Take away my derby name?

So…. The Charlotte Speed Demons have decided as a group to no longer use derby names to keep the game family friendly. Not that I care if someone uses a derby name or not but kind of care that whole league decided to do it as a group. So what are your thoughts on the matter?

27 Responses to "Take away my derby name?"

Malice Munro says:

April 25, 2011 at 8:56 PM

I’m sick of hearing about this league. If you go to their website (racecityrollerderby.com), you’ll see that not only do they not use derby names (falsely crediting themselves as the first/only team to do that), they are also run by an “ownership group” and make a big stink about “focusing solely on athleticism”.

(From their website: “RCRD is leading a movement to develop roller derby into a professional level sport. To dispel the common misconception that roller derby is scripted like professional wrestling, its players don’t use stage names. Instead they compete using their legal names to help emphasize the legitimacy of the sport. They also wear sports style uniforms and only focus on athleticism.”)

I’m not sure what they think Rocky Mountain, Oly, Gotham, or any other nationally-ranked team does at their practices, but I’m pretty sure it focuses on athleticism.

Apparently using your legal name and wearing an ugly-ass high-school basketball uniform makes you the most athletic team in the world!

This is the first I’ve heard of them using “family friendly” as their reasoning behind not using derby names.

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derbytron says:

April 25, 2011 at 9:09 PM

I don’t really get how this makes the sport more family friendly for a couple reasons. 1 – Couldn’t they just make a rule within their league that skate names have to be family friendly? 2 – Are they only going to play leagues with legal names? I’m not sure they’re going to find much competition.

As far as the legitimacy of the sport, I think it’s a valid argument to lose the skater names, at least in WFTDA play. I think the fake names are the ONLY reason that people still ask the question about whether it’s fake or not. People just do not associate fake names with legitimate sports.

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1. Beth says:
  
  May 12, 2011 at 2:36 PM
  
  No fake names in legitimate sport? Ever hear of Ochocinco? Okay…he legally changed his name to do it…but the fact is that he did do it.
  
  Picking a badass derby name and letting your alter ego rule loose in a bout is part of the fun!
  
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Magpie Madcap says:

April 26, 2011 at 3:56 AM

It did really bother me when I first heard about this that the Charlotte Speed Demons really grabbed onto this as being their big achievement while Mother State was also equal part in this. But that’s all I will say about that.
As far as the ditching derby names part, its a little harder to swallow. While I’ve only been going by my derby name for a short time, abandoning it to use my real name seems to feel like losing a certain identity that roller derby brings out in a person. Yes, stage names can indicate a ‘show’, but these names are more than that to many roller girls. For example, the woman in the video who went by Psycho Seamstress obviously identified with her derby name on a deeper level. I think many of us will agree that off the rink, we feel more like our real names, but on skates, we are the embodiment of power that a derby name only solidifies.
Derby names have been a tradition since the beginning of the sport, regardless of the fact that roller derby itself has vastly changed over the decades. But is it really necessary to take away our derby identities to be considered ‘serious athletes’ or will our talents speak for themselves?

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Polly Killer says:

April 26, 2011 at 5:05 AM

If you want to be family friendly then just use family friendly names! Although they say in the video that they’re not trying to put other teams down by doing this, well they basically are aren’t they. They’re completely implying that other teams don’t take the sport as seriously.

By all means use your own name, just don’t be so sanctimonious about it!

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Magpie Madcap says:

April 26, 2011 at 7:16 PM

I would like to hear what some of the pro-real name people have to say on the issue. It’s an interesting subject. Anyone wanna take a whack at it?

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Sugar Shock says:

April 29, 2011 at 9:18 AM

Nope. Don’t like it. I’m fine with anyone who wants to use her or his given name, or a league who says that skater names have to be family friendly. I love my derby name, and I spent a lot of time trying to think of something I could tell my grandma without blushing (which is why you don’t see Menage-a-Trauma) on my jersey.

There’s something special about derby, and I believe it offers something different than other sports, even other women’s sports. You think we’d get crowds like this for city-league softball? The show is a part of it, and the names are a part of the show.

