Category: Misc.

Let the Good Times Roll: How to Be a Derby Girl in the Bay Area

By andrea
updated 5 months ago

Got an attitude problem? Good. To be a derby girl in this town, you’d better be aggressive, tough as nails, fiercely competitive and, well, a little crazy. Playing this post-feminist all-girl sport takes far more than looking hot in fishnets: It also takes discipline, dedication and drinking. If you love bruises, want to make sixty or so feisty new friends, and can’t wait to pick out your new derby name, consider hitting the rink. (Just not too hard…)

Cruz Skate Shop

3165 MISSION ST SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94110

First things first: Get over to the newly opened Cruz Skate Shop and get yourself some quality gear. Having just opened the first skate shop in the Bay Area to cater to rollergirls, derby girl Motley Cruz has everything you’ll need to get hooked up with the best of pads and the finest of four-wheel setups. She and her (supa foxy) boyfriend Gordon are wealths of knowledge on how to build the right skate set from the wheels to the bearings to the boots. Shopkeeper Donnie hails from Sacramento, where he single-handedly coached a derby league of super skilled ladies. It’s rare to shop somewhere where everyone is this passionate, helpful, knowledgeable and hot. They even stock rollergirl perfume. (No, really.)

Dry Ice Roller Hockey Arena

210 Hegenberger Loop, Oakland, CA 94621

Despite the name, this is also where you’ll spend most of your practice hours. If you want to be good, you’ll probably be here upwards of 10 hours a week. It smells gross. Like hockey players and sweaty pads. After about a year though, you won’t notice. This is because you’ll smell worse.

Golden Gate Park

Golden Gate Park, San Francisco, CA 94102

When you’re on the track, you have at least five big, B.A.D. girls trying to hit you while you’re flying around a hard surface at breakneck speed. You might want to practice. Check out Golden Gate Skate in the park every Sunday. It’s a seven-mile roundtrip skate sure to build endurance and get your gams up to speed. Also, a fab way to burn off a hangover.

B.ay A.rea D.erby Girls

San Francisco, CA 94103

Some might mistake it for a hipster cult, but it’s actually a competitive, brilliantly run, non-profit athletic organization. The B.ay A.rea D.erby Girls are the local rollerderby league that have inspired other nascent groups throughout Northern California. Join one of three teams: The San Francisco ShEvil Dead, an undead army of zombie skaters; the Oakland Outlaws, criminals from the other side of the bay, and the Richmond Wrecking Belles. These are the most driven and dedicated girls you’ve ever met. Joining this group of women is a privilege that shouldn’t be taken lightly. It could cost you your teeth.

Thee Parkside

1600 17th St, San Francisco, CA 94107

You’re a derby girl now. That means you’d better be able to hold your own at the afterparties. Build your tolerance at Thee Parkside, a longstanding derby girl favorite. Local league legends tend the bar (read: extra strong drinks) and work the security (read: you have run of the place). Make friends with the other team in the photobooth and try to recover before practice tomorrow.