The women of the Flathead Valley Roller Derby League have made quite a name for themselves in just three years, and not only for their feisty, flamboyant style.

Three of the Flathead’s Big Mountain Misfits recently achieved regional and state attention.

Leah Michael, whose roller derby persona is Lady Viper, was named the Montana Roller Derby Most Valuable Player through an online voting poll that assembles an all-star team from a four-state region, including Montana, Washington, Oregon and Idaho. In addition to the MVP honor, Lady Viper was named to the starting lineup for the Northwest All-Star Team.

Glenna Bergland — Glennacide when she’s on the track — earned a place on the roster for the all-stars, while teammate Tara Nelson, whose moniker is Taralady Up: aka Skatey Perry, is an alternate for the all-star roster.

The online voting was conducted through the website examiner.com, which touts itself as an inside source for recreation, arts and entertainment, lifestyle and other topics.

Montana roller derby players who nominated Michael for MVP gushed on the website about her skills.

“She is roller derby,” Doc Foul A Day wrote. “She gives her heart out there, then snatches it back with a check to the sternum to let you know you still have yours ... eyeballin’ you, telling you to use it.”

Boogie Fights said she doesn’t think there’s another player in Montana that’s more dedicated than Michael.

“She is a huge asset to the derby world ... I know our league wouldn’t be what it is if she weren’t with us,” Boogie Fights noted.

Flathead Valley Roller Derby Coach Lisa Pooler, known in the league as Scarley Davidson, said Michael can play any position, blocker or jammer, and brings no ego to the track.

“She is the heart and soul of our league and keeps pushing us to be better skaters, coaches, refs and NSOs (non-skating officials),” Pooler said.

She also had praise for Nelson, calling her fast and agile, and for Bergland, a “hard hitter and a tough girl.”

Pooler is one of the founding members of Flathead Valley Roller Derby. To accommodate a degenerative disk problem in her back, she switched from playing the sport to coaching. She still skates, though, and referees when the Misfits aren’t playing as a team.

Roller derby melds sport and entertainment to create a venue in which women, with their wild track personas, skate around an oval track to score points against the opposing team. Each team sends five women on the track, with each group consisting of a scoring position called a jammer, three blockers and a pivot position.

Opposing jammers score points by working their way through the pack of blockers, scoring one point for each opposing skater passed.

The Misfits have a core group of about 25 skaters, sometimes a few more. The group still has plans to start a junior league for players younger than 18.

The season runs from October through March, with nine games on tap this season. They have one home game every month, plus an away game every other month.

New rules this year could make it interesting, Pooler said. Instead of issuing minor penalties — four minor penalties prompt a one-minute time-out penalty — all penalties will be considered major. That means a trip to the penalty box for each infraction.

Flathead Valley Roller Derby prides itself on giving back to the community.

A percentage of home game ticket proceeds is given directly to local charities. Among the local beneficiaries of the derby’s generosity have been the Boys and Girls Club of Glacier Country, Samaritan House, Flathead Food Bank, Abbie Shelter, and the Kalispell chapter of the Montana Autism Society of America.

The team currently is conducting a fundraiser, selling $5 chances on a $500 Linex gift certificate and desktop computer system valued at $1,300. Derby girls will sell tickets at Walmart on Saturday and at tonight’s match at the Flathead County fairgrounds. Winners will drawn April 6.

Features editor Lynnette Hintze may be reached at 758-4421 or by email at lhintze@dailyinterlake.com.