Dane101 - Sports

Dairyland Dolls hit the road for a hot summer of wheeled hellion action

Wed, 14 May 2008 17:30:18 +0200

The senior season for the Mad Rollin Dolls is behind us with the Quad Squad notching a second championship on their raggedy garter belts. Now the top players from our four league teams will pivot toward a summer of ferocious battles as they jam and slam their way up from 17th rank overall in the Women's Flat Track Derby Association. The Dolls rank 10th in the Eastern region. From October 10 to 12 the Dolls will be hosting the 2008 WFTDA Eastern Regionals at the Alliant Energy Center. Below is the summer schedule for Mad Rollin' Dolls travel team, the Dairyland Dolls, with ranks and links of the teams they will be facing.

BIY, Bike-It-Yourself: The Change That We Make

Tue, 13 May 2008 17:03:51 +0200

Clearly I've been drinking the special kool-aid for too long.

Instead of biking to work for Bike to Work Week I've spent the last few days at a university transportation conference. I've been surprised to see how other schools in the country deal with transportation issues, and how very much it is different from the way that things are done at the University of Wisconsin and the City of Madison.

For about the last 10 years I've been straddling the line between government staff and community advocate. It can be a tricky line to walk. On the government side, things often are done according to the status quo, and change seems to move at a glacier place sometimes. On the advocacy side, it is all about change. Change now (or as quickly as we can get it). Don't get me wrong, in Madison there's a fair mix of community-minded folks in government, but they often have to work within the constraints of the systems that they inhabit.

A big night of hits ends the Mad Rollin Dolls senior season

Mon, 12 May 2008 19:00:23 +0200

It was a night of big hits, as the Mad Rollin’ Dolls took the floor for the final bout of the season.

The first match featured the Vaudeville Vixens against the Unholy Rollers in the Grudge Match. Both teams progressed significantly this season, but found themselves on the undercard again.

Image from Chris Norris, see more here.

The match started slow, as bodies covered the floor repeatedly in the first half. Scoring was minimal early as the teams found their groove. As the half ended, the Vixens lead 40-35.

2008 Derby Finals Photos: Quad Squad Victorious

Sun, 11 May 2008 07:42:10 +0200

The Quad Squad emerged victorious after a vicious bout, besting their longtime rivals the Reservoir Dolls. A more in-depth writeup of the bout should follow soon. Scores at the Mad Rollin' Dolls blog.

DaneCast: Dane101 talks roller derby with Mad Rollin Doll announcers Bob Noxious and Baam Baam

Fri, 09 May 2008 19:49:10 +0200

In this special edition of the Dane101 semi-weekly podcast we sit down with Mad Rollin Dolls announcers Bob Noxious and Baam Baam. Baam and Bob have been with the league since the inception so they have had a front row seat to the Dolls through all of their growing pains. In this 15 minute segment we discuss the change in derby capacity, Wisconsin as a derby state, stand out skaters of the year, and what it means to be a male announcer in a female derby world. Listen through the Odeo player below or by clicking here.

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Mad Rollin Dolls 2008 Semi-Finals Photos

Mon, 14 Apr 2008 08:18:32 +0200

Photos by Chris Norris. More details at the Mad Rollin Dolls Blog. Click images for larger versions.

Mad Rollin Dolls: Fire Marshall Reduces Fast Forward Capacity from 1000 to 600

Sat, 12 Apr 2008 16:56:28 +0200

Just in time for tonight's Mad Rollin' Dolls Semi-Finals the Fire Marshall has reduced the capacity at Fast Forward, the Dolls' skate rink, from 1000 to 600. This new capacity includes skaters, volunteers, Fast Forward staff, and audience. It also means they ~~won't be selling tickets at the door~~ (UPDATE: after calculating the tickets pulled from outlets early yesterday there will be some tickets available at the door, so get there early. Also, tickets will be on the shuttle bus leaving from the High Noon to go to the bout at 5:30 p.m.) and they may not be able to let in press (don't worry, Dane101 will still be covering the bout)! Zoinks! Damn you Smoky the Bear and your...safety. From the Dolls:

Quote:

Mad Rollin' Dolls fans have been packin' the rink this season, and we love them for it. In fact, we're so popular we finally got noticed by the authorities. The Fire Marshall says we can only let 600 people in at Fast Forward. That's 600 people total including fans, skaters, and staff.

Mad Rollin' Dolls Profiles: Quad Squad Captain Joan of Anarchy

Fri, 11 Apr 2008 17:00:29 +0200

When writing about the season opener for Mad Rollin Dolls a few months back, I mentioned this:

The Quad Squad isn't flashy, but they know how to set up blocks and how to read each other well, so what they lack in finesse, they make up with in pure strength and timing.

It was meant as a compliment (and not a backhanded one either), and in the back of my mind, I always kind of wished I would have written a bit differently as I didn't want the team to take it the wrong way. Luckily, when contacting Joan of Anarchy about this interview, she mentioned this to me:

I thought you might like to know that Quad Squad really enjoyed your description of our team in the Jan bout article. Thanks to you, we've gained a new slogan for season 4: "we may not be flashy, but we get the job done."

Awesome. I'm glad I could help.

BIY, Bike-It-Yourself: Fat Cyclist

Thu, 10 Apr 2008 19:40:13 +0200

Recently, during discussion of the adoption of the Madison Platinum Bicycle Committee’s Report recommendations (full disclosure, I wrote this report), Alder Thuy Pham-Remmele (District 20) asked, amongst other skeptical comments regarding adoption of the report, "How is a 300-pound person going to ride a bike?" Story on the meeting here.

