If you see some women skating around Arena Park in fishnet stockings and mouthguards, it’s probably the Cape Girardeau Roller Girls. The undefeated roller derby team is gearing up for their home bout on Saturday against the West Kentucky Rocking Rollers of Paducah.
Brittney “Queen Cobra” Strong said a lot has changed when it comes to the derby since the the 1970s.
“People still think roller derby is staged and is not real,” Strong said. “But I mean today, you know, you fight and you get kicked out. It’s very, very real. We have plenty of bruises and broken bones to prove it, so it’s a hard sport and we want to show people that we work really, really hard and do what we love to do.”
According Ashton “Schlitt Throat” Schlitt, roller derby players need physical and mental strength to be able to keep up with these girls.
“It’s takes a lot. It’s a very strategic sport and not only do you have to be physically in good shape to be able to do it, but you also have to be able to understand the game play and what strategies you need to be using. There’s so much that’s happening all at once it’s very very intense,” Schlitt said.
The bout starts at 7:00 p.m. at A.C. Brase Arena. Tickets are $9 at the door and the proceeds will go to Community United Effort Center for Missing Persons.
If you are unable to attend this match, the Roller Girls will be at Bikers on the Square in Perryville on June 22nd. The next home bout will be July 13th against Red River Sirens of Clarksville, Ariz.
