There are a lot of noises in roller derby.
You can hear the hum of skates as players lap the oval track, the screech of sudden braking, the clank of padded body parts as they make full contact, the clack of helmets, the grunts of blockers, and the chants of the crowd cheering for a fight.
Before the storm, however, all figure skaters have pre-fight rituals. For Savannah Derby Devil Gretchen Grimminger, derby name Captain Hooker, it’s a few minutes of peace.
“I need that quiet time alone to reset my brain, so to speak,” said Grimminger. “I think everyone has nerves on race day, when their nerves get the better of them. But once you get out there and hear the first whistle on the track, your brain quickly resets: OK, it’s time to play.”
Grimminger is hyper-focused on the person next to or behind her as they take to the track for the hour-long competition. Sometimes voices from the side of the track catch her focus, but most of the time the crowd is just a loud roar.
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In roller derby, there are two teams of five players each. Each game is divided into two 30-minute periods consisting of two-minute turns called “jams.” There are four blockers and one “jammer” who scores points for each opposing blocker the team passes.
Like everything during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, the Savannah Derby Devils had to take a long break when the world stood still. It wasn’t until 2022 that the group began rebuilding with a recruiting boot camp. On August 17, the Devils have their first home game since 2019 – and they are excited about it.
“We’re really excited, I mean, we’ve got a lot of work to do,” said Emily Jones, Derby name Spectre. “We’ll also be here (Star Castle), which is also new for us and another reason why it’s taken us so long to have home matches.”
Home matches were previously held at the Savannah Civic Center, where Jones first saw the Devils before she even thought about becoming one herself. In 2022, during the rebuild, Jones came to boot camp one night and fell in love with the sport. Before and after the first home match, the Devils will host boot camps and tryouts for both the junior league and adult league.
“It’s a really big sense of accomplishment,” Jones said. “Even the first night when you put the skates on, a lot of people are like little baby reindeer. And then at the end of the night, you stop and do crossovers and practice hitting a punching bag instead of a person. It’s so exciting and fun to learn.”
For the players, roller derby is a form of empowerment. There is a role for all shapes and sizes. “I coach juniors, and when you’re around them, you can see that it builds their confidence,” Grimminger said. “Not only with them, but with adults who might be pretty nervous, but we’re training their bodies to do something that probably no one has ever done before and teaching their brains that they can do it. They just have to focus on it.”
Roller derby also fosters community, says Grimminger, and that community quickly becomes a family. Derby places a high value on self-expression and empowerment, with players going by fun nicknames and developing a distinctive look. Grimminger’s name, Captain Hooker, comes from her time as a rugby player, where she played hooker and crocheted.
“I think the names are part of this cool alter ego,” Jones said. “This is this kind of badass guy who goes out there and skates fast and hits people. It’s just totally different from who I am in my normal life, which is someone who works from home, wears glasses and hangs out with his dogs.”
Bootcamps begin on August 13 for the juniors, and the adult wRECk bootcamp begins on August 19 and ends on August 21. During the camps, everyone is fitted with their gear – knee pads, elbow pads, wrist guards, helmets, skates, which takes up a large portion of the first day.
“After that, the first thing we learn is how to fall. It sounds horrible, but it’s really important to be able to fall safely,” Jones said. “An important part of falling is being able to trust the pads. Then we practice different ways of moving on the skates to start and stop. The rest of the camp builds on that.”
Jones said it took her about a year after attending the first training camp to be cleared to compete, but it’s different for everyone and it can be as early as 12 weeks or as late as eight months to a year, depending on their experience level, what they do outside of training and the role they want to play. The Devils have a curriculum and a training committee made up of experienced figure skaters to make sure everyone is prepared before competing.
Registration for the boot camp is already open and Jones encourages anyone with even the slightest interest to come along and check it out. There will also be an after-party at Starland Yard following the first fight on August 17th, which you’ll want to attend.
“Maybe you’ll fall in love with the game like I did,” Jones said. “It’s really fun to play and it’s really fun to watch.”
Destini Ambus is the Chatham County general assignment reporter for the Savannah Morning News. Reach her at [email protected]
