Does roller derby have its equivalent of Babe Ruth or Wayne Gretzky, a legendary giant of the sport?
Joan Weston aka the Bomb Bomber/Golden Girl was the most popular skater in the league. She was co captain of the Bay City Bombers, and she, along with co captain Charlie O’Connel, were America’s sweethearts and the foundation of the generational onslaught of the derby. Weston joined Roller Derby in 1954 out of Mount St. Mary’s College in Southern California, where she excelled as an all-around athlete. She took the entire country off-guard as a female athlete. No one had seen anything like her, ever before. Her athletic image on televisions all across America, became the single inspiration for millions of young girls to peruse their independent dream, and follow sports. Weston has perennially made the I.R.D.L. All-Star roster since 1956 — an unmatched record. She was voted “Roller Derby Queen” four times, relinquishing that honor to Margie Laszlo in ’68. Weston received the womens’ Most Valuable Player award in ’68, largely for her “operation bootstrap” program to develop a young, ine
