Rollergirls throw monster bash

Monsters with panties outside of their tights will challenge zombies wearing skirts this Saturday.

With their knack for combining feminine with fearsome, the Bleeding Heartland Rollergirls can’t wait for Halloween. 

The Monster Mash-up – the girls’ last home bout of the year – will kick off 7 p.m. Saturday at the Twin Lakes Recreation Center in Bloomington. To celebrate their favorite holiday, the girls have mixed up their regular home teams to create two new teams – the Zombies and the Monsters. 

“We literally drew names out of a hat,” said skater Alison Baum, also known as Killer Kindness, referring to their team selection. Baum and the derby girls are hoping for a big turnout and to see their fans wear lots of costumes. At halftime, prizes will be given out to the audience for the most outstanding costumes.

Prizes range from a sock monkey to a roller girl T-shirt, said Suzanne Donnelly, known affectionately to her teammates as Knock ’er Down.

But roller derby isn’t all fun and games. Baum expects this bout to be fast-paced and hard-hitting as the girls show off their new skills. 

Last weekend, the Rollergirls had an intense three-day derby workshop with Pauly Perez, a well-known roller derby coach from Arizona. Perez has been a professional trainer for more than 27 leagues throughout North America. 

Perez was brought in to help Bloomington step up its game. The girls now practice and drill what they’ve learned three days a week.

The girls are preparing to catch some national attention in their Nov. 7 bout against the Naptown Roller Girls of Indianapolis.

The Bleeding Heartland Rollergirls are a recent addition to the Women’s Flat Track Derby Association. Their bout against Indy will be their first sanctioned game and will earn them rank in the WFTDA’s North Central League.

“Naptown is our biggest competitor,” said Raina Polivka, also known as Terror d’Bits.