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Pinky Slamadero says:

April 29, 2011 at 2:23 PM

To begin with, the reporter calls roller derby a performance style sport??? Really? And..she also said that she was suprised to learn that roller derby was not a new sport?
I don’t really care that these teams have decided to go that route, it’s their league..so…whatever floats their boat. But, saying that they want roller derby to fit into the more mainstream sports just kinda bugs me. Roller derby is not a mainstream sport, if it was, most of us would not be playing. Mainstream sports do not embrace the come one come all sisterhood that roller derby is all about.
I personally would not be interested in going by my real name in derby. When I strap on my skates I step into that alter ego (yes I said alter ego) and that deserves a special name because it’s a special sport we play.
As far as trying to legitimize the sport I don’t think names are going to do it, it just takes people seeing it and the larger our movement grows, the more people are seeing it and realizing how powerful and REAL it is. As far as being family friendly, just as the others have pointed out, just make a rule about names. What about the teams they play? Are they going to censor those that can play? Or make skaters cover their names?
And no matter what my teammates names were, I would never be embarrassed or ashamed to say I played roller derby….we play the most badass sport on earth…there is NEVER need for shame.

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AnneMarie Smith says:

April 29, 2011 at 3:49 PM

Okay, first you two women are clueless about Roller Derby it takes a lot of endurance and hard work and concentration to play this sport, it is not a performance as she states. If Charlotte wants to go family friendly..get rid of the big DEVIL on your jersey. I think if I was alittle kid I would be afarid of that. Charlotte needs to spend more time working on thier skills to win a game rather then trying to be politically correct.

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1. Katja Red-Handed says:
  
  April 29, 2011 at 6:54 PM
  
  Haha. Exactly.
  
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2. anonymous says:
  
  April 30, 2011 at 6:03 PM
  
  You mean Race City, not Charlotte. Leagues are very rarely, if ever, referred to by their team names. Philly is never called the Liberty Belles, and Race City is just that, not the Charlotte Speed Demons. I believe that would be consistent with the rest of the derby world.
  
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  1. Anonymous says:
    
    May 2, 2011 at 10:21 AM
    
    Please do NOT call them Charlotte. There is more than one derby league that skates in Charlotte, and they differ greatly.
    
    Race City Roller Derby currently has one team, the Charlotte Speed Demons.
    
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Lillian Axe says:

April 29, 2011 at 3:52 PM

I agree with Sugar and Pinky..I think the draw to roller derby is that we aren’t mainstream. We don’t compromise our athleticism to put on a good show. We put on a good show because we are athletic and entertaining.

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Katja Red-Handed says:

April 29, 2011 at 6:48 PM

It seems hypocritical that this league wants to be more family-friendly, yet they call themselves the speed “demons”. Demons are scary. Ask Emily Rose! Maybe they should change the league name to the Charlotte Fluffy Rainbows Who Skate Super Fast. That’s much friendlier to those easily offended by potentially off-color names.

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Amanda "Swiss" Sharpless says:

April 29, 2011 at 7:29 PM

Here’s a reply from a “pro-real name” person:
As a member of Denver’s travel team, I am encouraged to use my real name, but am not required to. The name is on the back of my jersey, the announcers call me by it, but I am still The Swiss Missile and my coaches and teammates call me “Swiss.” We keep derby names on our hometeams, so some of us have two names.
You don’t have to use your real name to play real derby or to convince others it is a legitimate sport. I think the actions of the skaters in our lovely sport speak for themselves, the names do not.

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Poobah says:

April 30, 2011 at 1:11 AM

I think real names are coming eventually. I’d rather have it be more of a voluntary thing, with derby names transitioning towards nicknames (a la Ochocinco, Sugar Ray, Hitman Tommy Hearns, Mean Joe Green, etc).

More and more of us are going by our real names online thanks to Facebook replacing MySpace.

This isn’t an issue I tend to lose a lot of sleep over.

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Ms. Kara Whiplash says:

April 30, 2011 at 7:36 AM

I’m fine with real or pseudo name. I use a pseudo name, it’s nice because it allows me to get to know other skaters and fans via a persona and then decide if I want to disclose more personal information.

