The Okanagan Roller Derby Association season starts Saturday, March 14, at the Central Sports Club, 1155 Ellis St., in Kelowna.
The opening match will see the Bad Apple Betties from Kelowna taking on the Penticton Pisterolas.
Tickets are $10 with children with free admission for those age 10 and under. Tickets and can be purchased in advance from your local roller girl team member or Leo’s Video, or at the door.
Doors open at 6:30 p.m. and first whistle blows at 7 p.m.
“We are really excited to be back for our 2015 season after training all winter. Our fans will be proud of how our skills have grown since the end of our 2014 season, creating for a more exciting game to watch,” said ORDA president Scott Cooper, also known in local roller derby circles as ‘Billie da Skid.’
“Watching this sport is a great way to spend your Saturday night here in Kelowna, we are a family friendly sport with some of our league’s biggest fans being the children of our players. Roller Derby is the fastest growing women’s sport in the world with tens of thousands of players taking part in this fast paced game and over 1,000 women’s leagues in over 36 countries,” he said.
“Roller derby is a contact sport based on formation roller skating around an oval track by two teams. Points are scored when the designated scoring player (the “jammer”) of a given team laps members of the opposing team; hence offense and defense typically occur simultaneously. ”
Cooper says one of the great things about roller derby is that anyone can play. “Our teams are composed of women of many different skill levels and body shapes for that matter. Roller derby is one of the only sports that welcomes everyone despite age, shape, personality, or ability,” he said.
“Our players ages range from women in their early 20’s to late 40’s, and we are graphic designers, yoga instructors, university students, stay at home moms, massage therapists.”
The Okanagan Roller Derby league is a 100% skater-owned and operated all female flat-track roller derby league based in Kelowna. The OKRDA is the Okanagan’s first flat track roller derby league, founded in 2009 with a contingent now of more than 60 skaters.
For more information on the league visit okrda.ca.
