Uproar on the Lakeshore Recap: Rocky Mountain Takes the 2010 Roller Derby Championship

By Kara Luger

Despite a weekend full of wide point spreads and the start-and-stops of slow pack skating, the Uproar on the Lakeshore 2010 national roller derby championships, held in Chicago last weekend, ended with a walloping bang.

The afternoon opened with the Gotham Girls and the Philly Roller Girls battling for third and fourth place. Jam after jam, Philly put up a great defense, stacking Blockers at the head of the pack, but Gotham's Jammers, particularly Suzy Hotrod and Bonnie Thunders, were incredibly light on their toe stoppers and were able to work their way through. Gotham's agility lead to a quick lead, and after getting an amazing eight Lead Jammers in a row, they put Philly out of their misery 162-49.

Gotham's Suzy Hotrod (Jammer with the star helmet) makes it look easy as she passes by Philly's skaters. (Photo by Joe Schwartz)

Finally, it was time to determine who would determined the top WFTDA derby league in the country. It was down to the Rocky Mountain Rollergirls' 5280 Fight Club and last year's champs, the Oly Rollers. The two teams faced off only a month ago in the Western regional championships, and the tension was palpable. At the whistle, Rocky Mountain skated hard and gained the lead, busting through Oly's Blockers. In all, it was a rough game--Rocky Mountain hit hard, but Oly's kamikaze dive bomb blocking proved distracting.

Windy City Roller fans had a thing or two to say about the controversial slow pack skating seen at this year's championships. (Blurry photo by Kara Luger)

At the half, it was Oly's game 84-49, but all that soon changed as Rocky Mountain's DeRanged, Amanda Jamitinya, and Frida Beater successfully scored piles of points against Oly. Did I mention it was a rough game? Skaters were sent to the box for penalties left and right, leading to the expulsion of Rocky Mountain skaters Urrk'n Jerk'n and Psycho Babble.

The last six minutes were crazy tense as the two teams skated neck-and-neck to the finish. It looked like Oly's game, but with only 20 seconds were left on the clock (and eight points needed to win), Rocky Mountain called a time out. As the crowd went wild, Rocky Mountain's Frida Beater sped through her last jam, picking up nine points -- exactly one point over Oly. The championship game ended in Rocky Mountain's favor 147-146.

Oly's Rettig to Rumble (in the facepaint) blocks Rocky Mountain's Whippity Pow in the finals. (Photo by Joe Schwartz)