It’s coming ‘round again

WOMEN dressed in punk-rock T-shirts, short skirts and fishnets skate menacingly, clacking loudly on concrete as they turn circles at breakneck speed. They shriek, bump, talk trash and shove each other to the ground, all in the name of thrills (and spills).

Yes, like many pop culture pursuits of decades past, roller derby has come ‘round again, manifesting itself as recreational sport-cum-party night. Two Los Angeles leagues -- one that competes on flat tracks and another that skates on the familiar banked ovals you might have seen on ‘70s television -- are stirring their participants’ competitive adrenaline into an entertaining cocktail for spectators.

Neither league aspires to the cartoonishness of its ‘70s predecessors -- the “WWF-ness,” notes Angel City Derby Girls co-founder Randi Simmons, referring to the contrived theatrics of the World Wrestling Federation.

Instead, this incarnation of roller derby is all about spirited competition, albeit with punk-rock flair. Both the Angel City Derby Girls (applying to become part of a 30-league, nationwide network called the Women’s Flat Track Derby Assn.) and the L.A. Derby Dolls (one of two banked-track leagues in the country) advertise their matches as “bouts” that include performances by rock bands and pre- and after-parties.

“Roller derby was created as a real sport and it is very unfortunate in the ‘70s they felt the need to script it,” says Else Duff of the L.A. Derby Dolls. “It killed the sport, and it is trying to get over people’s preconceived notions that it is fake or scripted.”

However, Simmons, who goes by the skate name of Billie Boilermaker, was intrigued by the glitz and glamour of the ‘70s version of the game. “I’m just old enough that I remember it, but young enough that I didn’t know the details of how old-school roller derby was done,” she says. “So to me it was this mythical thing, something I just knew would be great.”

And the Derby Girls bring a little bit of that razzmatazz to their games, from the halftime music to the skate-around after the match. “It’s grass roots and it’s grass roots right there in your face,” she says.

Simmons, like all the women on the Derby Girls, has a day job. “There is no professional roller derby skater -- we’re definitely selling our souls by day to be able to derby at night,” she says, laughing. Her day job: cell biologist at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center.

Among her teammates practicing recently at a North Hollywood rink to the sounds of Social Distortion and the Sex Pistols are a web designer, an action sports publicist, a freelance photographer, a bartender and a radio promotions person at a major label.

How exactly did a cell biologist end up donning helmet and pads to beat on her fellow women in a way that would scare even some rugby players? “As soon as I heard roller derby, I was like, ‘That’s me.’ I knew it was some fun antics and a lot of good athleticism, and it was definitely the concept of going out there and kicking butt and having fun,” she says.

It’s a sentiment that’s echoed by many of her teammates. “I heard about the roller derby,” says Michelle Steilen (skate name: Estro Jen). “I’m from Philadelphia and they had it in the Philly Weekly, and it was like, ‘I must be doing that.’ ”

Stelin, who used to skate the 12-foot halfpipe competitively, is one of several women with a skating background attracted by the chance to don wheels again. Beyond the athletic benefits, there is also the camaraderie. “I really saw a tightknit group of girls who were all very close because of the culture they come from -- the punk-rock music scene,” says Casey Murphy, a.k.a. Skatan.

That doesn’t mean that once the scrimmage starts the competitive juices don’t flow, as evidenced by the frequent trips to the penalty box and back-and-forth jawing among skaters. Still, both Steilen and Simmons say the scrimmages are tame compared with matches against women from other cities. It was the opportunity to travel and play teams from around the country that led both, who used to skate with the longer-running Derby Dolls, to go flat track.

“I skated with the Dolls for about four months, but then I guess I just started noticing that there aren’t many very banked tracks,” Steilen says. “Maybe it will go to that where we can make some money and build more banked tracks, but right now, where the industry is flat track, you get to travel and play other leagues.”

Duff says at least two cities, including San Diego, are looking to build banked-track leagues to join the Dolls and their Texas counterparts.

The Derby Dolls have found a permanent home for their banked track in Little Tokyo and hope to start their 2007 season in February. “We hope L.A. will support their hometown playing teams,” Duff says, “whether it’s flat track or banked track,” she says.

weekend@latimes.com

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Roller derby

Angel City Derby Girls

What: Bout with the Throttle Rockets (Seattle), with pre-match party, halftime show by Prima Donna and skate-around

When: 9 p.m. Saturday

Where: World on Wheels, 4645 1/2 Venice Blvd., Los Angeles

Price: $10 presale; $15 at door, including skate rental

Info: www.myspace.com

/angelcityderbygirls

L.A. Derby Dolls

What: Babydoll Brawl exhibition, with music and guest performers

When: 5 p.m. Dec. 2

Where: Little Tokyo Shopping Center, 333 S. Alameda St., L.A.

Price: $12 and $20

Info: www.derbydolls.com