T-Wrecks Fundraiser

It may seem like a long time ago now but bloggers are much like squirrels and we've been mostly asleep/burying nuts under trees since the end of September. (This sounds like a lie - Ed).

Which is why you haven't seen a write-up of the fantastic fundraising gig organised by our very own T-Wrecks and hosted by Audio. Until now.

Event poster, created by Jess E Ska. 

First up was Jonzip, described on his website as a "solo acoustic punk". He was in 70s punk band, The Zips, and has recently struck out on his own with folk/punk/protest music and we were in for a treat.

Jonzip on stage with Jess E Ska. 

He was followed by The Superlatives, who are made up of three guys from Wetherby and play music with obvious punk/indie/alternatives influences. Full of energy, they grabbed the attention and didn't let it drop for a second!

The Superlatives. 

And last but not least were Glaswegian nine-piece ska collective, Esperanza. Featuring ex-GRD skater Jess E Ska, they soon had everyone up dancing and by the end no-one wanted it to be over. I'm fairly certain I've expended less energy during intense gym sessions than some of those skanking, pogoing and generally throwing themselves about!

Esperanza in action - for video, head on over to our Instagram @wearegrd

The event raised over £300. We would like to thank the venue, the bands, everyone who came along and had a wonderful time and everyone else involved in making it such a success!

If this has whetted your appetite for more Home Teams action, why not come along on 12th November to see the T-Wrecks face up to the Bad Omens in our Home Teams Final?! Tickets and more info here.

Halloween Queeriosity

Once upon an evening dreary, while you pondered, weak and weary,

Over many a quaint and curious Pinterest costume inspo board --

While you nodded, nearly sleeping, suddenly your phone went beeping,

And to your feet you went a-leaping, leaping in delight and awe.

"Tis Queeriosity!" you shrieked, "with DJ Future Fight and more! --

Only he can fill the floor!"

Poster for Halloween Queeriosity 2016; artwork courtesy of Nuclaire Art. 

Quoth the Raven "there will be cheap drinks and prizes for the best costumes - for more info see the Events Page."

Apologies to Mr Poe for this one, who I suspect is spinning in his grave. Which is very in the spirit of Halloween, I guess.

Musical Dinosaurs

I'm not referring to your dad's dodgy record collection or a jurassic party game, instead an event happening this very Saturday evening! If you pop along to Audio at 7pm, you'll be in for a treat as our T-Wrecks have organised a fundraising gig featuring Glaswegian nine-piece ska collective Esperanza, The Superlatives and solo acoustic punk Jonzip. For more info and ticket details, go here.

And if you're free earlier in the day why not come along for some more tense home teams action as last year's overall winners the Bad Omens take on the Death Stars to see who will get through to the Home Teams Season Final in November!  Check out our website for more details and to see the package deal we have for game+gig tickets!

Queeriosity & The Return Of The Human Pyramid

A few Saturdays ago, Glasgow was filled with rainbows. It wasn't a leprechaun infestation or an unfortunate incident in a paint factory - it was Pride! GRD played host to two games of roller derby: a mixed teams game (Magic vs Science) & Soy Division vs Vagine Regime UK. For those not in the know, VR are a pick-up team made up of LGBTQ people from across the country and so it seemed appropriate they come out to play on that particular weekend.

Human pyramid, obvs. 

After two quality roller derby games (game report here for those interested), everyone stripped off the safety gear, applied liberal amounts of glitter and got down to some serious partying at Queeriosity. Naturally, there was a human pyramid because why not? If you ever get the chance, you should ask our Sadie O'Hades for her top facts about human pyramids because she seems to know more than most.

Queeriosity is GRD's own club night, hosted at Garnethill Multicultural Centre. The brainchild of one of our skaters, Haberbashery, it's a fun, inclusive night out which also helps to raise funds for the league so we can keep doing what we do and put on more events as well.

Want to have as much fun as these guys? Come along next time & join in! 

If having a lovely time sounds like your kind of thing, keep an eye out for the next one which will be at the end of October for Halloween-based awesomeness.

