The Weyburn roller derby team is gearing up for their final match of the year in North Battleford on Saturday, Oct. 12.
The Weyburn roller derby team is gearing up for their final match of the year in North Battleford on Saturday, Oct. 12.
The game is a doubleheader with TeamSask going head-to-head against Alberta first with local derby-girl Carissa Richard playing for TeamSask. Later that day, the combined Weyburn-Estevan team, called The Hillbilly Hurt, will go up against North Battleford's team.
The Hillbilly Hurt is hopeful that they could win. Pam Scott, who has been on the Weyburn branch of the team since it began three years ago, said they have had a good year. They played against Moose Jaw first and won that game before going on to defeat White Wood's team.
In June, the Hillbilly Hurt hosted their first ever Weyburn home game against Portage la Prairie and came out victorious.
"The night went really, really well," said Scott and added that they received many compliments.
For the team's fourth game they travelled to Moose Jaw again and participated in a six-team tournament. Scott said the team had a lot of girls competing with them from other communities who didn't normally train with them and that they lost their rhythm. As a result, they played two games and lost both.
"We didn't come out of that well, but it was mostly a learning experience," she said. "It was fun; it was good."
Looking back, Scott said the team has "improved quite a bit" and, when compared to three years ago, she said the team has "come so far."
She credits the improvement to Richard, who has brought back knowledge of training and game techniques to the Hillbilly Hurt from TeamSask, to the players practicing extra on their own, to the continued efforts of coach Krista Sandney and to a visiting and temporary coach from the United States.
"That was nice," said Scott of the visiting coach. "She had a different look on things and different drills."
All year the team has been meeting once a week, previously in a rink in Midale and most recently in the Weyburn Curling Rink. However, recent activities at the rink and the beginning of the curling season have left the derby-girls without a place to practice. On Wednesday, they held an outdoor practice for the first time.
"We're still deperately searching for a place to practice this winter," said Pam and said it doesn't necessarily have to be a rink or a gym or even that big. Anywhere indoors where they can practice skating would be helpful. "We'd take anything."
Scott said they are still hoping to get some more women to come join the team and that a handful would be good but they would take as many as they can get. If they get enough, they can branch off from the Estevan team and become the Straight Jackettes.
She also said to keep an eye out for information about a junior roller derby team they are trying to form.
For more information, contact Pam Scott.
