The grit and grace of roller derby

(Sean Hale) The man who first invented the game back in 1935 had the novel idea to invite women to compete in what was initially an endurance race. Sure, it was a marketing ploy to sell tickets, but it inspired an indelible connection between women and what evolved to become a fast-paced, decidedly contact sport.Today, female amateur teams dominate roller derby tracks around the globe.

(Sean Hale)

(Sean Hale) For the uninitiated, roller derby seems less sport and more brutal spectacle. Tattooed women in fishnets and tutus, strapped into disco-era roller skates, whip around a track while trying to hip-check their opponents out of bounds. But, as photographer Sean Hale says, that misfit image is becoming more and more a part of the sport's past.In today's fast-paced games, the athletes have swapped spectacle for skill."With every passing year, more of the attention on the outrageous elements has shifted to strategy, cross-training, studying film, and derby teams coming out in one uniform," he says. "As the derby stretched around the world, the best teams really had to give over their lives and make this sport their number one priority."

(Sean Hale)

(Sean Hale) The New Jersey native was introduced to the sport in 2008 when a friend, who skated under the name Lawless Lizzie, asked him to photograph her team, the Morristown Madams."I was greeted with the cacophony of old-fashioned quad skates, fishnets, big hits, and plaid skirts," he says. “It was a manic blur of strong women carving out their own identities on a track."Hale was hooked, and he has been photographing derby games around New York and New Jersey, as well as internationally, ever since.

(Sean Hale) Last year, Hale even jumped into the action, coaching (under the name Hale Yeah) one of the Garden State Rollergirls' teams, the Brick City Bruisers, and, on occasion, the Ironbound Maidens."The experience has made me even more aware of elements of the sport I may have otherwise missed as a photographer," he says. "[Coaching] has helped me focus on the quieter moments of this great sport."

(Sean Hale)

(Sean Hale) "While capturing the non-stop action is a challenge and a joy, the private moments, like this one of Devoida Mercy (below) getting centered for the game ahead, are truly special," he says.

(Sean Hale) **To see more of Sean Hale's roller derby photographs, check out his website or follow him on Facebook and on Instagram**