“I think of people I don’t like, not necessarily roller derby people, then imagine the opposing team is in cahoots with these people and they deserve to die.”
Like many skaters, Sarah St. John, aka Dill Dozer, of the Rhinestone Cowgirls started as a fan before she joined the league. Her favorite aspect of roller derby is that you get to be a totally different person on the track than in daily life. By day, Dozer is a nurse. She’s quiet and reserved, more a listener than a talker. “In roller derby you can yell, knock people over, and be aggressive without repercussions,” she says. There aren’t many sports where women are encouraged to hit. “I was never good at other sports like football or rugby, but I knew I was sturdy enough to hit and be hit.” So she gave it a shot and loved it.
This is her fourth season as a TXRD skater and on Rhinestone Cowgirls. Her husband, whom she met in high school, encouraged her from day 1. He even helped her pick out her name, which is a reference to the movie, Idiocracy. “Dill Dozer” is literally a machine that crushes anything in its path. Dozer was skeptical at first, but couldn’t really think of anything better so eventually just went with and embraced it.
To get pumped up before a bout, she listens to music like Slater Kenny and Rage Against the Machine, or watches violent movies. Before that night’s bout she watched X-Men. Since joining TXRD, Dozer says she has come out of her shell. Skating has empowered her to speak up more and go with her personality. It has also had a positive influence on her body image. “In roller derby it is beneficial to have a big butt and thighs.” Her favorite thing is to rail people- meaning to slam opposing team members into the rail of the track to slow them down. The last skater she railed was Mya Mayhem.
