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Roller Derby

Jun
11

Rollerball: Austin Style

Austin has plenty of things that come to mind when people think of the area. Music, culture and just plain being eccentric are some of the things that the area is best known for, but Austin has one thing to offer that many people overlook - Roller Derby. Austin is home to some of the roughest and toughest derby skaters that the world has ever seen and the shocking thing is that they are all women.

Roller derbies were once very popular, all over the country, but in the past couple of decades seemed to completely disappear from plain view. There was a brief period in the 1990’s, where there were late night television programs that were something of a nationwide hit, featuring the roller derby, but it was never a mainstream sport, as it was in the 50’s and 60’s. That is, until a group of women in Austin took in upon themselves to revive the roller derby in 2001.

Roller derby, on today’s terms, was revived by a group of women in Austin, who began skating competitively on regular roller rinks, with taped off lanes. The flat track roller derby took off, growing dramatically throughout community arenas and neighborhood roller rinks over the next couple of years. About 2003 saw the return of the banked track roller derby, adding a bigger edge of excitement to the sport. There are now two main banked track roller derby leagues in the city, with several teams in each league, as well as a number of flat track leagues. Though there are leagues available that are co-ed or for men, the main focus in Austin is on the ladies.

The best known of the flat track roller derby leagues is the Texas Rollergirls. There are five teams included in the league and teams face off against each other on the rink, plus travel the country, competing with other roller derby leagues. The league is a part of the Women’s Fast Track Derby Association. The most popular banked track roller derby league is the TXRD Lonestar Rollergirls. This league is comprised of seven featured teams, competing amongst themselves in the months of January through August. They operate under their own set of rules and regulations, as this league is controlled by the skaters, themselves.

The ladies of Texas roller derby are all business when it comes to their sport. They are rough, tough and wild, doing whatever it takes to assure their team comes out of each bout on top. Don’t be surprised to see punches thrown, hair pulled, and blood shed when you attend a roller derby even in Austin. In fact, it would be more surprising if their wasn’t any. Taking part in a roller derby is much more intense than racing your buddies around the local roller rink at the free-skate on Friday night, back in the 80’s. Texas roller derby is a serious sport that is fun to watch, but not for the fainthearted to play.

About the Author

About the Author:
Joe Cline writes articles for Seven Oaks real estate. Other articles written by the author related to Round Rock real estate and Austin Real Estate can be found on the net.

Roller Derby Revival