LVRG's Sock Derby Scrimmage

The Lehigh Valley Rollergirls invite you to our first ever SOCK DERBY SCRIMMAGE.

Men and Women welcome to play

What is it?????

It's roller derby WITHOUT SKATES.

All WFTDA rules apply, you MUST wear all protective gear, but there are no skates allowed in game play.

Anyone with WFTDA or USARS insurance can play including Refs and NSOs.

$5.00 per participant

Please bring a black and a white shirt with your number on it.
Open for friends and family to watch and cheer.

Held at:  4345 Independence Dr. Schnecksville, PA 18078  4:45pm-7:45pm

I am sorry that this video is sideways, but here is an example of Sock Derby in action ( screen will be black until you hit play!).

 

 

 

Facebook Event Page to RSVP: 

 https://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/events/459461094122159/459462510788684/?notif_t=event_mall_comment

 

 

 

 

 

Catalina Spine Mixer -LVRG's Skater of the Month

Photo by Jim Rhoades

Since the spring of 2011, Catalina Spine Mixer (Meredith Spirk) has been making pivotal strides with the Lehigh Valley Rollergirls (LVRG).  She became interested in joining the team early in 2011 when she attended LVRG’s season opener and couldn’t wait to try out for the team. Catalina was a break out natural during her new orientation boot camp. She had the quick feet and potential to excel fast.  With less than two seasons under her belt, Catalina Spine Mixer has made LVRG’s WFTDA Charter and has two sanctioned bouts on her derby resume. Her debut as a Lehigh Valley Hissy Fit was last May against Columbia's Quad Squad and she recently jammed during the LVRG vs. Ithaca bout.

 

What does Catalina think about jamming? 

She stated, “Being a jammer is a complete rush!  It’s exciting, scary, fun and terrifying all at once.  My advice to aspiring jammers is to pick a jammer role model, either on your team or even from watching bouts on wftda.tv, and study her moves to practice for yourself.  If you can, ask her some tricks of the trade.  I have found that if you are willing to listen, fellow skaters are more than happy to share!”

Catalina Spine Mixer is an emerging talent with long term goals with LVRG. Although a back injury kept her off the track for a few months last year, she has come back with a vengeance and is increasing her speed and aggression with every bout. She stated, “My goals on LVRG are to continually improve my footwork & balance and to become a permanent fixture on the Hissy Fits.”

Catalina Spine Mixer with friends and family

Fast Facts about Catalina Spine Mixer:
1: She sells adverting for Clear Channel Radio in Allentown
2.  She once got most of her eye lashes ripped off in a bout. Not all of them, just a bunch from the middle.
3. She graduated from Temple University with a degree in Marketing
4. Catalina Spine Mixer stands powerful at 5’3”
5.She used to be an avid horse rider for 10 years
6. She doesn't like to eat the ends of most foods, mostly french fries


The next time you can see the Lehigh Valley Rollergirls in action is on April 6th when the Lehigh Valley Rollergirls take on Mother State.

THIS WEEKEND: Watch out for your favorite roller girl, as LVRG will be skating in both the Allentown and Bethlehem St. Patty's Day Parades.

Find us online at: http://www.lehighvalleyrollergirls.com

All functions will be held at the Independence Family Fun Center, 4345 Independence Dr, Schnecksville, PA.

For more information about becoming a skater or official, contact us at join@lehighvalleyrollergirls.com

LVRG is a proud sponsor of the Macungie Ambulance Corps

A big thank you to all of the volunteers, officials, friends, and family that make our team the best in the Lehigh Valley. This is as much your team as it is ours. Thank you.

See more of Jim Rhoades' derby pictures at:  http://www.flickr.com/photos/clickdastardly/sets/. 

LVRG's New Recreational Membership- Join Now!

So, you think you can hit just as hard as any other roller girl, can skate better than most and have what it takes to be a lean mean jamming machine, but you can’t make three days a week practice?  Well the great news is that you still can be a roller girl because the Lehigh Valley Rollergirls (LVRG) have now opened up a new Recreational member status.

After passing the WFTDA minimum skills requirement, you can enjoy all of the benefits of being a roller girl, but without the attendance requirement expected of our full members.  LVRG currently practices on Sundays (4:45-6:45p), Mondays (7pm-10pm) and Thursdays (8-10p.m). The new Recreational status allows you to come to as many or as little practices you want a month, as long as you make a minimum of three practices per month.  Ahhh, this gives you the freedom to kick butt on your own time.

Here’s the breakdown:

We are introducing our FAST TRACK option.  When joining our league, you will be asked to take a preliminary assessment based on the WFTDA minimum skills. The minimum skills requirements are found here: http://wftda.com/rules/wftda-minimum-skill-requirements.pdf

If you do not pass, NO WORRIES, you will be asked to join our new recruit boot camp. This camp lasts about 6 weeks and will teach you all of the skills to become a roller girl and help you pass the WFTDA minimum skills assessment.  

