Life in the fast lane

Crescentwood

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This article was published 24/01/2024 (676 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

By day she’s a mild-mannered radio personality; by night she’s an authoritative whistle blower.

West Winnipeg resident Shannah-Lee Vidal has been a CBC Radio traffic and community reporter and occasional host of Information Radio, Up to Speed and The Weekend Morning Show since 2018. Her passion for news and talking with people is complemented by her keen involvement in roller derby as a non-skating official. Vidal was intrigued not only by the derby movie, Whip It, but by the Winnipeg Roller Derby League, which was founded in 2008.

In a moment of pure synchronicity, Shannah-Lee was approached while attending Winnipeg Comiccon, by a roller derby league founder, wearing roller skates and her uniform. The skater thought she would be perfect for the fast-lane contact sport.

Shannah-Lee knows a good story when she sees one, so she and her partner were off to Fargo, N.D., to watch a team from Winnipeg play its very first game. She was hooked. They both were.

“I didn’t want to just watch,” says Vidal, “I wanted to be part of it.”

Vidal, who took skating lessons and trained to be an official, gets to travel to referee games and best of all, “it has brought me and my partner closer together, as he refs, also.”

“Nicknames are part of the derby legacy,” said Vidal, who goes by Maully Golightly. “A play on Holly Golightly from Breakfast at Tiffany’s.”

Her partner, Daywin goes by Nerd Herder, a variation on an occupation from the Star Wars universe.

‘Jamming’ is a phrase often associated with music, but it’s a very different tune in roller derby. Jammers are the skaters in the roller derby oval who score points for their teams. Each derby consists of two 30-minute periods and a single jam (or attempt to score) can last as long as two minutes. The one jammer on each team is identified by a star on her helmet and she must navigate her way through the other team’s blockers to score a point.

Vidal’s media observational skills come into play nicely as she watches players’ every move. Vidal’s league “follows the rules and procedures of the Women’s Flat Track Derby Associations.” “(The game) requires many officials,” she said. “It’s a fast-paced, full-contact sport requiring at least 16 officials per game, nine non-skating and seven skating officials. Everyone has a job that is important to the game.”

In April, Vidal will be the head non-skating official at a tournament in Saskatoon called Best of the Rest, featuring five teams. In May she is off to Calgary for Flat Track Fever.

“The best part is being reunited with so many officials that I’ve gotten to know over the years,” she said.

Vidal is passionate about rebuilding the Winnipeg league now that COVID-19 concerns are abating.

“The Winnipeg league values teamwork over the pressure of winning,” Vidal said. It also strives to “make membership accessible” by offering equity pricing, one month free and subsidizing gear rentals. Officials are not required to pay membership fees. And, best of all, there is no age limit. Current adult participants range in age from 18 to mid-50s. There’s even a junior league, for those aged seven and up, with most participants currently between 11 and 17 years of age.

Volunteers are always welcome to sell tickets or merchandise at games and fans in the stands make a huge difference to the players.

The camaraderie is evident not only during games but afterwards with social activities for players to get to know each other. To learn more about adventures on an oval track visit winnipegrollerderby.com