Rules and Penalties

Tim Smith

Rules Overview

• We are NOT going to read the whole ruleset to you
• You SHOULD read the whole ruleset!
• That includes the casebook!
• Today’s goal
• Speedrun rules: point out easy-to-miss details
• Focus on Penalties
• We love questions, but we may cut them short so we can cover as much as possible.

1: Game Parameters

• Official Reviews
• One per team, per half
• Did you win your OR?
• You get ONE more for that half
• Team Timeouts
• Only the C or A can call them
• Official timeouts
• Any official can call one!
• OTOs do NOT add jams at the end of the period.

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Mad Gent

1: Game Parameters

• Overtime
• Two minute jam
• No lead Jammer
• Points scored IMMEDIATELY

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• Winning
• The team with the most points at the end of the game wins

2: Gameplay

• Starting positions:
• The Jam line belongs to the Jammers. Only Jammers may touch it.
• The Pivot line belongs to the Pivots. Only the Pivots may touch it.
• If a Pivot is touching the Pivot line, all the non-Pivot blockers must be behind them.
• THAT INCLUDES TEAMMATES.
• False start:
• Partially touching where you shouldn’t, or ahead of a line-touching Pivot
• Skater must YIELD, not go to the box.

DeFord Designs

2: Gameplay

• “Pass” vs “Trip”
• A Trip is a complete circuit of the track
• A Pass is moving past one single skater
• “Earned” vs “No Earned Pass”
• A Pass is earned if
• The Jammer is upright, in bounds, and visibly wearing the Star
• An opponent skates backwards past a Jammer. (Jammer does NOT need to be upright)
• NOTT Passes
• Earned as soon as a Jammer passes one opposing blocker.

2: Gameplay

• Lead Jammer
• Earn a pass on all eight blockers (including teammates!)
• Establish superior position to foremost in-play blocker
• Happens immediately if foremost blocker goes out of play

2: Gameplay

• Star Passes
• A star pass is complete when a Jammer releases the star into the Pivot’s grasp IF:
• Both are in bounds
• Both are upright
• Neither has been penalized
• The Pivot is wearing the stripe and In Play
• An ILLEGAL star pass is one that fails one of these.
• An INCOMPLETE star pass is when the Pivot gets the star some other way
• ALWAYS warn the Pivot unless the pass is successful! (“You are not the Jammer!”)
• Do not penalize in most cases. (Blocker can drop the star, Pivot can take it off)

2: Gameplay

• The Pack
• Largest group of skaters
• With members of both teams
• With no gaps bigger than 10 feet
• What if there isn’t one?
• “No Pack”
• What if there are two equal ones?
• “No Pack, Split!”

2: Gameplay

• Engagement Zone
• 20’ from the pack in either direction
• Only place it is legal for blockers to hit or be hit.
• Jammers are not allowed to hit blockers outside of the EZ.

3: Scoring

• A Jammer scores when they EARN a pass after their initial Trip.
• This includes:
• Passing opponents
• opponents skating back
• Not on the Track (NOTT) points
• There are no clever ways to avoid boing a point.
• Ahead of the EZ? Jammer gets your point at the end of the Trip. (That includes the end of the jam.)
• Behind the EZ? Jammer gets your point when they come back from the box ahead of you.
• Left the track and went to the snack bar? You’re an NOTT point.

3: Scoring

• Score Errors
• We can only fix errors from the previous jam
• In jam 6, we can still fix errors in jam 5
• In the jam 6 -> 7 lineup, we can no longer fix jam 5
• In the last two minutes, we can ONLY fix mistakes during lineups. (Call an OTO if you need one!)
• If points were right at the time, we don’t go back and change them
• Example: Official review results in a Jammer penalty in trip 1. Points in trips 1 and 2 still stand, because JR didn’t make a mistake by awarding them.��

5: Officiating

• Distinction
• Referees must be clearly distinguishable for regulation play.
• Get stripes with a name or number!
• (Vinyl patches are super sweaty.)

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5: Officiating

• Erroneous Information
• If an official gives a skater wrong information, we don’t penalize the skater
• Jammer who is being pointed at calling the jam
• Skater accidentally released from the box early. (But they still have to go finish)
• Warnings
• Skaters who are illegally positioned must be warned before being penalized
• Before the 5 second call, we MUST warn if:
• The skater is doing something penalty worthy (illegally positioned, too many skaters)
• They don’t appear to be doing it on purpose

4: Penalties

• Penalties require 3 “I”s
• Initiation
• Illegal-ness
• Impact

Penalties

• Initiation
• Who made the LAST choice that caused the contact?
• Not always the person moving the fastest!
• Every contact has an initiator
• Some have two!

