opener on June 2^nd (which would see the Gore-Gore Rollergirls defeat the Death Track Dolls 117-78).  Add to that the formation of the three-team Montreal Roller Derby League, and organized scrimmaging in Forest City (London), and the public birth of roller derby in this country can be easily dated.

While in 2007 MTLRD and ToRD focused on increasingly popular house leagues, Hammer City continued to travel and host intra-city bouts. In June the Harlots and the Tank Girls would host and defeat Montreal’s Les Filles du Roi and Les Contrabanditas; the following month they’d prove equally inhospitable hosts of The Forest City Derby Girls. Later in that summer, Hammer City would blaze yet another path when the Steel Town Tank Girls hosted the Buffalo’s Queen City All Stars in the  second ever cross-border bout in flat track history (Edmonton’s Oil City had hosted the Rocky Mountain Roller Girls only months earlier). That fall they would visit the Penn Jersey She Devils and form what would become Canada’s first WFTDA travel team (fittingly called the Eh! Team) to head to Fort Wayne to take part in the inaugural Fall Brawl.

the Hammer City Eh! Team was the first Canadian team to head south to take on US competition.

An argument can easily be made that Toronto and Montreal’s early focus on their hometeams was what held them back from catching the continent-trotting Hammer City Roller Girls. But at the same time, it could also be argued that it was Montreal’s careful nurturing of a comparatively small and competitive home league (ToRD, with six teams, was the largest flat track league in the world at the time) that would lead to their fast-tracked evolution at the end of the decade.

But I’m getting ahead of myself. Even though Les Filles du Roi proved tops in Montreal and the Gore-Gore Rollergirls would win their first (of three and counting) ToRD championships (89-53 over the Chicks Ahoy!), at the end of 2007 there was no question that the Hamilton Harlots were the best flat track roller derby team in Canada. They’d ride that momentum right into 2008.

Early Canadian roller derby legends: Tank Girls' Cheese Grater (now of the Skids) holds back Harlots' jammer Bitchslap Barbie and blocker Carla Coma at HCRG's 2007 season opener.

The more I think about it, the more my role in this fresh meat intake seems obvious.  The women who were on my line on our Sunday scrimmage a few weeks ago had a mixed range of derby knowledge, and when I tried to set them up to perform a fairly complex strategy on our first jam, it was predictably disastrous. I realized that once again, my brain was well ahead of the abilities of me and my line mates. But then, as we waited for our next jam, one of the girls looked at me and said something along the lines of, “so on that power jam we were trying to trap that blocker so the pack would slow down and the jammer could get to the pack quicker, right? to score points?” She nodded her head almost imperceptibly, coming to a key realization, showing that quickly growing knowledge of the sport that is common among this group.

The next time we had a power jam our line quickly fell to the back of the pack, isolated an opposing blocker and ground the pack to a near halt. After the jam I was exhilarated. This group of fresh meat, some of whom had seen as little as one bout, were already beginning to pull off complex isolation strategies, and they had no idea how amazing that was, how amazing they were, and how far ahead of the curve this batch of new skaters was compared to those of the past. All they needed was someone to tell them what to do. That could be my role.

It’s really exciting to be able to see a sport develop at this early stage, and simple pleasures like witnessing a well-executed power jam by a lineup of fresh meat remind me how profoundly lucky we all are–me especially–to be a part of it.

***Get to know the Hammer City Roller Girls in this 2010 feature produced by CBC.

**Read previous posts here.

Quad City Chaos Recap (Part 2): The Commentary

THE RESULTS

TEAM	WINS	LOSSES	+/-
New Skids on the Block (Montreal)	3	0	+764
CN Power (Toronto)	2	1	-133
Tri-City Thunder (Kitchener)	1	2	-193
Vixens (Rideau Valley)	0	3	-438

Montreal’s New Skids on the Block won their second straight QCC. (photo by Todd Burgess)

It must be hard to head into a tournament knowing that at some point on the weekend you will have to play in a bout that will amount to a one-sided shellacking, but that is the current state of Canadian roller derby where Montreal’s New Skids on the Block are playing on a competitive level that is unmatched in this country. But all credit goes to CN Power, Tri-City Thunder and Rideau Valley’s Vixens who entered their bouts against the defending Quad City Chaos title holders looking like nothing less than teams hungry for a victory. Despite how determined and confident the opposition may have been, for the second year in a row the Skids raised the bar on the competitive level of Canadian roller derby and cruised through their three games with an average margin of victory of 250 points (scoring a remarkable 860 total points) to win their second straight Quad City Chaos.

THE PLAYERS

Thunder’s Motorhead Molly and Vixens’ Semi Precious continued to lead their teams at the QCC. (photo by Chrissie Wu)

The Usual Suspects

The Skids have such a strong team that it is becoming increasingly more difficult to distinguish individual players; nonetheless, it is hard to argue that Jess Bandit and the Iron Wench are not the top players in their positions at this tournament, or in the country for that matter. In the same vein as the Oly Rollers’ pivot Sassy, Jess Bandit is the kind of player that you need to really study (and watch live) to see how dominant she can be, so simply effective that she almost slips under the radar. The Iron Wench’s brilliance may be easier to see, but it is no less impressive. For CN Power, team captain and on-track leader Brim Stone has emerged as a more-than-capable pivot in her own right and is a key in the resurgence of ToRD’s all stars. Somehow, just when you think that Defecaitlin (AKA: Dust Bunny) has achieved the pinnacle of her abilities, she steps it up another notch, this weekend having the best jammer battles with the Wench and dominating in her other bouts. Sin-e-star continues to be a solid, reliable presence in the Thunder pack, and even added “big-moment jammer” to her already impressive resume this weekend, providing an emotional spark to her team and an offensive boost when needed.

