Message from our Fans!

Ladies and Gentlemen, please rise for the Singing of the National Anthem.

That is the best way to start an evening - though this evening started
3 days before the game actually started. This past year, it was my
pleasure to attend yet another Smoke City Betties fundraiser at Hurricanes Roadhouse. Now as many of you might already know, these
evenings tend to start early, and go late with a whole evening of
Party time in between. And since I now have a "grown UP" job I am not
much of a partier anymore. Though every time these nights happen be it a Thursday, Tuesday or Saturday, I am there is full force singing my brains out and steadily becoming more off key as the night goes on - as most people who have seen me - well, they know.

That fateful evening there began an auction raising money for our
beloved Betties, and I wanted the grand prize, and so did my brother,
and so did some guy... while the bids grew higher and the bar grew
louder. I started putting in phone bids for my brother in Fergus who
is a huge rocks fan! Did I say huge? Yeah, there was a time when my
brother wanted to go pro and play for the rocks.... though as you can
see by the photos, not the toughest looking guy.


Anyhow, while bidding my brother got more and more excited about sitting with me - and screaming and drinking beer. Which is what a couple of townies - such as we - often do. Finally after yelling out my final bid,the bar went silent, understanding that this Victory was by far the greatest of the evening. We had won, he was excited, I was excited, we were yelling and drinking beer already. What a great family bonding experience.

As I went to claim my prize it was clear that we had chosen a night that would live on in infamy forever. I bought a hat, 2 shirts (one for me, one for my brother) and we were going to promote the Betties. You can see by the photos that we were decked to the nines in SCB colours, and we yelled loud and drank beer!

What a great night, thanks Betties, we'll see you at the next fundraiser.

Melissa (& her screaming brother)

A Funny Little Thing Called Derby

We were smoking cigarettes and killing time outside George Bell Arena, about to face the leopard print-clad and faux blood-smeared defending champions, the Gore-Gore Rollergirls. Apart from the usual mixture of butterflies and impatience that I tend to feel before each bout, it struck me how curiously calm I was. Gone was the panic of last season, when everything was new and I was wearing skates from 1972. After two years of practice, politics, and pre-game nausea, had I become jaded? Was this inexplicable calm a case of ennui or the mark of experience?

It’s hard to retain the sort of giddy of excitement I felt as a new skater. When you’re just starting out, it’s all about meeting new people, learning new skills, and being part of something big and seriously cool. Whenever I’m stuck at a party and there‘s an uncomfortable lull in conversation, I bring up derby. Everyone is interested, and everyone loves derby. Men want to know if it's fake (it's not), and women want to kick ass and sign up. It’s an instant conversation starter that allows me to seamlessly slip out of my shy-girl-that-couldn’t-think-of-anything-to-say reality and into my fearless rollergirl persona.

Perhaps my fear of being derby-weary is more burnout than apathy. After a disappointing first bout, it looked like the Betties might have fallen victim to a kind of sophomore slump. The result of a sleepy off season turned out to be a team that was just not gelling. It was a tough lesson, but we came back and improved in a way that surprised even ourselves. The results of the first bout and the last, both against the Gories, could not have been more different: we got a cataclysmic smackdown in the first, and we had them running scared in the last. At one point, we were just eight points behind and they were looking tired. We thought we might win. Even now, just thinking about it, I feel simultaneously excited, determined, and frustrated. It’s that mixed-up hungry feeling one gets when they want to win, and they want to win bad. Anyone who feels passionate about something knows that feeling well.

The Betties have worked hard all summer. Getting from point A to B in four months, from being pure chaos on the track to becoming an organized Bettie Blue derby machine, took hard work and sacrifice. The mysterious calm most of us felt before our final face-off with the Gore-Gores was not indifference, but the result of knowing that we had done all we could do to prepare for this final showdown. We were ready.

With the 2008 season now over, and what the Betties have decided will be a rigorous off season in the near future, I look forward to seeing the dozens of Fresh Meat come out to practice, clamouring to be a part of our league. Their fresh-faced enthusiasm and spotless attendance records serve as a potent reminder of how lucky we are to already be part of this funny little thing called derby.

Haha!

Oops! We did it again! This time we CRUSHED the Bruisers with a score of 87-55 and we loved every minute of it. It was clear that they were getting frustrated as penalties began to rack up and the ref team threatened to call off the game due to unnecessary violence. The huffed and puffed but they couldn't blow these Betties down!

