What a weekend! All 8 On The Floor was a great tournament, both for the fans (so! many! teams!) and for the leagues who aren't WFTDA members or whose B-teams don't get much exposure. Flocci is busy processing pictures and writing recaps, but we'll give you the non-bout rundown in the meantime.
First off, a HUGE thank you to Bronco and Worcester Roller Derby for putting the tournament together. It went very smoothly, and we'd love to see it get even bigger and become an annual event. The venue is great for an event like this, since it's easy to locate and has plenty of parking and seating, and not even the minor issues of climate control and sound system wonkiness could detract from the weekend's fun.
There were supposed to be six games on Saturday, but one of the teams had to withdraw. The Upper Valley Vixens suffered several injuries in the week leading up to the tournament and couldn't field a full roster, so they forfeited their bout with Pioneer Valley, who advanced to the next level. To fill the empty time slot Saturday morning, the zebras had a mini clinic that included an outside pack ref practice session. You wouldn't think such an activity would be fun to watch, but Flocci enjoyed it -- anything that makes reffing better makes her happy.
There was not a boring bout all weekend. Every team played their hearts out, every point was fought for, and there were some impressive displays of skill, agility, and strategy. Even the bouts with big point gaps were fun to watch, because the trailing teams put so much effort into trying to even the scores.
The one scary moment of the tournament happened on Sunday. Ref Saturday Night Beaver took a bad fall and dislocated his shoulder, requiring a pause in the game while the ambulance made its way to the arena. We've seen games stalled for player injuries, but this was the first major ref injury we've seen, and it was a nasty one. Big hugs to Beev and Mo, and speedy recovery!
We'd like to thank all of the organizers, refs, NSOs, announcers, volunteers, and skaters who brought this event together and made it so much fun. If anyone thought that it was "just" a B-team tournament, they weren't paying attention. Congratulations to all the teams for skating so well, and especially to Rock Coast, the triumphant victors!
Stay tuned for bout recaps over the next few days!
