"Roller Derby" by Michella Marino

The history of roller derby dates back to 1935 when Leo Seltzer, a Chicago promoter, drew 20,000 people to the Chicago Coliseum to view roller skaters in action.That’s just some of the action that Michella Marino relates in “Roller Derby,” a book that covers the sport through its ups and downs right to the present.The deputy director of the Indiana Historical Bureau in Indianapolis, Marino, who described herself as “very competitive,” actually played with a professional roller derby team in western Massachusetts for almost three years.The sport attracted her because it was a chance for a woman in her late 20s to compete, she said.Roller derby challenges the traditional sports framework because it remains a rough, full-contact co-ed professional sport not modified for women, noted Marino.Many have viewed roller derby as a product of television, something that Jerry Seltzer, Leo’s son, can take credit for, she said. Since taking over for his dad in the late 1950s, “the Jerry Seltzer era of roller derby was marked by innovation, savvy and theatrics,” stated Marino.Where roller derby goes from here is anyone’s guess but this isn’t the only country where roller derby is played. The game is big in France, Marino told Steve Tarter.As for Michella strapping on those skates again and getting back on the track, she’s thinking about it. We told you this girl was competitive.