Tag: WFTDA

WFTDA Adds 17 Member Leagues

On December 23rd, the Keweenaw Roller Girls were given a fabulous gift. We were announced as one of the 17 additional leagues to be accepted into the Women’s Flat Track Derby Association following successful completion of the WFTDA Apprentice Program.

As new members we can now enjoy the benefits of full WFTDA membership, including competing in sanctioned games, attending the WFTDA Annual Meeting and becoming eligible for rankings. This group of new members includes leagues from Europe, North America, South America, and New Zealand.

The WFTDA now has 397 member leagues and 48 apprentice leagues world wide.

  • Kingston Derby Girls – Kingston, Ontario, Canada
  • Traverse City Roller Derby – Traverse City, Michigan, USA
  • Bogotá Bone Breakers – Bogotá, Colombia
  • Dunedin Derby – Dunedin, New Zealand
  • Keweenaw Roller Girls – Hancock, Michigan, USA
  • Free State Roller Derby – Rockville, Maryland, USA
  • Rocky View Roller Derby Association – Airdrie, Alberta, Canada
  • Roller Derby Caen – Caen, France
  • Cape Girardeau Roller Derby – Cape Girardeau, Missouri, USA
  • High Altitude Roller Derby – Flagstaff, Arizona, USA
  • York City Derby Dames – York, Pennsylvania, USA
  • Orlando Psycho City Derby Girls – Orlando, Florida, USA
  • Sitka Sound Slayers – Sitka, Alaska, USA
  • South Shore Roller Girls – Hammond, Indiana, USA
  • Twin State Derby – White River Junction, Vermont, USA
  • Dom City Dolls – Utrecht, Netherlands
  • Maui Roller Girls – Kahului, Hawaii, USA

The Keweenaw Roller Girls are absolutely ecstatic to be recognized as a full member league and are eager for the year ahead. We are so proud to be amongst those who have paved the way for the successes of this great sport.

Congratulations to our fellow graduates and especially to Traverse City Roller Derby! Roller derby in the state of Michigan is stronger than ever!

May all of our New Years be fruitful and bright!

And we begin another revolution…

Revolution is what we know. It’s in our blood and is wired into our brains. We learn it as kids when we play; riding bikes, rolling a ball down a hill, hula-hooping. It’s more or less what makes the world happen. The Earth does it’s thing around the Sun, and everything else follows suit. It only makes sense that we find ourselves so familiar with the concept, and naturally attracted to roller derby, content to orbit in it’s atmosphere.

Revolution has many meanings, and most all apply to life in roller derby.
Merriam-Webster states:

Full Definition of REVOLUTION

1

a (1) :  the action by a celestial body of going round in an orbit or elliptical course; also :  apparent movement of such a body round the earth (2) :  the time taken by a celestial body to make a complete round in its orbit (3) :  the rotation of a celestial body on its axis

b :  completion of a course (as of years); also :  the period made by the regular succession of a measure of time or by a succession of similar events

c (1) :  a progressive motion of a body around an axis so that any line of the body parallel to the axis returns to its initial position while remaining parallel to the axis in transit and usually at a constant distance from it (2) :  motion of any figure about a center or axis <revolution of a right triangle about one of its legs generates a cone> (3) :  rotation 1b

2

a :  a sudden, radical, or complete change

b :  a fundamental change in political organization; especially :  the overthrow or renunciation of one government or ruler and the substitution of another by the governed

c :  activity or movement designed to effect fundamental changes in the socioeconomic situation

d :  a fundamental change in the way of thinking about or visualizing something :  a change of paradigm <the Copernican revolution>

e :  a changeover in use or preference especially in technology <the computer revolution> <the foreign car revolution>

Certain parts of this definition stand out to me, particularly the “change” aspect, “motion,” “completion,” and “returning.” Philosophical as it may be, these aspects are very much witnessed when you’ve been around the derby culture for awhile, long enough to see a revolution. Each season bring new components, new people, new life. We being another revolution every time. New skaters move forward, progress in physical skill, overcome ideas of themselves and what they’re capable of. As they move forward and complete their own revolutions, both literally and figuratively, they return back to the beginning, having been changed in the process.

And that’s where we are now; again. We’re now going in to our fifth rendition of our training program for new skaters. Some of us are still around from the beginning, some were rookies this last year, but all of us have completed our revolutions. We’ve grown individually and together, and now get to witness and guide the beginning of new revolutions. Tonight we will have the honor or introducing these new gals to the joy of this sport, what it means to be tried, and to be examples of what it means to prevail over ourselves and our previous conceptions. When we look back from one year from now, I hope we can all see our evolution in all the revolutions.

Wrath and Hoppe

3rd Annual Solar System Smackdown!

Come see the final battle of the year at KRG’s 3rd Annual Solar System Smackdown THIS SATURDAY, August 15th! More than 30 skaters from 8 different leagues will be coming together for an all out galactic brawl to bring this season to a close.

Marking the conclusion of two years on the flat track, the Keweenaw Roller Girls bring to you this years challenger: Uranus United! This team is made up of all the sass Uranus can handle! Welcoming skaters from the Keweenaw Roller Girls, Mad Wreckin’ Dolls, Dead River Derby, Paper Valley Roller Girls, Oakland County Roller Derby and Chippewa Valley Roller Girls!

And the two time reining champs: Venus Vixens! Fielding skaters from as far away as Rockford, IL, this team is made up of some the finest skaters from the Keweenaw Roller Girls, Rockford Rage, Mad Wreckin’ Dolls, Paper Valley Roller Girls, Dead River Derby and Lansing Derby Vixens! Can this team kick Uranus and hold onto the title, or will they be cast out like Pluto?

KRG becomes a WFTDA Apprentice League

We are incredibly excited and proud to announce that KRG has been accepted as an apprentice league to the Women’s Flat Track Derby Association. This means that we are now officially a member of the wider, international roller derby community (seriously, check out this list of new leagues, roller derby is taking over THE WORLD!). We’ll have access to lots of new resources that will help us up our game and bring you the best derby we can. Thank you so much to the skaters, volunteers, and fans who have made this all possible. We can’t wait to continue growing with you. Much derby love!