Game Report: Winterfell WItches vs Quantum Leap & Vagine Regime vs Soy Division

We've been a bit quiet on the game front since our league summer break and that ill-fated day in Edinburgh, but never fear for this Saturday GRD played host to not one but two wonderful games of roller derby. I'm even going to tell you about them!

First of all, however, you should know that this Saturday, the Maiden Grrders will be up in Aberdeen to take on Tier 4 North champions, Granite City Roller Derby's Northern Fights. For more information, check out the Facebook event. We'd love to see you there! And if you can't make that, check out our Events Calendar for an upcoming Irn Bruisers game in Newcastle, the continuation of our Home Teams Season and a wee musical fundraiser featuring that tiny blur on rollerskates, Jess E Ska.

Poster for the Pride weekend doubleheader, photo courtesy of Claire Brand.

Game 1: Quantum Leap (Team Science) vs Winterfell Witches (Team Magic/fantasy)

Since ancient times there has been tension between the rational, enlightened forces of science and the mysterious, otherworldly powers of magic. What better way to figure out who's right than a game of roller derby? Featuring mixed-level skaters from GRD, Auld Reekie Roller Girls, Ayrshire Roller Derby, Doonhame Roller Derby, and Mean City Roller Derby, including some newbies (here's looking at you, Fock Her, Fury L Spark and Poe Slameron!), we took to quad skates to decide the matter once and for all.

Wands were drawn, test tubes rattled and we were soon under way with not much to tell between the fantastical creatures and number-crunching boffins for the first few jams. Soon, however, either the fumes or some fairy curse must have got to our trusty nerds and the wizarding wonders started to pull ahead. By half time the score was 158-62 in favour of the magicians.

The white-coated wonders reapplied their safety goggles while the wily witches brought out their brooms and the whistle denoting the start of the second half was blown. Everyone's favourite defenders of reason fought valiantly FOR SCIENCE! but their devilish opponents were just as determined. Ultimately the Westerosi gave Quantum Leap's geeks a massive wedgie and stole their dinner money (which, given the usual consequence of failure in Westeros, means they got off lightly tbh).

Scientists Stargrazer & Bambo taking on the magical Jess Little. Photo courtesy of Dave McAleavy, boutday.com.

Final score: Quantum Leap 121 - 319 Winterfell Witches

So it would appear that Santa is real, the Easter Bunny exists and all that nonsense about quantum physics was dreamed up by some bored lab techs after ingesting too much of something mind-altering.

Awards:

Quantum Leap
Best Blocker: Velosidy 16
Best Jammer: Fury L Spark 64
MVP: Fury Eyes Only 007

Winterfell Witches
Best Blocker: Sadie O'Hades 311
Best Jammer: Hardcore 24
MVP: Jess Little 7

Game 2: Vagine Regime vs Soy Division

Rumour has it that there was a rainbow in Glasgow on Saturday, and its end was at the ARC sports centre. It's either that or we had Vagine Regime to visit on the day of the Glasgow Pride march and they brought the most spectacular multi-coloured helmet covers you ever did see, in an attempt to dazzle their plant-powered opponents, Soy Division.

It was also lovely to see and hear the fantastic Jeneral Strike and her new bionic limb, as one half of a formidable announcing partnership with fellow Irn Bruiser Siobhan Sinclair.

In the first jam, Vagine Regime's captain Inky Minx showed that she meant business and took lead jammer status, calling it for four points. Sarah McMillan for Soy made it out of the pack first in the following jam but a no pass/no penalty call allowed VR's Hoots to become lead and she took full advantage, with the score 12-8 in VR's favour by the time she called it. Both teams experimented with their tactics to find their opponent's weaknesses, with some lovely offence off the jam line from VR. The third jam saw SD pull ahead due to a power jam, with Hazzard jamming to end it 16-17 to Soy.

Wrath and Rosie Peacock with their eyes on the prize while Sarah McMIllan sneaks by for some offense. Photo courtesy of Dave McAleavy, boutday.com.

Unfortunately, an illegal star pass saw Phoenix sent to the penalty box for SD at the end of the following jam and VR's Catashtrophe capitalised, pulling ahead to end the fifth jam 55-17 to VR. Soy fought back hard, with some tactical calls to reduce the damage from VR and some lovely defensive walls including a powerful Phoenix/Collie combo that troubled Catashtrophe for some time.