Thankfully, Thuy Pham-Remmele was the only member of the Council to vote “no” on the adopting the report, and the measure easily passed, clearing the way for many improvements to bicycling in Madison in the coming years.

Frozen Four: Wisconsin takes on North Dakota at the Kohl Center

Sun, 30 Mar 2008 17:15:35 +0200

With the Wisconsin Badgers Men's Basketball team out of the running for the NCAA Tournament and the Wisconsin Women falling to Villanova in the NIT last week, what is a Badger fan suffering from March Madness to do? Why not drop the ball for a puck and look to our very own Kohl Center? Downtown Madison will be packed tonight with Badger hockey fans as Wisconsin battles North Dakota for a spot in the Frozen Four.

Going in to tonight's bout North Dakota is a three seed while Wisconsin is a 17 seed. On Saturday, North Dakota topped Princeton 5-1 and Wisconsin topped Denver 6-2. North Dakota may be the higher seed, but Wisconsin goes into the match with the home ice advantage - the Badgers are 8-0 for playoff games played on home ice including five NCAA Tournament wins. The Sioux and Badgers are roughly even when it comes to previous battles this season. During their first meet and greet the Badgers shut the Sioux out with a 4-0 victory, however, the Sioux turned around and won the next game 3-1. The last time the Badgers won the NCAA Tournament was in 2006.

March Madness: Wisconsin learns the recipe for Badger Curry. Mmmmm...

Sat, 29 Mar 2008 18:30:01 +0100

Besides ending Wisconsin's run to the NCAA Tournament's Final Four, the second worst thing about the Badgers taking a dive to Davidson is that every blogger in the world used it as an opportunity to make puns on Davidson's Stephen Curry's name (including me). "Davidson serves up Curried Badger," "Badgers get served - with Curry," "Curried Badger on the Menu," "Badgers Have No Taste for Curry," and the worst, "Badgers Get Stuffed with Curry." While I couldn't find an actual recipe for Badger Curry, I did find a recipe for Badger Casserole. Besides the puns, what else are bloggers saying about the Badgers loss to the North Carolina team dubbed "Cinderella"? (hat tip to Dane101's Jason Dean for calling the Davidson victory.)

Senno On Sports says it best, Davidson is now America's team, "Those students, joined by LeBron James in the student section, received a treat watching Curry. No matter where tiny Davidson ends this year’s run - no 10 seed has advanced to the Final Four and only one other, Kent State in 2002, has reached the Elite Eight - Curry’s tournament run will go down in NCAA lore."

March Madness: Here Come the Cinderellas

Fri, 28 Mar 2008 15:15:15 +0100

This year when I entered a college basketball pool, I had my share of Cinderella teams picked to upset “the big boys.” My friends smirked when they saw I had Davidson beating Georgetown.

“The Big East is the best conference in college hoops,” a friend informed me. “Georgetown will slow them down and make them play their style of basketball.”

After beating Georgetown last weekend 74-70, the Davidson Wildcats meet the Badgers in the Sweet 16 Friday night at 6 p.m. Those that once scoffed at my bracket now hope I am wrong, as I have the feisty Davidson team beating the Badgers.

Mad Rollin Doll Championship Brackets are Set

Tue, 25 Mar 2008 21:51:29 +0100

The Mad Rollin Dolls have released the brackets for the April 12 semi-final bouts. Quad Squad landed a number one seed followed by the Vaudeville Vixens (2), Reservoir Dolls (3), and Unholy Rollers (4). So the match-ups will be:

Vaudeville Vixens vs. Reservoir Dolls
Quad Squad vs. Unholy Rollers

Team logo montage borrowed from the Mad Rollin Dolls website. Three years of Mad Rollin Dolls coverage can be found right here on Dane101.com.

Mad Rollin' Dolls: "Life is hard, but Roller Derby is harder."

Mon, 24 Mar 2008 17:13:18 +0100

No one is willing to play nice this season and lucky for us that means damn fine skating and strategy that I can only appreciate and never fully understand. We enter Saturdays bout with last years champs the Reservoir Dolls yet to pull off a win. The Res Dolls are 0-2, Vixens 1-0, Unholies 1-0 and the Quad Squad undefeated. This bout puts the Quad Squad against the Vixens and the Res Dolls face off against the Unholy Rollers. Tonights final scores dictate the rankings for April 12 semi-finals.

The first half of the Quad Squad vs Vaudeville Vixens Darling Nicki pulls off 10 points for the Vixens in jam 2, Stitch hits the crowd hard-- announcer Val Capone mics "Life is hard. Roller derby is harder." Harlot penalties out in jam 5 allowing Lil Miss jam control for the Quad Squad and 5 points evening out the score-- which stays close all half closing at QS:39, VV:43.

Mad Rollin' Dolls: Mouse joins the 500 Club

Sun, 23 Mar 2008 16:28:45 +0100

Last night the Reservoir Dolls' co-captain Mouse became only the second Mad Rollin Doll jammer in the history of the Madison roller derby league to break the 500 point mark. She went into Saturday's bout against the Unholy Rollers with 475 points and ended the evening with 513. Mouse joins the Quad Squad's Jenny Knoxville as the only two Mad Rollin' Dolls to break the 500 point threshold and are only two of a small few in all of the Women's Flat Track Derby Association who have made the landmark. You can read a previous interview dane101 conducted with Mouse and tune in tomorrow for Sarah's full write-up of the dramatic Saturday night bout. Photo courtesy of Neil Stechschulte.