Bay State Brawlers Roller Derby plays flat track roller derby according to the latest rules and clarifications from the Women’s Flat Track Derby Association (WFTDA.) You can get your derby nerd on and read the most recent rules complete rules set from the WFTDA rules website.
Each team fields five players at a time:
As confusing as it may seem, the objectives of roller derby are actually pretty simple. The Jammer’s job is to lap as many opposing skaters as they can. The remaining four players (three Blockers and a Pivot) assist the Jammer, and are playing both offense and defense simultaneously. Their objective is twofold: to hold back the opposing team’s Jammer, and to clear a path for their own. If the team’s Jammer is being rendered ineffective, and is unable to “break through the pack” then they may “Pass the Star” to the Pivot. This means they are passing on the role of Jammer. Only the Pivot may assume the role of Jammer. Once the star has been passed, the original Jammer now functions as a fourth blocker for their team.
If a player commits a penalty, the ref will whistle, call out the player’s number, and make a hand-signal indicating the type of penalty. The player will exit the track and skate the shortest direction to the penalty box. Once in the box, the player will serve a 30 second penalty before being allowed to return to the track. If the Jam ends before the 30 second penalty is completed, the timer is paused and the penalty time will resume with the start of the next Jam.