Some really strong jamming from VR mixed with powerful blocking allowed them to pull ahead further across the first half, though that isn't to say that Soy were passive. A cracking apex jump from Soy's captain Sable, while VR's Rosie Peacock watched wistfully from the penalty box, made the audience sit up and pay attention but the points just kept coming for our en-rainbowed guests. Each team called for an official review but not even Soy's upheld review was able to turn the tide for them.

Despite some clever play, VR stretched out their lead over the first half, ending it 141-56 to VR.

Pumped up on kale and equal rights respectively, Soy and VR meant business in the first jam of the second half. With Catashtrophe jamming for VR and Postlewaight for Soy, Rosie Peacock saw the opportunity for a punishing offense and pulled the Soy jammer back, meanwhile Inky Minx did some good work to let her jammer sail past the opposition. The jam ended with Catashtrophe racking up an impressive 31 points, leaving it at 172-56.

VR kept the pressure on and pulled further ahead. By the end of the twelfth jam, which saw Sarah McMillan take lead jammer over Rosie Peacock with some lovely footwork up the outside line, the score stood at 193-78 with Soy's chances of clawing it back disappearing by the moment. At this point, VR called a team timeout which gave everyone a chance to collect their thoughts.

Clearly whatever was said to VR during the timeout did the trick and they became even more dominant. During jam 14, Catashtrophe managed to score an impressive 44 points surely pulling VR into an insurmountable lead with 241 points to Soy's 79. In jam 18, Soy managed to break the 100-point barrier with a Sarah McMillan jam featuring an apex jump described by the announcers as 'beautiful'.

Not to be outdone, VR send Rosie Peacock on in the very next jam in which she is noted to perform some interpretive dance before a huge hit and recycle to wear down the jammer, Sable. Presumably confused as to whether she was actually playing roller derby or featuring in some avant garde Fringe show, Sable passed the panty to Sylk but the jam came to an end almost immediately with the score 258-104.

In jam 23, the last of the game, Sable and Catashtrophe line up together behind the jam line once more. Catashtrophe plays a bit of fifth blocker to hold the Soy jammer at bay while giving time for the two VR blockers to get out of the penalty box, and then she disappears into the distance with a magnificent backwards spin through the pack. She makes it look easy, breeazing past some really brilliant defence and at the final whistle Vagine Regime's victory is confirmed.

Final score: Vagine Regime 291 - 108 Soy Division

A veritable rainbow of officials, both on- and off-skates. Photo courtesy of Dave McAleavy, boutday.com.

If you were in attendance you may have noticed something a little unusual about our referees and NSOs (more than normal, I mean). For one day only our zebras and flamingoes eschewed their standard colours and went more than a little bit rainbow in honour of Pride - and they looked fantastic! Thanks, as always, to every single one of them as without them these games couldn't happen.

Awards:

Vagine Regime
Best Blocker: Slappedash 190
Best Jammer: Catashtrophe 663
MVP: Rosie Peacock 50

Soy Division
Best Blocker: Drama Bomb 000
Best Jammer: Sarah McMillan 7
MVP: Sable v20

I would also like to thank everyone who came along to give us their support, all of our volunteers whose hard work made the day run smoothly and the EMTs who are always on hand with a smile and some expert first aid skills as needed.

Stefanie Mainey bootcamp

This weekend we had the absolute honour of hosting Stefanie Mainey of London Rollegirls for an intermediate skills bootcamp. 

In five very intense hours, a group of skaters from leagues far and wide learned how to be a more solid blocker, nippier jammer and all-round more awesome person to be with on a roller derby track.  

Tired but happy skaters after a fab session with Stef Mainey. 

Thanks to everyone who came along and worked so hard, to all those who arranged the event and above all, to Stef Mainey for imparting some of her roller derby skills and knowledge to us! 

If you want to check out some of what our league members learned, we'll be heading off to Manchester on June 11 to play Tiger Bay Brawlers and Rainy City Roller Derby. Or, if you fancy something closer to home, the first home teams game of the year is coming up on June 18! 

Queeriosity strikes again!

