To kick off 2017, we would like to honor a skater that been around since the inception of RMRG. Winona Fighter, #8, starting rolling in August of 2004
when all of Roller derby was in its nascent stage. We never thought it would happen, but she’s decided to hang up her skates, for now, to pursue other things
in life.

Here’s the story of Winona’s first day at Derby from Jayne Manslaughter, one of RMRG’s founders (now retired):

“Westword had for some reason posted our practice times–we weren’t even really doing recruiting. So we were at the rink practicing and she showed up, got skates and started lacing them up on the side of the rink. She didn’t talk to us and we didn’t talk to her. We just watched her lace up the skates and speculated about why she was there. Apparently, at some point, I got up the nerve to skate over and ask ‘Are you here for roller derby?’ We figured she was at least cool as she had on a Ramones t-shirt. And the rest is history!

Although derby has radically changed from those innocent days of 2004, we here at RMRG have been lucky to have had an ‘old schooler’ in our midst for so long. We could
always count on Winona to speak her mind and tell us how it is, and we appreciate her derby wisdom and down-to-earth outlook on the track and off. And talk
about adaptable – though the game has been continually changing since the beginning, very few players can say that they have been able to maintain
top-level skills and WFTDA playoff rostering for over 10 years, while maintaining a can-do attitude and pushing others as to the same.

We’d be remiss not to mention another major contribution of Winona’s to RMRG – her fabulous photography work! Almost all of the head shots of RMRG players
on this site are her work product. She knows how to make all of us look good and put our best faces forward!

Rocky Mountain Rollergirls are very excited to announce our November skater of the month: Slam Beesly! She has been with the league for two years now, and is quickly becoming a force on the jammer line! Her endless energy is evidenced by her ability to juggle her personal life and her derby career. After all, planning a wedding and making it to practice all the time can be tough!
Beesly is one of the kindest ladies in our league. Her kindness has translated into her committee work, as she helps new skaters transition into the league as a member of our recruiting and development group. But don’t let her sweetness fool you—she will definitely run you over to get through the pack. She has really stepped up her game in the last year, skating with both the Doom’s Daisies and traveling with Project Mayhem.
Recently, she gave the word “selfless” a whole new meaning when she donated a kidney to someone in need, a “giving back” after her mother received a much-needed transplant. Not only did Beesly go under the knife for a stranger, she still managed to show up the night before her surgery to kick butt with Project Mayhem!

For all of these reasons, we are proud to have Beesly as a member of our league, and to honor her as November’s Skater of the Month!