“Going to Hawaii was a treat for all of us, it was like having a vacation at the beach all day; skating at the game and going to late shows to see the island entertainment. One of the favorites was Don Ho, who was a very close friend to one of the Beach Boys who is married to one of our skaters of the past. Ray Change used to sing with Don’s group. Skating in Hawaii was great. Beach parties at, and night hanging around with the Beach Boys who became big derby fans.”
“There was a home team and every three weeks teams would interchange between New York, California, Washington and all across the country. There is not more to tell everyone knows that the original roller derby started in the 30’s as a marathon skating all across the map and eventually had developed into a game and teams.”
“Well I have to go into the fact that the Texas Roller gals had brought life back in the name of a skating sport. It’s just a shame that their gals started out all flat track skaters from all shapes, sizes and all ages. When they started posting on the computer believe it or not I was right there going on the computer trying to help also expressing my feelings on what they were portraying. Tits, asses and foul mouths.”
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“Now going back at least five years these gals have now found a love that derby can suck you into it. It took a lot of telling and going after them to learn derby had rules and was a co-ed sport, plus also skated on a bank track. There had been many others who looked into the roller gals and tried to guide them. Some did like to take some advice and others had there heads up there behinds and claimed this was there sport.”
“After many years of sweat and blood and believe me many times of tears to keep derby alive. Just to see these gals and some so-called fans, degrading roller derby and the roller derby lifestyle as that was our job, just to be told that skating was a choreographed and fake.”
“I’m only speaking from my generation of the 40′ 50’s 60’s and even the late 70’s. When the skating in the 80’s started to go along with the wrestlers were going and derby was put into the background of as a dying sport.”
“So along came the roller games, rock and roll with a figure-8 track, and an alligator in the middle. Now roller derby is a circus. Not to knock the skaters many had great skating ability. Then along comes Roller Jam that started out as a great skating game, then to being owned. It became wresting on wheels with sick story lines many skaters had been retired. It became a group who valued money more than roller derby as a sport. Sorry to say their talent was great but when money talks people do what they are paid for.”
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