Spotlight PA’s Asha Prihar’s story
This article first appeared in PA Local, a weekly newsletter published by Spotlight PA that offers a novel, upbeat perspective on Pennsylvania’s amazing people, stunning scenery, and mouthwatering cuisine.Register here for free.
Skateboarder Nahyomi Painter-Escudero gets passionate during the Roller Derby World Cup.
Regarding the upcoming event, she remarked, “I get goosebumps when I talk about it and I kind of get teary-eyed.” I am a single skater from the little Harrisburg area that competes for the Harrisburg Area Roller Derby. And it’s likely that my tale is very similar to a lot of other stories.
The 48-team international competition, which started in 2011, will take place in Innsbruck, Austria, next week, and she is one of at least six Pennsylvania competitors traveling there.
Indeed, the roller derby is that enormous. Roller derby, which was a professional sport until the 1970s, saw a grassroots resurgence in the early 2000s and evolved into an international amateur contact sport with a subculture influenced by drag and punk. Players typically take on nicknames that are special to them, frequently involving wordplay or pop culture references. Some also decide to create a distinctive look with makeup or costumes.
There are more than a dozen clubs in Pennsylvania, ranging from Erie to Philadelphia.
A nation or region is represented by the majority of this year’s World Cup teams. Skateboarders who reside in those areas, have formerly resided there, or have family connections there are represented on their rosters. Additionally, there are a few borderless teams, such as Team Indigenous Rising, Black Diaspora Roller Derby, and Team Desi, who are composed of derby athletes from particular diasporas.
In addition to three skaters representing squad Puerto Rico and one each representing Team Philippines, Jewish Roller Derby, and Fuego Latino Roller Derby, none of the Pennsylvania skaters traveling to Austria will compete for the U.S. squad.
Given their commitment and accomplishments, I think they merit a great deal of praise. Regarding the Pennsylvania athletes, Clarissa Christ, owner of Rage Parade, a skate shop in Pottsville, said. (Christ has been assisting the team in raising funds for their trip.)
Five skaters from Pennsylvania who are going to the major derby were interviewed by PA Local. To meet them, continue reading.
Stephanie Amengual (Bessie)
A photo of Stephanie Amengual was submitted.
Team Puerto Rico at the World Cup
Home team: Hatfield’s Bux-Mont Roller Derby
Stephanie Amengual, who lives close to King of Prussia, honors her half Wisconsin heritage by going as Bessie. Her cow-print leggings make her easy to identify at her team’s fights.
In high school, she became aware of the sport after watching the Drew Barrymore film Whip It, which she believes has attracted roughly 65% of the derby community. However, it wasn’t until a friend connected her to a coach in her local league that she put on her own skates.
Amengual discovered that roller derby was the only team sport that truly appealed to her. Playing it helped her make friends and boost her confidence.
She believed that the skater, whose father was Puerto Rican, had been aiming to reach Team Puerto Rico’s World Cup squad since around 2018, a prospect that thrilled her father as well.
She is thrilled to see the sport on a global scale and will be meeting the majority of her teammates for the first time in Austria next week. She says, “There are just so many not just big countries but little countries and little collectives that have just as much value, and I’m excited to see just how much skill gets divided among all those smaller teams.”
Charlotte Jacobson (Bear Jew)
Charlotte Jacobson’s photo was submitted.
Jewish Roller Derby is the World Cup team.
Wilkes-Barre Scranton Roller Derby (Moosic) is the home team.
Charlotte Jacobson, a former writer, became interested in the sport in 2016 after writing a feature article for the Wilkes-Barre Citizens Voice on her local league.
The Scranton native had never been particularly athletic as a child and had never gone roller skating outside of birthday celebrations, but sharing that anecdote sparked her interest in the sport, and the following year she attended tryouts.
In honor of her favorite Quentin Tarantino picture, the military parody Inglourious Basterds, the community took her in and gave her the derby name Bear Jew. After eight years, she is the coach and captain of the Roller Radicals, the A-team in her local league.
According to Jacobson, she first became aware of the Borders Jewish Roller Derby team at a tournament in the late 2010s. In 2023, she began skating with them at events around the United States.
As someone who is not religiously observant but is nevertheless connected to Jewish culture and values, Jacobson has found purpose in being a member of the borderless team. “It was an immediate mishpocha to meet my Jewish Roller Derby teammates in person,” she remarked, using Yiddish for “family.”