If you pass your WFTDA minimum skills requirements, there will be a short 30 day probationary period from your declared start date until you become scrimmage eligible, however you will have the option to become a FULL or RECREATIONAL member immediately and participate in all practices.

Here is the difference between the two levels of membership:

 

Full Membership	REC Membership
$50/month dues	$50/month dues
Permitted up to 7 excused absences per quarter - Held to points and attendance requirements	Must make at least 3 league practices per month and attend the monthly league meeting
Eligible for Charters/Rosters for bouts Must obtain WFTDA insurance	Eligible to skate in scrimmages & Intra League bouts Must obtain WFTDA insurance
Can participate in all aspects of practices	Can participate in all aspects of practices
Assigned to an Event Team	Assigned to an Event Team
Can hold any BOD/Committee Position(s)	Cannot Hold President or Secretary Position
Full Access to the LVRG Forum	Full Access to the LVRG Forum
Eligible once they pass WFTDA assessment	Eligible once they pass the WFTDA assessment and must reassess every quarter

Switching from Recreational to Full membership is easy too. Once you feel that you can meet the attendance requirements of the team, a coach will walk you through the transition to becoming a Full member in order to be roster and charter eligible.

If you are interested in becoming a FULL or RECREATIONAL member of LVRG and wish to take the preliminary assessment (held monthly), please contact us at join@lehighvalleyrollergirls.com for more information. 

 www.lehighvalleyrollergirls.com

LVRG vs. Ithaca Wrap Up 3/9/13

This weekend’s Lehigh Valley Rollergirls (LVRG) versus Ithaca’s Sufferjets (SJ) bout was a battle that brought down the track. Both teams came prepared with each team needing to bring home a sanctioned win for national rankings.  Led by Captain #711 Cam Arrow, the Sufferjets opened the bout with some fast gains of lead jammer status.  However, LVRG answered quickly with the help of jammers Betty Switch, Lauranimal and Ginga Railed U and took an early lead in the first half with a score of 30 (LVRG) to 25 (Sufferjets). 

Both teams were able to capitalize on 6 power jams in the first half. A power jam happens when the opposing jammer gets sent to the box on a penalty and forces her own team to have the inability to score for the entire time she is in the penalty box (up to one minute). These power jams typically result in a net gain from anywhere from 4 to 30 points.

LVRG's Hell Razin' Hussy takes out Ithaca's Jammer

Ithaca’s jammers, including #47 AKT-47, showed their strength early on in the first half and captured lead jammer status 55% of the jams (11 out of 20 jams).  Lead jammer status can really make or break a bout.  A team who gains lead jammer status can control strategically when to call off a jam and can block their opponent from score additional points. 

Coming out of the first half, both teams were still very evenly matched.  They both had the same number of power jams, were closely matched in penalties and Ithaca only had a 3 jam advantage with gaining lead jammer status over LVRG.  LVRG blockers Arista Crash, Hell Razin’ Hussy, Chikki Sixx and Evol Kitty held a tight pack and helped LVRG keep control in the first half of game play. At the end of the first half, the score was LVRG 61, Sufferjets 96.

LVRG's Levilin' Levi and Lin Diesel blocking Ithaca

The second half of game play started very aggressively.  Ithaca’s blockers #10 Ovarian Cyster and #03 Cold War had impeccable defense, not allowing LVRG break their formations.  Lehigh Valley’s Helen DaRink, Rose Beef, Loogie Vuitton and Phish Tahko also held strong to help jammers like Catalina Spine Mixer earn points with every pass.  LVRG’s blocking wall, led by Captain Lin Diesel, did its best to keep back advances from the Sufferjets.  In the second half, the Sufferjets secured 58% of the available lead jammer statuses.  LVRG’s veteran blocker and coach Levilin’ Levi stated, “The Sufferjets were strong, and had the speed to take advantage of any holes in our LVRG defense. Both teams were equally matched; however, the Sufferjets were able to capitalize when they were given the advantage.”  The advantage to the Sufferjets came not only in gaining lead jammer status, but also in LVRG penalties. LVRG had 6 additional penalty minutes (LVRG 33-SJ 27) than the Sufferjets which helped them get their edge over Lehigh Valley.  The end result of the bout was a win to Ithaca’s Sufferjets, 173-127.

The MVPs of the bout went to:

LVRG: Chikki Sixx #6AM

Ithaca: AKT-47 #47

The good news is that the Women’s Flat Track Derby Association (WFTDA) national rankings are calculated much differently this year.  Rankings are based off a few different factors besides the end result of a Win/Loss, including point spread, your opponent’s strength score and other factors.  Because Ithaca’s Sufferjets had such a high strength score comparatively to LVRG, this bout will advance LVRG in their national rankings per the WFTDA.  To find out more about this new ranking calculator, you can find it here: http://wftda.com/files/wftda-rankings-calculator.pdf.  Based on this calculator, each team is awarded ranking points after each sanctioned game to be averaged into their overall rolling 12 month ranking based on this calculation:

LVRG's Rose Beef takes down Ithaca's jammer Gunder N' Lightning

Total Game Points Earned= Win/Loss Factor X Opponent’s Strength X Game Weight X 100

For this bout, LVRG will be awarded 94.8 points to be averaged into their 12 month score, and Ithaca will be awarded 86.5 (corrected, thank you) points to be averaged into their 12 month rolling score.  These scores will be reflective in the next ranking adjustment on April 1^st, 2013. 

