Roller derby in Topeka shows Capital City Crushers are tough on the rink and friends off

Traditional sports might satisfy the competitive cravings for some, but for Charissa Totten, joining a local roller derby team was exactly what she was looking for.

For the past five years, Totten has played for the Capital City Crushers, where she found a community that understands that taking a hit is all part of the fun.

On Saturday, the Crushers hosted the Salina Sirens for a quick unsanctioned season opener match, known as a bout, inside Sk8away Inc., 815 S.W. Fairlawn Road, where Totten and her teammates showed what makes their sport so unique.

"Being homeschooled when I was younger, I never really got to play sports because we were in a small town," Totten said. "And so I always loved sports growing up, and I always wanted to get to play sports."

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Totten, who was cheered on by her mom, Carol Totten, said roller derby fit the bill for a competitive and heart-racing activity.

"I love the derby community," she said. "We may try to hit each other and kill each other on the floor, but afterwards, we all give hugs and high fives, and we go somewhere together and eat pizza, like both teams together."

Squeezed in between free-skate times, team members, volunteers and fans quickly turned the rink from a dimly lit open space into a battle-ready arena complete with chairs for spectators, score tables, team benches and even a penalty box.

A different way to skate

The sport, which originated in the 1930s, has largely stayed the same after its initial modification from an endurance marathon — where teams completed to cover a certain distance — to a points system in which teams tried to overtake their opponents on the track to earn points.

For first-timers, seeing how the bout is played can be hard to follow at first, says longtime Crushers player Cassandra Novack, who is also known as Scarlett O’Scare Ya. The former classroom teacher has competed with the team since 2009 and was on hand Saturday to set up before taking her position as a bench coach.

"I usually say find somebody who knows what they're doing to stand by or sit by your first time so they can kind of explain or you can ask questions," Novack said. "If I bring new friends, I have them stand by my husband, so he can tell them a little bit of what's going on.”

The objective is like most sports. Whichever team earns the most points wins the bout. But the nuances of being on skates and lingo can make it a bit more confusing.

"So basically there's a jammer from each team who's trying to get through the pack. And the pack consists of four blockers from each team," Novack explained. "The blockers are trying to stop the opposing jammer while helping their jammer get through. At the same time."

If thinking in football terms, players are switching between offense and defense consistently with a player known as a pivot acting like a quarterback to help coordinate actions while also having the ability to switch roles with the jammer.

"Once the whistle blows, the jammers will try to get through the pack. As soon as one of the jammers gets through legally, she will be signaled as the lead jammer. And that jammer at any time can call off the jam, which if nobody calls it off, lasts for 2 minutes. But that jammer then comes back around and the next time the jammers pass, every opposing blocker they pass, they get 1 point for."

Points are added to the scoreboard during each period and at the end, the team with the most points wins the bout.

Keeping the team rolling through the pandemic

To be able to compete at all has been a struggle for many roller derby teams across the state.

“I think roller skating in general kind of lost interest and popularity like late 1990s, 2000s. So a lot of rinks closed down, but it seems like it's gained popularity again," Novack said.

Because of Sk8aways owner Tina Robertson, who owned the rink since 1995, the Topeka team has been able to weather the COVID-19 pandemic without losing their facility thanks to waived rental fees and loyal members.

Other teams weren't so lucky.

Leslye Cartwright, aka Memphis, travels from Junction City to compete for the Crushers after her local team, Stone Cold Foxes, disbanded during COVID. After attending her daughter's Ad Astra junior league practice, she was approached to play for the Topeka team.

“I was a military spouse for years and so moved around and never really identified with a home," Cartwright said. “I think the appeal is joining a group of primarily strong women of all walks of life with different outlooks, different behaviors, different attitudes, and being able to be in a safe environment, to share your own and bring what you have to offer through the sport, where you just get to meet a ton of strong women.”

All are welcome on and around Capital City Crushers

Although the Crushers are sanctioned under the Women's Flat Track Roller Derby Association, the team has a place for anyone interested in the sport.

"Currently the crushers are female only as far as participating in the team. But then we have other opportunities with like reffing and non-skating officials, penalty box tracker, things like that, volunteer positions, that of course anybody can help out with," Novack said.

One ref who was on duty Saturday has been helping for the past six years.

“I've always been a fan and I just figured, what the heck? I'll volunteer and start reffing," said Wesley Smith. “It's gotten pretty big here, especially in Kansas. When I first started watching, I was in Washington State, and it’s huge there."

Outside of the Crushers, who are always recruiting, is the junior team, Ad Astra, lead by Glenda Garinger who was also announcing Saturday.

“Every demographic, every body type, every gender, every everything is welcome," Garinger said. "We're just one big happy family. And when we take on the juniors, we don't just take the kid, we take your entire family."

The captain of the junior team, Aiyana Del Real, aka Ruthless, echoed that sentiment.

“What I love about it is I got a second family out of it," Del Real said.

“If you even have the slightest interest, give it a shot," she said. "You never know. It can take you. It's very addictive.”

The next Crushers game is 5:30 p.m. April 22 against Natural State at Sk8away. Adult tickets are $10 while children are $8 at the door. Those interested in learning more about the team are encouraged to visit the Crushers website or Facebook page.

This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: Capital City Crushers represent Topeka in Kansas roller derby