Jacksonville RollerGirls

Jacksonville RollerGirls
League logo
Metro area Jacksonville, Florida
Country United States
Founded 2006
Teams New Jax City Rollers (all-star)
River City Rat Pack (B team)
J-Villains (C team)
Duval Derby Dames (home team)
First Coast Fatales (home team)
Bold City Bombshells (home team)
Track type(s) Flat
Venue various
Affiliations WFTDA (South Central Region)
Org. type skater-owned
Website JacksonvilleRollerGirls.com

The Jacksonville RollerGirls is a flat track roller derby league based in Jacksonville, Florida, (USA). Originally formed as the First Coast Fatales,[1] the league changed to its current name in 2007.

The League

The Jacksonville RollerGirls consists of six teams that play within the league and compete with other teams in surrounding areas.[2] The travel teams are the New Jax City Rollers (all-star team), River City Rat Pack (B team), and J-Villains (C team). Each of the skaters on the travel teams are also drafted to a home team. The home teams are the First Coast Fatales, Duval Derby Dames, and Bold City Bombshells. They practice and bout at the Mandarin Skate Station.[3][4] The J-Villains and Bold City Bombshells teams were added at the end of the 2013 season due to the growing numbers of skaters joining the league. JRG now has over 95 league members. They hold a recruitment night each quarter. The recruitment nights for the 2014 season are February 12, May 21, and August 20. At each recruitment event, new skaters, non-skating officials(NSOs), and referees are introduced to the sport and encouraged to try it out.

Skaters follow a rigorous training program, Fresh Meat, where they are not even required to know how to skate. They learn how to safely and effectively skate, fall, stop, block, and hit. After an average of three months and upon completion of the program, skaters are cleared for contact. This allows skaters to not only scrimmage with the rest of the league at practices, but skaters can also begin competing in bouts.

Team schedules vary for home and travel teams. The Home Team's Schedule can be found here.

JRG bouts have aired weekly on CW17 beginning September 25, 2010 . You can watch JRG on CW17 on weekends at 10:30 p.m. Some games are even available for viewing in their entirety online.

During the 2008 season, the Jacksonville RollerGirls entered into a working relationship with a new league in Gainesville, Florida, the Gainesville Roller Rebels. Together, the two leagues presented 2 bouts in Jacksonville, and one in Gainesville, mixing skaters from either league onto each team.[5][6]

The New Jax City Rollers all-star team finished fourth place in the Sunshine Skate 2008 state tournament in Tampa, Florida.[7] In 2009, the New Jax City Rollers competed in the Sunshine Skate 2009 state tournament, but were eliminated within the first day of competition.

In the 2014 season, the New Jax City Rollers made derby history when it was announced they were ranked 15th in WTFDA. The Duval's finest ladies have worked hard for their spot in the rankings and continue to strive to climb the charts.

This season alone, New Jax took home three wins at Spring Roll in Indiana held May 16–18 against Toronto, Cincinnati, and Jet City. They also won all three games at Franky Panky held in Tampa, Florida against Columbia Quad Squad, Charm City, and Tampa.

The Jacksonville RollerGirls compete by the widely adopted rules of the Women's Flat Track Derby Association.

Among roller derby leagues in the Southeast, the Jacksonville RollerGirls have earned a reputation for hitting hard, playing strong despite the score, and then showing fine hospitality and sportsmanship by partying and celebrating with friends, fans, and the opposing team well into the night.[8]

Owing to their image and reputation, the Jacksonville RollerGirls were voted "Best Local Cult" by readers of Folio Weekly.[9]

Season Q4 ranking[10] Regionals Championship
2011 11 DNQ DNQ

Community

The Jacksonville RollerGirls regularly make appearances at local events, and volunteer time, labor, and goods for community organizations, including The Blood Alliance, Wolfson Children's Hospital, and Susan G. Komen for the Cure.[11]

In January 2008, the league hosted two screenings of Hell on Wheels (2007 film)[12] at the San Marco Theater.

Duuuval!

The Jacksonville RollerGirls adopted the slogan and battle cry "Duuuval!" in admiration of the league's home county, Duval. You may have seen a few hundred "I <3 Duval" car decals on the back of skaters' vehicles.

References

  1. ↑ "Roller derby rolls in Jax". Unf.edu. 2006-11-15. Retrieved 2011-08-02.
  2. ↑ "Jacksonville RollerGirls". Jacksonville.about.com. 2011-04-07. Retrieved 2011-08-02.
  3. ↑ "You Roll, Girl". webcache.googleusercontent.com. Retrieved 2011-08-02.
  4. ↑ David ChapmanStaff Writer (2008-06-20). "Another good crowd makes a scene". Jaxdailyrecord.com. Retrieved 2011-08-02.
  5. ↑ "At fair, roller girls put on show". Gainesville.com. 2008-07-14. Retrieved 2011-08-02.
  6. ↑ "RollerGirls Heroes vs. Villains". Photos.mymandarinsun.com. 2008-08-26. Retrieved 2011-08-02.
  7. ↑ Keith Morelli. "With A Roller Derby Finale, Fair Attendance Nears Record". .tbo.com. Retrieved 2011-08-02.
  8. ↑ "New Jax City Rollers: Tough chicks on skates". Jacksonville.com. 2007-08-24. Retrieved 2011-08-02.
  9. ↑ Folio Weekly Best of Jax '08 issue
  10. ↑ "Current Rankings", WFTDA
  11. ↑ "Jacksonville RollerGirls skate in Komen Race for The Cure". Youtube.com. 2008-10-18. Retrieved 2011-08-02.
  12. ↑ "Website for Hell on Wheels (2007 film)". Hellonwheelsthemovie.com. Retrieved 2011-08-02.

External links

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