First came the Drag Party 1 & 2, then this fabulous bedazzled beast morphed into Queeriosity - now with Haberbashery & Prawn knocking out some of the best tunes of the 90s! Who knew how well Alanis Morrisette went with B*Witched and the Venga Boys?!

Prawn and Habs, providers of quality music and entertainment.

There were glowsticks, a hula hoop, plenty of dungarees and more grunge than you could shake a stick at! It fast became apparent that some of us could get a degree in All Saints lyrics and enthusiastic dancing and the tunes just kept on coming!

Thanks are due to all the volunteers who made this event possible - from setting up, stocking the bar, staffing the event and not forgetting our talented DJs! We're grateful, as always, to the Garnethill Multicultural Centre staff for letting us use their space.

I told you there were glowsticks.

But don't be too sad if you missed it - there's another one planned for August (details to follow) & you too could be part of the awesomeness that is Queeriosity. We aim to provide lots of fun, good times and tunes, and most importantly a safe space for everyone to enjoy themselves. Why not come along next time and see for yourself?

Queeriosity #2: 90's Night

Come as you are, as you were, or as you'd want to be to our 90s themed fundraiser night tomorrow!

Image courtesy of Nuclaire Art. 

It's not too late to get advance tickets for £2 from our website , or just £3 on the door (free for asylum seekers and refugees).

 "But just what delights will I get for my hard-earned cash?!" I hear you cry! We'll have Habs & Prawn playing some of the finest 90s tunes ever heard, in a space where everyone is welcome AND there's a bar. It's going to start early and end at midnight, so perfect for a pre-club warmup if you so desire.

From personal experience of past events, expect to dance until your feet feel like they might fall off but have no regrets (even if everyone finds out you know every word ever sung by the Backstreet Boys).

All the money raised goes straight back into GRD, allowing us to continue being the best we can be & is partly used to arrange future events.

Speaking of which, our Maiden Grrders take on Blackpool Roller Derby on 21 May & you could be there taking in all the action! And did you know that we're hosting a boot camp with the one & only Stefanie Mainey from London Roller Girls on 22 May?! Get your ticket now or regret it! 

Clothes Swap Fundraiser - 16 April

Since it’s now officially Spring (though you try telling that to the weather in the west of Scotland, where it actually snowed on Friday), we all decided to have a bit of a clear-out to raise much-needed funds for the league. We all raked through cupboards and emptied out our drawers to find those clothes we used to love but maybe hadn’t worn for a while and which could do with going to a new home where they’ll be more appreciated.

Following some frenzied sorting of items into £1, £2 and £3 sections (just how fancy does an item have to be to make it to the £3 table…?), the doors of the Flying Duck opened and the swapping commenced. For £5 entry you got five tokens to spend as you so desired, or you could get ten tokens for bringing us some of your underloved items to swap.

Let the swapping commence!

But what if you found the trousers of your dreams, but it turned out they were just that little bit too long for you?! Never fear, for the fabulously crafty Shona Mercy was on hand with a sewing machine and innumerable pins to make your dreams come true. She even turned a lonely t-shirt into a rather fetching cushion cover – there is no end to her talents, truly.

Shona Mercy can turn anything into anything. Fact.

That isn’t all that was happening though – we had mini basketball, hook-a-duck and some lovely dogs called Fry and Smash (The Patriarchy) to pat. Alongside that we had some top quality roller derby to watch on the projector.

Once you were all swapped and derby-ed out, we had other stalls to enjoy: Frenchie & Chunk’s bakery with their absolutely delicious vegan cakes & dog biscuits, Nuclaire Art showcasing her family portrait commissions and other art, Shari Wilson with her beautiful paintings and last but far from least, gorgeous etched glasses and delicious-smelling vegan candles and soaps from The Wild Witchery.

Claire of Nuclaire Art, sporting some of her swaps.

Thanks to the Flying Duck for having us, all our donors, volunteers, stallholders and everyone else who came along to support us on the day! The unofficial total for the day is £142 and we're super-grateful to everyone and imagine you're all looking pretty darned good in your super new outfits right about now!

Sean wearing a delightfully sparkly waistcoat. Not sure Shari is sold on it though...

Also, if vintage clothes are your thing, there is talk of further events so keep your eyes peeled on our Events page for more information!