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A 'lil HooHaa

Messing with the blogging world since 2005

roller derby

Roller derby action hits the area!

November 23, 2011

Roller derby comes to Oneonta!

Have you ever seen roller derby?

The roller derby I remember was on an oval track with banks in four corner areas. There were high-speed chases and crashes and some brutal stuff. Roller derby, apparently, is still around.

But it’s on a flat track.

I noticed this a few months back, but thought I’d have to travel to watch it. That’s until one of the area places got a team. The Oneonta Derailing Darlings made their home debut this past Friday.

It was too interesting to not go see it.

First, I was shocked at the crowd. I realized people would go watch, but there were several hundred people packing into Interskate 88 to check out the hometown’s new sensations.

So the gals took their warmups and such and then did a quick “jam” to explain the rules. Basically, the person doing the scoring gets a point for each opponent she passes during the two-minute jam. The jammer who is in front can call it off whenever she wants, too, so if one team’s jammer is in the penalty box, for example, and the on-track jammer scores a bunch of points — she can stop the jam before the other team’s jammer returns.

Collision!

Strategy!

The game isn’t as fast as I remember. It has some quickness, but not like the old-school teams who used to be on TV. That being said, it was pretty entertaining.

There were a few decent wrecks. And some pretty sweet moves.

As someone who has never roller skated (I’ve roller bladed, though), this was interesting to watch for sure.

There were some bad things — like the opposing team’s coach, whose piercing screams didn’t seem to form any words, broke any nearby glass and shattered people’s ear drums. Seriously, you can hear it some in the video I took below. It was obnoxious and I believe I wasn’t the only one hoping some vocal chords would implode.

Besides that…

It was pretty entertaining. I thought it dragged a little too long. Halves are supposed to be 30 minutes, but with stops and jams stopping and breaks, it took a while. It started at about 7:15 and we walked out about 9:35. That’s a little too long when a lot of people are standing and all. My only other complaint is the amount of whistles. It was like field hockey. But I think if I learn the rules a bit better, those whistles will make sense.

Jonna, of Tattooed Mommie, who once played roller derby commented recently with a link to the flat-track rules. If anyone is interested, you can check ’em out at the Women’s Flat Track Derby Association.

The rules of the game seem easy enough and it wasn’t too hard to follow along with. And these gals really put forth quite the effort. For $10, I can’t complain for the entertainment value and I’d go back for sure. It was fun to watch.

Now, for my end.

This sport is TOUGH to photograph! I have a couple of photos in this post and more can be seen in its set on my Flickr, but wow… tough. I had a tough time keeping focus and many photos came out soft. There’s no place to bounce the flash really, so I needed to have it pointed. Other people taking photos were there and using an off-camera flash, which is smart. Alas, I don’t have the equipment needed to do that. So I’ll have to think about what I can do the next time. I also realize I can sit much closer than I did, so I will be trying things a little differently next time.

I hope this team succeeds and they keep getting support. This area can use things like this. It’s cost-effective entertainment and it’s worth going to see. I’ll look forward to when their full schedule comes out to see when they are home again.

Oh yeah — Oneonta lost the game. But had some good moments. I have a feeling with time, this team will be competing with anyone.

Below is a video I shot at the event. It’s not too light, but it gives you an idea of what we were watching.

***

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog [at] gmail.com. Also, please “Like” HooHaa Blog on Facebook by clicking the button on the right side of the page!

Filed Under: Entertainment, My world, Photography Tagged With: flat track roller derby, interskate 88, oneonta, oneonta derailing darlings, oneonta ny, roller derby

1 Comment

Notes from my Noodle: Nov. 18 edition

November 18, 2011

Does anyone remember the old roller derby that used to be on television?

They had those high-banked tracks. It was hard-hitting action and pretty fun to watch. And when the train wrecks happened and there was a people pile up, it was fun.

Well, it’s back to an extent.

