The sport of roller derby is full of high octane action and physical contact, making it entertaining to watch.
“Its an amazing sport for both men an women. It allows people to play a sport that gives everyone an opportunity to be amazing as not one body type has an advantage over the other,” said Brittani Hawkins Hawkins aka Shots is a member of Lodi’s first flat-track roller derby team, the Loco City Derby Girls.
Stockton also has a long established team, the Port City Roller Girls.
The sport is traditionally played with two teams consisting of five players that roller skate around a track counter-clockwise in short successions called jams. Each team designates a player called a jammer that scores points for their team by lapping the opposing team. In short, team members have to try and keep the opposing team at bay while at the same time helping their own jammer out. The game is offense and defense at the same time.
Hawkins said Loco City is a non-profit team founded in 2014. The team is made up of business women, moms, students, and wives/partners all with different reasons for playing, from getting active and fit to letting out aggression or needing an outlet.
Loco City is involved with the Lodi community and volunteer at different events while also donating portions of the proceeds from games to different organizations around Lodi. Hawkins joined roller derby after watching her aunt play the sport. She started playing herself in 2015. She’s now one of the jammers for her team.
“It has been an awesome addition to my life, as I love to be competitive and meet new people. The team camaraderie is so much fun and keeps everyone excited and happy to play and volunteer,” she said.
The Loco City Derby Girls play the team’s first 2018 game on March 11 against the Auburn Outlaws. The next home game will be one June 9 against Quad City from Davenport, Iowa. For a full list of games and events visit lococityderbygirls.org.
The Loco City Derby Girls will also start up practice at 6 p.m. on Jan. 8 at the Lodi Grape Festival grounds in the Cabernet Hall. It’s open to all women skaters of all skill level, ages 18 and up.
