Helmet precisely placed, safety pads protecting appropriate places and bravery starting to kick in – these are merely what it takes to feel ready when competing against the Glass City Rollers. But nothing seems adequate when skating towards girls known as Vod-Killah, Satan’s Little Helper, Crabby Patty and Lightn’ Strike.

But for their first meet on Halloween, they are just as nervous as their opponents, the Fox City Foxes from Appleton, Wis. But they’re not worried about the fight; it’s more about the approval of the Toledo community.

Tomorrow night, amidst all the Halloween festivities that Bowling Green and the surrounding cities have to offer, the Glass City Rollers, Toledo’s roller derby league, will be competing in their first game after two years of hard work.

The Glass City Rollers formed in 2007 and have been spending time working towards strengthening the team. Between training, the girls also tended to important details such as taking care of insurance, renting gear and places and volunteering.

‘We’re more than just skating,’ said Vod-Killah, a member for two years. ‘We’re building a business,’ she said.

The sport that was the most popular in the 1970s has made its comeback, according to Vod-Killah. Since the sport’s return in 2001, recreational leagues began forming all over the country. The sport has only grown in popularity, and ‘Whip It,’ a film starring Drew Barrymore and Ellen Page, is putting it even more on the map.

The girls realize their time to shine for the Toledo area is on Halloween night, so they have decided to open the doors to absolutely anyone.

The event, ‘Trip or Treating’ will be held at 7 p.m. at the Seagate Convention Centre, and tickets are sold at the door for $11. The event will have trick-or-treating, games and a DJ.

An after party will be held at The Blarney Irish Pub ‘amp; Grill for anyone 21-years-old and older looking to have a fun time with both leagues.

The Fox City Foxes are not too familiar to the Toledo area, but the Glass City Rollers are welcoming them with open arms, firmly protected with elbow pads.

Irish Slug-Her, one of the Glass City Rollers?, said she is ‘super excited to see the first bout,’ which is what the Roller Derby calls a game.

‘The girls have worked so hard and I can’t wait to see them in action,’ she said. As one of their new members, she will be watching from the sides.

All ages are welcome, and even encouraged to participate in the Halloween costume contest, which will be judged by some of the girls, including Irish Slug-Her.

Bringing kids to the event takes the hassle out of bringing them trick-or-treating, according to Beefy Vanderhuge, the head of the Sponsorship Committee

This event is also sponsoring Wake Up Youth, an organization combating Toledo’s sex trafficking problem. Vod-Killah said it’s a great organization, and she is proud to sponsor a different women- and children-based charity every event.

‘[It] shows the city that women can stand up for themselves,’ she said.

The league has a total of 23 official girls, and around 15 brand new girls who have yet to be on skates. The game is sure to be a spectacle, as in the past people have been known to come out with broken noses and being thrown head first into the audience chairs, Vanderhuge said.

But in attempts to break the stereotype that this is just a wrestling sport, the league plans to keep it clean and a game without fighting; although, accidents occur, according to Vod-Killah.

The game is played with a team of five girls total: four blockers and one jammer. The jammer scores points by passing each blocker on the opposing team.

All the girls have fake names and identities, and even made-up background stories to intimidate other teams. The game tomorrow will be made up of royalty from the Amazon jungle, one of Santa’s elves gone bad, a spawn of a pirate and a sea wench and a billion dollar heiress deranged by her haunting past.

The girls have been waiting for this event for two years now, and they couldn’t be more excited or nervous to get on the track.