Vintage Photos Of Tough Roller Derby Girls In Action

People thought the bang-up sport of roller derby was nothing but a flash in the pan, a staged "sport" that would fade away by the 21st century.

But those people were dead wrong, and even though it's not as widely televised as it used to be roller derby is still very much alive and jamming.

At the heart of the sport is a global community of roller derby girls passionate about keeping the sport alive and teaching the younger generation how to skate tough and deliver a solid hip check.

See many more vintage roller derby photos at Dangerous Minds

My daughter was a roller derby girl in Detroit, Michigan and tried out for a part in "Whip it" with Drew Barrymore and Kristen Wiig. They wanted her to be Kristen's body/stunt double but she had to decline since she was a high school science teacher during the day and they wanted her to drop everything to do some stunt work during her school hours. Her husband ended up playing one of 3 coaches in the film but he ended up on the cutting room floor. As an apology to him they put him front row center in the spectator scene during the finale. You can't miss him!
I do have a picture of my daughter with some of the derby girls who tried out for the movie and Drew Barrymore. My daughter is the one behind Drew in the light blue and white top.
I forgot to mention that my granddaughter is now a Detroit Derby girl, too!

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