Greetings from Massachusetts

Hey y'all. Greetings from Massachusetts! We made it - hell, high water, or snowstorm could not stop us last night.

Today I'm adventuring in Salem with Ida and Eloda, and then we are going to the Boston Derby Dames vs. Montreal New Skids on the Block bout! My first time at a Boston home game. Montreal is one of my favorite teams - they're so fun - check out the video in this post. I don't know a lot about BDD, so I'm not sure how I want to call this bout. Based on Montreal's performance against Jet City (MTL 121 - JET 110) a couple weeks ago, Montreal might be able to sneak by. Their game against Rat City was even closer (MTL 110 - RAT 103). Although, it looks like historically BDD has come out on top. I think it will be a close game!

Check out DNN's preview of the game here: http://www.derbynewsnetwork.com/2011/02/preview_24_montreal_faces_13_boston

Sorry for the quick post, but it's time to head to breakfast!

HoT vs. Oz Roller Girls - Feb 5 Bout Recap

February 5, 2011
Hellions of Troy vs. Oz Roller Girls of Oswego, NY
Final score: 171 HoT – 90 OZRD

OZRG helping set up the track. Many hands make light the work :)

This bout was OZRG's first bout ever. It was an honor to pop their bout cherries! They were great. From the minute they got to Rollarama, they were all about helping us set up and get ready.

You can read hightlights and get links to video over on the Times Union blog: http://blog.timesunion.com/rollerderby/hotoz/2738/

This bout was kinda cool for me because I went to college with one of the Oz skaters - Insane Assilem! (Top row, second girl from left). She lived right across the hall from me in good ol' Steinmetz Hall at SUNY Albany. Whoever thought Steinmetz would produce two rocking derby girls? Then again, there's a lot it produced that none of us ever could've called.

HoT & OZRG post game smiles! Nice job all. Photo by Lindi Himes (via facebook).

This won't be the last we see of OZRG. They've been known to swoop in on Assault City Mixed Scrimmages - I'm sure we'll see 'em there sometime soon!

Hellions featured in Schenectady Gazette newspaper article

This is "old news" but the Gazette attended our January 15 bout against the Nickel City Knockouts and wrote up a nice piece of us. The Gazette is a subscription newspaper, so unless you bought a paper copy you'll have to play a couple bucks to access the article. I grabbed a paper copy - here's a couple cell phone pics!  I just want to say I reallllly appreciate the full color photos!

HoT vs. Nickel City Knock Outs - Jan 15 Bout Recap

[Catching up on some old stuff]

January 15, 2011
Hellions of Troy vs. Nickel City Knock Outs of Queen City Roller Derby (Buffalo, NY)
Final score: 130 HoT – 121 Nickel City

I primarily wrote about the NCKO bout over on the Times Union blog: http://blog.timesunion.com/rollerderby/how-about-them-hellions/2491/, so make sure to check that all out.

Also, make sure to catch bout highlights courtesy of Space Chalky here: http://hellionsoftroy.blogspot.com/2011/02/video-hellions-of-troy-vs-nickel-city.html

Photo by Andy Kainz

I want to point out this was the first bout for Valerie Valkyrie and Disharmony.  Woohoo!  They did great.

Valerie Valkyrie blocks the jammer.  Awesome derby stance!
Photo by Andy Kainz

Disharmony (middle) forms a nice wall with Epic (right) and Hanna (left).
Just like at practice.  Perfect! Photo by Andy Kainz.

Lastly, lets talk about their sweet logo! One of my new favorite roller derby t-shirts. This is what I look like at home, post-bout and after party. Tired, sweaty, disheveled, happy.

New Logo!

The Hellions of Troy have a new logo! Isn't she beautiful? The logo was designed by local artist Jess Fink (note: some of the images on her website are NSFW).  Jess Fink...sound familiar? She's been feature on All Over Albany and threadless.  I bet you recognize some of her designs.

I'm so thrilled! I love her smirk. Hope you love the logo as much as we do.

Pamda Bear on RDIT January Roundup

Roller Derby Inside Track is one of my favorite roller derby blogs. It has derby news from around the world and lots of articles with thoughtful commentary. A photo of one of our new referees, Pamda Bear, was highlighted as an interesting photo for their January Roundup!

Pete Rodriguez, a photographer with CNYRD, took the picture at our January 15 bout against the Nickel City Knockouts (thanks for coming and shooting the bout, Pete!!! and congrats on being picked up by RDIT!)

Love the makeup, Pamda Bear!

Pamda Bear. Photo by Pete Rodriguez.

Oh, and PS - RDIT picked up my Bacteria Move in Derby Direction post in their February 10th weekly round up. Just sayin'!

Helmet Stickers from Etsy

I was recently admiring Torya Anewone's fancy new helmet stickers, so I asked her to send me some pics and tell me about the Etsy store where she got the stickers.