Penalties

• Impact
• Standard examples:
• Putting an opponent Down
• Putting an opponent Out of Bounds
• Putting an opponent Out of Play
• Passing someone
• Preventing one of these from happening
• This is NOT a complete list!

Penalties – What you can’t hit

Penalties – What you can’t hit with

Penalties with No Impact Needed

• Forceful blocks to or with the head
• Forceful blocks to the back
• Deliberately positioning your head in the way of opponents
• Intentional jabbing with the knee or elbow

Penalties - Cutting

• Whenever a skater goes out of bounds they must re-enter behind:
• Anyone who was ahead of them when they went out (superior position)
• The skater (if any) who blocked them out (initiator)

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• Try to take a “snapshot” when a skater goes out to remember who had superior position.
• Skaters can lose superior position!
• Down, Out of Bounds, Out of Play, penalized…
• Skaters can get it back, UNLESS they are the initiator

Penalties – Cutting

• Details
• Cutting one teammate is illegal, but doesn’t have impact
• One hand out of bounds is still in
• “No Pack” does NOT affect cutting in any way

Penalties – Ceding cuts

• Unlike any other penalty, there’s always a way out!
• A skater who has cut may cede
• Must step completely off the track
• Must not do anything else before ceding
• Calling the jam is not ceding.

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• Important consequence:
• ALL cut calls must wait to see if the skater cedes.
• To teams, this can feel like most (if not all) cut calls are late

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Penalties – Direction

• It is illegal to initiate contact while stopped or moving clockwise.
• “Motion” is defined by the skates
• Do not call this if you don’t have a good angle

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• Secret Rule: it is illegal to hold yourself stopped and impede an opponent, even if you didn’t initiate
• This is not actually in the rules at present
• Everyone agrees it is illegal anyway, and calls it that way.

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• Remember that impact is still required!

Penalties – Illegal Contact

• In addition to moving clockwise, it is also illegal to initiate a block when either the initiator or the target is:
• Down
• Fully out of Bounds
• Out of Play (Out of Play Block does NOT require a warning)
• Impact is required for all of these.
• It is also illegal to initiate a block before or after the jam
• Fewer things are impactful in these cases

Halochic

Penalties – Multiplayer blocks

• Multiplayer blocks require three things:
• Two skaters are connected by a link, a grasp, or an impenetrable connection
• An opponent attempts to pass between the skaters who are linked
• That attempt fails because of the link

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• Why isn’t a standard tripod a multiplayer block?
• When would it become one?

Penalties – Pack Related Penalties

• Failure to Return: There’s a pack, and you’re not within 20’ of it.
• Requires a warning (usually)

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• Failure to Reform: There’s no pack, and you didn’t fix it.
• Requires a warning
• Most responsible skater (can be one from each team!)�
• Destruction: There’s no pack, and it’s your fault.
• ANY clockwise skating that causes a no pack!
• SUDDEN change in speed in derby direction that causes a no pack.

Penalties – Pack Related Penalties

• Warnings
• “No Pack!” – what it says
• “Pack is here!” – should be JUST AS LOUD
• “No Pack, Split!” – two equal groups with skaters from both teams.
• “Out of Play”

Penalties – Misconduct / Insubordination

• These are quite rare, fortunately
• One in particular to note:
• Avoidable, forceful contact to an official is an automatic expulsion.
• No option to downgrade to a penalty

Penalties – Delay of Game / Interference

• Delay of Game – Illegally preventing a jam from starting
• Failing to field a Jammer (penalty to the captain)
• Failing to field ANY blockers (penalty to the captain)
• Skater in queue not on the track (penalty to the skater)
• Successfully requesting a TTO or OR when either you don’t have any, or you aren’t the C or A.
• Injured skater back on the track at jam start (3 jam wait)
• Interference – Illegally causing a jam to end early
• Too many skaters
• Calling off the jam while not lead. (Exception if you were being pointed at)

Penalties – Illegal Procedures

• Misc
• Staying on the track too long after being called on a penalty. (Often called as Insubordination, but let’s not.)
• Leaving the box early
• Removing mouthguard during play

Questions?

• Smasher: dan@fnerk.com
• Demon: leighvh@gmail.com

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