Roller Derby Girls by Greg Kristapovich
They’re Rough! They’re Tough!
Meet the Mountain Derby Girls!
Photos and Story by Greg Kristapovich
ABOVE: Head Coach Maria Hines (center), poses with three of her very intimidating Mountain Derby Girls, Shelley Hodes (left), Jodi Harris (right) and Sarah Butler, kneeling, (all of Jamestown).
They’ve been in training since the beginning of the year, and they’ve got a little more to learn; but very soon, the Mountain Derby Girls are going to show the Mother Lode what rough and tumble roller derby is all about!
This reporter sat in on a recent training session at High Country Sports Arena in East Sonora, recently, and was amazed at the roller skating skills they exhibited! “The season’s been coming along wonderfully. The girls have improved immensely!” proclaimed Head Coach Maria Hines, aka Coach Quad Queen. “I’m hoping that by late fall, we can do some scrimmaging (low-key one team against another), so we can assess how the girls are doing, like, are they ready to really go into an official bout? (The public can attend the practice sessions!) One of the husbands, Culley Harrelson of Sonora was also watching the workout. So how does he feel about his wife (Andrea Ferroni, aka Madame Ovary – a takeoff on Madame Bovary) participating in roller derby? “I’m all for it! It’s good exercise” he agreed. “I do have some concerns: they mostly skate around to the right, so she’s going to have one really big leg – and one small leg, from skating around to the right, over and over! That’s my biggest concern.”
ABOVE: Mountain Derby Girls practice their maneuvers with intensity and precision!
What do some of the girls think? “I love to skate!” exclaimed Shelley Hodes, (aka Pollyanna Pitchfork, of team “High County Hellcats”) “My parents think it’s a little nutty, but I’ve always been nutty! The more we get into these bouts, the adrenaline gets going and there’s a little fear factor involved, but it’s covered by the amount of ‘rush’ you get from the whole thing!” Jodi Harris (aka Jodalicious) also loves derby!. “It’s awesome! It’s a great group of girls! We get our aggressions out and have some ‘girl time’, some ‘away time’ – and some good exercise! My significant other, Rod, thinks I’m pretty crazy, but he doesn’t skate at all. He loves to come watch me, but does think I’m a little bit wacky for doing it!” Then there’s Sarah Butler (aka Revra; “I’m an ordained minister and my nickname is ‘Ra’, as in the Egyptian Sun God, Ra, so I’m Revra!”) “I have a really good friend, Molly. She came to one of the (exhibition games) and she (Molly) called me up and said ‘You’re perfect for derby! You need to come check it out!’ So, I walked through the (arena) door. I said ‘I will sit on a chair and watch for a half-an-hour.’ It took me only five minutes! I got my skates on, got on the floor and never looked back! It’s fun! All the aggression inside of you comes out in a constructive way, and you have girls supporting you every single step! It’s more amazing than anything else I’ve ever done in my life, and My Josh is awesome! He’s really supportive of derby!” For info on practice times – or how to join the Mountain Derby Girls, call High Country Sports Arena at 588-0776 ask for Maria!
ABOVE: In a touching moment, The Derby girls administer a group hug to ”Hellbound Harlot” (in the center with no helmet) and “Rowdy Piper”, (right behind her). Both hug recipients belong to Orange County Roller Girls and came to Sonora to help in the training of the Mountain Derby Girls!
