Last time I wrote about the Derby girls, it was mostly to lament the fact that there were no tournaments in my neck of the woods for months to come. Well, the snow is melting, the leaves are budding, and is that a wristguard I spy?

The Beast cometh (Montreal Roller Derby)

The Montreal Roller Derby league is about to kick off its season with a tournament of heretofore unheard-of proportions - The Beast of the East, a full day of hip-checking, body-slamming, fishnet-ripping insanity. It all goes down April 19th from 10 AM to 10 PM, at Aréna St-Louis, 5633 St. Dominique. Teams from all over Canada and the States will be playing for the title (and the admiration and swooning of the fans).

There has been some debate, on this very board no less, as to whether or not Roller Derby constitutes a feminist activity or intervention. The point has been made that, while fun, Derby delegitimizes female sports, because of the outlandish costumes, sexy undertones, and focus on performance rather than skill (though skill is obviously necessary as well. Look at that photo. Good god, would you want to mix with that if you didn’t think you had what it takes?). But I kind of think that Derby is to sports what The Cramps are to barbershop quartets; granted, the latter is more refined, more about sheer skill, discipline, and good clean living, less about showiness and attitude. But I know who I’d rather be watching on a Saturday night.

(*no, I did not some up with this title myself. I’m not that genius, okay. It’s from a fundraiser the ladies held last week to help pay their way to a tournament in San Diego.)

(more inside…)

A great example of when the right answer isn’t. Also, it’s funny. :)

A group of teen athletes are fighting to get women’s ski jumping into the 2010 Games after the IOC stated that “the sport has not met its stringent standards:”

Men’s ski jumping will be included at the Vancouver-Whistler Olympics. Female ski jumpers and their supporters say their exclusion is tantamount to gender discrimination.

“I think VANOC and the COC, Sport Canada and the government of Canada — everyone — believes in equality in this country and we’re promoting that,” said Brent Morrice, the chair of Ski Jumping Canada.

The female ski jumpers who are in this fight to compete are teens, all 16 and 17 years old:

Jan Willis, the mother of Canadian Ski Jumper Katie Willis, said she and the athletes are heartened by the support they’ve received for their cause from government, sporting officials, and the Canadian public.

“I think (the support) is really helping the girls, too,” Willis said after the meeting.

“They’re all heading off (Saturday) for six weeks in Europe for competitions and I know that’s really given them a lot of support and energy to really show that they deserve to be in the Olympics.”

Interestingly enough, Katie Willis has already found fame in the arena of ski jumping. She’s in the history books as not only the youngest athlete, but also the first Canadian woman to win a gold medal at an international ski jumping event. She was only 14 when she finished on top against the world’s best athletes, many nearly a decade older than her, at a summer Continental Cup event in Klingenthal, Germany.

“I thought maybe I would find out how it felt to fly.”

Um, doesn’t she sound like a prime candidate to compete for Canada?

From AOL Fanhouse Via Racialicious:

There’s a bit of a controversy going on at the Australian Open after a TV camera lingered on Venus Williams’ behind and the Australian tennis coach Roger Rasheed, who was working as an announcer for an Aussie TV station, commented on it.

Racialicious sums it up by noting “the comments on this page are even more priceless: ‘if she doesnt want to be objectified, then she should not dress like a ho’”

In a past life, before Amélie, I passionately hated the movies. For a while I thought it was a sign of ADD: I couldn’t sit still for a 2-hour film without chipping the concrete floor with my impatiently tapping toe. More recently I’ve realized my aversion to movies was one of the many bruises I suffered at the hands of the stifling jockocracy in which I was raised. The road to recovery is long. Even last weekend, when the opening credits of a wonderful, low-budget, gardening documentary came up, I had a flashback of helicopter blades, machine gun fire, plastic cleavage and fart jokes.

When I was growing up, going to the movies was in the same category as watching the guys play sports - it was the only thing to do. It was also an activity where my girl friends and I were expected to be passive, but still flirty, spectators. Sure, it was more fun than hanging out alone, but it was far from fulfillment and far from fair.

(more inside…)

There really is nothing to warm the heart like a bunch of gals in fishnets, crash helmets, and vintage rollerskates hip-checking each other and cursing like sailors.

from Susan Moss’s Roller Derby photo exhibit (Susan Moss)

If, like me, you are missing the gene required for rollerskating (also walking in high heels, appreciating small dogs), you can still check out Susan Moss‘s photo exhibit of the ladies in question, which will be on display at Blizzarts (3956a St. Laurent, in Montreal) for the month of November. The show kicks off with a vernissage on Nov. 1st from 8 to 11 PM.

The Montreal derby gals also have a bout coming up on Oct. 28th - sadly (for me) it’s in NYC, but cross your fingers for them nonetheless. And, if you think you have what it takes to strap on your kneepads, grease up your wheels, and get medieval on someone’s hiney, the crews are always looking for new members. Toronto also has several teams - check out The Smoke City Betties and The Gore Gore Rollergirls for starters.

An interesting quote on the tender side of wrestling from Bret Hart’s autobiography Hitman, out in a few weeks:

“…but I also saw the good side of pro wrestling. To me there is something bordering on beautiful about a brotherhood of big tough men who pretended to hurt one another for a living instead of actually doing it. Any idiot can hurt someone.”

The New York Times reports that Girls Are Often Neglected Victims of Concussions, though they don’t really manage to explain why.

“Generally speaking, the medical profession does not do a very good job in recognizing that female athletes sustain concussions at an equal or even higher rate as males,” said Dr. Robert Cantu of Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, one of the nation’s leading experts in concussion management. “It’s flying under the radar. And as a result, looking for concussions in women is not pursued with the same diligence, and it’s setting girls up for a worse result.”

The article also touches on some of the dilemmas posed by university sports scholarships - in this case, their lure can keep girls on the field even if they have already had a couple concussions and are at risk of post-concussion syndrome. Sports scholarships are relatively uncommon in Canada, but that doesn’t keep Canadian girls from competing for American scholarships.

Forest City Velodrome London Ontario

2007 - 2008 Women’s Development Program

The Forest City Velodrome in London, Ontario has secured special funding
to assist in the development of a squad of up to 8 elite women track
cyclists. The program is aimed at athletic women, ages 15 - 25, who may
not have previously been involved in cycling. Interested individuals or
groups would come to FCV on an ongoing basis to train, race, and
eventually compete at the Provincial and National levels.

Initial benefits of the program include free instruction and track bike
rentals, and the cost of start up equipment. Individual training programs would be integrated with other activities the athletes are involved with, accommodating school and work commitments.

Subsequent benefits include ongoing training and support and assistance
attending the Canadian National Track Championships and competitive events at other tracks. Squad members would be asked to purchase an FCV student membership and participate in either 2 FCV training sessions per week or one training session and one race night, on an ongoing basis. Prospective squad members are welcome to come to the velodrome Saturday afternoons at 3pm and try out track bicycling for up to 3-weeks prior to making a commitment.

Startup funding becomes available upon purchase of FCV membership.

The first weekend camp is scheduled for Saturday night October 13th from
6pm - 9pm, and will wrap up on Sunday October 14th 9:30am - 1pm. All camp costs are supported by the Forest City Velodrome and the Ontario Trillium Foundation.

For more information, please contact Dina Ridha - Development Program
Liaison at info@ForestCityVelodrome.ca and go to
www.ForestCityVelodrome.ca.