Photo by Matthew Becker Photography
By Little Earthquake
With a sea of blue and green in the crowd, the relentless pounding of fists and chants of, “SFV! SFV! SFV!” in the air, and a ton of heartfelt derby, SFV made quite an impression at the 2015 Dustbowl Invitational held in Bakersfield on March 20-22.
Starting strong on Friday afternoon, The Like OMGs took a big win against the V Town Derby Dames. These San Fernando Valley vets were not above hand-gesturing hearts or hamming it up for the Dustbowl camera crews, showing that a lot of fun can be had while working extremely hard on the track.
On day two of the Tournament, the anthemic pulse of Van Halen’s “Running with the Devil” during the warm-up was the appropriate backdrop to an impressive swarm of skaters wearing blue and green weaving in and out of their pack in preparation for war.
It set the pace for the entire bout. SFV continued their lead momentum, securing a decisive win over DerbyRevolution of Bakersfield and catapulting them to the championship game.
For the grueling final bout of the tournament, The Like OMGs played against The Bakersfield Diamond Divas. The Like OMGs took the lead in the first jam and fought neck and neck with the Divas throughout the first half. In the end, The Diamond Divas prevailed with a 233-134 win, taking first place.
Seeded #6 in the tournament, The Like OMGs finished in second place, proving that this hardworking, fast-growing league is full of surprises and will return next year with their eyes on first place.
SFV would like to thank Derby Revolution for hosting D6, all refs, NSOs, and volunteers who gave many hours to making the event run smoothly, and the dedicated leagues who skated their hearts out. This year’s tournament has certainly been one for the books.
Want to get the latest derby articles delivered to your inbox, hot off the presses? Sign up for our Newsletter and get to read the latest news before it hits this blog!