BVOTM – Throbbing Whistle
Ladies and gentlemen, the latest BAD Volunteer of the Month is one of our officials, referee Throbbing Whistle! Whistle was nominated for his tireless effort in his second year as Bay Area Derby Girls' Interleague Officiating Coordinator. It's his job to work with the officiating heads from other leagues whenever Bay Area teams are playing them, whether at home or on the road. He is also the point of contact when nearby leagues just need a few extra bodies for their games. In short, as someone said when he was nominated, “He is the reason we can have interleague scrimmages, and the reason we have our officials at other scrimmages. He is on top of his [stuff].”
Whistle brings from the UK a curious love of hockey (it's not really a thing over there) and professional wrestling, has had more MRIs on his head than anyone I know (he claims for professional, not personal reasons), and according to a teammate, when he's drunk you can convince him to talk in an American accent.
Ladies and gentlemen, Throbbing Whistle!
What’s your gubmint name (the one on your birth certificate)?
Alex Beckett
How’d you get your derby name?
Throbbing Whistle, which is a play off of one of my favorite bands (Throbbing Gristle). I just made a big list of potential names when I started, and that was the least worst. Unfortunately not a lot of people get the reference, so I think it just sounds vaguely dirty.
What do you do when you’re not supporting the Bay Area Derby Girls?
In my day job I’m a neuroscience researcher at UC Berkeley, working with MRI machines. When I’m not doing that, I mainly spend my time watching hockey, baseball and pro-wrestling.
How did you become involved with our league? How long have you been with us?
I moved here for work from the UK and transferred to BAD. This will be my 3rd season with the league.
Do you have a favorite derby moment or one thing you are most proud of?
I just got my level 2 WFTDA referee certification, which was a pretty big milestone for me. Getting to officiate at the Golden Bowl at the Craneway last year was also pretty special.
If you had one super power what would it be? Would you use it for good or evil?
Right now I would definitely go for the powers of Jamie Madrox, the Multiple Man, and be able to create multiple copies of myself so i can make a dent in this ever growing to-do list, which I guess would be using it for a very narrow, selfish good.
Where would you love to live, if not in the Bay Area?
There’s a ton of places in the US I’d like to live in at some point, current top of the list is probably Chicago (though maybe not in the winter…).
Who’s your derby crush?
Every single BAD Official has a special place in my heart. [author’s note: d’awwwwww…….]
What’s your personal goal for 2015 (derby or otherwise)?
Keep improving as an official, officiate some cool tournaments, see more of the great state of California.