Gorge Roller Derby hosts youth camp

This year marks the sixth ever camp, Roller Derby member and RDYC camp counselor Comet said, and many kids who attended had been to previous years, before the hiatus.

“There’s a lot of return kids,” Comet said. “It’s definitely the 12- and 13-year-olds that love it the most. That’s definitely the age where the most sign up and they are really, really into it.”

The camp was Monday through Friday, from 9 a.m. to noon. During this time, campers were taught to skate and taught the rules of roller derby, which they got to play a bout of during their official scrimmage on Friday, to conclude the camp.

All the campers got to pick their own derby names, which they used throughout camp and during the scrimmage. Selections ranged from Mosquito and Otterpup to Wither Ghast and Killer Elmo.

Families were able to attend the scrimmage and cheer for their campers at the armory. The scrimmage was run just like any other bout of roller derby, with an announcer introducing the teams and players and narrating each jam as they happened.

“The scrimmage is definitely the highlight of camp,” Comet said. “Our announcer’s there and we do intros. We run it just like one of our bouts. It’s amazing to see from the first day to the scrimmage. The progression is just amazing.”

Murph, another derby member and camp counselor, said she’s always impressed by the tenacity of the kids.

“I remember (in a previous year) watching a tiny skater with a kitty cat helmet fall and get back up so many times,” Murph said. “They’re wearing crappy gear, and their feet hurt, and they do it each day for three hours. They’re not used to doing that, but they show up and they do it … We’re so proud of these kids.”

Gorge Roller Derby can be found at gorgerollerderby.com. They’re also active on Facebook and Instagram.