I didn’t realize roller derby still existed. Maybe not in the big way it used to be, but it’s around. When I was at a wrestling show a while back, I saw a sign for it. So I checked out the Central New York group and figured when the season started, I’d find a way to check it out.

Turns out one of the local towns has a team. And they open tonight.

So a couple of us are going over to check it out. I’m hoping to take some photos of the event, but I don’t know what the lighting is like. Either way, I’m looking forward to watching it live. They don’t used banked tracks — it’s all flat. But either way, it should hopefully prove to be entertaining!

I just hope there’s something that explains the rules!

***

I am fully sold on the iPhone 4s.

I loved it before because of the capabilities. The camera is very solid and the apps have been great. Call quality, too, is pretty strong.

But the past few days, I’ve messed with the video and I’ve found it shockingly good. The sound isn’t bad. The quality is solid. I could see doing a lot more with the phone in regard to video.

Below is a video I took yesterday. Darren tried to send a disc across Hodges Pond in Neahwa Park. Unfortunately, for him, he didn’t make it. The rest tells itself through video.

I will be testing out more later, but I like the video so far. It might drain my battery some, but ya know…

I just need to figure out if I can change settings and how to work with it a little as right now I just know how to turn it to video and record.

*** 

I’ve finally been starting to catch up on processing photos. So I’ve been uploading a bunch each day to my Flickr account. Feel free to go over and check the latest editions, which include more shots from my South Jersey trip, 2CW wrestling in Binghamton, my November 12 of 12, and some others. Upcoming things will include the rest of the Jersey photos, some flag football and more.

Click here to visit my Flickr.

*** 

I finally got some new sneaks for my car. One thing that is hard when you are unemployed is squirreling money away so you can get things you need (such as tires etc). But I went and got some on the car yesterday and I could see the difference.

Goodbye racing slicks!

I just have to stay on top of getting them balanced and rotated. I got them at Wal-Mart, so they have the lifetime free balance and rotation. I can dig that and I just have to get there and have it done every 5,000-6,000 miles.

Next up? The service the car needs.

***

A week or two back, we got a bit of a warm spell in my area.

So much so that I had the chance to get out and wear shorts. A pretty sweet deal without a doubt. I had been itching to throw a few discs, but I didn’t get anywhere to do it.

Still, disc golf was on my mind a bit.

Though I am not going to go into it too much, I’ve been working on a pretty cool disc golf project. The leg work for it got under way and I’ve had the chance to talk to a bunch of people in conjunction with it.

Once the timing is right, I’ll announce some things here, of course.

Needless to say, it’s something I’m extremely excited about. It’s been a good diversion from the real world at times. As I continue my job hunt, using this to take a break has been very good for the mind. And it’s given me something to get a bit pumped about.

I just hope that when it comes to fruition, it will have all been worth it!

Speaking of disc golf, I am hoping to get a round or two in over the next week as next Saturday (the one following Thanksgiving) is a doubles tournament. It’s a pretty neat looking thing. I’ve not played in one, so I am looking forward to it. Darren and I are teaming up, so hopefully we can do some damage!

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog [at] gmail.com. Also, please “Like” HooHaa Blog on Facebook by clicking the button on the right side of the page!

Filed Under: Cameras, cell phone, Disc golf, iPhone, My world, Notes from my noodle, Photography Tagged With: disc golf discs, Flickr, iphone, iphone 4s, iphone 4s video, iphone video, my world, new tires, notes from my noodle, oneonta roller derby, photography, photos, roller derby, video, youtube

4 Comments

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hoohaa29

Writer who loves images just as much as words! In search of perfectly poured pints of Guinness and great hot dogs. Find me on twitter @softball29.

Couldn’t resist stopping on the way to work too Couldn’t resist stopping on the way to work too quickly snap some photos of this scene. Hamden Covered Bridge. #bridge #coveredbridge #hamden #snow #winter #instagood #photooftheday #happy #picoftheday #fun #igers #bestoftheday #life #photo #iphonesia #igdaily #iphoneonly #love #beautiful #photography
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