Okay, so after a LONG layoff (thanks for the nudge, JMS), I was hit with this article from the All-Knowing Derbytron that roused me from my slumber (
http://allknowingderbytron.blogspot.com/2010/11/simply-put-boyfriendrefs-are-bad-for.html). For those who want a Coles Notes version, the AKDT suggests that, at the Nationals level, having referees who are dating/married/whatever to skaters on one of the competing teams hurts the cred of roller derby as a real sport. As a referee who was (is not now) involved with a skater, I think I can speak pretty authoritatively to this - and I fully agree with the article.
Allow me to defend my thesis here. Yes, derby is DIY, refs aren't paid and there's as of yet no national/international association of referees that you can call upon to ref games. It's mostly friends and SigOt's of derby girls who get hooked on reffing - SigOt's especially, as it sometimes becomes the only way to spend time with a loved one!
But once you go beyond the home league games, I think there's a point to be made here. Derby has grown out of a lot of the goofiness that, once upon a time, helped to keep it as a fringe sport that would never be taken seriously. Does anyone remember the Penalty Wheel? But with time, those old traditions have died off, and derby-as-a-sport is better off for it. Is it derby-as-a-legitimate-sport the same thing as roller derby? That's a whole 'nuther debate, 'natch.
But at the higher levels of competition, I'm all for completely neutral referees. Not because I think any of our fine zebraic brethren and sistren would ever even consider making a biased call (my guess is, most derby skaters would be pissed to find that their officiating SigOt would insult them by implying that they needed a cheat to help them win), but the optics on the relationships are pretty off-putting, to say the least.
But, I'd like to hear your thoughts. Should refs bow out of big games that feature their girlfriends/fiancees/wives/hookups/exes? What if that means that the best ref for the job has to step out of the biggest bout of the year? What bouts are big enough to require this sort of attention, and which are minor enough to let it slide?
