How is Roller Derby Played?



Unlike traditional roller derby, flat track roller derby is played on just that - a flat track. Skaters race around the oval track in full-contact sport on wheels. Is this for real? Yes! The scores, the hits and the brusies are all real! Imagine getting hip checked at 19mph - now that's real!

Roller Derby is played by two teams who each field four defensive players and one jammer during a two-minute period called a "jam." The game begins with the blockers (defensive players), lead by the pivot (that's the blocker in the striped helmet) at the starting line ahead of the jammers' starting line. At the first whistles, the jammers take off from the starting line and skate in a tight formation called "the pack." Their objective is to stop the other team's jammer while helping their own jammer break through the pack.

Typically points are scored when jammers pass members of the opposing team. However, on the first pass through the pack, no points are scored, but a "lead jammer" position can be established. The jammer who wins the designation of 'lead jammer' has the ability to end a jam before the two minute mark, potentially eliminating the possibility of the other team's jammer to score. After the first pass, the jammers continue to race around the track and attempt to pass the pack again. The jammers score one point for each opponent they lap as long as they pass that player in bounds and without penalties.

The jammers may continue to race and score points for two minutes or until the lead jammer calls off the jam (by putting her hands on her hips). A jammer scores four points each time she makes it through the pack within bounds and five points. If she laps the other jammer, she also gains a point - this is often refered to as a "Grand Slam" and earns her team five points on a finished pass through the pack. Like any sport, Roller Derby has many fine print detailed rules, penalties and strategies! Obviously, the team with the most points at the end of the game wins!

PENALTIES & RULES
• No tripping
• No back blocking (pushing from behind)
• No deliberate falling in front of another skater
• When using arms for blocking, the arm must be bent, not extended full length
• No use of elbows as a weapon to the chest or face
• No blocking 20 feet ahead of or behind the pack
• No grabbing or pulling a skater from the ground
• It is illegal to GRAB, HOLD or PULL an opposing player - so hands off!
• No skating outside the boundaries of the track, particularly to pass other skaters on the track.

PENALTY BOX: Players who commit major violations of the rules, or who accumlate four minor violations, are sent to the pentaly box. If a skater is in the penalty box and the jammer from the other team passes through the pack, the jammer still gets a point for the skater in the penalty box. This ensures only the team whose player is in the box is penalized - the team who has not lost a player does not lose an opportunity to score.

A jammer can be put into the penalty box which creates a scoring opportunity for the opposing team - as soon as the opposing jammer passes a teammate of a jammer in the box, she will be awarded points for passing both the block and the jammer.

A rollergirl caught breaking the rules will likely spend some time chilling her heels and thinking 'about the error of her ways in the penalty box!