The Sugar Sands Roller Dolls

BY SILVIA RUEDA PHOTOS BY SARAH SHIPES

Roller Derby is back in Panama City. A new team, the Sugar Sands Roller Dolls, has emerged and is giving skaters of all levels, whether experienced or novice, a chance to take part in this competitive contact sport.

The sport has been portrayed as a girl-power sport in movies such as “Whip It” (2009) and, while its reputation for being aggressive isn’t necessarily true, one thing is certain, these girls can skate.

The team was brought together by Crystal Duncan who started skating in 2007 with the area’s old league, Panama City Roller Derby.Crystal took a break in 2010 after a rotator cuff tear. PCRD dissolved shortly after.A junior roller derby league for ages 7-17, the Rink Rat Rollers, was started in 2011.A friend of Crystal’s asked her for help with coaching. After her friend moved away, Crystal took over.

She soon found that there was high demand for an adult league. “We had a lot of people who are military and have played roller derby who wanted to join a league,” Crystal says.There was also interest coming from players aging out of the Rink Rat Rollers who wanted to continue skating. “There was a need for it so I went ahead and started an adult league,” Crystal says.

With the help of of Crystal’s friend Lee Thompson (Coach Hog), The Sugar Sands Roller Dolls officially came together on July 23, 2014. Since then, the Roller Dolls, have been rocking their electric blue jerseys and have participated in both home and away bouts (the roller derby term for tournaments), but the league considers itself to be primarily a travel league.

Although the girls love a win, the team is focused on having a good time and loving the sport.“It’s a lot of work to put together a home bout. The team wants to participate in the sport as if it is a hobby and not a job,” Crystal says.

Luckily for the team, there are seven roller derby leagues within a three-hour radius.For out-of-town bouts, all team members pay their own travel expenses, which are relatively inexpensive, since events are within a three-hour driving range.

The Sugar Sands Roller Dolls have a variety of expertise levels with some members bringing valuable experience to the team.“We thought that we were going to have to start from the ground up but we actually got a lot of members who already had a lot of experience,” Duncan says.

Toni Shields, a 28-year-old player and coach, came to the group with many years of roller derby experience. “It’s one of those sports that you fall in love with at first sight and first skate,” Toni says.The Sugar Sands Roller Dolls is the fourth team with which Toni has been associated.

The team meets every Monday at the National Guard Armory from 6:30-9 p.m.and on Wednesdays at the Navy Base from 6:20-8:30 p.m. New skaters, however, are encouraged to attend a Monday practice first. Those who are new to the team and have no skating experience are taught everything.They will be “fresh meat” until they pass ability tests, then they graduate to “bacon.”

Christine Ostertag, a 29-year-old Roller Doll, came to the group with limited skating ability.She moved to Panama City in July 2014 and joined the Sugar Dolls in August.Christine wanted a way to make new friends, so she decided to go for it.She initially scoffed at the idea of being on a roller derby team.“I kind of laughed at them when they passed around a flyer but they said, ‘We’ll teach you, we’ll teach you’’’ I said “Hey, I’ll try it.” She has since participated in bouts and has acquired her own nickname – ’Bootiful Disaster.’ “I was really impressed with how nice, accommodating and friendly everyone was.I kind of saw roller derby as bad girls, as being scary and intimidating but everyone was super nice and super helpful,” says Christine.

The aggressive stereotype associated with roller derby is generally not true, but that is not to say the Sugar Sands Roller Dolls aren’t tough.“Roller derby is a contact sport, and some girls get very into it,” Toni says.

At practice, the girls start by skating laps for 13 minutes. “There are two lanes, a speed lane and a moderate lane.In the speed lane, skaters skate between 75 and 80 laps in the allotted time. The moderate lane usually gets about 65 laps,” Crystal says.“We don’t want our girls to get tired during bouts, so endurance is very important,” she adds.

Practicing small footwork also leads to larger strategies.Skaters practice hopping forward, left and right. By putting it all together, they achieve greater strategies. The skaters then practice “jams,” which are two-minute periods during bouts when points are scored by the “jammer” sporting a star on her helmet.“The practices are vigorous, but anyone willing to put in the work will be successful,” Crystal said.

The team rolls on quad skates, which are standard for roller derby as in-line skates are prohibited.New skaters are encouraged to buy used or inexpensive skates, as the first few months of training take their toll on rollers.

Crystal said that in the future she would like to see the Rink Rat Rollers, the junior team, build back up again, as many of its members have aged out.The league is also considering the idea of either creating a men’s team or becoming co-ed, as co-ed teams are growing in the area.

Crystal hopes that the league can become a positive influence in the community, working with organizations and charities to organize bouts. She would also like for people who don’t consider themselves “traditional” athletes to feel encouraged to become a part of roller derby. “The wonderful thing about roller derby is that any size, shape, or background has benefits in the derby world,” Crystal added.

The team’s next bout will be held August 9 at the Skate Factory, at 333 W. 14th Street in Panama City. Those interested in joining can check out the team’s Facebook page Facebook.com/Sugarsandsderbydolls and are invited to join in on a practice.

 

[author image=”https://www.panamacityliving.com/media/2013/11/Silvia-Rueda.jpg” ]Silvia is a student at the University of Florida majoring in journalism. She was born in Barranquilla, Colombia and moved to the U.S. when she was seven years old. After learning English, she fell in love with writing and the rest is history. Silvia hopes that she can use the skills she has learned in journalism to tell interesting stories and learn more about the world every day. She enjoys playing the guitar, spending too much time on the beach and dabbling in photography. [/author]