Bout Statistical Recap:

	1st Half	2nd Half	Total
Total Jams	20	24	44
LVRG Lead	8	10	18
Ithaca Lead	11	14	25
LVRG Power Jams	6	3	9
Ithaca Power Jams	6	2	8
LVRG Penalties	16	17	33
Ithaca Penalties	17	10	27
LVRG Score	61	66	127
Ithaca Score	96	77	173

 

LVRG’s next home game will be on April 6^th, 2003 against Mother State. 

Find us online at: http://www.lehighvalleyrollergirls.com

All functions will be held at the Independence Family Fun Center, 4345 Independence Dr, Schnecksville, PA.

For more information about becoming a skater or official, contact us at join@lehighvalleyrollergirls.com

Hot Pants Cold Beer

The Lehigh Valley Rollergirls (LVRG) are geared up and have their laces on tight for this weekend’s March 9^th bout against Ithaca’s League of Women Rollers in a much anticipated battle on the track.  Based on the WFTDA (Womens Flat Track Derby Association) first quarter rankings, Ithaca is the heavy favorite for this Saturday’s match up. However, with the WFTDA’s new ranking calculator (found here at http://wftda.com/files/wftda-rankings-calculator.pdf), LVRG can greatly benefit by playing such a tough team with a higher strength score.   Since the WFTDA created this new ranking calculator, wins and losses will affect each team’s rankings based on their opponent’s strength, total point spread and a few other factors; it's not just the win/loss end result.

How does the WFTDA get all of those details and manage all of that data? The answer is through a great team of officials on every league. LVRG’s Head Non-Skating Official, Heather Harlin Lloyd, is one of the brains behind the data for LVRG.  We stopped to ask Heather a little bit about her role as an official and what kind of data she pulls from each bout.  Heather started with our league in 2009, and has an extensive and impressively professional officiating resume.

LVRG NSOs- Deb, Heather and Kara

Heather stated, “There are so many officials around during bout day. There are 7 skating referees and 11-14 non-skating officials (NSOs).  The NSOs work as penalty trackers and scorekeepers but there are also penalty box timers and line up trackers.  There are whiteboard operators and a jam timer, who is responsible for the official game time as well as keeping the bout moving on schedule.  These are all very important positions that without them, we couldn’t successfully run a bout.”

Heather added that the officials keep track of who is on the track, they formulate scores, and calculate how many penalties were obtained in the jam. “Each skater has an effect on the overall stats when they are on the track in a particular jam.  We can use this data to take into account how well a skater played against the other team and even against skaters of their own team.  My favorite data are the Average Points For/Against.  Basically, this tallies how many points were scored (on each team) for each jam that a skater was in.  It’s a quick snapshot of how well a skater played in that particular game.”

Heather and her crew aren’t the only ones watching each team’s statistics. Coaches and players actively monitor these results to determine their effectiveness on the track and their effectiveness gauged against other teammates on the track. These statistics are what also help coaches and captains to determine which players are rostered from game to game.

So, you are all probably saying, "Poor Heather, that is a lot of information to track down and record." No worries, it’s the science of the sport that she loves. As a neuroscientist by training, her brain is wired for this stuff. Heather explains, “being an official has been one of the greatest things I’ve ever done.  I met a great group of women and oddly enough I met my husband through roller derby (LVRG’s head ref Bob Lloyd). Anyone who volunteers as an official will find this to be such a rewarding gig.  Plus, it’s fun!”

Hot Pants Cold Beer Crew

Speaking of fun, referees like to have fun too and enjoy the games when they aren’t working hard at our bouts.  Heather and the LVRG officiating crew are part of a group called ‘Hot Pants Cold Beer.’ Hot Pants Cold Beer (HPCB) is a roller derby spectating team that was started in 2012.  The majority of this crew includes roller derby officials that hardly get to watch games.  During games that they do not have to officiate, they gather and hoot and holler for derby, especially those teams that travelled the furthest.  They most likely don’t have a fan club there, so the HPCB crew steps in.  Beer not required, but hot pants are highly suggested.  (www.hotpantscoldbeer.com)


LVRG loves their officials. So come see them in action this weekend, officiating their hearts out at the Lehigh Valley Rollergirls vs. Ithaca’s League of Women Rollers bout at the Independence Family Fun Center on Saturday, March 9^th. The doors open at 5:00p.m., and the bout starts at 6:00p.m.

TICKETS CAN BE PURCHASED HERE:  http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/340607

Season tickets can be purchased here: http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/309495
 

Find us online at: http://www.lehighvalleyrollergirls.com

All functions will be held at the Independence Family Fun Center, 4345 Independence Dr, Schnecksville, PA.

For more information about becoming an official, contact us at join@lehighvalleyrollergirls.com