Witness to history.

13 countries. 4 days. 2 tracks. The first ever Roller Derby World Cup, held right here in Toronto, was actual sports history. And I had a track-side seat.

Followers of Screetus know I'm a roller derby photographer for the Toronto league in my spare time. So when I heard about this big event I thought I'd see if I could get on the photographer's list.

Apparently only 15% of the photographers who requested credentials for the World Cup got approved. So I felt both lucky and honored. "You earned it," said the head media guy, from the organizer, Blood and Thunder Magazine. Cool. Even got my name in the glossy program.

Anyway, to the event. It was huge. All the major media covered it. Here's CTV's take from ace reporter Ashley Rowe. 

I'm a big fan of the innovative player names.

One of my personal shooting rules: if all the other photographers are sitting in the same place (and getting the same shot) then find a better place. 

And bring a stool unless you like sitting on a concrete floor all day. Your back will thank you. My usual perch:

Pre-bout set up. It's good to work with another shooter so one of you can watch the gear while the other does whatever.

In addition to getting to watch and meet some famous derby stars, I also met several pro photographers whose work I've admired. They shared a few of their techniques with me. 

The action is about to begin.

Derby fans rule.

I'm right there with ya, ladies!

I shot about 2,400 images over the four days. 

Each day involved my shooting several matches, then the trip back to my place to process and upload selects to a shared media pool and my own flickr page. There was even a big media area at the venue for the out of town shooters to work.

Long days. Late nights. Oh well. Didn't feel like work 'cause I was having too much fun. 

Got a kick ass series of actions shots and another series of game faces out of it. Also, roller derby teams on three continents are now following my twitter feed. Neat eh? Anyway, enjoy!