Most people know that crunching contact, elusive skating and quick footwork are a part of a roller derby experience.
The potential of getting a suntan is not.
The Coaler Rollers derby team had an intersquad game Sunday evening outside at the new concrete pad by the Kinsmen Park and between 70-80 people showed up, despite Stanley Cup final Game 6 being on at the same time.
“It is absolutely wonderful,” said South East Sask Roller Derby Association president Lorelei Lachambre. “Some of the parents were saying this is more than we normally have for a game.”
With parents and family in tow, that's still a few people deciding that outside watching derby was the place to be on a Sunday evening.
“Also, there's a few members of the Kinsmen here and they wanted to see their rink in action, and how much we love it and how much we appreciate what they've done for our community,” Lachambre said. “I'm really excited to see the Kinsmen members here and cheering us on.”
The season has been successful for the Rollers as they've got a burgeoning youth group, as evidenced by the 27 members who were there for the scrimmage Sunday.
“We had a lot of success,” said Lachambre. “We won games in Brandon and we were also successful in games in Rocanville. We had tougher games where we played a higher level of competition but it's only made us stronger and kind of shows us what we need to work on. The season's been awesome and the girls have been awesome because our attendance is phenomenal. They just keep getting better and better because they're so dedicated.”
The Rollers had a good, active group of players in the ages from Grades 4 — the first year they can play – on to the end of the middle school years and they've picked up the game well.
“I think when we get to the end of the season and everyone is still attending, that's a huge success because we didn't have anyone drop out in the season,” she said.
“Every game they play and every practice they play, they learn more about the game. They're new and.. they're just getting to the point where they're learning the skills of roller skating and they're starting to understand the game of derby. They've come a long way.”
The number of players available made the scrimmage Sunday a boisterous affair, with friends and classmates pitted against each other. The team will have another scrimmage Sunday in Bienfait.
“It's so wonderful that we have enough for an intersquad game and we don't have to call in a whole bunch of people that we don't normally play with,” Lachambre said.
