It's 'a labour of love' on and off the rink as Ontario roller derby team preps for playoffs in U.S.

For Hamilton resident Jane Hutton, getting to roller derby practice in Kitchener-Waterloo, Ont., is "an ordeal," but worth it. 

"I love playing. I love the community," Hutton said.

Hutton played for the local Hammer City Roller Derby team for three years before switching to the more competitive Kitchener-Waterloo, Ont., team, Tri-City Thunder, in 2015.

Playing the sport lets the normally shy Hutton show a different side of herself, and it's connected her to a close-knit group of players and volunteers.

Hutton's teammate Christie Henderson likens the team to a family. For Hutton, that's literally true. She met her partner and current teammate Emily Ashfield on the team and now the two have a baby.

So now, every week, they make the one-hour trek down Highway 6, drop their child and dogs off with Ashfield's parents and hit the rink.

This season, the team wants all the practice it can get. Tri-City Thunder recently ranked 12th in the North America Northeast Region of the Women's Flat-Track Derby Association. The top 12 teams in that division of 136 include Montreal Sexpo and Montreal Skids, as well as nine U.S. teams.

Those teams will compete in regional playoffs at State College in Pennsylvania on the May long weekend.  

Tri-City Thunder is fundraising with a GoFundMe campaign, and a bottle and can drive to cover travel costs. Theirs, like many derby leagues, is volunteer-run, with players coaching, setting up, scheduling and doing paperwork.

The team has players from around southern Ontario, including the Bruce Peninsula and Toronto. Nine players are from the Hamilton and Niagara area, as well as one coach. 

"We're doing everything from tracking attendance to making sure that our rosters are ready to go," Burlington, Ont.,