 Defecaitlin vs. Iron Wench. (photo by Laine White)

But the offense is getting a real boost from the ever-improving Motorhead Molly, a reliable, unshakeable presence on offense. Finally, the Vixens’ Semi Precious wouldn’t look out of place on any of the rosters at the QCC. A phenomenal talent in the pack (whether pivoting or acting as a rogue striker), the fortunes of this team will revolve around her play on the track. And while Rideau Valley’s offense continues to add depth, it is still anchored by the impressive Soul Rekker who was key for her team all weekend, especially leading the push back late in the bout against the Thunder.

Jubilee has really stepped it up for CN Power in 2011. (photo by Todd Burgess)

The Steppin-It-Uppers

For the well-rounded Skids, the importance of both Cheese Grater and Lil’ Mama to the continued development of this team was obvious this weekend. Cheese Grater is the prototypical triple threat, and her increasing role with the stripe speaks to her importance on a team that defines itself by pack control. And while Lil’ Mama’s toughness has never been a question, with Ewan Wotarmy sidelined with an injury, her importance as jammer was highlighted, and she brought that same sort of toughness to jamming, often skating through opposing blockers. CN Power has improved so much that it’s difficult not to cite every member of the team for steppin’ it up. Dyna Hurthca continues to show an increased poise and discipline in the pack, while a suddenly squeaky clean Nasher the Smasher needs to be commended for her willingness and ability to go one-on-one with the Iron Wench. Finally, Jubilee, who once briefly retired from the sport, has not only come full circle in her return, but has surpassed herself. Her pack work has

Ripper A. Part (Vixens). (photo by Neil Gunner)

gotten increasingly tighter and her ability to take opposing players out of jams—whether it be with sniper-like jammer take outs or strong positional blocking—has noticeably improved. Finally, for the Vixens, the offense as whole stepped it up. Soul Rekker is no longer the sole weapon on this team, as Dee Dee Tee looks fearless and Ripper A. Part is so much more effective now than she was a year ago that she actually looks physically bigger on the track. In the pack, the role of Surgical Strike (who stepped it up at the recent Blood and Thunder All Star bout at the Hangar) cannot be denied; she was one of the most capable Vixens’ blockers all weekend.

 

The Breakout Players

You have to look at the younger Skids to find a breakout player here, and with Mange Moi-El Cul and Hustle Rose playing up to high expectations, Hymen Danger was the surprising Skid this weekend, looking very strong in the bout against CN Power on Saturday night, and not looking at all out of place on the roster. For CN Power, the story of travel-team rookie Hurlin’ Wall is becoming an increasingly interesting narrative in Toronto Roller Derby. An absolutely unintimidated blocker, Hurlin’ does not know the word quit; already an impressive striker and one-on-one blocker, as her pack awareness increases, she will just become more and more of an important cog in the CN Power machine. For the Thunder, with the already important Freudian Whip taking on an increasingly foundational role for the team, it was Leigh-zzie Borden who was the real breakout story of the weekend. A force in the pack, Leigh-zzie also showed a proficiency with the star as well and provides yet another well-rounded skater to Tri-City’s already impressive roster. If you caught any of the Vixens’ bouts this weekend, it was impossible not to notice Assassinista. Whether leading her pack with the star, or blocking within it, AK-47 left it all on the track every time she was out there. An energetic, seemingly tireless player for Rideau Valley, she will be a big part of this team’s future.

 

THE WRAP

Assassinista had a breakout tournament for the Vixens. (photo by Chrissie Wu)

 

While these tournaments don’t generate the same kind of fan-energy at the Hangar as regular bouts (they are long and often feature one-sided results) they are a necessary part of the growth of the sport in Canada, allowing eastern Canada’s three up-and-coming hometeams the ability to collect valuable track time against excellent competition. And the value of getting to play a team of the calibre of Montreal’s New Skids on the Block cannot be denied. It was their play at last year’s QCC that kicked off the strategic development of teams all across Canada (last year’s participant Vancouver has since begun to play in WFTDA’s Western Region), and it will certainly have the same effect this year, easing ToRD and Tri-City into WFTDA competition. For Rideau Valley, this marked the highest level of competition that they have faced and was certainly an excellent experience to kick off their WFTDA Apprenticeship. And of course for anyone who follows Canadian roller derby (whether you were at the Hangar or watching on the boutcast), it was an extraordinary display of the some of the finest roller derby this country has to offer.

** Canuck Derby TV came to town to boutcast the QCC in its entirety. You can watch the archived bouts here.  Stay tuned to ToRD.TV for interviews and layer9’s trackside boutcast.