If you have an opportunity to use your voice, you should use it.
Samuel L. Jackson
BURNING RIVER ROLLER GIRLS LOOKING FOR BOUT ANNOUNCERS!
Kent Smith and J.W. Stafford, announcers for the Burning River Roller Girls, mean business. J.W. moved away this season. Are you ready to fill his shoes?
Do you have the gift of gab? Do you covet the arena of eight wheels and left turns? Then consider using your voice to enhance the Cleveland roller derby fan experience.
The Burning River Roller Girls, Cleveland’s premier flat track roller derby league, is looking for two announcers to contribute insightful, entertaining and pertinent commentary for the league’s sporting events, including home and away bouts.
Qualifications include but are not limited to:
- Live call experience / well-spoken / able to inform and entertain without detracting from the bout
- Outgoing and energetic
- Professional and impartial
- Enthusiastic and dedicated
- Comfortable working with a team and speaking in front of 1,000+ people in a live public address format, television and/or radio broadcast, and podcasting for Internet distribution.
- Knowledge of the Women’s Flat Track Derby Association (WFTDA) rules and an understanding of the sport of flat track roller derby and its strategies
- Available for the league’s charity bout, Saturday, Nov. 19, 2011
- Available for all scheduled home bouts (Saturday nights) March through August 2012
Duties include:
- Live call of roller derby bouts including:
- Explanation of the game
- Sponsor announcements
- Announcing contest or raffle winners
- Conducting skater interviews
- Crowd interaction
Kent Smith
Announcers will be asked to attend league practices leading up to their first bout to practice announcing and to get familiar with the league, including skaters, referees, officials and the current announcer.
Additional meetings with the announcer and/or league members may be required.
Roller Derby announcing requires a unique combination of skills and challenges that are not seen in other sports. Derby announcers are expected to perform exceptional play by play, witty banter and a detailed explanation of the rules and strategy employed by the skaters on the track.
Association of Flat Track Derby AnnouncersApplications are being accepted NOW!
The process:
- For questions or to request an application, email boutproduction@burningriverrollergirls.com
- Application deadline: 5 PM, Friday, Oct. 7
- Live tryout (working with the current announcer) making a live call to a previously recorded bout:
7 PM, Wednesday, Oct. 12
Thermadore Lounge
17406 Grovewood Avenue
Cleveland, OH 44119
What to bring:
- Knowledge of the WFTDA Rules – a basic rules test will be administered
- DVDs of any previous announcing experience
Trust that little voice in your head that says ‘Wouldn’t it be interesting if…’ and then do it.
Duane Michals
RESOURCES
Burning River Roller Girls: http://www.burningriverrollergirls.com/
WFTDA rules: http://wftda.com/rules
Association of Flat Track Derby Announcers: http://aftda.org/
Derby News Network and webcasts: http://derbynewsnetwork.com/
Specific webcasts:
http://www.derbynewsnetwork.com/live/bouts/2011/08/11_texas_vs_10_windy_city
http://www.derbynewsnetwork.com/live/bouts/2011/06/9_windy_city_18_cincinnati
More at http://www.derbynewsnetwork.com/live/archive
Roller Derby Announcer Blog (from Tank – one of the best in the business):
http://www.rollerderbyinsidetrack.com/features/2011/tanks-tirades-1-5-just-talk-about-the-damn-game/