NSO's are Superstars too! Um, WTH is an NSO?

The NSO or Non-Skating Official is a statistics person that stands in the middle of the track. So cool but I still don't know wth you are talking about! If you play or watch Roller Derby you know exactly what I am talking about! That's right Roller Derby, no not that "Whip It" thing ( I love that movie by the way). No not quite like you used to see on TV either. I am talking about Women's Flat Track Roller Derby, a strategic game of speed, agility, and physical contact. Yes there are some booty shorts involved and often times some fishnets but these girls are hard core athletes and deserve to be treated as such.

Now an NSO would be the people you see in black in the center of the track with the refs. These volunteers (none of us get paid) track scores, penalties, jams, the penalty box and perform a multitude of other tasks. So when the refs are making those calls the NSO's write it all down, when the ref gives the score the NSO's keep track. Don't get me wrong I love my refs, but sometimes they make a call using only hand signals, now it still needs to be written down so you have to be familiar with rules and hand signals. We make sure the scores are correct, we let teams know when their players are close to a major (a penalty that you have to sit in the box for), We have to listen to many different refs at once and decipher the information given in a matter of seconds (since a jam only lasts up to 2 minutes it is very fast paced).  On top of all of that  we have to wear black because we are as neutral as Switzerland and we CANNOT cheer for our favorite skaters or our team. That was in bold because I totally understand that rule but it blows.

We NSO's try to keep the same standards so we have online boards and groups to confer with each other. WFTDA training clinics are held annually where you can hone your NSOing abilities and use them at national levels. We are there for the love of the game and to support the girls that have worked their booty short covered asses off to bout. So thank an NSO for their dedication to the sport and the team and if you think you might be interested in giving it a shot contact your local league, I am positive you have one in your area or one really close by.

Non-Skating Official/Volunteer Descriptions of Positions

Inside Penalty Tracker—Writes minor and major penalties that skaters receive during the bout 
on penalty tracker sheet.  Must pay attention to inside penalty referee who tells you what type of 
penalty and which skater receives a penalty. 


Outside Penalty Tracker—Writes major and minor penalties on dry erase board for NSOs who 
relay outside penalty information to inside penalty trackers.  Must pay attention to outside penalty 
referees who tells you what type of penalty and which skater receives a penalty. 


Scorekeeper—Writes each jam’s score on scorekeeping sheet.  One scorekeeper must relay each 
jam’s score to the scoreboard operator.  Must pay attention to jam referee to get score of each jam. 


Penalty Box Timer—Times skaters’ penalties when they sit in box. 


Jam Clock Timer—Blows whistle to signal the start and end of each jam, and when the pack passes 
the pivot line, allowing the jammers to go. 


Scoreboard Operator—Uses computer program to time the period, jam, and 30 seconds between 
jams; and inputs each team’s jam score from the scorekeeper.


Inside Stat Board—Indicates on large dry-erase board which skaters have 3 minor penalties, and 
need to go to penalty box for the forth minor. 
Relaying outside penalty info to inside penalty trackers—Sees minor penalties written on the 
outside penalty dry erase board and tells the inside stat board and inside penalty trackers to mark a 
minor penalty for the skater and the penalty. 


Door Checker—Stands at the door entrance and tallies the number of adult and children’s pre-sale 
tickets, and the number of adult and children attendees who pay at the door.   


Line-up Tracker—For each jam, writes players’ numbers and indicates if a player entered the 
penalty box in the middle of a jam or started a jam in the penalty box. 


Merchandise—Sets up merchandise table and items for purchase.  Completes merchandise form 
that tallies the number of merchandise items prior to selling and after final purchases at the end of 
each bout (home and away). 

Announcer—Announces both teams at bout and provides commentary of action during bout and 
promotes merchandise and attending after bout party. 


Photographer—Takes professional-looking pictures at home bouts. 

Videographer—Records video of home bouts. 

EMT/Medical Assistance—Provides medical assistance to hurt skaters during the bout.