Training with WARD

As you can probably tell, Roller Derby is an intensely physical and technically challenging sport. Unlike when you join your local netball or volleyball team, there is quite a rigorous training program new skaters must complete to make sure everyone is safe on the track. 

Training cycles 

Our training cycles are 13 weeks long and consist of two beginner (L1/2) and two advanced (L3/4) sessions a week.  

New skaters start in Level 1 and can complete an assessment at the end of a cycle to progress to the next level. 

Our structure is as follows:

Training Sessions:

Held at The Rise, Maylands

Level 1 & 2:

• Sunday 1:30-3:30pm
• Thursday 7pm- 9pm

Level 3 & 4:

• Sunday 2:00-4:00pm, The Rise, Maylands
• Thursday 7:00-9:00pm The Rise, Maylands

Official and NSO Training Scrims 

Open to L1's (off-skates), L2, 3, 4, (on-skates)

• Sunday 4-5pm (even weeks only), The Rise, Maylands

Full-Intensity Scrims

Open to  L3, L4, and all Officials

• Sunday 4pm-5pm, (odd weeks only), The Rise, Maylands

Skates & gear:

To get started with roller derby you will need:

• Mouth guard
• Quad skates (unless you intend to ref, in which case blades or quads are fine).  Skates that are specifically for roller derby are preferred because they need to be heavy-duty skates with a low-cut style boot to allow for ankle mobility
• Helmet- needs to be a derby specific helmet. Bike helmets do not provide adequate skull coverage
• Padding- knee pads, elbow pads
• Wrist guards 
• Optional extras- bum pads, chest pads (when doing contact); ankle booties (to stop foot blisters) 
• Sneakers- for off-skates work 
• Water bottle 
• To be emotionally and physically prepared for a challenge! 

Skates can be hired from us, or if you're ready to buy your own, check these places out: 

• Ampro Skates, in Malaga 
• Lucky Skates, in Inglewood
• Outerlimitz, in Perth
• Morley Rollerdrome
• Facebook Roller Derby -Buy, Sell, Swap Australia
• Facebook Roller Derby & Skate Buy, Swap, Sell & Free Australia 

Always wear full protective gear and hemet even if you feel silly.  You will feel more silly if you have a serious injury that could have been prevented!

  Hi I am Brawla and I have been part of WARD for 5 years now.  One thing I have learned is how different everyone's journey is, whether you become a skater, ref, or NSO.  When I started, I had no skating experieince at all.  It took me three rounds of level one before I passed into level two.  I then did three rounds of level two and found out I was pregnant just as I was about to assess for level three.  I withdrew from assessment and took time off.  After I gave birth I returned to the next available cycle at level one.  I worked my way up to level four before my son's first birthday.  I love skating and the community at WARD.  I have just had my third child and I can't stay away.  I have been helping out the league by being on the management committee and coaching.  I cannot wait to be back on skates, hopefully not for long now.