Hammer City Roller Girls

The Hammer City Roller Girls have kicked off their 8th season of roller derby in Hamilton, and the next double header is sure to entertain. Both the Eh! Team and the Harlots will face teams from the Glass City Rollers of Toledo, OH, USA. In the first bout of the evening, the chartered Eh! Team will take on the Glass City All-Stars in a WFTDA sanctioned bout, while in the second the Harlots will meet the Glass City Killer Bs.

This cross-border action takes place on Saturday, June 15 at Dave Andreychuk (Mountain) Arena, 25 Hester Street in Hamilton. Doors open at 5:00 pm with the first game at 6:00 pm and the second at 8:00 pm.

Get your tickets online and save $2 off the door price

Adults – $13 advance / $15 door | Kids under 12 years – Free

Tickets will also be available at local outlets soon. Stay tuned for updates!

Good stuff to know:
* The arena floor is now licensed – no more separated area. Sit trackside with a beer in hand!
* Concession stand
* For up-close-action, bring a chair and sit trackside
* Kid-friendly event, with a special activity table just for them
* Awesome HCRG swag for sale

The after-party will be at This Ain’t Hollywood, 345 James St N. Meet your favourite HCRG skaters! Admission is free with your bout ticket.

Our Other 2013 Home Dates:
* July 20
* August 17

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Stop! It’s Hammer Time. In a mere few weeks, the Hammer City Roller Girls return to the flat track for their 8th season of roller derby action at home, with a doozy of a double header.

Both the Eh! Team and the Harlots will square off against squads from Tri-City Roller Girls of Kitchener. In one bout, the chartered Eh! Team will take on the Tri-City Thunder in a WFTDA sanctioned bout, while in the second the Harlots will clash with Plan B.

The action all goes down on Saturday, May 11 at Dave Andreychuk (Mountain) Arena, 25 Hester Street in Hamilton. Doors open at 5:00 pm with the first game set to start at 6:00 pm and the second at 8:00 pm.

Get your tickets online and save $2 off the door price

Adults – $13 advance / $15 door | Kids under 12 years – Free

Tickets are also available at these local outlets:
* Compass at McMaster
* Crash Landing
* Dr Disc
* Freewheel Cycle
* Hammer City Records
* This Ain’t Hollywood
* Varnetta (Hamilton)

Good stuff to know:
* The arena floor is now licensed – no more separated area. Sit trackside with a beer in hand!
* Concession stand
* For up-close-action, bring a chair and sit trackside
* Kid-friendly event, with a special activity table just for them
* Awesome HCRG swag for sale

The after-party will be at Club Absinthe, 38 King William St. Meet your favourite HCRG skaters! New Noise Saturday, Ages 19+. Admission is free with your bout ticket.

Our Other 2013 Home Dates:
* June 15
* July 20
* August 17

Buy season tickets, getting you into all FOUR double headers, and save!

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Join Jackie Daniels of the Windy City Rollers as she leads you through drills and skills that will help you (and your league) master the art of becoming a derby ninja. She’ll cover teamwork, jammer agility, offensive strategies, and much more, in 7 hours of instruction.

Also: A bonus black and white scrimmage – put your new skills to use right away!

Planned schedule:
Registration: 8:30 am
Morning Classes: 9:00 – 12:30
Lunch/Q&A with Jackie: 12:30 – 1:30 pm
Afternoon Classes: 1:30 – 5:00 pm
Black and White Scrimmage: 5:30 – 7:00 pm

COST: Skaters $60 / Coaches/Spectators $15

Space is limited. Register as early as you can, in order to ensure your spot.

Note that different skill levels are welcome, but you must have passed the WFTDA minimum skill requirements.

REGISTER NOW

Please bring: black and white shirts with your number clearly displayed, a water bottle/sport beverages, and snacks.

LUNCH – SUB BAR! Make your own sandwich from our buffet of fixin’s, plus dig into assorted sides and treats. Vegan/vegetarian and gluten-free options will be available. All this for only $10! Add the “lunch” option during online checkout. All lunches must be pre-paid with registration, no exceptions. You are welcome to bring your own lunch if you like.

Location:
Coronation Arena
81 Macklin St North, Hamilton

A bit about Jackie:
I have been around the derby scene since 2005. I began my derby career as a board chair and All Star captain for Grand Raggidy Roller People in Grand Rapids MI. After five hard-hitting seasons with GRRG, I made a transfer to Chicago’s Windy City Rollers. Since my arrival in the Windy City, I have nabbed awards for fan favorite, best pivot for my intraleague team The Fury, best league pivot, All Stars MVP and league MVP. In 2011, I was co-captain for the All Stars and was elected to the WCR executive board.

I pretty much eat, sleep, and breathe derby, and have since I started. I’ve coached and instructed leagues from Toronto to Hawaii and most points in between. If there’s an opening on a multi-league team, I will fill it gladly. I have played on Team Awesome, Team Legit and the Vagine Regime in both banked and flat track bouts. On the rare occasion I’m not skating or coaching, you might just look over and notice me next to you supporting your league…no matter where you live! The derby world calls me “America’s Significant Other.”

I appeared as myself in the film “Whip It!”. In 2011, I was honored with the unique designation of being named a “Living Legend” at RollerCon and having a track dedicated in my name. I love derby, love being a member of Windy City, and am hungry for a WFTDA championship.

Are you curious or fascinated by imagery that the revolutionary roller derby revival inspires?

This Ain’t Hollywood and the Hammer City Roller Girls are hosting an Art Crawl that will feature artistic interpretations of the sport of roller derby, the women who play it and the officials that keep it rolling safe.

Fast skates, hard hits, rink rash and great feats of female athleticism are all part of this sport that’s taking the world by storm and spinning through all aspects of pop culture.

