Carmen Phoenix Photography: April 2010

Before I had ever been to a bout, I considered training and trying out for one of the Roller Derby Teams we have here in Awesome Portland, Or. My good friend Brooke is the one who got me thinking about it. One day she looked me straight in the eyes and out of the blue said "Will you join the Roller Derby with me?" (She's a scorpio by the way.) Me (entirely Libra), and being the very agreeable person that I am, replied enthusiastically "Sure! Sounds like fun." Brooke and I never did get around to training or trying out, but I never did forget how passionately she spoke of her dream of becoming a Roller Derby Queen. It all seems so, well... just plain awesome.

It wasn't until months later when my boyfriend Brandon (Aquarius, if you must know) mentioned it to me again and got us tickets. We showed up early to get some seats, both not really knowing what to expect. As a photographer, I noticed lots of interesting people. Many that looked like they could kick my a**.

Then the bout started. For about ten seconds I still considered training and actually doing it!! I was growing more excited. What powerful women...what an inspiration...what..oh ouch!!! What a hard fall!

I would die. Those women would crush me like a bug. My whole life, I've been deluding myself. Ugh. Here is the truth. I am not even a Scrapper. There I said it. Much to the disappointment of my boyfriend, I broke the news to him. "Honey, " I shouted over the crowd "I can't do it...They would KILL me!" I made it up to him by buying a pair of the "Heartless Heather" booty shorts that were being sold. We decided that is our team...The Heartless Heathers. We chose them because not only are they AWESOME but we felt they had the most original name.

So, my career as a roller derby princess was over before it even got started. However, that doesn't mean that I don't have an appreciation for the sport... but I just want to enjoy it safely, from the comfort of the sidelines from behind my camera.

Here are the shots from the second bout we attended. I didn't realize that I would need a photo-pass (really silly of me actually) so I was shut down before the game really got going. Here are the few shots that I did manage to get before I was told I had to put my camera away. (The lady was really nice and this was my fault for not following the rules.) I've added some grain and grunge to these shots to really show how I felt and the edginess of the game. It was a great bout and the Heartless Heathers made a huge come back at the end and won!! Check out all of these awesome chicks...

"The Rose City Rollers are women of attitude, passion and athleticism playing a hard-hitting sport of speed and skill. We were the pioneers in the rebirth of roller derby and continue to foster is growth. Our goals are to serve the community by empowering women, providing entertainment for our fans and supporting charitable causes."

Rose City Rollers

a game of brutal beauty

Teams:

heartless heathers

wheels of justice

axis of annihilation

break neck betties

guns n rollers

high rollers

wreckers

www.rosecityrollers.com