Roller Derby History - The Rules

Roller Derby Rules
1995

The game involves two teams on an oval track in which each team attempts to maneuver a skater into position to score points by circling the track and lapping opponents within a given time limit.

Comprised of two halves, each half consisting of four alternating, (women, men, women, men), 12-minute periods.

A Team is composed of five men and five women.  Only five members of each team can be on the track at one time.

The game starts when the referee signals, by blowing his whistle, that the two teams are equally in position.  The Pack Members of both teams currently on the track(men or women, not both).

Two wearing white helmets

Two-wearing stripped helmets

One wearing a black helmet

Scoring play lasting sixty (60) seconds.

1. The jam starts when the referee signals that both teams are in the pack.
2. When each team's pivot man is evenly at the front of the pack.
3. When all jarnrners are at the rear of the pack.

One point is received for every member of the opposing team a jammer passes once he or she has lapped the pack.

A jam concludes when the jammer calls the jam off, the time limit expires, or by the official for any emergency.

Penalties consist of one and two minutes and force a team to skate shorthanded.

Blocking

1. A player may block an opponent with any part of his or her body with the following exceptions:
   1. It is illegal to use any part of the arm below the elbow.
   2. It is illegal for a skater to block with his or her feet or trip an opponent.
   3. In using arms for blocking purposes, the arm must be BENT, not extended full length.
   4. It is illegal to block from the rear.
2. Elbows may be used in blocking, but not in the following manner:
   1. A skater is not permitted to use an elbow block above the shoulders.
   2. A skater is not permitted to use an elbow with an upward or downward motion.
3. In setting up a double block, it is illegal for the defensive skater to grip hands or lock arms.  Both blockers may receive a penalty at the discretion of the officials.
4. Other forms of illegal blocking may be called at the discretion of the officials.
5. No defensive skater will be permitted to drop back more than a distance of twenty (20) feet behind the pack to attempt to block a jammer.  A one minute (minor) penalty may be called by the officials.
6. All skating must be in a counterclockwise direction.

Scoring

1. Points are scored as follows:  A jammer receives one point for every member of the opposing team he or she passes, every time he or she laps the field within sixty (60) seconds.
2. When a blocker commits a foul on a JAM skater, the jam skater will be awarded the point that he or she is attempting to score.
3. A skater forced into the infield may not better the position he or she was in when he or she left the track.
4. A skater receiving a penalty becomes ineligible to either score or be scored upon.
5. A fouled skater cannot be passed for a point unless he or she has had sufficient time to recover from the foul.
6. No jam will be considered a legal jam with more than five skaters on the track from each team.
7. A skater with skate trouble cannot be passed for a point.

Concluding A Jam

1. A jam will be considered at an end for any of the following reasons:
   1. The expiration of the sixty (60) second time limit.
   2. At the conclusion of each twelve (12) minute skating period.
   3. By the leading jam skater placing both hands or his or her hips.
2. A jam may be called off the officials at any time for any emergency.

Special Jams

Any jam starting in the 4th or 8th period with less than sixty (60) seconds remaining will run until the sixty (60) seconds have elapsed or until called off.

Penalties

1. There will be two types of penalties, a major (two minutes) and a minor (one minute).
2. A minor penalty will be of one minute duration and will be called at the discretion of the referee for holding, illegal blocking, tripping, illegal use of hands, and other minor fouls.
3. A major penalty will be of two minutes duration and will be called at the discretion of the referee for fighting and intentional roughness, deliberate and excessive insubordination, gross unsportsmanlike conduct, railing.
4. A major penalty calling for expulsion from the game will be called at the discretion of the referee.  (If a skater is ejected from a game there will be a fine imposed on his or her team.)
5. If a penalized skater does not leave the track immediately or interferes with the remainder of the field he or she will receive an additional two minute penalty.
6. If skater's penalty time overlaps into the following period, ANY member of the opposite sex taking the track must serve out the balance of the penalty time.
7. No more than two skaters on any team can be in the penalty box at one time.  If a third player or more is penalized, the player or players committing the penalty must leave the track and be replaced by a substitute.  The penalized skater will begin serving his or her penalty time when one of the skaters in the penalty box returns to the track.  At such time, the substitute will return to the bench.

Banishment

1. If any player accumulates a total of four penalties during one game he or she is automatically ruled out of the game and his or her substitute will spend the time of the last penalty in the penalty box.

Replacements

1. When one skater replaces a teammate he or she must report to the official scorer and then make contact with the skater he or she is replacing and join the pack.
2. An injured skater can be replaced at any time.
3. A skater replacing a teammate who has skate trouble must rejoin the field within one lap of the replacement.

Protests

1. Any coach has the right to protest a game by submitting said protest in writing within 48 hours after the game has been concluded to the Roller Derby Skaters Guild Headquarters.

Overtime

1. There can be no tie games.  If at the end of the eighth period the score is tied, the game will go into overtime in the following manner:
   • The women and men will alternate five-minutes skating periods until a point is scored.  The team scoring the first point will be declared the winner.

Referees

Any disputed point that is not clearly defined, in the above rules, will be decided by a consensus of the referees.

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