Derby Lite: An alternative workout

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) - Women looking for a very different kind of workout might want to explore Derby Lite.

It's a fitness-based form of Roller Derby that emphasizes the speed, strength, and balance of the sport without the hard hits of the traditional version.

Derby Lite started in Chicago, where the full-contact version of the sport has long been popular.  But both forms of the sport also have growing support in Central Indiana, too.

Andrea Ratcliffe, who goes by the nickname "Splatty Hearst" when she's wearing wheels, is an Indianapolis-based Derby Lite instructor. 

She says that although Roller Derby can get violent, Derby Lite does not. 

"No!," says Ratcliffe, "We don't hit. We do have some ‘incidental contact,’ some positional blocking, but no hitting."

The program works to improve overall strength and flexibility, but it also emphasizes skating skills.  And inexperienced skaters do not need to feel intimidated.

"The first thing we cover is a skater's stance.,” Ratcliff said. “You want to bend at the hips and the knees like you are getting ready to sit in a chair. Then the (next thing) we teach is how to fall on both knees onto your pads."

Later, Derby Lite includes competition. And, as part of Roller Derby tradition, the skaters often adopt nicknames.

Another example is Devon Dean, a Derby Lite enthusiast who goes by "Peyton Slamming." 

Dean says she loves the diversity in the sport.

"The gals who do this are from all walks of life and are all ages," she said. 

Dean says she lost seven pounds since starting Derby Lite a year ago.

If you are interested in learning more about Derby Lite, there is a preview session at 7 p.m. March 18, at Krannert Park, 605 S. High School Road in Indianapolis.

To learn more about the group, go to the Indianapolis Derby Lite group, visit the Facebook page or click here for the website.