All roller derby rock stars have to start somewhere and here at Denali Destroyers everyone starts out as a skater tots and fresh meat. The skater tots are a non-bouting, no contact, training team whose focus is to learn, master and “own” their basic skating skills. Skater tots and Fresh Meat are the Full Wheel Deal! Not only are they developing their derby basics and understanding the rules, but they also participate in group activities such as fundraising and league committees.
Denali Destroyers accepts all skaters no matter age (over 21), weight, size, shape, or current fitness status. For women with a more voluptuous build, or those who are beyond 20s or early 30s, the journey in earning a bouting spot is typically longer and can be more dangerous. However, with the proper amount of passion, drive, heart and dedication, any woman can play roller derby.
For girls 18 – 20, we invite you to be a part of our officials and referee group. One of the best ways to become a greater skater is to know the rules and regulations inside and out. While you may not be able to bout, you may gain knowledge and experience from being an official that will help you on your way to becoming a roller girl.
As a member of Skater Tots and Fresh Meat, you will learn all basic skating skills, such as striding, crossing over, hopping, stopping and falling. With each passing week, the skills build upon one another and become tougher and tougher. Each week is critical to mastering your skills which is why there is a higher than normal attendance requirement. You must attend every Monday and Wednesday practice to ensure you learn all necessary skills to move from master skater to derby girl.
While you will learn all the basic skills during training sessions, please do not expect to graduate to derby girl just yet. In order to move to the next level of skater, Rookie, which affords you an opportunity for full contact, you must first master and “own” you’re skating. That is, the basic skills must be second nature to ensure your safety as you move up. Each skater is different and may be skater tot and fresh meat from three months to a year before she fully “owns” her skating. Don’t worry; we don’t expect you to pass your skills test the first time out! Here at Denali Destroyers, we believe in safety first. You are now our derby sister, so we care about you. Roller Derby is an intense, fast-paced, full contact, aggressive sport. For each and every derby girl, it is not if you get hurt, instead it’s when you get hurt and how badly. That is why we require a high level of skating kill prior to full contact. We would rather your initial training take an extra few months to promote your derby career lasting years, instead of minutes.
We are also testing on rules and regulations. To be a better skater, you must know how and why penalties will be called on you. Practice will consist of 1 hour conditioning either on or off skates and 1 hour of book skills.
Can all women play? What if I am a bigger girl? What if I am a smaller girl?
All women ages 21 and up can play. So no you are not too old!
Size doesn’t matter. A voluptuous build is harder to push around making for a great blocker. A more slender build is faster making for a great jammer. A shorter girl has a lower center of gravity so she can easily take out bigger girls. Any body build can play any position; it all depends on how bad you want it and how hard your willing to work to get it!