And this means that the Smoke City Betties will officially be participating in the semi-final match on September the 6th!!

C'mon out to see all the hard hitting action, and to cheer on your favourite Betty!

Back in Black...and Blue!

I am pleased to announce that the Betties have defeated the Dvas with a score of 148 to 60!! After a slow warm-up to get into the 2008 season, it is clear that we've got our game on now! 

We are ramping up to take on the Bay Street Bruisers next week in a secret underground match that will be as vicious as Monichrome's athlete's foot.

Look out Bruisers... you're gonna get smoked!!

Betties Rule!

It's been a tough year for the Betties, but after a long, cold winter skating on the cracked concrete of the brewery, and drinking some of Toronto's finest ale; the Smoke City Betties are ready to take on the assassins, pirates and greedy bankers that make up some of the meanest teams in Roller Derby.

Last season was a good one for the Betties. Our super powers were in full force as our jammers tore up the track and our blockers demonstrated their super human strength.... the Betties were a force to be reckoned with. Slaughter Lauder, Memphis Kitty and the legendary Jewl Kicker proved their jamming abilities by leaving their opponents eating the smoke of their skates, and wafting in clouds of dust and fear.

The season left us Betties with a taste of victory on our tongues and pride in our hearts, yet the winter came and it proved to be a cold one. Two of the finest skaters in all of Toronto; Lucky Lauder (pivot, and superhero extraordinaire) and Emrock (co-captain, jammer, and one of the fastest skaters on this side of the galaxy) decided to leave the sport in search of other adventures. The rest of us Betties were left to seek out new super human skaters to add to our roster and take into our family.

Sue Deuce, Municipal Waster and MsTree Malteaser are the three newest members of our pack. Everyday, with the guidance and help of the founding members of the Smoke City Betties, their powers grow and their speed increases. Sue's eyes glow a fiery red when she concentrates on the enemy, and she can almost take anyone out of the game with a single glance. Waster's strength has increased to the point where she can throw her opponent off of the track with minimal effort, barely making full contact, and Malteaser is on her way to becoming one of the best jammers in Toronto.

Sure it can be a little hectic adding new people to the pack dynamic; and all teams have their ups and downs.... but we skate in a pack now and are all up to the same speed. Sometimes it takes a few bumps on the track to re-align the wheels... like when we underestimated the skills of the Gore Gore Rollergirls; the dead cabaret performers in leopard print polyester. That was a tough break for the Betties. While we were hanging at the clubhouse during the winter, they were in roller derby speed training mode. As they got faster on that track, the Gores could feel our shock and amazement and began to feed off our super powers, leaving us low on energy.

We came back to the track to face off with the Death Track Dolls. Their team grew in numbers and in strength and we had an absolute blast playing a team that was almost as equal in skill and defense to us Betties. Alas, the game ended up as a tie; the first ever tie in Toronto Roller Derby history! Unfortunately, the penalties we accumulated by tapping in to our super human abilities left us short players in the overtime jam and we ended up short three points to the Death Track Dolls. Dyna Hurtcha even got ejected from the game for being too powerful and letting her strength overpower her mind...... it happens.

Tomorrow we take on the Dvas who also have a pretty good team this year, even though they lost many players to secret service assassination reassignment across the globe. Despite the Dvas strong defense and new found speed, we have a secret weapon against them; Goldie Lock N'Load. Goldie used to be a Dva, but after realizing she could tap into a source of unexplainable strength, she decided to join up with the Betties and fight the good fight (with the better team). Goldie is thirsty for some Dva blood, and these assassins will be black and blue after the Betties skate over them.

I'll be sure to keep you posted.... until then...... SMOKE THIS!

Love,
Miss.Behaviour

2008 TORD Season Schedule

Doors @ 7:00 pm, Game @ 8:00 pm
George Bell Arena, 215 Ryding Ave.

May 24 - Smoke City Betties vs Gore Gore Rollergirls
June 7 - Death Track Dolls vs Bay Street Bruisers
June 21 - Toronto All Stars vs Hamilton All Stars
July 5 - D-VAS vs Death Track Dolls
July 19 - Gore Gore Rollergirls vs Chicks Ahoy!
Aug. 9 - Bay Street Bruisers vs D-VAS
Aug. 23 - Chicks Ahoy! vs Smoke City Betties
September - Championships (stay tuned!)

Tickets available @ Rotate This, Soundscapes, Noise, Junction Skate Shop, Westside Video