Featuring art by skaters and derby fans:
Bean Stalker * Beonkadonk * Full Tilt * Odd Topsy
Darren Stehr * Jeff Hayward * Jerry Hish & more!

The Hammer City Roller Girls will be on hand for the James Street North Art Crawl event, just ahead of their May 11 home season opener. In addition to seeing fantastic art, you’ll be able to buy game and season tickets, pick up HCRG merchandise, and FILL YOUR BELLY! Yes, scrumptious homemade baked goods aplenty (including vegan yummies) will also be on sale. Funds raised will help with travel costs.

Date & Location of Exhibit:

Friday April 12th, 2013
7 pm – 11 pm
This Ain’t Hollywood
345 James Street North
Hamilton, Ontario

For more information and submissions, email events@hammercityrollergirls.ca

RSVP on Facebook

Happiness is shouting DERBY! Dust off your dabbers and locate that lucky troll. The Hammer City Roller Girls are hosting a super fun evening of their legendary Roller Derby Bingo. Buy your bingo cards & dabbers from a skater to try your hand at winning cash and great HCRG swag. Then be sure to stick around for an amazing night of live music featuring Hamilton’s BA Johnston, plus Wax Mannequin, Ketamines, and Let’s Go. Dabbing and dancing, what could be better?

Proceeds from bingo help pay for the league’s many travel costs for the 2013 season.

Friday, March 1
Doors at 8 pm | First game at 8:30 pm
This Ain’t Hollywood
345 James St. North, Hamilton

For more information on the music acts, check out their Facebook event.

While the Hammer City Roller Girls have been practicing at the Caledonia Fairgrounds in Caledonia, Ontario for several winters now, we have never hosted a public roller derby bout there. Well, that’s about to change.

Our chartered Eh! Team will take to the flat track against Kalamazoo, Michigan’s Killamazoo Derby Darlins in a full-length WFTDA sanctioned bout at 11:00 am on February 3. The two teams last met in Hamilton in 2011, with KDD narrowly skating away with the win.

Doors open at 10:00 am. Please note that this is one of HCRG’s small-production events, as the focus will be on bringing the game to new fans, in a new venue. But the great news is that admission is only $5, payable at the door.

Temperatures will fluctuate, so fans are advised to dress warmly and bring a blanket. Complimentary hot beverages will be available.

Big production bouts offering the full HCRG experience with a DJ, concession, vendors, and licensed bar area will resume on May 11 with a double header in Hamilton. Our full home season schedule will be released soon!

RSVP on Facebook.

The Caledonia Fairgrounds are located at 151 Caithness St. East, in Caledonia, ON.

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Get ready for a bloody good time!

Join HCRG skaters, refs, NSOs, volunteers, and supporters as we look back at 2012 and celebrate another amazing season of derby in Hammer City.

Tack on some taffeta or glam up in gore. You’re all encouraged to come dressed as a prom queen/king or a zombie – you can even rock both if you want.

There’ll be fireworks by Hot Carl. And a few surprises. Plus lots and lots of dancing.

HCRG will also be announcing their 2012 Wheelie Award winners. Doors open to the public at 9pm. Cover is only $5.

RSVP on Facebook.

PS – Is your resolution to join roller derby in 2013? If so, this is a great chance to come out and meet our skaters and get your questions answered before our next Derby 101 class starting January 16.

The Hammer City Roller Girls are busy crafting! During the James St N Art Crawl on December 14th, we’ll be rolling out a Holiday Craft & Bake Sale.

Derby girls are baking and crafting everything, and the proceeds are going to the St. Matthew’s House Adopt-a-Family program.

We’ll be setting up shop in multiple locations along the Crawl route, and skaters will be on-skates selling baked goods.

We skate AND bake. We whip AND stitch.We give hits AND give back. Help us support families this holiday season. See you December 14th!

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Do you have what it takes?

The Hammer City Roller Girls will be holding skater tryouts on Sunday, December 9, from 12pm – 2pm at our Caledonia Fairgrounds practice space (151 Caithness St. East, Caledonia, ON).

All participants must be 18 years of age. Every skater is required to wear a helmet, wrist guards, elbow pads, knee pads, a mouth guard, and quad roller skates. Unfortunately we do not have loaner gear. Please also bring ID, and dress in layers, as the arena can get chilly.

Skills we’ll be looking for at tryouts:
- Basic skating skills: crossovers, glides, stops
- Balance and agility
- Endurance: 25 laps in 5 minutes
- Skating with others: whips, pushes, weaving, obstacles, leaning, bumping
- Blocking: taking hits, positional blocking, hip and shoulder checks

We’ll also be looking for: athletic potential, a willingness to learn, and a positive attitude.

You’ll also want to familiarize yourself with the rules that we play by. We follow a set of rules set by Women’s Flat Track Roller Derby Association (WFTDA). The rules have been recently revamped and will go into effect January 1, 2013. You can find this ruleset at: www.wftda.com. If you successfully pass tryouts, we will test you on the rules in the new year.

What happens after tryouts?
Skaters who are selected will be invited to attend league practices (Sundays, Mondays and Wednesdays) and start a three-month probation period. You will be known as Fresh Meat during this time period. Once your three months are up and you have met all member requirements (monthly dues, attending practices, participating in league activities), you will be eligible to play bouts as a Hammer City Roller Girl.

E-mail freshmeat@hammercityrollergirls.ca to let us know you’re coming to tryouts, or if you have any questions.

Not ready to tryout? Sign up for our next Derby 101 course! Our experienced skaters will teach you the foundations of skating and roller derby over an 8 week period. It’s a great way to find out if derby is right for you. Our next session starts Wednesday, January 16, from 6:30pm – 7:30pm in Caledonia, ON.

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