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Sarah says:

April 30, 2011 at 10:53 AM

Have they ever heard of denver roller dolls? Have they ever seen oly skate?

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Hella Hitzgerald says:

April 30, 2011 at 5:02 PM

So if being “family friendly” is the reasoning behind it, I suppose we can expect these two teams to soon abandon tight clothing and booty shorts?

I agree with a previous poster, don’t be sanctimonious about it – and don’t forget or be conescending that a lot of people and women find roller derby because of the appealing alter egos and pseudonyms. I feel this focus on names is sidelining the true athleticism that is roller derby. And no, roller derby isn’t a mainstream sport and I hope most of us don’t want it to be. If it were, it wouldn’t be skater owned & operated and be so empowering to women. Bring on the corporate sponsors!!

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Dave "KORfan" Schrader says:

May 2, 2011 at 5:33 PM

You don’t need to use your real name to be a real athlete. I’ve heard plenty about Babe Ruth and Magic Johnson, and a couple of guys from Chicago called Sweetness and The Fridge.

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Crow Jane says:

May 8, 2011 at 9:32 PM

Wow, those presenters are hilarious. We don’t have Fox here.
(I love how excited they immediately get about picking their names. :-P )

That entire clip makes it sound like the league’s greatest concern is embarrassment – I’d be embarrassed to tell my co-workers, I’d be embarrassed to tell my nephew, my dad, my neighbour. I mean shit, if you care that much about what other people think of you, then you’ve got bigger issues to think about than registering with twoevils.
I’ve never watched this league skate, but if their pack has got as many holes as their story, then they shouldn’t be causing anyone too much trouble.

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1. Rita Maneata says:
  
  May 30, 2011 at 1:45 PM
  
  This isn’t like Fox News nationally. This is a local station. I happen to live in Charlotte. Our Fox station is more like public access news a little.
  
  Reply
Penny says:

May 9, 2011 at 9:12 PM

It’s about acceptance as being real athletes. Nobody is disputing the absolute talent of roller derby athletes. But why even engage in the argument about something so trivial as the name you skate under? Who cares? People do as they wish, nobody makes them.

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TARA ARMOV says:

May 24, 2011 at 4:36 PM

I’ve said this before, but what the heck, I’ll say it here.

The appeal of derby to many is the fact that it ISN’T mainstream. I’m absolutely baffled that there are people who want to take away the aspects that make derby unlike other mainstream sports. If I wanted to be part of a mainstream sport, there’s a ton to choose from. Derby grabbed me because it’s NOT like other mainstream sports.

Derby is unlike other sports not only in attitude, a feeling of being in charge of one’s own destiny in this particular pocket of life, outfits and skate names, but the very nature of a sport having offense and defense going on at the same time moving in the same direction. Why change what makes derby different from other sports?

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Rita Maneata says:

May 30, 2011 at 1:43 PM

I do not think the use of fun pseudonyms takes away from the legitimacy of the sport at all. This is a REAL sport, we are REAL athletes, and we’ve got the REAL bruises to prove it.

I respect their decision to use their real names. There are several individual skaters in leagues worldwide who insist on using their real names. That’s fine.

But, for me, picking my derby name was a HUGE part of the whole experience. My league has a 20-practice requirement before you can submit a man, so I worked super hard to get my 20 practices so I could submit my name.

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em says:

June 1, 2011 at 3:12 PM

I’ll give you my derby name, when you take it from my cold, dead hands.

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Anonymous says:

August 13, 2012 at 10:13 PM

Charlotte has had roller derby since 2006 in the form of the Charlotte Roller Girls. Charlotte’s ONLY WFTDA league. The use of derby names is to me more like an affectionate (or not so) nickname for my teammates and in no way affects the legitimacy of our sport. The attempt of other leagues to try to make it seem so is the only problem there seems to be. It’s very sad that the Charlotte Speed Demons seem to have some of their facts backwards or incorrect all together. Thankfully, Charlotte is a culturally rich and diverse city, and so far there seems to be room for both types of derby, but I encourage anyone in the Charlotte area interested in derby do a little research, and make an informed decision about where to spend your money based on actual facts rather than self-proclaimed legitimacy.

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Take away my derby name?

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