hello, manchester!

In one of those things that sometimes happens in roller derby, I got to call the whole match in Manchester, N.H., when the Oz Roller Girls played the ManchVegas Roller Girls. That I was doing so came as at least a mild surprise.

I figured my visit to Manchester to support our team would involve being part of an announcing team. Only to learn I was the announcing team. Apparently the announcer at a previous bout had left at halftime and never returned, leaving the sound guy to make a game attempt to cover the rest of the bout. So I suddenly had to figure out how to work a bout on the road with only a few notes … but since my name (or, rather, that of my announcing alter ego Professor Plutonium) was on the cover of the program, I couldn’t let anyone down.

At home, I work from a spreadsheet that includes a rundown/program flow, upcoming events, list of thank-yous, introductions and derby demo. The good folks from ManchVegas provided their team intros, helpful info and thank-yous in their program handout and text for the derby demos. I had an hour or so to turn this into the night’s script as well as figure out some of the site logistics.

Somehow, it all worked. DJ Billy C, who played music between jams, and their soundman, who served as spotter while I learned the ManchVegas jammers, were both very helpful and cooperative. That I’d done two home bouts already provided a general feel for how things should work. I kept commentary pretty lean, and it made me wonder if that script I spend so long preparing for home bouts is too long and elaborate. Occasional unexpected developments arose, but we seemed to deal with all of them OK.

Oz won an exciting, fast-paced bout, but the awesome ManchVegas club and its volunteers could not have been nicer or more gracious with all their derby love. The bout band, Moody Like A Girl, played a rocking setlist of ’80s and ’90s songs. Billy C continued his duties at the after party, which was outrageously fun.

And a few people came up to me and said they thought I did a good job announcing. “The secret was remembering to stay for the second half” was my glib response. But the real key to any success in announcing, I think, involves preparation, observation and improvisation. Add some great and gracious hosts, and even a seeming daunting assignment can turn into a win all around.