As a competitor from a small team in Scranton, Pennsylvania that seldom advances to big tournaments, Jacobson is especially thrilled to be playing in a former Olympic venue: I love the idea that the World Cup is a place that brings in people from all levels of teams.
Nahyomi Painter-Escudero (Ms. Take, aka Steak)
Photo contributed by Nahyomi Painter-Escudero
Fuego Latino Roller Derby is the World Cup team.
Harrisburg Area Roller Derby (Enola) is the home team.
As a child, Nahyomi Painter-Escudero participated in almost every sport except roller skating, including swimming, gymnastics, and soccer. However, in 2018, after being prodded by her brother, she made the decision to attempt roller derby.
According to Painter-Escudero, he later assisted her in coming up with her derby name: “It’s going to be a mistake to hit you.” She primarily goes by Steak these days, and she’s thinking about commemorating that by getting a tattoo of a steak or grill mark.
She has developed close relationships with her coworkers, who have helped her through life transitions such as marriage, parenthood, and career advancements. Painter-Escudero told PA Local that roller derby has evolved into much more than just a hobby.
“I am not someone’s partner, I am not a mommy,” she declared while playing the game. I’m only playing for myself. This is how I let go of everything, including work and daily life.
Before relocating to Pennsylvania with her family in the early 2000s, Painter-Escudero lived in Puerto Rico. She first hesitated about competing in the World Cup. However, she ultimately sent video to the Fuego Latino Roller Derby and was chosen at the behest of her derby wife, Zombae.
Regarding attending the World Cup, she remarked, “I am just so excited to be in the front row, watching these top teams compete and just wreck each other in the best way possible.”
Diosanny Rivera-Placido (P.R. Nightmare)
Diosanny Rivera-Placido submitted a picture.
Team Puerto Rico at the World Cup
Home team: Lancaster’s Dutchland Derby Rollers
After a former high school friend shared a post on social media, Diosanny Rivera-Placido joined the Dutchland Derby Rollers.
In high school, Rivera-Placido described the student as a wallflower. She became curious when she saw someone she knew to be weak participating in a demanding sport like derby.
Born in Puerto Rico and raised in Lancaster since she was four years old, Rivera-Placido is traveling to Austria three years later to serve as the president of Team Puerto Rico and captain of its World Cup squad.
She initially played with Team Puerto Rico at an exhibition game before volunteering to be one of its leaders. In the derby world, she is known as P.R. Nightmare (the P.R. stands for Puerto Rican).
Since the team hadn t played in a World Cup since 2014 the impact of Hurricane Maria kept them from making it to the 2018 tournament she and her fellow leaders had to overcome numerous logistical hurdles to field enough applicants for a 20-person World Cup team. After a flurry of emailing, locating old bank and social media logins, and reaching out to dozens of teams in search of possible skaters, they were able to secure 34 applications.
Rivera-Placido, a relatively new derby player, is a little anxious about the competition, but she is excited to watch more seasoned skaters and represent her Puerto Rican heritage on a global scale: Being Puerto Rican is such an important part of who I am and how I was raised, and I want to do right by my people.
Jackie Thomas (Aluyan/Tree)
Team Philippines and Jackie Thomas (center) at the 2018 Roller Derby World Cup.submitted photo
World Cup team: Team Philippines
Home team: Hannover’s Black Rose Rollers
Next week, Jackie Thomas will represent Team Philippines in her second World Cup outing.
Thomas derby career started 14 years ago at Free State Roller Derby in Rockville, Maryland, after a friend invited her to watch a bout.
It just sucked us in right away, Thomas said of that first exposure. It was watching women empowered by sport, and it wasn t just like what you would perceive as an athletic body. Everyone seemed to be able to do it.
Since then, roller derby has become almost an identity for her, as well as a way for her to meet new people and travel to the most random places. She moved and transferred teams several times before landing at the Black Rose Rollers a few years ago, where she now serves as head coach.
Thomas goes by Tree when skating with the Black Rose Rollers, and Aluyan her mother s maiden name during her Team Philippines bouts.
Thomas is half Filipino, and being on a team with a lot of people from a similar background and who are welcoming regardless of what percentage you are has been especially meaningful to her.
When I found Team Philippines, it was just, like, overwhelming, Thomas said. There s like all these people who are similar to me, who love a sport, have gone through the same experiences And then you get to play on this world stage, and it s just so moving.
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