Torya purchased her helmet stickers from TLKellyGraphics - Custom Vinyl Decals on Etsy. Here's her short testimony:

Really great fast service. She took the time to send me several proofs for approval and made sure I was happy with my order. I found the store searching 'roller derby' on Etsy. TLKellyGraphics has a good selection of both fonts and vinyl colors to choose from - I was also pleasantly surprised with how easy the decals were to apply. I completely recommend buying from this shop.

Here's the exact item she bought (customized): http://www.etsy.com/listing/64259167/custom-derby-duo-roller-name-single.
The buyer specifies:

• Name exactly as you want printed on helmet
• 4 digit Alpha/numeric number
• Color of vinyl
• Font style choice

Here are a couple more pictures. I really love the font she picked. Awesome stuff, check it out!

Rudechix Valentine's Day Sale

One of our sponsors, Rudechix, is having a Valentine's Day Sale! 20% off on that day only! Special discount code will be announced on their Facebook fan page and Twitter.  Keep an eye out there for the code to be announced soon!

February Events

Where can you catch the Hellions this month? February is the shortest month of the year, but there's a lot of derby stuff going on!

Saturday, February 5: Bout Day!  Hellions take on the Oz Roller Girls of Oswego, NY.

Thursday, February 10, 6:30 pm

Friday, February 11, 6:30 pm

Saturdayday, February 12, 2:30 pm

Hellions tabling at the SUNY Albany Vagina Monologues. Come out to see a great show!
Cost: $10, Proceeds from the performances go to Unity House in Troy.
Tickets will be sold at the door. Several Hellions are former Vagina Warriors (and we all are at heart: Short Temper, Reading Rambo, and Baby Nuclear.

Saturday, February 12 - Sunday, February 13
A few Hellions are headed to the Great Derby Social in Enfield, New Hampshire. 24 hours of socializing, open skate, and scrimmaging. If you're a local derby person, there's still time to sign up!

Friday, February 18
Schenectady Art Night. Stop in, say hello, buy tickets to our March 5 home bout :)

Saturday, February 19
Away bout in Burlington, Vermont against the Green Mountain Derby Dames! GMDD's Season Opener is a double header. So happy to be a part of it! Also, former Hellion Sonic Euthanizer now skates with GMDD. It will be a beautiful reunion!

[Of course we'd love to have all you Capital District fans come watch us play up in Vermont, but if you reallllly can't make the trip, you can check out the Albany All Stars at the Armory the same night.]

Saturday, February 26 Road Trip! It's not a HoT bout, some of us are just going out to show our support!
Boston Massacre v. New Skids on the Block || Cosmonaughties v. Nutcrackers
DOUBLE HEADER
Bout #1, 5 pm: Boston Massacre v. New Skids on the Block (Montreal)
Bout #2, 7 pm: Cosmonaughties v. Nutcrackers

Will I really be able to visit three states in the month of February? I hope so!!! Stay tuned..

Bonus: Saturday, March 5
Home bout at Rollarama against the PRD's Killah Bees. Save the date!

Video: Hellions of Troy vs. Nickel City Knockouts

The amazing Space Chalky, a Hellions super fan, put together some awesome footage from our January 15 bout against the Nickel City Knockouts. Here's Part 1, with links to Part 2, Part 3, and Part 4.

Part 2: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p6wujK3oOjw
Part 3: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ZS2HFXh02s
Part 4: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B9XsPWjndUs

Derby Bruise Contest

If you want to see some ridiculous bruises, check out this contest from The Life and Times of Lucy in Da Sky With Diamonds, sponsored by Scarred Derby Designs. (Warning: I wouldn't look at these while you're eating.. also, some could be considered NSFW because some girls are showing a bit of booty.)

Check out the site to see how you can vote for the "best" bruise. The contest ends Friday, February 11th at Noon EST.

I didn't submit a bruise, because I didn't really have anything too epic.  But here's a pic I found from last April. It's the front of my leg, at and just below the knee. I don't think it hurt as much as it looks like it did. Bruises are kind of a roller derby badge of honor.

Bacteria Move in Derby Direction - Swim Fast, Turn Left!

Track Explained Tee from BruisedBoutique.com

A while back, Mathundra Storm wrote a great post on the Times Union Roller Derby Blog about why we skate counter-clockwise. Doc Bi O'Hazard (she's a real life scientist!) recently sent me a this article about microoganisms which swim in the counter-clockwise direction (further adding to Mathundra's list.

The article, from Science News, is called Like NASCAR Drivers, Microbes Forced to Circle Forever to the Left (or when Doc read it, Like Derby Girls,  Microbes Forced to Circle Forever to the Left).  I read the article a few times (actually about ten times) before I began to understand it. Sharing it now with all you science-y peeps out there. Hooray for thinking of roller derby in unlikely places!

Hellions Bout Tonight!

Hooray! It's bout day!  See you tonight at Rollarama in Schenectady.

Reminder to all local derby peeps: Wear some of your team merch and let the ladies at the door know you're a derby player and pay only $5 at the door. It's a Deep Derby Discount!

Definitely coming to the bout? Say so on Facebook!
http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=176156729083419