Dirty Secrets first post! How exciting :)

I've decided to keep a weblog of my training, injuries, practices, bouts, pr events, travel & life as a modern day derby girl. I've been doing this for almost 3 years, come February and I can say honestly that it has taken me just about that long, to really understand why I continue to stay and play.


I'm not a writer by profession, however, I thought it would be great to have a log, and share it with other like minds, and voyeur's who may be interested in derby, or playing derby, but want to know more about exactly what it takes to form a league, skate, train & build the business of modern day non-profit flat track, derby association with the goal of being WFTDA (Women's Flat Track Derby Association) certified.


Our league started from scratch. Approximately 30 girls attended the first meeting (which I could not attend). I was hesitant. I wasn't sure I really wanted to play roller derby, but it seemed exciting. Then I went to the second practice, and I loved it. I found that I knew several of the girls already, and met so many new faces.


At first we just haphazardly formed committees, through appointments. We had committees such as, training, sponsorship, creative, pr, bout production, events & fundraising, community service. Over time, along with the learning process of structure, we've almost fine tuned our structure to a smooth working entity, with a good chain of command and process flow.

We've come across roadblocks, where very few fellow leagues were generous in handing out their 'secrets' for sake of competition. It is almost like a mother, trying to teach their child to walk with a 'do it yourself' mentality. Don't give up necessary knowledge needed to be successful, instead, let us fall a few times, watch us make mistakes, and once the mother watches you fall, then get up, fall, then get up, and finally start walking... the mother senses a proud feeling. Then she gives us tips, but only enough to help us grow.

I feel comfortable saying that building a roller derby league from scratch is difficult. We have a lot to be thankful for. Other 'fresh' leagues around us, that offered us guidance and improvement. It's really an amazing feat, instances where many leagues fail, and others succeed is more common than not.

It's a learning process.

I feel that's a good insight into the business aspect of building a league. My next post will be about the physical & mental work that goes into it. Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoy the journey.