Twoevils.org

I was so proud my name was approved.

Derby names are fun and controversial.  There is definitely a movement in derby by some skaters to skate under their "Government" names, while others fiercely defend the right to have a derby name.  I personally love my derby name, and I enjoy trying to figure out other people's personalities by the choices they make in naming themselves.  Some people like to integrate their professions or other interests; it's fun to try and figure out why they made the choice that they did.  What other place in the world do you get to choose your own nickname?  I will always heart derby names.

Unfortunately, there is a bit of a bottleneck in the derby registrar; because of the popularity of the sport, Twoevils.org is a little behind in getting the names registered.  In fact, some leagues are reporting in that they are almost a year behind.  Yikes.  Don't get me wrong, this is a site run by volunteers for volunteers in a volunteer sport, and what they're doing is great.  They have taken on a service to the derby community, and probably never expected the sport to grow so fast and big in such a short amount of time.  It's frustrating to wait and wait and wait, but it is what it is. 

For a lot of derby girls and guys, you don't feel like a legit skater until your name is officially registered with Twoevils.org.  That's completely understandable, but at this point, it may not be feasible.  The long wait times mean that skaters start their careers thinking that they might have one name, and then they find out someone has claimed it over a year ago.  Just imagine that you have had your jerseys printed, set up your Facebook account, or even worse, gotten a tattoo!  What can you do to avoid the frustration of not having your name registered?

Well, I think that the first step is DON'T GET A TATTOO YET!  After that, it might behoove you to do some research on your potential derby name; Google your name and roller derby, and see what pops up.  If nothing does, it might be in the clear, for now....for now.  Also, you can check twoevils.org just to see if your name idea has already been claimed.  If you don't see it there, you might be on the way to a decent derby moniker.  I remember thinking that I had come up with the perfect derby name, Betty Rage.  HA!  Betty Rage was already on Twoevils, as was about six other names I had brainstormed.  Boo.  It is also a safe move to not get your derby name printed on your jerseys until it's okayed.  You only need to have a number on there to skate in sanctioned bouts; you can get your name printed later.    I know that a lot of derby girls and guys think that it's almost impossible to come up with a unique name, but then you get to see Shark Week play and realize that there are so many options out there!

Grace Killy (TM) of the Brew City Bruisers offered a great suggestion for skaters stuck waiting for Twoevils to register their names; she has trademarked her name, and I think that's a pretty cool idea.  Elektra Q-Tion is becoming my brand, not just my derby name, and I should probably protect it.  Grace Killy shared this. "I was TM'd as my 'compensation' for licensing my likeness to the Jam City Rollergirls Wii game. It was approximately $750 plus lawyer fees. I wasn't allowed to accept any potential royalties directly (per a league participation agreement, that sort d thing goes to the league) but I was allowed to accept services and it was required as part of the participation in the video game as well. I don't know that I would have done it without that, but it definitely got me thinking about derby 'personas' more so than names and about how to protect them an what their value really is."

$750 dollars is pretty steep, being that Twoevils is FREE.  Maybe we are getting the service we pay for with Twoevils, which is to say, we aren't paying for any of it.  This is a job they do because they love the sport, so if it is taking a long time, do we have the right to complain?  No, we really don't.  It's something we have to live with until there is another option out there.  I know it's frustrating, but it isn't the worst thing we face in this sport.  Maybe someone will come up with a better solution, but for now, we need to deal with the reality of the derby name register.  Until then, be flexible and go with the flow.