Thick, black eyeliner and vicious body checks met the serene beauty of Lake Louise last weekend.
The Bow Valley Lady Macs brought roller derby to the village for the first time in history, taking on Calgary’s ‘The Bonnie Situation’ at the Lake Louise rink on Saturday (June 13).
With a campfire blazing next to the outdoor rink and crisp wind off the mountains brushing the court, the Lady Macs dropped their ‘home away from home opener’ 148-106.
“We were doing well in the first half, and won the first half. We did well with blocking and jamming,” said blocker Megan Hudson. “They only had eight players, but they were all very good. They have played together longer and had the advantage there.”
The Lady Macs were dominant through the first half, taking the lead thanks to excellent work by the blockers and jammer Jodi ‘Jet Shark’ Vanthuyne, who carried the offensive load. But the Lady Macs got bogged down with penalties in the second half, which Hudson attributed to inexperience.
“We are still learning to work as a team. Every year, we lose half the team. This year we have seven rookies and we’re picking up too many penalties. We’re trying to stamp out the most common mistakes. It’s a work in progress,” Hudson said.
The team was very happy with its play in the first half, with many new players contributing to the team.
“We held our strong walls, we worked to keep their jammer back and we were able to score points,” Hudson said.
Vanthuyne was the MVP for the Lady Macs, and led the team in scoring until she was injured in the second half.
“Jet shark has many years of training. She can get around or through people like you’ve never seen. Some jammers can do one or the other, but Jet Shark can do both. She’s able to jump the apex and put the other jammers to shame. She’ll knock the other jammer out before she knows what hit her,” Hudson said.
Hudson also heaped praise on D.J. Bruin, a rookie who made an immediate impact with a bone-crushing hit on the Bonnie Situation’s lead jammer.
“She’s still learning to skate and hit, but she laid out an amazing hit on their jammer that no one saw coming. The whole bench was cheering,” Hudson said.
The team heaped praise on the Lake Louise community for welcoming them with open arms. The village held a barbecue and party to welcome the derby players, with much of the community in attendance.
“It was pretty ground breaking. It was the first roller derby game there, and the first roller derby game outside. It was overwhelmingly positive, other than the cold,” Hudson said. “Everyone was happy with the venue, and they threw a whole community fair.
“The state of the track was great and the community made it as good as they could be. It could definitely become an annual event.”
The Lady Macs have a week to recover, and will now face off against the Barbarians on Saturday (June 20) at Fenlands Arena in Banff. The teams should be equally matched, and Hudson expects a close finish.
“We’re really excited to play the Barbarians. We’re looking forward to focusing on our strategies and putting them to good use. It will be a close game and a fun game, and we’re looking forward to that,” Hudson said.
Vanthyne is questionable for Saturday’s game, so Hudson said discipline will be the key to victory for the Lady Macs.
“We have to focus on playing clean and not making dumb mistakes, which will facilitate our jammers. We have to place a lot of offence so our jammers don’t have to fight and fight and fight on defence,” Hudson said.
Doors open at 6 a.m., at the Fenlands, with the game starting at 7 p.m. Admission is $10 and fans are asked to bring a food bank donation.
